Sunday, April 26, 2020

April 27-May 1 Learning Packets


Third Grade: April 27-May 1
If you print this out, you could use the little bullets as a checkoff place to help you know what has been completed.

Make sure student is taking AR tests. These will play a major role in grade assignments. Please email Mrs. Shoemaker at akshoemaker@lakesidechiefs.com or call her at 334.616.2661 if you experience problems logging on.

Open Court Reading: The Power of Music
o   Review vocabulary
o   Listen to the story online
o   Pay attention to highlighted vocabulary words while listening
o   Read the story aloud to someone
o   Read it silently
o   Complete workbook pages 157-164 and 167-170. Tear out and place in envelope to return.
o   4-square sentences using one vocabulary word in each. Remember we fold paper in fourths. One sentence goes in each box. Sentences should start with a capital letter, end with appropriate punctuation, have the vocabulary word spelled correctly and underlined. One vocabulary word in each of four total sentences. Place in envelope to return.
o   4-square sentences with spelling words. Same as above but two spelling words in each sentence for a total of four sentences. Place in envelope to return.
o   Spelling test: if they want to write the words in cursive after they take the test printing the words, they certainly may. (The children are accustomed to my grading our tests immediately and are always eager to know what they made. I have sent you grading scales in case you want to do this. You certainly do not have to. Challenge words do not count in the spelling grade.) Place in envelope to return.
o   No Open Court reading test

Saxon Math: In the work packet, you will find these lessons stapled together. You will also see a packet for this week labeled “adults only”. These are answer keys or directions I feel may help you. The children are accustomed to my grading our facts or tests immediately and are always eager to know what they made. I’ve sent you grading scales in case you want to do this. You certainly don’t have to.
This week, if you would like to skip the homework on the back of our math sheets, you may. Your decision.
o   Monday, April 27, Lesson 115-1 Multiplying by 6, Class Fact Practice 155-1 A, Fact Assessment 22-1
o   Tuesday, April 28, Lesson 115-2 Fact Assessment 22-2 (100 facts), Written Assessment 22
o   Wednesday, April 29, Lesson 116 Multiplying a single digit number and a multi-digit number, Class Fact Practice 116-A, Guided Class Practice 116-A
o   Thursday, April 30, Lesson 117 Multiplying by 6, Class Fact Practice 117-A
o   Friday, May 1, Lesson 118 Simplifying expressions containing parentheses, multiplying three or more factors, using the associative property of multiplication (directions are copied in your packet), Class Fact Practice 118-A, Guided Class Practice 118-A
o   Place all math in envelope to return.

Liberty’s Legacy: Unit 9, Veteran Tribute. Watch videos, complete workbook pages 19-20 and the vocabulary portion on p. 27. Don’t tear out these pages. This workbook will be returned to me May 4 (as of today’s writing. I’m sure it’s subject to change).

Handwriting: We are basically through with handwriting. As I’ve said before, I don’t have a copy of the handwriting workbook. In the months before school begins next year, try to practice cursive every once in a while. You can ask your child to write all the capital letters. Then another day, ask them to write all the lowercase letters, connecting each one to the next one. (They often forget to dot i’s and j’s and cross t’s.)

Journal:
o   Monday: Would you rather travel in space, see the Super Bowl, or be president for one day? Why?
o   Tuesday: If you wanted to earn $50.00, how could you do it?
o   Wednesday: What’s your most prized possession?
o   Thursday: What would you choose to come out of the school water fountain instead of water? Why?
o   Friday: Who is the funniest person you know and why are they funny?

Saturday, April 18, 2020

April 20-24 Learning Packet


Third Grade: April 20-24
If you print this out, you could use the little bullets as a checkoff place to help you know what has been completed.

You get a break this week!! Spelling words are a review from this whole unit. Also, a change in math. You’ll read about it below.

Make sure student is taking AR tests. These will play a major role in grade assignments. Please email Mrs. Shoemaker at akshoemaker@lakesidechiefs.com or call her at 334.616.2661 if you experience problems logging on.

