Dear Third Grade Parents,

I hope all is well.  I just wanted to remind all parents that tomorrow is a mass day and then the third graders will be celebrating the Sacrament of Reconciliation at 9:30 as well.  With these two visits to church at the start of our week, it can only be a fantastic start to the day and the week.

Tuesday will be the due date for all of the third graders Earth Day Recycled Art Projects.  I can hardly wait to see all of the projects and the clever ideas of our third graders.

Tuesday is promising to be an "out of this world" day.  Mrs. Goldman and Mrs. Koresaar have teamed up to create a few art projects to kick off our science unit of study on the universe and our solar system.  A BIG thank you to these creative ladies for taking my simple little ideas and making them into something I could only imagine.  It should be a fun afternoon of creativity, learning and possibly making a little mess.

Please be sure to  check this week's Curriculum Update below.  Thank you and enjoy the rest of your sunny weekend.

Curriculum Update for the Week of April 6, 2014:

Religion:  Begin Chapter 18- Celebrating Penance and Reconciliation: God is our Forgiving Father, the parts of the Sacrament of Reconciliation

Math:  Compare Units of Fractions; Introduce Equivalence;  Review division facts of 2, 3, 4, and 5

Language Arts:  Unit 5 Vocabulary Workshop Quiz tomorrow;  Continue review of verbs: helping and main verbs; Review subjects and verbs; Begin unit on Nouns;  Writing:  Begin brainstorming for Earth Day themed Paragraph;  Spelling Test on Friday

Reading:  Guided Reading Groups:  Group 1:  Finish reading and discussing "The Wizard of Oz";  Group 2:  Continue to read and Discuss "The Hundred Dresses"- Chapters 4-7;  Whole Group Reading:  Begin close reading of the Tall Tale, "John Henry" and another tall tale on "Stormalong and the Octopus"

Social Studies:  Continue chapter 10:  Read and discuss a short article on Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin; Freedom of Religion- the Pilgrims and the Puritans; Freedom for all- the Civil War and Equal rights for women

Science:  Begin chapter 7:  What is a star; The solar system - the inner planets and the outer planets

As you can see, there is a great deal of learning in third grade this week.  I am looking forward to it and I know the class will enjoy this week's topics.  Have a fantastic week and thank you for everything you do to help make Stella Maris Academy an amazing place to learn.  Take care and God bless!

Sincerely,
Ms. Eileen Griffin
Your Third Grade Teacher