Happy Halloween!

What a fun week! We celebrated Red Ribbon week by "teaming up against drugs" on Thursday. Today (Friday) we were all decked out in orange and black in honor of Halloween and raising money for the Boys and Girls Club. Also, we had two furry friends visit this week. Kymmy's dog, Patches, and Ava's dog, Goldie, came and played with us at recess. At home, my son Bennett carved his first pumpkin, so I am throwing that picture in the mix, too. Have a Happy Halloween!!!

Mark Your Calendars!!!

* Friday (October 30th) = Spirit Day! Wear orange and black and bring $1 for the Boys and Girls Club!

* November 2nd - 6th = Book Fair in the Library
* November 4th, 5th, and 6th = Noon Dismissal
* November 5th = PTA meeting @ 8:30 am
* November 9th = Vetran's Day Program @ 9:00
* November 13th = Donut for Dads @ 7:15
* November 13th = National Diabetes Day (wear blue)
* November 18th - Vision Screening
* November 20th - Griz/Cat Spirit Day
* November 24th - Noon Dismissal
* November 25th - 27th = Thanksgiving Break/no school

* December 3rd = PTA meeting @ 8:30
* December 3rd = Barnes & Noble Holiday Fun Night

Code Word: November 

Week of October 26th

We had another fun-filled, busy week. Madeline's dog, Saga, even got to join us at recess! (I am kicking myself for not taking a picture when Kymmy brought her adorable three-legged dog, Patches! Next time!)

Can you believe Friday (the 30th) marks the end of our first quarter together?!? I think that proves that time really does fly when you are having fun. 

I hope everyone has a great weekend! I know I plan on relaxing, spending time with my son (my husband will be gone hunting for a big, bull elk), and working on report cards! 

In reading, we will continue with Unit 2 (Everyday Science) in Lead 21. We will read a story called Owl Moon. It is one of my favorite short stories we will read this year, as it is filled with lots of figurative language (ask your child about similes, idioms, onomatopoeia, and alliterations!). Our new theme vocabulary words we will be focusing on are search and shadow. I also have a few dictionary-skill activities planned, as the Rotary Club generously donated a new dictionary to every third grader at Arrowhead. Your student will be able to bring this home at the end of the year.

In Math, we will dive into Chapter 3, which focuses on multiplication. We will begin looking at multiplication as equal groups and modeling with arrays. We will do a candy corn array activity on Friday for a little Halloween fun.

In social studies we will continue reading and talking about natural resources and geographical features in certain communities. Then, we will more closely research what treasures we can find right here in Montana. In science, we will read a few interesting articles in Scholastic News and complete a STEM challenge with our buddies. 

Please remember you can order books through Scholastic anytime by going to scholastic.com/bookclubs. Our class activation code is: MBDTF.

Remember, too, that Thursday, October 29 is Red Ribbon Day. We will "Team up against drugs" by wearing our favorite sports team gear. It is also picture retake day. Friday, October 30th is Spirit Day - Wear orange and black. Students are encouraged to bring $1 to donate to the Boys and Girls Club.

Code Word: Multiplication

Week of October 19th

I hope that everyone is having a wonderful four-day weekend! I spent Thursday and Friday at the MEA teachers' conference. Sitting and listening to speakers all day gives me even more compassion for my students. And reminds me to let them move frequently and share their ideas often. I am looking forward to doing what I enjoy the most on Monday - teaching! :) 

In reading this week we are focusing on how science helps us understand the natural world.  We will be reading chapters 3 and 4 of Science All Around Us and focusing on the skills of summarizing, analyzing idioms, cause and effect, and compound words. 

In writing we will do a couple different Fall/Halloween themed writing activities.

In math this week we will review our chapter 2 skills that meet our 3.MD.3 standard. We will take our Chapter 2 Test on Monday and Tuesday (it is quite a long test, so I plan on breaking it into two days!).  Then on Wednesday we will start Chapter 3, which introduces multiplication!!! I am so excited to get started with multiplication and I think the kids will be too! The first concept we will learn about is how multiplication shows numbers in equal groups. 

In social studies we will start Chapter 3: What is the Geography of our Community?   In science we will continue to learn about the water cycle. I plan on staring Project Lead the Way in November. We will learn about the Forces of Flight first!

Homework: reading log, math/language sheet 

* Please be on the look out for your scheduled conference time - these will be sent home in your child's Tuesday folder.

Upcoming Events: 

• Friday, October 23rd from 6-8 Family Fun Night! Dress in your Halloween costume and come enjoy the fun! I'll be there so if you come make sure you find me and say hi!!
• Thursday, October 29th Red Ribbon Day: Team up against drugs and wear something from your favorite sports team.
• Friday, October 30th Spirit Day: wear black and orange and bring $1 to help the Boys and Girls Club 

CODE WORD: Conference Slip

My heart may burst...

I am sitting here while the kids are watching Because of Winn Dixie and I truly may think my heart may burst. Their laughter and smiles are sure good for the soul. Man I seriously LOVE these 22 kids!

Also, I am sooooo proud of Ashlyn. She has gone home every night and worked on an extra page from her Chapter 1 math workbook. Way to go, Ashlyn! I am very proud of the extra work you are putting in to becoming an even better math student!

A VERY happy, happy belated birthday to Takoda. He is such a special, delightful boy who is a friend to every single person in our room. We are lucky to have him in our class. It was fun celebrating him while eating delicious donuts on Monday (and he enjoyed his confetti, too)! 

When I grow up I want to be a....

Week of October 12th

What a FUN week last week! We celebrated Bennett's birthday with donuts (and lost a couple due to an ant attack! lol!). And we ended the week with the Fund Run. It really was a beautiful day and all the kids seemed to enjoy themselves. They were pretty stoked about the medals and water bottles, too! 

This week is a short week due to MEA conferences for teachers.  There will be no school on Thursday or Friday and Wednesday is an early dismissal at noon.  There will be no lunch served on Wednesday, but your kiddo can bring a larger snack.  

In reading and language this week we will be writing some Autumn Cinquin poems and working with adjectives. Also, students will be writing a paragraph about what they want to be when they grow up and why. It is fun for them to look back at these at the end of the year to see how much they have grown and changed. Hopefully we will have time to squeeze in a Fall perspective art project, too! 

Since we are finishing up our read aloud, on Wednesday I plan on showing the students Because of Winn Dixie, so please make sure to send the permission slip back if you want your child to view the movie. It is one of my favorites! 

In math this week we will review picture graphs, bar graphs, and frequency tables.  We will also be problem solving with data and making line plots. 

I leave you with some pictures of the Fund Run. Also, Magdalen lost her other front tooth, and I just had to snap a picture because it was too cute!

Code word: Winn Dixie (earns your child a $50 bonus)

Buddies!!!!!!

We were SO excited to meet our first grade buddies today! We spent our time together by playing math games. It was a blast to finally be the BIG buddies!