Halloween Week

Did anyone else do some last minute Halloween shopping? I'm sure there will be a lot of excitement tomorrow with the thought of trick-or-treating this week. It seems like we will have some great Halloween activities for the students on Wednesday. Thank you Michelle for organizing this fun event.

This week, I will be sending home a new reading log for the month of November. Please be sure to have your child turn in the log from October, due this Wednesday. Tomorrow, and every Monday, I will send home the weekly report for each student for you to sign and return(the bottom portion only). This is a quick way for me to communicate with you on a regular basis. Also, I have had a few students not turn in their literature circle job on Thursdays. When your child does not come prepared they have a difficult time participating and lose focus during this activity. If you have any questions or concerns about literature circles, please let me know.

Another field trip is coming this Friday, November 2. We'll be going to the Aptos Museum. If you would like to come along, please let me know if you have NOT received a green chaperone agreement form. I sent them out last week but may have missed a few parents. We'll be leaving at 9:40 (after morning recess) and returning back to school at around 11:20 (before lunch). You do not need to worry about a sack lunch since we'll be back in time to eat in the Cafeteria. Since the energy level is hightened during field trips, please be sure that your group stays with you at all times.

Multiplication update:
This week I will give a pop quiz on the 4's, so please take time to practice with your child. For the students who know the facts up to the 12's, I will be making additional math packets with challenge problems. I've noticed that many kids are struggling with word problems, so I may include some pages for that as well.

Wish List Items:
-pencils (sharpened if possible)
-computer covers to keep the dust off
-anti-bacterial wipes
-CD player, I have one in the class, but it won't play any CD's. If anyone has an
extra they aren't using, GREAT!

As a school-wide effort, we are trying not to waste disposable water bottles. If you have a Nalgene bottle(or similar) please send one in for your child to use.

What a busy week!

Hello Room 23 parents! I don't know about you, but I'm ready to get back to the normal schedule. I enjoyed having the chance to talk with all of you about your children. They are all working very hard and seem to be enjoying 3rd grade.

Here are some upcoming events for our classroom:
1. The Halloween parade in the morning of the 31st (8ish, I believe)
2. Classroom Halloween party from 11:30-12:00
3. Field trip to the Aptos Museum on Friday, November 2

In addition, I will be out on Monday, October 22, so Mrs. Landmann will be taking over for the day. Weekly reports will still go home as well as the spelling packet. I'll be testing the class on the 3's when I return, so please have them practice over the weekend. The following week we'll do the 4's and so forth until we have them memorized. It's an important skill to learn this year, so please help your child if they are struggling.

Thanks for all of your support and for those of you who have gotten me books from Scholastic, the Book Fair, and any other classroom supplies.

Wish list items:
pencils - sharpened (these tend to go fast)
bottled water (or send your child with a bottle to refill daily)
computer covers

Have a wonderful, relaxing weekend!

Conference Week

It looks like everyone's scheduled for conferences this week. If for some reason you can not make your time, please let me know as soon as possible so we can reschedule. Since the conferences are back to back, I will keep them at 15 minutes. If you have any concerns please bring them up early in the conference so they can be addressed.

The field trip to the Museum of Natural History on Friday was a success. I think the students enjoyed themselves and got a glimpse of the Ohlone culture. Our next field trip will be Friday, November 2 to the Aptos Museum. This will be in the morning so the class will return back to school by lunch time. Permission slips will be sent out Monday along with the weekly homework packet. We finished the Theme 1 test on Thursday so we are back to our normal schedule.

See you all this week!

Upcoming events

Hello parents! This Friday is our field trip to the Museum of Natural History in Santa Cruz. This week, I will introduce the Ohlone Indians to the class so they become familiar with the native people who once lived in this area. The museum has a lot of Native American artifacts for the kids to see. If you are a chaperone, please be sure that your group is respecting and following the rules, especially when there are fragile items involved. Sometimes the kids need to be reminded that you are in charge as their chaperone. I believe that we will have 2 docents, so the class will be split in half. I will send out the green chaperone forms either Monday or Tuesday to those of you who would like to join us. If anyone has some extra blankets to bring, we will be eating our lunch on the grass near the museum. We also have some art projects coming up, so if anyone has any string or round butter containers, please send them in with your child.

