Newsletter 10-27-11

The Green Meadow Gazette

October 26, 2011

Upcoming & Important Events:

·      Friday, October 28^th – Dismissal at 12:30

·      Monday, October 31^st – Monster March

·      Monday, November 7^th – Field Trip to Plimoth Plantation

Classroom News:

James: Last week we played a fact family game in Math.  We used fact family finders.  Say the string was between 3 and 4.  The fact family would be 3 + 7 = 10, 7 + 3 = 10, 10 – 7 = 3, 10 – 3 = 7.

Kyleigh: Yesterday in Social Studies we learned about the Pilgrims.  We learned about their voyage to the New World.  It seems interesting.  Next we are going to learn about the Wampanoags. 

Hannah: Lately in Math Ms. Little has been teaching us about mental math.  Then she put four or five math problems on the board for us to solve with mental math.  We were solving two digit addition problems, so we first broke apart the tens and then the ones, and then added them together to make it easier.  After we were done we went to lunch.

Vinny: Last week we played double the die plus one in Math.  We played with a partner.  My partner was Kyle.

Robbi: In Math we have been learning how to solve for X.  It is algebra.  Here is an example: 4 + 3 = 5 + X. First you add 4 + 3 together to get 7.  Then you have to think about what plus 5 equals 7, so X would equal 2.

David: This week in Social Studies we learned about New England.  There are six states in New England.  They are Maine, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island.

Lindsey & Samantha: Last week we all walked to the Maynard Public Library.  All the third grade classes went.  We went to see two storytellers.  Their names were John and Lisa.  John told two stories and Lisa told two stories.  After that, we all walked back to school.

Brianna: This week in Music we played the drums.  Everybody enjoyed playing the drums.  Our Music teacher, Ms. Lilley, also taught us what the music notes mean and she put it in a way us kids could understand.

Morgan: We played a game called Sparkle on Monday.  Sparkle is a spelling game.  We played in two groups.

Dorinda: On Tuesday we finished listening to Frindle.  It was about a fifth grader named Nick.  He made up a word called frindle.  It meant pen.  It was a good story.

Rory: Last week it was Hannah’s birthday.  She brought in a book called The Encyclopedia of Immaturity to read to us.  It’s just like an encyclopedia but more kid style.  The pictures were funny.

Kate: Last week in Math we made pumpkin glyphs.  Your pumpkin should either be tall and thin or short and fat depending if your age is even or odd.  You got to pick your eyes, nose, mouth, and stem, depending on whether you’ve eaten pumpkin seeds before, whether you like pumpkin pie, or what size pumpkins you like best.  Ms. Little hung them on the bulletin board.

Graham: Yesterday our class had Gym.  I liked it because we did throwing, jump roping, basketball, hula hooping, pedal scooters, and wiggle scooters.  We also practiced dribbling and tossing a ball.

Joseph: Last week in Spelling we worked with a partner to do our spelling tests.  First our partner would say our spelling words one at a time.  Then our partner would check our work.  Then we would do the same thing to our partner.

Kyle: We go to Library once a week.  Last time we went we read Wiley and the Hairy Man. Mrs. Patino read it to us.  Then we checked out books.

Aiden: This week in Art we made bowls.  We made them to tell people what day of the week we were born on.  I liked making the bowls because they were easy for me to make.

Henry: We are publishing our stories in Writing Workshop.  My story was about going to the Blue Man Group.  It was 6 pages long.  The Blue Man Group was awesome.  So many things went into the crowd.  Some jello went into the crowd.  Some people went up to the stage, too.

Alonso: We made fact family finders for Math.  A fact family finder is a piece of thick paper that has pictures of 10 things on it.  Then we put a string on it.  We moved the string to play a game where we had to make different fact families for 10.  Everyone did a good job.

Reese: Last week we had our last fire safety presentation.  We have been doing it since Kindergarten.  The firefighters teach all sorts of things about how to be safe if there is a fire, like stop, drop, and roll.  I like the goodie bags that we get at the end.

Cara: We went to the magazine drive kickoff last week.  If you bought a magazine, you would get to be in a raffle and you could win a stuffed animal.  It was fun.

Ms. Little: Our field trip to Plimoth Plantation is November 7^th.  The cost for each child is $24 and it would be appreciated if you could send in the payment as soon as possible.  Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns about the trip.  Have a great weekend. J

Newsletter 10-20-11

The Green Meadow Gazette

October 20, 2011

Upcoming & Important Events:

·      Thursday, October 20^th – Walking Field Trip to Maynard Public Library

·      Friday, October 21^st – Book Orders Due

·      Friday, October 21^st – Dismissal at 12:30

Classroom News:

James: We’ve been doing equality and inequality math problems in Math.  For example, say we’re adding 2 + 9 on one side and 3 + 8 on the other.  You would write 2 + 9 = 3 + 8 because both sides equal 11, so the number sentence would be true.

