Family Information Night is TONIGHT!

We hope everyone enjoyed the last long weekend of summer!  We have a busy week ahead in CC-3! We're so proud of how hard students are working as we continue to establish expectations and routines.  We're off to a great start!

Just a reminder, tonight we will welcome adult family members for Family Information Night.  This night is an opportunity for parents/guardians to visit our classroom, learn about our third grade program and get answers to any questions you might have regarding the 2017-18 school year. 

The schedule for the evening:

• 5:30-5:40 Welcome in the gym.
• 5:40-6:00  Session #1 in classrooms
• 6:00-6:30  Session #2 in classrooms
• 6:30-7:00 Families of 4-6 graders meet in the LIBRARY to discuss Digital Citizenship.

You only need to attend one session in our CC-3 classroom.  The other will be available for you to visit sibling classrooms or go home if you're ready!

Our evening for students to share our classroom with you will be on Thursday, October 19th beginning at 6:00 p.m.

Welcome!

Yesterday, we launched the beginning of an exciting third grade year!  We were thrilled to greet smiling third graders who were anxious and ready to learn.  Thank you so much for sending your children so well prepared for the day!

We're spending the bulk of this week getting to know one another and developing our classroom expectations, agreements and routines. Just a reminder, Mrs. Christiano is the lead 3rd grade teacher in the morning, Mrs. Christy in the afternoon. Yesterday, we introduced students to the major theme of CC-3, which is KINDNESS.  Throughout every day we are all striving to be kind, caring and thoughtful toward ourselves, our classmates and the world.  We read the book Each Kindness by Jacqueline Woodson to get us started.  Please ask your child to tell you about the book.

Here are a few more tidbits for the week!

• Yesterday every child brought home his/her burgundy colored "Friday Folder".  In the folder were important start of the year forms for families to fill out.  If you can get them back to us by Friday that would be terrific!  All the forms are important, but one in particular is the "Acceptable Use Form" in regard to using computers and technology while here at school.  Our technology classes will begin next Thursday.

• Today, your child is bringing home a GREEN blog permission form.  This will let us know your preferences when it comes to posting images, student work, etc. on this blog.  Please return it as soon as possible.

• Open toed shoes are worrisome on the playground, PE and actually even in our classroom.  We encourage you to have your child wear closed toed shoes for school days.  As much as we all hate to give up our flipflops, they are a real danger at school.

• Our homework philosophy, expectations and first homework assignment will go home with students tomorrow, Wednesday, August 30th.  Here is the link to our CC-3 Homework Philosophy if you'd like a sneak peek.

• Here is another link to our CC-3 Schedule.  As you can see each day and week are very busy.  If you can avoid appointments, etc. during the school day that would be appreciated.  Also, late arrivals or early dismissals are challenging for both students and teachers.  Every minute we have with your kids is precious and important!

• If you require a paper copy of this blog please let us know, otherwise we will assume you will follow us and know what is happening in CC-3 via electronics.

Thanks again for all your support and help.  We're off to a great start!
Sincerely,
Christine & Kathy

Welcome back!

August 16, 2017

Dear Third Graders and Families,

We hope you’re all enjoying these last few days of Vermont summer!  We also hope  this letter will provide you with any information you may need as you prepare for the first day of school on Monday, August 28, 2017.

First and foremost, we are thrilled to be your third grade teachers!  We have both been at EMES for many years and have taught 3rd grade during many of them.  We feel extremely fortunate to be part of the EMES community.  We know firsthand that third graders are some of the most wonderful people on the planet!  Their desire to learn, explore their world and contribute to their community make them a very exciting age group to teach.  

The responsibilities of our third grade classroom will be shared between us this year, just like in 2016.  Students will be greeted by Mrs. Christiano each morning, she will be their primary teacher until lunch.  Academics during this time will include: Morning Meeting, Math, Science/Social Studies, and Reteach.  Mrs. Christy will be the primary teacher each afternoon. Afternoon academics will include:  Reading, Writing, Spelling, and some Science/Social Studies integration.  

