1. Curriculum Night 2013 Welcome to Third Grade in Palmer Patch!

2. Welcome to Curriculum Night! Please fill out the green questionnaire at your child’s seat. Extra pens are available on the kidney table. Also, I can collect your $10 toward class parties tonight. Checks should be made out to “Cash.” Envelopes are at your child’s seat. Thank you.

3. Communication Weekly Newsletter  Every Monday  Information about current topics of study and upcoming events Ways to Contact Me  Note to school with your child  E-Mail- jpalmer@fmschools.orgjpalmer@fmschools.org  Phone- 692-1700 Parent-Teacher Conferences  November 8 th (PM), 12 th (PM), 18 th (AM)  8:15 appointments available  Sign up tonight

4. Palmer Patch Web Site How to Access It www.fmschools.org Go to Mott Road page and follow the quick links. Types of Information Calendar Curriculum Web site links Photographs Student Work And more...

5. Third Grade is... a Transition Year! Begins the intermediate grades Pace of learning increases More independence & responsibility is expected Beginning of yearly state assessments English Language Arts- April 1 st – 3 rd Math- April 30 th – May 2 nd

6. Third Grade is... Making Wise Choices Follow the Golden Rule Bully Free Zone Honesty Respect

7. Discipline Card System GREEN= Go * child is demonstrating good behavior YELLOW= Warning * a warning has been given and behavior needs to change RED= Stop * child has continued to misbehave after several warnings * child writes a letter to parents explaining misbehavior and misses recess or choice time that day Compliment Jar Stones are added to the jar for good behavior. * 1 stone per compliment * 2 stones per green card day Rewards * For every 25 stones, the class receives a small reward. * When the jar is full, the class chooses a special party theme.

8. Third Grade is... Increased Responsibility  Monday through Thursday  Word Study homework will be sent home on Fridays, if you want to get a head start.  Set aside 40 minutes a night.  Spelling, math facts, and reading every night.  Additional math or cursive assignments every night. These should be returned the next day. Homework

9. Daily Planner  Sent home every day Monday through Thursday.  Return to school every day with parent initials.  Do not bring your child’s planner to school, if it is forgotten. Natural consequences help develop responsibility.  Math Facts  Sumdog, Math Magician, Sum Sense  Warning: CoolMath4Kids (is not fact practice)  Reading  Raz-Kids (letter levels not the same as our system) Helpful Website Links

10. Spelling/Word Study Words Their Way Children sort words and pictures according to different word features or patterns. Why? Helps them to learn and apply the features and not just memorize words. Students assessed in September and January to determine instructional spelling level. Small group instruction with students of similar spelling ability. High Frequency Words Words used frequently by 3 rd grade readers and writers Need to be automatic Practice and learn 3 new words each week Weekly Assessment Every Thursday 5 word sort words Dictation sentences with 3 high frequency words and additional word sort words. Capitalization & punctuation count.

11. Sample Word Sort

13. Grading System

14. Friday Folder Every Friday your child will bring home a folder with corrected work from the previous week. Please look at the work with your child, sign the sheet inside, and return the folder on Monday.

15. Third Grade is... Requires Critical Thinking Learning is no longer about memorization or basic comprehension. “Students should be able to analyze different aspects of a given text, including central idea, style elements, character and plot development, and vocabulary.” (Engage NY)

16. Common Core Learn Standards Changes Balance of fiction and non-fiction reading Balance of narrative, non-fiction, & persuasive writing Increased text difficulty at each grade level Analyze text through close reading Text based answers More vocabulary instruction

17. Instructional Level is the level they are reading at school with teacher support and instruction. At home they should be reading books at an Independent Level, one level below their Instruction Level.

18. Reading & Writing Workshop Format 1.Mini-lesson 2.Independent Writing OR Small Group Work OR Individual Teacher Conference 3. Share Time

19. Third Grade... Moves at a Faster Pace Especially in math! Many new concepts are introduced & expected to be mastered:  addition & subtraction to 1,000  multiplication & division facts  area & perimeter  fractions  basic algebraic equations  multi-step problems

20. Common Core Learning Standards Changes Increased difficulty  need to show deeper knowledge of concepts Dual Concepts  Two topics at once  Example: capacity and multiplication Apply math concepts to real world situations Expect fluency with math facts

