Yesterday we had fun watching and interacting with crayfish. We have been studying animal adaptations. The crayfish were quite a hit with the third graders! Even the most squeamish (like me) enjoyed watching them and almost everyone (not me) ended up picking one up! Hands-on science at its best!
With the help of our multi-talented reading specialist, Mrs. Wilson, we took a metacognitive approach to spelling lesson today. Kids got to spell their words in shaving cream! She gave several rules: only two fingers in the shaving cream, no shaving cream off your desk, and total silence to help them internalize the spelling and the feeling of making the word. The room was silent! They LOVED this exercise! If you enforce these rules and are brave enough, this is a wonderful and effective way to get kids to practice the words! I had the kids design a feather for our turkey expressing their thankfulness. Many were thankful for their families and that their basic needs were met. Some mentioned education and good teachers. Among other blessings, I am very thankful I work at Forest Trail with the wonderful staff, supportive parents, and exceptional children we have here. I see these things as true blessings and I don't take them for granted. Having now entered the holiday season I am taking time to reflect and give thanks for these and all my many blessings. I hope I will inspire the kids in my class to do the same. The students are learning to write in cursive. They are doing a great job. Most kids actually write better in cursive and this class is no exception. I'll be glad when we have mastered all the letters and can begin writing everything in cursive. It is much more readable. The kids seem to take more pride in their work when they use cursive. Science Fest was a real hit with kids and teachers alike! There were so many choices for the kids and each class was a unique science experience that was educational, interesting and fun. Things were heating up, cooking up, and blowing up all over the building! The kids couldn't stop talking about it all day, and that's what we want. In my class, they got a chance to report on each class they attended. This day will not be quickly forgotten!' Library time is a special forty minute oasis in our week on Thursdays at 2:35. Mrs. Seelig, our librarian, teaches a lesson for about 20 minutes and we check out books for the remainder of our time. Third graders are allowed to check out up to two books at a time. They should always bring their books back To school on Thursdays. This year, Mrs. Seelig is working with the third grade teachers to help us teach from our Social Studies curriculum. Many of her lessons will involve studying the subjects in our weekly Social Studies newspapers. Cardboard Challenge was so much fun. I wasn't able to get a picture of everyone's creation but I was impressed with all of them. Kids love to unleash their creativity when given simple materials and the goal of fun and games! Even the kids who didn't make something had a wonderful time playing the games their classmates and other third graders made. Next time you hear the words, "There's nothing to do. I'm bored!" start pulling out the toilet paper rolls, glue, duct tape....and watch the magic happen! Flashlight Friday is one of our favorite activities each week. Because I want my students to develop a true love of reading, I provide silent reading time in a special, comfortable, and fun environment on Fridays. Reminiscent of those wonderful nights when a kid crawls under the covers to finish a chapter, to see what is going to happen next, or to finish the book, Flashlight Fridays are magical. I can almost see the love of reading shining on their faces as I look around the room. That's magical to a teacher. We are into our fourth week and we are having a great time. The kids are getting accustomed to new habits and procedures and the teacher is getting accustomed to new personalities and new curriculum! There are unique challenges for all of us and it is an exciting time. We began the year by exploring what makes a third grade student successful. This is our "Recipe for Success in Third Grade" unit. Over the course of the first week, I read seven books to the children and we discussed the theme of each. Each book's theme represented something that would help the children be successful during this school year. The following is a list of the book's and their themes: Pigsty- Be neat and responsible Chrysanthemum- Be kind The Wizard, the Fairy, and the Magic Chicken- Work cooperatively The Cactus Flower Bakery- Be a good friend Ruby the Copycat- Be yourself The Rainbow Fish- Be willing to share The Greedy Triangle-Try new things Since then, we've started into all our academic subjects except Social Studies, which is set to begin next week. We've talked about capitalization, characterization, theme, and sequencing in Language Arts, multiplication, ordering numbers, greater and less than, and reviewing past concepts in math, and soil, weathering, erosion, and deposition in science! We've been busy! Of course, this is a brief recap; there have been MANY other things we have been learning about getting along with each other and about making our learning environment the best it can be. I'm looking forward to the weeks ahead with your children! |
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