Third Grade News

Dear Third Grade Families,

          February has been a busy month in third grade.  I am so proud of our class for all of the hard work and effort that they are putting into memorizing the multiplication facts. The students of Room 15 rock!  This morning, we updated the multiplication table below by shading in the Half Ten Plus One More Set Facts (x 6 facts).  When we looked at the updated multiplication table below, we could see that there are only nine facts left to learn!

          So what's our next step?  It's time to learn  the x 7 facts! It's interesting that the x 7 facts are the only set of facts that are not given a special name based on a certain strategy.   Perhaps this is because there are several ways to solve the different x 7 facts.  Here are two strategies that your child might use to solve the x 7 facts. Both strategies are based on using a known fact to solve an unknown fact.  

Strategy 1:  Use a x 5 fact and a x 2 fact.

What is the product of 7 groups of 8  or 7 x 8?

Step one - I know that 5 groups of 8 (5 x 8) equals 40.                            5 x 8 = 40

Step two - I know that 2 more groups of 8 (2 x 8) equals 16.                   2 x 8 = 16

Step three - Add the products to find the product of 7 groups of 8.         40 + 16 = 56

                                                                                                           So... 7 x 8 = 56

Strategy 2:  Start with a x 6 fact and add one more set.

What is the product of 7 groups of 8  or 7 x 8?

Step one - I know that 6 groups of 8 (6 x 8) equals 48.                                   6 x 8 = 48

Step two - I need one more group of 8 to have seven groups of 8.                 48 + 8 = 56 

                                                                                                                So...  7 x 8 = 56

         Keep up the great work of practicing the multiplication facts at home!  We are in the home stretch with only nine new facts to learn!  Way to go, third graders!  Thanks to all family members for helping your students to practice at home.  Please let me know if you need your child's username and password for www.IXL.com. It's a great site to go to for multiplication fact practice.  

          Third graders will be going to the Flynn Theater to see Frindle on March 3, 2016.  The play is based on the book Frindle, written by Andrew Clements.  It's a wonderful book about a clever boy who invents a new word.  The bus will leave at 8:45 AM, and we will return close to 11:00 AM. Unfortunately, extra tickets are not available for family members to attend this field trip. 

          This week, a representative from the Flynn came to our classroom to introduce students to the script for the play based on Frindle. We practiced using our bodies and facial expressions to convey emotions.  Students had fun reading parts from the official script for the play.

          We had a great time at our Farm to School lesson this month.  Miss Lizzie helped us to learn about the difference between natural sugar and added sugar.  We read nutrition labels and measured out the amounts of sugar added to popular junk foods. Students pedaled the blender bicycle to make fruit smoothies, too!

          We had a great time at our Valentine's Day party!  Thank you to our "Room Parents," Verity Lattrelle and Jennifer Roberts, for organizing the food and crafts!  A big thanks to all families who contributed items for the party, too!  

          Please encourage your child to read each day throughout the vacation.  When you reach for a book, magazine, or newspaper, encourage your child to take some time to read, too.  Ask your child to read to you while you're cooking dinner or before he/she has video game time.  Ask your child to tell you the "5 W's" when he/she finishes reading (Who? Did what? Where? When? Why?).

         I hope that you enjoy a fun and restful February break!  Thanks for all you do to prepare your child for school each day!

Sincerely,

Keelin M. Simpson

Third Grade News

Dear Third Grade Families,

Third graders are having a great February so far with Crazy Hair Day and Popcorn Friday both in the first week of the month.  Fun!

This week we have been busy revising, editing, and typing our nonfiction books. We are excited to share our writing with you soon!

Third grade readers are reading nonfiction books in their book groups.  We are reading about whales, sharks, and frogs. Students are learning to ask and answer questions to demonstrate their understanding of a text.  They are able to find information in the text to support their answers.  Also, readers are working on determining the main idea of a passage and finding details within the passage that support the main idea.

Room 15 is full of hard working mathematicians! We have been working towards memorizing the multiplication facts, and students are making terrific progress!  So far, students have been assigned to memorize the x 0, x 1, x 2, x 3, x 4, x 5, and x 10 facts.  We took a look at all of our hard work on the multiplication table below, and we cheered about what the chart reveals!

The facts we have learned are colored in.  The facts that we have left to learn are white.  There are only 16 facts left to be memorized!!!

This week our goal is to learn the x 6 facts. We call the x 6 facts "Half Tens Plus One Set Facts."  The x 6 facts are named that way because of a strategy that can be used to solve them.  This strategy involves using a known fact, a x 5 fact, to solve a x 6 fact.  Here's how it works: 

What is the product of 6 x 8?

Step 1  -  I'll start with a fact I know.   10 groups of 8  = 80.                  10 x 8 = 80.

Step 2 -   From there, I can figure out that 5 x 8 is half of 80.                  5 x 8 = 40

Step 3 -   6 groups of 8 is just one more set of 8 than 5 x 8.                      6 x 8 = 40 + 8 = 48

(If you know your x 5 facts, then you can start on the second step.  5 x 8 = 40, so 6 x 8 = 40 + 8).

Help your child to practice at home. Make a set of flashcards or buy a box at the grocery store.  Play the multiplication games that were sent home or remind your child to log in  at www.ixl.com and practice the multiplication facts.  Write the most challenging facts on Post-it notes and stick them on the fridge, the bathroom mirror, or a living room end table where they'll be seen more frequently. Practicing for 5 to ten minutes each night will make a big difference.  Keep up the great work, third graders!!!

Our class is having a card exchange on Friday, February 12, in celebration of Valentine's Day. If your child would like to participate in the exchange, he/she is asked to make a card for each person in our class.  A class list of names was sent home in your child's Friday folder today.  

February book orders are due on Monday, February 15.  You may order online or send your order with a check (made payable to Scholastic Book Club) to me at school.  There is a coupon attached to the book order.  Spend $10 and get a $5 book for free.  

Thanks to families for sending in soft tissues and cleaning wipes!  Have a great weekend!

Sincerely,

Keelin M. Simpson