Book Order Due

Today is the last day to enter your Scholastic book orders on-line! : )

Newsletter 3-19 to 3-22

Reminders:

3/20 – First day of spring

3/21 – PTA meeting 6:30 in library

3/22 – Book order due

3/23 – No school

3/28 – CapCom writing contest entry due

This week’s topics:

·         Writing – We’ll be taking a Venn diagram we completed about animals who have adapted to glow and create an essay using the IBBC format (intro, body, body conclusion)

·         Café – note taking  

·         Vocabulary – decimal, decimal point, tenth, hundredth, habitat, food chain, web

·         Spelling – r controlled vowels ar, ir, or, ur, er all saying /er/

·         Grammar – adjectives

This week’s topics:

·         Introduction to decimals

·         10^th and 100^th

·         Comparing and ordering decimals

·         Fact test Wednesday March 21^st!!!

          Our NYS animal research got off to a great start!  We’ve learned how to use indexes to make good use of searching both books and encyclopedias.  We’ve also learned the importance of citing our work and giving credit to other authors.  This week we’ll finish our research using the computer lab and the internet.   

Thursday Orchestra Practice

Beginning tomorrow all orchestra students will be practicing in the afternoon.  If you have orchestra lessons on Monday please bring your instrument in and bring it directly to the orchestra room.  If you have orchestra on Thursday follow the normal routine. : ) Thank you!

Newsletter 3-12 to 3-16

Reminders:

3/20 – First day of spring

3/21 – PTA meeting 6:30 in library

3/22 – Book order due

3/23 No School

3/28 – CapCom writing contest entry due

This week’s topics:

·         Writing – We’ll begin working on ELA NYS test book 3 which asks us to go through the writing process while comparing two texts

·         Café – note taking

·         Vocabulary – equivalent, mixed number, improper fraction, adaptation, camouflage

·         Spelling –suffixes –ion, -ness, -able, -less, -ful

·         Grammar – verbs

This week’s topics:

·         Mixed numbers

·         Improper fractions

·         Drawing a picture to solve a problem

·         Review of chapter 13

·         Test Friday

          We were so excited to kick of our NYS Animal Research project!  Each student in our class was assigned a NYS animal and a partner from Ms. Smith’s class.  As a team, they will be note taking from books, encyclopedias, and internet site to gain information for a power point presentation.  They’ll learn all about habitats, classification, movement, appearance, etc. of the animal.  Wait to you see the finished products!

Classroom News 3-5 to 3-9

Reminders:

3/9 – Shensational Poem due

3/11 – Daylight savings time – get some extra sleep J

3/20 – First day of spring

3/21 – PTA meeting 6:30 in library

3/22 – Book order due

3/28 – CapCom writing contest entry due

This week’s topics:

·         Writing – I’ve asked my students to create their favorite type of writing going through the steps independently.  They must create a pre-writing piece, draft an introduction, body and conclusion and then edit and revise for a second draft. 

·         Café – inferring meaning

·         Vocabulary – whole, parts, set, numerator, denominator, vertebrates warm/cold blooded, appendages,

·         Spelling – change a y to I and add a suffix (er, est, ly, ed)

·         Grammar – verbs (action,  being, linking)

This week’s topics:

·         Parts of a Whole figure

·         Parts of a Set

·         Equivalent Fractions

          Last week we discussed the definition of an animal and how to classify different types.  This week we’ll continue to read and learn about different vertebrates and what they have in common as well as how they differ. Be on the lookout for homework that involves using their notes and understanding the material taught so far.  

Our new prinicpal

Mrs. Ryan came for her first visit to room 348!  We had a wonderful discussion about Shatekon and got to hear one of her favorite stories by Cynthia Rylant. 

Make sure to enter to win!!!!!!

The Fourth Annual Albany Children’s Book Festival is sponsoring a creative writing contest for students in Grades 3 through 12. Our goal is to promote writing skills and the creative writing process. The contest is free and open to all eligible students.
 Winner - IPod Nano & $50 CAP COM Visa Gift Card
Honorable Mention - $50 CAP COM Visa Gift Card
Eligibility:
*Any student in Grades 3 through 12.
*Entries must be postmarked by March 30, 2012.
*Eligibility requirements must be met for consideration.

Submissions: A Wicked Good Lesson Learned

We’ve all had experiences that have gone differently than planned. Yet, we sometimes learn a big lesson from them. Whether it’s a funny, embarrassing, gratifying or sad experience, it becomes an unforgettable memory etched deeply within our brains.
Write a powerful, well-constructed piece of no more than one page about a lesson you learned from a personal experience that didn’t go as planned, or create a fictional character who learns a lesson from plans that go wrong. What happened, who was involved, how did your characters feel as it was happening, and what lesson was learned from it?

Eligibility Requirements:

*The story must be an original, unpublished story, the sole creation of the student.
*Collaborative works are not eligible.
*Text must be typed in double-spaced, size 12 font.
*The story must have a title.
*A cover page with entrant’s name, grade, school, school address and teacher’s name must
be stapled to the story. Do NOT write this information on the story.
*Only one entry per student is permitted.
*Story should be proofread for spelling and grammatical errors, and in final copy format.
*Entries must be postmarked by March 30, 2012.

Judging:
*Students will be judged in one of five categories:
Grades 3 and 4 Grades 7 and 8
Grades 5 and 6 Grades 9 and 10
Grades 11 and 12
*Judging will be based on style, content, originality, care of execution, and clarity of ideas.
*Entries will be assigned a number for judging anonymity.
*Decisions of the judges are final.

Wicked Good Prizes:
Grades Three through Four