Can You Figure Us Out?

Today we used our math facts to create posters all about ourselves.  See if you can figure us out!

Lessons & Assignments Monday, August 17th

Language Arts - None - We took our 1st quarter assessment pretest today.  We also set some goals for ourselves to accomplish this year, and finished talking about the rules and routines in 3rd grade.

Math - None - We took our 1st quarter assessment pretest today.  We also created some posters about ourselves using math facts.

Science - None - We took our 1st quarter assessment pretest today.

Social Studies - None - We took our 1st quarter assessment pretest today.

Lessons & Assignments Friday, August 14th

We spent our first day in the classroom reviewing rules and routines.  We discussed class procedures including anything from taking attendance, to handing in papers and walking in the hallways.  We organized and labeled our school supplies, and completed a few fun "get to know you" activities.  Now we'll be ready to start the real deal on Monday!  I hope everyone has a great weekend!

Welcome Back!

Thank you to everyone that came out for Unpack Your Backpack night tonight.  

I enjoyed meeting all of you this evening, and can't wait to get our new school year started.  

These special treats are waiting for your child tomorrow morning.  See you then!

2015-2016 Schedule

2015 School Supplies

I was at Wal-Mart this week, and noticed that the school supplies were out, and calling my name!  

Even though teachers aren't posted yet, I thought I would post a few specifics for my classroom.  Please note that Mrs. McConnell's or Miss Vegter's students may differ.  

Please email me with any questions.  Thanks!

student planner - purchased at registration

headphones - purchased at registration

no binders/trappers

expandable file folder (Mrs. McConnell's class only)

scissors

ruler

crayons (small package - we won't use these much)

washable markers

colored pencils

glue sticks (we will use a lot of these for our journals)

2 spiral notebooks 

2 pocket folders 

2 dozen sharpened pencils

no personal pencil sharpeners

erasers

2 composition notebooks 

loose-leaf wide ruled notebook paper

2 boxes of kleenex

antibacterial wipes 

ziploc bags (large or small)

pencil box or pencil bag (large enough to hold all materials)

multiplication & division flash cards (to be kept at home)

book bag

tennis shoes & socks to leave at school

*My students will NOT need the expandable file folder.  I prefer to use regular folders for homework, "keep to study" papers, and "go home" papers.  

*The following supplies will be collected for classroom supply and do not need to be labeled:  glue sticks, loose leaf paper, Kleenex, disinfectant wipes, and ziploc bags.

*Feel free to label and put the following items in your child's pencil bag/box:  scissors, crayons, markers, colored pencils, 4 pencils, 1 eraser, and rulers.

*Printed labels will be provided for the folders, spiral notebooks, and composition notebooks - 

no need to label these at home.

*Additional supplies will be put in a ziploc bag with your child's name on it, and stored in the classroom.  Anything not used will be returned at the end of the year.

*Your student will have a locker this year, but will be sharing with a partner.  There is very little room, so please do not send any locker decorations.  PE shoes and socks will stay in the lockers.

Summer Break Boredom?

I hope all of you are enjoying your summer break!  I've been enjoying the extra time with my family.  We've been busy finishing up Gwen's soccer season, and I'm taking 2 graduate classes this summer.  Even though we are keeping busy, I've heard the classic, "I'm bored, there's nothing to do" at my house several times already.  In case you've heard it yourself, and you are tired of practicing your multiplication facts (wink, wink), I've found a few rainy day activities.

Earlier this year, I read the book The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick to the class.  It's a 526 page book about an orphan that lives in a train station and fixes clocks.  The main character encounters Georges Méliès, who was a real-life filmmaker in the late 1800's.  The students seemed captivated by the beautiful illustrations in this book, which won Brian Selznick the Caldecott Medal.  

When I was browsing Netflix today (hooray summer break downtime!), I came across the film A Trip to the Moon, directed by Georges Méliès.  It was produced in 1902, and has a huge part in the book we read in class.  I thought it would be fun for the students to see some of the drawings from the book come alive in this 12 minute film.  You can choose to watch it in color or in black & white.  You can also watch the movie adaptation of the novel on Netflix.  The movie title is Hugo, and it was directed by Martin Scorsese.  It's a favorite of my own children, but I just couldn't justify giving up 2 hours of class time this year to share it with the class.  I've had good luck finding the DVD in the $5 bin at Wal-Mart too!

If you don't have a Netflix account, there is a link to the short film on author's website found here.

My kids and I are also really excited about the upcoming Disney Pixar movie Inside Out.  Can you tell we love to watch movies?  Since Gwen loves Disney, and loves drawing, I came across Disney's Animation Academy's drawing tutorials for some of our favorite characters.  The videos have step-by-step directions on how to draw the characters.  We can't wait to try these out!  You can find the videos with the following link.

If I happen to come across anything else for summer fun, I'll be sure to share it!