Welcome to 3rd Grade

Third Grade Handbook 2016-2017This handbook contains the expectations for our classrooms, a summary of what to expect this year, and ways to communicate with us. Please read this packet and the agenda with your child. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact your child’s teacher. We know we are going to have a great third grade year!

~ Mrs. Jones & Mrs. McCormick ~

Dear Families,

We are excited to get to know your child and we look forward to having a productive year together.  We believe that with confidence, a good attitude, and hard work, each student will have a very successful year in third grade. Every year we look forward to building relationships with our students and teaching them the skills they need to be successful in life and school.

We appreciate all of the support you provide your child at home to help him/her perform to the best of their abilities in the classroom. You play an important role in your child’s education. For best results, most of the homework in third grade requires parental involvement to support what the students have learned in the classroom.

As you know, this is the first year that your child will be taking the Virginia SOL assessments in Math and Reading.  We will work very hard together to prepare for these assessments throughout the year. The current SOL tests are administered online and contain technology-enhanced items (TEI). Technology-enhanced Items require students to indicate their responses in ways other than a multiple-choice format, such as fill-in-the blank, select all of the correct answers, and dragging statements to appropriate spots on a graphic organizer. We will practice identifying TEI questions and how to answer them throughout the year. You may also see them at home in your child’s homework and Monday Folders (graded work). In order to prepare for online SOL tests, the majority of our classroom tests will be given online to allow students to use the online tools and familiarize them with answering questions on a computer screen. This year the Virginia Department of Education is implementing Computer Adaptive Testing (CAT) for both Reading and Math SOL tests to improve the testing experience for students. The assessments will be customized for each student. The difficulties of the questions will be determined in response to how the students answer the previous question. A correct response will lead to a more difficult item. An incorrect response will result in a less difficult item.

We will partner together in order to ensure your child has a successful 3rd grade year! Please do not hesitate to contact us, should you have any concerns or questions.   Sincerely,Mrs. Jones & Mrs. McCormick

~ 2 ~

School Information Central Elementary School575 Union Hill RoadAmherst, Virginia 24521phone: (434) 946-9700fax: (434) 946-9702website: http://ces.amherst.k12.va.us/

Principal: Ms. Wanda SmithSecretary: Ms. Allicia Wells-ReichardGuidance Counselor: Mrs. Lauren KershnerHealth Assistant: Ms. Olivia Snyder Speech Pathologist: Ms. Cynthia MikesellVision Specialist: Ms. Pam JungersonTAG (Gifted Program): Ms. Beverly Brown

Your child’s teachers will be:Classroom Teachers:

Mrs. Keri Jones - Science kjones@amherst.k12.va.us Mrs. Samantha McCormick - Social Studies smccormick@amherst.k12.va.us

**Each teacher will provide Math, Reading, Writing, and Word Study instruction to her assigned homeroom unless otherwise indicated.**

Reading Specialists: Mrs. Sue Ellen Petchul, Robin Wheeler, and Renee Dolder

Resource: Mr. Larry Thomas – Health & P.E. Mrs. Melanie Lewis – ITRT (Instructional Technology Resource Teacher) Mrs. Elizabeth Marcais – Art Mrs. Michelle Abbott - Music Mrs. Nancy Johnson – Library Media Specialist

Special Education Services: Ms. Melanie Hyman Ms. Heather Ware

~ 3 ~

Your child will be taking the Standards of Learning (SOL) tests this year. Please refer to your child’s weekly newsletter regarding what specific skills we are currently working on.  

Reading is a very significant part of third grade. Students will be expected to read each night for at 15-20 minutes. After completing reading homework, please check it off and sign your child’s Homework Log. The Homework Log is located in the front of their WINDCAT binder in a sheet protector. Homework Logs will be checked daily. Please note that other reading homework may be assigned, as needed.

We will be refining previously learned skills/strategies and studying many new topics in reading this year, such as:

Strategies for increasing comprehension of fiction, non-fiction, and poetry Reading with fluency and accuracy Expanding vocabulary Using print and electronic resources (encyclopedia, dictionary, thesaurus, online reference

material, table of contents, glossary, index, charts, etc.)

