Events of the Day...

Thinking Thursday:

Reminders:

• Pajama Day tomorrow
• Caroling and performance at 8:30am tomorrow
• Early dismissal tomorrow
• Spelling quiz tomorrow
• Report cards go home tomorrow

Events of the Day...

Wondering Wednesday

Today, we discussed how to write interesting introductions.  Students were encouraged to introduce their ideas with a question, a fact, a feeling or a sound.  We focused on their piece of writing about where they would like to take a trip.

Reminders:

• Caroling tomorrow at 1:00pm
• Spirit Day tomorrow. Wear red and/or green
• Library tomorrow
• Spelling quiz on Friday

Events of the Day...

Tuning In Tuesday:

Reminders:

• Spelling quiz on Friday
• Caroling on Thursday at 1:00pm and Friday at 8:30am (students perform on Friday)

Events of the Day...

Mindful Monday:

It was another busy day!
In math, we continued to practice our addition and subtraction skills.  In social, we continued our creative weaving.  In science, students began to build prototypes of a bridge.  After reading about how students get to school around the world, we are thinking about how we can help to create a safe way for them to get to school.

Reminders:

• Caroling and creative movement performance at 9:30am tomorrow.  Parents are welcome to attend.
• Spelling quiz on Friday

Events of the Day...

Wondering Wednesday:

Today, students were given access to IXL math.  It's a website where students can practice the math skills that they are learning in class.  Each student took home an information sheet with their login username and password.

Reminders:

• Library tomorrow
• Spelling quiz on Friday

Events of the Day...

Tuning In Tuesday:

This afternoon, we continued our discussion about Global Citizenship and reviewed the 'The Global Goals'.  Students selected three of the goals that they felt were important and reflected on why.

Reminders:

• Spelling quiz on Friday
• Fun Lunch tomorrow

Events of the Day...

Wondering Wednesday:

Reminders:

• Spelling quiz tomorrow
• Library tomorrow
• No school on Friday

Events of the Day...

Tuning In Tuesday:

Reminders:

• Spelling quiz on Thursday
• Creative journals due
  

Events of the Day...

Mindful Monday:

Today, we started our 'Grand Conversations'.  Students began reading the chapter book that they selected.  After, they met with other students reading the same book for some discussion time.  Finally, students worked independently to draw and describe a scene that they visualized while reading.

Reminders:

• Creative Journals due
• Spelling quiz on Thursday
  

Events of the Day...

Thinking Thursday:

Reminders:

• No School tomorrow
• Creative Journal due Monday

Events of the Day...

Wondering Wednesday:

Reminders:

• Spelling quiz tomorrow
• Library tomorrow
• Creative journal due Monday
• No school tomorrow

Events of the Day...

Tuning In Tuesday:

After listening to the story of 'Harold and the Purple Crayon', we spent some time reflecting on the school values and thinking about a color that might represent those values.  Students then wrote about what color they thought would represent our school and the story on Kenneth D. Taylor and why they chose that color.

Reminders:

• Fun Lunch tomorrow
• Spirit Day tomorrow. Wear a color that represents Ken Taylor
• Spelling Quiz on Thursday

Events of the Day...

Mindful Monday:

This afternoon, we began to build our creative instruments.  There were a lot of great ideas and I look forward to sharing the progress in the upcoming days.

Reminders:

• Spelling Quiz on Thursday
• Scholastic book orders due tomorrow
• CBE photoshoot tomorrow

Events of the Day...

Thinking Thursday:

Reminders:

• Spelling Test tomorrow
• Early Dismissal tomorrow. School ends at 11:30am
• Scholastic book orders due Tuesday

Events of the Day...

Wondering Wednesday:

Today was our virtual field trip!  We were able to gather with the other grade 3 classes to watch Borneo: The Symphony of the Rainforest. We focussed on what sound tells us about the world's wildest places, the unique plants and animals living in this ecosystem, and how we can help to protect   the rainforests.

Reminders:

• Read for 20 minutes
• Library tomorrow
• Early dismissal on Friday

Events of the Day...

Tuning In Tuesday:

This afternoon, we read 'Ada's Violin' and learned about the recycled orchestra of Paraguay.  This gave us a chance to work in groups to discover interesting facts about music in Peru, India, Tunisia, and Ukraine. We will be using this knowledge when building our own instruments.

Reminders:

• Picture retakes tomorrow
• Scholastic book orders due Tuesday

Events of the Day...

Mindful Monday:

We have begun our spelling program. Each day, we will be practicing the weeks spelling words and completing activities. On Thursday, students will be bringing home their spelling folders to practice their words for their quiz on Friday.

