We are wrapping up our second marking period and looking ahead to the second half of our school year. Our third grade students have been working so hard and have completed some awesome projects along the way!

Language Arts: In language arts, we have focused on text features in nonfiction texts. Students had the opportunity to learn about various text features and then explore them in National Geographic Explorer Magazines. As an end to the text feature mini-unit, students were put into groups to research an animal. Using their research, students created a magazine to display their information along with 7 different text features. These projects turned out great and I’m so proud of the students’ hard work!

We then moved to text structure and we are still working on this skill. Students are learning about nonfiction text structures such as compare and contrast, description, problem and solution, cause and effect, and sequence. We will continue to work with this skill using a variety of texts and we will have a quiz on January 27th.

Looking ahead, we will focusing on author’s point of view next.

Please continue to read for 20 minutes each night and complete the Reading Log weekly. My language arts class has bi-weekly spelling tests and we are looking to have our next test on January 28th. Students will be getting their lists and words to sort on Tuesday, January 24th.

Writing: In writing, we are working on using dialogue in our writing, using strong verbs, and writing a how-to piece. Each third grade homeroom will rotate through this writing cycle before we move on to new skills. I’m looking forward to reading about what students know how to do well!

Math: In math we are wrapping up our measurement unit. Students have learned about telling time to the minute, calculating elapsed time to the minute, completing problems involving liquid volume and mass, counting and comparing coins, making change up to $5.00, and measuring to the nearest 1/4 inch and centimeter. We will be reviewing all of these skills before holding our post-test the week of January 30th.

Students will be pre-tested for our new unit and some students may be switching math classes. Please be on the lookout for information regarding math classes in your child’s Friday Folder in the coming weeks. Please continue to review multiplication facts each night and complete the weekly math packets.

Odds & Ends:

No School – 1/23

Report Cards home – 1/27

Early Dismissal PM KDG – 2/16

No School – 2/17

No School – 2/20

PTO STEM Fair – 2/24

As always if you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me. Have a wonderful weekend!

Thanks you,

Miss Gentile

As I write this post, the students are in Music and have had a busy day celebrating the holidays. We have so much more in store this afternoon! I’m thinking back to how far the students have come since the start of the year and all of the learning that has taken place in our classroom. We have gone beyond the information from the textbooks and have learned about respect, responsibility, and kindness. I could not be more proud of each and every student!

Language Arts: In language arts, we have focused a great deal on main idea and finding supporting details. The students have read a variety of texts and have created some awesome projects! We will coming back from break and working on text features using nonfiction texts.

Writing: In writing, we are working on using dialogue in our writing. We will also be working on a short how-to piece.

Math: In math, we have completed the first half of our measurement unit, which included estimating liquid volume and mass and telling time. We will be moving onto measuring to the nearest 1/4 inch and money after break. Please continue to practice math facts each night!

Odds & Ends:

Christmas Vaca – 12/26 thru 12/30

Back at it – 1/2/2017

End of 2^nd Marking Period – 1/20

As always, please contact me with any questions or concerns! Happy Holidays to everyone!

Thank you,

Miss Gentile

We are flying through the second marking period and really working hard! Students have been learning many new things and there is a great deal to share. First, our student teacher, Ms. Hastings, will be leaving this Thursday. She has completed her student teaching requirements and is headed back to Nebraska to be with her family for the holidays. The students have really enjoyed working with her this semester and we are all sad to see her go.

Language Arts: In reading, we have been busy with main idea. Students have read various passages and texts and thinking about the big picture or what the text is mainly about. We have been looking closely at titles, headings, pictures, topic sentences, and clue words to help us determine the main idea. We also have been supporting the main idea with details pulled right from the text. Students recently completed an ice cream craftivity where they read a text focusing on ice cream. Each group had a different text to discuss and determine the main idea. They then used an ice cream cone and scoops of ice cream to record the main idea and supporting details from that text. These awesome projects are hanging in our third grade hall.

Looking ahead, we will have our third vocabulary test on Monday, December 19th. After break, we will be working on text features as well as text structure.

Writing: In writing, the students have all completed a narrative story. They turned out great! We are now working on adding dialogue to our writing and then a how-to piece. We have a lot to look forward to in writing!

