Welcome Spring?

I can't believe we were off on Friday....ugh!  I'm so done with winter, aren't you?  Well...we had a wonderful week and I'd like to tell you about it!

SCIENCE
We finished up our Chemical Tests unit with a special agriculture lesson with Mr. Kidd.  We met in the faculty lounge and learned about how chemical reactions occur when making pickles!  We read, discussed, created "virtual pickles," and then watched as Mr. Kidd actually made pickles...we saw the chemical reaction right before our eyes.  Our pickles have been in the refrigerator for a week and we will get to try them this coming week!  Take a peek....

MATH

This past week we worked with measurement...all sorts of measurement!  We're measuring objects to the nearest 1/4 inch, we're using balance scales to measure the mass of objects in grams and kilograms, and we began the discussion of liquid capacity...we will do some actual measuring of liquids this coming week using milliliters and liters.  

LANGUAGE ARTS
I am really enjoying reading The Borrowers with your kids!!  Our discussions are awesome...the kids are working really hard using evidence when supporting their thinking vs. using speculation.  That's a really hard mindset to work against.  They have such amazing imaginations...so they have to be pushed to go back into the text and find something to prove their thinking...not what they think the characters might be thinking!  I work with groups of six or seven at a time, so I'm able to really see their understanding...while I'm working with groups the others are either Reading for Stamina, completing a Reader's Response, or reading Social Studies texts and answering comprehension questions...things like that.  It is my goal to get finished with the book in the next week...may be tough, but that's our goal!

SOCIAL STUDIES
So we are headed into a new unit that focuses on cultures around the world, immigration, and government.  This will all lead into our Biography unit where we all will pick a person who has made a positive impact on our country...but we have a ways to go before we get to that point!  Keep your eyes out for a project about your family's culture...I know what you're thinking...another project?  You were fairly lucky to escape "at home" projects the first half of the year...now two in a row...SORRY!!  They will have almost a month to complete this project... and it will be assigned this week.

SCIENCE FAIR
Speaking of projects...your kids hit it OUT OF THE PARK!!  WOW!! WOW!!  Their projects were amazing...and they did such a fantastic job sharing them with us.  Now I want to share them with you!

BYOD
Well...the first three days went fairly well...a few snags, but its a learning curve and we are learning together.  I would like your kids to keep bringing their devices daily if that works for you.  I completely respect if you change your mind and I will make sure your child has a device to use.  This past week the kids worked on two different Google Classroom assignments, one of which involved two video clips.  I'm pleased to say they all worked!  We did find a few different sites that will not work on some devices, so we're working around those.  Feel free to send me an email if you have any further questions.

Have a great week!!

An Epic Pi Day

Click on the link below to see how we celebrated Pi Day this year!  

An Epic Pi Day

Promised Pictures.....

SCIENCE IS SOOOO COOL....

Ask your child why the "orange" mystery powder had such a drastic color change when iodine was added to the powder.  (Iodine is an indicator of starch...and color indicates a chemical change occurred!)  There reactions were FANTASTIC!

Speaking of fantastic...our room parents, Mrs. Petrolle and Mrs. Foster sure do know how to throw a good Valentine's Day party!  The kids loved the ice cream buffet and the amazing pillow craft!  Thanks to our room parents and all of the parent volunteers that came and participated.

Once a week we get seven chromebooks for the day (we share seven with the third grade team.)  So during LA rotations and Math rotations on Wednesdays, one rotation is a learning activity on the chromebooks.  Once we have BYOD up and running, we will get to use technology when we need to...not just on Wednesdays!  They LOVE technology.  And I love the resources available to us for education!

A WHILE back we hit the 100th day of school....as third graders, we don't do a lot around that day, but I asked the kids to think about what life would be like 100 years from now...there were lots of different and creative ideas...but this was one of my personal favorites and a great way to end this post.  We can only hope...

Maybe a full week ahead!?!?!?!

Do you think it's possible?  I can only hope we are in school for five full days!!

There is so much going on...so here is the latest update for all of you...and I definitely owe you a post of pictures...we'll see if that happens tonight!  I have to share the computer at our house!

SCIENCE FAIR
So...I have set up all of these Science Fair due dates just to help the kids stay on track...tomorrow the data collection/graphs/etc are due...however, if your child hasn't conducted the research yet, then obviously he/she can't bring it in.  That's OK...again, these due dates are for time management so that you are not left doing the entire project the last weekend!  ;-)  I shared some graphing websites with the kids and they are bookmarked on the blog, so feel free to visit them to organize their data.

Our Science Fair is set for Wednesday, March 18th...and that is why the kids' projects are due the Monday before...that way the kids can present their projects to the class prior to being set up in the cafeteria.  Please have your child practice telling us about their project so that they are not reading off their boards.  Any questions...email me or ask your child...we will talk about this in class, too!

BYOD
As you all know by now, this Wednesday I am holding a BYOD meeting in my classroom from 5-5:30 pm.  You are welcome to bring your child and/or their device to the meeting. This is just an information meeting where I will share some of the things we'll be doing with the devices and answer any questions you have.  If you are unable to come, I will send the powerpoint to the entire email list after the meeting.  Feel free to email me with questions.

PARCC
We are starting Day 3 of testing tomorrow.  Please ensure that the next three evenings your kids get an especially good night's sleep and eat a good breakfast each morning.  They did a great job the first two days and I'm very proud of them.  There will not be any homework (other than the Science Fair) this week until testing is over.  They are using their brains at 150% for 75 minutes straight each day and they need to play and rest once they leave here.  A HUGE thank you to Mrs. Petrolle for supplying the kids with yummy snacks each day of testing.  The kids are thoroughly enjoying them!

Silent Auction Basket
Speaking of thanking parents, our other room parent, Mrs. Foster, is organizing our Silent Auction class basket.  The donations are already due, however if you meant to donate and forgot, please send it in soon so that Mrs. Foster can complete the task.  Thank you Mrs. Foster for your hard work!  And thank you to everyone who was able to donate!

LIFE AFTER TESTING....because there IS such a thing!
We will be finishing our novel unit and then move into reading for information/research with a focus on biographies of people who have made an impact on our country.  More to come about this!

In math we will be working with mass, liquid capacity, and volume.  We will do some conceptual work and then move into one of the Mcubed units written especially for gifted kids!

We are finishing all lower case cursive letters and will hightail it into capital letters.  I will slowly ask for some activities to be completed in cursive...

And in writing our focus continues to be opinion writing.  The kids are indentifying a topic they feel strongly about and will work to write an opinion essay using new ideas and strategies they glean from Lucy Calkins mini lessons.

I will begin working on the picture post, however my oldest just told me he has to write a paper, so if I don't get it posted tonight, I will tomorrow.  I hope you enjoyed your four day weekend!  I'm so ready to get back into a routine and STAY THERE!