Sunrise/Sunset

I'm posting the sunrise/sunset and national high/low here so we can record it once we get back to school. I hope everyone is having a relaxing break!

High/Low for December 27
High: Boca Raton, FL = 84 degrees
Low: Grants, NM = -9 degrees
Difference: 93 degrees

Sunrise/Sunset for December 28
Sunrise - 7:31 a.m.
Sunset - 4:33 p.m.
Amount of Sunlight - 9 hrs. 2 min.

Six Flags Read to Succeed

Yesterday the students were given a form for Six Flags Read to Succeed. Students need to read 360 minutes before February 24, 2012. They will need to fill out the form attached with the Six Flags information, but this can be the same reading time as we use for our monthly reading calendars. The new component will be filling out the Six Flags form along with the reading calendar. If they turn it in they will get a free ticket to Six Flags. More information is available here: Six Flags - Read to Succeed

Good luck and have a great break!

Winter Solstice

We have been tracking the sunrise/sunset every Wednesday in math. This year the shortest day, the Winter Solstice, lands on a Wednesday.

When we started keeping track of the sunrise/sunset at the beginning of September we had over 13 hours of sunlight. Today we have just 9 hours of sunlight with the sunrise at 7:29 a.m. and sunset at 4:29 p.m.

Star of the Week

The last Star of the Week of the Year!

Cool Toy

This is fun little activity to try at home. It doesn't go along with what we are doing in class, but it's a pretty neat idea. Not everyone will be able to do this, but it is really cool if you have all the tools. Augmented Reality is becoming the new thing in technology. There is a Lego sample below with directions.

1. You need a webcam. Most laptops have one and desktops may have one too.
2. Go to this website - Lego.com Atlantis
3. Choose one of the products.
4. Print the Icon (Legos Icon)
5. Press Start
6. Place printed icon in front of the webcam.

Hope it works for you!

Island Christmas

No weekend game, but a cool video from the Christmas concert. If parents would like a picture you can e-mail me and I'll send them to you. Please let me know which pictures you would like as it'll be difficult to send them all.

Sorry, I wish the audio was better though!

Updates and Short Week Info

- No homework tonight. It will be busy enough with the Christmas concert and we don't have math today anyway because of the rehearsal.
- Math test next week. We have two lessons left before our next test, and we'll finish those up on Friday and Monday. That will give us Tuesday to take the test and Wednesday to review them.
- Spelling Test on Wednesday, Dec. 21. We are going to push the spelling test to next week. The grammar part is difficult. I will be giving the words in random order for the test. It is too easy to memorize where the apostrophe goes instead of learning when to use one.
- Half day on Thursday, Dec. 22. Just a reminder that the last day before break is a half day. We'll have our Christmas party that morning.
- Finish Moon, Earth and Sun. We'll also finish our science unit before break. When we return we'll return to social studies to learn about Antarctica.
- Concert tonight! Please have your children here between 6:30-6:45.

Christmas List

Below is the list of Christmas items going on in class. It's a crazy time of year!

Christmas Concert
- The Christmas concert is on Thursday, December 15 at 7:00 p.m. Please drop your students off at our classroom between 6:30-6:45. The doors to the gym will be opened at 6:25 for families. After the concert is over please pick you students up at our classroom too. The third grade will be located in the lower left hand corner of the risers. A letter from the Mrs. Quam and the music department is coming home tonight with more information.

Christmas Dinner
- If you haven't donated money yet and would like to there is still time. We will put together a menu and draw names to see who goes shopping with me on Friday, Dec. 16. We will do the shopping on Tuesday, Dec. 20 as that is a day when Mrs. Belken can deliver the food. The food will go to a family in need in our school district. As I have mentioned before, please donate to this cause instead of getting me a gift. Thank you.

Christmas Party
- Our Christmas party will be in the morning this year since we have a half day. We will exchange gifts, have treats, and play a couple of games. The party committee has already met to plan the festivities. For the gift, there is a $5 limit and boys should buy a gift for boys and girls for another girl.

Spelling/Grammar List

This week's spelling words are a bit different than usual. Not only do they have to spell the words correctly, but they also have to get the apostrophe in the correct place. We have spent some time working on possession and for the words this week they'll have to listen to the sentence and decide if the word is plural (no possession), singular possessive, or plural possessive.

