4/3/25

 Burg's Buzz
4/3/25
nburg@crestonstmalachy.org

Math

The third grade students have been learning about perimeter and area.

Science

The class continues to research weather and climate topics. The students are using an AI website called MagicStudent to generate questions. Students were then given information about the question asked. It also links student friendly websites for students to do additional searching for information.

Reading/Language Arts

This week, we have discussed test-taking strategies and practice assessments to prepare for the Reading, Language Arts, and Writing ISASP tests.

Reading Incentive Program

The results for March have been calculated. The total minutes read were 7,181. The goal was met by Natalie, Ellee, Hallea, Grayson, Maddox, Asher, Locklyn, Addy, Mosley, and Claire. Natalie read the most minutes for March.

ISASP Testing

ISASP testing will take place next week. Tbe 3rd grade students will take tests on Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday. Here are a couple of things to remember for next week. Students should get a good night's sleep, eat a fulfilling breakfast, and come to school with a good attitude and ready to take a test. Testing will start around 9:00 AM each day.

There is a note in your child's take home folder from me. Please give it to your child over the weekend.

Book Order

In this week's take home folder is a book order. Scholastic offers wonderful books at affordable prices. Now is a great time to stock up for your child's summer reading. All orders are completed online. The due date is Friday, April 18th.

Important Dates

Thursday, April 3rd-Art Museum Field Trip

Friday, April 4th-Spirit Day $1

Monday, April 7th-ISASP Testing

Tuesday, April 8th-ISASP Testing

Thursday, April 10th-ISASP Testing

Thursday, April 17th-Seder Meal/Crosswalk

Friday, April 18th-Spirit Day $1

3/27/25

 Burg's Buzz

nburg@crestonstmalachy.org

2/27/25

Reading/Language Arts

This week in third grade, the class is reading One Plastic Bag by Miranda Paul. In this biography, students learn about Isatou Ceesay from Gambia, Africa. As a child, she begins to see all of the plastic that is creating piles of trash in her village. It's not until Isatou is an adult that she comes up with a plan to reuse the plastic bags to make purses to sell in the city. This also helps clean up the village she has lived in. The comprehension skills include making inferences and understanding the text structure. Students are working on irregular plurals as the decoding skill. The grammar skill introduces students to adverbs. The vocabulary strategy will cover the suffixes of -ness and -able.

Due to Reconciliation and the field trip to the public library earlier this week, the class has not covered all of the work that needs to be done. The spelling post-test and weekly reading assessments will not occur until Monday, March 31st. The rest of next week will be spent completing the ISASP practice tests.

Science

Each student has started researching their topic for their research paper.

Math

The next topic in math will cover two-dimensional shapes. Students will learn about the different types of quadrilaterals. The vocabulary that will be introduced includes polygon, vertex, concave, convex, angles, parallel, perpendicular, trapezoid, parallelogram, rectangle, rhombus, and square.

Reading Calendars

March calendars are due back to school on Tuesday, April 1st. No more calendars will come home with the students, but still continue to have your child reading at home

ISASP Testing

The Iowa Statewide Assessment of Student Progress are assessments aligned with the Iowa Core standards that provide a clear picture of student learning outcomes. Students in grades third through eighth will be taking these assessments during the week of April 7th. Next week the students in third grade will be taking practice tests to prepare for these assessments.

Students need to be encouraged to put forth their best effort when completing these tests. Included in the take home folder is a note card and an envelope. Please write an encouraging and motivational note to your child on the note card. The note card should then be sealed in the envelope. Please write your child's name on the front and decorate it. Send the sealed envelope back to school with your child. I will give the students their note prior to beginning the testing. Please have them returned back to school by Friday, April 4th.

 

Biography Project/Presentation

The biography book report information is coming home with your child today. All of the information has been explained to your child. The entire project is due back to school on Friday, May 2nd. The Biography Bash is scheduled for Tuesday, May 6th, at 2:00 PM.  Please let me know if you have any questions.