Open Court Reading: So You Want to Be President?
o   Review vocabulary
o   Listen to the story online
o   Pay attention to highlighted vocabulary words while listening
o   Read the story aloud to someone
o   Read it silently
o   Workbook pages 149-150 and 151-152 are for timed reading. I’m not a big fan of timing (I’ve read too much research about the detrimental effects) but it’s something on grade level your child can read aloud to you for practice.
o   Complete workbook pages 153-156. Tear out and place in envelope to return.
o   4-square sentences using one vocabulary word in each. Remember we fold paper in fourths. One sentence goes in each box. Sentences should start with a capital letter, end with appropriate punctuation, have the vocabulary word spelled correctly and underlined. One vocabulary word in each of four total sentences. Place in envelope to return.
o   4-square sentences with spelling words. Same as above but two spelling words in each sentence for a total of four sentences. Place in envelope to return.
o   Spelling test: if they want to write the words in cursive after they take the test printing the words, they certainly may. (The children are accustomed to my grading our tests immediately and are always eager to know what they made. I’ve sent you grading scales in case you want to do this. You certainly don’t have to. Challenge words don’t count in the spelling grade.) Place in envelope to return.
o   No Open Court reading test

Saxon Math: In the work packet, you will find these lessons stapled together. You will also see a packet for this week labeled “adults only”. These are answer keys or directions I feel may help you. The children are accustomed to my grading our facts or tests immediately and are always eager to know what they made. I’ve sent you grading scales in case you want to do this. You certainly don’t have to.
This week, if you would like to skip the homework on the back of our math sheets, you may. Your decision.
o   Monday, April 20 Lesson 110-2 (Assessments/Tests) Complete Fact Assessment 21-2 and Written Assessment 21 (see answer sheet)
o   Tuesday, April 21 Lesson 111 (identifying a fractional part of a set and determining age) Guided Class Practice 111A (see answer sheet), Class Fact Practice 111A (see email for 25 math facts grading scale)
o   Wednesday, April 22 Lesson 112 (multiplying a one-digit number and a two-digit number using mental computation…directions are in your adult section…in mental math, children use different techniques. Your child may complete differently than you would and that’s ok…as long as the answer is accurate. It’s interesting to let them explain to you how they figure it out.) Guided Class Practice 112A (see answer sheet), Class Fact Practice 112A (see email for 25 math facts grading scale)
o   Thursday, April 23 Lesson 113 (Practice multiplying by 9 and by 4) Class Fact Practice 113A (see email for 25 math facts grading scale)
o   Friday, April 24 Lesson 114 (multiplying by 9) Class Fact Practice 114A (see email for 25 math facts grading scale)
o   Place all math in envelope to return.

Liberty’s Legacy: Unit 8, Military. Watch videos, complete workbook pages 17-18 and the vocabulary portion on p. 26. Don’t tear out these pages. This workbook will be returned to me May 4 (as of today’s writing. I’m sure it’s subject to change).

Handwriting: We are basically through with handwriting. As I’ve said before, I don’t have a copy of the handwriting workbook. In the months before school begins next year, try to practice cursive every once in a while. You can ask your child to write all the capital letters. Then another day, ask them to write all the lowercase letters, connecting each one to the next one. (They often forget to dot i’s and j’s and cross t’s.)

Journal:
o   Monday: What would you love to invent?
o   Tuesday: What’s your favorite outfit? Describe it for me head to toe.
o   Wednesday: Would you rather see a movie, a parade, or a magic show? Why?
o   Thursday: What’s your favorite candy? Why?
o   Friday: What’s under your bed right now?



Sunday, April 12, 2020

April 13-17 Learning Packet Directions

Third Grade: April 13-17
If you print this out, you could use the little bullets as a checkoff place to help you know what has been completed.

Open Court Reading: Marching with Aunt Susan
o   Review vocabulary
o   Listen to the story online
o   Pay attention to highlighted vocabulary words while listening
o   Read the story aloud to someone
o   Read it silently
o   Complete workbook pages 135-142, 145-148 Tear out and place in envelope to return.
o   4-square sentences using one vocabulary word in each. Remember we fold paper in fourths. One sentence goes in each box. Sentences should start with a capital letter, end with appropriate punctuation, have the vocabulary word spelled correctly and underlined. One vocabulary word in each of four total sentences. Place in envelope to return.
o   4-square sentences with spelling words. Same as above but two spelling words in each sentence for a total of four sentences. Place in envelope to return.
o   Spelling test: if they want to write the words in cursive after they take the test printing the words, they certainly may. If they balk, maybe they can write the odd numbered ones, or every third word.  (The children are accustomed to my grading our tests immediately and are always eager to know what they made. I’ve sent you grading scales in case you want to do this. You certainly don’t have to. Challenge words don’t count in the spelling grade.) Place in envelope to return.
o  No Open Court reading test. Make sure student is taking AR tests. These will play a major role in grade assignments.

