February 23, 2015

Dear Parents,

     Your student has a Reading Log for the next two weeks and a homework packet for this week in his/her backpack.  Please let me know if you have any questions.  Also, next Monday we will take a simulation of the Milestone for Math so that our students will have an idea of what the questions on the real Milestone might be like. 

     We are working on IXL in Math class this week, but I wanted to give you a head's up in case your wonderful student has a burning desire or extra time this week and would like to work on it at home as well.  :)The section on Equivalent Fractions (T.1 through T.9) is our focus.

     Finally, I wanted to make you aware that I will be giving weekly timed tests over the multiplication facts over the next several weeks and will be counting them as a grade.  It is CRUCIAL that our 3rd graders leave 3rd grade fluent in their multiplication facts. Please help your student by reviewing with him/her for 10 minutes a day.  Remember that your student can also practice on our Xtra Math class site - let me know if your child doesn't remember his or her login.

Thanks for all of your support!

Jenny M-G

P.S.  We are running a little low on Kleenex if you have some you could send in.  :)

February 18, 2015

Dear Parents,

     I hope you enjoyed your extra time with your kiddos yesterday. :) We have gotten right back into things here at school.  Today we had our Pollution & Conservation test and will be exploring our last (I can hardly believe it!) Science unit, Heat, over the next three weeks.  In Social Studies we are focusing on Thurgood Marshall and President Lyndon Johnson.  In Reading this week we are focused on poetry and next week we will focus on point of view.  The students did a fantastic job in our Fossil Fuel debate on Friday during writing!!! Please ask your student about it.  We are in the middle of our Fractions unit in Math.  I sent home a HW review handout today that will be due Friday.  Please let me know if you have any questions.

    In STEM lab we are continuing to work on our Environmentally Friendly houses.  Thanks so much for all the recyclables you sent in!  Please note that the Six Flags Read to Succeed ends March 2nd.  Make sure your student is logging his/her hours and remind them to turn in their logs to me so I can give them credit.  If you need another log, just e-mail me.  Please continue to encourage your student to review on iReady and IXL every day if possible.  Each 15 minutes of review really helps!!  Finally, remember that your student can always review our Science and Social Studies standards at Pebble Go and Brain Pop as well.  Thank you for all of your support!

Jenny M-G
Estimados padres de familia,

     Espero que haya disfrutado de su tiempo con sus kiddos ayer. :) Nos hemos metido de nuevo en las cosas aquí en la escuela. Hoy tuvimos nuestra prueba de la Contaminación y Conservación y estaremos explorando nuestro pasado (casi no puedo creerlo!) Unidad de la Ciencia, de calor, en los próximos tres semanas. En estudios sociales nos estamos centrando en Thurgood Marshall y el presidente Lyndon Johnson. En la lectura de esta semana estamos enfocados en la poesía y la próxima semana nos centraremos en el punto de vista. Los estudiantes hicieron un trabajo fantástico en nuestro Fossil Fuel debate el viernes durante la escritura !!! Por favor, pregunte a su estudiante al respecto. Estamos en el medio de nuestra unidad de fracciones en Matemáticas. Me mandaron a casa una revisión folleto HW hoy que será debidamente viernes. Por favor, hágamelo saber si usted tiene alguna pregunta.

    En el laboratorio STEM seguimos trabajando en nuestras casas respetuosos del medio ambiente. Muchas gracias por todos los materiales reciclables que envió en! Tenga en cuenta que los Six Flags Leer para tener éxito termina 2 de marzo. Asegúrese de que su hijo está registrando sus / sus horas y recordarles a entregar sus registros para mí, así que les puedo dar crédito. Si necesita otro registro, me acaba de enviarnos un correo electrónico. Por favor, seguir alentando a su hijo a revisar en iReady y IXL todos los días si es posible. Cada 15 minutos de opinión realmente ayuda !! Finalmente, recuerde que su hijo siempre puede revisar nuestra ciencia y estudios sociales normas en Pebble Go y Cerebro Pop también. Gracias a todos por su apoyo!

February 6, 2015

       Dear Parents,

       In Science we have begun work on our Environmentally Friendly homes and we are so excited!!  The kids are working in pairs or small group and will be creating their homes out of recyclables that they bring in (boxes, plastic bottles, tinfoil, toilet paper rolls, etc.).  In Math we are finishing up our Geometry unit.  In Social Studies, we are focusing on Franklin Delano Roosevelt and Eleanor Roosevelt will be next.  Please make sure your child continues to read for at least 20 minutes each night and is going on iReady for Reading or Math as well.  Thanks for your support!!

       Mr. Worrell and the Student Council have an upcoming project we will be contributing to as well:

"The Student Council would like to invite everyone to take part in our project for February.

“Fill Their Hearts” will take place from Monday February 9-Thursday February 12.  Our goal will be to collect items for patients at Children’s Healthcare Of Atlanta (CHOA), so they can make valentines for their family and friends.

Each grade level has been assigned an item to bring in for this project.  Please encourage your students to consider picking up these items when they are at the store over the weekend.

