Updates

Ways to Stay Connected:

• • • All updates needed for the week, season, nine weeks, or time of year will be posted here. I will send an email to all parents when this portion of the site is updated.

Current Goals at the coffee corner:

• • • Welcome! Our year long goal this year is Purpose. We want to explore the purpose of everything around us, to create a safe environment for curiosity and creativity.

    • The entire theme of the nine weeks is Community. The entire theme of this nine week is community and citizenship. We are not only creating a community within our classroom as the beginning of the year commences, but we will also be studying our community (PBL). The second portion of this is to include citizenship. We will be looking at how we treat animals (nonfiction/author study), each other (class novels/author study, and how to extend citizenship to the digital world (PBL/STEM). We will apply this knowledge to our narrative stories as we dive deeper into our personal communities and tell true stories about our community/world. Our goal is to understand our community, create a classroom community, and understand how our actions and words affect the people and things around us. 

A Note From Mrs. Dunbar:

Welcome to the Coffee Corner! I am thrilled to welcome your child and family into my classroom, and I can't wait to get to know you. We will have a great year - full of fun, laughter, and learning! This page of the website will be updated at the beginning of each nine weeks, and I will send out an email each time I updated the website.

Communication - For me, communication is the cornerstone of a successful school year. My door is always open. I want to work as a team to solve any problems or issues that arise. I prefer to solve problems from the beginning, time can allow issues to fester which can turn something small into something big. I want to problem solve with you if there is an issue. The best way to get ahold of me is through email. I typically respond within 24 hours during the week.

Open House - Open House is on Friday, August 8th from 4:30 - 6:00. This is a come and go type of event to come see the Coffee Corner and drop off your student's supplies. If you would like to get some of the supplies ready ahead of time, you can make your student's pencil pouch ready to go! Please write their name large on the outside of the pencil pouch and include the following items: 2 black Flair Pens, Colored Pencils, Markers, Scissors, and 1 glue stick. 

I can't wait to meet you all at Open House!

T-Shirt Orders - We have class t-shirts for the Coffee Corner! These will be worn for Field Trips, Guest Speakers, and other special days during the year. All Orders need to be placed by August 29th. This will be the only order for this school year. Please see the order form link below.

Newsletters & Parent Videos - Each Friday I will send home (via Friday Folders) a weekly newsletter with upcoming events and reminders. Also, each Friday I will send out a Weekly Parent Video (via email) going over highlights from the week and items in the Friday Folder.

Parent Volunteers - If anyone is interested in volunteering in the Coffee Corner, I could absolutely use the help on a weekly basis. This would be mostly clerical type work: organizing, copying, laminating, ect. If interested, please send me an email, I will only need 1-2 volunteers.

Absent Work- If your child is not at school, we will get them caught up when they return to class. We do a lot of group work, and getting them caught up when they return makes the most sense in our world. I am not strict on due dates, so we can work together to get them caught up via in class time and home time.

Amazon Wish List - Our classroom utilizes an Amazon Wish List. This list will change monthly, and will focus on items that we can use instantly within class. I am so appreciative of our family support within our classroom, and I thank you in advance for your support. Items will get shipped directly to our classroom, which makes it so simple! Our crew LOVES getting packages.

For the Wish List, please click on this link - Amazon Wish List

What are we working on? 

Math - Place Value, Addition, Subtraction, Money

PBL (Social Studies) - Does citizenship extend beyond our community?

Class Novel - Because of Mr. Terupt, The One and Only Bob, Crenshaw

Writing- Narrative & Cursive Writing

Reading - Monthly Reading Goals, Word Patterns, Characters, Context Clues, Theme

Author Study- Tomie dePaola & Fann Brothers

Non-Fiction (Science) - Animals

STEM - Coding

Lifelines- Kindness, Responsibility, Integrity, Cooperation

Research Days (These are a surprise, please don't tell your student) - More to come!

I have included a list of important dates below for this year, please check the Special Events section below.

If you ever have any questions, comments or concerns, please do not hesitate to email me.