Saxon Math: In the work packet, you will find these lessons stapled together. It may be easier to unstaple… your call. Friday, April 17, place in envelope to return. You will also see a packet for this week labeled “adults only”. These are answer keys I feel may help you. The children are accustomed to my grading our facts or tests immediately and are always eager to know what they made. I’ve sent you grading scales in case you want to do this. You certainly don’t have to.
o   Monday, April 13 Lesson 106 (adding money and writing checks). Complete Class Fact Practice 106A/B (see email for 30 math facts grading scale) Lesson Worksheet 106 (see answer sheet), Guided Class Practice 106A/B (see answer sheet)
o   Tuesday, April 14 Lesson 107 (drawing out pictures and writing number sentences for division story problems). Lesson Worksheet 107 (see answer sheet), Guided Class Practice 107A/B (see answer sheet), Class Fact Practice 107A/B (see email for 30 math facts grading scale)
o   Wednesday, April 15 Lesson 108 (writing number sentences for division story problems). Lesson Worksheet 108 (see answer sheet), Guided Class Practice 108A/B (see answer sheet), Class Fact Practice 108A/B (see email for 30 math facts grading scale)
o   Thursday, April 16 Lesson 109 (multiplying a multiple of 10, 100, or 1000 by a single digit number Example 8 x 1000 = 8000 you add the same number of zeroes to the single digit number). Class Fact Practice 109A/B (see email for 30 math facts grading scale… there are 29 problems but use the 30 scale), Guided Class Practice 109A/B (see answer sheet).
o   Friday, April 17 Lesson 110-1 (multiplying by 9). Class Fact Practice 110-1A/B (we never grade the first day of multiplication), Fact Assessment #21-1 (see email for 25 math facts grading scale).

Liberty’s Legacy: Unit 7 American Symbols and Monuments. Watch videos, complete workbook pages 15-16 and the vocabulary portion on p. 26. Don’t tear out these pages. This workbook will be returned May 4 (as of today’s writing. I’m sure it’s subject to change).

Journal:
o   Monday: Would you rather have Mary Poppins or Willy Wonka as your babysitter? Why?
o   Tuesday: What’s your favorite board game? Why do you like it?
o   Wednesday: If you could stay up all night, what would you like to do?
o   Thursday: What makes you feel better when you are sick?
o   Friday: Are you afraid of anything? What is it?

Sunday, April 5, 2020

April 6-9, 2020 Work Packet Information


April 6-April 9, 2020 THIRD GRADE
NO SCHOOL FRIDAY, APRIL 10 GOOD FRIDAY
All work is due Monday, April 13. You set the pace and the amount of work done each day. I emailed a sample schedule we follow every school day (without specials and lunch).
Open Court reading, language, and spelling:
Unit 5, Lesson 4
The United States Capitol, page 220
Your assignments this week are:
·        Review vocabulary.
·        Listen to the story and click on yellow highlighted vocabulary.
·        Read the story out loud once.
·        Read it silently several times before your test.
·        Complete pages 121-128 and 131-134 in our reading workbook.
·        4-Square vocab sentences: Fold notebook paper in quarters (hamburger hotdog folds). In each box, write a sentence using one vocabulary word. Underline the vocabulary word and spell it correctly. Start your sentences with capital letters and end with correct punctuation. If you have someone speaking in your sentence, use quotation marks correctly. I sent an email earlier with examples. When done, you will have four sentences. You may draw a picture under each sentence.
·        4-Square spelling sentences: Same as above but use two spelling words in each sentence. This is tricky and fun!
·        Spelling test and reading test

Saxon math:
Lessons 103, 104, 105-1 (Fact Assessment is highlighted in orange), 105-2 (Fact Assessment and Written Assessment are both highlighted in orange). Assessments are to be completed alone. I will email directions for Lesson 105-1 lesson’s worksheet.

Liberty’s Legacy:
Unit 6, American Figures
Watch the videos, complete vocabulary page 26 (send me a sceenshot of this), workbook pages 13-14, and the handout with questions (will be returned to me in the packet).

