"All the flowers of all tomorrows are in the seeds of today". All my little seeds have been extremely busy throughout the entire year. I have enjoyed teaching and learning with your child. This year has been challenging and rewarding and I sincerely hope that it has been a fun year for your child as well. Each child in my room has made a special and worthwhile contribution to our learning community. They have worked very hard and have accomplished a great deal. As I look back over this year, I have a good feeling about the academic growth I have observed in everyone. Each child has his or her own strengths and weaknesses. I hope that I have challenged the strengths and improved upon the weaknesses. I also hope that your child will have happy memories of third grade at Shorecrest. I know I will have happy memories of your child as a special person.
I would like to encourage each child to establish a quiet reading time for their summer reading. Perhaps a special time could be spent between you and your child discussing the books that are read and sharing their responses in their journal. A weekly visit to the library would be great! I also suggested two books in as email that I sent home last week. A review of multiplication and division facts, using flashcards and practice quizes will help to keep out the cobwebs out of the "summer brains". I sent home some math practice work that would be extremely beneficial for review and practice. We did not complete the last lesson of the Wordly Wise workbook that can be used for not only reading but to learn another set of vocabulary words. Inside the blue construction sheet folder you will also find some reading comprehension, grammar practice, and even a science experiment or two. There are many items in their notebooks that could be useful resources next year. I did encourage the children to keep these items in a safe place at home to use as resources for future work.
I love to receive post cards from your summer travels. My home address is: 3926 West Grananda Tampa, Florida 33629. I asked the children even send me a letter if they read a good book and think that I should have this book as a part of my class library for next year. If at any time you need to contact me over the summer, please feel free to do so by email. I will be in and out of town as much as possible. But, I always check emails.
PLEASE make sure you check out the photo section of this blog. You will find a great assortment of pictures from the beginning of the year to the end of projects, events, activities, and fun!
I do wish each child much success in fourth grade. I hope they will study carefully and be responsible with their homework and other work and study habits. And remember... "When in doubt, READ!"
Thank you all for your support this year and for your incredible generosity throughout the year! I appreciate your kinds words and fabulous gifts. Have a safe, relaxing, and fun summer!
Your child's third grade teacher and friend,
Renee Trump Hensler
Monday, June 3, 2013
Monday, May 6, 2013
Merry Monday!
I do hope that everyone had a "Derby" of a weekend! Some time this week, I will have the pictures of the third grade Derby hats posted for you to enjoy. What creativity and inspiration for other Derby goers!
We hope to have a normal academic schedule this week. We are completing our Sawgrass projects (computer component and final research writing) and preparing and practicing our presentations. The children will also present their project to you on our Author Celebration Day on May 24. The children are working hard and seem to really enjoy being able to generate their own information and creativity.
We will have our Math test this week. We will review fractions in all forms and work on a review test together as a class. This is always a great time to ask questions!
This week we do have a spelling test. Tonight they are to write each word in cursive on the paper that I provided. Tomorrow night I am going to stretch and challenge their writing ability by asking them to write a short story incorporating at least 8 of the words from their spelling list. They may want to think about the story tonight and how the words could relate to build a story. There will be a test on Friday.
Please take a look in their homework folders tonight. You will find a Grammar Review. The kids are calling it a giant DLR test, which makes sense. All the skills on this review are skills that they have worked on all year during our morning DLR work. This is not due until Wednesday.
I will begin to assess each child in Reading this week. Once I have completed this task, I will share with you on an individual basis on how your child is progressing on the report card. If there are any problems that continue to interfere with your child's comprehension, I will certainly let you know. As I have done in the past, I can provide materials to help your child over the summer as well. I would encourage everyone to continue a structured reading time over the summer as well.
This week in Reading, we will begin our unit on reading non-fiction. The children will have the responsibility of following the guidelines on how to read non-fiction books with success and completing research on a particular topic. The topics are all about animals including alligators, turtles, spiders, otters, birds, and snakes. Your child will become an expert on these animals as they learn how to read and obtain information even from a small caption under a picture.
