Week 40: June 18 - 22

Wow!  It certainly is hard to believe that we are now looking at our last full week together as 3B! We are both extremely proud of each and every one of our students for the accomplishments they have made throughout the year!  We have loved working with each of our students and wish you all a happy, safe, and well deserved relaxing, summer vacation!

We are off to Shining Waters on Monday.  Please remember to bring everything mentioned on last week's note: sunscreen, bathing suit, towel, snack, lunch and drinks.  Remember we will not be going to the canteen for lunch!!

We finished up our last math unit on Geometry last week!  Students demonstrated good performances on their unit test!  Way to go 3B!  This week we will be reviewing concepts covered throughout the year, it will have a little bit of everything that we did this year.  Parents could use it for ideas at home over the summer for any students who need extra practice. We hope that you all practice some basic math facts over the summer with your child to prep them for grade 4.  Student will also be taking their flashcards home, so this would be a great practice tool! 

In Health this week, we will be examining the Red Cross C.A.R.E Kit.  Students have been exposed to this personal safety program since grade 1.  This program focuses on providing students with the skills they need to avoid risky situations, and to give them an understanding of their rights to protect their own body.  It follows these simple personal safety rules:
1. TALK (say "No!")
2. WALK (get away from danger if you can)
3. SQUAWK (tell a helping person what happened)

 ** If you DO NOT want your child to take part in this program, please SIGN and RETURN the form that was sent home last week.  If I do not receive these forms by Tuesday then it is assumed that your child has permission to attend the sessions.

Students are actively working on their Science Unit on Soils.  They are having a lot of fun with this unit, as it is hands on and based on exploration!

Just a reminder that the last days of school is Tuesday, June 26th.  Report cards will be sent home this day.
   
Dates to Remember:
Monday June 18 = Field Trip to Shining Waters
Tuesday June 19 = Awards Assembly
Tuesday June 26 = Last Day of Classes; Report Cards Sent Home

Week 38: June 4 - 8

We hope you all had an enjoyable weekend and got outside to enjoy the weather!!
This week in Math, students will wrap up working with 2D shapes, and move into working with 3D shapes. Students have learned how to name shapes by the number of sides they have, and this week we will look at naming 3D shapes as prisms or pyramids! We will also be working with 3D manipulatives this week, so students can get their head around the number of edges, vertices, faces, and bases!

In Health we will be starting a new unit on Wellness Choices.  In this unit we will be looking at physical activity, healthy habits, healthy eating guidelines, and making appropriate choices. 

In Literacy students will be starting narrative writing.  Also, just a reminder that students' final copy of their Descriptive Reports are due this Friday, June 8! 

In Science, we will be starting a new unit on Plants and Soils!

On Friday Athena will be holding it's Fun and BBQ Day!  The BBQ will take place rain or shine and food orders are due on Tuesday, June 5th!  All items (hotdog, freezie, and kool aid jammer) cost $1.00 each! 

Reminder to all students that they should have the necessary clothing and footwear for all physical education classes.  Students should be prepared to be either indoor or outdoor, and must be dressed accordingly!

Dates to Remember:
Friday, June 8, 2012 = Descriptive Reports Due
                                    Athena Fun & BBQ Day
Tuesday, June 12, 2012 = Book Order Due
Monday, June 18, 2012 = End of Year Field Trip to Shining Waters
Tuesday, June 26, 2012 = Last Day of School / Report Cards

Week 37: May 28 - June 1

We wish to congratulate our 3B class on a job well done on their Provincial Assessments over the last two weeks!  We were very proud to see the hard work and determination displayed by each member of our class!  Way to go!!

In Math this week, we will be finishing up our unit on fractions.  We will begin our last unit on Geometry mid week, which involves describing 3-D objects according to the shape of the faces, and the number of edges and vertices (corners), and sorting regular and irregular polygons according to the number of sides including: triangles, quadrilaterals, pentagons, hexagons, and octagons.  We have been reviewing 2-D shapes for part of the year, so we hope a quick transfer of knowledge will be shown!

In Health this week, students will be looking at the way in which people learn, where they can learn, and how they learn best.  Students will also begin to look at situations in which solutions, predictions, consequences, and actions will be examined. 

Athena Field Day will take place on Friday, June 8th.  There will be a BBQ for lunch.  The order form will be going home soon to preorder for this. Each item on the order form is $1.00.

Reminder to ensure your child has proper outdoor footwear for Phys.ed. classes.  When the weather is nice, Mrs. Murphy often has classes outside.

Finally, our year end field trip will be on Monday, June 18th.  We will be going to Shining Waters.  We need some parent volunteers to help chaperone.  Please let us know if you can help!

Dates To Remember:
Friday, June 8th:  Athena Field Day and BBQ
Monday, June 18th:  Field Trip to Shining Waters
Tuesday, June 26th:  Last Day of Classes

Week 36: May 22 - 25

We hope you all enjoyed the gorgeous long weekend and got outside to enjoy the sunshine!!

This week, students will complete their final 2 days of the Provincial Primary Assessment on Wednesday and Thursday.  Much like last weeks assessments, students will be required to complete a reading comprehension piece, as well as a written piece.  Please work with your child at home to review strategies and outline possible writing types.  Reminder to all students to bring a water bottle with them each day, and to eat a healthy breakfast before they come!  You will all be shining stars!!