Journal:
Monday- If you could be one character in a movie, who would you be and why?
Tuesday- What were you like as a baby?
Wednesday-Where would you love to go on vacation?
Thursday- What does Easter mean to you? (If your family doesn’t celebrate Easter, write about spring!)
Send me a screenshot of one or all of these!

Handwriting:
Complete one page a day. You’ll laugh at this…. I don’t have a handwriting book with me and I can’t remember what page they’re on!!

Parents, do the best you can and be easy on yourself. This is not the time to worry and be anxious over school work. If it says use a red pencil and all you have left is blue, that’s fine. If you decide to do all the work on Monday and Tuesday, that’s fine.

Coach Caleb has made PE videos. They will be available on social media. Miss Janice has included music work for fun in our packets.

I met with Miss Emily, 4th grade teacher. I asked her what our children really really need to know before next school year. She said simply PLEASE have your child read, read, read, and memorize addition, subtraction, and multiplication facts. Memorize, not counting on fingers.

Students may color and decorate work envelopes. Please don’t use markers… they’re not Lysol friendly. These packets were prepared and left alone over three days to allow germs to go away!!! Don’t hesitate to text or call or email. Keep your eye out for our Zoom meeting invitation! Love you all!

Tuesday, March 17, 2020

Work Packet Information March 30-April 3, 2020


EDITED March 30, 2020 at 5:00pm
Dear Family,
READ ALL OF THIS CAREFULLY, PLEASE!
I’m not sending work for March 19 and 20. Consider it an early spring break! This work below is for March 30-April 3. This is unchartered territory for us so here we go!!
            It’s important we stay connected. I will use our Remind texting account to give information. No one sees your responses but me. You can access this letter from the Lakeside website lakesidechiefs.net. Go to About, then Faculty and Staff, then Suzann Tibbs, then Teacher Blog.
            I’m not assigning by the day of the week. I’ll let you determine what is done when. All work should be completed by Sunday, April 5 and saved to return to school when this crisis is over. Please don’t work ahead in the reading workbook!

Reading, Spelling, and English:
Open Court Unit 5, Lesson 3, How Congress Works (username and passwords are in binders)
Notice in Open Court’s Skill Practice workbook, the number of the unit and lesson are at the bottom of the page. This week the assignments are pages 107 to 120. Use the following link to listen to the story. Students should read the story several times. They will write sentences with the vocabulary words. Another day, write sentences with spelling words. You will administer a spelling test Friday if you wish. Extra activities are writing antonyms (opposites) and synonyms (the same) for our words.

Social Studies:
Liberty’s Legacy A Nation of Immigrants is the lesson this week. Go to the website below and watch the videos. Complete pages 11-12 as well as page 25 (vocabulary) in the workbook.

Math:
Saxon lessons 99 thru 102 are in this packet. Notice Lesson 100 is over two days (100-1 and 100-2). If it says assessment at the top right corner, it is to be done totally alone. Ideas: Use the plastic folder and dry erase pen to practice math. Put Saxon papers inside (if you do this, make sure they write the answers on the actual paper when done as it must be returned to school) or create math problems on paper, slip in the folder, they answer, erase and begin again! Multiplication facts need to be memorized. You can work on them all. There are too many free apps to list. We MUST memorize multiplication facts before we enter 4th grade.

Handwriting:
Your child may complete one page a day.

Journal:
Students write the date and write in their journal every day. Give them a topic (examples: what if I were home schooled, favorite book, what I would do with a million dollars, etc.).

AR:
We are unable to take AR tests at home. See email sent home March 30 for fabulous AR news! Yippeeee!

EXTRA WORK:
Your child may complete reading workbook pages prior to page 107. DO NOT WORK BEYOND PAGE 120!!

There are three pages included our binders that have fun, random activities to do. You may devise a way to select which ones.

Practice measuring with rulers, yardsticks, cups, teaspoons, etc.

Let them write letters to grandparents, aunts, uncles. We’ve learned the parts of a letter and how to address an envelope. Great practical application of knowledge!

