Third Grade Christmas

Merry Christmas from the St. Malachy 3rd Grade Class

12-21-17

3rd Grade News

nburg@crestonstmalachy.org

12-21-17

Math

The class has worked on different properties to help solve multiplication problems. Students have learned the Distributive Property and the Associative Property. Please practice the basic multiplication facts over the break. All of the students understand the process of multiplication. We are now working on the speed of knowing the problems. The factor of 7 seem to be the trickiest for the students to master.

Reading/Language Arts

This week third grade read the humorous fiction story "The Extra Good Sunday" from Ramona Quimby-Age 8. The comprehension skill focused on understanding characters through traits, motivations, and feelings. The vocabulary strategy covered using a thesaurus. Students also continued working on r-controlled vowels. The grammar skill focused on verb tense.

Last week's lesson 14 reading assessment results have been included in the take home folder.

Upon returning from Christmas break, the third grade class will take the Unit 3 Benchmark test. We will begin lesson 16 the week of January 8th.

Science

The class will be studying the solar system. Students have identified facts that they already know about space. 

Reading Calendars

December reading calendars are due back to school by Friday, January 5th to receive the award. January calendars will be sent home upon the students returning to school from break. The goal in January, February, and March increases to 500 minutes.

Important Dates

Friday, December 22nd-NO SCHOOL (Teacher Professional Development)

Monday, December 25th-Tuesday, January 2nd-NO SCHOOL (Christmas Break)

Wednesday, January 3rd-Classes Resume

Friday, January 5th-Spirit Day ($1)

Friday, January 5th-3rd Grade Food Pantry

Thursday, January 11th-PTO Meeting

Monday, January 15th-NO SCHOOL (Teacher Professional Development)

12-14-17

3rd Grade News

nburg@crestonstmalachy.org

12-14-17

Science

The third grade class has been learning about ecosystems where we find plants and animals. This week students completed the chapter review and study guide. There will be a test on Friday, December 15th. 

Students will next study about the solar system. 

Math

Students continue to learn the multiplication facts. Students have learned the about the factors of 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 10. Any extra help at home practicing the basic multiplication facts would be beneficial. The Distributive Property of Multiplication (6 X 7=(6 X 5=30) + 
(6 X 2=12, so 6 X 7=42) has also been introduced to the students.

Reading/Language Arts

In this week's informational text "Aero and Officer Mike-Patrol Partners" students learn about a police officer and his K-9 dog. The comprehension skill focused on author's purpose. Students also worked on the vocabulary skill of the prefixes im- and in-. In grammar students learned about pronoun-verb agreement. The class covered R-controlled vowel worked as a phonics skill.

The lesson 13 weekly assessment results have been included in the take home folder.

Third grade will be completing lesson 15 next week. It will be a shortened week due to no school on Friday, December 22nd. The spelling post test and weekly assessment will be taken on Thursday, December 21st.

Christmas Party

The third grade class will have a Christmas party after spelling and the reading assessment testing during the morning of December 21st. Students need to bring a sack lunch (drink provided) to eat with their Advent Angel in the gym. Caroling will take place from 12:30-1:00 PM. During the party, third grade will have their book exchange. A treat and drink will also be provided for the students. During the afternoon, the class will watch a movie with the fourth and fifth grade students. School is dismissed at the regular time and there is no school on Friday, December 22nd due to teacher professional development.

Important Dates

Friday, December 15th-Spirit Day

Friday, December 15th-Optional Sack Lunch

Thursday, December 21st-Sack Lunch (Required)

Thursday, December 21st-Class Christmas Party with Book Exchange

Friday, December 22nd-NO SCHOOL (Teacher Professional Development)

There is no school from Friday, December 22, 2017-Tuesday, January 2, 2018. Classes resume on Wednesday, January 3, 2018.

