Newsletter for the week of Dec. 8-12

December 8, 2014

Dear Third Grade Parents,

We are very busy preparing for the birth of Christ, as I am sure you are as well!

Report cards will be sent home this Friday. I just wanted to clarify the grading system. 4, 3, 2, 1 do not equate to A, B, C, or D. Please look at the descriptors. The 4 means exceeding standards, so they are going above and beyond what is expected. They must add more components than requested. Your child may be doing excellent work, and they may receive a 3. A 3 indicates that they are meeting the standard for their grade level, and they are doing quality work. A report card with mostly 3’s is something to be proud of! A 2 means that your child is working towards the standard. Your child may be working their hardest, but more growth is needed in order to meet the standard. It also indicates that progress is being shown. On the other hand your child may receive a 2 because they are not trying their hardest. A 1 indicates that your child is below the standard and needs more assistance and practice in order to meet the standard.

You’re Invited:

We will present our play two times on Wednesday, December 17th. Our first showing will be at 9:OO am and our second showing will be at 1:00 pm. Since the play is held in the classroom, having

two showings will make for less crowded performances. All parents,

grandparents and siblings under 5 are invited. I’ll give more information

regarding costumes and props soon. Parents and grandparents as well as preschool aged siblings are invited to attend. Sorry, siblings at Holy Rosary will not be able to attend, due to limited space

 

Costumes: Last week we talked with your children about costume ideas for their character in the Nativity play. We will continue to talk this week as well. Costumes are not something that you need to go and buy but should be able to use everyday items.

Useful items could include: pillow cases, sheets, bathrobes, scarves, belts, etc.

Please let me know if you have any questions about the costumes.

Students need to bring their costumes in next Monday, December 15th. Please do not send them earlier because we don’t have the space to hold them. Your child’s costume should be in a bag labeled with their name on it. 

Advent Outreach: We will be participating in an Advent outreach day on Thursday, December 18th. This is a chance for everyone at HRS to give back and serve others in need. All Holy Rosary School classes are asked to select organizations to support during Advent, Catholic Schools Week and Lent. Canned food, specific items of need and monetary donations will be collected to help those less fortunate.

Each 3rd grader is being asked to bring in the following by Thursday, Dec. 18th:

 

  • A monetary ($) donation for Uganda(ex: $1.00)
  • A package of diapers for Westside Baby
  • 1 can of food for St. Vincent de Paul

Please contribute to what you can.

 Prayer Partner: Please remind your child that their homemade card and prayer for their faith-family prayer partner are due to me by December 17th! If you child does not know who their prayer partner is please tell them to see their Faith Family teacher!

The card should reflect time well spent. Include on your card:

 

TO: (Your prayer partner’s name)

           FROM: (Your name)

           A prayer that you have written

           Artwork that you have drawn

           Anything else you’d like to include.

 

Christmas Program Song Reminder: Please make sure you child is practicing the songs for the program on Thursday.

 Christmas Program: Our annual Christmas Program will be happening on Thursday, December 12 in the church, beginning at 6:30 PM with a performance by our school band under the direction of Ms. Frances McKamey. Following the band, each class will perform. In response to requests made last year, doors will be open earlier, beginning at 5:30 PM. Please see that your child reports to their classroom no earlier than 6:00 PM.  There will be no supervision in the classroom until 6:00pm. Students are to wear their “Sunday best” – (no jeans, etc. – please consult the Family Handbook (PDF) for general guidelines). Finally, this is a graded performance with required attendance. If for some reason your student is unable to attend, please contact Ms. Mudge. Thank you & blessings to you and yours for a very Happy Advent!

 

Spanish Quiz: There will be a Spanish quiz on Friday. The quiz will cover clothing vocabulary and weather expressions.  There is a study guide on the Spanish webpage.

This week the students will be learning: 

Reading: We read chapters 9, 10, 11, and 12 in the Boxcar Children. We will be finishing the book next Monday. This week we work on sequencing and main idea.

Math: We continue with chapter 5-understanding division. This week we learn how multiplication and division are related and how to use multiplication to solve division problems. We also work on problem solving with division.

 Language Arts: We use our LA time to work on the Nativity Play.

Social Studies:

Students will have a geography quiz Thursday. It will include labeling the continents and oceans, the compass rose, and the concepts we covered in our “Google Earth” project.

Students study different cultures around the world. We will begin an iPad project with culture in the following weeks.

Science: Students continue studying earthquakes. This week we focus on why earthquakes happen so often in Washington. We are creating a book on earthquakes and entering it in a STEM competition

 Religion: The students will attend Reconciliation next Monday.   We will continue our discussions on Advent and the Christmas season.

Spelling: The spelling homework is due Thursday and the test will be on Friday. This week we work with homophones.

 

hole                 whole              its                    it’s                   hear                 here            won                      one                  hour                 our                   their                        there

fur                   fir

 

Challenge word: piece

 

 

This week’s star: Amelia

Next week’s star: Anthony

 

Have a wonderful week!

 

Sincerely,

 

 

Erin Meland