November 4, 2009
Greetings, Parents!
Conferences: This is an exciting time! For some of us it’s our very first
chance to sit down together with our parents and our teacher to talk about
what we’ve accomplished during the first quarter. We will be preparing
ourselves for what to expect with role playing and by writing down some ideas
that we’d like to talk about during the conference.
Weekly Work Folder: The papers in the Weekly Work Folder today are the first
quarter grades.
Water Bottles: Now more than ever before it is important for your child to
have a water bottle each day. Not only does it provide hydration on the
spot, but it also is great for calming throats that are scratchy and sore.
Classroom Climate: It is very difficult to keep a constant temperature in our
classroom. Please make sure your child has a sweatshirt or sweater to help
them feel comfortable during the day. I would like to suggest keeping a spare
on the hook in the coat closet and bringing it home on the weekends to be
laundered. Please be sure to label each uniform garment with your child’s
first and last name or initials and grade.
Social Studies: We will be starting our new unit on Native Americans. One of
the highlights of this unit is a weaving project. Please send in an 8 x 10
piece of corrugated cardboard and a skein of brightly colored yarn by next
Thursday. (The yarn may be multi colored or textured. Please refrain from
sending baby yarn or string.)
Third Grade Team Second Quarter Updates:
•As of November 23rd all writing will be done in cursive.
•All papers that are turned in with no name will receive a 5 point deduction.
Readers of the Lost Art: We will resume this program during December so you
can share your favorite Advent and Christmas stories with us.
Thank you: What a “fangtastic” Halloween party! The kids were just thrilled
with everything. We all appreciate each and every parent who worked behind
the scenes to prepare our tasty snacks, fun activities, and goodie bags. We
also appreciate those parents who were able to join us for all the fun. If
you have pictures you’d be willing to share from our Halloween festivities
we’d love to have them. You may send them in on a disc or email them directly
to me at knichols@smsmd.org.
October 16, 2009
Greetings, Parents!
We continue to work diligently in all areas. We are working hard so we can
play hard on Halloween! We’d love to have you join us at our party. Please
contact Mrs. Schuler or any member of our Halloween team if you’d like to
volunteer. (All volunteers must have current fingerprints on file with the
office and have completed the Protecting God’s Children course.) We are
looking forward to a “spooktacular” time!
Proofreading: Now that we will be starting to turn some of our rough draft
ideas into final drafts, I am counting on you to assist with proofreading
work. As you are reading projects or assignments feel free to point out
words that are spelled incorrectly. As we find misspelled words in class, we
are directed to dictionary.com to find the correct spelling. (We are getting
quite good at finding the correct spelling on dictionary.com. Additional help
is still needed occasionally.) I also understand that time doesn’t always
allow a leisurely stroll on the internet. Please use whatever strategy works
best in your household.
Emergency Kits: These kits are very important. We keep them in clear plastic
tubs on the shelf in our coat closet. Many are still missing. If you have
not sent in your child’s emergency kit, please do so by Monday.
Seasonal changes: The children may start to bring in signs of the changing
season. We will display them in our science center. It will be fun to see
the elements we are talking about in Science up close and explore them with a
magnifying glass. It’s also a great way to earn a bonus point.
Snack: I know we all have really busy mornings and items are forgotten. In
the event you’re child forgets a snack we have extras in the cabinet. If
you’re a “borrower” please send a snack as a replacement when you have the
opportunity. The students are writing little reminder notes in their homework
books to help you remember to send a replacement.
Calendar: Please check your child’s planning calendar or the one on our
website for updates. Please pay special attention to the close of the first
quarter which falls on October 30, 2009.
Wish List:
Dollar store rectangular or oblong tablecloths
October 12, 2009
Mrs. Nichols was absent last Thursday and Friday. Due to that absence, no
homework was posted on the website. I am working as quickly as I can to
respond to the many emails that arrived while I was away.
October 5, 2009
Name: ___________________________________
Religion Project: Modern Day Disciple
The disciples saw how Jesus lived His life. The disciples tried to live good
lives as Jesus did. In your own way and in your own words design and
illustrate a scene that will show an action of a modern day disciple. .
Here are a few ideas to help you start thinking about your project:
A modern day disciple visits people who are sick.
A modern day disciple reaches out to those ignored by others.
A modern day disciple tries to help the poor.
A modern day disciple helps feed people who are hungry.
A modern day disciple…(your idea)
Requirements:
•This project must be totally student created with colored pencils, markers
or crayons.
•A colorful border is required to frame your project.
•A scripture passage, to support your project’s theme, must be included in
the project.
•The size of your project can be no larger than 9” x 12”.
•A rubric has been provided on the following page so you’ll be aware of how
this project will be graded.
Due Date: October 14, 2009
My Notes:
October 2, 2009
Greetings, Parents!
Happy October! What a beautiful week! It’s exciting to think that we’ve been
together for an entire month! With Interims right around the corner, this
edition of our Weekly Folder is filled with samples of your child’s work.