Book Gift Exchange

Holiday Book Exchange

Dear Parents,

  I am excited to announce that our classroom will be holding a book exchange. As you know reading is so important and what better way to ring in the holiday season than with a new book! Your child should bring in a new book wrapped to exchange. Books should be suitable for a boy or girl and not exceed $10. We will play a fun game to exchange the books during our class party. The exchange will happen on Thursday, December 21st. If you have any questions, please feel free to call or email me. Thank you.

12-7-17

3rd Grade News

12-7-17

nburg@crestonstmalachy.org

Math

Chapter 4 will focus on the factors of two through ten. The factors of zero and one were discussed in the chapter 3. Please practice the basic multiplication facts at home.

Reading/Language Arts

This week third grade read "Yonder Mountain-A Cherokee Legend" in which the chief of the tribe has to pick a new leader. Three young Native American men are given a task to see which one possesses the skills to be the next leader of the tribe. The comprehension skill covered comparing and contrasting. The vocabulary strategy has focused on homophones and homographs. The students worked on contractions in phonics. For the grammar skill, the class worked on subject-verb agreement.

The lesson 12 weekly assessment have been included in the take home folder. These are yours to keep.

Science

Students in third grade are researching one of the ecosystems that was discussed in class. Each student is creating a circle book with the information researched.

Book Order

The book order that was sent home last week is due back by Friday, December 8th. Orders may be returned to school by cash or check or submitted online at www.scholastic.com.

Mass

Third grade will lead the mass on Wednesday, December 13th. Parts have been included in the take home folder. Please practice reading parts at home to improve fluency when reading aloud. Parents are more than welcome to join us in liturgy at 9:15 AM.

Reading Incentive Program

The November reading results are in. The third grade class read a total of 7,126  minutes during the month. Congratulations to Kennedy, Sadie, Ashlyn, Melanie, Jonhy, Taylor, Josie, Hank, and Rhett for meeting the November goal of four hundred minutes. The most minutes read during November goes to Taylor with 1,854 minutes.

Food Pantry Donations

St. Malachy School is collecting items to donate to our local food pantry. Items that are needed include toothpaste, kleenex, toilet paper, canned fruits and vegetables, spaghetti sauce, ravioli, spaghettios, and boxed meals such as hamburger helper.

Important Dates

Friday, December 8th-Feast of Immaculate Conception Mass at 9:15 AM

Friday, December 8th-Book Order Due

Wednesday, December 13th-3rd Grade Mass at 9:15 AM

Friday, December 15th-Spirit Day $1

Wednesday, December 20th-Mass at 9:15 AM

Thursday, November 21st-Sack Lunch
Friday, December 22nd-NO SCHOOL (Teacher Professional Development)

11-30-17

3rd Grade News 

nburg@crestonstmalachy.org

11-30-17

Reading/Language Arts

This week third grade is reading Tops and Bottoms. In this trickster tale, a clever Hare tricks a lazy bear. The hare plants the crops to "share" with the bear. The hare always ends up with the good parts, and the bear not so good parts. Bear learns a valuable lesson about working hard to reap the rewards you are wanting. The comprehension skill covered theme. The vocabulary strategy focused on idioms. The phonics skills covered homophones and words that end in -le and -er. Students used quotation marks in grammar.

The results of the Unit 2 Benchmark test and lesson 11 weekly assessment have been included in the this week's take home folder. These results are yours to keep.

Math

Third grade has been learning about the process of multiplication. Students have learned about equal groups, repeated addition sentences, and arrays. The students also learned about the Commutative Property of Multiplication (4 X 3=12 and 3 X 4=12). The class was introduced to the factors of 0 and 1 when multiplying. There will be test covering these chapter 3 concepts next week. 

Science

The third grade class continues to learn about ecosystems. Students have studied land ecosystem such as forests, deserts, and grasslands. Also, students have learned about fresh and salt water ecosystems.

Reading Incentive Program

November calendars are due back to school by Thursday, December 7th. Pizza certificates and the month winner will be announced on that day. December calendars have been included in the take home folder. The goal for December remains at 400 minutes total.