In order for your child to be successful in third grade, he/she must read every night. We will also be working on test taking skills for reading this year that include:

Read and re-read until you’ve understood what you’ve read

Take breaks while reading to ensure you’ve understood what you’ve read so far (self-monitoring)

Highlight key words in the question and important information from the story

Think about the answer to the question before reading the answer choices

“Slash to the Trash” – get rid of answer choices that are obviously wrong or don’t make sense

~ 4 ~

Brainstorming (thinking)

Prewriting (planning)

Drafting (writing)

Revising (make it better)

Editing (make it correct)

Publishing (share the

final product)

Your child will be bringing home a collection of spelling words weekly that have been introduced in class. Generally, word sorts will be introduced on Mondays and tested on Fridays. Each night of the week, your child is expected to do a different activity to ensure that these words and the spelling patterns are mastered. These activities have been modeled and practiced in school, so your child can teach you how to do them at home. You will be provided a list of word study homework activities and instructions. In addition, these activities will be located at the front of their Word Study Notebooks (marbled composition notebook) for your reference. Please be sure your child puts the date at the top of each page in their Word Study Notebooks! ALL assignments will be due on Friday in their Word Study Notebook. On Friday, we will have a test and students will turn in their Word Study Notebooks for us to check weekly homework.

Each week your child will write the sort in their word study notebook that shows how the entire word list should be sorted. Please do not let your child use this page when working on their homework! This is a reference for you to help your child with word study activities.

The Writing ProcessWe will be teaching about the writing process and how to generate different types of writing throughout the year. Writing will be focused on the following types of pieces throughout the year: narrative, informative/explanatory, descriptive, letters, and persuasive. We will incorporate the use of “Thinking Maps” to help us plan our writing. The 6 major steps of the writing process are:

English/GrammarWe will be weaving grammar and English lessons throughout our studies in writing. Our focus this year will be writing complete sentences; using proper capitalization and punctuation; using parts of speech properly (nouns, pronouns, adjectives, verbs and adverbs); use of commas; abbreviations; apostrophes in contractions and possessives; and much more!

HandwritingYour child should have been introduced to cursive writing last year in 2nd

grade. In third grade this year, we will continue to extend our knowledge of cursive writing. It is important that your child practice this at home. You might encourage your child to write the grocery list or practice the letters while waiting in a restaurant. We will follow the traditional Zaner-Bloser cursive style. Please do not allow your child to complete their homework in cursive.

~ 5 ~

Math is an EXCITING time for students in third grade! Students will have math homework on a consistent basis.

Sometimes math homework may be reviewing flash cards and signing a log, particularly when we begin studying multiplication and division facts. Flash card homework should take no longer than 10 minutes to complete. As we learn our multiplication facts and study our flashcards, we will begin to take weekly multiplication quizzes.

In math, we will be learning about: place value up to 999,999 rounding whole numbers to the nearest ten, hundred, and thousand fractions with mixed numbers (including adding/subtracting fractions) comparing whole numbers and fractions related facts “fact families” (addition/subtraction and multiplication/division) single-step and multi-step word problems multiplication/division facts 0-12 counting money up to $5.00 and making change measurement of length, volume, mass/weight, time to the minute, elapsed time, temperature,

area, and perimeter plane/solid figures congruency of plane shapes points, line segments, rays, angles, and lines probability graphing – line plots, picture graphs, bar graphs patterns

In Social Studies, Mrs. McCormick will be teaching about maps, Ancient Rome, Ancient Greece, Ancient Mali, Explorers, American Government, Famous Americans and Economics. Students will have a set of flash cards to study Monday-Thursday night and a parent must sign the Homework log verifying the student studied the cards. They may not have flashcards to study every week. The flash cards contain all the essential information for the SOLs taught, so taking about 5 minutes each night to study them will be very beneficial to your child. Students will also have to study for quizzes and tests.

~ 6 ~

In Science this year Mrs. Jones will be teaching about simple machines, the scientific method, the physical properties of matter, animal adaptations, food chains, ecosystems, resources, the importance soil, plant and animal life cycles, earth/moon cycles, the water cycle, the interdependency of plants and animals, human influences on living organisms, and energy sources. Students will take notes as well as have quizzes and tests. Students will also study flashcards each night to study the vocabulary terms associated with each unit. In addition, students will have the opportunity to participate in the Central Elementary Science Fair in the spring.

Your child will need the following supplies for 3rd grade.  

1. Book bag/backpack (1 count)2. Colored Pencils (1 package of 12 count)3. Colored Markers (2 packs)4. Erasers (1 pack pencil top, 1 large pink)5. Glue Sticks (1 package of 6 count)6. Wooden #2 Pencils (2 packages of 24 count)7. 3-Ring Pencil Pouch (2 count)8. Scissors (1 pair)9. Tissues (2 boxes)10. Yellow Highlighter (1 pack-optional)11. 1-Subject Spiral Notebooks (6 count: 1 red,

1 blue, 1 green, 1 yellow, 1 purple, and 1 student choice)

12. Plastic Poly Folders with pockets (6 count: 1 red, 1 blue, 1 green, 1 yellow/orange, 1 purple, and 1 student choice)

13. Marbled Composition Notebook (1 count)14. 2" Binder with clear pocket on front (1

count)15. Dry Erase Markers (2 packages of 4 count)16. Ziplock Bags (1 box of sandwich bags)

Optional Items: Multiplication Flashcards 0-12 Division Flashcards 0-12 Clorox Disinfecting Wipes Lined Notebook Paper Extra Tissues, Ziplock Bags, Glue Sticks,

Pencils

~ 7 ~

Keep assignments written in your agenda. Your parents are to sign your Homework log each evening.

