Winter is Back!

Dear Grade 3's & Parents,

Just a reminder to come dressed for the weather. Please wear snow pants and jackets even if your parents drive you to school.

Spelling
You chose 2 additional words today. Please see last Friday's agenda to ensure you are completing work accurately. You should have 2 sets of practice for the words you picked today - work from class and work at home. Please remember to bring your blue book back to school everyday so you can work in them.

Field Trip to CPO
We are still planning to go to the CPO on Wednesday, March 2, 2011 for the morning. However, if the roads are unsafe, we may have to cancel our trip. Please be aware that your health and safety is most important.

Ella Enchanted
This afternoon we watched Ella Enchanted. It gave us another perspective in seeing the well-known fairytale of Cinderella. Share with your parents your favorite part of the movie.

Math
We are working on developing strategies to problem-solve in multiplication. Please practice your basic facts from 0 to 6 at home (ex. 0x0 to 6x9).

See you tomorrow.

Ms. Toy

Change in Homework

Dear Grade 3's & Parents,

Spelling Homework was given for the weekend. Each student chose 3 words to do their practice with today.

• Each word is to be written 5 times across one line (or if the word is longer, 3 times) on a page 
• Each word is to be written in an interesting sentence that demonstrates how it is used properly. 

We will continue to provide additional spelling homework next week. As a class, we have decided to more all spelling tests to Fridays. In total, each week all students will have 10 words. 

Field Trip Reminder - If you have not returned your permission form yet, please do so immediately as our trip is next Wednesday, March 2, 2011. 

Glee Club Video - Here is another video that Mrs. Mann & Mr. Dalderis would like you to use to practice at home.

Have a great weekend.

Ms. Toy

Glee Club Video

Dear Grade 3's in Glee Club,

Please use the link below to practice your dance moves for your upcoming 'Lollipop' performance.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-w8hy6ziX6c


If the link does not work when you click on it. Please paste it into the URL window. 


Thanks. 


Ms. Toy

Agenda for Wednesday

Dear Grade 3's & Parents,

Today we had a great day catching up on work that we've started in the last week.

Thank you for your ongoing patience as this week has been a busy one. Please remember that we need to be gracious to one another as we will be spending a lot of time together inside as recess has been indoors. The weather will continue to be cold throughout the week.

Science
The students have been doing a fantastic job building their City of Calgary structures. They are beginning more and more to resemble the pictures you were given to guide your build.

Spelling
Please study well for your spelling tests as they are scheduled for tomorrow and Friday.

• Groups #1-3 to #1-4 are Thursday and Groups #1-5 and #1-6 are Friday. 

Events for Thursday, February 24, 2011

Also, please remember that tomorrow is Fun Lunch, Twin Day & a School Assembly. Please get some rest tonight so you can be energetic and focused tomorrow. 

Parent Council News 

Please join us tomorrow, Thursday, February 24^th at 7pm for the monthly Parent Council meeting. Our MLA Teresa Woo-Paw will be speaking to us about work in the constituency and legislature and she’d like to hear your feedback. We will also be voting on the Council’s bylaw amendments, check them out on the school website. Please come and let your voice be heard.

Elaine Cohen

Parent Council Chair

Field Trip to CPO - Wednesday, March 2, 2011

Forms are due ASAP. I already have 2 parent volunteers who have agreed to support us in this trip. 

Have a great night. See you tomorrow. 

Ms. Toy

Tuesday's Agenda

Dear Grade 3's & Parents,

Today we spent the whole day building our City of Calgary bridges and buildings. We will show them off to you at our upcoming parent-teacher conferences. Thank you for being focused and industrious.

Field trip forms to the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra were sent home today. The form indicates they are due back tomorrow. However, I handed them out late and therefore, they are due back by Friday, February 25, 2010. Thank you for your support.

I am looking for 2 parent volunteers to join us on our field trip. Please e-mail me if you are interested in attending at natoy@cbe.ab.ca

Fun lunch is this Thursday, February 24, 2010. If you ordered lunch, it will be served. However, if you did not please bring your lunch as usual.

Also, Thursday is Twin Day. We will talk tomorrow about how you can participate in this fun event. We will be also having a school-wide assembly in the morning at 9:10 am. Parents are welcome to attend.

Spelling tests are scheduled for Thursday and Friday. We will write a reminder in your books tomorrow so your parents can help you study.

Please dress in layers and in winter clothing as the temperature will continue to drop towards Friday.

See you tomorrow.

Ms. Toy

Long Weekend for Students

Dear Grade 3's & Parents,

Just a reminder that there is no school tomorrow or Friday due to Teacher's Convention, and no school Monday due to Family Day. See you back on Tuesday.


Most students finished their Spelling homework during the shortened school week to enjoy the long weekend. However, if you haven't studied much for your test next week, please spend time doing so. Those of you who have been quizzed by a parent already can practice by getting retested on the words again just to make sure you know them. 


