Science Project - Famous Structures

On Tuesday, I sent home an outline for our science project, in which students are to research a famous structure from around the world and prepare an oral presentation. If you have not yet seen this project, it should be in your child's bag, and is also outlined here:

Science Project - Famous Structures

The majority of the mark for students will be based on the oral presentation, which should show how much they actually know about their structure. Please note that the due date on the form is Tuesday, February 25th. Since the school will be closed next Tuesday due to strike action, the project will be due Wednesday the 26th instead. We will be talking about how to do an oral presentation effectively on Monday to review the concepts. It is important that children practice their presentation at home so they are prepared when it is their turn. 

Please sign and return the oral presentation rubric after you have reviewed it. If you have any questions about the project, please feel free to contact me. Thank you!

Multiplying in Parts

This week we have been learning how to multiply unfamiliar facts or larger numbers by breaking down the factors into parts which we know how to multiply. Sounds confusing right? Not the way I learned how to multiply! Well, it turns out it is pretty easy.

When we break down factors (the numbers we are multiplying together) into smaller amounts, and then add the products, it can be easier to multiply. This is essentially the same as what we are doing when we use the traditional method of multiplication, which is why we teach this to students first. It helps students to understand there is more than one way to multiply.

Here is an example. I want to multiply 7 x 5. I haven't learned my 7 times tables yet, but I know a few "tricks" to help me multiply. I have learned the zero trick, the ones, trick, the tens and the elevens. I also know that counting by 5's and 2's is really easy. That takes care of a number of basic facts. So, I can think to myself, "What can I break 7 down into so that it is easy for me to multiply?".

The best, or easiest solution would be to break down the 7 into a 5 and a 2. So, I would multiply 5 x 5, and then 2 x 5, and add the answers together. 5 x 5 = 25 and 2 x 5 = 10, so my answer would be 25 + 10 = 35. Yes, a roundabout way to do it, and certainly not as efficient as memorizing your basic facts, but a helpful strategy when we are stuck.

This is especially helpful as we get into larger numbers. For example, if I want to find 23 x 4, then I can break these down into 10 x 4 and 10 x 4 and 3 x 4, which is 40 + 40 +12, or 92. We can break numbers into as many smaller amounts as we wish.

The problem many students face when doing this type of strategy is determining the easiest and most efficient way to break down the numbers. I try to remind them to break the numbers down in to the ones that they know multiplication facts for. So if they do not know 3 x 4, then finding another way may be better for them. For example, they may break it down into 3 x 2 and 3 x 2.

Here is a link from MathUp, that may help explain this better than I can!

Multiplying in Parts

Valentine's Day Celebration

On Thursday, February 13th, our class will have a small Valentine's celebration in our classroom. Students can bring a valentine for classmates if they wish, but of course this is completely optional. If you choose to bring a valentine, I would ask that you provide enough valentine's for each child in our class. We have 21 students. To make it easy, students can just write "From (name)" on their cards. Alternatively, try using our class photo to ensure you have all the students. There were 3 students away for our class photo.

I will provide treats for the class for the celebration, to ensure that all items are safe for students in our class. If you wish to send a small gift, please consider a pencil or sticker rather than a food item, as we have a few students in our class with severe food allergies.

I hope everyone has a Happy Valentine's Day and I thank you for your continued support. If you have any questions, please feel free to write a note in your child's agenda. Thank you!

Learning About Multiplication & Division

In math recently we have been studying multiplication and division. We have been trying to learn our basic facts all year, through listening to Mr. Demaio's songs on Youtube, or by learning the "tricks" to help us remember our basic facts.

Although learning the basic facts is very important, it is also extremely important for students to understand what multiplication and division actually mean - i.e. adding or subtracting equal groups/amounts repeatedly.

