Mrs. Kelly and Mrs. Castillo
Welcome to Mrs. Castillo's Third Grade 2011-2012
Many Gifts, One Spirit!
I'm taking down the snow information as a good luck sign that the snow is over for the winter. Let's pray that our good luck holds!
Musher materials needed. We are creating a flat musher for the Iditarod unit and need material donations. Please send in what you can. Thank you!!
Classroom News :
Religion - The focus of 3rd grade is the church and 3rd grade prayers. The required prayers for 3rd grade are: the Jesus Prayer, Gloria, The Apostles' Creed and the Memorare. We are currently memorizing the Apostles Creed. Our text is Blest Are We.
Writing -
The class is beginning a unit about the great sled dog race called the Iditarod. They will have many writing opportunities during this month. Some activities are, writing to a musher, a point of view story from the dog's point of view, daily journal writing, vocabulary, and more.
We will be learning the writing process as well as the six traits of writing. The students will keep a weekly journal in their desks. We will write poetry, short stories, excellent paragraphs, and much more. Our text is Voyages and we use it extensively throughout the year.
Reading- All reading groups will learn how to read non-fiction books. The strategy is to use all the parts of the page to inform learning. Students will read the captions, headings, subheadings, maps, graphs, and bold print. This is an active reading style. Encourage your child to check out books from the library that interest them and are non-fiction.
Math- We are finishing Chapter 9-Multiplication. The students are working toward an ice cream sundae party. Ask your child to show you their math folder and the ice cream sundae form. Many students are nearly finished with testing skills 0-10. Please continue to practice math facts by using the Mathletics program or flash cards everyday. A great website I have been using in class to reteach basic concepts is, Khanacademy.org.
We will be using the Houghton Mifflin text in math groups. Math groups are designed to help the student learn in a group at their level. We consider testing, learning styles, and ITBS scores when creating groups.
Science- The students have learned about liters and will now measure temperature in Celsius. Please encourage your child to look at thermometers and compare Celsius and Fahrenheit.
Our focus this year is measurement, weather,water, and life cycles. We use Foss science kits with hands on experiments. The scientific method is introduced in third grade.
Social studies-
The students will be creating a flat musher for the Iditarod unit. They will map the cities of the race, learn about native cultures of Alaska and Canada, and many more activities.
The 3rd graders will be focusing on all of North America: Canada, USA, and Mexico. Our current focus is communities in North America and our own town.
Technology- The students will research the Iditarod using the internet. They will track their musher and look up maps of Alaska. The students use Microsoft Word to create documents, Mathletics to study their math, and Type to Learn to improve keyboarding skills.
Educational Links
Math:
khanacademy.org
multiplication.com
aplusmath.com
eduplace.com
Xtramath.org
Seatlle Public Library:
spl.org
Science:
sandiegozoo.org
pacificsciencecenter.org
Mt.St.Helen's Volcano Camera
fs.fed.us/gpnf/volcanocams/msh/views/jav
Woodland Park Zoo:
zoo.org
Social Studies:
Iditarod.com
Language Arts:
wordcentral.com
therasaurus.reference.com
Webster's dictionary:
m-w.com/word/index.xml
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What does my child do about homework when they are gone from school for illness or other reasons?
A: Students should check in with me before class starts and I will instruct them on what they missed when they were gone. Homework should be completed as soon as possible.
Q: Can my child wear a coat in class?
A: No, only uniform sweatshirts or sweaters are allowed in class. Please follow the uniform guidelines carefully.
Q: What is the best way to reach you?
A: The quickest way to reach me is by email, lcastillo@stjohnsea.org or a note.
Q: When does hot lunch begin?
A: The first Monday of the school year.
Q: Can my child bring toys or extra things not on the supply list?
A: No, toys are not allowed and extra items will be returned to your home.