Here is the list:
1. brother's
2. brothers
3. uncle's
4. uncles
5. sister's
6. sisters
7. sisters'
8. man's
9. men's
10. child's
11. girls
12. girl's
13. girls'
14. mine
15. yours

Star of the Week

for Dec. 12-16

Weekend Game

Here is a challenge game. All the lights need to be connected to the tree without any loose connections. It will be a challenge even for parents!

Christmas Tree Light Up

Report Cards

Report cards are being sent home tonight with your child. You can keep the report card, but please sign and return the envelope that it comes in. That way we can use it again second trimester.

There is also a note in the comments, but there is no grade for geometry because we haven't had a unit on it yet. That is way I left it blank.

If you have any other questions about the report cards you can call me at 608.943.6313 ext. 1048 or e-mail me at avanovermeer@igs.k12.wi.us.

Star of the Week

for Dec. 6-9

Notes

- Don't forget no school on Monday, December 5. Teachers have an in-service and teacher work to day to get grades done.

- If your child is switching buses, not riding the bus, or staying after school for any reason they need a note. There has been some confusion in the office as to where kids are after school and as you can imagine that is very stressful for the secretaries and parents. You can write a note to send with the child or call in to the office.

- The students will have their Unit 2 language arts test next week. We won't have a new story next week because of this. We'll work on the test a little bit each day next week instead of doing it all in one big chunk.

- No spelling next week. Because we are taking a unit test we won't have spelling words next week. We'll review a few of the commonly missed spelling words from the unit however.

- We go to the Christmas Store on Thursday, December 8th.

- No Weekend Game. Sorry, but I overloaded last week. :) There are plenty of multiplication games to still choose from on the games page.

November Reading Calendars

Congratulations to the following students for turning in their November Reading Calendars. Great Work!

Jaiden
Avery
Ryan
Luke
Mason
Marissa
Josh
Isaiah L.
Jalen
Elly
Lauren
Colin
Olivia
Nic
Courtney
Brena
Austin
Grace
Brynna
Isaiah Z.

Reading Calendars Due Tomorrow

Just a reminder that the student's November Reading Calendars are due tomorrow, Thursday, December 1st! Some students who had skip days left have already turned theirs in. Those who turn in a reading calendar will earn an extra recess and personal pan pizza again.

Star of the Week

for Nov. 28 - Dec. 2.

Multiplication Rocks

I've got lots of stuff to keep the students busy over Thanksgiving Break if they get board. Here are the Schoolhouse Rocks videos for multiplying numbers 0-5 (but no ones). We'll watch a video every other day or so at school, but we don't learn the numbers one at a time in Everyday Math.

My Hero Zero
Elementary My Dear
Three is a Magic Number
The Four-Legged Zoo
Here I Come (5s)

All the multiplication videos will be on video page too.

Multiplication Games!

All but one of these multiplication games give the player the option to choose which numbers they'd like to play with, which is excellent for third grade. The best option right now is to choose the option of 0-5. If you are an excellent multiplier and would like to try the larger numbers you certainly can.

Pumpkin Patch
Car Wash
Harvest Hootenanny
Multiplication Station
Two Player Multiplication Baseball

Have a safe and relaxing break!

Little Grunt and the Big Egg

Both groups of students did a GREAT job on the play! I was really happy will how smooth the presentation went, how well they read, and the expression they used. Great work Van Clan.

Also, thanks to all the parents and relatives that were able to make it out to the play. It's great to see so much involvement, and I know the kids were very excited to see their loved ones come watch the play

Parents, if you took pictures of the play could you please send a few good ones to me at avanovermeer@igs.k12.wi.us I'll post some of them on the blog. Thanks!

Updates

Just a few updates before the Thanksgiving break.

EARLY RELEASE - Don't forget that tomorrow is an early release day. Students will dismiss at 12:30.

Little Grunt Play - Remember our Play is tomorrow. One group will present at 8:30 and the other at 9:15. Several students have asked about costumes. They don't really need costumes although if they can wear earthy colors like greens and browns it would go better. Packer green won't work though. :)

Here are the groups again:

Math - We will really get into Lesson 4 of math after break. As I have mentioned, this is the first unit of multiplication. We just finished Lesson 3 and reviewed the test on Monday. I will be posting a couple of Schoolhouse Rocks videos and several multiplication games for the long weekend.

Reading Calendar - Don't forget that reading calendars will be due next week on Thursday, December 1st. Students will earn an extra reading recess and Pizza Hut personal pan pizza again.

