Tag Archives: fact fluency

Third Grade Update

Hello Families,
Here’s a learning update from third grade:

Writing:
We are working in research clubs and each club is studying an animal. They are in planning out their table of contents and subtopics. Each club member is in charge of writing a chapter or two and the research club will put their book together. Students are working on reading for research and working on organizing information and using different text structures.

Social Studies:
We are beginning to study the Geography of Michigan. We will learn how to use map skills and learn about the natural and human characteristics of Michigan.

Math:
We have started learning about area and perimeter and will move on to learn about characteristics of quadrilaterals.

Math Fact Fluency: We will do our fact fluency pages for only two more Fridays. It has really become evident that many third graders are not practicing multiplication facts and not completely retaining what they have learned. It is very crucial that our third graders are practicing their facts several times a week. This will be very important over the summer as well leading up to fourth grade.

Reading:
During our reading time, students are working on reading for research. They have been using different resources to gather information about their animal. They are learning to take notes so they will be able to write about their subtopic.

MSTEP testing is this week Thursday, May 6 and next Thursday, May 13. It will be important that your child is at school on time and that they have had a healthy breakfast and adequate sleep. If your child seems anxious or worried about this, it will be most helpful if you would remind them to just do their best to show what they know! They hear this from me a lot at school.   🙂

Book Order:
A Scholastic Book Order was sent home last week. This will be the last book order I send home for the year. This would be a great time to purchase books for Summer Reading!
If you plan to order, please place your order online by Friday, May 7. Thank you in advance for your purchases as it allows me to choose free books for our classroom library!

Our next early release day is May 21. Dismissal is at 12:15pm.

Our classroom is in need of some sandwich sized Ziploc bags. If you are able to donate, please send them in with your child. Thanks in advance!

 

Thank you for all your support!

Ms Van Arkel

 

 

Third Grade Update

Hi Families,
Here’s what’s happening in 3rd grade:

Writing:
Last we we started working on literary essays. We are writing about a text that we read by forming big ideas and giving reasons that connect to the text. The students will be working more independently on writing another literary essay this week.

Math:
We have been learning about units of measurement and have been practicing using a ruler to measure to the nearest inch, half inch, and quarter inch. We have also been learning about liquid units of measurement as well as units to measure weight.

Reading:
We are using the book Because of Winn-Dixie to make observations about the main character of a text. We are noticing patterns in the character and using these observations to make predictions and form big ideas and theories. This week, the students will start to work in book clubs and discuss some new characters.

Multiplication Fact Fluency:
Since we had a snow day last Friday, we will do our practice page this Friday. Please remind your third grader to continue practicing their facts so they are feeling confident. As a reminder, it is so important that multiplication facts are practiced regularly. This will help your third grader be prepared for our upcoming math concepts as well as fourth grade concepts.

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Classroom Transformation:
We had a great time on Tuesday as our class transformed into a Construction Zone and the students completed 10 challenges that helped them practice measuring to the nearest inch, half inch, and quarter inch. Thank you to The Lifetime Learner for this awesome resource and thank you for the donations from parents!
Here are just a few pictures:

 

 

Update: Week of November 12

Parents,
Here is some information for the week:

Social Studies quiz: We have been learning about how we modify and adapt to our environment. We will have a short quiz tomorrow. You will see a review page coming home today.

Multiplication Practice Page: We will have our next practice page on Wednesday. Pages were sent home on Friday. Your child has been keeping track of their progress and should know what facts to practice for Wednesday.

MobyMax Fact Fluency practice: At conferences, I gave you an update of your child’s fact fluency scores for addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. We spent the first part of the year reviewing addition and subtraction fluency. Since it is a second grade concept, our hope is that student’s have those facts mastered and have moved on to practice multiplication and division. Starting this week, I will move all students to  multiplication and division on MobyMax. If your child still needs some practice with addition and subtraction, please continue practicing at home.

PE CARES Food Drive continues through November 16.
Please consider donating non-perishable food items that will all be given to Love Inc. in Hudsonville.  The class that brings in the most items will be given a thank you and traveling to Hudsonville Bowling Lanes for a bowling party!!!! Thanks for your help.

