9/25/25

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

Math

Topic 2 will focus on the factors of 0, 1, 2, 5, 9, and 10. This week, students practiced solving problems using the factors of 0, 1, 2, 5, and 9. Any additional practice that can be provided at home using the factors practiced at school will be very beneficial to your child. There are tons of resources offered online for practicing the basic multiplication facts. Walmart and Dollar Tree also sell flashcards.

Science

The class has been learning about types of forces, including friction and gravity.

Reading/Language Arts

Third grade is now working on Module 2. Students will build knowledge about how people use words to express themselves, with a focus on poetry and letters. Students will read texts in which the characters share their thoughts, ideas, and feelings.

This week's story, Dear Primo: A Letter to My Cousin by Duncan Tonatiuh, is a realistic fiction story about two cousins, one living in Mexico and one living in the United States, who write letters to each other. Throughout the story, the cousins learn about the similarities they share as well as the differences between the two. The reader is also introduced to Spanish words that promote cultural awareness of Mexico. The comprehension skills involved students working on retelling, understanding point of view, and text/graphic features. Students worked with the prefixes of re- and pre- as the vocabulary strategy. The decoding skill focused on words with the long o sound. Students identified common and proper nouns as a grammar skill.

The results of the Module 1 assessments have been included in the take home folder. The selection quiz is five questions over the story that was read throughout the week. The module assessment is a new reading followed by multiple choice questions and one short answer question covering previously learned skills. There is also a short paragraph that students answer multiple questions relating to the grammar skill that was learned during the week.

FAST Testing

The results of the math FAST testing are in the take home folder. The CBMmath Automaticity tests a student's math fact fluency. Beginning in the 3rd grade, the test includes multiplication and division. If your child is below the benchmark score, please remember that the students are just now learning the multiplication facts. Typically, big gains are achieved during the winter screening due to the amount of instruction and learning that will take place over the next few months. The aMath test assesses a broad range of math skills. This is the assessment that is used to determine if a student needs an intervention. Please feel free to reach out to me if you have any questions or concerns.

Friday, September 26th

Friday, September 26th, Creston High School is celebrating its Homecoming football game. This will be a Spirit Day at St. Malachy School. Pay $1 to wear sweats/hat. Students should come dressed in their Creston Panther gear. School lunch on Friday will be a grape Uncrustable, apple slices, string cheese, a cookie, and milk. School will dismiss 3 hours early due to the parade. Please notify the school of any changes to your child's dismissal plans for the day. STM will have a float in the parade. Parents do need to accompany their child on the float.

Important Dates

Friday, September 25th-Spirit Day $1

Friday, September 25th-3 Hour Early Out

Wednesday, October 1st-1 Hour Early Dismissal

Friday, October 3rd-Spirit Day $1

Monday, October 6th-NO SCHOOL (Teacher Professional Development)