1/15/26

 Burg's Buzz

1/15/26

nburg@crestonstmalachy.org

Math

The class continues to find the area of shapes. Students have found the area of regular and irregular shapes.

Reading/Language Arts

The class is now working on Module 5, which focuses on stories about teamwork. The story we are currently reading is Soccer Shootout by Jake Maddox. Berk was the goalie on last season's state championship game, but a new player is trying out for the team as the goalkeeper. When the coach gives Ryan the position at goalie, Berk is given the position of the sweeper. When it looks like the team might not win the championship, the coach suggests putting Berk back in at goalie. Berk comes up with a plan that brings Ryan and him together as teammates. The comprehension skills focused on the author's purpose, literary elements, theme, and author's craft. Students worked with the diphthongs of oi and oy and the decoding skill. The grammar skill covered subject/verb agreement. The students also covered the suffixes of -er and -est.

Science

Students are learning about animal adaptations.

Music Class

A note has been included in the take home folder pertaining to ordering a recorder for your child. If you already have a recorder from a previous child at St. Malachy, your current third grade student may use it. The cost of ordering a recorder through Mrs. Warner is $5. Please send the money to school with your child.

Mass

The 3rd grade class will lead the liturgy on Wednesday, January 21st. Parts have been included in the take home folder. Please practice speaking parts at home, especially since there is no school on Monday, January 19th.

FAST Testing

I will be testing each child's fluency on FAST on Tuesday, January 20th. There will be a substitute teacher in my room that day, so I can test each student individually. The remaining tests will be taken next week as well.

St. Malachy Foundation Gala

The annual gala is scheduled for Saturday, February 28th. Each classroom is responsible for a silent auction item. Homeroom parents Jordan Wardenburg and Kaitlin Dorsey have come up with the idea to make a wooden gift card holder. There is a note in the take home folder with more information about this project. Parent help is needed to complete the project. Each student will be creating their own greeting card to put on the holder. On the greeting card will be a Bible verse. Please complete the form coming home, and have your child return it back to school by Friday, February 6th.  Also, monetary donations are being accepted to help cover the costs.

Catholic School Week

Catholic Schools Week is quickly approaching. There are several notes in the folder pertaining to events happening during this week. There is a note about volunteering for the Mass at Holy Spirit Church on Sunday, January 25th. There is also a note about who will be your child's special guest at the mass on Friday, January 29th. The guest will need to pick your child up at St. Malachy School and bring them to Holy Spirit Church that afternoon.

Book Order Form

Last week, a book order form went home about purchasing the book Bella Bean on Blueberry Lane, written by Terri Higgins. She will be the featured author in March. Please get those orders in by February 7th.

Important Dates

Monday, January 19th-NO SCHOOL (Teacher Professional Development)

Tuesday, January 20th-Fluency FAST Testing (Substitute Teacher)

Wednesday, January 21st-3rd Grade Leads the Mass

Wednesday, January 21st-1 Hour Early Dismissal

Wednesday, January 21st-PTO Meeting

Friday, January 23rd-Spirit Day $1

1/8/26

 Burg's Buzz
nburg@crestonstmalachy.org
1/8/26

Reading/Language Arts

The final play that the students will read in Module 4 is "Two Bear Cubs" by Robert D. San Souci. In this drama,  Mother Grizzly warns her two cubs to not to go downstream, but after eating berries, the cubs decide to nap on a rock where they are not supposed to go. As the cubs sleep, the rock "grows" into a mountain. Not able to find her bear cubs, Mother Grizzly gets help from the other forest animals in searching for them. Once Hawk sees the cubs asleep, all of the animals try to climb the mountain. Each is unsuccessful until help comes from an unlikely source. The comprehension skills cover elements of drama, literary elements, and theme. The students also work with the Latin roots aud- and vis- as the vocabulary skill. The decoding skill focused on the vowel sound heard in talk, raw, cross, and fault. The grammar skill introduced students to using quotation marks to identify when someone is speaking.

Math

Topic 6 focuses on finding the area of shapes. Students first used unit squares to find the area of regular and irregular shapes. Students also measured area using nonstandard units.

