It's been another busy week in third grade! Students were hard at work across all subject areas and are putting forth their best effort, as usual! During reader's workshop, third graders connected their study of endangered animals to current events in the news. It was recently reported that a black footed ferret named Elizabeth Ann was cloned from the DNA of a ferret that lived over 20 years ago. The black footed ferret happens to be an endangered species, and scientists have suggested that cloning may be a tool used in saving animals from extinction. As a class, we learned more about cloning animals from a few news articles and then discussed the subject. Third graders had tons of thought-provoking questions and opinions. Interesting stuff! During math this week, third graders were focused on fact families, specifically how they are interconnected. We talked about how we can use fact families to help solve both division and multiplication problems. Third graders then transitioned to studying the language of multiplication and division word problems. We worked to determine key words that help the problem solver determine what the question is asking. Students then had the chance to create and solve word problems of their own! This proved to be a great system of practice and helped solidify how to break down complex word problems. Quick note: Third graders should be practicing their multiplication facts at home. I highly encourage students to memorize their multiplication facts (0-12), as getting a handle on them now will be immensely helpful in the future! Third graders can practice their facts via our class blog, with websites accessible through the ‘Student Resources’ tab. Old fashioned flashcards work great as well! What a week in third grade! Students have been hard at work across all subject areas. We also enjoyed a fun Valentine’s Day celebration with one another!
In writer’s workshop, students have been busy researching endangered animals with a focus on how these creatures survive, why they’re endangered, and how people can help save them. Third graders all chose their own animals, learned the animals’ endangered classifications, and have been using online resources to learn all they can. Now that students have thoroughly researched, we will begin crafting reports on each animal. Eventually, third graders will create web pages to educate others on conservation efforts! For the past couple of weeks, our reader’s workshop focus has been on tracking characters’ response to conflict. Our mentor text, Because of Winn Dixie, and our read aloud book, A Series of Unfortunate Events, have both served as excellent examples to practice on! Students also concluded their first book clubs of the year and will be starting new ones next week. This week, our mathematical focus was on measurement of mass, volume and length. Third graders worked with scales, measurement cups, measuring tape, rulers, etc. for some hands-on practice. We wrapped things up with a post-assessment on our math unit. Next week, we’ll begin more practice with multiplication and division concepts. See below for pictures of third graders practicing their measurement skills and celebrating Valentine’s Day in class! |
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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