Food Drive - The food drive will be going on until December 7. Our class has gotten off to a great start and filled a shopping cart already! If you haven't sent in your food yet there is still time.

Cheerleading Camp - A letter is being sent home about a cheer camp coming up on December 1st. The due date to turn in the forms is Tuesday, November 29. A short turn around time, especially with break.

Finally - Go Lions!

R.I.F.

Mrs. Buss, one of the school's reading specialists, will be doing a R.I.F. (Reading is Fundamental) program for the kids this afternoon. As part of the R.I.F. presentation teachers or middle school students will usually read a story to the kids. Each third grade student also gets to pick out a FREE book! It's a great way to get extra books for students.

Star of the Week

for Nov. 21-23

Holiday Information

I know it seems early, but I wanted to get notes out about Christmas gifts before Thanksgiving for those Black Friday shoppers. Below is a list of activities that we will be doing during the holiday season. It is mentioned below, but please do not buy me any gifts and put that money towards a family in need. Thanks.

Christmas Store
- When: December 8
- How Much: $0.25 or $0.50
- What: Students are able to buy up to two gifts at the store for a dollar each. It gives students the opportunity to buy gifts for their parents or guardians on their own. Volunteers wrap the gifts and prepare them to take home.

Gift Exchange
- When: December 21st or 22nd (with Christmas Party)
- How Much: $5
- What: Each child will bring a gift for another student. If your child is a girl they should bring a gift for a girl and if they are a boy they should buy a gift for a boy. We will draw numbers randomly to decide who gets each gift.

Holiday Supper
- When: We’ll go food shopping on December 20th or 21st.
- How Much: Your Choice
- What: I know students look forward to giving gifts to teachers, but please donate money to this cause instead of giving me a Christmas gift. Our class will donate a holiday supper to a family who otherwise may not have one. As a class, the students will plan the menu and prepare a shopping list. One or two days before our Christmas break, three students (with parental permission) will go with me to a local grocery store to purchase the groceries with our class donations. The family will be someone who lives in the Iowa-Grant school district, however, neither the students nor I will know who the family is. Mrs. Belken will deliver the food to the family without us knowing who the family is.

Weekend Game

We are finishing up Unit 3, Measurement, in math today with the test. Next week we'll begin working on multiplication. Below is a game called Meteor Multiplication and when you start the game you can set the range of numbers to be used. We'll study multiplication a couple of times this year so for now set the range at 0-5.


Meteor Multiplication

Star of the Week

for Nov. 14-18

This is the first week we have started our Star of the Week. Each week we'll pick a new star. They will have their picture on the blog, get a pencil, and be line leader for the week.

Little Grunt Play

We have our characters and times picked out for next weeks play. The participants and their character are on the chart above. If you click on the chart it will enlarge and be easier to read.

Tonight I am sending home the copies of the play so the students can practice some more. Since we are doing the play with two groups they will want to get some extra practice in.

The play will be on Wednesday, November 23. The first group will present the play at 8:30 to Mrs. Wasley's class, and the second group will present at 9:15 to Mrs. Peat's class. Parents and guardians are welcome to come watch the play if they can. The play will probably last around 15-20 minutes.

Yearbook Reminder

Yearbook orders are due on Friday, November 18. If you would still like a copy please send in the envelope and money by them. If you need an envelop to order we can get another copy to send home.

Update for the Week

- We are done with WKCE testing and are back to a much more normal schedule this week. We resumed our spelling this morning with a pretest, and the students will have math homework again tonight.

- One thing that is changing is cursive. Instead of cursive this week we are going to be reading our Mayflower stories that go along with social studies. I want to make sure we get that story finished before Thanksgiving break.

- We will also be making our sparkling cornucopias this week, a third grade tradition! They have been making them for many years, and it is possible that even a parent or two who went to Iowa-Grant could have made one!

- Finally, next week we will be doing a play that goes along with our reading story, Little Grunt and the Big Egg. Since we have a large class this year I am planning on having the play done twice with two separate groups so everyone can be involved. The play lasts about 15-20 minutes. We have a group of younger students come watch, and parents are welcome to come visit if their schedule allows. The play will be on Wednesday, November 23, and I'll get specific times out later this week.