The class will continue to work on multiplication and division. This week, students took a five minute timed test over both operations. The timed tests have been included in the take home for parents to review. Again, if your child has not yet mastered multiplication and division, any additional practice at home would be greatly appreciated.

Science

The next unit of study for the third grade class is organisms and their environment. Students have been learning about how plants are affected by the lack of or excess of water, the amount of sunlight, and the nutrients in the soil. The class also learned how the environment can affect animals such as their chemicals and nutrients in their diet or air temperature.

Talent Show Tryouts

This year during Catholic Schools Week (January 25th-30th), there will be a talent show. The talent show will take place on Thursday, January 29th. If a student wants to be in the show, he/she must try out. Tryouts will be the weeks of January 12th and 19th. There are sign-up sheets in the hallway outside of the classroom. Talents may include singing, dancing/tumbling, magic tricks, playing an instrument, or telling jokes. 

The last time STM held a talent show was when this class was in kindergarten, so it is time again to showcase those talents!

Book Order Form

I celebrate National Reading Month in March with the 3rd grade students. This year, the class will have the pleasure of listening to Terri Higgins, a Creston resident, read aloud her book Bella Bean on Blueberry Lane. Coming home in the folder is an order form to purchase a copy of the book. Orders are due back by Friday, February 7th.

Important Dates

Friday, January 9th-Spirit Day $1

Wednesday, January 14th-1 Hour Early Dismissal

Tuesday, January 20th-Fluency FAST Testing (Substitute Teacher)

Wednesday, January 21st-3rd Grade Leads the Mass

Friday, January 23rd-Spirit Day

Sunday, January 25th-Friday, January 30th-Catholic Schools Week

12/18/25

 Burg's Buzz

nburg@crestonstmalachy.org

12/18/25

Math

In addition to completing the Topic 4 assessment this week, the students also worked on a math packet that reviewed multiplication, division, and word problems using all four operations.

Friday, December 19th

The dress-up day for Friday, December 19th, is Christmas Vacation. Students can either wear ugly sweaters or pajamas. Students also need to bring a sack lunch. Advent Angels will eat lunch together. Following lunch, students will sing carols in the gym.

Students can bring a gift for their Advent Angel. Please know this is not a requirement.

Stocking Stuffers

Many students need to replenish their school supplies, such as crayons, pencils, and erasers. These would make great stocking stuffers for students.

Reading Incentive Program

A January reading calendar has been included in the take home folder. The goal for the next three months increases to 500 total minutes. December calendars are due back to school on Monday, January 5th.

Christmas Break

There is no school from Monday, December 22nd, through Friday, January 2nd. School resumes on Monday, January 5th.

Important Dates

Friday, December 19th-Dress up Day (Christmas Vacation-ugly sweaters or pajamas)

Friday, December 19th-Bring a Sack Lunch

Monday, January 5th-School Resumes

Wednesday, January 7th-1 Hour Dismissal

Friday, January 9th-Spirit Day $1

Happy Holidays

I wish all St. Malachy third grade families a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! Thank you for the gift of allowing me to teach your children each day. It is exciting to see the progress that students have made so far, and I look forward to the educational learning experiences to come.

12/11/25

 Burg's Buzz

nburg@crestonstmalachy.org

12/11/25 

Science

Since we have reached the end of a unit, the plan is to wait until we return to school in January to start the next topic, organisms and their environments. 

Reading/Language Arts

The second play in Module 4 is "Gigi and the Wishing Ring" by Gail Herman. In this Italian fairy tale, a young man goes out to discover the world in hopes of finding riches. He meets an old woman, who gives him her cat, dog, and a magic ring. The only stipulation is that Gigi isn't supposed to tell anyone about the secret ring. Then, Gigi meets Maliarda, a beautiful girl, and eventually tells her about the ring. Maliarda uses the ring to send Gigi and his pets to the top of the highest mountain. The pets get down from the mountain and have a mouse steal the ring back. The pets wish for Gigi to return from the mountain. Gigi uses the wishing ring to send Maliarda to the cold mountain.