Homework is to be completed and turned in on-time. Neatness counts! Please do your best to make sure your work is neat, as well as keeping your area

clean (floor, desk, etc.) Stay on task and complete assignments to the best of your ability.

~ 8 ~

Part of being a class involves working together as a team.  When another adult in the building compliments our whole class for our behavior, we will receive a letter in the word “Congratulations”.  Once we have spelled the word…the whole class gets a treat! 

In addition to our Class Teamwork, the 3rd Grade Team will be recording each student’s weekly HABITs to monitor the student’s behavior and earn the opportunity to attend Friendship Fridays held each Friday during lunch.

HABIT stands for Homework, Attitude, Behavior, Initiative, and Teamwork.  If a student completes homework each day, maintains a positive attitude, makes positive behavior choices, takes initiative, and cooperates with his/her classmates throughout the week, he/she will be able to attend Friendship Fridays. 

Certain consequences, such as laps at recess, silent lunch, or parent contact, will apply daily when students receive a letter on the HABIT chart for poor behavior.

During Friendship Fridays, students will be able to bring their lunch to the classroom, eat lunch with their friends, and watch a movie or show.  Students who did not earn the opportunity to attend Friendship Fridays will eat lunch in the cafeteria as usual. 

~ 9 ~

One of our most important goals this year is to keep the lines of communication open with you.  If you have any questions or concerns throughout the year, please contact us via a note in your child's agenda, a phone call, or an e-mail.  We check our e-mail daily, so this is the most efficient way to contact us.  Sometimes students do not give us the parent’s note until they are walking out the door, or they may forget to give it to us altogether.  If we have not answered your question in a timely fashion, PLEASE contact us again! Please contact the office immediately, if your phone number, address, or child’s emergency information changes.

We will use the agenda to communicate to parents about any issues that may have come up throughout the day.  If you have a note for us, please staple it to your child’s agenda on today’s page, rather than writing the note in the agenda.  It is essential for you to check your child’s Homework Log and agenda each day to ensure both you and your child are aware of the homework assignments.  We appreciate your support in this matter! 

We will send home a weekly newsletter with information about what we are studying for the week, as well as strategies you can use at home to reinforce what we are learning in class. It will also include any upcoming events.  Please check your child’s Monday Folder for the newsletter on Mondays.  If your child comes home and says they do not know what they learned, you can ask them about the general topic listed in the newsletter! 

Your child’s graded papers will be returned on Mondays in your child’s Monday Folder.  Please look through your child’s papers to see how he/she is doing on his/her assignments.  By reviewing your child’s graded classwork, you are helping them understand what they missed, why they missed it, and how to correctly answer the question or problem in the future. We usually make notes on the students’ work on how they should have correctly solved/answered the question. In addition, any important school-wide communication papers will be sent home in the Monday Folder.  Please be sure your child returns his/her Monday Folder to school on Tuesday.

~ 10 ~

Students in third grade are given letter grades.   Keep this chart handy in order to check your child’s progress.  Students’ grades can be checked on Power School (see information below).

Grade PercentageA+ 98-100A 93-97 A- 90-92B+ 87-89B 83-86B- 80-82C+ 77-79C 73-76C- 70-72D+ 67-69D 63-66D- 60-62F 59 or below

Please refer to this chart to see how assignments will be weighted in the grade book.Reading English Spelling Math Science Social Studies

Tests – 40%Quizzes – 25%

Classwork – 25%Homework – 10%

Tests – 40%Quizzes – 25%

Classwork – 25%Homework – 10%

Tests – 60%Classwork – 30%Homework – 10%

Tests – 40%Quizzes – 25%

Classwork – 25%Homework – 10%

Tests – 40%Quizzes – 25%

Classwork – 25%Homework – 10%

Tests – 40%Quizzes – 25%

Classwork – 25%Homework – 10%

 

PowerSchool’s Parent Portal gives parents and guardians real-time information including attendance, grades, school information, and student course requests. The PowerSchool Parent Portal is a valuable tool, helping you stay well informed of your student’s academic progress and attendance. **We will be updating grades on Power School weekly, if not sooner.**