Book Order

A book order has been included in this week's take home folder. Orders are due back to school by Friday, December 8th. Orders can be returned to school with cash or a check or submitted online at www.scholastic.com using the class code GRHFQ. This will be the last book order of 2017. If wanting to order books at Christmas gifts, please let me know and I will hold the order at school and let you know when it arrives.

Upcoming Dates
Friday, December 1-Spirit Day ($1)

Wednesday, December 6th-Christmas Program at 6:30 PM

Friday, December 8th-Feast of Immaculate Conception Mass 

Wednesday, December 13th-3rd Grade Mass

Friday, December 15th-Spirit Day ($1)

Friday, December 22nd-NO SCHOOL (Teacher Professional Development)

Fire Prevention Posters

Congratulations to the fire prevention poster winners in 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade. The first place posters will be sent on the the state competition. Way to go!

 5th grade-1st place Parker, 2nd place-Sasha, 3rd place-Ava A.

4th grade-1st place-Kadley, 2nd place-Braylee, 3rd place-Kenna

3rd grade-1st place-Taylor, 2nd place-Rhett, 3rd place-Melanie

1st place-Taylor

2nd place-Rhett

3rd place-Melanie

11-16-17

3rd Grade News

nburg@crestonstmalachy.org

11-16-17

Science

Third grade is studying ecosystems. Students have been learning about the four types of forests.

Math

Students are learning about the process of multiplication. Students have learned about equal groups and the number in each group. The students are also relating addition to multiplication.

Reading/Language Arts

On Monday and Tuesday of this week, third grade took the Unit 2 Benchmark 2 assessment.  Please look for the results after Thanksgiving.

The class began lesson 11 this past Wednesday. Students are reading the nonfiction selection "Technology Wins the Game." The comprehension skill focused on sequencing. The phonics skill covered the vowel diphthongs oi and oy. Students worked on plural nouns in grammar.  The lesson will conclude with the weekly assessment on Tuesday, November 21st. Students will also take the spelling post test and the packet will be due next Tuesday.

The lesson 10 weekly test scores have been included in the take home folder. These are yours to keep.

Field Trip

The field trip to the Des Moines Playhouse to see the performance of A Little House Christmas was wonderful. Here some pictures from the day.

  

Important Dates

Wednesday, November 22nd-NO SCHOOL (Teacher Professional Development)

Thursday, November 23rd-NO SCHOOL (Thanksgiving Vacation)

Friday, November 24th-NO SCHOOL (Thanksgiving Vacation)

Thursday, November 30th-Mrs. Burg Absent from School (Personal Day)

Friday, December 1st-Food Pantry Visit

Wednesday, December 6th-Christmas Program

STEM Night

The second annual STEM Night at St. Malachy was a huge success!  Thank you to everyone who came to check out the booths that engaged students in science, technology, engineering, and math. Thank you to all of the businesses, organizations, and groups that came to the event. The STEM committee appreciates your efforts to make this event successful.  Also, thanks to A&G for the supplying the pizza slices. Overall, it was another great event at St. Malachy School!

 

11-9-17

3rd Grade News

nburg@crestonstmalachy.org

11-9-17

Math

Earlier in the week the third grade class took the chapter 2 test covering analyzing and interpreting data. Students have also been working on a school wide survey about favorite emojis and made online graphs. 

Next week third grade will begin to learn about the process of multiplication.

Science

Students took a test over animals this past week. Thank you to Matt, Heidi, and Taylor Rohrig for sharing their knowledge of pigs with the class this past Tuesday. Taylor taught the class how to notch their ears for identification purposes. The Rohrig family even brought pigs in so the students could see the ear notches firsthand. Governor Reynolds and Lt. Governor Gregg also stopped by to visit our class on this day. It is great to be able to show them what third grade is doing in science and how it relates to careers.

        

Reading/Language Arts

This week third grade is reading a biography called "Young Thomas Edison." The story primarily focuses on the childhood of Edison. Students worked on main idea and supporting details as the comprehension focus. The vocabulary strategy covered shades of meaning. Student identified the small difference in meaning between similar words and phrases. Students worked on the short o sound with the letters au, aw, al, and o.  For the grammar skill, students learned about pronouns.