If you find a good app, share with me and I’ll pass along. You all are in my thoughts and prayers. This, too, shall pass.          Miss Suzann 334.695.3764

Websites with activities:


Monday, March 16, 2020

March 16, 2020


March 16, 2020
Dear Family,
          Wow! Our world has gone a little crazy. We spent the morning talking about corona in an age appropriate way. I reassured our babies we are closing school to help us stay healthy. I encourage you to answer your child’s questions truthfully but without elaboration. Less is more. Answer only what they ask! (You can follow this advice about any of their life questions, by the way!)
We are in the midst of planning how we will continue with instruction after spring break. In the meantime, make sure you have your child’s login and password for Open Court and Accelerated Reader. If you don’t, let me know NOW. It will be very important for you to read our Remind texts while we are out. I can tell you now for math we need to spend time memorizing addition, subtraction, and multiplication facts. There are tons of fun resources online and I’ll share as I find them. I’ll be sending home Saxon worksheets as well.
          I’m keeping the school day as normal as possible. Yes, we will have reading and spelling tests Wednesday. I assure you it will be alright and don’t panic about grades.
           Our story is Every Vote Counts. We will study the prefixes ex, en/em, dis, and auto. We will continue subject and verb agreement (a weakness indicated on the results of last week test) and will review past, present, and future tense of verbs.
          In math we will learn about mixed numbers (example one and one half); measuring and drawing line segments to the nearest quarter inch; and multiplying by 4.
          Our book fair will continue thru Wednesday. Send money! Love you all, Miss Suzann

March 9, 2020


March 9, 2020
Dear Family,
            We are collecting boxes of granola bars for our SGA. These are due Friday. Thank you for already sending some!
            Our Book Fair begins this week. We will preview Thursday and begin purchasing Friday.
          Reading and spelling tests will be this Thursday, March 12. I will not be here Friday.       
We begin a new unit in reading: GOVERNMENT AT WORK. Our story is The Road to Democracy. We will learn about several prefixes. I’ve included a study guide for these. You can discuss these as your child studies spelling words. We will also review pronouns and learn about subject and verb agreement. Please make sure you are reviewing vocabulary words at home.
In math, we will continue work on multiplying by 3; learn units of weight and mass (ounces, pounds, tons, grams, kilograms); subtracting across zeroes; telling and showing time to the quarter hour; showing fractional amounts greater than one; and writing mixed numbers.
In social studies we will continue learning about America. This ties in with our reading unit!
Spring pictures are Thursday. Children may wear the outfit of their choice if they are not retaking their photo for the yearbook. Yearbook pictures require wearing uniforms.
Today was the last day to take AR tests. Report cards come home Friday. John Collin’s birthday is next Monday and we are having pizza at lunch.
Teaching and Loving Yours, Miss Suzann

Monday, March 2, 2020

March 2, 2020


March 2, 2020
Dear Family,
          Our story this week is Is This Panama? Since it’s the last story in this unit, our spelling words are all review. Your child should read our story every night.
          In math we are learning how to subtract 2 and 3 digit numbers; comparing and ordering fractions (1/2, 1/3, 1/4, 1/8); adding and subtracting these same fractions; and multiplying by 3.
          We are continuing to enjoy Liberty’s Legacy lessons in social studies!
          This week we are celebrating Dr. Seuss’ birthday and Read Across America. Tomorrow we wear uniforms and a Cat in the Hat hat. Wednesday we will dress patriotically (no uniform). Friday we will wear crazy socks!
          Spring pictures are being rescheduled due to exams.
          Last day to take an AR test is Monday, March 9. The end of the third nine weeks is Tuesday, March 10. Report cards come home Friday, March 13.
          Next week we will have our reading and spelling tests on Thursday, March 12.
          Teaching and Loving Yours, Miss Suzann

Wednesday, February 26, 2020

Dr. Suess Week

Monday-no dress up day listed.  School uniform.
Tuesday-no dress up day listed.  School uniform.
Wednesday-  Everyone wears either RED or BLUE or anything patriotic.  Uniform not required.
Thursday-no dress up day listed.  School uniform.
Friday-uniform not required, wear crazy socks or mixed colors of socks.