Weekend Game - The Mayflower

We are in the middle of learning about The Mayflower and the Pilgrim's trip to the New World. Currently we are reading about the living conditions on the boat and the dangerous trip Atlantic Ocean.

Below are two links that give more information about the Mayflower. They aren't exactly games, but they give videos and information about the ship.

Tour the Mayflower
Journey on the Mayflower

Galapagos Islands

Along with doing our WKCE testing this week we are also reading Wild Shots, which is a nonfiction story about animals on the Galapagos Islands. Along with the story we will also watch a few videos that shows more about the island and animals.

Today we'll watch the introduction and the other two videos we'll watch on Friday.

Late Starts and Cancellations

Wow! I don't ever remember the first snowfall coming in like this! Today seems like an appropriate day to add a link to delays and cancellations from Channel 3000. Through the winter season I'll leave the link to the right hand side of the blog to quickly check for delays and cancellations.

Also, at the Channel 3000 website, you can sign up for e-mail alerts when Iowa-Grant has late starts or delays. There is also an option that will allow them to send it to your phone. It's a nice way to have information sent directly to you.

Channel3000 Delays

- This is not a paid advertisement for Channel3000. :)

WKCE Practice Test

We took the test and went over the WKCE Practice test today in class. We did both the language arts and math component. Because of the short turn around time, the students corrected their own test and for the writing piece I sent home writing samples that show examples of earning all three points all the way down to an answer that earns zero points.

Tomorrow we will begin the real WKCE tests. Please remind your students to do their best work. Also be sure that students get a good nights rest, eat breakfast, and are generally just ready for school.

Weekend Game

We started working on nouns this week and will continue to work on them more in the future. Below is a fun Jeopardy type game to play with your child. The questions are a little tough, and we haven't covered everything in the questions.

Nouns

Another New Student

We added another new student this week. Madison joined us on Wednesday, which means we are now up to 23 students in the Van Clan! The students were very welcoming and helped her find her way around Iowa-Grant.

Welcome Madison!

Reading!

There are two things to recognize for reading today!

First, congratulations to the whole Van Clan group for reading over 1 million words as a class! What a great start to the school year.

The other congratulations goes out to the students who turned in their reading calendars for October. They earned an extra recess and a free personal pan pizza from Pizza Hut. Great work!
Jaiden A.
Avery B.
Ryan E.
Luke F.
Josh H.
Isaiah L.
Jalen L.
Elly L.
Lauren L.
Colin M.
Olivia N.
Nic P.
Courtney S.
Brena S.
Austin T.
Grace V.
Brynna W.
Isaiah Z.

WKCE Testing

Next week, November 7-11, we will be taking the WKCE (Wisconsin Knowledge and Concepts Examination). I sent home some information about the testing tonight. Third grade is the first year they take this test. The students will take a language arts portion and a math portion of the test.

The students take the test in the classroom and I'll have a schedule listed below. Please make sure the kids are well rested and here if possible. We'll follow our usual schedule and have one language arts test in morning and one math test in the afternoon.

Since we will be testing next week there will be a few changes to the usual schedule. First, in language arts we won't have spelling or guided reading. We'll resume spelling tests on Monday, November 14. Also, in math we won't finish many, if any lessons during WKCE testing. Since they are testing and there is a limited amount of new curriculum there won't be homework next week either. It's also a nice reward for the students in exchange for giving their best effort on the tests.

Here is the tentative schedule:
Monday, Nov. 8 - Language Arts Testing (8:30-9:10) - Practice Test
- Math Testing (1:00-1:30) - Practice Test
Tuesday, Nov. 9 - Language Arts Session 1 (8:30-9:10)
- Math Testing Session 1 (1:00-1:25)
Wednesday, Nov. 10 - Language Arts Session 2 (8:30-9:10)
- Math Testing Session 2 (1:00-1:30)
Thursday, Nov. 11 - Language Arts Session 3 (8:30-9:10)
- Math Testing Session 2 (1:00-1:30)

Green and Gold Experience - Take Two

I forgot a student in the first video. You can watch both videos and see if you can find who I missed!

Reading Notes

1. Don't forget your October Reading Calendar! They are due tomorrow, Tuesday, November 1st. We will have our extra reading recess tomorrow and the students will earn a coupon for a free personal pan pizza at Pizza Hut.
2. We are spending two weeks on Balto, we didn't get to much of the story at all last week as we finished up our writing piece and had a short week.
3. We have 10 challenge words this week from Turtle Bay and Balto. It is okay if the kids struggle, as they are not easy words. I have told them the goal is to improve and for some that may only be 3 or 4 right on the post test.

