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What is going on...
in the months of September, October and November?
Happy Fall! I hope everyone had a wonderful summer; mine was amazing, but I am ready to start a new school year.
Please remember that third grade is a huge transition and for some children it may take up to a few months before they feel truly confident in themselves. If you notice your child having any stress or anxiety, please reach out to me so that we may work together to help your child better transition into third grade.
Also, please remember to take a moment each day to talk to your child about school. Ask specific questions that can start up good conversations, like, “Tell me about what you did in math today?” This encourages your child to share with you his/her classroom experiences.
Our school year will kick off by learning about our classmates, sharing things about ourselves, the importance of friendships with our peers and having older people in our lives. We will be doing activities and sharing some great literature. We will wrap up our Grandparent/Special Older People unit with a celebration, so keep your eyes open for more information. Of course, October means Halloween which is a huge event at the elementary school. Please note that family members are welcome to come in to participate in special activities in our class.
In the area of academics, the children will work on various reading skills and strategies. They will also be introduced to a wonderful on line reading program called Achieve 3000. Please encourage them to go on at home, as this can be counted towards their 20 minutes of reading that they should be doing each day. Remember to get better, you need to practice, practice, practice!
In writing, we will start off with our Brown Bag writings, then move into Narrative writings. The children will learn to write detailed narratives focusing on one small moment in time. The children will be continuing to use Fundations this school year. I feel this is a wonderful program, and I am amazed at what I have learned about phonics and spelling.
We will start the school year off with Social Studies, where we will be doing our Grandparent unit, then moving into our Communities Unit, after which, we will then start our first Mystery Science unit.
In Math I am excited to roll out a new math program which I feel the children are going to LOVE. We will start off with a review of concepts taught in second grade and begin extending and building on those concepts. We will be exploring a variety of math skills and strategies in a fun and engaging way, I can't wait to start. Also, it is very important for you to help your child master their math facts. You can quiz your child on their addition and subtraction math facts whenever you have a few free moments. If they know them well, start on multiplication! Let them ask you some facts and when you give the incorrect answer, see if they can catch your error (Kids LOVE when adults make mistakes!) This can be done while riding in the car, cleaning up the dinner dishes or while waiting in line at the store...it all helps to benefit your child!
As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to reach out to me at any time! Communication is the key to our success. Through good communication and working together, we can be sure that your child will have a successful and productive year. ~ Lisa
Some dates to take note of in September, October and November...
September 2nd, Monday ~ Labor Day (No School)
September 6th, Friday ~ First Day of School (Full Day)
September 24th, Tuesday ~ 3rd, 4th & 5th grade Back to School Night
September 27th, Friday ~ Grandparent Celebration
October 9th, Wednesday ~ Yom Kippur (No School)
October 31st, Thursday ~ Halloween Parade and Party (Early Dismissal)
November 4th & 5th, Monday & Tuesday ~ Parent-Teacher Conferences (Early Dismissal)
November 7th & 8th, Thurs./Fri. ~ NJEA Convention (No School)
November 11th, Monday ~ Veteran's Day (No School)
November 27th, Wednesday ~ Thankful Celebration (Early Dismissal)
November 28th & 29th, Thursday & Friday ~ Thanksgiving Recess (No School)
