Weekly Update: November 7 - November 11

Announcements:

• PTA Fundraiser:  ONLY 4 days left! We currently have raised over $20,000 as a school. Still not sure what Raise Craze is? Video link. Use the form that went home in your child's Thursday folder last week or Ms. Stowe's email link to get registered TODAY.  Our PTA, teachers, and students need everyone's help!  Our school's goal is $40,000.  I know we can do it. Please, register and follow the simple directions in getting your child started today.​
• Field Trip: This upcoming Wednesday, November 16th is our field trip to the McNeil Performing Art Center. Students should bring a snack and lunch from home that day. These are the only students getting a sack lunch from the cafeteria: Yotin, David, Isha, William and Anirudh. We will get on the school bus at Elsa England around 9:00am.  We should arrive back at the school between 1:00 - 1:30pm. If the weather gets too cold or rainy, we will come back to the school for lunch (right now we plan on having lunch at Brush Creek Lake Park). Students should wear appropriate clothing (pant/jeans, long-sleeve shirt/sweatshirt, shoes and a jacket).  
• Math Superstars: Challenge your child to show off their math skills as a Math Superstar! Participants who complete all 20 worksheets will receive a prize packet! This program is supported and run by PTA volunteers. Please visit  https://england-pta.memberhub.com/w/programs for more information. If you have any questions, please contact eee.mathsuperstars@gmail.com
• Become a PTA Member: Our school needs parents like you to sign up for PTA. Critical learning tools, field trips, and resources are paid for by our wonderful PTA, but that means we need you!  Please, become a PTA member today. England PTA website
• Home Access Center: Please, check weekly to stay up to date on your child's academic progress. Link to Home Access Center.  Continue to discuss with your child the importance of listening to directions, staying focused on school work and doing his/her personal best on all assignments. Remember, if a student earns below a 70% on any assignment or test, the student can make corrections to earn a possible passing grade (70%) per school district policy. ​​

Upcoming Events:​​​​.​ ​​​​​​​​​​​

• Nov 15 - Last day of our school's fundraiser "Raise Craze" 
• Nov 16 - 3rd Grade Field Trip to McNeil High School Performing Arts Center 
• Nov 17 - Science Unit 4 Test - Forces, Motion, Gravity and Magnetism
• Dec 2 - Math Test (Bae/Jones/McKenzie) - Fractions

What's Been Happening In Class?  
Writing: We wrapped up our realistic fiction unit this week with revising, editing and publishing our stories. If your child brought home his/her yellow folder and chromebook, please have your child finish typing his/her story.

Reading: We took our unit assessment today on Fiction (Story elements, character development, theme). Students did a practice assessment yesterday with a partner. We discussed the practice assessment as a class (went over answers as a class for clarification). Our next unit starting next week is: Argumentative Text. Students will be able to: 

• I can write responses to texts and use text evidence to support and demonstrate my understanding. (3.7BC)
• I can read argumentative texts and recognize the author’s claim and purpose, set apart facts in the text from the opinions, and identify the author’s intended audience or reader. (3.9Ei,ii,iii, 3.10A)
• I can explore how the author’s language choices influence the meaning of the text. (For example, the learner will explore the author’s use of hyperbole and identify an author’s use of hyperbole as a method of intentionally exaggerating a point.) (3.10FG)
• I can use my understanding of argumentative texts to write responses and compose opinion essays that demonstrate my stance on a topic or issue with effective text support. (3.12C, 3.7BC
  

​Math: 

• ​Swyers and Lilleboe Students: We are currently in our Addition, Subtraction, Rounding and Data unit.
  • ​Demonstrate how to round 3 digit and 4 digit numbers to the 10's and 100's. 
  • Apply multiple strategies to solving 3 digit and 4 digit addition word problems.
  • Apply multiple strategies to solving 3 digit and 4 digit subtraction word problems. 
  • Identify key features in a variety of graphs (bar, pie, dot plot, pictograph)
  • Solve problems involving data, charts and graphs
• Bae/Jones/McKenzie students: New math unit - Fractions. Use my "math links" and Splash Learn to help with these concepts. In this unit students will:
  • ​Identify fractional units (half, fourth, eighth, third, sixth)
  • Demonstrate their understanding of fractions using various models: area model, fractions in a set, fraction bricks, and on a number line.
  • Comparing fractions 
  • Equivalent fractions 

Science: Our new unit is Force, Motion, Gravity and Magnetism. We've taken time to review the terms "push" and "pull".  I created a book collection on Epic Books. Kids will have access to this book collection for the duration of the unit. Some of the vocabulary and terms we will use in this unit are: force, push, pull, motion, position, distance, direction, balanced force, unbalanced force, lift, thrust, momentum, friction, gravity, magnetism (attract and repel). Students are welcome to use my "science links" at home to support their understanding of these terms/concepts in this unit.  

Social Studies: We are in our unit on Government. Our focus this week was on Election Day and Veteran's Day.