Happy Spring Vacation!

It was great to see so many of you at the Music Informance on Wednesday.  The children did a great job singing, dancing, playing instruments!  Thanks for joining us!

This week we finished our Weather unit during theme with another exciting hurricane house test.  Each team was given a chance to make changes to their first house to help it withstand stronger winds during  this final test.  We were amazed at how strong the houses were!  None blew over!  How did your child design his or her house?  What part of the design made it so strong?

In writer's workshop, we are in the drafting and publishing steps of the writing process.  As children finish drafting and have their work edited, they are then typing their fairy tales on Google Docs.  We will have publishing party to celebrate their hard work after vacation! Their work will also be found on their own Google Sites.  Jeff Badillo has been visiting the classrooms to teach the children how to build their own websites to share their written work and projects!  Ask your child to show you his or her web site!

In math, we continued to work on fractions and investigate fractions as parts of a whole and parts of a set.  We used two models to model, compare, and generate equivalent fractions: a 12-inch ruler and tiles in an egg carton subdivided with one or more pieces of yarn.  These models allowed the children to work with halves, thirds, fourths, sixths, and twelfths as they conducted a variety of fraction investigations.  They even learned a new game called Dozens of Eggs.  We will continue with fractions after the vacation and then begin our last math unit!

Lastly, we finished our character study reading unit during Reader's Workshop by watching the movie Because of Winn-Dixie. Which did your child like better...the book or the movie?

We hope that you all have a good week and hopefully, the weather will look and feel more spring-like when we return to school on April 30th.  Speaking of April 30th, we will be going to Shelburne Farms from 9:15-1:45pm.  Please make sure your child is dressed for the weather and for exploring the forest and the pond.  Please also send your child with a snack and a lunch.  This is just the first of many events in the month of May so please be sure to check the "Upcoming Events" list on our blog!

Enjoy the vacation!  Hard to believe we only have 34 days left in third grade!

Differences Awareness Day

Friday at SCS was Differences Awareness day.  Students in grades 3-5 had the opportunity to meet and hear from two adults with differences and then had the chance to participate in a simulation activity run by fourth graders.  During the panel discussion we met two adults from the Glens Falls, NY area.  They each talked about their differences: Down's Syndrome and Cerebral Palsy and challenges they have had in their lives.  However, the children also got to hear many ways that we are all alike such as, swimming, favorite colors, going to amusement parks, playing sports, and reading books.  Be sure to ask your child about our panelists (one was Joey's, a fellow third grade teacher, sister)!  During the simulations, the children went to stations that simulated differences in hearing, fine motor skills, visual/spatial, and sensory.  Ask your child about these simulations.  Which ones were hardest tasks to complete?

Both classes also had Hands on Nature.  This month's theme was Beavers and Muskrats.  Through a puppet show and activities, the children learned about where beavers live, how they make changes to their habitats to fit their needs, and how they have made many adaptations to be able to live so much of their lives under and around water.  The children had a chance to try to use their teeth like a beaver by gnawing on a carrot to simulate chopping down a tree and they had to peel chocolate off a pretzel with their teeth to simulate peeling bark off a branch! They got to see their teachers dressed as a beaver...tail, big teeth, pelt, and all!

During theme, we had a chance to test the children's hurricane houses! For the past week, they have been designing and creating structures that could withstand "category 1, 2, and 3" winds (from our electric leaf blower).  We tested out the houses and the children had the chance to reflect on how to make them stronger to withstand "category 4 and 5" winds next week. Did your child's house survive the winds?  How will he or she make it stronger for the next test?

In Reader's Workshop, we started reading a whole class book called Make Way for Dyamonde Daniel.  While reading this book, we made comparisons to the main character in this book with the main character in Because of Winn Dixie.  We found that both girls, Dyamonde and Opal were trying to make friends in these books because they were lonely and new in town.  We also discovered that they learned similar lessons..."people can change" and "don't judge people by just a few of their actions".  Did your child like Make Way for Dyamonde Daniel?  Who does your child think is the better friend...Opal or Dyamonde?

Have a great weekend!

Because of Winn-Dixie

This week in Reader's Workshop, we finished our study of Because of Winn-Dixie and its characters.  As we finished the book, we discussed how the main character, Opal, resolved her problems and the lessons that she learned.  The children generated some wonderful lessons learned from this book such as, "love what you've got while you got it; break out of your shell; people can change; be kind to everyone even if they are not to you.  Students took these lessons and made them into "bumper stickers" to put in our classrooms!  Be sure to ask your child about this book.  Did your child enjoy the book?  Who was his or her favorite character?  We will be watching the Because of Winn Dixie movie prior to vacation and will compare the book and film.  The movie is rated PG.  If you are not comfortable with your child watching this movie, please contact your child's teacher and we will find another activity for your child to do at that time.


In math, we finished our geometry unit and began a new unit on fractions and multiplication.  Our first lessons in this unit encouraged us to look for strategies to multiply numbers by eleven and twelve.  We built arrays to represent a multiplication fact, such as 3x11 and then talked about strategies for finding the solution.  As we built these arrays, we noticed patterns in the answers of our 11 facts. Can your child tell you about what we noticed?

