Wednesday, October 26, 2016

"Called to Protect" Parent Session


PTO Week at a Glance


Pep Rally!



Hey everyone! 
There will be a pep rally in the gym on Thursday to cheer on our Football Team at 10:00 a.m. Thursday's game will be one of their last. We'd love to see you there to cheer on the Saints!

Tuesday, October 25, 2016

Planet Orbit

Hey kiddos! Click the link for a simple animation that shows approximately how the planets orbit the sun. Notice the difference of the time is takes to orbit as you move farther away from the sun.
Planet Orbit Animation

Garden City Field Trip Information

Hello Parents!
We have a field trip planned for next week to the Garden City Community Center and St. Lawrence Cotton Field and Cotton Gin. This trip will allow the students to explore various aspects of agriculture, as well as show them how cotton is grown, picked, cleaned, and distributed. It is a wonderful, well-planned trip that all past 3rd grade students have loved. 

We will take a charter bus and the trip will take the whole school day. This trip is of no cost to your child. We simply ask that they come in their uniform (with a jacket, depending on the weather), show up NO LATER than 7:40, and return their permission form from Tuesday folder. Lunch is also provided that day, so there is no need to send a lunch with your child.

A few important things to know as we plan to go:
  • We MUST leave the school no later that 8:30 a.m. It will take us a while to get to Garden City, and the program starts promptly at 9:30 a.m. We are sharing the trip with the Garden City Third Graders, and a late departure will cause them to wait and get us off schedule, also making it more difficult to be back to school in the afternoon on time. Please make plans to have your child here between 7:30 - 7:40 a.m. so we have enough time to pass out Tuesday folders, take a restroom break, and board the bus.
  • You are more than welcome to join us on the trip, however due to such a large third grade class this year, we only have enough room to accommodate the students, and three teachers (Mrs. Owen, Mrs. Butler, and Mrs. Holt) on the bus. The charter bus only seats 52. If you would like to attend, we'd love to have you meet us in Garden City at the Community Center. Students must ride the bus to and from the event.
  • Please look at the weather forecast before we leave. We spend most of the day indoors, however one portion of the trip is outside, and we do not want your child to be uncomfortable.
  • We will arrive back at school no later than 3:30 p.m. If you are picking up your child, the best course of action is to NOT go through the carpool line. The best option it to park in the lot across from the church office and wait for us to arrive there. If your child is attending after school, we will walk them back to school and send them to their appropriate after school teacher.

Friday, October 21, 2016

Thank You!

What a pleasure it was to meet with each of you these past two days. Thank you all for taking the time to meet with me to discuss your child's progress. I thoroughly enjoyed meeting with each of you. Thank you for all your help and support with your child's education.

Tuesday, October 18, 2016

Saint Reports Complete!

We are all done constructing our Saint Reports! Thank you parents for all your efforts in research and writing. Students, you did a great job and worked very hard! Now, we just need to focus on practicing our reports and costumes.

I hope the costume planning is going well. I've already heard that some students have begun or even finished their costumes! That's great! If you have any issues with your costume, PLEASE don't hesitate to let me know and we can come up with a solution. 

I'm so excited for this project and the students' progress. Please let me know if you need any help or have any questions regarding the project. I note will go home in Tuesday folder with our schedule for that morning. 
Here are a few tips for practicing an oral presentation:
  • Make eye contact frequently - Make sure your eyes leave your paper occasionally to engage your audience
  • Speak clearly (slowly) - Don't rush your report. The audience is interested in learning about your Saint. Speaking clearly and slowly allow them to understand you better.
  • Speak at a good volume - No, you don't have to strain your voice, but make sure you are speaking loud enough for your audience to hear.
  • Practicing saying your report MANY times - It may feel tedious, but the more you say it the more comfortable you feel speaking, and it helps you to not stumble over difficult words. 

Early Release Days


Don't forget that Thursday and Friday are early release days for Parent/Teacher Conferences. Look forward to meeting with all the parents this week!

Sunday, October 16, 2016

Two-fer Saint/Halloween Costumes !

