Monthly Newsletters 2025/26

December 

Hello families!

I can't believe we are almost to the end of 2025! We finished our 3rd CKLA Unit: The Human Body, and have begun Unit 4: Ancient Rome. We will continue spelling pattern lists and are working on prefixes and suffixes, as well as strategies for decoding the multisyllable words we are finding in our reading texts. As students get older and read more difficult text they will need to practice with the decoding skills they learned in the past. Continuing to read aloud from good fit books will help them continue to build reading skills.  Click here to see some strategies you can use at home.

We are working on making complete paragraphs a habit.  This includes a topic sentence that introduces the main idea, three supporting details, and a concluding sentence that wraps up the paragraph with no new details. We will keep practicing.  We will also continue trying to make a habit of using capitals and punctuation, as well as writing in complete sentences, even on the computer.

Students will also begin self paced lessons on cursive writing. They are not expected to write in cursive at this point and should not until they have practiced each letter. That way we don't have to undo any inaccurate letter habits. Video lessons can be found in the choice board in Google Classroom. 

Students can also practice typing by loggong in to he Launchpad and using Typing.com.   It is appropriate for students at this age to still hunt and peck and not completely follow the hand placement. 

In math we are finishinging our 1st division unit this week. We learned strategies to find and answer and will begin practicing each divisor. Please keep practicing those flashcards. The quicker students can memorize facts, the easier math will be. We will be taking out First Trimester Math Test on Dec. 8th.  Practice questions will be sent home after we review and go over them

In science we are in the middle of our Weather and Climate unit. We are learning how meteorologists use weather tools to observe data and find patterns that can be used to predict the weather.

In social studies we will work on geography, and concepts of government as well as culture which will tie in with our reading unit on Ancient Rome. There are geography practice games here.

Our class has been talking every day about character strengths. In December we will also be continuing to focus on gratitude and empathy with a kindness challenge. I hope this carries over into your homes from my North Pole Ninjas!

For recess we will continue to go outside unless the temperature goes below 15 or it is too wet/ rainy. Students should bring snowpants, boots, hats and gloves. Extras can be left at school. Please let me know if you need any of these items.

More info will be coming soon about our winter celebration.  It will be on Dec. 20th and we will be having a hot chocolate bar as we watch a snow/ winter themed movie and do some crafts.  We are not making this a big party, as not all of our students celebrate the same holiday, so we will see you back her in February for our Valentine's Day Party.  If you have any hot chocolate packets ot toppings you'd like to donate it world be greatly appreciated! 

Be sure to see the pages in the top menu to see some resources for the things we will be studying.

See our class pictures by clicking here!

Thanks so much for all you do!

Jen Malcomb and Mindy Bristol

November: 

November: 

Hello families!

Time sure is flying!  Your students have made so much progress already.  I am so proud of them! We finished our animal unit in CKLA and celebrated by classifying the animals in Madagascar.  We have moved on to Unit 3: The Human Body.  We will study the skeletal, muscular, and nervous system, as well as the parts of the eye and ear. We will be learning pronouns which is a new part of speech in third grade and will continue to work on writing a complete paragraph with a topic sentence, 3 supporting details, and a concluding sentence.

In math, we are still learning strategies for breaking down larger numbers to multiply and will be starting division soon.  All students were given blue flash cards. Learning as many facts as possible is super important. Knowing facts will make math easier in the coming years. There are many videos and songs on Youtube if you search for a factor!

We are also wrapping up our Habitat unit in Science and will be starting a unit on Weather and Climate. Social studies will include Unit 4 in CKLA about the Roman Empire and Unit 6; Vikings. Students have many resources on my website and their Launchpad to support these lessons if they need something to work on at home. 

In addition, we are using Zones of Regulation to help focus on control of our minds and bodies. Click here for a visual. November will also be a month of Gratitude as we prepare for Thanksgiving break.

Conferences still feel a long way away.  I’m always open to meeting whenever you feel the need.  Know that if I have any concerns I will contact you well before then.

Be sure to see the A pages in the top menu to see some resources for the things we will be studying.

See our class pictures by clicking here!

Thanks so much for all you do!

Jen Malcomb and Mindy Bristol

October: 

Hello families!

We have had a great start to the year in room 126. Third grade can be a big adjustment for many students.  We move a lot faster, learn more independence and we are teaching students how to advocate for what they need. Students will learn lots of strategies to help with work and we will ask them to at least try a strategy before asking for help. The students made working agreemebts for how they would like to treat each other, and the How Am I Doing page that I sent home Friday will be sent home every month to help students reflect on their working habits.

We completed our first unit about classic tales in CKLA, and have begun our Animal Classification unit.  Students have done a spectacular job in reading. 

We are also beginning our Multiplication units. The third grade standard states that students should be fluent in all multiplication and division facts within 100 by the end of the year. For the first two report cards, it is expected that they can use a strategy to find the answer.  By the third report card they should know many facts and quickly use a strategy to find the answer. We have started sending home flashcards and there  are many games online to make practice more fun if you do a simple google search. Youtube has many songs for each set of multiples. This worked best for my own kids and we spent time in the car to learn them! 

In science we are learning about weather and climatehow animals interact in their habitats, abd how we can protect animals when habitats change. We have looked at weather tools and temperature trends for our area over time and will be learning about hazardous weather next.

Our class made a video for the Chipper morning show for the character strength of Respect within the Character Strong program. Ifyour student did not make this video he/ she will be in the net one. We will spend time each day discussing the traits that help to make one successful. There is student choice time embedded into each lesson.  We are working on the difference between choosing an activity that is easy, or well liked, and choosing something that will challenge the brain and support growth. This is something that can easily be reinforced at home by making sure students practice facts that they don't yet know, and read a good fit book. In addition, students have a planner and silver folder that shoukd travel back and forth to school every day. Looking at both of these each night and having a time and place for homework will begin to set up good habits that will help your student to be successful in the coming years.

Be sure to see the Math and ELA pages in the top menu to see some resources for the things we will be studying.

See our class pictures by clicking here!

We look forward to working with you this year!

Jen Malcomb and Mindy Bristol

September: Fall is in the air...

Hello families!

I hope you had an amazing summer! This month we will spend the first few weeks building community and positive work habits.  Open House is Thursday Sept 11th at 5:30. Students will share the class agreements they made based on our building's SOAR rules, and show you around the classroom. Sign ups for fall conferences canwill be sent in Parent Square, or you can email me directly.  In person is best, as we'll have work to show you, but we can do virtual if it's more convenient.

Third grade is a little different from the previous years.  We will work hard on learning independence and problem solving strategies, developing a growth mindset, and we will be shifting from learning to read to also reading to learn.  This transition takes some time but I am confident we will be successful together. Do not hesitate to call or email if you have concerns or ideas!

Be sure to see the math and ELA pages to see resources for the things we will be studying in our first units. There are lots of resources, practice games and videos on this website, so take some time to explore.

We look forward to working with your family this year!

Jen Malcomb and Mindy Bristol