Looking ahead to the week of October 5

Students enjoyed their "Being There Experience" to Riverbanks Zoo!  They learned all about animal adaptations.

Hi, families!  I hope you all are having a great week!

Blythewood Community Garden:  Our "Being There Experience" to the Blythewood Community Garden is Friday, October 2.  Please be sure to send a lunch with your child, if that is the option you chose on his/her permission form.  If you chose the Seaside Cafe lunch, then a bagged lunch will be provided.  These are a few reminder sent to us by our friends at the Blythewood Community Garden:

·         Students will need to dress in clothes they can get dirty and keep them cool (hats are allowed)

·         Have students wear sneakers

·         Students will be able to taste lettuce and/or herbs in the garden (Please let your child's teacher know if your child has any allergies to garden items.)

***DUE TO RAIN, THE TRIP HAS BEEN CANCELED FOR FRIDAY!***

We will let you know when we reschedule!

Field trip payments:  Please be sure to sign and return the field trip payment letter that went home a couple of weeks ago.  If you chose to pay the full payment, it is $29.60, and was due Thursday, September 17.  If you chose to make two payments, the first payment is $14.80, and was due Thursday, September 17.

Ready? Set?  Multiply!:  Students will begin taking multiplication quizzes the week of October 5.  A letter about multiplication will go home in your child's communication folder Thursday, October 1.  Please go ahead and encourage your child to start memorizing multiplication facts!  A copy of a multiplication table went home in your Open House booklet at the beginning of the year.

Looking ahead:  In math, students will take a look at multiplication arrays, repeated addition, commutative property, and number stories.  Check out our Family Letter for Topic 4 below.  They will receive a Topic 4 study guide Monday.  It will be due Friday, October 9.  As scientists, students will learn about plant parts, seed dispersal, tropism, and plant life cycles.  In writing, students continue their narrative writing unit.  They will also learn about abstract/concrete nouns, present and past-tense verbs.  As readers, the children will study main idea.  Students will also be taking a spelling benchmark test for the district.

I appreciate everything that you do!  I hope you all have a great week!

More snapshots of our adventure at Riverbanks Zoo:

Looking ahead to the week of September 28

Students are learning all about animal adaptations in our "Home, Sweet Home" science unit.  Recently, they studied the benefits of camouflage.  They took part in a camouflage scavenger hunt with Mrs. Von Plinsky's class!

Fall Fundraiser:  The fall fundraiser ends Friday!  Thank you for helping raise money for our school!  Please be sure to send in your child's packet.

Half-day:  Thursday, September 24, is a half day for students.  Lunch will be served.  If your child's transportation changes, please be sure to send a note!  Students will be dismissed at 11:30.

Off to the Zoo:  Our "Being There Experience" to Riverbanks Zoo is Friday, September 25.  Please be sure to send a lunch with your child, if that is the option you chose on his/her permission form.  If you chose the Seaside Cafe lunch, then a bagged lunch will be provided.  I encourage the children to dress appropriately for the weather and wear comfy shoes.

Blythewood Community Garden:  Our "Being There Experience" to the Blythewood Community Garden is Friday, October 2.  Please be sure to send a lunch with your child, if that is the option you chose on his/her permission form.  If you chose the Seaside Cafe lunch, then a bagged lunch will be provided.  I encourage the children to dress appropriately for the weather and wear comfy shoes.

Field trip payments:  Please be sure to sign and return the field trip payment letter that went home a couple of weeks ago.  If you chose to pay the full payment, it is $29.60, and was due Thursday, September 17.  If you chose to make two payments, the first payment is $14.80, and was due Thursday, September 17.

Ready? Set?  Multiply!:  Students will begin taking multiplication quizzes the week of October 5.  A letter about multiplication will go home in your child's communication folder Thursday, October 1.  Please go ahead and encourage your child to start memorizing multiplication facts!  A copy of a multiplication table went home in your Open House booklet at the beginning of the year.