This is a great site with some ideas on how to get two uses out of your Saint costume (well for some students). Hope it helps! If any of you are needing help or ideas for your costume, please give me a shout! We've seen some very creative ideas in past years and might have a way to get crafty with your costume! 
http://www.catholicallyear.com/2015/10/twofer-costumes-for-halloween-and-all.html

Friday, October 14, 2016

Saint Report

Hello Families!
We had a great week in 3rd grade on our Saint Reports. We've ended the week with all students being able to utilize their resources to complete their rough draft. Our goal for this coming week is to finish and finalize the draft to prepare for writing the full report. We will edit and correct any mistakes that we see and prepare to write the final draft. We hope to complete the full report by early next week so that we may utilize the next few weeks before All Saint's Day to practice. By now, I hope you and your children are beginning to think about how you might want to do your costume. Remember: Costumes do not have to be expensive or elaborate, just an appropriate depiction of the Saint's typical outfit. If you refer to the resource section, I will include some good websites for research and also some useful sites that show how some Saint costumes have been made. I will also include a few pictures of our students' costumes from years past. Thank you for all of your help with this project! We're having a lot of fun learning more about the Super Heroes of our faith! Good Luck!

Thursday, October 13, 2016

Subtraction with Regrouping Game

Here's a practice game for subtraction with regrouping. Hopefully this will help you with the skill. 
Subtraction with Regrouping Game

Problem Solving Strategies

Hey everyone! Here are some tips on problem solving in math. Hopefully it is helpful with tonight's homework and any in the future. Enjoy!

Tuesday, October 11, 2016

Parent Teacher Conferences

I'm looking forward to meeting with all of you for Parent/Teacher Conferences. This is a great time to discuss the strengths of your child as well as set goals for the future A notice is being sent home in Tuesday Folder with your scheduled time. If this doesn't work, please call the office as soon as possible so we may reschedule. Also, conferences mean that we will have an early release on October 20th and 21st. Thanks everyone! Looking forward to seeing you all.

PTO Week at a Glance


Shurley Parent Guide

Hey families! As we continue classifying sentences, I wanted to provide parents with a help guide that might clarify how the Shurley English program teaches and also how parents can assist their child at home. The link provided below will direct you to open a PDF file that displays the booklet. Hope this helps!
Link:Shurley Parent Help Guide

Monday, October 10, 2016

Regrouping Twice with Subtraction

Today we went over regrouping twice with subtraction. The students did well. Here is something to help remember if you need to regroup or not.

Box Tops "Battle of the Grades!"

Keep bringing in those Box Tops! Contest ends on Friday!

Friday, October 7, 2016

Book Fair Next Week!

The "Bookaneer" starts next week. There are several opportunities for you and your children to purchase books. Tuesday is the Family Night from 5:30 - 8:00. Refreshments will be provided and students can come dressed up for a discount. Your child must be accompanied by an adult. Students can also purchase books at school starting on Wednesday. There will be opportunities to go to the fair between the hours of 9:00 - 3:00 IF they have money to purchase books. Parents may also come during those hours, just be sure to sign in at the office first. You and your child may also go after Hot Dog Day on Friday, but again, students may only go to the fair if they have money to purchase merchandise and are accompanied by an adult. Hope you are able to find some great things to read at the fair! Have a wonderful week!I have posted the flyer for our Book Fair that it coming up next week! Please read the information on the form to see when times are to buy books and to volunteer if you are able.

Wednesday, October 5, 2016

Picture Day Tomorrow

Don't forget that tomorrow is Picture Day for Grades K-3rd. Please be sure to be in your Mass Uniform for pictures. See you tomorrow!

Monday, October 3, 2016

Pet Blessing Tomorrow

Tomorrow is the Feast Day of St. Francis: Patron of Nature and Pets. We will have a Blessing in celebration of the Feast of St. Francis. Please feel free to join us and bring your family pet for the prayer service at 2:45. Leashed or caged pets are welcome to attend. If you are unable to bring your family pet, just send a photograph or drawn picture! After the service, we will head to dismissal. If you would like to take your child with you after the blessing, you are more than welcome to. Please just make sure to find me at our line up spot (the students will know where it is) so I can check your child out.