We’ve had a wonderful start. It seems as though everyone is glad to be back at school. We have been sharing our summer fun and beginning to think about our hopes and dreams for a new year of learning. We are getting used to our new schedule and classroom routine. U.A. classes are at different times from last year and we are all working to learn how to be our best together. The class has noticed habits that help us be successful – staying focused, following a procedure, staying calm, making eye contact and making sure others are ready to understand. (Pretty impressive for 4 days of school!) We are already feeling good being together. Thank you!

Home School Communications

I intend to send a note home every Friday (or end of that week day). It is important to me. I want you to know what we are doing so you can better understand the bits and pieces that creep into your home. I hope we can really work as partners because that is the way the learning and growth flourishes. I hope my (admittedly v…e…r…y… long) memos can help you have conversations with you children by knowing some of what we are doing and why. My own children were skimpy on the details when sharing what was happening in their classrooms (for years I worked in the same school they attended, and I still didn’t know) – so I am guessing some of you might wish for more points of conversation. I will share what I can through these notes. At first I will send this message both in paper and post it on the blog – the address is 3enews.edublogs.org If you’re on the blog, make sure you subscribe by email.  That way you’ll get a reminder each time there is a new post.  Communicating through the blog feels best because the news can be illustrated with photographs. You can see more of the action in our classroom.

I hope the weekly memo provides you with conversation points. When each child feels his/her family is interested in what he/she is doing in school, they’ll do even better. Hopefully the Friday memo and blog post will give you something to talk about. Make sure you subscribe to the blog that way you’ll get an email when a new post is made.

Knowing Ourselves and Caring for Others

Our Social Emotional Learning (S.E.L.) Focus

Our SEL focus for the first month of school is becoming more self-aware and knowing ourselves as learners, friends and members of the school community. To learn well we have to be true to ourselves, but we also must be respectful and aware of others. We have spent part of all four of our days defining the kind of learning community we want to build and be part of. We read It’s Okay to be Different and Your Fantastic Elastic Brain to guide our discussions. We’ve been working to figure out what behaviors and attitudes lead us toward success. The Name Game has been at the center of this discussion most days. See if your child can tell you about what we are doing and what we are learning through this challenge.

We had fun reading Quick as a Cricket and The OK Book as a way to add to this discussion. Each of the children made a self-portrait and wrote a few sentences to describe themselves. We interviewed each other about “favorites” and shared some of our “passions.” We’re each different and the same all at one time.

Estimation – Reasonable Answers

In math we have been developing number sense through estimation. We compared the amounts of the same item in jars of this same size. We are developing strategies for comparing and learning ways to describe what we see. We are identifying the information we are actually using to guide our thinking – our estimates are not random guesses after all.

We begun exploring a challenge called Four 4’s. The children are working in pairs to see how many ways they can arrange and combine four 4’s in different equations to equal amounts from 1 through 20. The room is a buzz with this work. Together we discovered that 4/4 + 4 – 4= 1 and we’ve moved on from there. It is a way to help us learn that math is a language, that there are many different answers and different ways to approach this process. Plus it’s fun to work together at something that at first seemed impossible.

Part of our math block consists of problem solving most days. There are four problems and the children have been asked to choose at least one that challenges their thinking and abilities. Making this choice – some feel too hard, some feel confusing, some feel quick. –can be tricky but it will come with time. Some of the children took risks with the problems they selected. They weren’t sure how to approach them. Yay!   Trying something new is a way to learn. Other children selected problems that they felt secure in doing. They knew they could do them. With time they will all move on to greater challenges, whether on their own or with direction.

As you look at the work in your child’s folder don’t be alarmed if they are incorrect and I did not tell them. In the first two weeks I am learning about them as mathematicians. The feedback on the problems is meant to let them know what they are doing well and what they may want to focus on next time. I am trying to build the confidence and to establish a routine of independence and self-correction.

Bits and Pieces:

• Mrs. Forcier has joined our classroom community. We are glad to have her.
• We enjoyed our first chapter read-aloud this week, 8 Class Pets + 1 Squirrel ÷ 1 Dog = Chaos. It’s fun coincidence that the 3^rd grade in the book had fish as classroom pets and we do too. We are planning to get some neon fish like those in the book. Fun!
• Talk to your child about science – we’ve had a great time catching insects and learning about them. They are exciting.
• Check the paper memo for an updated UA schedule with our book selection library day.
• Nearly twice a month we will have challenges with Mr. Caron on Tuesdays. The first is on September 29
• Grade 3 Curriculum Night – September 10 in the Music Room
• If you’ve not had a chance to get to all this round of paper work please try. It truly is important. Thank you! (We know it is a ton!)