PK/K – Valentine stickers

1st - Crayons

2^nd – Glue Sticks

3^rd – Markers

4^th – Construction Paper

5^th – Gallon Sized Ziploc Bags

Please keep the collected items in your classroom until Thursday February 12.  Thank you so much for your help and support for this project.  If you have any questions, please let me know.  "

 Jonathan Worrell

PE Assistant

Student Council Advisor

Spalding Drive Charter School

January 27, 2015

Dear Parents,

       I am sending home a HW packet for this week, but it won't be due till next Monday, February 2.  Please have your student review for our upcoming Geometry test next Tuesday.  If your student has done the IXL review for R.1 through R.8, please have them move on to R.8 through R.15.  

       Also, next Monday is Career Day so be sure and ask your student about the interesting careers he/she learned about!  Thank you for sending your child to school in a warm coat and gloves and with a healthy snack.  We appreciate your support!

       Thanks for your support!

        Jenny M-G

January 16, 2015

Dear Parents,

       As I mentioned in my previous e-mail, we have been doing our STAR math and reading testing to see how much progress students have made since we last took it in the fall.  We also did a "load test" for the Milestone which was just to test the system and see if it could handle the volume of students being logged in at the same time. 

     Next week, we will be taking a Write Score assessment.  We opted to do this as a 3rd grade team since it will provide us more guidance on what areas we still need to work on it writing and give us a better idea of what kinds of tasks students will be asked to do on the Milestone.  Since it's on the computer also, it will serve as a simulation of how we will be testing with the Milestone in April. 

     We know that the Milestone will be a more rigorous test than the CRCT and we have been working hard to increase your students' ability to think critically and make their own assessments of the information provided in more than one text.  For example, students analyzed whether or not pride is bad or good after reading the fables "The Elephant and the Mouse" and  "The Lion and the Mouse".   In February we will participate in another Milestone simulation that will focus on Math.  We are trying to make sure that we and the students understand as much as we can about what to expect on the Milestone, since none of us have seen it before.  Please let me know if you have any questions and/or concerns and look for report cards and ITBS results coming home tonight.  Thanks for all your support!!

Jenny M-G

January 12, 2015

 Dear Parents,

       We are having some technology issues this Monday so our homework will be online this week.  For Social Studies, students can go on Pebble Go and review the book, video, and timelines for Franklin Delano Roosevelt and Eleanor Roosevelt.  For Science, students can go on Brain Pop and watch the video on Magnets and take the Review Quiz.  Please make sure your student is reading for at least 20 minutes nightly and check in with them and ask questions about what they are reading.  Better yet, read the book with them so you can talk about it!

     In Math, students can review for our Geometry unit at www.studyjams.scholastic.com  Today we created a KWL on Polygons and read " The Greedy Triangle" and learned what quadrilaterals, pentagons, hexagons, octagons, and decagons are.  We then drew pictures in our journals about some of the places in the real world that we find these shapes.  

      Thanks for your support!!

       Jenny M-G

January 7, 2015

   Dear Parents,

      I hope everyone enjoyed the break!  I was very happy to see all your student's smiling faces yesterday.  :)  We are hitting the ground running and getting right back into things.  In Science, we are finishing up our Fossils unit and will have our test next Monday, 1/12.  Students will be working on our Chapter Review this week and can also review on Brain Pop and Pebble Go Science.  Yesterday in stem lab we created models of fossil casts and molds using clay, shells, and glue and had a lot of fun exploring my mom's fossil collection.  Ask your student about what fossils they learned about!

     In Math, we are continuing to learn about Area, Perimeter, and creating and interpreting graphs (bar, line plot, circle).  Later this week we will be starting our Geometry unit.  We have heard that our wonderful Foundation will be buying IXL again for our students to review on and all students can currently be reviewing online on iReady. Please let me know if you have any questions.   

     Thanks for all your support!

     Jenny M-G

Estimados padres de familia,

       Espero que todos hayan disfrutado las vacaciones! Yo estaba muy feliz de ver todos los rostros sonrientes de ayer de su estudiante. :) Nos estamos golpeando el funcionamiento de tierra y conseguir de nuevo en las cosas. En ciencias, estamos terminando nuestra unidad de Fósiles y tendremos nuestra prueba siguiente Lunes, 12.01. Los estudiantes estarán trabajando en nuestra revisión del capítulo de esta semana y también pueden revisar el cerebro Pop y Pebble Go Ciencia. Ayer en el laboratorio tallo creamos modelos de moldes fósiles y moldes con arcilla, conchas, y la cola y tenía un montón de diversión explorando colección de fósiles de mi mamá. Pregúntele a su hijo acerca de lo que los fósiles que han aprendido acerca!

      En matemáticas, seguimos para aprender acerca de área, perímetro, y la creación y la interpretación de gráficos (barra, línea de la trama, círculo). Más tarde esta semana empezaremos nuestra unidad de geometría. Hemos oído que nuestra Fundación maravillosa estará comprando IXL nuevo para nuestros estudiantes a revisar todos los estudiantes y en la actualidad se pueden revisando en línea en iReady. Por favor, hágamelo saber si usted tiene alguna pregunta.

      Gracias por todo su apoyo!

      Jenny M-G