Social Studies: Artifacts Past and Present

Eager and excited to show each other the artifacts they brought from home, the girls took turns on Friday afternoon guessing the purpose of each artifact. Our budding archaeologists participated enthusiastically in our "dig" and enjoyed the process of identifying each artifact's use. The artifacts ranged from a garlic press to the wooden bowl holder shown in this photo. 

Mrs. Rogers' Neighborhood

 

Friday is a perfect day to read to the Kindergarten girls. 

 

 

 

After selecting books to read aloud, the girls continue

working on reading fluency and expression.

 

 

Moving Forward in Math

Place value knowledge is continually growing in third grade.

Be sure to ask the girls how they applied critical thinking skills with a roll of a dice! 

 

 

French: Passports and Suitcases

We are so excited for our trip.  Now that we have made our tickets, it is time to start working on our passports.  We will be making our passports later this week.  Your daughter will need to bring in a small photo to use when she makes her passport. 

It is also time to start packing.  The girls will make their suitcases at home.  I sent a paper home today with directions for the suitcases.  The girls should bring in their suitcases as soon as they are done. 

I told a joke in class the other day and the girls asked me to share it here.  They have been learning numbers so I shared the story of three cats named Un, Deux, and Trois.  One day the cats decided to go fishing on a frozen lake.  As they were fishing the sun came up and it got warmer.  The ice broke.  Poor cats.  Do you know what happened to Un, Deux, and Trois?  Un, Deux, Trois cats sank. (Un, deux, trois, quatre, cinq)

Art: Collaborative sculptures

Third graders began the year by creating collaborative sculptures of an animal of their group's choice. The challenge was to create one sculpture by multiple people with limited verbal communication, and to use basic materials (newspaper, masking tape, scissors)  in new ways. Some techniques the girls explored were wrapping, crumpling, tearing, twisting, and rolling. Students named their creations and introduced them to the rest of the class. They presented problems they encountered and the solutions to their issues. 

Art: Why do people make art?

Third graders explored the theme of "Perspectives" by brainstorming reasons people make art. Each class created a concept web. We will use these "maps" to frame our discussions of our own artwork as well as art throughout history. Ask your third grader about some of the reasons she makes art! 

Reading: Metacognition

In 3rd grade reading class this year, we will be talking a lot about reading strategies.  The work we do is based on Tanny McGregor's book Comprehension Connections.  Today we introduced metacognition - thinking about our thinking.  We talked about "fake reading," when you can read the words, but you don't really understand what you are reading.  (We've all been there!)  Many of the girls admitted to fake reading, too!  Then I took out my salad bowl (yes, you read that right) and we "tossed" together our reading and our thinking.  Then some of the students got the chance to toss their own reading salads for the class.  Obviously, a topic as big as metacognition can't be covered in just one class.  We will focus on it for the next few weeks and then continue to make it a part of our reading discussions throughout the year.  Happy reading!

Music: Rhythmic Building Blocks

The girls have been reading, writing, and performing rhythmic building blocks.  These are 2-beat rhythms that use a combination of half notes, quarter notes, eighth notes, and quarter rests.  After learning a song about a bakery, the girls assigned bakery words to match the given rhythmic building blocks.

Next, they worked in groups to combine the rhythms using various elemental forms.  

Here's one group's final version incorporating the original bakery song and the bakery lists composed by the girls:

Art: A Portrait of the Lower School

To begin the year in art, every girl in the Lower School drew a self portrait in pen. Using this permanent medium allowed students to practice resilience by changing "uh-ohs" into "ah-hahs!" as they made adjustments to their drawings. The results are impressive,  and can be viewed just inside the studio. Ask your third grader how her ideas, plans, and marks change during the process of making art. 

French: Buying Tickets to Paris

Welcome to Third grade French.  We have been getting ready for our imaginary trip to Paris. This week the girls went to the travel agency to buy their tickets.  They are very excited for their flight on October 14th.

Art: Perspectives

Each year Lower School students focus on a certain theme in art. The third grade theme is "Perspectives." Students will examine how their ideas and works fit into the trends and eras in art over time.

 

News from Mrs. Rogers and Mrs. Mills

We're off to a great start on our third grade journey!   We are about to begin reading Because of Winn-Dixie by Kate DiCamillo which is set in Florida. During social studies we are learning about the eruption of  Mt. Vesuvius and life in ancient Pompeii. In the world of numbers, we are exploring different ways of expressing three and four-digit numbers. Have your daughters shown you how they can make 18 two-digit numbers by folding a numbered paper strip? Whether they are working with pencil and paper or their brand new iPads, the girls are excited about their work.

Science: Welcome to Science!

I was delighted to meet the girls as they began this third grade year by coming to the Lower School Science Center for the first time as science students! They have gotten off to a good start.  Our first topic is dirt.  However, it’s not just dirt…it’s soil!  The girls closely observed the different characteristics of the 3 types of soil: sand, humus, and clay.  They discovered that sand has the largest particles, is the least sticky, and allows water to move through it the most rapidly.  Clay, on the other hand, is the opposite!  The girls looked at the particle sizes with an electronic microscope, squeezed soil samples through their fingers (great fun!) and conducted "soil races" to gather their data. 

Excitement was high as they broke apart rotting logs to discover the organisms which were using the logs as their homes or as their restaurant.  Decomposition doesn't just happen, it is caused by the action of living things and it results in the formation of humus.  As she watched an insect scurry toward the safety of the log, one child exclaimed, "This is the best science class ever!"

PE--Off and Running!

The third graders are off to a great start in PE.  We began the year focusing on being active and introduced tagging and cooperative games.  We have posters in the multipurpose room which say, "Let's move!"  This week, we started our soccer unit, which develops the girls' foot-eye coordination, leg strength, and spatial awareness.  For the third graders, this is the first year they can take their jumpers off for PE!

Welcome to the Third Grade!