It is important for you to know that we also fill other roles at EMES.  Mrs. Christiano’s afternoons are spent as our Tier II Interventionist.  She works with K-6 students in Tier II supports. Mrs. Christy is our EMES Professional Development Coach in the morning, working with teachers and students in grades K-6.

We are excited to be your child’s third grade team, as we have worked together frequently in the past and look forward to another successful year in CC-3.  In the meantime, please don’t hesitate to contact us with any questions.  We ask that you include both of us in any correspondence so that we are an effective communication team.  We keep a pretty active classroom blog going throughout the year.  Please subscribe to our blog address at your earliest convenience.  http://christiano-christy-3.blogspot.com/.  Here you will find helpful information about your child’s day, such as our Sharing Calendar and Specials Schedule.

First Day of School Needs and Tidbits

• We will have a morning snack each day.  Please send a healthy snack and water bottle with your child.
• Our Special on Monday, August 28th, is PE.  Coming prepared for that class will be very important.
• If you participated in the EMES library book bag program, please bring your bag and books back on the first day.
• Dismissal plans on the first day and week of school can always be a bit tricky, so if you could send us in a note of that first week’s dismissal plan that would be a great help.  You can email us these plans as well.  kchristy@u32.org and cchristiano@u32.org.
• Students will not need any school supplies beyond a sturdy backpack and lunchbox.  Students are welcome to bring in their own supplies if they wish, however we will have everything they will need.  Please do not send in any binders.  
• We expect all students will leave any electronic devices and toys at home.  There will be many opportunities for students to share treasures throughout the year.
• We request that students always have closed toed shoes that they can access during each school day. We want students to be safe and prepared for any activity.
• We love classroom volunteers.  Please let us know if you’re interested in donating some of your time.  Don’t forget to fill out necessary EMES paperwork for volunteering and chaperoning.  It will be sent home from the office during the first week.

Enjoy the rest of your summer!  We look forward to seeing our new third graders on Monday, August 28th!

Sincerely,

Christine & Kathy

Christine Christiano Kathy Christy

cchristiano@u32.org kchristy@u32.org

EMES Classroom Phone:  223-7936  Ext. 350

Tomorrow is the last day of school!

Please send in an empty backpack or bag with your son or daughter tomorrow as they will be bringing a lot home!  It may even be helpful to send in an extra bag if they have a lunchbox or other items already in their backpack.  

We will be eating lunch at 11:15 tomorrow and students will be dismissed at 12:30.  The last day is often quite busy in the office, if your child will have a change of dismissal plans please send in a note in the morning.

Thank you!

Tech Night~Project Link

Tonight is our EMES Technology night from 6:00-7:15.  Students in our class have worked hard writing traditional tales.  They have used an Ipad application called Book Creator to write, illustrate and record their voices for their stories.  We realize it is a very busy time of year, and attending tonight might be tricky.  Here is the link for the projects if you'd like to see and hear them from home. CC-3 Tales  You can watch them all or just scroll through to find your child's work.  This was a great collaborative project!  Enjoy!

Important Updates and Last Week Schedule!

It is truly crazy for us to fathom that we are in the midst of our last full week of school!  There is so much going on in the next few days, so here is an update of our schedule and important events!

Wednesday, June 14-9:15-11:45 a.m.-TOMORROW!  Our East Montpelier Tour Field Trip-It looks like the weather is going to be perfect!  We'll leave school around 9:15 and will return in time for lunch.  Students should have an easy to transport snack and close toed shoes.  We'll be in and out of the sun, so sunscreen is important as well .

Wednesday, June 14-4:00-6:00 p.m. EMES Retirement Celebration in the cafeteria.  Families are welcome to come and say good-bye!

Thursday, June 15-6:00-7:30 p.m.  EMES Technology Night.

Dear Families,

The EMES Tech Club is proud to present Tech Night 2017. Join us on Thursday June 15th from 6 to 7:30 pm for Tech Night.  This is a drop in event and you do not need to stay the entire evening (we know some of our presenters have early bedtimes).

