Welcome Parents!

Miss Kennedys 3rd Grade Curriculum Night Class

Chattahoochee Elementary School 2013-2014 Feel free to walk around the class and check things out while we wait to begin. If you have any questions, please use the index card on your childs desk to write it down. I will answer via email tomorrow.

Tonights Agenda
A Little About Me! Our Day: How we spend our time together. My Behavior Plan: Banking on Good Behavior, Clip Moves, FUN Friday and Warm Fuzzies! Brain Based Learning: How I teach to the individual needs of the students. Looking Ahead: What is in store for the students and the AKS. Grading Policy and Testing Dates Additional Information: Where you can find all the information you need!

I have a Bachelor of Science Degree in Human Ecology: Child and Family Studies from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. and a Masters Degree in Elementary Education. I am originally from Chattanooga, Tennessee and have lived in the Atlanta area since 2004. I moved from Woodstock to the Buford area four years ago in order pursue a classroom teaching position. I am single, with no children; unless you count my sweet and very fluffy puppy Chandler.

A Little About Ms. Kennedy

Did I mention that I am a UT fan? GO VOLS!

Our Day
7:45 - 8:30 8:30 - 9:00 9:00 - 9:45 9:45 - 10:30 10:30 - 11:00 11:00 - 11:30 11:30 - 11:45 11:45 - 12:45 12:50 - 1:35 1:35 - 2:30 2:30 - 2:45 2:45 - 3:00

Arrival & Morning Work Grammar & Spelling Writer's Workshop Science/Social Studies/Health Lunch Recess Calendar Math Math Specials Reader's Workshop (Snack) Agenda & Pack-Up Release Work & Dismissal

My Behavior Plan
Banking On Good Behavior: Students have the ability to earn money for good individual behavior and for classroom job performance. They may spend this money for things such as reading time with a friend, bringing in an item for Show-and-Tell, sitting in the Authors Chair or having lunch with a friend and myself. Fun Friday: The students may earn a 20 minute session of fun and games with good class behavior. Warm Fuzzies: Anytime the class receives a compliment from another teacher or administrator, they get a warm fuzzy. Once the class has received 30 warm fuzzies they will be earn a compliment party. The students will be allowed to vote on their type of party.

My Behavior Plan
PAWSITIVE Behavior: I have developed a chart, which hangs in the classroom, for the students to track their behavior throughout the day. Anytime I have to speak with a student about their behavior, they will move their clip. If a student has a PAWSITIVE moment, meaning they go above and beyond in behavior or citizenship, they will be able to move their clip up! However, if there are any behavior issues I will document that in their Choice Card, which comes home on Fridays. This is also a part of my Banking on Good Behavior system! Each day is a new day! Every student begins on Green!

Brain Based Learning

My Implementation
Homework: I assign homework on a daily basis with a certain timeframe in mind. Homework is essential for practice and solidifying what was learned during the day at school. Healthy Eating: I encourage my students to bring in healthy snacks and lunches to trigger brain power and energy. Taking the Time: For the first few weeks, I will take time to really get to know my students. This allows me to better recognize moments of stress and/or frustration. Organizing: I teach the students a variety of organizational skills in order to help keep them prepared and their stress down! This is a daily process and we need YOUR help. Brain Breaks: I use a variety of methods throughout the year. We will begin with a simple 30 Second Dance Break! Individualized Care: I take the individual students needs into consideration when developing lessons and incorporate a variety of ways for the students to learn and show what they know!

Readers Workshop Students read a variety of texts for both pleasure and purpose. They use a variety of strategies for support when they encounter difficult texts. Strategies include retelling, summarizing/paraphrasing, and using evidence from the text to support their inferences. Students make and defend opinions about a text. 3rd graders are expected to read grade-level texts with appropriate accuracy, speed, and expression in order to effectively comprehend what they read.

All About Language Arts!

Independent Reading: The students will spend up to 20 minutes each day reading independently in either the Book Nook or in their Comfort Zones. Guided Reading: I will meet with each group several times per week for small group guidance. These groups will also meet without the teacher.

All About Language Arts!

Writers Workshop By the end of this school year, students should be able to write fiction and nonfiction stories and reports with well-defined ideas and organizational structures. Third graders use the elements of writing style, such as audience awareness, voice, and rich, descriptive language, to make their writing interesting and informative. They use grade-appropriate grammar, spelling, capitalization, and punctuation in their writing and revise and edit their own work.

Mini-Lesson: Whole class activity that usually lasts 10-15 minutes.