Monday, February 24, 2020

February 24, 2020


February 24, 2020
Dear Family,
          Our story this week is Ecosystem Invaders. We are really enjoying this unit on animals. I have a room full of zoologists! We will learn about roots of words ast (star), graph (write), log (word or study), and scop (see).
          In math, we are learning how to estimate and find the area of a triangle; finding the sum of 3 addends; dividing by 2 and 5; and working backwards to solve a problem. I love Saxon math and am amazed at what our children have learned.
          In social studies, we will continue our work with Liberty’s Legacy. We will also talk about imports and exports for our great state of Alabama.
          I’m sure you’ve noticed we are writing our spelling words in cursive after we print them. Help your child remember to dot the i’s and cross the t’s.
          Next week is Read Across America Week. Look out for information posted on social media. Tuesday, March 3 we will wear The Cat in the Hat hats. Wednesday, March 4 we will wear patriotic, red, or blue clothes. Friday, March 6 is crazy socks day! Fun fun fun!
          Teaching and Loving Yours, Miss Suzann

Wednesday, February 19, 2020

February 19, 2020


February 19, 2020
Dear Family,
          I cannot begin to tell you how proud I am of our class! Yesterday’s field trip was wonderful. We had so many adults comment on our behavior. Thank you to Mindy Mogren, Gina Nixon, and Becky McPherson for driving us! We won two magnolia trees our city horticulture department will come help us plant on our campus. The tree our children brought home is a peppermint crepe myrtle. Keep it outside in water if you don’t have time to plant it yet. I’d start it out in a pot then transfer it to your yard next spring.
          Our story is Amazing Animals and we love it. We are learning about the suffixes -ness and -er. Content words (words having to do with a certain subject) and base words are also in our skills for the week. We are reviewing subject (what or who the sentence is about) and predicate (what the subject does).
          In math, we are learning to multiply by 0 and 5; commutative property (5x2 and 2x5 are the same as well as 3+4 and 4+3); measuring with feet, yards, meters; number of inches in a foot and yard, centimeters in a meter; making and drawing arrays (a design that depicts a multiplication fact… 3x2 would be shown with 3 rows of 2).
          In social studies, we are learning about producers and consumers. We start our Liberty’s Legacy books this week, too!
          Looking ahead, the first week in March we will celebrate Dr. Suess’ birthday. Tuesday, March 3, we will wear Cat in the Hat hats if you want to buy one or make one. March 4, Wednesday, we wear patriotic clothes or red or blue. Friday, March 6, we wear crazy socks.
Loving and Teaching Yours, Miss Suzann

Thursday, February 13, 2020

Arbor Day Field Trip February 18, 2020


Presidents’ Day, Monday, February 17: NO SCHOOL


Field Trip Tuesday, Tuesday, February 18: We are going to the Arbor Day celebration downtown at the farmer’s market. We will wear uniforms. Check the weather and add outer wear accordingly. There is a cover overhead but it’s outside. We will leave school at 9:20. Gina Nixon, Mindy Mogren, and Becky McPherson are driving us. The program starts at 10:00 and you all are welcome to attend. We will go to Burger King afterwards to eat and play. Students will need money to purchase their own lunch. We are not preordering. We should be back at school around 12:00 or 12:30.

Monday, February 10, 2020

February 10, 2020


February 10, 2020
Dear Family,
          FIELD TRIP TOMORROW! Becky McPherson is driving us to the community center. We will leave at 9: 10. You are invited to attend the Liberty’s Legacy kickoff celebration at 9:30am. It will last about an hour then we will return to school for our normal lunch, etc. Wear school uniforms. You are welcome to come get your child from the program if you’re traveling to the LSC basketball game.
          Our story is Albert Einstein and the Mighty Ants. Our suffixes are -ion, -tion, -sion, and -al. I was so pleased with our spelling grades last week! Some of those words were HARD. We will also learn more about capitalization and commas.
          In math, we will learn how to find the square root of a perfect square (the answers to 1x1, 2x2, 3x3, etc.); area of a square; adding money using a decimal; reading temperature on the Celsius scale (Wait until you see our temperature chart we’ve been working on since January! We are great scientists and mathematicians!); and identifying the number of days in months and a year. Continue to practice addition and subtraction facts as well as multiplication.
          In social studies, we will begin learning about population of geographical areas and reasons it varies through history. And of course, we will focus on fun lessons provided by Liberty’s Legacy (which is correlated to Alabama standards).
          Friday we will celebrate Valentine’s Day…twice! Jenni Brooks is bringing lunch for us so we will not be going to the lunchroom. Then at 1:20, we are partying again! Gina Nixon and Jenni are our hearts for planning this!
          Looking ahead! Put these field trip dates on your calendar:
February 18: Arbor Day celebration downtown; lunch at Burger King; Mindy Mogren, Gina Nixon, and Becky McPherson are driving us. We will read our poem aloud. I’d rather you spend time memorizing math facts than our poem.
March 20: Farm Day behind Eufaula Elementary School. We will all need a lunch from home. You are welcome to come spend the morning with us 9:00-11:30. We will rotate stations to learn about poultry, row crops, fruits & vegetables, animals, equipment, and fisheries. Thank you, Allie Logan with the Barbour County Extension service. Transportation TBD.
April 15: Liberty’s Legacy Celebration at the city auditorium. The program is 12:30-1:30 and you are invited to attend. Transportation TBD.