Reminders:

• Picture orders due tomorrow
• Picture retakes on Wednesday

Events of the Day...

Thinking Thursday:

Our Remembrance Day Ceremony was a success.  The students worked so hard to prepare and it showed!


Reminders:

• No school tomorrow
• Please complete response to discussion on D2L

Events of the Day...

Wondering Wednesday:

Reminders

• Remembrance Day Ceremony tomorrow at 9:30am
• Donations for the Veterans Food Bank
• Library tomorrow
• Picture orders due Nov. 15
• Please be sure to respond to D2L discussion

Events of the Day...

Tuning In Tuesday:

We Remember...
Today, we spent some time reflecting on Remembrance Day and the meaning of Peace.  Students created a descriptive poem, focusing on what peace might look, sound, smell, taste and feel like.  After the initial draft, students were able to get feedback from their classmates and make constructive changes to their poem.

Reminders:

• Picture orders due Nov. 15
• Donations for the Veterans Food Bank
• Remembrance Ceremony Thursday at 9:30am
• Poinsettia and wreath orders
• Picture consent form sent home

Events of the Day...

Mindful Monday:

This afternoon, we began exploring the process of comparing and ordering numbers. We were introduced to some new vocabulary words: ascending and descending.  Through our practice, we became more familiar with these vocabulary words and the mathematical strategies involved in comparing numbers.

Reminders:

• Non-perishable food donations for the Veterans Food Bank this week
• Picture orders are due November 15
• Poinsettia and Wreath order form home. Orders are due November 21
• Remembrance Day Ceremony- Thursday, November 10 at 9:30am

Events of the Day...

Thinking Thursday:

This afternoon we explored sounds and vibrations using tuning forks.  These three questions guided our exploration:

1. What will happen if you place the tines of a vibrating fork in the water?
 2. What happens to other materials when they are touched by a ringing tuning fork?
 
3. What do you think the tuning fork is doing to the air around you when it rings?

Events of the Day...

Wondering Wednesday:

We have been continuing with our Literacy centers.  Students have been rotating through a variety of tasks including: guided reading, reading to themselves, reading power written responses, as well as a listening comprehension activity.  Students have developed a page in their creative journals that shows their understanding while listening to our class novel.

Reminders:

• Library books due tomorrow

Events of the Day...

Tuning In Tuesday:

Students brainstormed questions that they have about Peru, India, Tunisia, and Ukraine. Some of their questions included:

-What food do they eat?
-Is the weather hot or cold?
-What are their homes like?
-Are there wars?
-Do they have celebrations?
-What languages do they speak?

After, we began looking at the landforms in each of the locations. Students read through non-fiction text and worked as a group to identify the key/important information.

Events of the Day...

Thinking Thursday:

This afternoon, we continued our discussion around 'Horton Hears a Who'.  We focussed on why the elephant was able to hear the Who's but other animals were not able to.  In partners, students chose an animal to research.  After gathering their information about how that animal hears, students will do a comparison with their partner.

Events of the Day...

Wondering Wednesday:

In math we have been practicing our place value skills.  We are able to describe numbers in their standard form, expanded form, and word form as well as apply this knowledge when answering problem solving questions.

Reminders:

• Literacy center homework
• Tomorrow is our library day.  Please return your books.

Events of the Day...

Tuning In Tuesday:

Why is listening important in a community? This was the question that guided our discussion this afternoon.  We were able to finish the video 'Horton Hears a Who' and compare how in both communities there were citizens who were not listening to others.  We were able to reflect on what a community would be like if no one listened to one another.

Reminders:

• Fun Lunch is tomorrow
• Scholastic Book orders due tomorrow

Events of the Day...

Mindful Monday:

In connection to the Hearing and Sound topic, we began exploring Onomatopoeia's.  As a class, we brainstormed many examples and used them in a short comic strip.  We will continue to explore this example of figurative language in our writing.

Reminders

• Picture Day is tomorrow
• Fun Lunch is on Wednesday
• Scholastic book orders due Wednesday

Events of the Day...

Thinking Thursday:

This afternoon, we continued our art from last week.  We focussed on drawing detailed leaves and then used warm colored oil pastels to blend and create autumn colors.  Students are beginning to ask one another for feedback on their work.  It is great to see them helping and supporting each other!

Reminder:

• Early dismissal tomorrow (school ends at 11:35am)
• Tonnie popcorn fundraiser

Events of the Day...

