Classroom Update: September 11, 2015

Week one of the 2015-2016 school year is in the books! It has been so nice getting to know each of the students in our class. I know we're in for a fabulous year together! 

I will be posting learning updates to this blog throughout the year. To the left you will see a photo of our "I Can" board, which summarizes the objectives that we are working to meet. More details on our work in each of the subject areas may be found below.

In math this week, students explored their "BMW's" (Big Math Workbooks) and picked out activities that they are excited to participate in this year. We began our first unit of the year, which will be focused on strategies for addition and subtraction. To kickoff this unit, we played a game called "Close to 100." The game involves estimating sums of two-digit numbers. 

In reading, we discussed strategies for selecting "just right" books--books that aren't too hard or too easy. One strategy for selecting books involves the acronym P.I.C.K. When picking just right books, readers consider their Purpose, Interests, Comprehension, and if they Know most of the words in the text. Another useful strategy for selecting just right books is the "Five Finger Rule." The five finger rule is a quick way to gauge if the language of the text is at an appropriate level of difficulty.  

 

In reading this week, we also practiced a way to track our thinking while reading. By "stopping and jotting" their thinking on sticky notes as they read, students recorded their reactions to their selected texts. 

In writing, students sketched out the "pieces of their hearts" and created a visual similar to the one below. These pieces will serve as inspiration for writing topics later in the year. We also took time to write about our hopes and dreams for third grade. These are the goals that students wish to accomplish by the end of the year. As a class, we will be supporting each other in meeting our respective goals. On Friday, we explored using the school iPads for the first time. This is a tool that students will be using for their writing in third grade.

Our first social studies unit will be focused on mapping and local history. We began this week by learning about map features, such as labels, key, scales, and the compass rose. Students made maps of their own imaginary towns to practice these map features. We also played a game of four corners to practice the cardinal directions, North, South, East, and West. Ask your child how they liked playing the game! :) 

I can't believe these first few days went by so fast! Next week, we will dive further into the typical routines and schedule that we will be implementing for the rest of the year. Weekly homework assignments will not begin until the week of September 21st. I'm looking forward to another exciting week!