I am looking forward to the upcoming year with high expectations for this third grade class. A new school year creates a lot of excitement. We want to see this exuberant momentum maintained throughout the school year. Parents, with your participation in and out of the classroom we can anticipate a special year in your child’s school career. Initially I want to mention a few items which will help make our classroom function smoothly. The assignment notebook is a key component to your child’s success.

Please encourage its use and sign it every evening. We are asking the children to record every assignment even if it is completed in class so you can be aware of their daily work and help study for tests. What a good lifelong habit to start now!

All of the student’s textbooks need to be covered by the end of the

second week of school. Please use a paper cover as the stretchy ones are ruining the bindings on the books.

If the students are using a novel for language arts, the book will need to

be kept in a plastic envelope. This is critical for keeping our books nice since we cannot always get a replacement copy in the same edition.

A foundation in the basic math facts is so essential, so please make it a

priority to practice these at home with your children throughout the year. In the afternoons there will be a 15 minute study hall. The students must

have with them an outside book to read in the case they have already completed all of their homework from the morning. I also have a good collection of books that the children can read.

I will be needing a room mother or father and classroom helpers.

Please consider how you would like to help in the classroom this year.

HOMEWORK EXPECTATIONS As we begin the school year, I want to let you know to expect your child to have homework every night. It is difficult to give a specific number of minutes of homework that you can expect your child to have each night. Each child is different and each child works at a different pace. If you feel that your child is spending too much time on homework, please contact me. Most often, your child will have to complete a reading and math assignment. Please refer to your child’s assignment notebook for information regarding each day’s assignments. Although the homework may sound like a lot, please note that all students in grades K-6 will be provided with a 15 minute afternoon study hall for each full day of school. During these 15 minutes, students will be expected to work on any homework that they may have for that particular day. If a student has finished all of the homework for that day, they will be allowed to read a book. Please make sure that your child has a book to read if their homework is completed.

COMMUNICATIONS Please feel free to contact me with any concerns. My email address is crownhartjessi@aasd.k12.wi.us. I check my email regularly at the end of the day. Our school phone number is 832-4968. Please leave a message and I will return your call at my earliest convenience. You may also leave a message in your child’s assignment notebook. I check those every morning. If you need to report an absence or are taking your child out of school for an extended time, please report this to the office. This is your responsibility. Feel free to send birthday treats with your child. The entire class will enjoy those. I would like to respectfully request that the treats are store bought and packaged so it will help me and the students determine if there are any allergens that need to be avoided. Thank you so much. Grading Scale A+ 100 A 93-99 A- 90-92 B+ 87-89 B 83-86 B- 80-82 C+ 77-79 C 73-76 C- 70-72 D+ 67-69 D 63-66 D- 60-62 F Below 60

HERE IS AN OVERVIEW OF THE CURRICULUM FOR SEPTEMBER LITERATURE The emphasis will be on the enjoyment of poetry and stories and the appreciation of the beauty of the language. Specifically we will be listening to Native American legends and reading the poems “Catch a Little Rhyme” and “Trees”. SCIENCE We will concentrate on the classification of animals and be studying the terms: ectothermic, endothermic, vertebrates and invertebrates. The students will be learning the differences among the mammals, reptiles, amphibians, fish and birds. HISTORY Our studies will include the early Native Americans’ progression into North America, becoming familiar with the Inuit and Anasazi cultures and looking in detail at specific tribes. Along with this unit the students will be writing their own Native American legend. GEOGRAPHY The continents and major oceans will be on the top of our list to locate and know as well as other geographic terms. SHURLEY GRAMMAR I am anxious to hear how well the students remember the jingles from last year. We will be starting with sentence pattern #1. SPELLING The third grade students will be working in Spelling Mastery C this year. Attached to this newsletter is a list of words that your child may study from. HANDWRITING We will be practicing our handwriting this year. I’m sure that all of the children are excited to learn how to write in cursive. Please note that all children will be asked to use proper formation of all the letters. We will also be paying close attention to the four keys to legibility—size, shape, slant, and space. Attached to this newsletter is a guide for parents that shows the proper formation of both lower and upper case letters. In order facilitate the transition to fourth grade next year, we will slowly phase in homework and assignments to be completed in cursive.