Green and Gold Experience

Here's a video I made from the Green and Gold Experience on Thursday. It was lots of fun for the kids, but I wished I could have played more. Unfortunately, I missed a couple of kids so I had to get them in the video another way. Check out the video to find out how!

No School Friday

The secretary sent out an e-mail saying several parents had called in asking if there was school tomorrow. So just to make sure all my families know, we don't have school on Friday, Oct. 28.

Enjoy!

Weekend Game

For math we are working on measurement. We are measuring in both the U.S. customary system and the metric system. In the game below they can choose different levels. I would suggest starting with easy. We have only spent one day working on fractions as a small as a 1/4.

Enjoy the long break!

Measure It!

New Student

We have a new student in the class starting today. Welcome to Donavin, who started this morning.

The class has done an OUTSTANDING job this morning of being helpful and showing him how our class runs. Great work Van Clan and welcome Donavin!

Nouns!

This weeks part of speech is nouns. We will start by looking at some common and proper nouns.

Updates

There are several updates to start the week.
- The calendar at the right of the blog has been updates through December.
- Starting this week for spelling the students will be writing their words in cursive. We haven't gotten to uppercase letters in cursive yet, but those aren't necessary for spelling. For the next few weeks they will write the words on the test in cursive and print so they don't miss words because of cursive errors.
- This afternoon we will be going to the Fire Safety House, which will be set up at Iowa-Grant. It goes through different precautions you should take at home to keep your house safe.
- We will be starting Unit 3 in math tomorrow. This unit focuses on measurement.
- Each year student council gives each class a pumpkin to decorate. We are going to make our pumpkin a mad scientist. If you have anything to help decorate that would be great.
- The pictures for science are due on Tuesday. Most of the students have those in, but I wanted to up one more reminder.
- The Green and Gold party is on Thursday afternoon. This goes along with the Parent/Teacher Club fundraiser. All students get to go and our time is from about 1:00-2:00.
- Finally, for the weekend game I put a little joke in for how to carve a pumpkin. This link will actually allow you to carve an online pumpkin: Carve a Pumpkin

Weekend Activity/Game

I've already told the kids, but this has to be one of my favorite games all year. It fits perfectly with our language arts as the kids are writing how-to directions this week. I have them write how to carve a pumpkin because it fits so well with this activity.

It goes through great detail to teach you how to carve a pumpkin. Make sure you have your volume is on too, as there are some directions. Look at the directions carefully before you choose a pumpkin to carve.

How to Carve a Pumpkin Like a Pro

Halloween Party

Our Halloween Party will be in the afternoon on Monday, October 31st. We have a party committee who will bring treats and prepare games. Jaiden, Avery, Ryan, Luke and Mason are on our first party committee.

Please do not have students bring or wear their costumes to school. Thank you.

Parent Pictures

We have begun a unit in science on the life cycle. The first part discusses changes animals go through in their lifetime.

Our class will be doing an activity that requires them to observe changes, too… but they will be looking for ways you have changed through your life.

Please send a picture of one parent/caretaker from each of the following time periods with your child:
· Infant through 3 years old (or approximately)
· elementary age level
· teenage years
· adult

Enclose the pictures in a Zip-Loc bag or envelope with your child’s name on the bag. It is a good idea to write your name on the back of each picture too. Your pictures will not be harmed or within reach of curious fingers, etc. The pictures will be returned to you in their original format; however, some parents have digital images that printed on paper.

Your child needs these pictures no later than Tuesday, October 25, please. You may send them as soon as you find them, and I’ll hold on to them.

Conjunction Junction

On Tuesday we will be watching the Conjunction Junction video as we learn about making compound sentences.

Weekend Game

For math we have been working on addition recently. This weeks math game is Alien Addition. For this game you shoot the math problem that equals the number on your laser. When the game is started you can adjust the values to make it easier or harder.

Have a great weekend!
Alien Addition

Classroom Parties

We will have four classroom parties throughout the year with the first one coming up at the end of the month. I split the kids up for each one in alphabetical order.

For each party we will have the members of the group decide what they want to do. We'll have three students in charge of food and two students in charge of games. Depending on the the treats are we usually have two treats and one drink for students to bring in. I will meet with the group to decide who wants each job and send notes home so parents know.