Write and Confer: Students have time to work on a writing assignment. There will be times when they work with their classmates and times of independent writing as well. I will conference with each child weekly. Sharing: Authors Chair

All About Language Arts!

Spelling, Word Study, Grammar and Vocabulary By the end of the year, students should be able to read and spell common sight words. During the third grade year, teachers assess students knowledge of these words and their ability to use them easily in their reading and writing. Focus Words: Students will have fifteen words per week that they focus on. These words will be chosen based on the current phonic skill and vocabulary across all content area. Weekly Practice: Students have Spelling Spirals in the classroom that they will use weekly to assist in learning the spelling of their focus words. Additionally, they will have weekly homework assignments to complete.

All About Math!

Mondays and Wednesdays Review work and new concepts will typically be covered as a whole group. I will often begin with a hands-on activity and follow it up with practice work and educational activites/games. Tuesdays and Thursdays The students will be broken up into math groups for differentiated instruction. Each Tuesday and Thursday, we have Math Centers. The students rotate every 15-20 minutes so that I may best reach the needs of each individual student while working through our math curriculum. Fridays Fridays will be a day for projects, group learning and Mimio reviews. I will sometimes simply run centers on these days, depending on the progress of the class, but these will typically be days for whole-class guidance. Every other Friday will be an Exemplar day! Exemplars are a great way for students to communicate thoughts regarding mathematical problems.

Coming Up in Math!
Operations and Algebraic Thinking Interpret Products of Whole Numbers Interpret Whole-Number Quotients Apply Multiplication and Division Number and Operations Base Ten Use Place Value to Round Add and Subtract Fluently Multiples of Ten Number and Operations: Fractions Model and Explain Fractions Explain Equivalence of Fractions Express Whole Numbers as Fractions Compare Two Fractions Measurement and Data Elapsed Time Time to the Nearest Minute Measure Liquid Volumes & Masses Measuring Lengths to Nearest Quarter Inch Find the Area of Objects Multiply Side Lengths Geometry Identify, Draw and Examine Quadrilaterals Compare and Contrast Partition Shapes into Parts

Rotation Social Studies and Science are rotated every four and a half weeks because the curriculum is a bit thicker and needs extra time for absorption. Vocabulary During Social Studies instruction, students will be practicing their dictionary skills by looking up vocabulary words for each chapter and/or lesson. We ill be putting into practice speaking, reading and writing our definitions to help us truly learn! Hands-On We will have a few different projects and experiments throughout the year in order to gain a better understanding of the world around us!

All About Social Studies & Science!

Map and Globe Skills Characteristics of Science Roots of Our Democracy Importance of Curiosity, Honesty, Openness and Skepticism in Information Process Skills Science Our Economy Life and Times of Historical Figures Paul Revere, Frederick Douglass, Susan B. Anthony, Mary McLeod Bethune, Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt and More! Earth Science Physical Attributes of Rocks and Soils Physical Science Heating and Cooling and Magnets Life Science Habitats and Effects of Pollution

Coming Up in Social Studies & Science!

Agendas: We spend 10 minutes each day writing in our agendas as a class. This helps the students know how to keep themselves organized. I only place a sticker in a students agenda once they have everything written down properly and have everything they need on their desks, Extra Paper: There is extra notebook paper in your childs binder for completing assignments at home. A Spot for Everything: The room is clearly labeled and setup so the students never need to worry about where things go. At Home: Your child needs to have a quiet place to complete their school work each night. Also, make sure your child has everything they need for school packed up and ready before they go to bed at night. This will help keep their stress down in the morning also!

Keeping Organized

Grading Policy
Electronic report cards will come home at the end of each nine weeks. A mid-term report will also be sent home every six weeks to inform you of your child's progress in all the academic areas.
For more information, please check your sheet inside your folder for specific weight percentages.

rd 3

Grade Testing
CogaAT (Cognitive Abilities Test) September 16th 18th ITBS (Iowa Test of Basic Skills) October 21st 25th CRCT (Criterion Referenced Competency Test) April 23rd 29th

Communication
Please make sure to keep in touch with me!
There is A LOT of information located on the blog. I will have a new post each Friday for you. I also update the homework tab each night! Please make sure to check it out.

The Blog

I check my email each morning before school and each afternoon before leaving. Please feel free to contact me anytime!

Email

You can leave me notes inside your childs agenda. I only check these at the end of the day, however.

Notes in Agenda

Communication
Grab your phone!

Thank you for coming!

Its going to be a RIDICULOUSLY AWESOME Year!