Third Grade Monthly Curriculum

Month Literature History/Geography Sayings Science SEPTEMBER “Catch a Little Rhyme”

“Trees” Native American legends The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe

Early American Indians The Inuit and Anasazi Native Americans-Southwest Woodland Indians

Actions speak louder than words

Classification of Animals: Vertebrates/Invertebrates, Fish, Amphibians, Reptiles, Birds, Mammals

OCTOBER “By Myself”

Norse Mythology The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe

Vikings Erik the Red and Leif Ericson Juan Ponce de Leon Exploration and Settlement of Florida Exploration of the American Southwest

His bark is worse than his bite Beggars can’t be choosers

Food Webs Ecosystems Desert Ecosystems Air Pollution Water Pollution John Muir

NOVEMBER “For Want of a Nail”

“Eletelephony” “First Thanksgiving of All” “William Tell” “Three Words of Wisdom” The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe

Search for the Northwest Passage John Cabot Jacques Cartier Henry Hudson Geography of Canada

Beat around the bush Human Body: Skeletal System Bones and Joints Bones and Ligaments Voluntary and Involuntary Muscles

DECEMBER “Jimmy Jet and His TV Set”

“Adventures of Isabel” “The Little Match Girl” The Wind in the Willows

The Thirteen Colonies Geography of English Settlements

A feather in your cap Human Body: Nervous System Brain and Spinal Cord Sensory and Motor Neurons Vision: Parts of the Eye How Eyes See

JANUARY The Wind in the Willows Colony of Massachusetts

The Massachusetts Bay Colony and Rhode Island Colony of New York Pennsylvania and Maryland Geography of New England and Middle Atlantic Colonies Farming in the Thirteen Colonies

One rotten apple spoils the whole barrel Let bygones be bygones

Vision Light Reflection Mirrors and Lenses The Spectrum

FEBRUARY “The People Could Fly”

Alice in Wonderland Jamestown The Development of Plantations Slavery in the Colonies Review geographical terms

Touch and go Vision

MARCH Alice in Wonderland Ancient Rome The Punic Wars Julius Caesar Geography of Mediterranean Region

On its last legs Rule the roost

Hearing and Sound Sound Waves How Sound Travels Alexander Graham Bell Volume and Pitch How the Ear Hears

APRIL Myths of Ancient Greece

and Rome “America”

Life in the Roman Empire Pompeii Christianity under the Roman Empire The Fall of the Roman Empire Geography: Routes of the Early Traders

The show must go on When in Rome, do as the Romans do Rome wasn’t built in a day

Astronomy: Rotation and Orbit Copernicus, Galileo, the Sun Solar System Planetary Exploration The Moon

MAY “Knoxville, Tennessee”

“Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp” “Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves”

Life in Eastern Roman Empire Geography: Important Rivers of the World

Clean bill of health Cold shoulder

Satellites and Eclipses Birth and Death of Starts Black Holes, Asteroids, and Meteors Comets Space Shuttle Mae Jemison

Dear Family,

This year our class will be using the Zaner-Bloser Handwriting program.

Recent research shows that handwriting instruction helps improve

children’s reading and writing skills. For over 70 years, the Zaner-Bloser

Handwriting program has been the most widely-used and classroom-

tested program in the United States.

Our third grade program will cover all uppercase and lowercase letters as

well as the numerals 1-10. We will review manuscript writing skills and then

turn our attention to cursive handwriting. Our class will focus on legibility,

paying special attention to the shape and size of each letter, as well as

spacing between them. Along the way we will practive writing quickly

and neatly—skills that will help children throughout their academic career.

As children’s handwriting improves, so will their confidence. Children want

to share their thoughts, feelings, and ideas with their family and friends. I

have included a copy of the Zaner-Bloser alphabet for you to have a t

home when your child is writing. Remember to encourage their best effort;

children should not be expected to write perfectly all the time.

If you would like to learn more about Zaner-Bloser Handwriting, you can

visit them on the web at www.zaner-bloser.com.

Sincerely,

Mrs. Crownhart

Spelling Study Lists

1-5 beetle better book done enough friends good green home keep listen little look many meet need over quiet see should shove some street thought through took was weed where wonder 6-10 bright fight flight

fright high light meat might night right talks than tight writes 11-15 ate bananas breakfast cry fly for grandmother my shy sight sly try why 16-20 anybody ape cape clay didn’t drape escape gape

grape listen play scrape shape stay tape 21-25 away bananas breakfast cry fly for grandmother my shy sight sly try why 26-30 bloom boot broom brush cool coop food fool hoot mood moon noon

room scoop soon spoon stoop them these think troop want which would 31-35 back believe clock every kick lock lost luck neck pack pick race rock shock sick stack tack thick track trick