Halloween Committee
Jaiden
Avery
Ryan
Luke
Mason

Christmas Committee
Marissa
Josh
Isaiah L.
Jalen
Elly

Valentine's Day Committee
Lauren
Colin
Olivia
Nic
Courtney
Brena

Spring Party
Brie
Austin
Grace
Brynna
Isaiah Z.

Schedule Change

The school has made a change to the 2011-2012 school year. All the changes are a ways away, but I wanted to make note of them early.

The changes are allow more time for staff development. We will have three more half days that are built in before holidays.

The following days are now all half days with a 12:30 dismissal:
November 23
December 22
March 23


Official Schedule

Parent/Teacher Conference Schedule

The parent/teacher conference schedule is out. If you need to make a change in the time just e-mail or call me and we can adjust it. Each conference is scheduled for 10 minutes long so that is why there are three names at some time slots. There won't be a report card to send home this year since grades are set up on a trimester schedule this year instead of quarters.

I'm looking forward to seeing you all in a week or two.

Thursday, Oct. 20th
4:00-4:30 Avery B.
4:30-5:00 Josh H., Brie S., and Brena S.
5:00-5:30 Mason F. and Colin M.
5:30-6:00 Ryan E.
6:00-6:30 Lauren L. and Grace V.
6:30-7:00 Jaiden A., Luke F., and Marissa H.
7:00-7:30 Courtney S.

Tuesday, Oct. 25th
4:00-4:30 Jalen L., Elly L., and Austin T.
4:30-5:00 Isaiah L. and Isaiah Z.
5:00-5:30
5:30-6:00 Nic P.
6:00-6:30 Olivia N. and Brynna W.
6:30-7:00
7:00-7:30

Weekend Game

We have been working on subject and predicate along with writing a complete sentence in language arts. This weekend's game is Penguins on Ice. Put the words in the correct place to create a complete sentence.

Choose Make a Sentence and you'll be ready!

Penguins on Ice

Language Arts Next Week

Next week will be an unusual week for language arts. We are taking our first unit test next week and also taking the MAP (Measures of Academic Progress) Testing next week. Because of this there will be a few changes. Below are some of the details.

- No new story. We'll read a little more about the Olympics, but we won't have a new story next week.
- No spelling list next week.
- MAP testing will be on Monday and Wednesday morning. We will take the language arts portion on Monday and the math portion on Wednesday.
- Our language arts unit test will be on Tuesday and Thursday.
- We'll break the unit test up so it isn't so daunting.
- No Wednesday Language Arts Homework. Since we don't have a new story and have lots a testing, I'm giving the students a break. They will still have their reading calendar work though.

Math Test

I am sending home the Unit 1 math tests tonight so parents can see how their child did. Please sign them and return them so I can keep them for future reference. Each time we do a math or language arts test I will do the same thing. I will send them home so you can see how he/she is doing and then ask that you sign and return them.

Reading Homework

The students' homework tonight is The Olympic Games: Where Heroes Are Made. It is a long story with several difficult names and cities to pronounce. Tonight's reading homework is a good night to take turns reading the selection aloud with your child.

Although we have many good, independent readers, it is good practice to still read aloud with him/her sometimes. This allows parents to hear their child read and see where some of their struggles are. Also, it gives the students a good example of a fluent reader.

September Reading Calendars

Congratulations to the following students for returning their reading calendars for the month of September!

Jaiden
Avery
Ryan
Luke
Mason
Marissa
Josh
Isaiah L.
Jalen
Elly
Lauren
Colin
Olivia
Nic
Courtney
Brena
Brie
Grace
Brynna

Great Job!

The Letter Y

We are about half way through the lowercase cursive letters. Today we did the letter y, so I incorporated a Sesame Street video for the day. I got a few grumbles about it being Sesame Street at first, but it is a pretty fun video.

Reading Calendars Due Monday

I wanted to leave a reminder on the blog that the September Reading Calendars are due on Monday, October 3. Don't forget to have them signed by a parent also. I have told the students several times, but if they forget their calendar they can not call home to try to get it delivered.

Today I will send out the October Calendar also. For this month the students will earn an extra recess and also a free personal pan pizza from Pizza Hut!