Please make sure that your child has turned in his/her multiplication strips and keeping up with their book logs from home. They should still be reading at least 15 minutes per night after they complete their homework.
Though the days are whirling by, please know that I am still taking your child's education seriously. The children need to come to school ready to focus and produce quality work.
We hope to have a normal academic schedule this week. We are completing our Sawgrass projects (computer component and final research writing) and preparing and practicing our presentations. The children will also present their project to you on our Author Celebration Day on May 24. The children are working hard and seem to really enjoy being able to generate their own information and creativity.
We will have our Math test this week. We will review fractions in all forms and work on a review test together as a class. This is always a great time to ask questions!
This week we do have a spelling test. Tonight they are to write each word in cursive on the paper that I provided. Tomorrow night I am going to stretch and challenge their writing ability by asking them to write a short story incorporating at least 8 of the words from their spelling list. They may want to think about the story tonight and how the words could relate to build a story. There will be a test on Friday.
Please take a look in their homework folders tonight. You will find a Grammar Review. The kids are calling it a giant DLR test, which makes sense. All the skills on this review are skills that they have worked on all year during our morning DLR work. This is not due until Wednesday.
I will begin to assess each child in Reading this week. Once I have completed this task, I will share with you on an individual basis on how your child is progressing on the report card. If there are any problems that continue to interfere with your child's comprehension, I will certainly let you know. As I have done in the past, I can provide materials to help your child over the summer as well. I would encourage everyone to continue a structured reading time over the summer as well.
This week in Reading, we will begin our unit on reading non-fiction. The children will have the responsibility of following the guidelines on how to read non-fiction books with success and completing research on a particular topic. The topics are all about animals including alligators, turtles, spiders, otters, birds, and snakes. Your child will become an expert on these animals as they learn how to read and obtain information even from a small caption under a picture.
Please make sure that your child has turned in his/her multiplication strips and keeping up with their book logs from home. They should still be reading at least 15 minutes per night after they complete their homework.
Though the days are whirling by, please know that I am still taking your child's education seriously. The children need to come to school ready to focus and produce quality work.
Monday, April 15, 2013
Merry Monday!
Today was a great day! The kids seemed rested and prepared for the tasks at hand. This week is Celebrate the Arts week. Instead of their regularly scheduled Music time, the children attended a performance by a musicians from St Petersburg. You will find a notice in their homework folder that informs you of a summer music camp at Noise Makers. The children really enjoyed it. Two of the performers were from St Pete High School and are participants at this Noise Makers Music Camp.
Tomorrow, the children and I will attend a performance on drummers and drumming. We hope to see everyone on Friday for the culminating display of art and music. The third graders will be performing. You will not want to miss this production! So cute!! Plan on staying afterwards for a family picnic.
We will be reviewing for our Math test tomorrow and plan on testing on Wednesday. We will then begin our study of fractions. I will also expose them to another method for multiplying double digit numbers called the Lattice Method.
Our spelling words this week continue our review of singular and plural words. The words are posted on the side of the blog and are as follows: adults, armies, coaches, envelopes, factories, holidays, libraries, lunches, members, monkeys, patches, sandwiches, scratches, slippers, valleys.Tonight the children are to write each spelling words once in cursive on the handwriting paper that I have provided.
The Reading Comprehension this week is entitled, The History of the Toy. The skill or focus with this passage is cause and effect. The children will need to read carefully so that they can respond to the short 5 questions that either have them thinking about the cause of the effect. This is due on Friday and don't forget to sign the work after it has been completed.
The children have a VERB project that is due on Friday. I reviewed this project last week . However, I would like you to also know what the expectations are. First, they are to cut out various pictures that show action and make a collage one or both sides of the briefcase. Inside the briefcase, you should find a sheet that requires the children to choose vivid verbs from the box at the bottom of the sheet. Next, they should choose 3 activities from the list of activities that are glued inside the briefcase. The children are to complete one activity per sheet of paper. I have asked the children not to bring these in early so that it will remain a secret until share time on Friday!
