March News

• March 6, 2024 - STEAM Celebration!

• March 6, 2024 - Early Wednesday dismissals begin (1:25), and continue through end of the school year

• March 14, 2024 - Field Trip (Old State House)

• March 6, 13, 20, 27, 2024 - Conferences

• March 29, 2024 - No School (Good Friday)

• April 2, 2024 - No School (Voting)

We are having so much success in our classroom! Last month the children showed off their ability to write not one, not two, but THREE literary essays.  We also continued our study of character traits and theme. In addition, students used their knowledge of fractions to create custom pizzas! Students continue to engage in great Book Club discussions, and I enjoy listening to their discussions and ideas. 

This month

• We explore factors and multiples, along with measurement!

• Ask your child about the books he/she is reading. Can they name any techniques the author is using?  Can they name types of non-fiction they prefer or enjoy? (We will be diving into non-fiction book groups once again, and "study" Seymour Simon and Gail Gibbons.)

• Students will become "experts" on a topic and share their new knowledge via informational writing!

Math

We have begun working with Factors and Multiples. This unit will take us until mid-March, when we will begin a bigger unit on Measurement. Geometry and Patterns will be the final two math units of the year!

Reading

The children will begin non-fiction book clubs this month.  This unit will build on both the previous non-fiction unit where they learned to research information and teach others as well as what they have learned about how to engage in a book club.  In this unit, the children will develop more of an identity (learn about their likes and dislikes of topic as well as format)  as a non-fiction reader so they can easily chose non-fiction books to read outside of school.  They will also improve their skills as they compare and contrast authors, analyze authors' patterns and choices in style and structure, and deepen their familiarity with the literary techniques found in non-fiction.  Each book club will study a particular author or series and learn alongside one another.  They unit will end with an exciting debate and a Book Review Project.  I expect that most of this reading will be done during the reading workshop and children will be able to read books of their choice at home.

Writing

This month the children will write informational or nonfiction texts on a topic of their choice.  They will have a chance to share what they learn from their research on self-selected topics to write informational pieces. They will  also apply what they are learning about in reading.  They will try out or "mimic" author’s techniques that they have learned from their reading, to lift the level of their own writing. In the beginning they will plan several pieces before settling on one to work on in the unit.

Science/Social Studies

We will be wrapping up our Dynamic Earth science unit mid-March, and then we will switch to Social Studies and our US Regions unit! We have a Field Trip planned early in the month; we will be visiting Hartford's Old State House!