Homecoming Parade

The homecoming parade is tomorrow at 2:30! We go watch it every year as a class, but aren't in the parade. If your child is going to be in the parade or you are coming to watch the parade then taking them home with you please send a note with your child in the morning.

The homecoming parade is a crazy day to keep track of the children for teachers and the office. If we have notes ahead of time it makes it easier for me to know who's coming and going.

Thanks

Testing Week!

We have several tests that are lining up this week.

Language Arts: We had our spelling pretest today, and will take the post test on Friday as usual. On Wednesday the students will also be taking their Benchmark Assessment tests. This is where they read to me and I ask them questions to establish a reading level for them. Each test takes about 15 minutes for each student.

Math: We'll have our Unit 1 math test on Wednesday of this week. The first unit reviews a lot of math skills they learned in 2nd grade.

Social Studies: On Friday we'll take a continents and oceans quiz. We'll spend the week reviewing the continents and oceans before taking the test.

Subject and Predicate

This morning in language arts we'll have our first Schoolhouse Rock video! It's one of my favorites too, Mr. Morton. For grammar we are studying subject and predicate this week.

The students will get into small groups, watch the video, then explain what subject and predicate is after watching Mr. Morton.

Weekend Game

In math this week we were reviewing money. Below is a game that deals with money.

Bus Driver's Math

Sunrise/Sunset

Every Wednesday in math we check the sunrise and sunset in our region. We record the sunrise/sunset and also figure out how much daylight we have on that particular day. Calculating the amount of sunlight in a day can be tricky! We graph it on a chart in class. The students will also graph it themselves later this year.

In a couple of weeks we'll also check the high and low temperatures in the continental United States on Wednesday. We'll find the difference between the high and low each week too. This is especially good practice when the lows get in the negatives (something positive about negative temperatures).

Nate the Great

This week we are reading Nate the Great: San Francisco Detective in language arts. As usual, the students will have their Wednesday reading homework tonight. I had them make one change however. Since the story is rather long we read the first half of the story in class and they are responsible for reading pages 82-94 at home. They made the change on their homework assignment as well.

Weekend Game

Name that number is a game we just started playing in our Everyday Math Series. It may ask you to update your Adobe Shockwave player before it works.

Name That Number

PTC Fund Raiser

The Parent/Teacher Club is starting off their Fund Raiser today. They are an active organization who donates lots of time and equipment to Iowa-Grant. The youngest child in your family will be bringing home a packet.

Here are the important dates:
Friday, Sept. 16 - Sales Begin
Tuesday, Sept. 27 - Order Deadline
Thursday, Oct. 20 - Delivery
Thursday, Oct. 27 - Green and Gold Experience (Party for kids)

There are prizes and awards for students as they reach certain sales, but every kid gets to take part in the Green and Gold Experience. They do not need to make any sales to participate on that day.

Here is their website to see more: http://greenandgoldexperience.com/

Updates

There are just a few updates and changes I wanted everyone to be aware of.

The calendar has been updated.
- Homecoming is on Sept. 30 and I assume we'll have a parade at the school again.
- There will be a book fair from Oct. 19-25 at IGEMS. This is the same time as parent/teacher conferences.

I have also added a couple of helpful links on the right hand side.
- Healthy Snacks - I didn't want that post to scroll down the page and be hard to find. The healthy snacks link will now be left on the right hand side.
- IG Lunch Menu - The students mentioned to me that we didn't get lunch calendars for September so I left a link so students and parents could check easily.
- Scholastic Book Wizard - This is a place where students can check their books to see if they are reading at a book at their level.

Finally, a small change to posts being sent to your e-mail. I noticed that the posts I put up weren't being e-mailed until 3 or 4 in the morning. I finally found where to change that setting, so now those posts should come you your e-mail account between 3-5 p.m.

Punt, Pass, and Kick

Here is an activity available to third graders that I am passing on.

Who: Interested girls or boys, ages 6-15 by December 31st, are welcome to participate.

Where: Iowa-Grant High School football field.

When: Saturday, September 24, 2011 3:00pm RAIN or SHINE

What you need:
*Tennis shoes (NO cleats allowed)
*Signed waiver form. (Reverse side of this page)
*All participants must show proof of age if you win your division. This will need to be given by Monday of the following week for you to participate in the next event. (Birth certificate)
Questions: Contact Mike Peat at 623-2048
Please come early and support the IG Youth Football team during their games.
Games start at 11:30

Forms for students interested will be sent home.