Math: We are in the middle of our measurement unit in math. Students have been working on mass, liquid volume, telling time to the nearest minute, and now elapsed time. We have been doing hands on activities, partner work, and playing a great deal of games to practice these skills. We will be testing on these skills before our winter break. After break , we will be working on measuring to the nearest quarter inch, counting and comparing money, and making change. Please continue to practice math facts each night!

Odds & Ends:

Early Dismissal – 12/14

PTO Santa’s Workshop – 12/15 thru 12/20

Instrumental Concert Tour – 12/22    Brecknock Assembly 10:45AM

Christmas Vaca – 12/26 thru 12/30

Back at it – 1/2/2017

End of 2^nd Marking Period – 1/20

As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me!

Thank you,

Miss Gentile

We are not in the second marking period and these third graders are accomplishing a great deal! Thank you to all of the families who came out for conferences. It was wonderful getting to meet with you to discuss all of the progress we have seen!

Language Arts: In language arts, we have been working on author’s purpose. The students have explored texts and looked at authors who write to entertain, inform, and persuade us. We read a Reading Street story  called Tops and Bottoms and the students determined the author’s purpose of that text. As a fun project, each student chose a topic and then wrote from three different perspectives. They were able to write about the topic as an entertaining piece, an informative piece, and a persuasive piece. These projects are hanging in our third grade hallway so if you’re in the building check them out! We will move to main idea and details before the holidays. We will continue with our bi-weekly spelling tests and vocabulary testing as well through the month of December.

Writing: Students have been working on writing a narrative story using descriptive words and organization. We will move towards strong verbs and how-to writing pieces after Thanksgiving.

Math: We are wrapping up our unit on fractions this week and will be moving to measurement. Students will be taking a pre-test before we begin the unit and some will move to new math classes. A letter will be sent home next week indicating your child’s math teacher and some helpful practice tips at home. Please continue to practice multiplication facts each night and working through the weekly math packets!

Odds & Ends:

Book Fair – 11/10 thru 11/18

Dads & Donuts – 11/17 & 11/18

Thanksgiving Vacation – 11/23 -11/25

No School – 11/28

Picture Retakes – 12/5

Early Dismissal – 12/14

PTO Santa’s Workshop – 12/15 thru 12/20

Christmas Vacation – 12/26 – 12/30

Back at it – 1/2/2017

As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me!

Thank you,

Miss Gentile

We are almost at the end of our first marking period…WOW! Ms. Hastings and I are looking forward to meeting with families next week at conferences to discuss all of the students’ hard work. We have been busy and students continue to show some great respectful and responsible behavior.

Language Arts: In Language Arts, the students have finished their work with sequencing. Students had the opportunity to read a book and create a sequencing chain based on the events. These chains are hanging in our third grade hallway so if you’re in the building please check them out! We are now moving into author’s purpose. Students are exploring various texts and determining if the author is writing to entertain, persuade, or inform. They will be using Reading Street stories as well as other shorter texts to explore this skill.

Writing: Students are now writing a narrative piece. We are working on the writing process and focusing on all the important components of a well written story.

Math: Students are in the middle of the fractions unit. We are working on fractions of a whole, fractions of a group, equivalent fractions, comparing fractions, and identifying fractions on a number line. Students have been working in small groups and in partners to explore these concepts. Please remember to practice math facts each night and to continue working on the math packet throughout the week.

Odds & Ends

End of 1^st Marking Period – 11/3

Parent/Teacher Conferences – 11/10 & 11/11

Book Fair – 11/10 thru 11/18

Dads & Donuts – 11/17 & 11/18

Thanksgiving Vacation – 11/23 thur 11/25

No School – 11/28

Picture Retakes – 12/5

As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me!

Thanks,

Miss Gentile

We are coming close to the end of the first marking period already. I can’t believe how quickly this year is going! The students continue to work hard each day. Our student teacher, Ms. Hastings, will be doing her lead weeks of teaching starting next week. A letter will be sent home explaining when she will be taking over. I will remain in the classroom at all times to assist her in anyway. She is very excited to be working with the students more and more!