36-40 badge black bridge budge building deck dodge duck from fudge hedge judge ledge lodge other people pledge ridge rough stuck tough truck watched wood 41-45 bliss boss cage caught change class could dress fuss glass graceful hiss

huge larger loss mess nudge page press rowboats sailboats stage wage write 46-50 children choice eight face fence grace lace left moss moot nice place school since space their together trace voice 51-55 act blackest build coldest

count counting fresh greenest happy lightest lighting listening pressing print quietest rebuilding refresh refreshing rent repack repacking replace rest rethinking ring spend spending string thank undone unfolding unhappy unlocking unpacking water wondering 56-60 author bike blame blue brownest

coolest cube different dressing drive endless equal fine fire frame friendless game globe great ground harm helpless hope human joke lake leader make misplace misspelling mistake name pine pipe point poke pure rage rake reach real refine repay reporting

restless rewrite ride ripe robe safe serve several shine side skill smoke snake spell stories tale there those toughest town trust unclear unkindest unlock unmask unrefreshing unsound unthinking vine wide worth worthless wrote 61-65 break chalk charge charm

cheap child chill choke city cure feat helplessness hire kindest length misjudge refill slice strength toughness uneven unsold untrusting value 66-70 above boundless breakable brown catch charming ditch file greenness helped like match misspell misstep mistake needless notch

portable quietness rebuild refillable report restlessness roughness round size started stitch stretch thoughtlessness unbreakable unkindness unsure unthinkable unworkable wanted washable where workable 71-75 bench brushing bunch changeless civil coldness curable darkness feet fineness finest freshest grounded hired hoped

hopeless hoping judged largest likable lunch mismatched patch pinch pitch pointlessness prepay preschool preshrunk pretest preview purest racing remark repacked reviewed ripeness scratch search shameless shaping shining shrunk sketch smoking speech speechless staging switch teach touch unsoundness usable useless

using valuable valueless valuing view watch widest writing 76-80 blameless careless clothes clue colder driving equally faced fighter finer fresher friendly greater greatness helper helplessly hiring homeless hopelessly joker judging know life lighter lightly likely likeness lovable nameless

new nicely placed previewed quietly reformed remarkable replaced reserved rougher serving shame sizable soap stretcher teacher time tracing twice unequally unusable wash wear widely wideness 81-85 baker bit biting bluest brightness caring catcher cheaper fired goodness greatest harmlessly

kite largely lifeless matching misjudged namely needlessly nightly parked picking pointless prejudge preserve preserving previewing probing pureness quite rehiring renaming resorted restlessly reviewer searched searching sketching slightest smell spite touching unequal unlikely unpacked unreachable unstuck uselessness white whitest wisely

86-90 boldness changing choking civilly finely formless larger liked liking nicer notable noted nothing often paints person pictures researching shop stretchable stretched stretching tale thoughtlessly timeless timely unbelievable unlikable unlike used washing working 91-95 bare believable blissful care

careful carry cheapest choicest cope darken define deform deport depress devalue fault forceful freshen grandest helpful hopeful joking lengthen lighten locker misused nicest redefine restful; rope scope shortly sign sing slope tail thickness unfilling unrefined unstuck watching whiter

96-100 barred biggest blissful caring carry childish civilly coil dealing decoding defined delighted deserving design dropping farmer fault faultless fineness fly foolish formless global golden grandly greenish hear herb hopefully hopeless hotly humanness maddest madly madness nerve package packaging

page passage personable planned planner play point recoiled rental runner sadden sadder saddest sadly sadness shopped shopping signal; snapping spotted star starless starred starring stay stepping stopping swimmer swimming talked’ tripped unchanging equally unripened usage verb curable wander washable

watered watering weaken winner work world 101-105 barely bigger brownish cheaply childishly delightful deny designer dosage dripless dripping dropper facing facts final finally flatten flattest foolishly given heard here hottest misshaped note predated putting quotable quote refusal ripest

risen running skipping slipped snugly snugness spotless storage strengthened taken thoughtfully trapped undefeated undrinkable unnerved unshaken unsnapped usefully vote wandering worldly yardage 106-110 boyishness busy carry cheaper civilly copy departed designer

dripped dropping fancy faultless flatten fury glory harmlessly hurry leakage misjudged mistaken normal notable nothing pity playful preplanned reviewed prove reserving resigned resource resourceful restore rightfully saddest shaken skillfully slightly slipped snugly

source spinning starless stopping storing story straighten straightest straightening study sturdy style stylish unquotable unreserved unthinkable used valuable whole winning worry wrap wrapper wrapping wreck wreckage wrong 111-115 answer bareness barest

cloudy dressy easy fatal formally hate hole late lengthy mighty misquoted noisy picture plate please question rate really related reserve scary shiny skate sleepy speaker spotty skate unplanned unproven unwrap