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.