Teaching and Loving Yours,
Miss Suzann

Monday, February 3, 2020

February 3, 2020


February 3, 2020
Dear Family,
            Our story this week is A Saguaro’s Story. We will learn about the suffixes      -ful, -less, -able, and -ity. We will also review abbreviations. Every morning, we have a Daily Language Review. I am pleased at our growth. Dialogue is tricky… we forget quotation marks and commas.
            In math, we will learn ordinal numbers (first, fifteenth, etc.); reading and writing money amounts to $1,000; writing checks; counting out coins; subtracting 7, 8, and 9; drawing a picture or table to simplify a problem; and predict by collecting data. CONTINUE WORKING ON MULTIPLICATION FACTS!
            In social studies we are talking about ways our environment is affected by humans. We will begin our work with Liberty’s Legacy this month! This is a fantastic program. We will learn about citizenship and our country. The kickoff for all local third graders is Tuesday, February 11, at 9:30 at the community center. Becky McPherson is driving us over. We should be back on campus before 11:00. April 15 we will attend our celebration at the city auditorium. I need each child’s t-shirt size ASAP. You may text me or send a note. Be sure to indicate youth or adult sizes.
            We wrote our spelling words in cursive on our test! Some of us enjoyed this thoroughly…. Some did not! Bless! I graded the printed manuscript version.
            February 18 we will travel to our farmer’s market for the Arbor Day celebration. We need to memorize the poem “Trees are the Kindest Things I Know” located in your child’s binder. They will say this with me as I am the tree annually at this event! Thank you to those volunteering to drive. We will have lunch at Burger King. No preordering…they may order what they like. Details coming home soon about this trip.
            On-line Book Club orders are due Monday, February 10.
            Flu is making a comeback in our room. We are continuing to wipe down desks. I spray every afternoon and morning. Remind your baby we need to cough and/or sneeze down into our shirts!
            Teaching and Loving Yours, Miss Suzann

Monday, January 27, 2020

January 27, 2020


January 27, 2020
Dear Family,
            Honors Day is tomorrow. Lower school will be recognized at 8:15 in the gym. Your child has a slip of paper in his/her binder if he/she is receiving a certificate.
We have new reading books! Please try to cover these books so they’ll look nice for future classes. Many of our students use the stretchy knit covers sold at Wal-Mart. You will need the size for 8.5x11 inch books. Our story this week is The City Mouse and the Country Mouse. We will learn about the suffixes (end of the word… remember supper comes at the end of the day, a suffix comes at the end of a word) -y, -ly, -ment, and -ive. We will review -er and -est.
            In math we will learn about comparing fractions with denominators of 2, 3, and 6; adding and subtracting these same fractions; writing fractions to show part of a whole; subtracting 5 and 6; reading and writing Roman numerals to 31; and adding three-digit numbers. Continue memorizing multiplication facts 1, 2, and 7. Fives are coming soon!
            We are enjoying social studies! We can locate places on the map using latitude and longitude. We will learn about the continents this week.
            We will no longer be able to get seconds at lunch unless we pay for an additional meal. Pizza day is an exception.
            Thank you to those volunteering to drive on our field trip February 18.
            Loving and Teaching Yours,
            Miss Suzann

Tuesday, January 21, 2020

January 21, 2020


January 21, 2020
Dear Family,
          Brrrrrrrrrr! I hope you enjoyed your long weekend.
          This week we will read Arbor Day Square. With no new grammar skills this week, we will review adverbs and adjectives. Our spelling words are all review as well.
          Speaking of Arbor Day, I am planning a field trip February 18 to the farmers’ market downtown for our city’s 10:00am celebration of trees! Please let me know this week if you would like to drive. Details will come home later.
          In math, we will continue working on multiplying by 2; drawing and reading a line graph; telling and showing time to the minute; rounding to the nearest hundred; and estimating sums and differences of three-digit numbers. Continue to practice facts daily!
          Friday, January 24, is the 100th day of school. Please let your child count out 100 items… anything that will fit in a Ziplock bag (M&M’s, Q-tips, pennies, raisins, buttons, etc.) and bring to school. If they would like, they may dress as an elderly person!
          We will continue our study of maps and globes. A study guide is coming home today to help you if you’ve forgotten terms associated with both. I don’t have a date for our test yet. I need to make sure those who’ve been sick are caught up.
          Teaching and Loving Yours, Miss Suzann