The lesson 9 weekly assessment results have been included in the take home folder. These are yours to keep.

The class will take the Unit 2 Benchmark test on Monday and Tuesday next week. We will begin lesson 11 on Wednesday, November 15th and end it on Tuesday, November 21st. We will also the class to get five days of the lesson in before break.

Veteran's Day

Veteran's Day will be observed at St. Malachy School on Friday, November 10th. Students are asked to wear red, white, and blue in honor of the veterans. This is also a $1 Spirit Day for the students. 3rd grade will be attending a program put on by the kindergarten and fifth grade students during the afternoon.

Field Trip

The first, second, and third grade field trip to the Des Moines Playhouse is Tuesday, November 14th. The bus for the trip leaves St. Malachy at 9:30 AM. Please have students come to school at the normal time. Students may bring hand held electronics for the bus ride. We will eat our sack lunches from 11:00-11:40 AM at the playhouse. The performance of A Little House Christmas will be from 12:00-1:30 PM. The bus will arrive back at St. Malachy School around 2:45 PM.

I have all of the permission slips, but I am missing the seven dollars from a couple of students. Please get the money turned into me by Friday, November 10th.

Important Dates

Thursday, November 9th-STEM Night from 5:30-7:30 PM

Friday, November 10th-Spirit Day ($1)

Tuesday, November 9th-1st, 2nd, and 3rd Grade Field Trip

Thursday, November 16th-PTO Meeting 6 PM

Wednesday, November 22nd-NO SCHOOL (Teacher Professional Development)

Thursday, November 23rd-NO SCHOOL (Thanksgiving Break)

Friday, November 24th-NO SCHOOL (Thanksgiving Break)

11-2-17

3rd Grade News

nburg@crestonstmalachy.org

11-2-17

Halloween Fun

The Halloween activities were a success. From ghost and spider cookies, to the haunted house, to scary stories, to touching ooey gooey things, to a parade with costumes, it was fun time for all.

                   

Dress Code

Please be aware shorts are not allowed in the months of November through February. According to the dress code shorts will be allowed in August, September, October, March, April and May. (Note: The bottom of the short must extend to at least mid-thigh.) 

Also a reminder about leggings according to the dress code policy that leggings may be worn as long as the bottom of the dress, skirt or shirt extends to at least mid-thigh.

Field Trip

Students in grades first, second, and third grade will be going on field trip to a performance of A Little House Christmas on Tuesday, November 14th at the Des Moines Playhouse.  Permission slips were sent home in last week's take home folder. Please have the permission slip and $7 fee to cover the cost of the ticket returned to school by Friday, November 10th. The sign up genius will be sent via email on Monday, November 6th at noon. Two parents from third grade are needed to help chaperone. Volunteers will also need to pay the seven dollars to cover the cost of the ticket.

STEM Night

STEM Night at St. Malachy School is scheduled for Thursday, November 9th from 5:30-7:30 PM. There are some great vendors planned with hands on activities for the students to participate in. Please plan to attend this great evening of fun activities involving science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

10-26-17

3rd Grade News

nburg@crestonstmalachy.org

10-26-17

Science

Students are learning about animal behavior. The class discussed instincts and learned behaviors. Students have also been learning about what happens when animals are not able to meet their needs. Students are researching about animals that are threatened, endangered, or extinct.

Reading/Language Arts

This week third grade read the folktale "The Harvest Birds" in which a young man has desire to live off the land. The townspeople doubt his abilities, but Juan Zanate believes in himself. With the the help of some "friends" Juan achieves his goal. The comprehension skill covered drawing conclusions. The vocabulary strategy focused on using context clues to figure out meanings. In grammar, student focused on using commas with words in a series and addresses. The phonics skills had students working on the silent letter of wr- and kn-.

The results of the lesson 7 weekly assessment have been included in the take home folder. These are yours to keep.

