Despite the chilly temperatures this week, third graders have been hard at work (as always)! This week, our class continued writing endangered animal projects, read with their book clubs, learned about animal adaptations, and studied fractions. Besides academic work, third graders also wrote valentines for veterans! The valentines will accompany the food many of you generously donated to Cottonwood's Treats for Troops program. Our endangered animal projects are moving along smoothly, with many third graders almost done writing their six paragraphs! Toward the end of the week, third graders were challenged to think outside of their writing routines. Specifically, phrases like “Now you know” and “Coming up next” were outlawed from conclusions. This threw a kink in things for many writers, but they took on the challenge willingly and developed more descriptive conclusions. Next week, writers will receive a revision checklist to help guide them in the revising and editing process. Book clubs continue to move smoothly, with third graders engaging in a variety of discussions about their books as well as answering written questions in their reader’s notebooks. Some groups have finished their books and are preparing to complete a final project, while other groups have a few chapters to go! After studying crayfish structures and behaviors in class, we expanded our learning to adaptations of others animals like kangaroos, bees, porcupines and birds. Third graders learned that an adaptation is a change an animal makes to better survive in its environment. For example, kangaroos have a pouch to carry their young and porcupines have quills as a form of protection against predators. In math, we continued our work with fractions. This week, third graders worked on ordering fractions from least to greatest on a number line, and filling in shapes with a specific fraction in mind. Third graders also practiced measuring with rulers, using inches, centimeters, and inches to determine different lengths of objects. We also continue to practice multiplication in word problems. Many students completed a handful of challenge questions this week! This week in third grade, students started drafting paragraphs for their endangered animal project, and began work with fractions in math. Third graders also learned more about cause and effect relationships, how plants grow, and were even introduced to our new crustacean friends! Our endangered animal projects are off to a roaring start! Third graders did a great job gathering information about their animal’s appearance, habitat, diet, interesting facts, why they are endangered, and what people can do to help. Students are now writing paragraphs for each topic. We start with a tree map plan, separating facts into three major categories. Third graders then use their tree map to help in the drafting process. We have quite a few paragraphs to do, so this process will continue into next week! In math this week, third graders had a chance to work with pattern blocks and explore fraction relationships. Vocabulary terms like numerator and denominator were reintroduced, and students were challenged to compare the difference in size from one fraction to another. Next week, we will learn more about how fractions are used in measurement. Reader’s Workshop this week was centered on cause and effect relationships. Third graders read a play about a community’s response to Rosa Parks’ bus protest and the resulting Montgomery Bus Boycott. Third graders worked to identify the cause of the event and the resulting effect. We also continued with discussions and activities in book clubs. Lastly, in science this week we continued to monitor the growth of our corn, bush beans, peas and sunflower seeds. Many seedlings were transferred to a larger home, as they have grown so much! Third graders learned more about seed germination and how leaves on a plant help it produce food. At the end of the week, third graders were introduced to the crayfish we will be studying and taking care of for the next couple of weeks. We will be looking into the anatomy and life cycle of these little crustaceans. Woohoo! With our first full week back at school in the books, third graders are officially back into their third grade routines! This week was chock-full of new learning. In math, third graders learned about the difference between weight and mass. Science featured more seed studies. Reading featured more work with book clubs, and writing centered on research for our endangered animals project. Knowing the difference between weight and mass was part of our math curriculum this week, as well as understanding the difference between volume and length. Third graders learned that weight measures the gravitational pull on an object, whereas mass looks at the matter an object is comprised of. Third graders used measurement cups to help in their understanding of volume, specifically liters and milliliters. We also explored the difference between grams and kilograms and centimeters and meters. Next week, we will apply this learning to story problems as well as exploring fractions. Science this week centered on the make-up of seeds (seed coat, embryo, and cotyledon) as well as how seeds travel. Third graders explored the difference between dry and wet lima beans, eventually dissecting them to find a plant embryo inside. Third graders are also taking care of their own seeds with their table groups, and many are sprouting successfully! Below you’ll find pictures of our present science experiments. Our endangered animal projects have begun, and third graders are in the midst of researching their chosen animal on the computer. Third graders have been taking notes and logging important facts about their animal on a Google Doc. It’s clear that their typing skills have improved since the beginning of the year, and we will keep practicing both at home and school! Once students have gathered enough information about their animals, we will begin the writing process. In reading this week, third graders continued meeting with their book clubs and discussing the characters and events within the pages of their books. Third graders also responded to their reading in their reading response journals, eventually sharing their work with Mrs. Minatta and each other during group meetings. That's all for now, thanks for reading! Have an excellent long weekend :) What a crazy first week back it has been! Even with the excitement of happenings over break and the snow day, third graders managed to get a lot done in a short amount of time. This week, we jumped into book clubs, started researching endangered animals, learned about seeds and fruit, and even talked about mass and volume!
With the transition into the second half of the school year, third graders began participating in book clubs with their reading groups. During reading block, students meet with their group members and read together. Groups stop to discuss important events in the story, make connections and inferences, and talk about character traits or conflicts within the story. This is a very collaborative process, and requires a lot of hard work! Third graders were excited to take on the challenge, and are doing well thus far. In writing, we are starting an endangered animals research project. Before beginning, third graders needed to expand their understanding of just what ‘endangered’ means; specifically, what types of animals are on the endangered species list. Third graders learned that that are different conservation classifications for animals that are considered endangered. Sadly, there are quite a few on the list. Next week, third graders will choose an animal to research, and begin collecting information for their project. Science this week centered on the purpose of seeds, what they are, and where they are found. Third graders also learned how to determine what foods are fruits. Hint: they aren’t always sweet! In math, third graders continued practice with time telling on analog clocks and worked on timeline representations of their daily activities. Today, we dabbled in work with kilograms and grams, as well as milliliters and liters. We will continue this work next week! Many students are still mastering their time-telling skills. Please encourage your third grader to practice at home! This week, students also got to meet and name our new class pet. After brainstorming a number of potential names together, we'd like to formally introduce… Frogenstein! Click on the pictures below to get an up close look. |
Author
Mrs. Minatta is a third grade teacher at Cottonwood Creek Elementary. See and read all about what third graders are up to throughout the school year! Archives
March 2021
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