Important Dates

Monday, March 31st-"Donut" Stop Reading Party-2 PM

Thursday, April 3rd-2nd, 3rd, 4th Grade Field Trip

Friday, April 4th-Spirit Day $1

Week of Monday, April 7th-ISASP Testing

3/20/25

 Burg's Buzz

3/20/25

nburg@crestonstmalachy.org

Science

The class has been learning the difference between weather and climate.

Next week, the class will begin their research on a weather topic.

Reading/Language Arts

The 3rd grade class has started Module 7. The next three stories will focus on how individuals are making a difference in the world. This week's story was called Farmer Will Allen and the Growing Table by Jacqueline Briggs Martin. In this biography, students learn about how Will Allen grew up, went on to play basketball in college, and moved to Belgium to play professionally.  Upon returning back to the United States, Will worked in a white collared job but realized he enjoyed being in the dirt and wanted to provide fruits and vegetables to people in the city. He bought six abandoned greenhouses, figured out how to use waste to make compost to turn into good soil, hung baskets from the ceiling, grew plants in buckets and on crowded shelves, then began adding goats, chickens, and bees. His farm in the inner city became known as "Growing Power." The comprehension skills covered include making and confirming predictions, the author's purpose, text structure, and point of view. The decoding skill focused on compound words and abbreviations. Students also worked on the suffix on -ion. The grammar skill covered irregular verbs.

The results of the Module 6 assessments have been included in the take home folder.

Math

The class has worked on different types of measurement. Students worked with gallons, quarts, pints, and cups. The class also worked on finding the mass of an object using grams and kilograms. The class has begun reviewing skills for the topic 14 assessment.

Field Trips

There are two upcoming field trips planned for the third grade students. First, on Wednesday, March 26th, the class will visit Gibson Memorial Public Library. The plan is to take the trolley arriving at the library around 1 PM and returning around 2:30 PM. 

The second field trip is scheduled for Thursday, April 3rd. The students in second, third, and fourth grade will be going to the Des Moines Art Center and JJ Gaffers for an art exploration experience. The bus will leave STM at 8:30 AM and return back by 3:00 PM. Students will need to bring a sack lunch. There is no cost for this. Expenses are being paid for by the Conover Grant.

Please return both permission slips back to school.

Donut Stop Reading Party

To end National Reading Month, there will be a party on Monday, March 31st at 2:00 PM in the third grade classroom. Each student is allowed to invite one adult guest to the party. The students will perform several reader's theater scripts, then enjoy a donut and share reading together with their guest. A note has been included in the take home folder about who will be attending the party with your child.

Important Dates

Friday, March 21st-Spirit Day $1

Monday, March 24th-Reconciliation

Wednesday, March 26th-Noisy Change Collection

Wednesday, March 26th-Public Library Field Trip

Monday, March 31st-Donut Stop Reading 2 PM

Thursday, April 3rd-Des Moines Art Center Field Trip

Friday, April 4th-Spirit Day $1

2/27/25

 3rd Grade Buzz

nburg@crestonstmalachy.org

2/27/25

Science

Channel 5 Meteorologist Chris Kuball visited the 3rd grade classroom on Monday, February 24th. He discussed thunderstorms with the students. That included learning about wind, hail, lightning, flooding, and tornadoes.

Math

The next topic that the third grade students are learning about is time. Students have told time to the nearest minute and calculated elapsed time.

Reading/Language Arts

The class finished Octopus Escapes Again! The comprehension skills covered figurative language and text and graphic features. Students also worked on using comparing adjectives as the grammar skill. The vocabulary skill focused on the prefix of un-. The decoding skill covered words with -er, -ir, -or, and -ur.