Robbi: In Math this week we learned about adding 3 or more number together. For example, 4 + 3 + 2 = 9.  We learned to look for combinations of numbers that add up to 10 to make the problem easier.

Thomas: Last week we learned how to add 3-digit numbers.  We played a game.  You roll 3 times, add your numbers together, and see who gets the highest number (sum).  I played with Kyleigh and Samantha.

Henry: We received postcards from 7 different states this week.  We try to get them from all over the world.  We received one from Maine, Nevada, Vermont, Texas, Iowa, Illinois, and Connecticut.  A lot of other people received more postcards.

Graham: In Writing Workshop we are drafting now.  Drafting is when you take a story from your notebook and put it on a piece of paper.  We have also been adding details to our stories.  I like Writing Workshop because you write and I like writing.

Lindsey: Last week our class watched a movie called Puss in Boots.  We got to watch it because we filled the marble jar.  I liked the movie.

Brianna: One day last week Ms. Little taught us a game called Sparkle to practice our spelling words.  Some of us said, “What’s that?”  Then Ms. Little said when I say a word you go around the circle and each person says a letter in the word.  Once you finish the word, the next person uses the word in a sentence, and the next person says, “Sparkle,” to the next person, and that person sits down.

Alonso: Last week we listened to Ms. Little read Frindle. The name of the chapter was “Extra, Extra! Read All About It!” It was an exciting chapter and I think it is a good book so far.

Kate: On Monday we got new spelling words.  Every day for homework you have to practice your spelling words.  On Friday we have a spelling test.  We each get a partner and he or she tests you.

Aiden: This week in Gym we did a bucket relay.  It’s a relay that you stack up buckets then you take them down.  I like that relay because you have to stack the bucket carefully.  We also played a game where you carry a bean bag, then someone tags you, and you put your bean bag down.  Someone can steal it but you have to do ten jumping jacks.

Samantha: On Monday we had Yoga with my mom.  We did the eagle and learned about what to do when you have a test.  We got a pipe cleaner with 5 beads on it to help us do calm breathing.  You slide the beads from one side to the other for 5 inhales and 5 exhales.

Reese: This week in Social Studies we learned how Massachusetts is special.  For example, the Boston Bruins are our state’s hockey team, the corn muffin is our state muffin, and many others.  We drew some pictures and then hung them up in the classroom.

Morgan: Monday we had an assembly.  It was our first assembly of the year.  We sang a song called Down by the Bay.

Rory: Last week we received homework passes if we returned our homework every day of the month of September.  They are for homework or independent reading journals.  I haven’t used mine yet because I’m saving it for really hard homework.

Kyle: We go to Music once a week.  Last week we used drums.  It is fun!  We make beats with the drums.

Kyleigh: Last week our class read Goldilocks and the Three Bears.  It was about a girl named Goldilocks.  She snuck onto the bears’ property.  We practiced drawing conclusions about Goldilocks by looking at the pictures and talking about what she did in the story.

Hannah: This week Ms. Little told us that we would be trying a new strategy for Math.  She said that the strategy would be drawing pictures to solve math problems.  After doing four or five math problems, math was over.  I thought it was like when we drew our pictographs.

Vinny: Last week we read Time for Kids.  It was about Monarch butterflies.  I learned that they go to Mexico for the winter because it’s hot there.  Then they come back in the spring.

Cara: This Monday in Art we made some bowls.  They represent our birth.  We need to know what day of the week we were born on so we can decorate it.  It was fun.

David: This week we received postcards.  They came from other countries.  The countries were Switzerland, Germany, Ireland, England, and Canada.

Dorinda: Last week was picture day.  Everyone had their picture taken.  Some people weren’t here so they did not get their picture taken.  They will get their picture taken on the day they have picture retakes.

Joseph: Last week in Library Mrs. Patino read us two books.  First, she read Cinderella. Then she read us Bony Legs. Then she said that it’s time to check out books.  After that, we left Library.

Ms. Little: Our field trip to Plimoth Plantation is November 7^th.  Please make sure you have signed and returned your child’s permission slip.  If you’re interested in chaperoning, please fill out a CORI form and return it to school as soon as possible.  Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns about the trip.  Have a great weekend. J

Newsletter 9-15-11