Please look over each piece carefully and offer words of encouragement. If
there are areas that need improvement, please discuss and review them
together. The month of September has been a big transition time adjusting to
a new classroom, a new teacher, new books and an ever increasing work load
but we’ve had fun.
Interims: We have come to the half way point of the first quarter. Wow! You
may be receiving interims in the Monday Envelope next week. Interims are sent
for grades of 84S and below. Please feel free to contact me if you have any
questions.
Snack: I know we all have really busy mornings and items are forgotten. In
the event you’re child forgets a snack we have extras in the cabinet. If
you’re a “borrower” please send a snack as a replacement when you have the
opportunity.
Guest Speakers:
Father Sass came to speak with the Third Grade Team about the difference we
can make as modern day disciples. We really enjoyed having his enthusiastic
presence in our classroom.
Mrs. Curry comes each morning to work with us on character building
activities. (She also took a summer trip to Alaska and has been sharing all
sorts of information with us about her adventure.)
Class Rights: Attached you will find a copy of the rough draft of our class
rights. We will vote on them and sign them tomorrow. Please read over them
with your child and feel free to add comments at the bottom of the page.
Readers of the Lost Art: Reading is so important! During the month of
October, I would like to invite parents to come in and read a short, seasonal
story to our class. (This experience counts toward your volunteer hours.) If
you would be interested in sharing a story please send in a note or send an
email to knichols@smsmd.org.
Thank you:
*Mrs. Louis, Mrs. Flores, and Mrs. DeLeon - staplers.
*Mrs. Kelsey - snacks for our snack cabinet.
What a difference you’ve made in our lives! Many, many thanks!
September 25, 2009
Replacing my note for the week, please see Sister Sharon's letter with an
update on the flu status. It is located in our Weekly Work Folder today.
Enjoy the weekend!
September 22, 2009
Mrs. Nichols will be attending a workshop with Sister Sharon tomorrow.
Homework will not be posted on the website.
September 17, 2009
Greetings, Parents!
We have had a very productive week. Together, we are making great strides in
transitioning from one subject to another throughout the day. The Third Grade
Team is a group of extremely hard workers! Thanks for all you are doing to
support this awesome bunch of students!
Weekly Work Folder:
The Weekly Work Folder is stapled together make sure it all arrives safely at
your house. When reviewing the work, please feel free to unstaple the
packet. Papers that are stamped with Parent Signature need to be returned the
next day. I would be happy to make a copy of any paper(s) you’d like to keep
for a longer period of time.
Snacks:
Please send in one snack in with your child each day. (It should be a healthy
choice. No dessert items, please.) This is especially important on days when
we have an early dismissal. We need to refuel our brains because we are
working so diligently!
Back to School Night:
We had a wonderful turn out! Thank you so much for your attendance. The
children were thrilled to rush through our classroom door to read the notes
you created for them.
Estimation Jar:
The winner of the candy filled estimation jar was Sophia’s Mom. We had a
great time in Math figuring out the contents of the jar. How exciting!
Congratulations and Enjoy!
Scholastic News:
I am asking for your help in providing your child with a subscription to
Scholastic News. This magazine provides timely, age appropriate news and
current event stories while providing skill building exercises and
fascinating articles on science, holidays, technology, sports, and health. I
have already placed the order and we are receiving issues currently. Please
send in a check or cash in the amount of $4.85 by Wednesday, September 23,
2009.
Homework & Calendar:
Each night homework books should be initialed by a parent. We start each
morning checking to see if there are any notations or comments. Also, please
remember to check your child’s monthly planning calendar on a regular basis.
We like to plan approximately two weeks in advance.
Wish List:
•2 new staplers , Snacks for our snack cabinet
Friday, September 4, 2009
Greetings, Parents!
We have had a wonderful first week of school! I have really enjoyed meeting
and greeting your children each day. Our Third graders are terrific!
This week we’ve worked on getting our books and supplies organized. We’ve
started to formulate our Class Constitution which will declare our individual
rights and responsibilities. We have practiced using the proper routines for
fire drills. We’re learning how to work in centers and discovering more
about one another. Whew! It’s been busy.
Thanks so much for doing your “homework” this week. The consumable workbooks
look great. I appreciate you taking the time to get all of them back on
time. Bravo! (A reminder that the fabric or paper covered hardback textbooks
should return to school by Tuesday.)
I had the opportunity to meet quite a few parents during the Ice Cream Social
and during this first week. I look forward to seeing all of you at Back to
School Night on Thursday,
September 10, 2009.
Sincerely,
Mrs. Kelly Nichols knichols@smsmd.org
Are you wondering if your Third Grader has written down all the homework?
Here's a quick way to check..
Visit www.smsmd.org
Click on Students
Click on Academics
Click on Mrs. Nichols
Click on Homework
If you have any questions, please email Mrs. Nichols at knichols@smsmd.org.