The class has started reading the informational text TJ-The Siberian Tiger by Ann Whitehead Nagda and Cindy Bickel. Students follow the journey of a baby tiger at the Denver Zoo. TJ's mother, Buhkra, suddenly dies of cancer, and zoo staff has to figure out a way to feed and care for TJ. Students will be working on text structure, text and graphic features, learn about the verb "be", and decode words with -ar and -ir. 

The goal for the spring FAST screening is 125 WPM. Any student who is lower than that will be bringing home a weekly fluency passage in the take home folder each week. Please have your child do repeated 1 minute readings of the passage.This is something that I am doing at school as well to help improve fluency. There is a note in the take home folder explaining all of this for parents.

Reading Incentive Program

February calendars are due back to school on Monday, March 3rd. A March calendar has been included in the take home folder. The month of March is the last month for tracking reading minutes.

Mass

There is an all school mass on Wednesday, March 5th. This will be the start of Lent, as it is Ash Wednesday. If your child has a part, it has been included in the take home folder. 

Parent/Teacher Conferences

Parent/teacher conferences are scheduled for Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday of next week. As a reminder, there is no school on Thursday or Friday of next week. I look forward to discussing your child's progress with you.

National Reading Month

During the month of March, the third grade class will be celebrating National Reading Month. There will be fun activities planned as well as themed dress up days. A schedule has been included in the take home folder. Throughout the month, there will also be guest readers as well. Parents still have the opportunity to be a reader for the class. Feel free to reach out to me, so we can figure out a time that works for your schedule.

Important Dates

Friday, February 28th-Spirit Day $1

Saturday, March 1st-STM Gala and Auction

Monday, March 3rd-Third Grade Day (3/3)

Monday, March 3rd-Parent/Teacher Conferences

Tuesday, March 4th-Parent/Teacher Conferences

Wednesday, March 5th-Parent/Teacher Conferences

Thursday, March 6th-NO SCHOOL

Thursday, March 6th-Parent/Teacher Conferences

Friday, March 7th-NO SCHOOL

Monday, March 10th-Friday, March 14th-Spring Break (No School)

Wednesday, March 19th-PTO Meeting

Friday, March 21st-Spirit Day $1

2/20/25

 Burg's Buzz

nburg@crestonstmalachy.org

2/20/25

Math

The class will have a test over fractions on Friday, February 21st.

Science

In our weather unit, the third grade class is learning about severe weather. A meteorologist from Channel 5 is coming to visit the third grade classroom on Monday to share his knowledge of weather with the students. Once we finish this lesson, students will be writing an informational piece on weather.

Reading/ Language Arts

On Wednesday, the class started the next lesson. We are reading the narrative nonfiction Octopus Escapes Again! This is a narrative nonfiction selection how the different adaptations that the octopus uses to avoid being eaten by predators.

Late Slips

With the start of the 3rd trimester on Monday, February 24th, the third grade students start late slips. Late slips are given when a student does not turn in a homework assignment. This is a policy that is followed in fourth-eighth grade at STM. We start in the third trimester of third grade to get the students ready for the responsibilities that come with these upper grades.

There is a note in the take home folder that gives all the details on how late slips work. I have talked about the policy with the class. It's inevitable that there will be late slips given out. 

St. Malachy Gala

The St. Malachy School Foundation Gala and Auction is scheduled for Saturday, March 1st. This event is a wonderful evening of food, friends, and fellowship. This fundraiser directly benefits St. Malachy School. You can use the following link to get your tickets.  Gala Tickets

Parent/Teacher Conferences

Parent/Teacher conferences are scheduled for the evenings of March 3rd, 4th, and 5th. Also there are times available during the morning of March 6th. There is no school on March 6th or 7th. Please sign up for a time on JMC.