In Math, we will continue our work on Fractions. We will take a closer look at naming, writing, and saying fractions (1/2; one half) and move into comparing fractions with like denominators.  Everyone is getting along great in the unit so far!

We will be starting a new Health unit this week, which will deal with Life Learning Choices.  Students will look at test taking skills and how to prepare for a test (at home and at school); identify the ways individuals learn in various environments; and take a look at generating possible solutions to a problem and predict consequences of a variety of solutions.

The dental program has returned to Athena.  Your child's teeth were checked last week and he/she received a yellow form to be filled out.  Even if you choose not to take part in program, you need to return the form signed!  Please return the form ASAP!

Dates to Remember:
Wednesday May 23 - Thursday May 24 = Provincial Assessments

Week 35: May 14 - 18

Students finished off their unit in Multiplication and Division last week!  We will still be working with our flashcards to retain our skills!  This week in Math, we will begin our unit on Fractions where students will build upon their knowledge of "fair shares" to recognize a fraction as an expression that relates a part and a whole.  In this unit students will find fractions of a whole, compare fractions with the same denominator, and solve fraction problems.  We use fractions every day in many different situations.  You should encourage your child to recognize the use of fractions in daily life (glass half full, measuring ingredients in a recipe, or sharing an apple, pizza, or pie).  Here are some activities that you can do with your child to help reinforce the concept of fractions.

~ When you serve your child food, cut it into halves, thirds, or fourths, and challenge your child to name the fraction for each part.  After some is eaten, have your child name the fraction for the parts that are left.

~ Provide your child with opportunities to divide food items into equal parts.

~ Play a game of "Fraction Match".  On index cards, write fractions symbols (1/2, 1/3, 1/4, 3/4, etc).  Prepare a second set of cards on which you draw pictures to illustrate each fraction.  Shuffle the cards and arrange them face down in a grid.  To play, take turns turning over two cards.  If the fraction matches the symbol the player keeps the cards, if not the player replaces the cards.  Continue playing until all the cards have been matched.

In Social Studies, we will be completing our brochures this week.  Students will present them to the class.  Students will be taking these home to work on fine details to ensure completion by Friday.

In Literacy, students will complete a part of their Primary Literacy Assessments on Wednesday and Thursday (May 16 and 17).  Students are reminded to eat a healthy breakfast to prepare themselves for the assessments.  In order to practice with your child, read with them nightly and ask them questions.  You can also talk to them about their writing, specifically on recounts (events from their past), persuasives (how to get something they want), and procedural (how to do something in the correct order with the appropriate materials).

Dates to Remember:
Wednesday May 16 = Provincial Primary Literacy Assessment
Thursday May 17 = Provincial Primary Literacy Assessment
Monday May 21 =  Victoria Day (NO SCHOOL)
Wednesday May 23 = Provincial Primary Literacy Assessment
Thursday May 24 = Provincial Primary Literacy Assessment

Week 34: May 7 - 11

This week in Math students will continue to practice their multiplication and division skills.  It is very important for students to take note of the signs used in problems, which will tell them what operation to use.  Students are also working very diligently on reading story problems and finding the context clues that will help them to solve the problem.  We will be looking at key words that will help students identify which operation to use. We will be ending off our week with a combined multiplication and division test. Please continue to practice your child's flashcards with them at home each night.  You may also challenge them to solve division problems, where they know the total number of something and either the number of items in a group, or the number of groups the items are divided into.  

In Social Studies, students began to work on a brochure to persuade a person to move to a community of their choice on PEI.  Students will use the five factors that influence a persons decision on where to move and why, to make their brochure.  We will look at employment opportunities, natural resources, services, transportation, and personal reasons for living in a select area.  Expect students to come home and ask you for some personal reasons for having your family live in the community it does.  

In Literacy, students will continue to review the different types of writing (recount, persuasive, and procedural) in preparation for the upcoming Provincial Assessment.  They will work on practicing writing to prompts, and looking at how to correctly answer questions (multiple choice, open ended) on comprehension tests.  The assessments will be marked by teachers this summer and you will receive results in the fall. If you have any questions regarding the Provincial Assessments, please feel free to contact us.

Dates to Remember:

Sunday, May 13 = Mother's Day

Week 33: April 30 - May 4

This week in Math students will work on relating multiplication and division through grouping, using arrays, and creating story problems.  We will have a quiz on division at the first of the week to determine how well students are grasping the concept of division (through grouping, sharing, arrays, and repeated subtraction). Students have worked diligently in class as they practice their multiplication flashcards with a friend. They are doing great with their fact so far! Please remember to review these facts with your child every night, and don't forget to work on the basic addition and subtraction facts too!

In Social Studies students will be exploring the final factors that influence where people live: services, transportation, communication, and family.  Students will be working on completing an activity where they will collect and present information about their ancestry, and why they live where they currently do.  Students will also be interviewing their parents about the factors that have influenced where and why they live and work on PEI. 

In Literacy, we are reviewing some other forms of writing for the next couple of weeks in preparation for our Grade 3 Provincial Literacy Assessments, taking place on May 16-17 and May 23-24.  The types of writing we will be reviewing include recount/retell, persuasive, and procedural.  Look for a pamphlet coming home this week regarding the Provincial Assessments.

Dates to Remember:
Friday, May 4 = Area Association Day (No School)