HOMEWORK:
This week there will be no weekly packet. The 3rd grade classes will be taking the Theme 1 SCOOE test for Houghton Mifflin. So, the only homework they will have is their literature circle job and excel math. Please make sure that your child completes their reading assignment for the week as they will be sharing with their group. This kind of sharing is good for the students and when their job is not done, they feel left out.

Thanks for all you do!

Literature Circles

Last week, our class finally finished reading Charlotte's Web. So on that note, it's time to begin Literature Circles. I have placed students into 4 different groups based on their reading levels. I will pass out books tomorrow(Thursday) along with each job. They will have 1 week to read their book and complete their assignment: Discussion Director, Summarizer, Word Watcher, Illustrator, Passage Picker, or Connector. Your child may need a little support in getting started. A few jobs were fairly simple for them while others needed more scaffolding. I will send home the rubric again that I passed out at open house. If you still have a copy then you can send the extra one back or keep as a reference for your child. The books will be fairly simple this first go around to get the students and parents familiar with each job. Also, since the landform project is due on October 2, I didn't want to overwhelm the kids with too much homework. Next Thursday, students will present their job to their group and the class in order to learn the process of the Lit Circles. I will then pass out new books and assign a new job. This will happen every Thursday. Please email me if you have any questions.

Since we finished Charlotte's Web, our class will watch the movie this Friday. It's the older cartoon version and rated G. If you have any popcorn around the house, feel free to send some with your child this Friday.

Another reminder that book orders are due Friday as well. So far I have only received the order from 1 student. Please submit you order form if you'd like to purchase books.

I'll see you all very soon during conferences. If you have not received a conference time, please let me know. I sent the reminder paper home yesterday (it was yellow). If you have more than 1 child at the school, then you probably just received 1 paper with the siblings names listed.

Book Orders Due Friday, Sept. 28

Hello all! If you are interested in ordering from the October Scholastic Book Catalog, please turn in your form, along with the payment, by this Friday.
Mrs. Smith has been kind enough to volunteer for this job and will take care of the order for our class. Thanks Lisa! If you would like to contribute to the classroom library, I would love to get book sets of 6, since we will begin Lit. groups this week. Here are a few Lucky Book packs:

Geronimo Stilton...Thief (6 book pack) $19.95
Horrible Harry...Revenge (6 book pack) $4.95
Ivy & Bean...Ghost (6 book pack) $9.95
Kids of the Polk...Contest (6 book pack) $9.95

Molly's Pilgrim (1 book) $0.95 (It would be great to have a set of 6)
Any of the Magic Tree House books are good too.

Thanks again for supporting your children with books. This group loves to read any chance they get. We also began book buddies with Mrs. Varni's kinder class last week. They have been looking forward to being a BIG buddy this year.

HOMEWORK & SCHOOL NOTES

Tomorrow, I will send home the new weekly homework packet. Please be sure that your child has his/her name on ALL pages of the packet. I have received several papers without names and sometimes they come unstapled. The monthly reading log will be due this Friday as well. I will send home the October log next Monday (I can't believe October is right around the corner). Keep an eye out this week for yet another field trip form to the Santa Cruz History Museum. If you would like to be a driver and have not attended a field trip yet this year, please let me know so I can get you a chaperone form. I'd like everyone to have an opportunity to come along.

See you tomorrow!

Nisene Update

Hello parents! The forecast calls for showers tomorrow, but we all know that the weather is always changing. I spoke to the docent from Nisene and he said if there is a little drizzle, we should be fine. In the forest, the trail shouldn't be too muddy and the trees do provide some shelter. He will give me a call in the morning if it is too wet, otherwise we'll plan on going. You may want to bring or wear a rain jacket, just in case. The tour is from 10:30-12:30. There will be 2 docents available for our hike so I'll split the class in half. After the hike, we'll eat lunch at the picnic tables by the creek. He also mentioned that the kids do not need to bring backpacks along. I can bring a plastic box to store the lunches in. So, please make sure your child's lunch bag is clearly marked with his/her name.
Let's hope the weather cooperates with our trip!