An upcoming field trip to the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra: Sounds of Nature is scheduled for March 2, 2011. Unfortunately, I forgot to send the information and permission forms home with you today. Forms will go home Tuesday when you return to school. There will be a quick turn around time as completed forms need to be returned as soon as possible. Many thanks in advance. 


Due to limited seating at the concert hall, I will need only one parent volunteer for this field trip. Please e-mail me at natoy@cbe.ab.ca if you are interested. The trip is scheduled for the morning only. 


Have a fantastic weekend. 


Ms. Toy

Reinventing Cinderella

Dear Grade 3's & Parents,

Today you worked on story plans using the storyline of Cinderella. You were asked to "reinvent" the story using new characters, a new setting and perhaps some new problems that relate to your main character getting what he/she wants at the end. Many of you finished during class time but I sent several home to be finished tonight.

*Please have your plans for tomorrow so we can begin writing your stories next week.

For Spelling:

If you finished the work for your 5 highlighted words last night, please work on the 5 addition and subtraction words tonight for homework. Remember write the word 5x across the line and then write an interesting sentence to show you know how it is used.

or

If you finished all the work for all 10 words last night, please have a parent test you on your words to see if you know them. If you can spell the word correctly, please have them initial beside the word in your blue book.

You have a long weekend coming up. The reason I am pushing you to do all 10 words is so that you can enjoy your break and continue studying again for spelling on Tuesday next week.

*Please do all the practice so you can be successful on your spelling tests next week. '

Library books are due tomorrow. Please have them in your backpacks tonight so you can get new reading material for the break.

See you tomorrow.

Ms. Toy

Spelling Homework

Dear Grade 3's & Parents,

Today you received your new spelling list for the week.

(1) Each of you chose 5 words (highlighted) that you would like to have for your spelling test next
     week.
(2) All students received 5 words from me that will appear on all your spelling tests.
      They were: sum, addend, subtrahend, minuend, difference.
(3) In total, you will have 10 spelling words on your test each week.

Those of you who have List #1-2, List #1-3, List#1-4 will have your spelling tests on Thursdays.
Those of you who have List#1-5 and List#1-6 will have your spelling tests on Fridays.

So the words you received today will be your words for next week as we have a short school week.

For homework, you are expected to follow the same expectations from Literacy MAP:
(1) Write the word 5 times on a line on your page. If the word is long, you may write it 3 times only.
(2) Write an interesting and detailed sentence using the word.

Tonight, you are expected to do your home practice for the five words that you have chosen for your spelling tests. I will be checking to see if you did the homework correctly tomorrow morning. Please have it finished. 


Spend time reading tonight.

See you tomorrow,

Ms. Toy

Reminders

Dear Grade 3's & Parents,

If you want to give out Valentine's cards on Monday, all the names of our classmates are on yesterday's agenda.

Please also remember that next week is a short week. We have school from Monday to Wednesday only. The following week, you come back on Tuesday, as Monday, February 21 is Family Day.

On Monday, February 14, we will be celebrating 'Friendship Day.' Please wear the colour red on this special day. We will be working on our 'Friendly Letters' on Monday morning.

Scholastic book orders were sent home yesterday. If you would like to place an order, your forms and payment are due back Wednesday, February 16, 2011.

Have a great weekend.

Ms. Toy

Valentine's List for Class

Dear Grade 3's & Parents,

Please find the list of names for Valentines if you would like to hand them out on Monday, February 14, 2011 (*see below).

Also, please remember that there is no school next Thursday and Friday as Teacher's Convention will be held on those days. The following Monday is Family Day and there is also no school.

We will continue working on our friendship bracelets and letters tomorrow in class.

As you've already noticed, no spelling or leveled learning homework has been assigned this week. We will be starting the new spelling program next week as soon as I get your lists finished.
_______________________________________________________________________________
On Monday, February 14, 2011 students will have an opportunity to write “Friendship Notes” to other

students in the class.  We will be drawing names to ensure that each student in the class receives a note.

Many students have asked if they may also bring Valentine’s Day cards to be handed out.  It is expected that if your child chooses to hand out Valentine’s Day cards, that EVERY student in the class will be included and will receive a card.  This helps prevent hurt feelings. 

Bringing cards is certainly not an expectation.

Below is a list of all of the students in our class.

Kriti	Linda	Zach
Colin	Rachel	Ken
Leslie	Joey	Halima
Liza	Skylore	Sam
Ryan	Annie	Jenny
Ben	Victor	Cullen
Levi	Majentta	Noshin
Denis	Mariam

See you tomorrow.


Ms. Toy

Ask Me About the Glenbow

Dear Grade 3's & Parents,

Thank you for a fantastic field trip today.

You were very focused and enthusiastic throughout the day. Please share with your parents tonight, your mini-sketchbook drawings from the West Africa exhibit. Also, share with them your favorite part of the day.

*Please bring your mini-sketchbooks back to class tomorrow so we can share our drawings.

A big thank you to our parent volunteers today. Your support and participation made our day a great success. I will send your sketchbooks home with your child tomorrow.

Spend time reading tonight. Since we did not have book exchange today, I will see if we can have library book exchange tomorrow.

