Happy 2010! We hope you had a wonderful break and are getting back into the busy schedule of school, homework, activities, etc. We started the new year with new units in social studies, math, writing and music.
Third graders have been busy learning about bridges. We're testing out different structures and what makes bridges strong. We're also starting to study Portland's unique bridges. The next two Fridays, January 22nd and 29th, we'll have a guest bridge expert visit our classrooms. Sharon Wood Wortman, author of the Portland Bridge Book, will come in and start us on creating Portland's own truss bridges. We'll make them with popsicle sticks throughout the week and she'll come back the next Friday to test their strength.
Get your creative ideas ready....in February, we'll assign a family bridge building project. The kids are already talking about what bridge they want to create. We'll send home more information toward the end of January.
If you've noticed your child drumming on the garbage can, it might be because we've started Taiko drumming lessons. It is an extension of our study of Japan and a good excuse to scream and drum as loud as we can. The kids will be learning about the culture around the art of drumming as well as how to do it themselves! This is funded by your contributions to Run for the Arts. Thanks!
We're just finishing our math unit on Flips, Turns and Area. We've been learning about tetronimoes and the math vocabulary to explain how a shape moves. We've also been calculating area and perimeter. Now we're moving on to Combining and Comparing. Students will be work on adding and subtracting numbers with efficient strategies.
In writing, we're exploring the imaginative genre. We've been reading imaginative mentor texts and doing quick writes inspired by the stories. We'll be working on creating an imaginative story with conflict and a solution, an exciting lead, and using juicy words to make the story more interesting.
We're looking forward to all of the exciting learning and activities ahead!
Subscribe by Email!
Subscribe by RSS feed!