Dear Third Grade Families,
Students in Room 15 have been working hard this month. Here's some information about what we are learning about.
Third graders have been learning about nonfiction text features and ways that authors structure nonfiction texts from question and answer and cause and effect to pros and cons and sequential order. Students have been looking for these structures as they read a variety of types of nonfiction texts including informational books, narrative nonfiction, and biographies. Ask your child to tell you about some of the famous people (Thurgood Marshall, Frederick Douglas, Rosa Parks,Clara Barton, Martin Luther Kin g Jr., Helen Keller, and Abraham Lincoln) he/she has been reading about.
Our nonfiction reading practice extends into social studies time as we read to learn about Native Americans. So far we have learned about the Inuit of the far north and the Makah of the northwest coastal region. Children read to learn about how the Inuit lived in the past and made comparisons to how they live today. Third graders are learning about food, clothing, shelter, and cultural traditions, of the Native Americans living in different regions across North America as well as conflicts between Native Americans and European settlers.
Students are learning to use Google Slides on their Chromebooks to show what they have learned about Native Americans. Our class has learned to import pictures and add text boxes within Google Slides.
Mathematicians are working hard to learn a variety of strategies to solve addition and subtraction problems with larger numbers. Students have learned about rounding, making estimates, and solving word problems with multiple steps.
You can help your child with math at home by spending five minutes each day working to memorize multiplication facts. Students have learned the x 0, x 10, x 1, x 2, and x 3 facts. This week, students are practicing the x 4 facts. There are only six facts that need to be learned: 4 x 4, 4 x 5, 4 x 6, 4 x 7, 4 x 8, and 4 x 9. Play the x 4 game that was sent home, make flash cards, write the facts on post-it notes and stick them on the fridge, the bathroom mirror, or your bedroom door. Keep the facts in the tv room and practice during commercials. Keep a set in the car to practice on the way to the store. A few minutes of practice here and there makes a big difference when it comes to memorizing math facts. You can do it! Keep up the great practice!
We will be exchanging Valentine's Day cards on Tuesday, February 14th. If your child would like to participate in the exchange, he/she should bring in a card for every member of our class.
Please remind your student to wear painting clothes or bring an old shirt to wear over his/her clothing the week of February 20th as we work on a project involving paints.
We are in need of cleaning wipes for our desks. If you have a package to spare, please send them in. Thanks! Have a great weekend!
Sincerely,
Keelin Simpson
