Peter Pan Field Trip

My daughter is next to Captain Hook. We were given the royal treatment!

The week at a Glance

For the next few weeks, we are focusing on multiplication facts fluency.  Students will be given a flashcard games worksheet to choose daily games.  Each student should complete at least one activity a day.  Please initial next to the games being played by your student, and then turn in worksheet on Friday or the last day of the week.  All flashcards stay at home to be used daily.  Students have another set at school to practice fluency there.  This week we are trying to pass off x2s and x5x and then review x1s and x10s.

On Wednesday, December 11, the third grade classes will be walking to Alta High School to watch a performance of Peter Pan.  We'll leave about 8:50 and return to Altara at lunchtime.  All elementary schools within walking distance were invited, so seating is limited to just students and teachers.  We are looking forward to providing this cultural experience for the students.  A permission slip will be coming home in homework folders today.  Please sign and return by Tuesday, December 10.  Thanks!

This week in Reading Street we are reading the expository text, Seeing Stars.  Today we talked about the weekly question, "How can we explain things in nature using investigation?"  Stars look like tiny diamonds, but they are actually giant balls of fire.  You can only see stars at night, because daylight makes them invisible.  It's hard to see them even at night if you live in a well-lit place like a big city.  You can see stars close-up if you look through a telescope.  The map of stars in the sky appears to change because the Earth moves through the sky.  In long-ago times, people "connected the dots" in the sky to form constellations, such as Orion.

This week our comprehension skill is digging into Graphic Sources.  Maps, charts, diagrams, illustrations, and photos are examples of graphic sources.  They help us understand information as we read a text.

We will also be learning about subject-verb agreement for our conventions.  The subject of a sentence tells who or what performs the main action.  The verb tells what the main action is.  The subject and verb must agree.  A singular subject gets a singular verb.  A plural subject gets a plural verb.  

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving Week!  We will be celebrating with a look at some of the pilgrim's struggles and triumphs this week.  We will be reading the selection, Across The Wide Dark Sea by Jean Van Leeuwen.  This is a realistic story of one boy's journey across the sea.  We will also be digging deeper into our knowledge of Thanksgiving, and how it became a national holiday.
And of course we'll be writing and working on our x2s and x5s as well.  Have a wonderful Thanksgiving and enjoy your time with family!  See you in December!

Looking Forward to Parent Teacher Conference

I look forward to meeting with you this week for Parent/ Teacher Conferences. For those who didn't have the chance to sign up, I assigned times that I had that were still available.  Hopefully this will work for you and your family.  Appointment slips as well as an informational letter from Canyons district explaining our new report card came home yesterday in your student's homework folder.  Please look for both.  See you Wednesday or Thursday!

This week in Language we will be reading the story Amazing Bird Nests.  There are many kinds of birds, and each variety builds a different nest. This selection discusses how, where, and why birds build nests. It tells about the unusual places they build, and the materials they use. It focuses on
some unusual nests, including one of the smallest—the hummingbird’s nest, barely an inch across—and one of the largest—the eagle’s nest, which can weigh as much as a car!  This story is a great springboard for our question of the week:  How do animals and plants adapt to find solutions?
We will be focusing on main idea and details this week.  The topic is what a piece of writing is all about. The main idea is the most important idea about the topic. Details are small pieces of information or facts. They tell more about the main idea.
We are also learning about plural possessive nouns.  If two or more people share or own
something, use a plural possessive noun. Add an apostrophe (’) to plural nouns that end in -s, -es, or -ies to make them possessive (boys’, ladies’, canvases’). Add an apostrophe and an -s to make irregular plural nouns possessive (the men’s coats).

And exciting news... WE are starting multiplication meanings this week.  We will be learning that multiplication actually means "groups of" when thinking about how to use manipulatives and draw visuals.  WE ARE SO EXCITED!

Volunteers

Thank you to everyone who is helping our class. We have great parents who are helping in the class, with parties, on field trips, with homework on Fridays, and also, at home! We now have a volunteer for Art through the Ages for the next units. Thank you to Lindsi Smith for volunteering! It's fun to learn a little history along with art concepts. We still are looking for a volunteer for this unit. Lindsay can't start this month. Any takers?

The week of Halloween

We have been working hard this week to polish up our math and language skills and we are all pushing ourselves to become better writers.  We have been writing to persuade, as well as creating fairy tales. This week we will be learning about the important parts of a friendly letter and then writing some of our very own.  You will be getting a little surprise from your student during parent/teacher conferences!

Speaking of parent/teacher conferences, there still is time to sign up for a convenient time to meet.   You can either go to Altara's home page or you can scroll down below to our last post to click on the scheduler.  If you have problems, you can contact Susan Taylor in our main office for help.