~ 11 ~

Time Activity8:40-9:05 Arrival, Breakfast, & Morning Work

9:05 Announcements, Pledge of Allegiance, & Moment of Silence

9:05-9:45Content Block 1Jones Homeroom Science with Homeroom ClassMcCormick Homeroom Social Studies with Homeroom Class

9:45-10:25Content Block 2Jones Homeroom Social Studies with McCormick McCormick Homeroom Science with Jones

10:25-11:35 Math11:35-12:05 Lunch12:05-12:25 Recess12:25-2:20 Reading2:20-2:55 Writing2:55-3:40 Resource 3:45-?? Dismissal

~ 12 ~

Resource Schedule rotates every three weeks

Mrs. Jones’s ClassWeek Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday

Week 1 SSR/Library Music Library PE ArtWeek 2 Music Library PE Art LibraryWeek 3 Guidance PE Art Library Computer

Mrs. McCormick’s ClassWeek Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday

Week 1 Music Library PE Art LibraryWeek 2 Guidance PE Art Library ComputerWeek 3 SSR/Library Music Library PE Art

On Thursdays resource will be extended to 2:35-3:40.

*Please be sure to wear sneakers on P.E. days! Students may not be able to participate in all activities if proper shoes are not worn.

~ 13 ~

Mornings are a very busy time for us! Please make sure your child arrives at school on time.  Breakfast is an important component to keeping your child's brain awake and ready for learning.  Due to a new grant this year, every child will have the option of a free breakfast in the classroom. If you want your child to get breakfast at school, please make sure your child arrives to school early enough to eat before class begins. More information will be sent out regarding the free breakfast option.

Each morning, students will go to the restroom/water fountain on the way to class!  Students MUST be in my classroom by 9:05 AM.  Once they arrive in class, students will get everything they need for the day out of their backpack and hang their backpack and jacket on their hook.  Once unpacked, students will take out their homework to be checked or turned in.  Then, students will open their agendas to today’s date and write down their homework assignment for tonight.  After writing down homework, students will pick out 2-3 books from the classroom library to read during the day. They may then read or work on any Reading or Math work that needs to be completed or corrected.

The WILDCAT Binder is our way of staying organized at home and at school. It is a 3-ring binder that contains valuable information always at our fingertips.   WILDCAT stands for Weekly Information, Learning, Daily Communication, & Assignments Too.  This is where your child will keep his/her agenda, pencil pouch, Homework Log, homework folder, word study notebook, and other important information.  Please make sure your child brings his/her WILDCAT Binder to and from school every day!

We believe homework is an important part of a child’s education.  It is valuable because it is an important tool in developing independent thought, self-direction, and self-discipline.  Homework can assist in the student developing good work habits and time management, as well as reinforcing the skills taught in class. Homework will typically be assigned on Monday through Thursday nights.  However, students are encouraged read every day, including weekends.  There may be times when students are assigned homework over the weekend.   

Late & Missing Homework: If your child has not turned in their homework the following day, he/she will have the opportunity to work on the missing assignment during silent lunch. If your child does not turn in a homework assignment, he/she will receive a grade of 0 (zero) for the assignment.  Because homework is worth 10% of your child’s grade, it is extremely important for your child to always complete homework in a timely manner!

~ 14 ~

It is important for your child to be at school daily. However, we understand that there are times when they will have to be away from school. In the event that your child is absent, please call the school and notify the office, and upon return to school provide a written excuse of his/her absence.  Your child will receive his/her missed work upon their return to school, unless you have made other arrangements for the pickup of materials.  Your child will have 5 days to complete any assignments missed during an absence, unless otherwise arranged with your teacher. If you know ahead of time that your child will be absent, please make arrangements with your teacher to get the assignments he/she will be missing to ensure he/she is not behind when returning to school.

If you would like to bring treats to celebrate your child’s birthday, please do so during lunch.  Again, we have lunch at 11:35 PM.

Chaperones and volunteers must complete a background check prior to serving as a chaperone or volunteer. There is no charge for the background check: however, results of the check can sometimes take several weeks. Therefore, you should complete the background check well in advance of scheduled field trips or activities you wish to chaperone or participate in as a volunteer.  Please also consider joining our PTO (Parent Teacher Organization).

~ 15 ~

Please sign and return this page to your child’s teacher by August 19, 2016.

My signature below indicates that I have read the Third Grade Handbook and the agenda with my child, ______________________________.

I understand that homework is an integral part of my child’s success in 3rd grade.

I understand my child must complete homework when assigned.

I understand that I must work with my child at home for him/her to be successful in 3rd grade.

In understand that I must sign my child’s Homework Log each night.

I am aware that if I have any questions regarding any of the information provided, I may ask them at any time.

_________________________ ________________

Parent Signature Date

_________________________ ________________Student Signature Date

~ 16 ~