Math

Students have interpreted data on a picture graph and a bar graph. The class continues to work on the basic addition and subtraction facts.

Halloween Activities

Halloween activities are scheduled for the afternoon of Tuesday, October 31st. The Civics club will have activities for the students to participate in after lunch/recess. The parade will begin at 2:30 PM in the gym. Parents are more than welcome to come and watch the parade. Students have time prior to the parade to change into their costumes.

Parent/Teacher Conferences

Parent/teacher conferences are scheduled for Thursday, November 2nd from 1:00-5:00 PM and 6:00-9:30 PM. School dismisses at 12:10 PM on  this day. There is no school on Friday, November 3rd.

Reading Incentive Program

The month of October is quickly coming to an end. Please return October reading calendars by Monday, November 6th. The goal for the month of October is 400 total minutes read.

November calendars have been included in the take home folder. The goal again is 400 minutes total read.

Field Trip

Students in first, second, and third grade will be attending a performance of A Little House Christmas at the Des Moines Playhouse on Tuesday, November 14th. A note with all of the details and a permission slip has been included in today's take home folder.  Please return the permission slip and $7 to cover the cost of the ticket to school by Friday, November 10th. Students will also need to bring a sack lunch on the field trip.  A sign up genius will be sent out on Monday, November 6th at noon for two third grade parent volunteers to chaperone this field trip.  Volunteers will need to pay the $7 for the ticket to the performance.

Important Dates

Saturday, October 28th-PTO Vendor Fair

Tuesday, October 31st-Halloween Parade (2:30 PM)

Thursday, November 2nd-12:10 Dismissal

Thursday-November 2nd-Parent/Teacher Conferences

Friday, November 3rd-NO SCHOOL

Thursday, November 9th-STEM Night at 5:30 PM

Friday, November 10th-Spirit Day ($1)

Tuesday, November 14th-1st, 2nd, 3rd Grade Field Trip

Thursday, November 16th-PTO Meeting

10-19-17

3rd Grade News

nburg@crestonstmalachy.org

10-19-17

Math

Students are learning about analyzing and interpreting data. We have worked with tally tables and frequency tables.

Reading/Language Arts

The informational text read this week entitled "What Illustrators Do?" presented facts about the job of an illustrator.  The comprehension skill covered text and graphic features.  The vocabulary strategy focused on synonyms.  The phonics skill covered three letter clusters (scr, str, str, and thr). Students worked on verb tense (present, past, and future) for the grammar skill.

The results of the lesson 6 weekly assessment have been included in the take home folder for parents to view. These are yours to keep.

Science

The third grade class continues to learn about animals in science. Students have learned about birds, fish, and amphibians.

Mass

Third, fourth, and fifth grades have the mass scheduled for Wednesday, October 25th. Because of the number of students involved, not all third graders will have an assigned part. Please check your child's take home folder to see if your child has a part in the liturgy. There is a coffee and doughnut reception following the mass for third, fourth, and fifth grade parents and special guests.

Halloween Activities

Halloween will be celebrated at St. Malachy School on during the afternoon of Tuesday, October 31st. The Civics Club will provide activities for the students to participate in after lunch on this day. The parade begins at 2:30 PM. There will be time prior to the parade for the students to change into costumes. Parents are invited to come and watch the parade.

Parent/Teacher Conferences

Parent/Teacher conferences are scheduled for Thursday, November 2nd. Times are from 1:00-5:00 PM and 6:00-9:30 PM. Please sign up for a time slot using the included link 2017 Fall Conferences. There is no school on Friday, November 3rd.