Important Dates

Friday, February 21st-End of the 2nd Trimester

Monday, February 24th-Late Slips Begin in 3rd Grade

Friday, February 28th-Spirit Day $1

Saturday, March 1st-St. Malachy Foundation Gala and Auction

Monday, March 3rd-Parent/Teacher Conferences

Tuesday, March 4th-Parent/Teacher Conferences

Wednesday, March 5th-Ash Wednesday Mass (K-3rd Leads Mass)

Wednesday, March 5th-Parent/Teacher Conferences

Thursday, March 6th-NO SCHOOL

Thursday, March 6th-Parent/Teacher Conferences

Friday, March 7th-NO SCHOOL

There is no school from Monday, March 10th-Friday, March 14th, due to Spring Break.

2/13/25

Burg's Buzz

2/13/25

nburg@crestonstmalachy.org

Science 

Students  continue to learn about weather. Students have learned about predicting weather based upon data from previous seasons.

 

Reading/Language Arts

The class started Module 6. This module will focus on animal behaviors. This week the class read This Is Your Life Cycle by Heather Lynn Miller.  In this multi-genre story, a dragonfly's life cycle is explored in a TV show with insects hosting and participating. The vocabulary skill covered the Latin prefixes of uni-, bi-, and tri-. The decoding skill focused on words with or and ar.  The students were introduced to identifying adjectives as the grammar skill. The comprehension skills focused on summarizing, author's purpose, text and graphic features, and author's craft. We will continue the first lesson in Module 6 next week due to the snow day, late start, and no school on Monday.

The results of Module 5 assessments have been included in the take home folder. As a reminder, the selection tests cover the story covered during the week. The module assessments involve students reading a new story and answering questions over skills previously learned.

Math

The third grade students continue to work with fractions. Students continue to compare fractions by using the benchmarks of less than or greater one half and using a number line. Another skill the students worked on was using fraction names to represent whole numbers.

FAST Testing

The results of the winter screening of FAST testing have been included in the take home folder.

Valentine's Day Party

The third grade class will celebrate Valentine's Day during the afternoon of Friday, February 14th.

Royal Readers

During the month of March, the third grade class will celebrate  National Reading month. I am looking for guest readers to come to our classroom to read aloud to the third grade students. A note was sent home in last week's take home folder. Guest readers can be moms, dads, grandparents, or another relative. Please fill out the form with days and times that will work best.

Important Dates

Friday, February 14th-Spirit Day $1

Friday, February 14th-Valentine's Day Party

Monday, February 17th-NO SCHOOL (Teacher PD)

Monday, February 24th-Late Slip Start in 3rd Grade

Friday, February 28th-Spirit Day $1

Saturday, March 1st-STM Foundation Gala at Legacy Venue

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2/6/25

 Burg's Buzz

nburg@crestonstmalachy.org

2/6/25

Math

The third grade class has been comparing fractions. Students identified which fraction was greater between two fractions with like denominators. Using like numerators, students also identified which fraction was greater.

Reading/Language Arts

Brothers at Bat by Audrey Vernick. is this week's focal story. In this narrative nonfiction selection, students learn about a family with sixteen children, twelve of which are boys. Ranging in age from seven to thirty-two years, the oldest twelve form a semi-pro baseball team. Then during World War II, the team disbanded while six members of the family headed off to the war. Upon returning back to New Jersey when the war ended, the brothers returned to the baseball field. The comprehension skills focused on making and confirming predictions, sequencing, and figurative language.  Students also practiced using contractions at the decoding skill. The vocabulary skill covered the suffix of -ment. The grammar skill reviewed verb tense.

Science

The third grade class continues to learn about weather. 

Students have been learning about weather patterns and making predictions.

Super Bowl Party

There will be a Super Bowl party in the third grade classroom on Friday, February 7th. Come dressed to support the team you will be cheering during the Super Bowl on Sunday. Students can wear Kansas City Chiefs or Philadelphia Eagles gear. Students can also wear red or green as well. We will do a variety of fun football themed activities.

Valentine's Day Party

STM will celebrate Valentine's Day on Friday, February 14th. Students are welcome to bring valentines for their classmates. If you bring valentines, please bring one for each student. A class list was sent home in last week's take home folder. Please don't bring valentines to school until the 14th.

