The Adventure Continues

Marchy 9, 2020

Students should be on the following by Monday, March 9, 2020:

  • Zearn - Unit 5, Lesson 10 (fractions unit)
  • ATRT - Lesson 82+

Our mindset for the week is: I am a Problem Solver.


Photos from our field trip to the Hoover-Minthorn House, Newberg



February 24, 2020

Students should be on the following by Monday, February 24, 2020:

  • Zearn - Unit 5, Lesson 2 (Starting fractions unit)
  • ATRT - Lesson 75+

Our mindset for the week is: I keep trying until I succeed.

IF YOUR CHILD IS STRUGGLING IN MATH, IT'S PROBABLY DUE TO NOT KNOWING THEIR MULTIPLICATION FACTS!

MATH: If your child has not memorized their multiplication and division facts by now, please spend extra time with them at home learning them. Our math lessons will be increasingly more challenging for those that do not know their times tables. This could lead to them getting very frustrated and falling behind in math.

February 10, 2020

Field trip on Tuesday, 2/11, to the Hoover-Minthorn House in Newberg.

Students should be on the following by Monday, January 27, 2020:

  • Zearn - Unit 4, Lesson 11
  • ATRT - Lesson 67+

Our mindset for the week is: Grit helps me grow.

IF YOUR CHILD IS STRUGGLING IN MATH, IT'S PROBABLY DUE TO NOT KNOWING THEIR MULTIPLICATION FACTS!

MATH: If your child has not memorized their multiplication and division facts by now, please spend extra time with them at home learning them. Our math lessons will be increasingly more challenging for those that do not know their times tables. This could lead to them getting very frustrated and falling behind in math.


February 3, 2020

Students should be on the following by Monday, January 27, 2020:

  • Zearn - Unit 4, Lesson 8
  • ATRT - Lesson 60+

Our mindset for the week is: When I put forth more effort, I improve!

MATH: If your child has not memorized their multiplication and division facts by now, please spend extra time with them at home learning them. Our math lessons will be increasingly more challenging for those that do not know their times tables. This could lead to them getting very frustrated and falling behind in math.

Catapult Advancements:

We extended our STEM activity on catapults this week. Students were able to do research on the computers and then design their own using more supplies than last week.

Our winners were:

  • 1st Place: Brandon, Lucas, and Noah with a distance of 80 inches
  • 2nd Place: Leah and Taylor with a distanceof 70 inches
  • 3rd Place: Cameron and Levi with a distance of 66 inches

January 27, 2020

Students should be on the following by Monday, January 27, 2020:

  • Zearn - Unit 4, Lesson 4
  • ATRT - Lesson 50+

Our mindset for the week is: When I put forth more effort, I improve!

MATH: If your child has not memorized their multiplication and division facts by now, please spend extra time with them at home learning them. Our math lessons will be increasingly more challenging for those that do not know their times tables. This could lead to them getting very frustrated and falling behind in math.

Catapult Contest

We have been studying ancient Roman civilization. Last week we designed and made catapults. All the students had a blast!

First Place: Sarah & Taylor, distance of 110 in.

Second Place: Orshee & Jaydon, distance of 64 in.

Third Place: Casey & Riley, distance of 27 in.

January 13, 2020

Students should be on the following by Monday, 1/13/20:

  • Zearn - Unit 3, Lesson 19
  • ATRT - Lesson 50+

Our mindset for the week is still: I am willing to try new things! This is a great one for the start of a new year and facing new challenges, at school and at home. Trying new things helps us grow as a person and learn and experience new things.

MATH: If your child has not memorized their multiplication and division facts by now, please spend extra time with them at home learning them. Our math lessons will be increasingly more challenging for those that do not know their times tables. This could lead to them getting very frustrated and falling behind in math.


Bridge Designing

January 6, 2020

Welcome to the new year, 2020! I hope everyone had a restful break and are re-energized for the new year.

WELCOME JOHN-HENRY, our new rescue African Sideneck turtle. He is making himself comfortable in his new home with his new family, Leonard & Seamora. They are all getting along nicely.

Students should be on the following by Monday, 1/6/20:

  • Zearn - Unit 3, Lesson 9
  • ATRT - Lesson 42+

Our mindset for the week is: I am willing to try new things! This is a great one for the start of a new year and facing new challenges, at school and at home. Trying new things helps us grow as a person and learn and experience new things.

MATH: If your child has not memorized their multiplication facts by now, please spend extra time with them at home learning them. Our math lessons will be increasingly more challenging for those that do not know their times tables. This could lead to them getting very frustrated and falling behind in math.



December 2, 2019

We are finishing our animal report slide show presentations this week. They are all doing a fabulous job for their first speech!

Students should be on the following by Monday, 12/2/19:

  • Zearn - Unit 2, Lesson 18
  • ATRT - Lesson 31

Frog Hoppers



2019 Spider Ballooning Competition

November 12, 2019

Reading Bunnicula, A Rabbit-Tale of Mystery, by Deborah and James Howe. Students are writing a summary, making predictions, and discussing the setting and characters.

Students should be on the following by Tuesday, 11/12/19:

  • Zearn - Unit 2, Lesson 11
  • ATRT - Lesson 20

Wednesday, 11/13/19, is McEducators' Night at McDonalds from 5:00 pm - 8:00 pm. I hope to see a lot of you there!