Wondering Wednesday:

We began watching the movie 'Horton Hears a Who". We will be using the video to focus on what a community is and to compare/contrast two different communities. We will also be thinking about hearing/sound, how sound travels, and hearing adaptations.

Reminders:

• Library books are due tomorrow
• Tonnie popcorn fundraiser tomorrow and Friday

Events of the Day...

Tuning In Tuesday:

In Math, we continued to work on composing and decomposing numbers.  Students came up with as many different ways as they could to break down a number using base 10 blocks.  We also began, decomposing numbers using addition and subtraction equations.

Reminders:

• Return library books on Thursday
• Practice reading powers on Raz Kids

Events of the Day...

Mindful Monday:

This afternoon, we began our literacy center rotations.  Students worked through a variety of tasks and used many skills.  Some of these tasks included: guided reading, independent reading, writing using the reading powers, and vocabulary work focussing on synonyms.  We will continue reinforcing our skills during these centers.

Events of the Day...

Thinking Thursday:

There was definitely a lot of thinking going on today!

"Be the change that you wish to see in the world." Mahatma Gandhi

We read the book 'Be the Change' and had a great discussion about global citizenship.  We brainstormed ways that we could be caring and helpful citizens in the classroom, school, community, and on a global scale.

Events of the Day...

Wondering Wednesday:

We continued to practice our 'Reading Powers'.  After reading their 'just right' book, students were able to visualize and develop questions.  It is important that we continue to think about what we are reading.

We conducted an experiment on creating vibrations and recognizing pitch.  Students were introduced to these new vocabulary words as we worked to answer our guiding question.  Students can share more about this experiment.

Reminders:

• Picture forms came home today

Events of the Day...

Tuning In Tuesday:

With the weather cooling off, please remember to wear your winter clothes.

Today, we began our introduction into literacy centers.  Everyone was given a 'just right' level book to read to themselves.  We reviewed reading strategies for decoding words.  Students were encouraged to re-read the sentence, break the word into pieces, sound it out, look for clues in the pictures, and ask for help.  Once they finished, students got together to discuss their book with a classmate and used these discussions to guide their writing.  We will continue to practice this routine.

Events of the Day...

Wondering Wednesday:

This afternoon, we watched the video "Austin's Butterfly".  Students were able to observe the amazing transformation of the butterfly drawing.  This video led to a great discussion about how things often get easier and better with practice.  Students were able to recognize the importance of taking their time and doing their best work as well as that feedback can help to guide the learning process.

Reminders:

• Parent-Teacher Interviews are on Thursday evening and Friday morning.  Please be sure to schedule an appointment.
• Book Fair tomorrow. Students are able to purchase books during our time block tomorrow.  The book fair will also be open during Interviews. 

Events of the Day...

Tuning In Tuesday:

Students spent some time 'Thinking Outside the Box'.  They were given a picture and had to come up with a variety of ideas as to what the picture could be and what that item might be used for.  Students were reminded of the important 21st century learner qualities: critical thinking, creativity, collaborating, and communicating.

We also began exploring 3-dimensional shapes.  Students used play dough to create a variety of shapes and observe the faces, edges, and vertices of each shape.

Events of the Day...

Mindful Monday:

Students have been engaging in our daily read-alouds. We are showing greater confidence in visualizing, making connections, asking questions and making inferences.  Today, we thought about what we would do in a given circumstance and completed a written response.  We are working on developing our ideas and writing in complete sentences.

This afternoon, we were lucky enough to enjoy the warm weather while taking a 'Listening Walk' around the school yard.  We focused on our sense of hearing and took note of all the interesting sounds outside.

Reminders:

• Please sign up for a Parent/Teacher Conference
• Take some time to have a look at Raz Kids

Events of the Day...

Friendly Friday:

Leaving a legacy! Today, we ran for Terry Fox. After, we had a thoughtful discussion about Terry Fox's identity and how he contributed to the identity of Canada.

Students have access to Raz Kids at home. They were given a handout with directions on how to log in and can now begin their reading journey. Students are encouraged to work through reading levels with a specific focus on the comprehension of the texts.

Events of the Day...

Thinking Thursday:

Today, we completed the second performance task for the SLA's.  Students had to use their creative thinking and math skills to solve a problem.  We also began developing an art piece that involves using polygons to create buildings and reflecting them using warm and cool colors.

Reminders:

• Terry Fox Run tomorrow. Bring a toonie for Terry.
• Scholastic book orders due tomorrow.

Events of the Day...

Mindful Monday:

Students worked hard this morning on their first written task for the SLAs.  They were given a question, they had to generate a plan, and use this plan to guide their writing.