Fill Me With Love Activity

Last week, a heart activity was sent home for parents to complete with their child. If your child has not yet returned his or hers back to school, please return by this Friday.

Silent Auction Donations

Donations are still being accepted for the silent auction item that the third grade class will have at the STM Foundation Gala. Please send cash or check (payable to Lindsay Ide) to school with your child or Venmo your donation to Shelby Bishop or Lindsay Ide. All donations are greatly appreciated.

Important Dates

Friday, February 7th-Super Bowl Party

Wednesday, February 12th-Ben Tracy Presentation

Friday, February 14th-Spirit Day $1

Friday, February 14th-Valentine's Day Party

Monday, February 17th-NO SCHOOL (Teacher PD)

Friday, February 21st-End of 2nd Trimester

Monday, February 24th-Late Slips Start

1/30/25

 Burg's Buzz

nburg@crestonstmalachy.org

1/30/25

Reading/Language Arts

For part of this week, the third grade students have been working on writing a persuasive letter. Students were asked to write a letter to a new student in class persuading him or her to be friends with them.

Beginning today, the class will start Lesson 3 in Module 5. There will be a spelling pretest and missed words to write that will be due on Friday.

Math

The third grade class continues to work on understanding fractions. Students worked on making equivalent fractions. Students have been using fraction tiles to make comparisons between fractions.

Science

The third grade class is learning about weather. Students have learned about types of weather, how it is measured, and about reading weather maps.

Reading Incentive Program

The January calendars are due back to school on Monday, February, 3rd. A February calendar has been included in the take home folder.

Fill Me With Love Activity

In your child's take home is an activity that you and your child can complete together. There is a pink heart. Inside that heart, fill it with things that you love about your child and things your child loves. You can draw pictures, use stickers, print things off the Internet, use photographs, or anything you can think of to use. Please cut out the heart and return it back to school by Friday, February 7th. The hearts will be displayed in the hallway.

Super Bowl Party

The third grade class will have a Super Bowl party on Friday, February 7th. If students have either a Kansas City Chiefs or Philadelphia Eagles gear, they are more than welcome to wear it. If your child has no team merch, then students are encouraged to wear green if cheering for the Eagles and red for the Chiefs.

Valentine's Day Party

The third grade class will have a Valentine's Day party during the afternoon Friday, February 14th. Students may bring valentines for their classmates. If your student is bringing valentines, please make sure one is brought for each child in the class. A class list has been included in the take home folder.

Silent Auction Item

Monetary donations are still needed for the silent auction item for the St. Malachy Foundation Gala (growth chart with each student's height identified). Donations can be sent to school with your child, or you may Venmo Lindsay Ide or Shelby Bishop.

The Gala is scheduled for Saturday, March 1st at The Legacy Venue.

Important Dates

Friday, January 31st-Dress to Impress Day

Friday, January 31st-Mass 1:30 PM Holy Spirit Church

Thursday, February 6th-Mrs. Burg Absent from School

Friday, February 7th-Super Bowl Class Party

Friday, February 14th-Spirit Day $1

Friday, February 14th-Valentine's Day Party

Monday, February 17th-No School (Teacher PD)

1/23/25

 Burg's Buzz
nburg@crestonstmalachy.org
1/23/25

Science

The next topic that the class is covering is weather. The students have discussed the different types of weather

Math

The third grade class will be testing over the topic of fractions on Friday, January 24th.

Reading/Language Arts

In third grade this week, the class is reading the realistic fiction story Running Rivals by Jake Maddox. The story is a rivalry between two runners who both end up getting advice from each other. The comprehension skills covered monitoring and clarifying, literary elements, and author's purpose. Students also worked on homophones as the decoding skill. The grammar skill focused on pronoun/verb agreement. The vocabulary skill covered the Greek root bio- and the Latin root vid.

