October Proclamations from 3Pz!

Our Engaged Learning during the month of October involved…

Reading→Our reading stamina in 3Pz is very impressive! We are up to about 25 minutes of silent reading and improving each day! We are very focused on reading ‘Just Right’ books and on improving our reading by working on our individual reading goals. We are working on strategies and techniques to help us continue to improve as readers. Being an engaged reader is the first step! As we work on our reading stamina, we are also engaging our mind by monitoring our reading, skipping unknown words and then coming back to reread the sentence again and we are checking for understanding. When we are done reading a page, we should ask and answer these two questions: Who is in this part? What happened in this part? Make sure your child pulls out the important parts from that page!(We call them “BIG parts”.)We are also reviewing after each page by saying… “I just heard myself read about…”We are reading with expression, fluency and accuracy. We are accountable for our reading by writing responses to what we are reading on post-its or in our Lit. Binder. Please continue to encourage your child to read at home! Thank you and … Read to Succeed! ☺

☺→Your child is welcome to come to the Parent/Teacher conference approaching soon. In fact, I’m strongly encouraging you to bring him/her. I’d like them to take part in the conference and share some of their thoughts with you about their learning. This responsibility will also encourage your child to continue to be accountable for their learning. Thank you!

Writing→Write on 3Pz! Our writing continues to flourish as we add details, action, dialogue and great word choice to our writing pieces. We are learning to edit our work and help others proofread/edit their pieces too. After drafting, revising and then one last final edit, we will have a published narrative writing piece! If you happen to have a spare notebook at home, encourage your child to start a home writing journal. He/She could write about what happened that evening or just doodle a picture and then write a (bit-by-bit) story. Your young author could also write a list or two of the happenings of the day or the beginnings of a Christmas Wish list. After watching a favorite TV show or reading a book, he/she could write about their favorite part, favorite character and the actions/ motivations of that character. Today and everyday keep that pencil moving! ☺

Math→We are persevering and improving with our math! Our parachutes are open and we are becoming better with our math engagement and learning. About a month ago, when asking for volunteers to come up front and teach us some of their math knowledge, I had very few hands up. Now, very few hands are down! We are learning a great deal from each other and from our ‘Magnificent Math Mistakes’.Ask your son/daughter if they have volunteered to share their math wisdom with others. If yes, ask them how they did and what they needed to explain. Ask them what question did he/she have to answer and what compliment did they receive? I continue to tell the students to keep their mind open… “Your mind is like a parachute. It only works when it’s open.” Our brains are growing and we are getting smarter every day! Your mathematician also works daily with a math partner. Please ask him/her about that partnership and the collaboration and learning occurring with that partnership.How can you help? You are doing a great job of helping your child with their math homework if he/she needs it. It is a lot to process and some students just need a bit more time to absorb all the information that they are learning so the extra reinforcement and encouragement at home is greatly appreciated. Another very important practice that you can do with your child at home is to practice the strategy multiplication/ division flashcards daily.DON’T FORGET TO SIGN THE ‘STRATEGY FLASHCARD’ SHEET AFTER YOUR CHILD HAS PRACTICED FOR 15 MINUTES OR MORE! Hopefully, the computer math program ‘Xtra Math’ is working for your child at home. If it’s not, please let me know and I’ll look into it for you. All of this practice will help your child gain confidence and needed reassurance. We move along very quickly so having your child’s mind open and having a positive attitude (Growth mindset rocks!) with the willingness and confidence to learn, will help your child progress in math. Again, thank you for your time and efforts at home.

Social Studies→We’re traveling around the world! We have just started to learn about the seven continents, the four oceans, the equator and the prime meridian.We have learned more about cardinal directions, a compass rose, symbols on a map, how to read a map and a map scale.

Additional Learning Engagement…

  • Cursive writing
  • Raz-Kids
  • Xtra Math
  • Keyboarding
  • Library Time
  • Word Work (Spelling)
  • Think Fun!
  • Brainbreaks and Brainercises
  • Diary, Morning Message, Amelia Notebook, Oodles of Doodles
  • Classroom Jobs
  • Math Partners and Reading Partners
  • Tribe Collaboration (Leader, Tribe Trotter, Tribe Secretary/Notetaker)

Thank you for reading this newsletter and have a very groovy month ahead!  Peace!