Student Led Conferences Practice

Great 3rd graders at work! Students have worked hard and are ready to share their accomplishments and goals!  We'll see you all tomorrow!

SBAC TESTING

    
This Thursday morning, March 30th, the third graders will begin SBAC testing.  Please help your child prepare for SBACs by getting a good night's sleep, eating a healthy breakfast, and coming to school on time.  

You can remind your child to do his or her best, and to take their time time responding with thoughtful answers.  

If your child will be absent, please connect with us so we can plan a time for your child to make up the testing.  The tests are between 45-90 minutes in length.  The testing will take place once each day, morning and afternoon times vary.

Our testing schedule:
Thursday 3/30
Tuesday 4/4
Wednesday 4/5
Thursday 4/6
Friday 4/7

Friday News

Two snow days certainly make for an interesting week!  We've done our best to get as much accomplished this week as possible.  Putting on all our snow gear again has been a bit disappointing, but the wonderful snow does make for more recess choices!  Hopefully next week will be a bit calmer!

Conferences
Today, your child is bringing home his/her Student Led Conference confirmation. It has the day and the time on it, so please be on the lookout in Friday Folders.

SBAC Testing
Due to weather, our 3rd grade SBAC testing window has changed a bit.  We'll be testing in CC~3 on April 4, 5, 6, and 7.  Each day there will be one assessment which will last approximately 45-60 minutes depending on the child.  Please mark your calendars with these dates, and try to avoid any appointments.  IF you know your child will be out one of these days, please let us know in advance so we can try to make accommodations.

Sharing 
Next week's sharing is all about Spring, as we will welcome this change in season on Monday!   Let's hope it is actually a SPRINGY day!  Students should bring in, or be prepared to talk about something that makes him/her think of Spring!  We continue to work with many students on "presentation voices".  Please encourage your child to practice his/her sharing at home using a presentation voice.

Literacy
In reading and writing we've finished up our nonfiction units.  In reading we're working on story elements, plot and theme.  We've read a couple of great books together to get these conversations started.  Ask your child to tell you about, The Sunsets of Miss Olivia Wiggins by Lester Laminack, and My Secret Bully by Trudy Ludwig.  The big question we are addressing in regard to theme is, "What is the bigger message the author is sharing in the book" or "What is the life lesson?"  We're also doing some small group work with retelling and plot.

In writing, most students have finished or are putting finishing touches on their own informational books.  These will be ready to share at conferences.  Our next unit will be on opinion writing.  For 3rd graders this is a really fun unit, as it is all about persuasive speeches.  We'll get going on this unit once students have their reflections for conferences complete.  

Have a great weekend!

Reminders and Team Project PhotosTeam

Important Reminders:

• All students have sharing due tomorrow, March 13th!  Students should have their Reduce, Reuse, Recycle Posters complete and ready for sharing.  The posters will be sent into the contest on Monday tomorrow afternoon!
• Please return the blue Parent Conference Forms tomorrow (they were sent home last Wednesday). We're trying to coordinate multiple factors for these student led meetings, so your help in letting us know what will work for you is really necessary. 
• Snow is expected again this week, last week students were ready for SPRING, and many wore outdoor clothing that reflected that.  Please remind your children that we've still got winter weather to contend with and they need to come prepared.

HERE ARE OUR FABULOUS CIVIL RIGHTS PROJECT TEAMS!  

Students did a terrific job with this project.  Goals that were met including reading and interpreting non-fiction text, sequencing with a timeline, expanding vocabulary and team collaboration.

The Martin Luther King Team

The Nelson Mandela Team

The Mohandas Gandhi

The Harriet Tubman Team

The Abraham Lincoln Team

The Rosa Parks Team

Welcome Back and March Kindness Project

Welcome back, everyone! We hope you all had a terrific winter break and are ready to join us again tomorrow. We look forward to seeing all of our students,we have a busy three days planned!

CC~3 March Kindness Project and Week of March 13th Sharing

Each year Casella Resource Solutions has invited third grade students to participate in a Casella Calendar Art Contest. The purpose of the program is to encourage students to reduce, reuse and recycle as much as possible.  We thought it would be fun for us to participate in the project this year as one of our year long kindness projects.  We all want to be sure to be kind to our environment, so thinking about how we can do that and sharing our ideas with one another is a great way!  

Students should create a poster that is due on Monday, March 13, 2017.  All posters will be shared by students during their normal sharing day that week. The deadline is important, as submissions must be mailed out to Casella by Tuesday, March 14, 2017.  (If students would prefer to not have their poster submitted to the contest, that is fine, but the expectation to create one for sharing still exists).

Poster rules:

• Artwork must relate to the environment, recycling, the re-use of materials, reduction of waste, landfills or trash.
• Drawings must be horizontal on 8 ½ x 11 paper.
• Crayons, colored pencils, markers, or paint may be used.
• Student’s name, age, school and teacher’s name must be written on the back of the poster.   Sample:   Janey Doe-Age 9

    East Montpelier Elementary School

    Mrs. Christiano & Mrs. Christy

On Wednesday, March 8, we will have a class discussion about this project and students will be given paper to bring home to create the posters.  Here is a great link for ideas to Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. We can’t wait to see what wonderful, creative posters kids come up with.  Please let us know if you have any questions.  Thank you!

Christine Christiano & Kathy Christy