Mrs. Dunbar

Special Events:

• • • The Month of September - PTO Penny Wars! Bring in pennies to increase 3rd grade total and other coins to deduct money from other grade levels! 3rd Grade would LOVE to win the war!

    • September 5th - Brain Lesson with Mrs. Beckett

    • September 10th - Bullying Lesson with Mrs. Brooks

    • September 12th - Conner Prairie Money Due

    • September 12th - Brain Lesson with Mrs. Beckett

    • September 19th - Brain Lesson with Mrs. Beckett

    • September 22nd - Purdue Ag Guest Speaker - Please wear class t-shirt ... if we have them by then!

    • September 25th - Conner Prairie Field Trip - Please wear class t-shirt, we welcome as many chaperones as possible!

    • September 26th - Brain Lesson with Mrs. Beckett

    • October 3rd - Brain Lesson with Mrs. Beckett

    • October 10th - SRO Guest Speaker - Please wear class t-shirt

    • October 17th - First *surprise* Research Day!

    • October 20th & 21st - Fall Break!

    • October 28th - Fall Party - County Fair! More details to volunteer will come out closer to the date! Please wear class t-shirt

    • November 13th - School Smiles visit - prior registration required

    • November 26th - 28th - Thanksgiving Break!

Friday folders

Friday Folders will be used in the Coffee Corner this year! They will be sent home weekly on Fridays and they need to be sent back to school on Mondays. These folders are important as papers, flyers, and our weekly newsletter.

Parent Videos

Each week I will send out a short video for parents to discuss the contents of the Friday Folder, upcoming events, announcements, and other frequently asked questions. This is the first time I am trying this, so constructive feedback is always appreciated. I am hopeful that this will be a great way for us to keep in consistent communication.

Birthdays:

You can send in anything your child would like, as long as there is enough for 22 students, it works for me! Please let me know if you have questions about this! 

We are a peanut free classroom. Please make sure you are not sending in treats that contain peanuts.

If your child has a food allergy, like nuts, please send in some special snacks that can be used in place of a birthday treat they are allergic to. I typically do not know when birthday treats will be sent in, so it makes for a much happier situation for everyone if they are already here. I have a special cabinet to store those snacks.

Please remember that most treats need plates, napkins, or both. It makes my life much easier if those items are sent in with treats if they are needed.

Snacks:

Do we have snacks in the Coffee Corner?

Yes!

It is a little different than in the past because each child will bring their own healthy snack (no candy) each day, this is completely optional and should be discussed as a family on if your child is going to bring snack or not. Nothing can be refrigerator dependent or need a microwave.

We are a peanut free classroom. Please make sure you are not sending in snacks that contain peanuts.

Snacks can be eaten in the morning during math time or in the afternoon during reading. This is completely up to your child's preferences.

Class Parties

Details about each of these parties will be communicated closer to the event.

Fall Party - 3rd Grade County Fair! We will need LOTS of chaperones for this!

Winter Party - 3rd Grade Breakfast & Afternoon Movie! We will need a few morning chaperones for this!

Valentine's Day Party - Ice Cream Sundaes with Grown-Ups! Adults are encouraged to attend!

Testing Dates:

State Testing begins in third grade. I understand how hard this is on everyone involved, especially high ability kids. The months below are when we will be testing for the school year, these are approximates, and specific dates will be sent out as it gets closer. At home, making sure that students are going to bed early and eating breakfast (at home or school) are great ways to help during testing times.

November 2025 - iLearn Checkpoint 1

February 2026 - iLearn Checkpoint 2

April 2026 - iLearn Checkpoint 3

April/May 2026 - ILEARN Summative

How Can You Help:

• • • Amazon Wishlist:  Amazon Wishlist for the Coffee Corner Kids. You can purchase the things we need in class directly from Amazon. Just one more way to support your child's learning!

    • Do you work in a specialized field? Or have an interest that could be a fun guest speaker topic? Reach out if you are interested in being a guest speaker in class and maybe we can tie your field into our curriculum.

    • Volunteering as a chaperone on a field trip or class party! The more the merrier!