The class has completed learning all of the lowercase cursive letters.

Catholic Schools Week

Catholic Schools Week starts on Sunday, January 26th with mass at Holy Spirit Church beginning at 9 AM. On Monday, January 27th, the students will need to bring a sack lunch (milk provided). The dress up day is St. Malachy gear. The dress up day for Tuesday, January 28th is Polar Paradise. Students need to dress in winter gear such as stocking hats, scarves, boots, etc. Another idea would be wearing white or something with a snowman on it.  Students will be getting together with their Advent Angels to make snowmen. On Wednesday, January 29th, students will meet with their Advent Angels to make thank you cards to retired priests and nuns. The dress up for this day is Disney. On Thursday, January 30th, the students will be going on a field trip to Feldhackers Fun Center to go bowling. The bus will leave STM at 8:45 AM and return back to school by 11:00 AM. Students are asked to wear grippy socks. The dress up day is Decades. The students are asked to pick a decade and wear the clothes associated with it (examples include 50s-poodle skirts or white t-shirt, cuffed jeans and a leather jacket or 80s-neon colors, leg warmers, windbreaker jackets). Friday, January 31st, is the Grandparents/Special Guest Mass. Students will need to be picked up at the school beginning at 1:00 PM by their mass guest. Mass begins at 1:30 PM. Students can then leave with their mass once mass has ended. If your child needs to ride the bus or trolley, please notify the school. The dress up day is Dress to Impress (mass attire).

In the take home folder, there is a form to fill out about who will be attending the mass with your child. Please make sure the form gets filled out and returned back to school.

Important Dates

Friday, January 24th-Spirit Day $1

Monday, January 27th-Students need a sack lunch

Friday, February 14th-Valentine's Day Party in the PM

1/16/25

 Burg's Buzz

nburg@crestonstmalachy.org

1/16/25

Science

The third grade students will have a test over living things and their environment on Thursday, January 16th.

The next topic the third grade class will cover is weather.

Math

The class continues to learn about fractions. Students have been using a number line to represent fractions both less than one and greater than one.

Also, students have been doing some measurement using inches. Students have been measuring length to the nearest inch, 1/2 inch, and 1/4 inch. This is also another way to practice fractions. 

When the students arrive in the classroom in the morning, I have been using that time to review math skills such as subtraction with regrouping, fractions, telling time,   By doing this, I can see if there are any topics I need to spend time reteaching, or if I can pull a small group of students together and go over the concept. At this point, I am not having the students do corrections. Several of the pages that the students have completed are in the take home folder. If a students has missed most of the problems, I will going over the topic at some point before the end of the year.

Reading/Language Arts

The third grade class has started Module 5. This module will focus on teamwork. This week the class is reading The Soccer Shootout by Jake Maddox. After winning the state soccer tournament the previous year, Berk has to compete with Ryan, a new player, for the position of goalkeeper. When the coach thinks that Ryan should be the goalie, and Berk should move to the sweeper position, reluctantly Berk switches positions, but decides he won't help Ryan out and be a good teammate. When the coach offers to put Berk back at the goalkeeper, he decides to better teammate to Ryan to help him improve his skills. The comprehension skills covered literary elements, theme, and author's craft. Students worked on subject-verb tense as the grammar skill. The decoding skill focused on the sound of /oi/ and /oy/. The class covered the suffixes of -er/-est/-or as the vocabulary strategy.

The results of the Module 4 assessments have been included in the take home folder.

Mass

The 3rd grade class will be leading the mass on Wednesday, January 22nd. Your child's part has been included in the take home folder. If your child has a speaking part, please practice it with them at home.

Ben Tracy Presentation

The St. Malachy PTO is sponsoring presenter, Ben Tracy, of Safe Social Network. Ben will discuss digital citizenship, online safety, and responsible social media for families. The event is free to the public, and will take place on Wednesday, January 22nd at the SWCC Performing Arts Theater.