Important Dates

Thursday, October 19th-PTO Meeting at 6 PM

Friday, October 20th-Spirit Day

Saturday, October 21st-Spaghetti Supper

Wednesday, October 25th-3rd, 4th, and 5th Grade Mass followed by a reception

Saturday, October 28th-PTO Vendor Fair

Tuesday, October 31st-Halloween Parade 2:30 PM

Thursday, November 2nd-Parent/Teacher Conferences

Friday, November 3rd-NO SCHOOL

10-12-17

3rd Grade News

10-12-17

nburg@crestonstmalachy.org

Reading/Language Arts

Students are reading a narrative nonfiction selection called "Bats Love the Night" in which readers learn about the night activity of bats.  The comprehension skill covered sequence of events.  The vocabulary skill focused on the suffixes of -able and -ible.  The phonics skill went over long and short vowel words with VCV pattern (camel, president, shiver). The grammar skill focused on verbs (action and being). Students played "Action Verbs" Charades to aid in their understanding of the skill.

Last week third grade students took the Unit 1 Benchmark test. The results have been included in the take home folder. These tests assess the students' understanding and application of the skills taught in the five stories discussed. The "Reading and Analyzing" section covered comprehension and vocabulary strategies. The comprehension skills included story structure, compare/contrast, story message, conclusions, cause/effect, literal/nonliteral meanings, analyze illustrations, understand characters, and author's word choice. The vocabulary strategies included antonyms, word families, context clues, dictionary/glossary, and prefixes. The "Revising and Editing" section covered grammar strategies such kinds of sentences, capitalization, and nouns. The writing traits covered sentence fluency, and the spelling strategies focused on long vowels of a, i, and o. The class completed the "Reading Complex Text" section together, so students would have an understanding of how to complete on their own on Benchmark test for Unit 2.

Math

Chapter 2 will focus on representing and interpreting data. Students will organize data, use and make picture graphs, use and make picture graphs, and use and make line plots.

Science

Students continue to learn about mammals. The class has studied amphibians, fish, and reptiles.

Important Dates

Friday, October 13th-NO SCHOOL (Professional Development)

Monday, October 16th-NO SCHOOL (Professional Development)

Thursday, October 19th-Muffins with Mom 7:30-8:00 AM

Thursday, October 19th-PTO Meeting 6:00 PM

Friday, October 20th-Spirit Day ($1)

Saturday, October 21st-Spaghetti Supper 

10-5-17

3rd Grade News

10-5-17

nburg@crestonstmalachy.org

Math

Third grade continues to work on subtraction strategies. Students have solved problems combining place value and regrouping. Students also continue to work on estimation skills.

The chapter one math test will be next week. This test will cover estimation of sums and differences, addition and subtraction with regrouping, and mental math strategies. A review is being sent home in the take home folder this week. It does not need returned to school.

Science

Students have been learning about animals in science. In class, third grade is learning about the vertebrate group of animals. Students have learned about mammals and birds.

Reading/Language Arts

This week the class has been taking the Unit 1 Benchmark test. Please look for the results in next week's take home folder.

Next week third grade will be back in the reading textbook and doing spelling with lesson 6. There will be a packet to complete. The spelling post test and packet will be due on Thursday, October 12, since there is no school on Friday.

Students are also writing a personal narrative about a place that is special to them. Students have worked through the writing process by prewriting, drafting, and editing. The class learned about topic sentences, details, and a conclusion. A published copy will be available for viewing at parent/teacher conferences.

Mass

Third grade is scheduled to be in charge of the mass on Wednesday, October 11th. Parts for the mass have been included in the take home folder. If your child has a speaking part, please have them practice at home to improve fluency of the the reading. Parts will also be practiced at school.

Book Order

An October book order has been included in the take home folder. Orders are due back to school (cash or check made payable to Scholastic Book Clubs) or online (credit card) at Scholastic Book Clubs. Orders are due by Thursday, October 12th.

Important Dates

Friday, October 6th-Volunteer at Food Pantry

Wednesday, October 11th-3rd Grade Mass

Friday, October 13th-No School (Professional Development)

Monday, October 16th-No School (Professional Development)

Thursday, October 19th-Muffins With Mom  7:30 AM

Thursday, October 19th-PTO Meeting  6:00 PM

Friday, October 20th-Spirit Day ($1)

Saturday, October 21st-Spaghetti Supper