21. NYS Common Core Standards Sample for 3 rd Grade

22. Math Curriculum TERC2 Investigations Curriculum Supplemented to create a well-balanced program that meets the Common Core Learning Standards. “Each time one prematurely teaches a child something he could have discovered for himself, that child is kept from inventing it and consequently from understanding it completely.” -Piaget

23. Ways 3rd Graders Solve Problems 3 rd graders will be encouraged to solve problems using a variety of strategies. Please do not force your child to the traditional algorithm for addition and subtraction. This leads to confusion and doesn’t allow your child to develop a full understanding of place value and numbers sense behind the traditional approach. The goal is for every 3rd grader to be able to arrive at a correct answer efficiently and consistently. The Common Core Learning Standards introduce the traditional algorithm in 4 th Grade now. Strategies That You May See Your 3rd Grader Use: (refer to the Student Math Handbook & Palmer Patch web site for specific examples) o sticker pictures (Fall) o counting on a 100 chart or 200 chart (Fall) o number lines (all year) o equations ( all year)

24. Student Math Handbooks Keep at home and return in June. Do not write in them. A reference tool for parents, not a textbook We will not be using every page. Page numbers are listed at the top of homework assignments and in the class newsletter.

25. Basic Facts Information Facts tests will be given once a month beginning with a pretest in September. Fact tests will consist of 40 problems per test. We will begin with addition & subtraction fact tests. Multiplication and division facts will be added in December & January. Do not start yet. End of 3 rd Grade Goals: –Addition & Multiplication: 40 problems in 2 minutes, 40 seconds with 96% accuracy. (4 seconds per problem) –Subtraction & Division: 40 problems in 3 minutes, 20 seconds with 96% accuracy. (5 seconds per problem) Students will be taught to solve math facts using a variety of strategies. Lot of practice with these strategies will eventually lead to automatic recall. Children will bring home fact cards to practice with at home. Links for fact practice web sites are available on the Palmer Patch web site.

27. Third Grade includes... 21 st Century Learning

28. Project Based Learning  Inquiry learning projects that require children to solve solve a real-world problem by creating or designing something.  Often collaborative. Technology Integrated Into Daily Learning Classroom Laptops  Repeated practice (reading & math facts)  Writing  Projects Mobile Lab or Computer Lab Projects  Keyboarding  Microsoft Word & PowerPoint  Photostory3- digital story telling  Research using on-line data bases  Animationish- create basic animation movies  Skype with locations around the world

29. Science & Social Studies Curriculum Science Life Science plants Earth Science erosion water cycle ecology week Physical Science matter mixtures buoyancy Social Studies Maps & Globes –continents and oceans –landforms and waterways –intro to longitude & latitude –regions of the United States World Communities –Ghana –China –Brazil

30. Third Grade is... Fun! Field Trips  Beaver Lake Nature Center (May)  Everson Art Museum (TBD) World Culture Celebrations  China  Ghana  Brazil  Culture Fair

31. Parent Volunteers Weekly or Bi-Weekly Computer (Thursday, 2:00-3:00) Library (Tuesday, 1:35-2:15) Occasionally Social Studies Celebrations Technology Projects Parties Field Trips

32. Birthdays A short celebration can take place on or near your child’s birthday at 2:45. An information note will come home a few weeks prior to your child’s birthday. Three ways to celebrate: (Choose 1) 1. Bring a small snack and/or drink. Treats must be store bought or from the cafeteria due to hepatitis guidelines. Snacks cannot contain peanuts or tree nuts. 2. Play a game of choice. 3. Bring small prizes or trinket for each student. There are 24 students in our class. Parents are invited to attend, but are not required to be there.

33. Snacks Children may choose to bring a snack every day or not. Good nutrition is important for brain functioning and learning. All snacks must be peanut and tree nut free due to student allergies! Visit Palmer Patch web site for snack suggestions. No cookies, potato chips or candy!

34. Recess Students will have outdoor recess everyday unless it is raining or the wind chill temperature dips below zero degrees. Lots of equipment is available for the children to use. Students may not bring toys from home. Dress: –Fall: Jacket, sweatshirt, or sweater. –Winter: Warm jacket, hat, boots, mittens or gloves, and snow pants. –Spring: Light jacket, sweatshirt, or sweater and boots (especially if it has rained and/or is muddy). Students can keep extra recess clothing items at school with parental permission.

35. Thank you for coming. Let’s have a great year!