We also worked on creating a learning goal for this term.  Students were able to describe themselves as learners and create strategies for achieving their goal.

Reminders:

• Students are encouraged to bring a Toonie on Friday in support of the Terry Fox Run.
• Scholastic book orders due Friday

Events of the Day...

Thinking Thursday:

Today, we spent some time developing questions that we have about hearing and sound.
Some of our questions included:
-How do we hear sounds?
-Why are ears shaped the way they are?
-Why do people wear hearing aids?
-Why are some people deaf?

This afternoon, we continued on with the digital literacy component of the SLA's.

*Students brought home a notice and there is no school tomorrow (Friday, Sept. 23)*

Have a great weekend!

Events of the Day...

Wondering Wednesday:

In recognition of the 'International Day of Peace', we read What Does Peace Feel Like?  Students had many wonderful ideas and we had a great discussion about how peace can affect quality of life.

This afternoon, we also began the Digital Literacy component of the SLAs.  Students worked very hard on the first two parts.  We will continue with this tomorrow.

Events of the Day...

Tuning In Tuesday

We survived our first rainy day!  Please remember to dress for the weather.

Students were introduced to Alliteration and began creating sentences where the words begin with the same sound.  Many students recognized that we use alliteration in our daily titles (ex: Mindful Monday, Tuning In Tuesday, etc.) In math, we continued to explore polygons. Students selected various pattern blocks and had to identify the type of polygon, the number of sides, and the number of vertices.

Events of the Day...

Mindful Monday

We began looking at how Quality of Life is a part of identity.  Students brainstormed some of the things that can affect a persons quality of life.

Here are a few of the ideas:

-Housing

-Friends

-Clothing

-Entertainment

-Food

-Sports

-Family

-Jobs

-Money

-School

-Technology

-Water

-Transportation

-Medical/ Hospitals

-Police

Headphones

September 18, 2016

Dear Parents/Guardians,

Our class will use digital media to enhance, differentiate, and personalize student learning. As discussed at the Parent Evening, the use of headphones is encouraged for the upcoming SLA’s.

Please enclose your child’s headphones or ear buds into a labeled Zip-Loc bag and send to school as soon as possible.  We will keep the headphones or ear buds in the classroom until the end of the school year, and send them back home in June.

Thank you for your support!

Grade 3 Teachers

Events of the Day...

Friendly Friday:

We had a busy morning!

Students were very focused during a writing task.  They were asked to write about a time when they felt nervous or scared and what they did to overcome it.

In Math, we continued to discuss the types of polygons to help students become more familiar with the vocabulary.

Events of the Day...

Wondering Wednesday

In Math, we began to brainstorm the types of shapes and will continue to look at their specific qualities such as sides, edges, faces, and vertices.

Reminders:

• The Parent Information Night is on Thursday (tomorrow) from 6:00-8:00pm.
• Friday is an early dismissal day. School ends at 11:30am.

Events of the Day...

Tuning In Tuesday

We definitely tuned into our learning today!

We continued our discussion on identity and began creating our own identity mind maps.  During the next few days, students will be thinking deeper about the qualities that contribute to identity.

Parent Night: Our Curriculum Night – on Thursday, September 15th is from 6:00 – 8:00 pm; this will be a great first opportunity for you to learn about some key things your child’s teacher wants you to know and will provide an opportunity for you to ask questions. There will two repeating presentations from each teacher and then time for you to ask questions afterwards. This time will facilitate the connections between home and school and better prepare us for the first conferences in early October. Please drop in to the appropriate sessions with your child’s teacher.

Events of the Day...

Mindful Monday

It's 'Mindful Monday'.  We continued to discuss what it means to be a mindful learner.

What is Identity?  This was the question that guided our learning this afternoon.  We read and watched a video for the book, If the World Were a Village.  Students were encouraged to share the meaning of identity at home as well as to begin thinking about their history and where their family came from.

Events of the Day...

Thursday, September 8, 2016:

We began the day with our first assembly.  Students were able to meet the other teachers in the school, we reviewed expectations and shared a story, The Three Questions.

We also reviewed Reading Powers by Adrienne Gear.  Students were reminded about the importance of visualizing, questioning, and making connections when listening and reading.  We will continue to practice these skills throughout the year.

Events of the Day...

Wednesday, September 7, 2016:

We have had a great start to the year!

Students have been getting to know one another and we have all been working on establishing expectations and routines. Today, we began discussing Kenneth D. Taylor and his story.  I look forward to coming back to his story throughout the year.  

*Note- a package of handouts came home for parents yesterday.