The comprehension skills that will be covered include retelling, understanding elements of drama, and theme. The decoding skill covers the /ou/ sound. Students will identify and write plural nouns as the grammar skill. The vocabulary skill

Next week, the class will take the selection quiz on the story. Students will not take a module assessment.

The results of the Module 3 assessments have been included in the take home folder.

Math

The third grade class is preparing for the Topic 4 assessment. The test will be on Monday, December 15th.

Dress Up Days

Monday, December 15th-Christmas Character

Tuesday, December 16th-Christmas Plaid

Wednesday, December 17th-Christmas Best (mass attire)

Thursday, December 18th-Shiny, Festive, and Bright

Friday, December 19th-Christmas Vacation (ugly sweater or pajamas)

Friday, December 19th

Advent Angels will be eating lunch together on Friday, December 19th. Students will need to bring a sack lunch. Afterwards, the whole school will sing Christmas carols in the gym. Parents are more than welcome to join us in caroling.

Students are allowed to bring their Advent Angel a Christmas gift. Please note this is not a requirement. 

Christmas Break

School will not be in session for Christmas break from Monday, December 22nd-Friday, January 2nd. I hope that all 3rd grade families can spend time with those they love. My husband and I will be traveling to Mesa, AZ, to spend the week at my mom's house. This is such an enjoyable week for me, as it's the longest amount of time I get to spend with my adult children since they no longer live at my house.

School resumes for students on Monday, January 5th.

Important Dates

Friday, December 12th-Reconciliation for 3rd graders

Wednesday, December 17th-1 Hour Early Dismissal

Friday, December 19th-Bring a Sack Lunch

12/7/25

Burg's Buzz

nburg@crestonstmalchy.org

12/7/25

Math

The 3rd grade class has been ta;ught the divisors of 0-10. Students need to continue practicing the division facts. Being able to multiply and divide fluently is a third grade math standard. The class will complete the Topic 4 assessment before Christmas break.

Science

The class will take an assessment on the topic of motion on Wednesday, December 10th. The students completed a study guide with a partner this past Friday. We will check the study guide tomorrow in class.

Reading/Language Arts

Module 4 focuses on stories told as plays. The first play the class is reading is "The Saga of Pecos Bill" by Edward O'Reilly. Students will take the weekly assessments along with the spelling post-test on Tuesday, December 9th.

Advent Angels

Advent Angel activities begin this week. Students have been paired up with another student in the building and will partake in several Advent-themed activities over the next two weeks.

Mass

Mass this week will be celebrated on Monday, December 8th, due to it being the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception. This holy day of obligation is a Catholic feast celebrating Mary's conception without sin. There will be no mass on Wednesday, December 10th. There will be no PE class on Monday. PE classes will be on Wednesday and Thursday this week. Students will go to Library on Monday.

Christmas Dress Up Days

Monday, December 15th-Christmas Character Day

Tuesday, December 16th-Christmas Plaid

Wednesday, December 17th-Christmas Best Dress Up

Thursday, December 18th-Shiny, Festive, and Bright

Friday, December 19th-Ugly Sweater

Important Dates

Monday, December 8th-Mass (Feast of the Immaculate Conception)

Wednesday, December 10th-PE Class (tennis shoes needed)

Wednesday, December 10th-1 Hour Early Dismissal

Friday, December 12th-Donations for Nursing Home Residents Due

Friday, December 12th-Reconciliation for Grades 3rd-8th

Wednesday, December 17th-1 Hour Early Dismissal

Friday, December 19th-Sack Lunch and Caroling with Angels

Christmas Break

School is NOT in session from Monday, December 22nd, through Friday, January 2nd. School resumes on Monday, January 5th.

 

12/4/25

Burg's Buzz
nburg@crestonstmalachy.org
12/4/25 

Christmas Music Concert

The music concert was a wonderful performance by the St. Malachy student body and Mrs. Warner. It definitely puts you in the Christmas spirit.

Vacation

My husband and I had a wonderful time on our anniversary trip to Cabo San Lucas. It was nice to relax and enjoy the beautiful view. I was definitely not ready to return to the cold, snowy weather in Iowa.