Language Arts: In Language Arts we have been focusing on comparing and contrasting and sequencing. Students have read a variety of fiction and non-fiction passages to practice these skills. They have even read a few stories from Reading Street too! We have been working with lists from Words Their Way to practice and study spelling. Students take a spelling test every other week. We practice the words together for a week and then the students take their words home to practice. We will have a spelling test THIS FRIDAY! In addition to spelling tests, students will also be taking vocabulary tests. These are words we work with in class and will have a study guide to practice at home. For tests, students will need to know the definition, synonyms, and antonyms for the words we use. We have taken one test already and will take another test in about 5 weeks.

Writing: In Writing students have been working on narrative writing. They have been introduced to writing prompts and the six traits of narrative writing. All third grade classes will work through these lessons before we move on.

Math: We have moved on to fractions in Math. Students are in their new math groups. We will focus on parts of a fraction, parts of a whole, parts of a set, fractions on a number line, equivalent fractions, and multiplication in this unit. As always, please have you child continue to work with their multiplication facts each night for homework. We complete timed tests three times a week. In addition, students have receive a math review packet to complete as homework each Friday. Students have an entire week to complete the packet and return it to school. Please let me know if your child is struggling with the math homework!

Odds & Ends:

School Bus Safety Week – 10/17 thru 10/21

PTO Box Top Store – 10/19

Red Ribbon Week – 10/24 to 10/28

Fall/Harvest parties – 10/28

PTO Wolfgang Candy Sale Assembly – 10/28

End of 1^st Marking Period – 11/3

Parent/Teacher Conferences – 11/10 & 11/11

Book Fair – 11/11 thru 11/18

Dads & Donuts – 11/17 & 11/18

As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Have a great day!

Miss Gentile

We are really working hard in third grade! The students are getting more and more comfortable with our rotations and the responsibilities of third grade. I’m so proud of all their hard work!

Language Arts: We have been working on character traits, setting, plot, and theme. We also have done some work with comparing and contrasting. The students have read many different passages and article to compare over the last two weeks. Looking ahead, we will be doing a Character Pumpkin project where students read a book, describe a main character, and then decorate a pumpkin as the main character. These will go into our display case in the front lobby of the school! Stop in to see the students’ work! Our first writing sample is next week and I’m very excited to see what the students write about.

Writing: In writing, I’m getting to the last homeroom for the first time this week. We will spend the next two weeks together going over complete sentence structure, types of sentences, and paragraph writing. We only have twenty minutes to spend in content, but we sure do work hard!

Math: In math, we have been working through our first unit on multiplication and division. Students have been learning about different strategies to solve problems such as drawing arrays, using a number line, drawing equal groups, and using repeated addition. Students will have a post test on these topics on Friday, October 7th. We will begin our next unit, fractions, the week of October 10th.

Please remember, students should be practicing their math facts EACH NIGHT! All students in third grade were given multiplication flash cards at the start of the year.

Odds & Ends:

Hearing Screenings – 10/4

Picture Day – 10/6

No School Teacher Inservice – 10/10

School Lunch Week – 10/11 thru 10/14

School Bus Safety Week – 10/17 thru 10/21

PTO Box Top Store – 10/19

Fire Prevention Program – 10/20

Red Ribbon Week – 10/24 to 10/28

PTO Wolfgang Candy Sale begins – 10/28

End of 1^st Marking Period – 11/3

As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me!

Thank you,

Miss Gentile

What a wonderful three weeks it has been getting to know the students! We have been busy learning and working together.

Language Arts: In Language Arts, we have been working with Story Elements and Theme. We read the narrative poem, When Charlie McButton Lost Power, together to practice the skill. Students also explored character traits using characters from some of their personal favorite books and they had the opportunity to build plot diagrams using an online program. Looking ahead, we will finish our work with Story Elements this week and move to Comparing and Contrasting.

Students started their first word sort using their Words Their Way lists. Those words and lists will be sent home this week to practice at home. Students will be taking a spelling test on Friday, September 23rd.

Math: In Math, we have finished our work with Place Value and Rounding. Students learned how to round to the nearest 10 and nearest 100. We also discussed the word estimation and how we use rounding to estimate. Looking ahead, we will begin our unit on Multiplication and Division. Our student teacher, Ms. Hastings, will be starting her teaching during this unit! Please remember students should be practicing their multiplication facts each night. We have begun our timed tests and automatic recall of basic facts will be helpful for the upcoming unit.

