End of Year

Wow!  The school year is quickly coming to an end.  Here are a few important dates to remember for 3^rd Grade:

Thursday, May 17—Environmental Ed Field trip to the Wapsi River Nature Center (Bring a sack lunch and drink.) Parent Chaperones please come to school at 8:00. Long pants required!

Friday, May 18- Field Day

Monday, May 21—Last full day of school (Field Day rain date);  We will clean out desks today, too! Please send a book bag or sack to school.

Tuesday, May 22—No School; Teacher’s Inservice

Wednesday, May 23—Last day of school  8:00-8:20. Walker dismissal is 8:30.

Thank you for all of your support throughout this school year!

Have a great summer!

Mrs. Doxstader

Winding Down!

This year has flown by, hasn't it? Only four weeks left! Here's what we will be working on for the remainder of the school year:

•  English:  Students will be doing grammar lessons three days a week and finishing our poetry unit the other two days. Our grammar lessons will focus on capitalization and punctuation of proper nouns and abbreviations. Last week we took a "haiku hike" and students wrote wonderful haiku poems about nature. This week they will write cinquains. 

• Math:  Please keep practicing multiplication facts! 100 problem multiplication worksheets are coming this week! Also, please continue to review "a quarter after" and "a quarter to" the hour in time.

• Social studies: We have wrapped up our unit about Illinois. Come visit the children's wonderful hall display! Our last social studies unit will revolve around state, local, and national government.

• Science:  We have also finished our space unit. All of the children did a great job on their space projects. I was so happy that every project was turned in by the due date!  Our final science unit will focus on mammals ~ my favorite unit of the year!! Students will learn characteristics of mammals, mammal identification, patterns of animal tracks, and make a track print.

• Remember ~ this Friday, April 27, is a half day ~ 11:22 early dismissal for teacher inservice. 

• Field trip chaperone notices will be sent home in this Friday's folder. Our Environmental Education trip is all day on May 17. If you would like to chaperone, please return the form by May 4.

          
                                      

I hope to see you all at the school carnival this Friday 6:00-8:00!

Mrs. Doxstader

Welcome back! I hope everyone had a wonderful spring break. It's hard to believe that there are only six more weeks of school. We have a lot to accomplish!

Many students are not returning homework the day it is due. Please check assignment notebooks nightly and make sure your child completes and returns homework daily, including reading records. This helps build good study habits at an early age.

Please continue to practice multiplication facts at home. Students still have weekly fact tests, and many are having difficulty passing the first review test at 89% or better. Yesterday students learned to tell time by "a quarter til" and "a quarter after" the hour. This has been a tricky new concept! Please practice this at home as well. Thanks!!

In English, we are applying grammar skills through written research reports of planets in conjunction with our science unit on space. You won't find any regular English grammar papers in Friday Folders this week. We are still researching and working on first drafts of planet reports.

Students have also been researching aspects of our great state of Illinois! They are busy creating items that represent our state such as portraits of famous people, corn fields, state symbols, wetlands, just to name a few. After April 18, our hallway will be turned into all things Illinois! Please stop by and visit the children's wonderful work! 

Don't forget the Music Festival this Friday beginning at 6:30. Mrs. Moen has been bragging to me about how well my students sing, so I can't wait to hear them!!

Mrs. Doxstader

SPACE...The Final Frontier!

The students are so excited to begin a new integrated English, math and science unit on SPACE! Our English and science lessons for the next few weeks will be spent at "Space Stations" researching planets, learning about our Solar System and Galaxy, writing expository essays, also writing research papers and creating new planets. Students will use a variety of sources to research including technology, encyclopedias, and nonfiction books. We will continue Saxon math lessons with some additional math lessons about space included.

Students will also do a home project about space. I will be sending home a list of choices for the project in next week's Friday. Your child may choose one, or even more than one, project from the list to complete by April 20. It would be a great activity to work on over spring break!! More information will be sent home with the list next week.

