Looking Ahead...

Important Dates:

• April 17-21 Porch Steps Clothing Drive
• April 20 - Mother/Son Bowling 
• April 21 - Wear Blue for Autism Awareness
• April 25 - Marco's Pizza Night (Don't forget to mention our class when ordering)
• May 2, 4, 10 - 3rd Grade M-Step Testing
• May 5 - Neon/Popcorn Day
• May 8 - Field Trip to Meijer Gardens (Money due May 1)
• May 12 - Early Release
• May 23 - Jet's Pizza Night (Don't forget to mention our class when ordering)
• May 29 - No School (Memorial Day)
• June 2 - Pizza with Parents

Reading:

This session of SRC ends May 5. Students have been working really hard to reach their goal, and many of them are on target to do so. Some have even challenged themselves to double their goal. Much of our reading block these next two weeks will be coming comfortable with the M-Step format and what the test will look like for the kids. We will be practicing a variety of sample test items so the students are ready to go. Super switch groups will continue with the students in book clubs or small groups for targeted reading instruction. 

Writing:

This week students are taking all their animal notes from their research and turning it into an informational piece of writing. The focus is on creating topic sentences and supporting details to create organized paragraphs. To celebrate their hard work, they will turn this piece into a google slideshow, and present it to the class. 

Math:

We are starting a unit that begins with geometry. It then goes on to calculating area and perimeter. This is a difficult unit for 3rd graders, but an important part of the third grade standards. We will spend a good deal of time practicing this concept. We start with basic rectangles, and then move into solving area/perimeter word problems, which is when it becomes more difficult. 

Science:

We are currently tackling two topics at once. We are continuing our discussion on adaptations, but this time in relationship to plants. This is done through a lot of practice reading non-fiction texts. Our more hands on unit right now is the study of rocks and minerals. Students are encouraged to bring in a rock tomorrow for our study of rock types.

Other News:

• Don't forget to cut off and send in Box Tops! It helps raise money for the school! 
• Please make note of the M-Step dates listed above, and refrain from pulling your child out of school on those days. It is important for them to take the test with the rest of the class. Any test that is missed will need to be made up, resulting in your child missing additional classwork.