Writing: Our first few weeks in writing have focused on writing in complete sentences and components of a paragraph. We will be working on a full narrative in the coming months!

Odds & Ends:

12:30 Early Dismissal – 9/30 AM Kdg

PTO Box Top Collection – 9/19 thru 9/30

Gr 3 Field Trip to Brubaker Park – 9/21

Blue Shirt Day/World Day of Bully Prevention – 10/3

Picture Day – 10/6

No school  – 10/10

Red Ribbon Week – 10/24 to 10/28

End of 1^st Marking Period – 11/3

As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me. Have a wonderful weekend!

Thank you,

Miss Gentile

What a WONDERFUL first week of school we had in third grade! I enjoyed getting to know the students in room 112 as well as the students from Mrs. Blankley’s and Mrs. Thompson’s rooms. We are looking forward to switching this week into our reading and math classes. A letter was sent home on Friday listing you child’s teachers for the start of the year. As we work and progress monitor, we will be making changes to best meet the needs of all the students. The third grade team is looking forward to getting started this week with some awesome learning!

Meet the Teacher Night is THIS Thursday (September 8th) and I’m looking forward to meeting many third grade families! See below for more important dates.

Reading: In reading we will go over procedures for rotations in our room. We will also begin our study on Characters, Setting, Plot, and Theme. Next week we will be using Charlie McButton from Reading Street to work with these skills. Students will be taking a pre-test for spelling and will be placed in groups later this week. Spelling practice will begin next week. We will continue our classroom read aloud of Jeremy Thatcher Dragon Hatcher by Bruce Coville this week as well. Reading homework will begin this week. Students will be expected to read for 20 minutes each night and write a summary based on one of the readings they completed. They will record their reading and the summary on a reading log. The log will be collected each Friday.

Writing: As we begin writing this year, students will review sentence types and how to write paragraphs. Before we jump into longer writing pieces, we need to make sure everyone has a strong foundation.

Math: We will start our year off with some place value and rounding practice. Students will work with me as well as their peers to practice the skill. We will be starting our weekly homework packets this Friday (September 9th). Please look for a letter to be sent home this week for further information. In addition to the packet, students are expected to be practicing their multiplication facts each night. We will be moving to a unit on multiplication and division in just a few weeks!

Odds and Ends:

Meet the Teacher Night – 9/8

12:30 Early Dismissal – 9/30 AM Kdg

Gr 3 Field Trip to Brubaker Park – 9/21

Blue Shirt Day/World Day of Bully Prevention – 10/3

Picture Day – 10/6

No school Teacher Inservice – 10/10

School Bus Safety Week – 10/17 thru 10/21

Red Ribbon Week – 10/24 to 10/28

End of 1^st Marking Period – 11/3

As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me! I’m looking forward to the great year ahead! Have a wonderful long weekend with your families.

Thank you,

Miss Gentile

(misskatecuttables.blogspot.com)

Welcome back for another great school year! I am so excited to meet all of the incoming third graders. During our first week of school we will be spending a great deal of time getting to know each other and establishing procedures within our homeroom. Starting the second week of school students will be grouped for reading and math, and will have the opportunity to work with students outside of our homeroom. We are looking forward to a wonderful learning experience this year!

As the year begins, I wanted to share some helpful information.

•  Our homeroom will be 112.

• Each day we will have a scheduled snack time. If your child would like snack, please send in something healthy! During the first week I will be providing snack for the class.

• Our specials schedule is as follows:

A Day: Music

B Day: Gym

C Day: STEM

D Day: Art

E Day: Library

• We will not have school on September 2nd and September 5th. Enjoy your Labor Day weekend!
• Back to School Night will be held Thursday, September 8th from 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM  I look forward to meeting parents and families!

If at any time you have questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me! I can be reached by phone at (717) 445-8600 or by email at katie_gentile@elanco.org. If you would like to set up a meeting, I would be happy to set up a time for that as well!

I look forward to working you and your children this school year. Enjoy the rest of your summer!!!!

Thank you,

Miss Gentile