We are completing our Native American study this week with the Iroquois. The children will decide which group they would like to belong to and write a personal narrative based on the facts that they have learned about that group. We will also continue our research and work on our Sawgrass projects. I did forget to remind the children to continue their research at home tonight on whatever topic they have been assigned by the group. It is easier if they bring in the research and study it here than have everyone trying to get on four computers. We are using the laptops for research but we do have to share with the other classes.
It is my hope that we will have an author celebration toward the end of May. At that time, we will not only share our writing pieces but our Sawgrass projects and our Car designs as well.
Please contact me if you have any questions. Also, if you feel the need for an end of the year conference, please let me know within the next couple of weeks. I would prefer not to wait till the very last week of school to be having these important discussions.
I hope everyone has a pleasant evening!
Tomorrow, the children and I will attend a performance on drummers and drumming. We hope to see everyone on Friday for the culminating display of art and music. The third graders will be performing. You will not want to miss this production! So cute!! Plan on staying afterwards for a family picnic.
We will be reviewing for our Math test tomorrow and plan on testing on Wednesday. We will then begin our study of fractions. I will also expose them to another method for multiplying double digit numbers called the Lattice Method.
Our spelling words this week continue our review of singular and plural words. The words are posted on the side of the blog and are as follows: adults, armies, coaches, envelopes, factories, holidays, libraries, lunches, members, monkeys, patches, sandwiches, scratches, slippers, valleys.Tonight the children are to write each spelling words once in cursive on the handwriting paper that I have provided.
The Reading Comprehension this week is entitled, The History of the Toy. The skill or focus with this passage is cause and effect. The children will need to read carefully so that they can respond to the short 5 questions that either have them thinking about the cause of the effect. This is due on Friday and don't forget to sign the work after it has been completed.
The children have a VERB project that is due on Friday. I reviewed this project last week . However, I would like you to also know what the expectations are. First, they are to cut out various pictures that show action and make a collage one or both sides of the briefcase. Inside the briefcase, you should find a sheet that requires the children to choose vivid verbs from the box at the bottom of the sheet. Next, they should choose 3 activities from the list of activities that are glued inside the briefcase. The children are to complete one activity per sheet of paper. I have asked the children not to bring these in early so that it will remain a secret until share time on Friday!
We are completing our Native American study this week with the Iroquois. The children will decide which group they would like to belong to and write a personal narrative based on the facts that they have learned about that group. We will also continue our research and work on our Sawgrass projects. I did forget to remind the children to continue their research at home tonight on whatever topic they have been assigned by the group. It is easier if they bring in the research and study it here than have everyone trying to get on four computers. We are using the laptops for research but we do have to share with the other classes.
It is my hope that we will have an author celebration toward the end of May. At that time, we will not only share our writing pieces but our Sawgrass projects and our Car designs as well.
Please contact me if you have any questions. Also, if you feel the need for an end of the year conference, please let me know within the next couple of weeks. I would prefer not to wait till the very last week of school to be having these important discussions.
I hope everyone has a pleasant evening!
Monday, April 8, 2013
Miraculous Monday!
Relay for Life on Friday was amazing! I was completely in awe of the dedication and the creativity among the different boothes. Our children did an awesome job of contributing money and making the beautiful purple chains. Hats off to all of you that contributed in time and money as well. It is such an important cause!
Spelling this week contains base words along with the ending -en. The words are posted on the side of the blog. Tonight for homework the children are to write the -en version in cursive.
This week in Math we will continue our work on parentheses in math, fact extensions for multiplication and division, estimating costs, and extended facts that are products of 10. You will want to ask your child about the challenge work we were doing in class today with parentheses and only the number 3. PLEASE continue to practice the multiplication facts. Don't forget to turn in the multiplication strips that the children were given a week ago. I am giving the children credit for completing the strips. They should be completed by Wednesday of this week. Tonight for math homework, the children are to complete workbook page 168 (7.5).
