8/26/26

 Burg's Buzz

nburg@crestonstmalachy.org

8/27/26

Welcome to 3rd Grade

We have a wonderful first week of school! I hope your child is adjusting to the schedule and all of the things that come with third grade.

I would like to introduce you to Miss Goldie. She is our class pet. Miss Goldie is going to be involved in many of the activities we do in third grade.

Planners

The assignment book will need to come to school with your child every day. There will be days when there will not be any assignments. I will still sign the planner. Parents are expected to sign it every day as well.

Take Home Folders

Your child will bring home a take home folder on Thursdays. On the left-hand side is their schoolwork and any papers that do not need to be returned to school. The right-hand side will have papers that need to be read, filled out, and returned. The folder needs to be returned to school on Friday.

Social Contract

A social contract was created by the third, fourth, and fifth grade students. This is what we expect students to follow in the classroom, at specials, in the lunchroom, and at recess. Each student signed the social contract in the third, fourth, and fifth grade classrooms. A copy of the social contract is being sent home with each child. Please put it somewhere it can be reviewed.

Classroom Fridge

A note was sent on "Meet the Teacher" Night about my classroom fridge. There is an area in my room where students can display a photograph from home. I want my classroom to feel like a family, so I would like each student featured on the fridge. Photos can be from your child's birthday, with their pet, playing a sport, etc. Pictures can be exchanged throughout the school year.

Math

The first topic that will be covered in math is learning about the process of multiplication. Students will relate multiplication to addition, solve multiplication problems using a number line, and make arrays that represent multiplication equations. 

Reading/Language Arts

Module 1 focuses on story characters through the realistic fiction genre. The first story the class is reading is Marisol McDonald Doesn't Match by Monica Brown. The students will be taking a spelling pretest today. Students will have to write missed words five times each. A note is being sent home explaining how spelling works in 3rd grade. The students will be learning vocabulary through context clues and working on the comprehension skills of literary elements, point of view, and theme.

Science

The first topic that the third grade students will learn about is force.

Important Dates

Friday, August 28th-Spirit Day $1

Wednesday, September 2nd-1 Hour Dismissal

Wednesday, September 2nd-Back to School Picnic

Monday, September 7th-NO SCHOOL

Wednesday, September 9th-1 Hour Early Dismissal

5/28/26

 Burg's Buzz

nburg@crestonstmalachy.org

5/28/26

3rd Grade

It's crazy to think the school year has come to believe the 2025-2026 school year has come to an end! Through all the ups and downs, I have truly enjoyed teaching each of your children. I loved getting to know each one of the students, watching each one of them progress academically, and seeing them participate in outside-of-school activities.  I get to watch each student on the path that God has chosen for them.

Thank you, parents for all of your support throughout the school year. I appreciate all you have done to support your child in third grade.

Lucky for me, I get to continue to teach your children. I will be their 4th grade science teacher. I get to continue to watch these students grow in their academics.

I hope all families have a wonderful summer. I know everyone is very busy with all of their activities. I hope you can take time this summer to relax with your family. Besides golfing and tutoring this summer, my husband and I have a trip planned to Belize in July. This will be our first time in Central America.

Summer Academics

Summer is a time for fun and a break from school, but we also don't want children losing the knowledge they have learned throughout the school year entering into a new grade in August.  The "summer slide" is the learning loss children can experience when school is out for an extended time.

Some ideas to avoid the summer slide include setting aside time every day to read, practice math facts, or write in cursive. Anything children can do to keep stimulating their brains. Mrs. Simmons challenged students to let their electronic devices get dusty this summer by finding other things to do besides being on them all of the time.

Field Day

Field day will take place on Friday, May 29th, the last day of school. The activities begin at 9:30 AM. Please have the students wear the t-shirts that were brought home earlier this week as a gift from Grey Mohr. Students should also wear tennis shoes. The silly string activity is to begin around 10:45 AM. A lunch of burgers and chips takes place around 11:00 AM. Students can bring their own lunch from home if they would like. The 8th-grade clap-out is scheduled for 11:55 AM. School dismisses 3 hours early.

5/21/26

 Burg's Buzz

nburg@crestonstmalachy.org

5/21/26

Spring Music Concert

Another wonderful performance put on by Mrs. Warner and the students of St. Malachy School. Our students are so blessed to have a wonderful music teacher. Our school also has some very talented vocalists and musicians.

Reading/Language Arts

The last story the 3rd-grade students will be tested on is "How Do You Raise a Raisin?" This is a multi-genre text. It is both informational and poetry. Through the poetry sections, the author uses imagery, alliteration, and similes to ask questions through rhyme, all about raisins. The informational sections answer the questions through the facts given. The comprehension skills included identifying figurative language and text and graphic features. Students also worked on the suffixes of -ness and -able as the vocabulary strategy. The grammar skill reviewed contractions when used with pronouns.