Book List: At conferences, we discussed your child’s reading progress and their good-fit level. I am sending home a list of book titles suggestions. Use this as you help your third grader choose ‘just-right’ books. Look for this green paper to come home in daily folders.

Coming Up: 
November 15: PTC meeting- 6:30 in the library
November 16: Last day for PE Cares donations.
November 19: Culver’s Night  5-8pm
December 13: Holiday Program at Fair Haven church – more details to come!
December 14: Early Release – 12:15 dismissal.

Week of Oct. 8

Parents,
Here are a few things you will need to know:

  • Our Growth Mindset mantra this month is: MY BRAIN IS LIKE A MUSCLE THAT GROWS. Today, we made a new goal for ourselves. We put it right on our name tag as a daily reminder. The goal is: I will work hard to help my brain grow strong! 
  • Jet’s Pizza night: October 11
  • Early Release this Friday, Oct. 12
  • Snack: Please help your child remember to pack one healthy snack each day. I usually have a snack available for forgetful situations. If you are able to donate a box of graham crackers, our class would appreciate it!
  • Multiplication Fluency Practice Page: On Wednesdays (and sometimes more often) we assess multiplication fact fluency. This helps the students take responsibility in their learning. Students will be given a multiplication fact page one fact group at a time. This Wednesday we will start with the 5s. When the 5s page is passed,  your child will move on to the 2s. The order we will follow is: 5s, 2s, 10s, 9s, 3s, 4s, 6s, 7s, 8s. Your child has a graph where they will keep track of their progress so they know what facts to work on. You will see the practice page come home with a note attached that says: “GOT IT!” or “NOT YET”. This will let you know what facts to work on for the next practice page.
  • We made our GOAL!!!!
    Each day we use a scoreboard. If our scoreboard has more smile tallies than sad face tallies, we earn a smile magnet. So our class set a goal of earning 10 smile faces. When the class met the goal they would receive a treat from me. So today was the day! We enjoyed cookies and apple cider. Way to go, class!!

Week of April 9

  • Homework this week is Homework 5-2 and Homework 5-3. This is  due next Monday April 16.
  • Multiplication Fluency Practice: We will have our practice page this Friday. Please ask your third grader what facts they should be practicing so they can continue to make progress!
  • MobyMax should be practiced regularly at home. Third graders will need to log onto Clever to access MobyMax. Let me know if you have forgotten how to do this. There is a link on the right side of the blog under AT HOME links.  I will also continue to have all kids practice fluency here at school.
  • The Math Test will be coming home this week. This was a very tricky test on area and perimeter and geometry concepts. If your child struggled with parts of the test, I encourage you to review those concepts at home. We will continue to review and reteach at different time in the classroom through the remainder of the school year.
  • This Friday, April 13 is a half day. Dismissal is at 12:15pm.
  • AS A REMINDER:
    Grades 3-5 have been preparing for the state test (M-STEP).  This is a required test and it will take place in the weeks immediately following spring break.
    Please make sure you look ahead on your family calendar (Gr 3,4,5) to make sure that your child is at school on the days listed.   Please change any appointments so they do not occur the mornings of testing.
    Also, provide extra nutritional snacks on the testing days, along with a water bottle — and adequate sleep during the testing period.
    Testing takes place between 9-12 on these dates:
    • Grade 5  April 10, 11, 12, 17
    • Grade 4  May 8, 9, 10
    • Grade 3  April  24, 25, 26

 

Update: Week of February 19

  • Homework this week is Remembering 4-5/Homework 4-6. It should be coming home today and is due next Monday Feb. 26.
  • Multiplication Fluency Practice: A practice page will come home today. This was completed on Friday. Attached to this practice page will be a note saying NOT YET or GOT IT! This lets you and your third grader know what facts should be practiced for this Friday. Your third grader keeps track of their progress here at school so they know exactly what facts to practice. Please help your third grader practice their facts this week.
  • MobyMax should be practiced regularly at home. You will need to log onto Clever to access MobyMax. Let me know if you have forgotten how to do this. There is a link on the right side of the blog under AT HOME links.  I will also continue to have all kids practice fluency here at school
  • We have library on Friday. Help your child remember to bring their books back before Friday. Thanks!

