Wow! We are already done with our second week of 3rd grade! We started teaching reading this week, so the students had a full schedule. They are handling the rigors of third grade wonderfully, and are doing their best to meet expectations. I would like to mention that this is the second week in a row that the students in my class were able to earn a reward for their behavior! On Backpack Night, you may have noticed the word "COMMUNITY" on the blackboard. This is our way of keeping track of classroom behavior. If by the end of the week the have kept (or earned back) all of the letters, the students will get a small reward on Monday. Please compliment your child on this accomplishment. It is a team effort to keep all of their letters!
I am also excited to report that our classroom Smart Board is up and running. This is such an engaging and educational tool. We've only been using it for the past couple of days, and we are all enjoying it so much! I am looking forward to finding new ways to use it during lessons!

Friday Folders
I know there were notes upon notes in the Friday Folder this week. I just want to point out a few.

• PTA sent a note looking for volunteers to the various events that we do at C. R. Hanna. If you are wanting to be involved in that, take a look at the information that they sent.
• Our first Scholastic Book Order was sent home as well! I attached a note to it that shows how to order books online. Please have your orders in by Friday, August 31st.
• Market Day orders were also in the Friday Folders. 
• Our first reading record went home in this Friday Folder. Throughout next week, please keep track of our child's reading. They will need to read for at least 15 minutes each week night. If your child's reading teacher sends their book home to read, this can count toward their reading record. Please send the signed and filled out reading record to school with your child on Tuesday, September 4th (no school Monday). Please let me know if you have any questions about this.

The Week Ahead
English: We will continue our unit on sentences. Next week will include lessons about commands and exclamations and the subject of a sentence.
Math: In math we will learn to divide squares into two and four equal parts, compare values of sets of coins, Add 10 to two digit numbers, use mental computation, and more.
Reading: My reading class will be reading a wonderful story called, Pepita Talks Twice. We will also continue practicing our new reading skills that we learned last week. We will practice the appropriate ways to read to ourselves, and read to someone. We will discuss what it means to listen to reading. The spelling list for next week is up on Spelling City. It is listed as Lesson 2. Let me know if  you have any problems finding the list.
Science: Last Friday we started an experiment to see what would happen to plants that were given either no light or no water. We have been recording observations and will continue recording observations for one more week. We will then draw conclusions (and possibly attempt to save the withering plants).
Social Studies: This past week, we learned to read a map. We also learned about countries and continents. We learned a rap about the continents and had fun singing it several times at the end of a school day. Next week, we will do a little group work with maps, and then we will move on to more specific aspects of communities.

I hope everyone has a great weekend. I am looking forward to starting week three! Please feel free to e-mail me at bcalcott@orionschools.us if you have any questions or concerns.