In theme, we are continuing with our weather and climate unit.  This week we have started to explore about some natural disasters, specifically hurricanes.  The children have been given an engineering task to built a structure that could withstand "hurricane-like" winds (a high-powered leaf blower).  They have been given some constraints on the materials they can use and the number of windows and doors they need.  We are working with the third grade art teachers on this project.  They have been teaching the children about building structures and the children have been using their art class time to plan and build their structures.  We will test these structures next week!  Ask your child about his or her ideas for a strong structure!

Be sure to check out the upcoming events on our blog.  April and May have become busy months!  If you have any questions, please check in with Deb or Jenn.

Another busy week of learning!

Team Esprit continues to work hard on our adapted fairy tales.  We are now writing adapted versions of Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood and The Three Billy Goats Gruff.  Students will soon be choosing their favorite drafts to publish.

In Reader's Workshop, we are focusing on the climax of a story and we are noticing how the main character is tested.  We have been having many rich discussions about our main character, Opal, and the other supporting characters in Because of Winn-Dixie.  We look forward to finding out how this book ends!

We have continued learning about perimeter and area in math and are now using geoboards to build our understanding of unit fractions.  We are learning more about equivalent fractions and comparing two fractions with the same numerator.

In Science, we have been working hard creating passports, Flat Stanleys and suitcases to send on an adventurous vacation to a different climate.  We are using our knowledge and understanding of different climates to make choices about clothing and other items we will bring on our imaginary trips.
Have a great weekend!

What's the Weather?

Esprit has been learning about weather and climate this week.  We have been tracking high temperatures in Shelburne and other areas of the world, and have been exploring different climates and their characteristics. We learned about tropical, dry, continental, temperate, and polar climates.  Which climate would your child like to visit? We will use this information to do a "Flat Stanley" project next week!

In Writer's Workshop we are continuing our fairy tale adaptations unit.  We are now reading a variety of versions of Little Red Riding Hood and getting to know that fairy tale well.  We will begin drafting our own adaptations of Little Red Riding Hood next week.  Be sure to ask your child how he or she could adapt or change this fairy tale!

We have been discussing how stories are shaped like a mountain in Reader's Workshop. We learned that characters have small problems that build throughout the story until the character reaches the climax, or the real big problem.  We have also been thinking about the character "Opal" in Because of Winn Dixie, what challenges she faces and how she reacts to those challenges.  We are also considering secondary characters and the roles they play as advisor, sidekick (friend), and challenger to the main character.

In Math, we continue to explore geometric shapes and their attributes.  This week we have also focused on perimeter and area and explored several real life situations when we would use perimeter and area to solve problems.  Next week we will focus on shapes and fractions.

It was great to see so many of you during Parent Conferences this month.  It was nice to have conversations to celebrate accomplishments and make goals for the remainder of the year!
Have a great weekend!

Fairy Tale Fun!

We are fully immersed in fairy tales this week!  We have been reading adaptations of Cinderella and talking about ways that authors adapt stories.  We observed, as we read these adaptations, that authors change the characters, the events/details, and the motivation.  After reading, we then acted out adaptations using our bodies and voices to demonstrate the changes.  The children then came up with their own adaptations and created storyboards, making a plan for their adaptations.  Ask your child how he or she has adapted Cinderella!  Next week we will be reading versions of Little Red Riding Hood and making adaptations.

In Reader's Workshop, we continued to read Because of Winn Dixie and discuss our theories about the character Opal.  Just like strong readers, we used the information we know about Opal to make predictions about what actions Opal might take further along in the book.  We learned that Opal is the kind of child opens her heart to everyone and is kind and friendly.  This has helped us to predict that she will continue to make more friends in her new town of Naomi, Florida and that she will not be lonely anymore.  After practicing this strategy as a class, the children tried to make predictions about their characters in their independent reading books.

In math, we have continued to work with polygons and their attributes.  This week we used geoboards to build and create polygons with different attributes (ex. parallel lines, obtuse angles, acute angles).  Then we played a game called Guess My Quadrilateral.  The children were given clues and they had to sort through sets of shapes to find the quadrilaterals that match each clue.  Next week we will be making our own shape riddles based on attribute clues!

Both classes had Nearby Nature this week! This month's focus was on owls. We learned that owls have different characteristics from other birds.  They have adaptations that have allowed them to survive and thrive in their environment.  The most exciting part for the children was when they had the opportunity to dissect an owl pellet.  An owl eats small prey whole, and after digesting, what it can, the owl coughs up a pellet containing indigestible bones, fur, and feathers of its dinner.  By looking closely at these pellets, we are able to learn what an owl has eaten.  The children were amazed to find rib bones and even tiny skulls!  What did your child find?

In theme, we are still studying weather and are moving into studying climates.  We learned the difference between weather and climate and next week we will learn the characteristics of different kinds of climates.  We are also charting the daily high temperature of locations in different climates. Ask your child about our temperature collection!

Have a great weekend!

Spirit Week!

We have earned a school-wide celebration for positive behavior!  There will be an SCS Spirit Week next week.  Below is the schedule...