Friday,11/15/19, is our field trip to the Oregon Children's Theatre in Portland to see "Me...Jane."


October 28, 2019

We are finishing up The Wind in the Willows by comparing/contrasting the movie with the written story.

Students should be on the following by Monday, 10/28:

  • Zearn - Unit 2, Lesson 1
  • ATRT - Lesson 10


October 18, 2019

Conferences this week on Wednesday and Thursday.

NO SCHOOL Thursday (10/24) and Friday (10/25)

October 11, 2019

We had an awesome week! The Franz Bakery tour was a hit and the amount of buns that come out of their one facility a day is incredible! On Wednesday we made boats for Mole, Rat, and Toad to float on the pond. We had 2 boats that succeeded and did not sink! Way to go Noah, Riley, Brandon, and Olivia. It was so much fun to see all the creative minds at work.

Zearn: students should be on lesson 18 on 10/14/19

All the Right Type: students should be at least on lesson 10 by 10/21/19.

READING:

Some questions to ask your child:

  • How do different warm-blooded animals cool off?
  • What are some characteristics that scientists study in order to classify animals?
  • What are some examples of invertebrates?
  • List the features of fish bodies and what they do.

GRAMMAR:

  • What is a comparative adverb?
  • What is the rule for adding the suffixes -ed and -ing to root words?
  • What is a prefix?
  • What is a conjunction? List them.

October 7, 2019

Tuesday, 10/8 Field trip to Franz Bakery. Students must wear closed toed shoes, wear long pants, and wear no jewelry. We are leaving promptly at 8:30 am.

READING:

We are now learning about animals. Some questions you might want to ask your child:

  • What makes an animal a vertebrate or invertebrate?
  • What is the difference between a warm-blooded and cold-blooded animal?

MATH:

Students should be on Zearn 15 today.

September 23, 2019

READING:

Today is the autumnal equinox. You can ask your child what is the sun's position to the Earth's equator and how the Northern and Southern hemispheres are different. We will be starting the read aloud, Wind in the Willows. Students will be writing summaries of what they heard each day in the read aloud. We are also working on inferring, being able to correctly interpret how people are feeling by their body language.

MATH:

Continuing our work with multiplication. Students should be on Mission 1, Level 9 in Zearn today, Monday.

ALL THE RIGHT TYPE:

Students should be at least on lesson 3 today.


Last week we designed houses for Alice (in Wonderland) and made them with playing cards. It was a great day!



September 16, 2019

READING:

We are reading about Alice's Adventures in Wonderland this week. Some questions to ask your child could be:

  • Where did Alice go when she left the bank of the river?
  • Why do you think Alice decided to follow the rabbit?
  • Does the Cheshire Cat seem more helpful to Alice than the White Rabbit or the Caterpillar? Why or why not?
  • Describe the trial that Alice came upon and why did she get angry?

MATH:

We are working on beginning multiplication and division. Playing multiplication games of Loops & Groups and our version of Yahtzee.


This Week's Adventure September 3, 2019

We had an awesome first day! I believe we have the best 3rd grade class in the district! As we got together today we reunited with old friends and made new ones. We have 26 students in our class this year. I'm excited about all the adventures we will be having this year.

I newsletter went home today with the students. If your child's didn't happen to make it all the way home, I've included the information from it below.

Welcome to 3rd Grade!

3rd grade is a year full of transitions. Students take on more responsibility for taking care of, and organizing, their materials and time. Students will show growth and maturity as they leave the primary grades and enter the intermediate grades. It is exciting to be a part of these changes.

Take Home Folder

Your child will take this folder to and from school and home daily. This is where you will find homework and handouts from the school and community. Please take a minute and check it each day. Hopefully, this will prevent the dreaded pile of papers in the bottom of the backpack.

Birthdays

I do several things in the classroom to make birthdays special. Due to a variety of allergies, please consider sending something like pencils, bookmarks, or stickers. If you and your child really feel the need to send treats to school, please arrange with me ahead of time.

Snacks

Students may bring a quick and healthy snack to eat during our refresh time in the morning around 10:00 am. Some ideas are: grapes, bananas, carrots, crackers, cheese sticks, apple slices, protein bars, or fruit snacks. Please do not send chips, cookies, cupcakes, candy, etc. as these do not nourish the brain or body.

Water Bottles

Standing in line at the drinking fountain can waste a lot of time. I encourage students to bring a water bottle to school. They should take the bottle home on Fridays to wash.

Homework

Your child works hard at school. I believe that children should have time to enjoy being a child, exercise, play, help with chores, and spend time with family. Newberg’s policy is that 3rd graders should have 30 minutes of homework a night.

I will be sending home more information about homework later. Until then, please have your child read, read, and read!

Communication

I believe that a successful child/student has parents and teachers who work as a team. Please communicate your thoughts, ideas, concerns, etc. to me so we can work as a cohesive team to support your child as a successful learner. Please email me or set up a time for us to talk.

This year I am using a class website and will send out the link this week. We will also be using Zearn for math, MobyMax for spelling and other subjects, and All the Right Type for learning to type.

I look forward to a year full of adventure and learning with your child!

Welcome back to school! I am excited to have your child in class and cannot wait to get started.

Traci Fitzpatrick

fitzpatrickt@newberg.k12.or.us