Looking ahead:  In math, students will take a look at subtraction algorithms.  Check out our Family Letter for Topic 3 below.  They will receive a Topic 3 study guide Friday.  It will be due Friday, October 2.  As scientists, students will learn about food chains.  In writing, students continue their narrative writing unit.  They will also learn about irregular plural nouns.  As readers, the children will begin studying the TWISTS model, when doing a CLOSE reading.  Remember, if your child missed any spelling words on his/her kindergarten high-frequency list, they will take a post-test on just the words they missed this Wednesday!  Students will take the first grade high-frequency word spelling test next Wednesday.

I appreciate everything that you do!  I hope you all have a wonderful week and weekend with your sweet kids!

Looking ahead to the week of September 21

Students learned about the importance of having a Richland County Public Library card last week in the Media Center.  Enjoy a trip to your local library!

Interims:  Interims will no longer go home in paper form.  Interims will now be viewed online, through Parent Portal. Please make plans to sit down with your child, review his/her progress and set goals for the rest of the quarter.  The transition into third grade can be a tough one!  Please encourage your child to do his/her personal best every day!


PTO Meeting:  I hope you all will join us for our first PTO meeting at 7:00 on Monday.  There will be a lot of important information discussed by our board that night!  Fifth grade and kindergarten will also have presentations to share.

Fall Fundraiser:  The fall fundraiser ends soon!  Thank you for helping raise money for our school!

Spelling post-assessment reminder:  If students missed any kindergarten high-frequency words on their spelling pre-assessment at the beginning of September, they will have a post-test on the missed words Wednesday, September 23.

Half-day:  Next Thursday, September 24, is a half day for students.  Lunch will be served.  If your child's transportation changes, please be sure to send a note!  Students will be dismissed at 11:30.

Off to the Zoo:  Our "Being There Experience" to Riverbanks Zoo is Friday, September 25.  Permission forms went home last week.  Please sign and return them, as soon as possible!  Also, if you sign up to be a chaperone, note that chaperones will be chosen randomly and notified.  Take a moment to review chaperone procedures, before signing up, in your child's Open House booklet that went home a few weeks ago!  Understand that if you come to the zoo the day of our trip, you will unfortunately not be a part of our group, due to the zoo's policy for group numbers.  Please be sure to send a lunch with your child, if that is the option you chose on his/her permission form.  If you chose the Seaside Cafe lunch, then a bagged lunch will be provided.

Blythewood Garden:  Be sure to sign and return the Blythewood Garden permission form, as soon as possible.

Field trip payments:  Please be sure to sign and return the field trip payment letter that went home a couple of weeks ago.  If you chose to pay the full payment, it is $29.60, and is due Thursday, September 17.  If you chose to make two payments, the first payment is $14.80, and is due Thursday, September 17.

Book Fair preview:  The Book Fair will open Friday, September 18.  Our class is scheduled to attend a Book Fair preview that same day!  If your child would like to purchase books during our visit, he/she may bring money Friday.  Your child may visit the Book Fair next week, as well, if he/she brings money.

Looking ahead:  In math, students will take a look at addition algorithms.  Check out our Family Letter for Topic 3 below.  As scientists, students will learn about camouflage and habitats.  In writing, students will kick off their narrative writing unit.  They will also learn about regular and plural nouns.  As readers, the children will begin studying the TWISTS model, when doing a CLOSE reading.  Remember, if your child missed any spelling words on his/her kindergarten high-frequency list, they will take a post-test on just the words they missed next Wednesday!

Thank you again for all that you do!  You are the best!

Looking ahead to the week of September 14

Students collaborated with their book buddies to learn more about Google Drive.  They created new mascots for our "Brain-break" program, Go Noodle!

Hello, families!  I hope you all enjoyed your long weekend!  

Field Trip payments and permission forms:  Students will be taking their first "Being There Experience" before we know it!  Please sign and return the payment form that went home in last week's communication folder.  Students will receive their first two permission forms (Riverbanks Zoo and Blythewood Garden) this week!.  Please sign and return these permission forms, as soon as possible.  Also, if you would like to be a chaperone, please check the appropriate line on the form.  Chaperones are chosen randomly and notified at a later date.  Before you volunteer to be a chaperone, please read over our chaperone guidelines in our Open House booklet!