In our program, we begin learning about multiplication as adding equal groups. We practice drawing both equal groups of objects as well as arrays to represent multiplication equations. Our first lesson is summarized in this link:

Multiplication lesson 1

Our next lesson focused on using number lines to demonstrate repeated addition. Students were urged to recognize that the "hops" on the number line had to be equal in size, and we had to count the number of hops to find our solution. Here is a summary of the lesson:

Multiplication lesson 2

After these two lessons, we began learning about division. This was actually a little easier for students to understand because they had developed a good understanding of equal groups from the multiplication lessons. We try to emphasize that in division, we are beginning with a large group and then sharing those items among groups equally. We also introduced the idea of remainder as the amount "left over" if we can't make another equal group. Here is the summary for our first division lesson:

Division Lesson 1

Finally, we looked at division from the perspective of sharing out equal amounts, so we could determine how many groups we would end up with. This is the reciprocal property of multiplication and division - the order doesn't matter. For example, I can multiply 3 x 4 = 12 OR 4 x 3 = 12. Also, I can divide 12 / 3 = 4 OR 12 / 4 = 3. Here is the summary of the lesson:

Division Lesson 2

February Newsletter

Math

We have wrapped up our Data Management unit and are beginning our Multiplication, Division and Fractions unit next.  The curriculum expectations that we will be looking at are:

– relate multiplication of one-digit numbers and division by one-digit divisors to real life situations, using a variety of tools and strategies (e.g., place objects in equal groups, use arrays, write repeated addition or subtraction sentences) (Sample problem: Give a real-life example of when you might need to know that 3 groups of 2 is 3 x 2.);

– multiply to 7 x 7 and divide to 49 ÷ 7, using a variety of mental strategies (e.g., doubles, doubles plus another set, skip counting).

– divide whole objects and sets of objects into equal parts, and identify the parts using fractional names (e.g., one half; three thirds; two fourths or two quarters), without using numbers in standard fractional notation

Please work on memorization of the times tables up to seven at home with your child while we work on developing a knowledge for the strategies at school. 

Language

We are working on Persuasive Writing.  The children have been writing persuasive paragraphs. We will be discussing the features of Narrative Writing next (characters, problem, setting, sequence of events and a solution).

The children have been reading and answering questions on what they have read to display their understanding of the story.  When your child reads at home,  please ask them to retell the story with as much detail as possible, and ensuring that they include the features of Narrative writing listed above.  Ask them questions about the story to see if they are actually understanding what is taking place.  Often children can read lots of words, but this does not always mean that they are comprehending what they are reading. 

A big part of the grade on their report card for "reading" will be based on how they answer comprehension questions in writing.  Please note that if their reading grade is lower than expected, in most cases, is not because they cannot read or comprehend at grade level.  In Grade 3, they are learning how to display their comprehension in writing, using details from the text and their own thinking, and a large portion of the grade depends on how they are doing with regard to this.  I will be sending home some of their work for you to see soon.

Science 

We have finished our Unit on  Forces and are now exploring Strong and Stable Structures. 

Learning Skills

The learning skills focus for this term is Organizational and Independent Working skills.  Some of the expectations for each are listed below. 

Organization:

-devises and follows a plan and process for completing work and tasks
-establishes priorities and manages to complete tasks and achieve goals
-identifies, gathers, evaluates, and uses information, technology, and
resources to complete tasks 
-comes to school prepared for the day
-can quickly find the tools needed to begin his/her work promptly and due to these work habits is able to produce and complete all required assignments

Independent Work:

-uses time efficiently when completing an assignment by staying focused on the task at hand
-completes work on his/her own, using available
resources such as anchor charts, checklists and teacher feedback
-shows an understanding of the concepts studied and applies them in different contexts
-works well without supervision, demonstrating learning skills that help him/her to solve problems independently
-listens well and is not distracted by surroundings
-independently monitors, assesses, and revises plans to complete tasks and meet goals
-uses class time appropriately to complete tasks
-follows instructions with minimal supervision

Valentine’s Day

We will celebrate Valentine’s Day here at school on Thursday, February 13th.  Again, I will bring in treats that are nut free. If you would like to send in treats that day, please ensure that they are store bought and have a nut free label.  If you do not want your child to have treats, please let me know in advance.  We will hand out Valentine’s Day cards. If your child would like to participate, please have them make a card for all of the children in the class.  Thanks!

