As we transition into the month of February, third graders have been working hard across all subjects! We've been targeting our understanding of fraction equivalency, writing our endangered animal reports, studying non-fiction text features, and learning about soil and weathering. Our focus in math has been on fraction relationships. Specifically, determining fraction equivalency. We have been working with pattern blocks to solve equivalency puzzles, plotting fractions on a number line, and completed the "brownie pan challenge." The challenge, focused on dividing a pan of brownies equally amongst a group of 4, 6, 8, and eventually 12 friends, challenged students to come up with different representations of equivalent fractions. It invited all of us to strategize using our mathematical mindsets, and proved a great way to solidify our understanding of fractions. The challenge also served as a reminder that solutions don't always come quickly, and that it's okay to make mistakes when trying new things! Third graders are also in the midst of writing their endangered animal reports. They have developed their rough drafts for their animal's appearance and habitat, and will continue with this process next week. Third graders are doing a great job maintaining organization, and are demonstrating just how much they've learned in writing so far this school year! Our focus in reader's workshop this week was on nonfiction text features. Specifically, how we use them to better understand the text. We reviewed and targeted features that include: headings, subheadings, captions, graphs, diagrams, timelines, glossaries, and indexes. We explored nonfiction text features while reading an article, "Killer Smog", that speaks on The Great Smog of London in 1952. We will continue working with nonfiction text next week! To round out the week, our studies in science centered on learning about the pieces of rock that make up soil (pebbles, gravel, sand, silt, clay) and physical weathering. Third graders experimented with different soil samples, and developed hypotheses regarding where they came from. Check out the photos below from our experiment! We also had Overdrive training in class this week from our district librarian. Students can access Overdrive from home, via MyCherryCreek. The program allows students to check out ebooks and audiobooks online. Third graders were so excited to learn this, and are now experts at navigating the site! It has been a busy week in third grade, with so much going on! Whether is was doing endangered animal research, analyzing theme within fiction and nonfiction pieces, or learning about mass and volume.... Third graders were having fun while doing it! This week, third graders received their endangered animal assignments for our next writing project. Students have been tasked with researching their animal, focusing on its appearance, habitat, and diet. Third graders also must determine why the animal is considered 'endangered' and determine ways the animals can be saved from extinction. This week, third graders engaged in the research process. They used Chromebooks to find information and recorded their notes on paper. We will continue with this process next week! Our project will eventually become a 5-6 paragraph research report, and we will be using other technology resources to present our animals to the class. In reading this week, our focus was on reviewing main idea and theme. To do this, we read the book, Here We Are. We then talked about the main idea vs. themes of the story. We also read a Storyworks Jr. article titled, "Brothers, Best Pals, Teammates." Both texts had overlapping themes of kindness, living life to the fullest, and treating everyone with respect. Third graders noticed that even though the article we read was nonfiction, it still had underlying themes (typically reserved for fictional text). What a great learning opportunity! In math, we continued our work with measurement, this time focusing on mass, volume and length. Students experimented with the following units of measure: grams, kilograms, milliliters, liters, centimeters and meters. Third graders had a particularly good time using our balance scales to predict and measure the mass of different objects around our classroom. Next week, our work will primarily be with unit fractions. We will determine equivalency, compare size, and learn how we use fractions in everyday life. Aaaaaand...We're back! Hopefully everyone had a fun and relaxing winter break! Third graders had lots of stories to share about their time off. Students also did an amazing job jumping back into classroom routines and working hard. I am so proud of them! This week in Reader's Workshop, our focus was on tracking character change in fictional stories, all of which featured themes related to attitude. To start things off, we read The Bad Seed (If you haven't read it, I highly suggest doing so!). As a class, we discussed how the main character's attitude and disposition were impacted by events in his past and those around him. We then read Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day. We compared the main characters from both books, noting how they are similar and different. We then discussed how a willingness to change impacted their overall disposition... were their attitudes positive or negative? Next, we watched the Pixar Short, Boundin'. The video's theme song features the phrase "Bound and Rebound." In groups, third graders developed and shared strategies that they use to move from a negative attitude to a more positive one. To round out the week, third graders were asked to determine the meaning of the Helen Keller quote featured below. They did a wonderful job finding the underlying theme and had many insightful responses! The focus on maintaining a positive attitude proved to be a great way to transition back into our work as third graders. We will continue to focus on maintaining positivity and what strategies we can use to do just that! Starting this week, third graders will be assigned ACE (Answer, Cite, Explain) response homework on a weekly/bi-weekly basis. In short, an ACE response is typically a paragraph in length and is a strategy implemented when a question asks for "evidence from the text." ACE responses are used in the upper grades, as well as standardized testing. Third graders practiced writing responses in class (with guidance), and are bringing home their first ACE response homework today. It is due back on Friday, January 19th. In math, third graders reviewed time concepts like reading an analog clock and solving elapsed time problems. We also started work with fractions, specifically focusing on equivalency. Next week, third graders will continue learning and experimenting with fractions, as well as measurement with mass, volume and length.
We were also lucky viewers of a presentation courtesy of the History Colorado Center! Third graders learned about the impact of water on the state of Colorado, specifically the purposes it serves and how Colorado natives have relied on it. |
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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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