Monday Night's Homework

1. Read for 20 minutes

2. Complete math worksheet

3. Work on your Book Report 

End of Week News and Notes

 Good afternoon! This week in math, students worked on their multiplication facts for 7, 8, and 9, and worked on “break apart” strategies to simplify multiplication problems. We will continue working on multiplication strategies and grouping next week as well. In literacy, we explored the concept of theme in stories, which can be complex for third graders, as theme is not explicitly stated in texts. In our discussions, we talked about fables and stories that teach lessons as a way to identify a story’s theme, but students had a harder time identifying themes in their small groups. We will continue this work next week. In social studies, we continued our work on cardinal directions, geography, and landmarks. Finally, in social emotional learning, we concluded our bullying unit by talking about “not being a bystander” when we see bullying occurring to someone else. 

NOTES: 

- Seesaw has a new logo and redesign! I hope everything works the same as before, but please let me know if you experience any issues. 

- In music, 3rd grade will soon begin their study of the soprano recorders. Ms. Luehr informed the students about the unit, and let them know the cost of a new recorder. However, she has since learned that recorder fee was included in the 3rd grade registration fee, and thus many families have already paid for their recorder. Ms. Luehr is very sorry about the mix-up, and will be sending home updated information soon. If your student brought in money today, I have it stored securely with their name on it, and will return it to them once everything is sorted out. 

- As the holidays approach, District 23 is participating in a Holiday Gift Card Drive for families in need. The district will be collecting gift cards between the amounts of $10-$25 to bring hope to our families in need this holiday season. (Suggested stores: Target and Walmart) Gift cards can be given to me or dropped off in the front office by 12/6. Thank you in advance for helping families in need have a brighter holiday! 

- Finally, next Tuesday is Halloween! Ms. Gage has sent this information already, but I figure I’d attach it as well below. I’ve discussed school rules and expectations with students regarding Halloween already, but I figured I would share it here as well. 

Have a great weekend! 

Ben

HALLOWEEN INFORMATION: 

PARADE: The Ross/Sullivan Halloween Parade will be held on the walking path behind the District 23 buildings, which is directly behind Betsy Ross and Anne Sullivan Schools. The parade will start promptly at 12:45 PM on October 31st. Parents may arrive anytime between 12:20 PM and 12:40 PM to allow for parking and locating a spot on the parade route. Families may park at the south end of Ross but will need to vacate the premises prior to the arrival of buses at 2:00 PM in order to facilitate dismissal. Parking is also available at the west end of MacArthur Middle School or the Patriot Park lot (in the neighborhood).

Parents may stand anywhere along the length of the walking path to view the parade. Please note that Ross students will be parading on the inside of the path, while Sullivan students will be parading on the outside of the path. Due to this factor, Ross parents should plan to view the parade from the inside of the walking path and Sullivan parents should plan to view from the outside of the path. Please also note that any parents arriving late to the parade will be required to view from the outside of the path.

***In the case of rain or inclement weather, the parade will be held indoors for students and available on live stream for families.

COSTUMES: 

Costumes should be brought to school. Students will have time to change after lunch, before the Halloween Parade at 12:45 P.M. on October 31st. Costumes should be school-appropriate, not offensive or hurtful to others, and should not include weapons, look-alike weapons, or excessive gore. Appropriate masks must be worn on heads in school and during the parade for safety reasons.

Thursday Night's Homework

1. Read for 20 minutes

2. Complete spelling worksheet

3. Work on your Book Report

4. Study for Spelling Test

Wednesday Night's Homework

1. Read for 20 minutes

2. Work on your Book Report (It's due by Friday, November 17th, but I want to make sure students don't wait until the last minute.) 

3. Show your parents your progress report (See Seesaw message for more detailed explanation) 

Trimester 1 "Progress Reports"

Good afternoon! 

It’s hard to believe, but we are two and half weeks from the end of the trimester. 

Today I sent home informal progress reports to let you know your student’s current grades and areas for improvement. These grades ARE NOT final and can change. The good news is that nearly all students have the potential to be successful, “A” students with a little hard work and extra focus.

We will review the information and notes on your student’s progress report at conferences, but there were some classroom-wide trends I wanted to address. 

By far,  the three main factors negatively effecting grades are 1) missing or late work, 2) failure to read directions or questions completely, and 3) lack of academic focus and effort. These factors are all very common for 3rd grade, especially executive functioning issues, so I will continue to work with students to developing proper organizational habits and reminding students to take their time and put in quality effort on their work.

This trimester, I have provided students with missing work extra copies and time to complete those assignments in class as I know students are still getting adjusted to the rigor and pace of 3rd grade. However, 4th grade teachers may not be as flexible, so I want to really work on helping student independently manage their workloads so they are not overwhelmed next year. 

I truly believe all students in this class can excel academically, and I look forward to working with them to be successful students and helping them achieve significant academic growth during this year. I look forward to discussing your student’s progress at our upcoming conferences. 

Best, 

Ben 

Tuesday Night's Homework

1. Read for 20 minutes

2. Complete multiplication worksheet 

3. Finish pages Wonders pages 144-147 if you didn’t finish in class

Monday Night's Homework

1. Read for 20 minutes

2. Complete multiplication (x9) worksheet 

Thursday Night's Homework

1. Read for 20 minutes

2. Complete multiplication worksheet (both sides) 

3. Complete spelling homework (write each word 3 times) 

4. Study for spelling test

Wednesday Night's Homework

1. Read for 20 minutes

2. Complete multiplication worksheet (Factors of 8) - Work on iReady Math for 15 minutes if you have mastered your facts for 8 

Tuesday Night's Homework

1. Read for 20 minutes

2. Complete multiplication worksheet (Factors of 7) 

** Work on iReady Math for 15 minutes if you have mastered your facts for 7

Week 7 Spelling List

 Week 7 Spelling List - Test on Friday, October 20th

Link to Spelling City for practice: https://www.spellingcity.com/view-spelling-list.html?listId=40174945

 1. heel

 2. week

 3. creek

 4. free

 5. green

 6. street

 7. freeze

 8. seal

 9. weak

 10. bean

 11. speaks

 12. team

 13. clean

 14. cream

 15. field 

End of Week News and Notes

 Good afternoon 106 parents! 