Important Dates

11/20/25

Burg's Buzz
nburg@crestonstmalachy.org
11/20/25 

Reading/Language Arts

The third graders are reading Why is the Statue of Liberty Green written by Martha E. H. Rustad and illustrated by Holli Conger. In this narrative nonfiction story, students learn factual information about The Statue of Liberty by following students on a field trip. The comprehension skills covered identifying the central idea and providing evidence to support it, identifying the author's purpose for writing the story and providing evidence that proves the purpose, and being able to figure out the literary elements of the narrative section of the story. Students also worked on distinguishing between concrete and abstract nouns. The decoding skill focused on the silent letters kn, wr, gn, mb, and rh). The vocabulary skill covered the prefix of im-.

The spelling post and weekly assessments will be completed on Thursday, November 20th. The class will start on Module 4 upon returning from Thanksgiving break.

Science

During science class, the students learned about being able to predict patterns of motion. These patterns include up/down, back and forth, circular, and zigzag.

Math

Since the class has started learning about division, the students worked on identifying fact families. Just as addition and subtraction are related operations, so are multiplication and division. One of the strategies taught for learning division facts is to use the multiplication facts. The class has practiced the divisors of 2, 3, 4, and 5.

Book Order

A Scholastic book order was sent home in last week's take home folder. Please remember that orders must be placed online by Wednesday, December 3rd. If ordering a Christmas gift for your child, please notify me by email. I can notify you when the book order arrives.

Reading Incentive Program

November calendars are due back to school by Wednesday, December 3rd. I will hand out the awards for those students who meet the goal upon returning back to school on December 4th. A December calendar will go home with students next week.

Mrs. Burg Absent From School

As a reminder to parents, I will not be at school on Tuesday, November 25th, Monday, December 1, Tuesday, December 2nd, or on Wednesday, December 3rd. My husband and I will be celebrating our 25th wedding anniversary on November 25th. We are taking a vacation to Los Cabos, Mexico. The substitute will be Mary Brown. I do plan on telling the students of my absence from school this Friday. My plan is to attend the Christmas concert on the evening of Wednesday, December 3rd.

Thanksgiving Break

School will not be in session beginning on Wednesday, November 26th, through Sunday, November 30th. School resumes on Monday, December 1st.

Read-A-Thon Fundraiser

Read-A-Thon information is coming home in the take home folder today. St. Malachy's PTO will be holding its fall fundraiser beginning on Monday, November 24th and running through Sunday, December 7th. Students track their minutes read throughout the two weeks and gather sponsors to pledge money. All money and reading logs need to be turned back into school by Tuesday, December 9th. 

Because this is a fundraiser, money raised will be used to repair the cement work in the outdoor commons area and to provide funds for the future outdoor classroom. There are prizes that the students can also win. There will be an award for the student who reads the most minutes and who is the top fundraiser per grade band. All students who raise $50 or more will be entered into a raffle for an Amazon gift card. There is also an award for the top fundraising class and the class with the top minutes read.

Minutes can be counted towards both the monthly reading minutes and the Read-A-Thon fundraiser.

Sweatpants Fundraiser

Students can pay $20 to wear sweatpants (no pajama bottoms) throughtout December. The only stipulation to this is not being able to wear sweatpants on Wednesdays due to mass. All of the money raised in this fundraiser will go towards the cost of the outdoor classroom. If your child wants to participate, please have the money turned in by Tuesday, December 2nd.

Important Dates

Friday, November 21st-Spirit Day $1

Tuesday, November 25th-Mrs. Burg Absent from School

Wednesday, November 26th-NO SCHOOL (Thanksgiving Break)

Thursday, November 27th-NO SCHOOL (Thanksgiving Day)

Friday, November 28th-NO SCHOOL (Thanksgiving Break)

Monday, December 1st-Mrs. Burg Absent from School

Tuesday, December 2nd-Mrs. Burg Absent from School

Wednesday, December 3rd-Mrs. Burg Absent from School

Wednesday, December 3rd-1 Hour Early Dismissal

Wednesday, December 3rd-Christmas Music Concert 6 PM

Friday, December 5th-Spirit Day $1