See you tomorrow.

Ms. Toy

Field Trip Tomorrow

Dear Grade 3's & Parents,

Sorry for the late agenda. I am still at school getting ready for our field trip tomorrow.

Please remember to bring a lunch tomorrow as we will be out the whole day at Glenbow Museum. I know that many of you are looking forward to our trip.

Please remember to have a warm winter coat on tomorrow. We will taking a school bus downtown and you will notice that weather there is a bit colder than in our neighbourhood.

Please be on time for school tomorrow as the bus leaves at 9 am sharp.

See you tomorrow.

Ms.Toy

Monday Agenda

Dear Grade 3's & Parents,

Today was a very cold day and many of you did not come prepared for the weather. Please remember to dress warmly and prepared to be outside. You may or may not be outside for recess but you need to be ready if you are asked to.

We talked about the new spelling format this year. I will be sending out a new spelling list for you this week. It will include 5 words you are working on and 5 words that I will give you from topics in class.  More information to come this week.

A reminder that our field trip to the Glenbow Museum is Wednesday. It is a full-day field trip and you need to bring a bag lunch. I will send an e-mail to parent volunteers tonight about our trip.

We continue to work on communicating better in class. Please remember to wait patiently for your turn and listen carefully to others when they are sharing.

Have a great night.

Ms. Toy

Art with Grade One

Dear Grade 3's & Parents,

Thank you for working well and showing great friendliness to Mr. Dalderis' Grade One class. It was the first of many 'buddy' opportunities that we will share in the next few months. I know that they enjoyed their time with us. I hope that had fun with them.

We will find another time next week to work on our art projects with them. Explain to your parents how the art was created today. Also, share what a 'ribbatick' might be. Perhaps, you could work on a similar art project at home with your family.

We will begin a new round of Leveled Learning next week. On Monday, I will share the changes to our spelling program. I am looking forward to making reading, writing and spelling more meaningful to you.

Please remember that next Wednesday, February 9, 2011 is our field trip to the Glenbow Museum. Our focus will be 'I am an Artist.' We will explore and experience how each of us can be great artists. All students will need to pack a bag lunch for the day.

If you are a parent who has volunteered for this field trip, I will send information for you with your child on Monday.

February's Newsletter is now available. To view it, please click here.

Have a great weekend.

Ms. Toy

Thinking about Subtraction

Dear Grade 3's & Parents,

Today we learned a different way to subtract. It challenged you to be more thoughtful about your understanding of place value.  Here is an example of what you learned today:

          384 "Minuend"
       -  245 "Subtrahend"
______________________

ones  -------- 4 - 5 = ?
tens   -------- 80 - 40 = ?
hundreds --- 300 - 200 = ?

The problem is the ones/units place (4 subtract 5) does not work, as we know a smaller number cannot subtract a larger one.  So, to regroup I need to take "10" from the tens place, making the problem:

ones ------ 14 - 5 = 9 (notice by regrouping, that 4 has become 14)
tens  ------ 70 - 40 = 30 (notice by regrouping, that 80 has become 70)
hundreds ---- 300 - 200 = 100 (nothing changes here as the numbers work together)

I can now solve the whole problem by adding up all my differences 100 + 30 + 9 = 139.

The answer is 139, which is the "difference."

Now to check the answer, you would add up your difference and subtrahend to get the minuend:
139 + 245 = 384.

I know this looks slightly different than on the Smartboard and your math notebooks. Try a practice question at home with you parents tonight. If you continue to find this new way of subtracting challenging, don't worry as we will work on this again tomorrow.

Remember to read tonight.

See you tomorrow.

Ms. Toy

        

Second Practice - Friendship Bracelets

Dear Grade 3's & Parents,

Today we had  another chance to practice making friendship bracelets using yarn. Many of you showed great endurance and listened well to make improvements. However, it continued to be frustrating for some of you as you allowed yourself to get easily frustrated with the process of learning. Remember, not all things are easy to do and take time to learn.

Tomorrow is Chinese New Year. If you would like, you may wear traditional dress to celebrate this day. However, if you do not want to, please do not feel that you need to.

Please take time to read your new library books tonight. So many of you have shown a lot of growth as readers and writers from being faithful in your home reading.

Enjoy your night.

Ms. Toy

Back to School

Dear Grade 3's & Parents,

Welcome back after a long weekend. It took a bit of reminding today to get you back into routines. Our virtue of the month is Friendliness. Have a conversation tonight with your parents about what it means to you. We will share our ideas tomorrow in class.

Glee club started today at lunch. Please remember to refocus yourselves when arriving back to class. I know that you are excited to participate in such a fun and exhilarating experience. Please know that I too am excited for you but I also need you to be "on" when learning in the classroom.

Hockey club starts on Monday for Grade 3's.

No Literacy MAP homework this week. Please continue to read and/or finish your books as they are due tomorrow. Remember to bring them back to school so you can sign out new ones.

Share with your parents, your first attempt at making Friendship Bracelets today.

See you tomorrow.

Ms. Toy