We had a great time on our field trip to DeGraaf Nature Center last Thursday! Take a look!

 

Week of December 11!

  • A new homework packet will be coming home today. It is due next Monday, December 18. A spelling pre-test with a new spelling word list should come home as well. The attached words should be practiced for the spelling test on Friday.
  • Multiplication Fluency Practice: You will see a practice page come home today. This was completed on Friday. Attached to this practice page will be a note saying NOT YET or GOT IT! This let’s you and your third grader know what facts will need to be practiced for this Friday. Your third grader keeps track of their own progress on a graph here at school so they will know exactly what facts they should be working on.
  • We have library on Friday.
  • Snow Gear: Please make sure that your child is dressed for outdoor recess. It is helpful if hats, gloves, boots, snow pants, etc. are labeled with your child’s name.
  •  Holiday Program is this Thursday, December 14:The Georgetown Music Program is  Thursday, December 14.   The kids are excited and have been practicing very  hard! The hall from the music room is sounding great!

    The program is at Fair Haven Church: 2900 Baldwin St. in Hudsonville. Just down the road from school!

    Kindergarten through 2nd grade begins at 6:303rd through 5th grade begins at 7:45Our third grade students report at 7:30.  This link will take you to ALL the DETAILS you need to know for the music program.

    If you would like to order a DVD of the program, please fill out this paper  HolidayDVDForm-1oe9scd and return it with your payment to the office no later than Monday, Dec. 18. Checks can be made payable to WCET TV. The cost is $15.

  • Pajama Day on Friday: Our week will end with an ALL SCHOOL PJ DAY on Friday.  It will be a perfect day for us to be cozy, warm and slightly sleepy following our late night on Thursday.

Third Grade Update!

Parents,
Here are a few things to know for this week:

  • A new homework packet will be coming home today. It is due next Monday, November 6. A spelling pre-test with a new spelling word list should come home as well. These words should be practiced for the spelling test on Friday.
  • We have library on Wednesday. Please remind  your third grader to return their books so they will be able to check out new ones.
  • Multiplication Fluency Practice: You will see a practice page come home today. This was completed on Friday. Attached to this practice page will be a note saying NOT YET or GOT IT! This let’s you and your third grader know what facts will need to be practiced for this Friday. Your third grader keeps track of their own progress on a graph here at school so they will know exactly what facts they should be working on.
  • Parent/Teacher Conferences: Conference appointment slips were sent home on Oct. 23. I look forward to meeting with you next week!
  • This Friday, November 3 is an early release day. Dismissal is 12:15. Food Service will be offering a sack lunch on early release days. Children can order a lunch with their teacher in the morning and they will have it to take home.   The cost will be $2.50.  Free and reduced benefits will also apply.

Math Fact Fluency

I want to remind you of the information that was sent home about Xtra Math. A note was sent home that gave you information about how to log into this site. Math fact practice is very important and as a building we will be using this information to track fact fluency and accuracy to report back to the district.

Your child should be spending at least 5 minutes a night on Xtra Math fact practice. Once they pass addition, they will move on to subtraction, then multiplication, then division. Addition and subtraction facts should have been mastered in second grade while multiplication and division will be the focus in third grade.

If addition and subtraction facts are not mastered by November, students will be working in an intervention fact fluency group.

If you do not have computer access to get on Xtra Math, please let me know and I will send flashcards home.

Thank You!

 

This Week!

Wednesday (tomorrow) is the last day to bring in cans for P.E.

We have been reviewing Michigan geography the last few days and will do our assessment on Thursday. This is information from throughout the whole unit so it is not new information. Review pages will come home.

Look for information coming home about a fact fluency program starting after Thanksgiving.

Thanks!  🙂