Permission Slip

During Catholic School Week this year, students will get to go bowling at Feldhacker's Family Fun Center. Students in grades kindergarten through third grade will go on Thursday, January 30th from 8:45 AM-11:00 AM. The cost of the field trip is $6.00. Please return both the permission slip and the fee back to school by next Friday. 

Important Dates

Wednesday, January 22nd-3rd Grade Leads the Mass

Wednesday, January 22nd-Ben Tracy Presentation 6PM

Friday, January 24th-Spirit Day $1

Sunday, January 26th-Friday, January 31st-Catholic Schools Week

1/9/25

 Burg's Buzz
1/9/25
nburg@crestonstmalachy.org

Reading/Language Arts

This week the third graders read the play "Two Bear Cubs" by Robert D. San Souci. The play is based upon a Native American myth. In this drama, two bear cubs do not follow the advice their mother gives them about not going downriver. When the cubs come up missing, Mother Grizzly is terribly worried and asks the rest of the forest animals for help in finding them. An unlikely animal proves to be the hero in rescuing the bear cubs. The comprehension skills included discussing elements of drama, literary elements, and theme. Students also learned about the  Latin roots aud- and vis- as the vocabulary skills. The grammar skill focused on using quotation marks. The decoding skill covered words with vowel sounds of au, aw, al, and o.

Science

The class continues to learn about plant and animal adaptations. Students read about how an organism needs to react to its environment in order to survive. Students also looked at the cause and effect relationship between human activity on plants' and animals' environments.

Math

The third grade class has returned to school by working on fractions.  To introduce the topic, students used Hershey chocolate bars to familiarize them with vocabulary terms such as numerator, denominator, halves, thirds, fourths, equal parts, and unit fraction. Students have worked on partitioning regions and finding the whole when given a unit fraction. 

Please continue to have your child practice the multiplication and division facts at home. We will continue to review those basic facts here at school, but any additional practice your child will be greatly beneficial.

Hearts Around the World

The third grade class is participating in Hearts Around the World. The goal is to get a valentine card from each of the fifty states and possibly other countries throughout the world. Please share the school address with all of your family and friends. We will have a map to keep track of all of the locations that we receive valentines from. There is also a note in your child's take home folder about this project.

December Reading Incentive Program Results

For the month of December, ten students met the reading goal of at least 400 total minutes read. The class read for a total of 7, 186 minutes in all. Maddox received the award for the most minutes read in the month.

The goal for January, February, and March increases to 500 total minutes.n

Music Class

There is a note in the take home folder from Mrs. Warner. The note is about purchasing a recorder. If you already have a recorder from a previous child, your third grade can use it. Just have him/her bring to school.

Items Needed

The third grade class is in need of more paper towels and Kleenex. Any donations would be greatly appreciated.

 FAST Testing

The winter screening for FAST Testing will begin on Monday, January 13th. Students will take two reading and two math assessments.

St. Malachy Foundation Gala

Each year the STM Foundation hosts their annual gala. This is a fundraiser that directly benefits St. Malachy School. This year the event is planned for Saturday, March 1st.

The STM Foundation has decided to change up the baskets. In the past, each grade or grade band (3rd, 4th, and 5th) donated a basket for the live auction. This year it has been decided to have one whole school basket instead. Each student at STM is asked to donate $1.00 towards the basket. Please have your child bring a dollar to school by January 31st.

Each class will also be responsible for a silent auction project as well. More information will be sent out about this at a later date.

Important Dates

Friday, January 10th-Spirit Day $1

Wednesday, January 15th-PTO Meeting

Wednesday, January 22nd-3rd Grade Leads the Mass

Wednesday, January 22nd-Ben Tracy Presentation-6PM

Friday, January 24th-Spirit Day $1

Sunday, January 26th-Friday, January 31st-Catholic Schools Week