Included in the take home folder are the results of Module 8. We completed two of the three stories.

Math

The 3rd grade's survey this year was "Favorite Animals." The options for animals included eagle, monkey, hippo, and dog. Students tallied choices for each grade. Totals were then calculated. That data was then used to create a bar graph.  A dog was received the most votes.

For the students who did not master all four operations on XtraMath, I am sending home information on how parents can sign up online to continue practicing over the summer. The flyer can be found in the take home folder.

FAST Testing

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

Desk Clean Out

The students will clean out their desks on Thursday, May 28th. Book bags should come to school on this day empty. Lockers will also be emptied out. 

Dress Code

The dress code for next school year is changing. A copy of this dress code is coming home today. There are changes in the dress code that will affect all students.

Last Day of School

The last day of school is scheduled for Friday, May 29th. Field day activities will begin at 9:00 AM. Lunch will be served at 11:00 AM, consisting of hamburgers and chips. The 8th grade clap out is at 11:55 AM. School dismisses 3 hours early at 12:10 PM.

Important Dates

Friday, May 22nd-Spirit Day $1

Monday, May 25th-NO SCHOOL (Memorial Day)

Wednesday, May 27th-1 Hour Early Dismissal

Friday, May 29th-Field Day 9:00 AM

Friday, May 29th

5/14/26

 Burg's Buzz
nburg@crestonstmalachy.org
5/14/26

Science

The class will have a test over the topic of weather next week.

Math

The 3rd grade class is working on representing and reading data from graphs. Students have worked with picture graphs and bar graphs.

Next week, the class will take a school-wide survey. Students will collect the data and then record the information in different types of graphs.

Reading/Language Arts

There will be one more text that the students will be covering in our reading textbook.

The next spelling test that the students take will be an End of the Year test. This test will include one word from each of the spelling lists that your child was assessed on throughout the year. There will be daily assignments that review the words.

Biography Book Reports

The third graders did a wonderful job on their projects and presentations. I received many compliments about how well the students were able to answer questions and discuss their person and project from those who attended the Biography Bash.

The rubric used for grading has been included in the take home folder.

Important Dates

Wednesday, May 20th-1 Hour Early Dismissal

Wednesday, May 20th-Spring Music Concert 6PM

Friday, May 22nd-Spirit Day $1

Monday, May 25th-NO SCHOOL (Memorial Day)

Friday, May 29th-3 Hour Early Dismissal (Last Day of School)

5/7/26

Burg's Buzz

nburg@crestonstmalachy.org

5/7/26

Math

The class has been learning about quadrilaterals. Students have sorted the square, rectangle, rhombus, parallelogram, and trapezoid by their attributes.

Reading/Language Arts

Students are reading the informational text A Bumpy Ride by Sharon Katz Cooper. In this story, the reader follows a timeline and learns about the invention of the bicycle. Beginning in 1818, a bicycle without pedals was made. The bicycle went through many changes until 1885, when the framework was changed to the bikes of today. In 1889, the modern tire was born, and cycling became a national craze. It wasn't until the 1970s, though, that helmets were used as a form of protection for the head. The comprehension skills being covered include identifying the author's purpose and making and confirming predictions. The students also started working with singular and plural possessive nouns as the grammar skill. The decoding skill focused on the prefixes of re- and un- and the suffixes of -less and -ness. Students used the prefix of ex- as the vocabulary skill.

Science

The class is learning the difference between weather and climate in science.

Biography Bash

Please join the third grade class for their Biography Bash on Tuesday, May 12th. The event will be held in the gymnasium from 2:00-3:00 PM. Students' biography projects will be on display for viewing.

On the Trail of Iowa Corn Field Trip

This field trip is scheduled for Thursday, May 14th. We will leave STM at 9:00 AM. Drivers for the field trip include Stormy Catron, Jenny Purdum, JaLynne Schmaling, Sean Fox, and me. The class will start the day at the Neely-Kinyon Research Farm, then lunch in town at the Adair County Fair Grounds. The lunch consists of a ham and cheese sandwich, chips, apple slices, a rice krispy treat, and milk/water. Followed by more activities for the students. We will head back to Creston around 2:00 PM. Most of the day is spent outside, so tennis shoes need to be worn. Due to this being a short drive, no cell phones or tablets are needed. Please complete the permission slip that has been included in the take-home folder, and return it back to school.

