What a whirlwind week in third grade! Despite our short week, third graders remained hard at work in all subject areas. In reading, we wrapped up our study of the Winter Olympics. In math, we began our work with geometry. Writing was all about endangered animals, and science centered on the rock cycle. In reader's workshop, third graders spent the week researching 3 potential host cities for the 2026 Winter Olympic games (possible choices were Denver, Boston, or Anchorage). Third graders worked in mini 'International Olympic Committees,' and collaborated with one another; weighing the pros and cons of each potential host city. Students then created a decision matrix, detailing the attributes of each potential choice. The important deciding factors that committees considered included: financial capabilities, sports expertise, transportation, security, community support, climate, technology, etc. To wrap up the project, third graders created a final report detailing their decision. They recorded their choices on FlipGrid... A new technology source we are using in the classroom! Below are pictures of committees in action. This week, we began our study of geometry by focusing on the different attributes of shapes. We discussed polygons, quadrilaterals, parallelograms, and much more! Third graders tracked their learning with a "Geome-Tree." It helps students keep track of how to classify various shapes. We will continue with this next week. In writing, we are close to moving onto the final drafting stage of our endangered animal reports! Third graders have now drafted 4 of their 5 paragraphs, and will be wrapping things up next week. Third graders will be typing their reports on a Google Doc, and sharing them out using various technology sources. In science, we concluded our study of the rock cycle with a scavenger hunt in the classroom. The hunt helped solidify our understanding of how rocks can change form. Next week, we will be learning more about gemstones and birthstones. Business:
It has been quite the week in third grade! Students wrapped up Unit 4 of Bridges in Mathematics, experimented with chemical weathering, learned about a baby elephant’s survival, and continued working on their endangered animal projects! This week marked the end of our study in Unit 4 of math. Third graders have made amazing progress! They are now experts at reading the analog clock, can solve elapsed time problems with ease, and are comfortable determining fraction equivalency. Third graders can also place fractions on the number line, and understand units of measure related to mass, length and volume. We concluded Unit 4 with our post assessment, and those results will be discussed at our upcoming conferences. Moving forward, we will continue working with fractions and will start Unit 6 of Bridges…Geometry! We’ll circle back to Unit 5 after studying geometry. In science, third graders learned more about physical weathering, chemical weathering, and erosion. Our experiment this week centered on chemical weathering, specifically how acid rain can alter rock formations. Students observed 4 different types of rock: basalt, marble, limestone and sandstone. We simulated acid rain (with vinegar) and observed how the rocks had changed. Next week, we will be learning more about the rock cycle! We continued to work with non-fiction text in reader’s workshop this week, using the article “How to Save a Baby Elephant” to discuss how humans can be both harmful and helpful toward animals. The article itself is about a baby elephant that was rescued and rehabilitated, but also speaks to why animals end up in difficult predicaments to start. The article proved a great way to solidify our learning of non-fiction text features, and also brought on discussions regarding the impact of humans on other animal species. Many students voiced their compassion not only for the baby elephants, but all endangered animals. In writing, we are chipping away at our endangered animal reports. Most students have completed their appearance, habitat and diet paragraphs. Next week, we will work on paragraphs explaining why these animals are endangered, and what humans can do to help. We will then begin typing up our reports! Woohoo! Friendly reminder that Valentine’s Day is this upcoming Wednesday, February 14th! We will be celebrating in class with a movie, frozen yogurt, and other fun activities! If your student would like to participate, we will be passing out valentines that afternoon. Third graders should bring 24 valentines (candy is also allowed). The valentines should have the “from” section filled out with your child’s name, but do not need to be addressed. Feel free to bring extras for students in other third grade classes! Valentine boxes are not necessary. |
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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