We had a great week in third grade, including a fantastic send off for our MacArthur cross country runners. Good luck at state! 

In math, students worked on strategies to master their multiplication facts for the factors 3, 4, and 6. Next week, we will continue working on these facts as well as the more challenging facts for 7, 8, and 9. I highly encourage students to use XtraMath at home to help them master their math facts for addition, subtraction and multiplication. Practice makes perfect! (For students who have mastered their facts, iReady has personalized lessons ready to go for your student.) 

In literacy this week, students shared their “Ouch” essays and we worked on main idea skills as well as learning to identify an author’s point of view (why an author wrote a text or how the author feels about the topic they are discussing). In social studies we finished our lessons on continents and oceans, and will continue building our geographic knowledge next week by studying cardinal directions and landmarks. Finally, in social-emotional learning, we continued our bullying prevention unit by discussing how to recognize bullying and the importance of reporting bullying. 

NOTES: 

- There is no school on Monday. Teachers will be in the building for trainings and meetings, so please feel free to reach out if you have any questions. 

- There is no homework this weekend, but we will have a spelling test next week. Lists went home today

- Please help your student remember to charge their iPad every night. Unfortunately I only have one charger in the classroom and it’s been in high demand. 

- Thank you to everyone who has signed up for November conferences! For those that haven’t there are still excellent slots available! Link to sign up:  https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0848A5AD22AAF5C43-44554288-fall

- Would you like to visit the class and be a Mystery Reader? Surprise your student and Read your favorite childhood book or story to the class! I’m very flexible on dates and times, so if you are willing to come in, I’m happy to make it work! Shoot me a message on Seesaw or email (bbrandstrader@d23.org) if you are interested.

That’s all for now! Have a great weekend! Stay dry! 

Ben

Thursday Night's Homework

1. Read for 20 minutes

2. Complete multiplication worksheet (both sides)

3. Complete spelling worksheet (write each word 3 times)

4. Study for Spelling test

Wednesday Night's Homework

1. Read for 20 minutes

2. Complete Factors of 6 multiplication worksheet

3. Complete your illustration for your OUCH essay if you didn't finish in class 

Tuesday Night's Homework

1. Read for 20 minutes

2. Complete multiplication worksheet (You can skip #1, #5, #15, #21, #27 because they have the factors of 11 or 12. If you want a challenge, go for it!) 

Monday Night's Homework

1. Read for 20 minutes

2. Complete illustration for your OUCH story. Make sure to take plain paper and coloring supplies if you don’t have them at home. I know students have different artistic skills, but I’m mainly focused on effort. Take your time! 

End of Week News and Notes

 Good afternoon! 

We had a fantastic week in Room 106! In math, we worked on our multiplication facts for 0, 1, 2, 5, 10 and students did a great job. Next week we will be continuing with multiplication facts for 3, 4, and 6. Students who have mastered their multiplication facts (yay!) should be using iReady more frequently over the next few weeks at home to continue to build their math skills while the class works toward mastery of their facts. In literacy, students completed their first written essays of the year, writing personal narrative stories about their worst "Ouch" experience. The next writing unit will cover informational writing. In social studies, we continued our study of geography, learning about the oceans, continents, hemispheres, equator and prime meridian and will continue into next week. 

There is no homework this weekend, but we will have another spelling test next Friday, so I sent home the Week 6 word list for any students that want to get an early start on practicing.

NOTES:

- Today I sent home Scholastic Book Club order forms for any families that are interested. Scholastic has a ton of great books at reasonable prices and they often have good sales. If you do choose to order books and use the class code (NPWBW), the class receives points that can be used to buy books for our classroom library. This is completely optional. 

- Thank you to everyone who has signed up for November conferences! For those that haven’t there are still excellent slots available! Link to sign up: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0848A5AD22AAF5C43-44554288-fall

- Would you like to visit the class and be a Mystery Reader? Surprise your student and Read your favorite childhood book or story to the class! I’m very flexible on dates and times, so if you are willing to come in, I’m happy to make it work! Shoot me a message on Seesaw or email (bbrandstrader@d23.org) if you are interested.

That is all for now. I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend, especially after the Bears finally won a game! 

Best, 

Ben

Thursday Night's Homework

1. Read for 20 minutes

2. Complete spelling worksheet (3 times)

3. Complete multiplication worksheet (If you have mastered your multiplication facts, you should do some extra work on iReady or XtraMath as the homework will be very easy)

*** Picture Retake Day tomorrow

Wednesday Night's Homework

1. Read for 20 minutes

2. Complete multiplication worksheet (If you have mastered your multiplication facts, you should do some extra work on iReady or XtraMath as the homework won't take very long)

3. Pajama Day tomorrow! 

Tuesday Night's Homework

1. Read for 20 minutes

2. Complete multiplication worksheet (If your student has mastered their multiplication facts, they should do some extra work on iReady as the homework will be very easy for them) 

OPTIONAL: Write your speech on why you should be the Room 106 Bulldog Ambassador

* Pajama Day Thursday

Monday Night's Homework

1. Read for 20 minutes

2. Complete multiplication worksheet

* The school met their Bulldog Beliefs Challenge goal and earned a Pajama Day Thursday! Go Bulldogs!