Open House 2023
WELCOME TO THIRD GRADE!!
I am excited to welcome you to this new year and look forward to getting to know you. Here is an overview of the schedule, policies and other important information that you may find helpful.
My contact information: I am usually at school by 7:10 and am available after school everyday unless I have a meeting outside of the building.
pscully@aos92.org
872-1967 extension # 2133
Homework Planner:
Each student has been provided a homework planner. Your child will write his/her assignments each day and it may also have a note from me. Please check this planner daily and put your initials way down on the bottom. It is a convenient way to communicate and for homework to be successfully completed. We will start off slow, but in the next few weeks the third grade expectation will be about 30 minutes. The planner needs to be signed by someone other than a sibling, unless that sibling is old enough to be providing childcare. Baby sitters, grandparents, homework club at AYCC is fine too.
Changes for bus plans at the end of the day can also be written in the HW Planner. If you send changes to me on email, please also include Kathleen Edwards in the email so that she can let me know if I haven’t had a chance to look at email during the day.
Homework Policy:
The third grade students will be expected to read and write a reading log nightly starting on Monday and ending on Thursday. The book can be self selected but we encourage children to read books that are at their own grade level. (Instructional level) Other homework that is assigned after the first few weeks of school should not take more than 15-20 minutes. Homework will consist of practice/review of skills or work that was not completed in class.
Spelling:
We use the Zaner-Bloser Spelling Connections for our spelling program. Students will get daily spelling work at school and some at home too. Spelling is taught using spelling rules and patterns in phonics/vocabulary, reading and writing. Weekly assessments will monitor their progress.
Responsive Classroom:
WES is a Responsive Classroom School. We talk about safety, responsibility and respect daily!! This approach to teaching combines the social and the academic curriculum. Practice includes Morning Meetings, Creating Rules, Interactive Modeling and Logical Consequences. Our school-wide matrix talks about behavior expectations for all areas of the school and playground. Start over is one of the elements of RC. A start over chair is required in each classroom. It is not a punitive place to go, it simply gives your child a chance to think about what they were doing and come back to their own seat as soon as they are ready. If a child has to go to three start overs in a day, then the teacher may use a buddy teachers room. My buddy room is Ms. Comfort’s room right across the hall. In that case, I will notify you that your child continued to make poor choices.
Reading:
In the third grade, reading involves various stories and genres. Focus will be on using and strengthening comprehension strategies, as well as decoding and fluency skills. Early in the year, mid-year and end of the year reading assessments are given. We will using iReady Reading which is called Magnetic Reading as well.
Language and Writing:
Daily language skills are covered in mini-lessons and self corrected each day. Our spelling program is also covered in a weekly format with new word lists on Monday and spelling tests at the end of the week. Practice of these words happens every day at school and at home.
The Lucy Calkins Writing Program is followed here at WES. We will begin the year with narrative writing skills, then we cover opinion writing second trimester and we end the year with informational writing, which goes with our president's work in Social Studies.
Our penmanship program is called Handwriting Without Tears. A review of manuscript writing will start the year and then we will transition to cursive.
Math:
The entire school is transitioning to a new math program this year. It is called i-Ready Mathematics. It is aligned with state and national standards in mathematics. More to come…
Snack Time:
Snack time will occur in the morning. Snack time is very short and so it should only be a couple of items, hopefully on the healthy side. We eat lunch at 11:35 so our snack time is before specials at 9:40. Children are all encouraged to bring a water bottle to school. It can be left in their cubbies if it is easier for your child to leave it at school. We have several water bottle filling stations now.
Recess Time:
Recess happens before lunch each day. It is 25 minutes and we believe that getting outside to play is very important for developing healthy minds and bodies while also providing opportunities to socialize with other children. Be prepared to have your child go outside unless it is raining or below 10 degrees fahrenheit. We enjoy our Maine weather.
Parent Volunteers:
There are many opportunities for parental involvement here at school. We will be opening up to volunteers in the next few weeks…more to come.
Reporting/Progress Notes:
Progress notes and report cards are used to help to inform you about how your child is doing at school. Our report cards go home three times a year at the trimester points in school. Parent/Teacher conferences are held in the fall and in the spring. We hope to see each child represented at those conferences. REPORTING IS DONE USING 1, 2, 3 and 4.
I encourage you to use email to contact me. However, during the school day, I often do not have time to check email. I can assure you that I look at it every morning when I arrive and each afternoon after the students leave. If you have had something that we need to know that is of an emergency nature in your family, please call the office and they can alert me privately. Voicemail can also be left at my phone extension.
I look forward to spending this year with your child and working closely with you towards having a successful school year. If at any time you have any concerns, please feel free to reach out.
Sincerely,
Mrs. Scully