Dear Students, Parents and Friends,
Welcome to Third Grade! I am happy to have you all ‘in my class’! We have a lot to look forward to this year and I hope that you are ready to take on all the fun adventures we will go on together.
What is Third Grade all about?
Wikipedia describes it as follows:
“In the United States, Third grade (called Grade 3 in some regions) is a year of primary education. It is the third school year after kindergarten. Students are usually 8–9 years old.
• In mathematics, students are usually introduced to multiplication and division facts, place value to thousands or ten thousands, and estimation. Decimals (to tenths only) are sometimes introduced. Students begin to work on problem-solving skills working to explain their thinking in mathematical terms.
• In reading, third grade students begin working more on text comprehension han decoding strategies. Students also begin reading harder chapter books. They read and distinguish between a variety of genres: Realistic Fiction, Non-Fiction, Poetry, Fantasy, Historical Fiction, and Folk tales.
• Grade 3 students learn how to work on projects on their own and with others. Social skills, empathy and leadership are considered by many educators to be as important to develop as the hard skills of reading, writing and arithmetic.”
I believe that Third Grade is a transitional year and it is a wonderful time of growth . . . out of all the grades I have worked with, it’s my favorite! Third Grade is a time when students start to become more independent. It’s a time when homework becomes more meaningful and connected to the work we are doing in school. It’s the time we have eagerly awaited for to learn how to write in cursive and to memorize multiplication and division facts. Third Grade is about discovering the world around us through science and social studies. It’s about learning how to work cooperatively in a group and how to listen and to think about we are listening to in order to be successful. Third Grade is about building on our
vocabulary skills so that we can curl up with a book just because we want to! Third Grade students change so much from the little people who arrive in August to the big kids who head off to into Fourth Grade in June . . . their body language somehow says, “I’m on my way now . . . don’t worry about me!”
We will be busy this year in my classroom and I will be in constant communication with you about what my expectations are. Homework will come home in the form of a weekly packet which will include a letter from me. Students are expected to do ten minutes of math work, ten minutes of writing, and ten minutes of reading on Monday through Thursday evenings. All homework will be followed up on in the morning of the next day. Students who do not come to school prepared will be expected to complete the assignments during recess or other free time.
All math homework is directly related to the lesson that has been taught during the math period that day.
Writing homework will be shared with the group and is meant to be practice writing short responses to a prompt. I believe that students are not asked to practice writing nearly enough . . . so, like reading, it needs to happen frequently and for many different reasons . . . the more writing we do, the better writers we become. My expectations for the writing will change as the year progresses . . . always I will be looking for creative and thoughtful responses. As we become more comfortable with the process, I will be looking for clearer focus and accurate grammar usage and mechanics.
Reading at home should be fun and easy! It’s a time to model how literacy is just as important at home as it is in school. It’s a time to turn off the TV. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if everyone in your home was willing to participate in reading so that it does not feel like a chore for your Third Grader, but more like a family event!
I would like to thank you in advance for all the support I know you will be giving to your student over the year. Please know that I am available at any time to support you! My school e-mail is aharlow@wnesu.net. Feel free to make arrangements to volunteer in the classroom, I am so happy to have parents involved in what happens here in school.
Let’s have a great year!
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