 Schedule:

6:00 - 6:30 pm 1st -6th grade presentations

• 1st graders will share their Robot Monkeys and drums
• 2nd graders will share their Character Trading Cards (and trade)
• 3rd graders will share original narrated Traditional Tales
• 4th graders will share their book trailers
• 5th - 6th graders can show families PSAs and robotics work.

6:30 - light refreshments

6:30 - 7:15 Coding and Storytelling Challenges (visit 7 different stations to learn how to code robots and use storytelling apps)

7:15 Door prize drawing and wrap up

 Special thanks to: Woodbury Mountain Toys and Bear Pond Books for contributing door prizes

 We hope you can join us!

-Arlyn and the EMES Tech Club!

Friday, June 16-EMES Field Day!  Students will be outside the majority of the day. The raindate is Monday, June 19th.

Mr. Blanchard has created mixed grade color teams-we shared with students their colors today.  It helps if students wear their team color, or as close to it as possible.  Sunscreen, close toed shoes and labeled water bottles are a must!  Students might also want to consider sunglasses, hats, bug spray.

Team Colors for CC-3

• White:  Nate, Lauren, Rilynn
• Light Blue:  Jesse, Caleb, Lexi
• Orange: Isobel
• Yellow: Adeline
• Maroon: Ben
• Green: Taegan
• Striped/Camo/Pattern:  Duncan, Aaron, Ellery
• Gray: Claire
• Black: Stella

Tuesday, June 20-12:30 p.m.  Our last day for students!  This is an early dismissal at 12:30, it will be tough for us to say good-bye to this amazing group of kids!

We'll be organizing our classroom and preparing for a move down the hall for CC-3 next year.  In preparation for this, we'll be sending many things home with students during the next few days. Please be on the lookout!

Report cards will be mailed after the last day of school.  The name of your child's fourth grade teacher will be included in the comments section of his or her report card.

Things to keep in mind for the summer.  The summer slide is real!  Please keep your kids involved doing a variety of fun learning.  They have all made TONS of progress in all academic areas this year, so we don't want them to lose any ground.

• Reading~ Encourage your child to read a variety of text.  Hopefully they all will bring home an EMES book bag!  
• Math~ Practical real life connections to math are really easy to do from telling time, figuring out distances and differences on trips, planning for vacation expenses, practicing math facts, etc.  
• Writing~ Do a variety of writing!  Examples might be: letters to family members, sending postcards, or keeping journals/diaries. 
• Spelling~Students will also be bringing home unfinished portions of their spelling books which is a great way to review and keep the ideas of spelling, reading and following directions fresh.  
• Kindness~We've had a theme of kindness all year, this is a very kind, caring, thoughtful group of kids.  What might they do this summer to show their kindness toward others and their community? 

Thank you all for your wonderful support this year. Thank you for sharing your amazing kids with us! Thank you for making EMES the very special place it is.  It has been a terrific year, we are grateful for all of you!

Sincerely,
Christine and Kathy

Weather and Permission Slips

We wish we could change the weather pattern that we are all experiencing, but unfortunately we can't!  Everyday that it is not raining, we are going out for recess.  Obviously, the playground is very wet, and often muddy.  Please make sure your child has a pair of shoes to wear outside, and a dry pair to wear inside.  Also, we are very concerned about students wearing flip flops out for recess.  That practice is just begging for an injury.  Please make sure your child has closed toed, appropriate shoes for both recess and PE classes.

Today, your child is bringing home a very important permission slip for our East Montpelier Tour, which will take place next Wednesday, June 14th. Please read the whole page carefully and make sure to check off  the appropriate sections, sign and date, cut off the bottom portion and return to school.  Also, if you have contacted us and let us know that you can drive, we are counting on you! We have just exactly the right amount of student seats available.  We do have a bit more room for adults in the front seats of cars if you'd like to join us and have Level I forms in the office!  We're excited for this trip and know it will be a great learning experience for our students.

Finally, today we watched the movie, Because of Winn Dixie.  Students worked hard to fill five chip buckets to see the film.  The movie was a wonderful connection to one of our anchor texts from our reading character studies unit.  Please ask your child to tell you about the film, and the comparisons we discussed in class.  It is book a great book and movie. If you'd like to watch it as a family, it is easily available on Amazon video.