Monday, January 13, 2020

4 IMPORTANT THINGS


1.  Monday, January 13 we will be taking a school wide photo and possible video.  All students, faculty and staff will participate.  Faculty and staff should wear a blue or white top.  K-9 students should wear either blue, white, or plaid uniform. No black, no gray. Preschool and 10-12 should wear a blue or white top. Please communicate this information with your parents by adding to your newsletter, blog or remind account.  We appreciate your cooperation as we kick off a new marketing campaign and gear up for open enrollment.

2. Third grade will be able to buy Chik-fil-a biscuits Tuesdays and Thursdays before school. The sausage or bacon biscuit is $2.50. The chicken biscuit is $3.00. This is a fundraiser for the junior class. When the announcement is made, they may walk to Kim Beaty’s room to purchase their breakfast. Fourth grade has already been participating so they can guide us. They will eat outside then return to the academic center. This will need to take place before the war chant starts at 7:45am.

3. Fridays are our new Show and Tell day. Apparently, we have tons we want to show! Students may bring anything that will fit in their bookbag to show the class. Please don’t send anything irreplaceable.


4. If you’re having trouble logging on to the new AR site, please email Mrs. Shoemaker at akshoemaker@lakesidechiefs.com.

                                                       Thank you! Miss Suzann

January 13, 2020


Dear Family,                                                                                               January 13, 2020
            Count your blessings if the flu hasn’t hit your household! We’ve had some sick children. Every afternoon I’m wiping desks and chairs with Clorox wipes. I started spraying the room with Lysol last week and will continue as Flu B is airborne. We are coughing and sneezing into the inside of our shirts!!
            This week our story is The Dancing Bird of Paradise. We will learn about words with the same base word or root word.  Some of us didn’t do as well last week on our reading test. I don’t know if we were getting over the holidays or getting sick! I’ve added points to your child’s grade because maybe I didn’t teach the material as well as I should’ve. Your child needs to read the story every night….from the book, not a device. Research shows comprehension is better when pages are turned. It also helps them remember where certain information is in the story. Our tests are open book so reading from the actual text helps.
            I am so pleased with our math successes! Mrs. Teresa Manning from the upper school visited us and taught us “Around the World” to better learn our facts. She reminded us in math we must be accurate, not necessarily fast. I’m adding a bit of time to our timed test to alleviate any anxiety. Continue to push for one minute on 25 facts. This week we will begin subtracting two-digit numbers; writing to 1,000 using words; adding and subtracting multiples of 100; multiplying by 2; and patterns.
            We start social studies today! We will begin with comparing maps and globes, a compass rose, and intermediate directions (southwest, northeast, etc.).
            Only 6th-12th grades may have smart watches or cellphones at school (page 23 of our handbook).
                                                Teaching and Loving Yours,
                                                                        Miss Suzann

Monday, January 6, 2020

January 6, 2020


Dear Family,                                                                January 6, 2020
          Happy New Year! I was so glad to see my third graders’ smiling faces this morning! I hope you all enjoyed your break from routine.
          This week our story is The Cherokee: Gold and Tears. Vocabulary and spelling words are in our binders.
          In math we will learn how to square numbers; identify perfect squares; find the area of a square; simplifying with exponents of 2; writing 3 and 4 digit numbers; using base ten blocks; subtracting 3 and 4; following a recipe; setting a dial; and elapsed time. You will notice these were my plans for the week before Christmas. I guess I forgot not much is accomplished before a big holiday! Keep practicing addition facts and multiplication (0’s, 1’s, 2’s, and 7’s).
          We will finish up some science this week (force and motion) then move on to social studies.
          Report cards come home Thursday. Bailyn is providing lunch for us Friday for her birthday!
                                                 Teaching and Loving Yours,
                                                                   Miss Suzann