Map Skills

In social studies we are starting the year with map skills. We talk about several things with maps including keys, cardinal directions, intermediate directions, map scale, latitude, and longitude.

These students may never use a map when they grow up as they will have a GPS cell phone, GPS watch, GPS car, and even a GPS collar for their dog; however, several of the skills are still needed to read a GPS as well. We do discuss how a GPS is kind of like a digital map and you still need to be able read a map when your GPS sends you astray.

Weekend Game

The weekend game is hangman, although it's more like a shrinking catapillar.

Hangman

Courtney and Snacks

Courtney's mom, Lauri, came into class yesterday to share information about Courtney. Last year she was diagnosed with diabetes, and Lauri did a very nice job of sharing with the kids what diabetes is. As many of you know, this weekend Courtney will be in a Walk to Cure Diabetes in Madison. To learn more about Courtney as well as make a donation if you'd like go to this website: Courtney's Page.

One thing that the class can do to help is bring in healthy snacks. This is in the Iowa-Grant welness plan too. We are supposed to have healthy snacks when we eat at school. Here is a website with some healthy snack ideas: Healthy Snacks. If you are planning on bringing in treats and would like to ask Courtney's mom you can e-mail her at lauri.spease@deancare.com.

Thank You

Morning Meeting

At the beginning of each morning our class does a morning meeting. These are short activities that help kids interact and get to know their peers better. The activities are only 5-10 minutes long, but help create a friendly classroom environment. We will do different things each day such as sharing weekend highlights, shaking hands and saying good morning, or playing different team building games.

Homework

In third grade we do homework most nights, but there are a few exceptions. I try to print all the home work assignments in the same color so they are easy for the students and parents to identify. This year the homework color is light purple.

First, there won't be homework on Fridays. Sometimes I'll send out optional homework on Friday though. The students will be able to sign up for a prize on those days.

On Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday we will do our math homework or "Home Links". These are to be done and turned in the next day. There are answers sent home as well with the parent letter. Home Links shouldn't take more than 15-20 minutes to finish. If a lesson takes more than one day to finish they may also not have homework on that day.

On Wednesdays the students have a language arts assignment which usually consists of reading the weeks story and one other task such as a vocabulary worksheet or answering questions with the story. Since I can't see them read there is a short form for you to sign. Students can read the story aloud, silently, or partner read with a parent. They may also use the time reading for their 15 minutes on their reading calendar.

Weekend Game

Here is our first weekend game of the year! Most Fridays I will post an educational game that students can play if they would like. I will also keep a list of all the weekend games on the Games page. That page is located near the top of the blog under the button games. Also, I try to find sites that have games, but few or no advertisements on the page.

For the game Math Lines the goal is to add two balls up to ten to destroy them.
Math Lines

Reading Calendars

Yesterday I sent home a reading calendar with each student. We will do a reading calendar each month and the rules will stay the same throughout the year.

Here is an overview:
- Read 15 minutes or more each night.
- Have an adult (can be a grandparent or babysitter too) initial that they read that day.
- Four skips are allowed each month.
- Have a parent or guardian sign at the top of the page.
- Return on the first day of the month (Monday, October 3rd).
- If a student forgets their calendar they won't get the extra recess.
- Earn 30 minutes of extra recess.
- If the calendar is not returned the student will read during the extra recess.

Later in the year, the kids will also be able to recieve a free pizza at Pizza Hut through Book It. That program has not begun yet though, so this month they just earn an extra recess.

Good Luck!

Great First Day!

The students got through the first day very well and they were very well behaved! Unfortunately, I forget to bring my camera for a first day of pictures.

We got through all the rules and proceedures so tomorrow we'll able to get more into learning!

If you have any questions as the year goes on feel free to e-mail me at avanovermeer@igs.k12.wi.us or call me at 943-6313 ext. 1048.

Welcome to the Blog

Welcome to the Van Clan blog for the 2011-2012 school year. I will update this page often throughout the school year. This website will have things that are happening in class, give upcoming events, include online games students (and parents) can play, include videos we watch in class, and much more.

My goal is to make the blog a place where parents and students visit often. The easiest way to keep up with posts is to subscribe to the blog via e-mail. At the right of the page there is a Follow By E-mail box. Insert your e-mail there and every time I send a new post an e-mail will be sent to you. You may also want to bookmark this on your home computer if you would like your child to access it.