This week in Reading Street we will be reading the selection, Tops and Bottoms.  Our story addresses our question for the week- How can we make sure our solutions are fair? Bear is an animal with a lot of land, a lot of money, and absolutely no get-up-and-go. Hare is a clever rabbit who didn’t always make the best decisions in the past. He now has a big family, no land, and no food. Bear and Hare enter into a “business deal,” and both learn that good things come through hard work.

This week we will be reviewing Author's Purpose.  The author’s purpose is the reason an author writes something. Reasons include to persuade, to inform, to entertain, or to express ideas and feelings (opinion).

Another important convention we will be learning this week is all about singular possessive nouns.  These words show that one person owns something. We add an apostrophe and the letter s (’s) to a singular noun to make it a singular possessive noun. For example: baby's bottle, nurse's bag.

We will be reviewing subtraction with regrouping this week while we get ready for testing on Wednesday, 10/30.

And of course last but not least we will be celebrating Halloween this Thursday, Oct. 31 with a parade, beginning at 9:00 and a party to follow.  Come join us for some Spooktacular fun!  Just a reminder there will be early dismissal that day at 1:15 p.m. and no school on 11/1.

Have a GREAT week!

Parent Teacher Conferences

It's that time again that we are looking forward to Parent Teacher Conferences. 

Parent-Teacher Conferences are coming up on Nov. 6-7. The Online Scheduler is available on Altara's home page or sign up below.

1. Click the following icon:

2. Scroll down to "Altara Elementary" and click "go."

3. Type in the school password (altara) and click "login."

4. Type in your student's ID number.
(hint: The student ID is the username for Envision Math found on the sticker inside of your child's homework folder.)
5. Select an available time slot that works best for you.

If you have any problems or would like support setting up your schedule, feel free to visit the office or call Susan Taylor, our school secretary, for assistance. 

Hope to see you there!

Help with Art through the Ages? PLEASE!

Hello my wonderful parents! I love all of your volunteer work! Any chance someone would like to do Art through the Ages? We still need a parent to teach our class. We are watching the other kids painting outside and feeling kind of left out. You don't have to be an artist just a parent, grandparent, or other volunteer willing to help. The PTA gives you the lesson plan and a little instruction and off you go. 1 hour the first week and another hour the second week. Two people can do it together if you want. Just let us know!

October Current Event

A Close Look At Current Events

October is a current events month! We will be practicing together how to find articles from the links on the class blog (look under current event tab at the top of the blog) and how to write good questions for their current event sheets.  Students have been assigned dates to bring in their current events.  Current Events calendar will be coming home Friday, October 4.  During their own presentation, students should be prepared with the following information:

• Tell the current event in your own words.
• Complete a current event sheet according to the instructions in your homework folder.
• Attach the article you chose.

Please carefully read the instructions and the grading rubric found in your homework folder in order to receive full credit. Just a reminder...If your students is using another source besides the sites on our blog (ex: DOGO, TFK, or Scholastic News) please check to make sure that articles are kid friendly and appropriate for young students.  Please no violent or graphic crimes and news. :) We still have many little tender hearts inside our classroom.

High fives to those students who have come prepared and excited to present their news!

example current event sheet 

The Preamble to the Constitution

Check us Out! We sang the Preamble to the Constitution for Mrs. Magann. She loved it! Ask your cutie to sing it for you. It's a lot of fun. Its a great way to learn so many big words and what they mean!

Thank you for supporting our Jog-a-thon fundraiser! Our school raised more money than our goal and we all received new Altara T-shirts. Don't we look great!

It's Time For An Adventure!

It's Time For An Adventure!

Our very first book report is due Thursday, September 26th.  The genre for this book report is either adventure or fantasy.  Fantasy is a fiction that includes magic and other fantastic elements that are somehow connected to a real world setting or to an entire fantasy world.  Adventure books may or may not be fantastic, since they include some nonfiction stories, as well.  Adventure books have action, excitement, suspense, and a main character who constantly overcomes challenges.  This book report is presented inside a container. (ex: lunch sack, gift bag, oatmeal container, manila envelope, shoebox, etc.) Pack 4-5 items in the container that represents the characters, setting, problem, and solution.  All students will present their container to a small group and explain why each item was chosen.  The rubric and directions are included in the pink pages of your homework folder.  Good luck!

This week we GET to take the IOWA basic tests.  This is a national test that 3rd graders and 5th graders are required to take to test our knowledge compared to all students in the USA.  We will be testing this Tuesday through Thursday.  Please help your student by making sure they get to bed on time and remind them to eat a healthy breakfast for some extra super brain food!  Thanks for your help!

Welcome to Mrs. Hadean's class blog

We've had a great first couple of weeks of school! Our class is really coming together as a community! We have figured out what it is like to Be Responsible, Be Respectful, and Be Safe!

Our schedule for specialties is as follows:

Monday: Computers
Tuesday: Library
Wednesday: P.E.
Thursday: Art

We have learned how to play the quiet game in the library, and the librarians love us! We are the best in the school! We only communicate with body language!