Student Council

Just a reminder that the Third Grade Student Council will meet tomorrow at 8:00. I hope to see you there!

Jeans for Troops

The Third Grade Early Act Club recently organized a fundraiser to support the G.I. Go Fund. The G.I. Go Fund helps our veterans with health care, education, employment and housing needs.

Our class made posters to let everyone know about the event.

The third graders put the signs up in the hallways and helped collect the money.

We counted the money during math and used our addition and multiplication skills. It was very exciting counting real money!

The fundraiser was geared toward the staff, but we also had some generous students show their support with donations. I am proud to report that we collected $270.19 for the G.I. Go Fund!

If you would like more information about the G.I. Go Fund, please click here.

Veteran's Day Assmebly

During our Veteran's Day assembly we had a surprise visitor. Task Force Commander, Christopher S. Vanek skyped with us from Afghanistan! Last year, students from Steward School wrote letters to some of the troops serving with Commander Vanek who had been injured. To show appreciation for the letters and support, Commander Vanek presented Steward School with this flag which had been flown in Afghanistan. We were so honored and proud to receive this gift. The flag is currently on display in the Steward School library. Check it out next time you visit Steward School.

Bar Models

We used the website Math Playground to practice bar models.

The class has been solving one and two-step real-world
 problems using bar models. The children learned to draw
 bar models to help them visualize and make sense of the 
relationship between the values given in the problem. 

In class we used the following steps to set up bar models:
1. Read the problem
2. Ask, "What are you solving for?"
3. Ask, "What information do you know?"
4. Write labels
5. Draw Bars
6. Fill in "The information you know."
7. Solve the unknown

Math Playground is an excellent site to practice bar models. Math Playground calls them "Thinking Blocks," but they work the same. The link below can be used for extra help with addition and subtraction word problems.

Click here to access Math Playground

This math unit addresses the standards 3.NBT.2 and 3.OA.8. The students will be assessed on their Report Card for their proficiency with these standards all three terms this year.
3.NBT.2 -  Uses place value understanding to fluently add and subtract within 1,000

3.OA.8 - Solves two-step word problems using addition and subtraction

Cursive

Every Monday and Friday the children learn two cursive letters during Fundations. The class has already learned all of the lower case letters and are now learning capital letters. The students love learning to write in cursive and they are really good at it!

The students practice their cursive on white boards.

Subtraction with Regrouping

The class recently learned to subtract two 4-digit numbers with and without regrouping. On the day these pictures were taken, the students were practicing subtracting across zeroes. The children worked with a partner to demonstrate their understanding and took turns being a "builder" and a "recorder". The"builder" solved the problem using base-ten blocks and a place value chart and the  "recorder" solved the problem using the traditional algorithm. 

How are addition and subtraction related?

As we worked on subtraction problems, we discussed the inverse relationship between addition and subtraction. I reminded the class that when good students solve a subtraction problem, they  check their answers using addition.

This lesson addressed standard 3.NBT.2.

Fluently add and subtract within 1000 using strategies and algorithms based on place value, properties of operations, and/or the relationship between addition and subtraction

Halloween Party

Here are a few pictures from our Halloween Party.  The children looked great in their costumes! Thank you to everyone that provided food, crafts, paper products and helped with the party.   

We had fun making our craft!

Everyone enjoyed dressing up in their costumes!

Raz-Kids

 

The students are excited about Raz-Kids! The more you read the better reader you become!

Yesterday the class was introduced to Raz-Kids. This is a wonderful resources which gives the children access to hundreds of e-books.When using Raz-Kids, the children should listen to the book, read the book and then answer the comprehension questions. When the students read the book, they can even choose to record themselves as they read. Passwords and a letter explaining Raz-Kids went home today.  Students should spend at least 15 minutes on Raz-Kids for homework tonight. (Please note: Although Raz Kids will be assigned for homework periodically, the children can use the website whenever they would like.) The class was really excited about Raz-Kids. Last night, many students used Raz-Kids just for fun!  I love how excited they are to read!

Click on the book to access Raz-Kids

Here is a quote from another third grade teacher that uses Raz-Kids. I'm sharing it because it sums up the features of Raz-Kids that I think are beneficial to my students.

I have some students that didn’t like to read and struggled reading. …[H]earing the story first diminished some anxiety that my struggling readers had. With my higher reading students they tend to read but not really read for meaning. Raz-Kids asks them questions at the end and stops them. This allows them to think about what they are reading and reinforces comprehension.Katrina Willette
3rd Grade Teacher
Charlotte Mecklenburg School, North Carolina
Standard Addressed:RF.3.4. Read with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.