Important Dates

Friday, May 8th-Spirit Day $1

Tuesday, May 12th-Biography Bash 2:00-3:00 PM

Wednesday, May 13th-1 Hour Dismissal

Thursday, May 14th-On the Trail of Iowa Corn Field Trip

Wednesday, May 20th-1 Hour Early Dismissal

Wednesday, May 20th-Spring Music Concert 6 PM

Friday, May 22nd-Spirit Day $1

Monday, May 25th-NO SCHOOL

 

4/30/26

 Burg's Buzz

nburg@crestonstmalachy.org

4/30/26

Chaperones Still Needed

Parent chaperones are still needed for the field trip to Greenfield on Thursday, May 14th. At this time, there is enough transportation for twelve students. Using grandparents can also be an option if necessary. All paperwork just needs to be completed before the field trip. If I am not able to get enough transportation for all twenty-two students, the class will not be able to attend this event. I am appreciative of any chaperones who volunteer.

FAST Testing

I will test students' reading fluency on Friday, May 1st. Mrs. Brown will be subbing in the classroom while I am testing in a different room.

Cross Picture

The student body cross picture will be taken on Friday, May 1st. There is no specific dress code for the picture this year. Students may wear what they want.

Biography Book Report Projects

We are down to ONE week before biography book reports are due. I have had several students ask if they could bring their projects to school early since they are finished with them. My response is to please keep them at home until Thursday, May 7th. There is not enough storage space, and I do not want anything to happen to a student's project that they have worked so hard on.

Please have your child practice their presentation at home. Students should be able to pronounce all of the words in a clear speaking voice that the audience can hear. Students should also be able to make some eye contact with the audience. They can read the information from the report form.

Math

The class continues to work on time. In addition to telling time to the nearest minute, students have also been calculating elapsed time and solving word problems that involve time.

Reading/Language Arts

Module 8 will focus on inventors and inventions. The essential question asks, "What does it take to make a successful invention?" 

This week's story is a biography by Gene Barretta entitled Timeless Thomas. Students learn about a variety of inventions by Thomas Edison. The author compares present day inventions that were developed from Thomas Edison's inventions. The comprehension skills focused on text/graphic features, making inferences, text structure, and the central idea. Students worked on words that ended with -ed and -ing as the decoding skill. The vocabulary skill focused on the Greek word root graph and the suffix -logy. The grammar skill reviewed adjectives and adverbs that compare.

The results of Module 7 assessments have been included in the take home folder. These are yours to keep.

Science

The class has been learning about severe weather. Students have learned about solutions that can help reduce risks during severe weather.

Important Dates

Friday, May 1st-FAST Fluency Testing (Sub in the Classroom)

Friday, May 1st-Student Body Cross Picture

Wednesday, May 6th-1 Hour Early Dismissal

Thursday, May 7th-Biography Book Report Projects Due

Friday 8th-Spirit Day $1

Tuesday, May 12th-Biography Bash 2:00-3:00 PM in the gym

Wednesday, May 13th-1 Hour Dismissal

Thursday, May 14th-On The Trail of Iowa Corn Field Trip

4/23/26

 Burg's Buzz

nburg@crestonstmalachy.org

4/23/26

Math

The 3rd grade class is learning about time. Students have identified the time to the nearest minute.

Reading/Language Arts

The Storyteller's Candle is a historical fiction story about a Puerto Rican family that moved to New York City during the time of the Great Depression. As Christmas is approaching, the cousins Hildamar and Santiago are missing their sunny home and their traditions, especially celebrating Three Kings' Day. They meet a librarian named Pura Belpre, who changes everything. Students worked on the comprehension skills of literary elements (identifying characters, setting, and plot), figurative language, and text and graphic features. The grammar skill covered adverbs that compare by adding -er, -est, more, or most. The class also focused on compound words as the vocabulary skill. The decoding skill was words with /oo/, such as mood and wood.

Glow-A-Thon

Glow-A-Thon is a PTO fundraiser that will take place on Monday, April 27th. Since the gym will be set up for Glow-A-Thon, we will not be able to eat in the gym. Students need to bring a sack lunch. Students are asked to wear neon clothing and tennis shoes. Also, please return the donation forms and money back to school.

Biography Book Report Projects

We are down to two weeks until the biography book reports are due. The due date is Thursday, May 7th. Please let me know if you have any questions.

Important Dates

Friday, April 24th-Spirit Day $1

Monday, April 27th-Glow-A-Thon (Bring a Sack Lunch)

Wednesday, April 29th-1 Hour Early Dismissal

Friday, May 1st-Fluency FAST Testing (Substitute Teacher)

Wednesday, May 6th-1 Hour Early Dismissal

Thursday, May 7th-Biography Book Reports Due