Gatineau Park Snowshoeing Field Trip

Our class will be going to Gatineau Park for a field trip on February 21st. On this trip, we will be snowshoeing through the park and learning about how animals and plants survive in the winter. Snowshoes are provided for all students. We will also be bringing some snowshoes for parent volunteers to use as well. If you have your own snowshoes and would like to bring them, that is fine.

On the day of the trip, please ensure your child is dressed for the cold weather as we will be outside for about 2 hours. Coat, snowpants, good winter boots, hat and mitts are essential. Sending a little extra food in their lunch may also be a good idea as they will be walking quite a while!

If you are a parent who is able to volunteer, please ensure that you have completed your police record check and filed it at the office so that you can attend. Thank you in advance for your assistance! We need many hands to help with snowshoes!

Important Dates for February

Thursday, February 13th: Report Cards go home
Friday, February 14th: Valentine's Day - PD day - No School
Monday, February 17th: Family Day - No School
Friday, February 21st: Gatineau Park
Wednesday, February 26th: Ash Wednesday - Beginning of the Lenten Season

Reminders

With the cold weather that we have been having, I ask that the children wear their snow pants at all recesses and after school to go home.  If you decide that your child does not need to wear them, please send me a note.  Thanks!

Thank you for your support this year so far! Please remember to check the classroom website or Twitter feed daily for reminders and a peek into our class.

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Time and Temperature

Ms. Habbane has begun her practicum in our class, and she is teaching Time and Temperature until the Christmas Holiday.

Our first lesson focused on identifying how long some common standards of time are:

1 minute = 60 seconds
1 hour = 60 minutes
1 day = 24 hours
1 week = 7 days
1 month = about 4 weeks or 30 days
1 year = 12 months or 365 days or 52 weeks

With these times understood, students are asked to determine how long they might do a task for. For example, is there a way to state these time amounts in a more easily understood way: "I am going to watch my show in 220 minutes"?

This is probably the most challenging aspect of our time unit, and student generally need quite a lot of practice at this skill. In class, I will allow students to use calculators to add or subtract time amounts, since they will be allowed to use them on our provincial testing at the end of the year. It is important they learn how to use them properly throughout the course of the year to help them build success.

The next lesson we are working on is actually reading time amounts on both an analogue clock and a digital clock. We learn to do this to the nearest five minutes. This is generally easier for students, although practice does not hurt! Try to have your child tell you the time when you get a chance to see how they are progressing in this area.

The final important lesson in this unit will be reading and understanding temperature in Celsius. We will also be learning some important benchmarks for temperature such as:

• water freezes at 0 degrees Celsius
• A hot day is 30 degrees Celsius
• A warm, comfortable day is about 20 degrees Celsius
• water boils at 100 degrees Celsius

We will test this unit at the end of this week. There is no need to study, as students should be well prepared in class. If we feel they are not ready, then we will wait until next week in order to review some more. 

As always, if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me. 

How to Write a Comparing Paragraph

Lately in language we have been learning how to write a paragraph which compares two things. We started by reading the story "Stella Luna". Click here to see the Youtube video we watched of the story. Afterwards, we created a Venn diagram to compare the similarities and differences of bats and birds. Finally, we used the Venn diagram to help us write a comparative paragraph.

In Grade 3 I always stress the importance of using an opening (topic) sentence. I also try to encourage students to write a sentence that is a "Big" grade 3 sentence - a compound sentence. Students are encouraged to use a linking word to join two ideas together. For example, "You might think that birds and bats look similar, but in fact they are very different."

Next, we might discuss some of the similarities of birds and bats for a sentence, and then discuss the differences. I usually ask students to write one sentence for bats, then one for birds and then repeat that pattern.

Example: "Bats have sharp, pointed teeth, which they use to bite things with. Birds have beaks, which can be pointed or flat depending on what they eat." (This is the type of sentence I would love to see!)

I would usually ask students to do three repetitions of this for a good paragraph - essentially covering three main differences between the two items.

Finally, at the end, I ask students to write a closing sentence, which should restate the main idea. For example, "Birds and bats are very different, but they are both amazing animals."

Here is the example that we wrote together in class. If you are practicing this type of writing at home with your child, please encourage them to follow this format.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me any time.