The children are back to the weekly Reading Comprehension activity. The name of this reading is Under the Big Top. The objective of this passage is the use of figurative language. After the children have read the passage orally and independently, they are to write in their own words what they think each figurative phrase really means.
This week, we are working/reviewing plurals and possessives. The children have a practice page in their homework folder that I asked them to review tonight and tomorrow night. They will have a quiz on these plurals on Wednesday. Each day we will take a specific grammar skill to review in preparation for ERB's and for life.
We will begin our new lesson in Wordly Wise. Lesson 12 words include: adopt, arouse, arrange, cell, infection, influence, injure, injury, pattern, series, vision.
We will complete our final Native American group, The Iroquois. Once we have had time to read and complete our chart, we will begin planning our personal narratives as if we are one of the members of these tribes. We will do most of the writing in class. However, one night I will send it home to be proofread one more time so that you will be able to see what they have written.We will also begin our Sawgrass Independent project which will be completely done in school. The children may come home and want to do some research on their own at home, or collect items to be used for their visual. We will be talking about his later on this week.
Tomorrow, we will take our Architectural Tour of downtown St. Petersburg. We will leave school at 8:30 and return by 10. Please make sure that your child has a healthy breakfast since we will not have our snack until we return. I would also make sure that they wear good walking shoes with socks.
Please make sure that your child is completing and turning in their reading logs. I have many more that I can share if your child has misplaced the reading log. I am keeping track of the children who do turn in the reading logs.
You are NOT going to want to miss the Scratch Projects. Go to the top of my blog and click on Scratch Projects. You can find your child's project by name. The children are also encouraged to play the other games that their classmates created.
Thank you for your continued support and help at home. I can't tell you what a difference it makes!
Spelling this week contains base words along with the ending -en. The words are posted on the side of the blog. Tonight for homework the children are to write the -en version in cursive.
This week in Math we will continue our work on parentheses in math, fact extensions for multiplication and division, estimating costs, and extended facts that are products of 10. You will want to ask your child about the challenge work we were doing in class today with parentheses and only the number 3. PLEASE continue to practice the multiplication facts. Don't forget to turn in the multiplication strips that the children were given a week ago. I am giving the children credit for completing the strips. They should be completed by Wednesday of this week. Tonight for math homework, the children are to complete workbook page 168 (7.5).
The children are back to the weekly Reading Comprehension activity. The name of this reading is Under the Big Top. The objective of this passage is the use of figurative language. After the children have read the passage orally and independently, they are to write in their own words what they think each figurative phrase really means.
This week, we are working/reviewing plurals and possessives. The children have a practice page in their homework folder that I asked them to review tonight and tomorrow night. They will have a quiz on these plurals on Wednesday. Each day we will take a specific grammar skill to review in preparation for ERB's and for life.
We will begin our new lesson in Wordly Wise. Lesson 12 words include: adopt, arouse, arrange, cell, infection, influence, injure, injury, pattern, series, vision.
We will complete our final Native American group, The Iroquois. Once we have had time to read and complete our chart, we will begin planning our personal narratives as if we are one of the members of these tribes. We will do most of the writing in class. However, one night I will send it home to be proofread one more time so that you will be able to see what they have written.We will also begin our Sawgrass Independent project which will be completely done in school. The children may come home and want to do some research on their own at home, or collect items to be used for their visual. We will be talking about his later on this week.
Tomorrow, we will take our Architectural Tour of downtown St. Petersburg. We will leave school at 8:30 and return by 10. Please make sure that your child has a healthy breakfast since we will not have our snack until we return. I would also make sure that they wear good walking shoes with socks.
Please make sure that your child is completing and turning in their reading logs. I have many more that I can share if your child has misplaced the reading log. I am keeping track of the children who do turn in the reading logs.
You are NOT going to want to miss the Scratch Projects. Go to the top of my blog and click on Scratch Projects. You can find your child's project by name. The children are also encouraged to play the other games that their classmates created.
Thank you for your continued support and help at home. I can't tell you what a difference it makes!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)