Looking ahead to next week:  Students will kick off their first unit in science:  Home, Sweet Home!  They will focus on animals - their lifecycles and adaptations.  As mathematicians, the children will wrap up their Topic 2 unit with a study guide (due September 16) and a test (September 18).  Be sure to check out our Topic 2 family letter below.  In reading, students will be continue learning their Daily 5 procedures for reading to someone, listening to reading, and word work.  The children will  review elements of story (setting and plot).  As writers, students will continue learning parts of speech.  

Our class blog:  Please make sure you view the desktop version of our class blog each week.  I know many of us check the blog out on our phones.  If you scroll down, please choose the other version, so you may see the important dates section.

Passwords for Lexia and TenMarks:  Students received a copy of their password sheet last week.  These sheets were stapled inside the front cover of their agenda books.  They are good to go for their Lexia and TenMarks' blocks on their homework grid!

Conference letters:  Conferences letters will go home in your child's communication folder this Thursday.  Please sign and return them, as soon as possible!

Thank you again for all of your support and enthusiasm!  

Looking ahead to the week of September 7

Ms. Wilson taught us all about Chromebooks this week!  We learned not to share our personal information with anyone online, how to care for our Chromebooks, and the "ins and outs" of using one!

Hello, families!  

Social Studies study guide:  Just a reminder that your child's social studies study guide is due next Tuesday, September 8.  The children will take the unit test is two parts - they will have a vocabulary test September 9 (on the vocabulary words in their fact file) and they will have a unit test September 11.  In order to be successful on this unit assessment, students will need to review the study guide, chapter 2 in their book, as well as all items in their fact file.   They will need to know how to label a South Carolina map with the regions, river systems, fall line, and bordering states and ocean. They will not need to memorize the major cities' exact locations, but should be comfortable with where they are in our state. Please know as the year goes on, that the students will be asked to be responsible for knowing what to study, but since it is their first BIG third grade test, I wanted to give you a bit of guidance.  Also, please note:  Students must return their textbook and fact file each day.  Please make sure your child does not leave these resources at home!  Please also keep in mind that students, whose books are falling apart, will turn their textbooks in at the end of this unit.  The State Department will issue those students new books.

Communication Folders:  Students will be receiving their first set of graded papers in their communication folders.  Please sign and return the stapled, graded work.  You may keep the top portion of your child's spelling pre-assessment, so you are aware of the words he/she needs to practice for the post-assessment, which is at the end of the month.  Also, if you were unable to attend Open House Tuesday, you will find our Open House booklet in your child's folder... please take a moment to read through it!

Field Trip payments:  Students will be taking their first "Being There Experience" before we know it!  Please look for a payment letter going home in this week's communication folder.  Be sure to sign and return this form, as soon as possible!  Permission forms will start going home next week!

MAP Testing:  Students will have their MAP tests next week next week (math and reading).  This will give me a baseline of what the students know.  They will be tested again in the spring, which will assess their growth this school year.  Please encourage your child to not stress out one bit!  It is just an opportunity to show all that they know!

Looking ahead to next week:  Students wrap up their first social studies unit with assessments.  Their study guide (which went home Friday, August 28) is due Tuesday, September 8 (the day we will go over it in class).  Students will have a vocabulary test Wednesday, September 9 and a unit test Friday, September 11.  As mathematicians, the children will continue learning about addition and subtraction.  They will receive a study guide for Topic 2 Wednesday, September 9.  It will be due Wednesday, September 16.  Be sure to check out our Topic 2 family letter below.  In reading, students will be continue building their reading stamina and discussing how to choose a "just right" book.  They will also practice reading in partnerships.  The children will also review elements of story (main characters and setting).  As writers, students will continue studying basic writing skills and learning parts of speech.  

Our class blog:  Please make sure you view the desktop version of our class blog each week.  I know many of us check the blog out on our phones.  If you scroll down, please choose the other version, so you may see the important dates section.

TenMarks:  Your child will receive a letter, regarding the TenMarks math program, in his/her communication folder Thursday.  You can use this information to help your child log on to the site, as a part of the TenMarks square for their Tic-Tac-Toe grid.  It's up and running now!  We encourage the children to do this assignment on their own for homework!

Thank you again for all of your support and enthusiasm!  I hope you all have a wonderful three-day weekend!