I hope the students enjoy our field trip this Friday! Be sure to send a sack lunch and drink. I will be attending a school related activity in Chicago this Thursday afternoon and Friday. Mrs. Olson will be subbing for me.

Enjoy the beautiful spring weather!!!
Mrs. Doxstader

ENGLISH TEST

The students are working so hard on ISAT tests this week! If your child was absent, there will be make up tests  given next week. Thanks so much to parents who scheduled appointments around ISAT!

There will be an English test next Wednesday over Unit 4, Adjectives and Adverbs. We are reviewing at school daily, plus books will be sent home this Friday, then again Monday and Tuesday to study at home. Please review pages 142-159 in  the English book.  Adverbs have been especially tricky! There are additional review pages on 169-176.

Our first field trip notice is being sent home this Friday in folders. On March 23, third grade will go to the Mississippi River Visitor's Center/ Lock and Dam on Arsenal Island, and to the John Deere Pavilion. We are beginning a unit on Illinois, and these are both great QC places to visit that will help students understand the importance of agriculture in our area and the wonderful resource of the Mississippi River. As part of our Illinois unit, students will learn about state and local government, famous people from Illinois, native plants and animals, natural resources, and agriculture. To culminate our unit, our students will be turning the entire third grade hall into the landscape of Illinois! I'll let you know when it is finished (probably mid April) so you can stop by to see the children's wonderful work!

March is National Nutrition Month and we will also be learning about our food groups and healthy food choices this month. Please send appropriate magazines to school that have pictures of food we can out for an activity. Thanks!

Looking ahead...

• Spring picture day March 13. (No money needed ahead of time.)
• Report cards will be sent home March 15.
• No school March 16 due to a full day teacher in-service.
• Field trip March 23. Sack lunch and drink needed.
• March 23 also...OEF Gala at Milan Community Center. Dinner 6:30 for ticket holders, open auction at 7:30. Please see the District website for full info.Thanks to the OEF for all they do for our schools!!!
• No school March 31-April 9 for spring break. We return on Tuesday April 10!

Gearing up for ISAT!

ISAT tests are coming soon ~ March 5-16.  All third graders here at C. R. Hanna will be testing on March 6-8 with make ups to be held the following week. Please encourage your child to do his/her very best on these tests. We have been working hard this year to be well prepared! This week and next we will be reviewing skills in math and there will be NO Saxon homework until March 12.  Please continue to study multiplication facts for the weekly test.  (Congrats to Cade who is currently winning our "Touchdown Math" multiplication contest!)

Also, research shows that a good healthy breakfast helps your child be more successful at school! Please make sure your child eats a healthy breakfast each morning and that he/she has several sharpened No. 2 pencils and an eraser.

Our test schedule is:


Tuesday:  10:00-11:00 Reading I
                12:30-1:30 Reading II

Wednesday:  10:00-11:00 Reading III
                     12:30-1:30  Math I

Thursday:  10:00-11:00 Math II
                  12:30-1:30  Math III

There will be no regular reading classes during the week of ISAT tests.

Happy Valentine's Day!

The students were excited to make their Valentine party bags today! Please send Valentines either Monday or Tuesday. Treats are provided by room parents, so please do not send Valentine treats such as cookies or cupcakes to school for the class Tuesday. (Candy, etc. that is with your child's Valentines is fine, though.)

We are making progress with the multiplication facts! Please keep studying new lists, and review former lists as well.

I hope the children have all chosen their President and have been reading and planning their poster. Remember to have your child practice the presentation at home.   I've already had one terrific poster presentation! Way to go Adrian!!

• Many children need new school supplies. (Scissors and pencils disappear like magic!) A note was sent home in Friday folders today.

• Don't forget...next Friday, Feb. 17 is an early dismissal - 11:22. 

• No school Monday, Feb. 20. Happy Presidents' Day!!