3rd Grade Orientation and Curriculum Overview
August 2011
Teachers: 3L Mrs. Theresa Law, B.A., M.Ed.
3S Mrs. Bridget Schleper, B.A., M.Ed.
Dear Parents of Third Graders,
Welcome to third grade! We are looking forward to our marvelous third grade journey as we witness your child’s enthusiasm for learning. We know you may have many questions, so the purpose of this outline is to provide you with information pertaining to the third grade curriculum, objectives, and our expectations.
Villa Madonna Academy Mission Statement
Our school’s mission statement is to educate students in grades K-12 for full Christian participation in 21st century life. Villa is committed to forming students who seek God in the Benedictine tradition of reverence and peace, scholarship, service, and community.
School Preparation
1. School begins on Tuesday, August 16, 2011.
2. Supplies - See supply list
3. Mark all clothing, including uniforms, belts, and book bags with your child’s first and last name. It is best to use a black permanent marker and/or markers designed specifically for labeling clothing materials.
4. Arrival and Dismissal Procedures - All students are to enter at the Holy Spirit Entrance, which is adjacent to the cafeteria. Classes begin promptly at 8:00 a.m. Students are not to be walked up to their classroom, unless a project is due. Students who arrive prior to 7:45 a.m. are to go to the cafeteria and remain there with the supervising teacher. Students are dismissed to the cafeteria at 2:40 p.m. and are to wait quietly until their car/carpool number is called. Carpool numbers are listed in the VMA Handbook. Please be sure your child knows their car number.
5. Visitors/Communication - All visitors must report to the main office. Open communication is a vital asset. We communicate with parents through the student planners, notes/letters, e-mail, and telephone. We want to be partners with you in your child’s education; however, a scheduled appointment with the teacher is expected prior to any conference (see handbook).
Curriculum
1. Morning Meeting – The purpose of these daily meetings set the tone for the day while helping the students feel welcome, increasing confidence and communication, and building cooperation skills. We will share journals, practice grammar and math skills, and incorporate team-building activities.
Subjects taught by Mrs. Law
2. Reading – Students will be reading various types of genre trade books. We will be reading realistic, historical, fantasy, etc. types of books. They will be completing various activities such as literary questions, response journals, vocabulary techniques, and culminating assignments. We hope to share our love of reading with your children and make them fluent and successful readers.
3. Writing/Grammar – Various writing genre will be used such as friendly letter, poetry, creative stories, etc. Students will also be writing daily journals, practicing their Daily Oral Language (DOL), and studying grammar skills.
4. Spelling – Students will be using Zaner-Bloser Spelling Connections book. They will have 20 spelling words each week that follow a spelling pattern. Nightly homework will be assigned and a spelling test on Friday.
5. Handwriting – Students will continue practicing their handwriting using daily Scripture practice papers. Students are expected to write everything in cursive by the beginning of October. They will continue practicing and being graded on their cursive writing after October.
6. Social Studies – The main theme “Communities in U.S. History” from the Social Studies Alive: Our Community and Beyond series will be utilized into all units. Enriching activities, group/individual projects, research assignments, and technology will be utilized to explore these themes: Geography, Three Main Communities, Landforms, Native Americans, Colonial Times, American Revolution, Government, US Symbols, and Movement throughout the United States.)
Subjects taught by Mrs. Schleper
7. Religion – The Catholic Religion for third grade includes many dimensions: instruction in doctrine, scripture, and morality; the experience of prayer and liturgy; the Seven Sacraments, the Trinity, the Holy Rosary, and the profound respect for the love of the Catholic Church. The Benedictine Values are interwoven throughout the curriculum. Mass is celebrated on Fridays.
8. Math – The Sadlier-Oxford mathematics series actively engages the students in solving a wide variety of problems. The activities utilized throughout the year allow the students to work in cooperative groups solving real life situations. Concepts taught are place value, money, time, graphing, addition/subtraction, multiplication/division, geometry, measurement, and fractions. Students are expected to study math facts on a daily basis.
9. Science - The McGraw-Hill series covers the science process skills, life (food chains and webs, ecosystems, the human body), earth (sun and its planets, earth's resources), and physical science realms. The students will learn about a variety of topics using everyday scientific applications through hands-on activities, demonstrations, experiments, note-taking, and class discussions. Scientific investigations and observations, involving the inquiry method through experimentation, are emphasized.
10. Technology – A weekly 40 minute computer lab class will be used to reinforce skills and concepts taught in the classroom. We will also incorporate technology in the classroom through the use of the Smartboard.
11. Enrichment – The students are randomly divided up into groups of six. Every Friday from 1:00 to 1:45, the students will attend an extra class in one of the following specials: Art, Computer, Drama, Library, Gym, and Music. Every child will have the opportunity to participate in all enrichment specials by the end of the school year.
Classroom Rules and Consequences
We strive to assist students in achieving confidence and high standards academically, spiritually, emotionally, and socially. We encourage students to accept responsibility for their progress and behavior. Students are expected to follow the VMA Code of Conduct, VMA safety rules, and posted classroom rules. By third grade the students are very familiar to the traffic light system for discipline.
Rewards - We will have a third grade celebration for good behavior.
Consequences
1. 1st violation – a warning is given by changing to a yellow light
2. 2nd violation – change to a red light and write their behavior in their planner
3. 3rd violation – removal from activity, students write a letter to parents explaining behavior, and letter must be signed and returned by parent.
4. Other violations - missing or incomplete assignments, disrespect, bullying
Grading System
The following is an explanation of the skills based markings students will receive on their work and report cards.
Independent (IN): exhibits mastery of the skill and behavior
Developing (DV): progression towards mastery of the skill and behavior
Needs Improvement (N): reinforcement and improvement needed for skill and behavior
NA: skill has not yet been introduced
Miscellaneous
1. Homework – Students are responsible to write down their homework assignments each day in their planners. To establish healthy homework habits, please review the assignment notebook each night with your child and initial it. Assignment notebooks will be checked by the teachers to ensure the correct homework was notated for the day. We also recommend checking the website for additional information that may be needed. The students will have reading, spelling, and math homework every night. Homework is assigned Monday through Thursday and occasionally on the weekend. We recommend that your child reads 20 minutes every night and reviews math addition/subtraction and multiplication facts five minutes every night, including weekends.
2. Lunch – If you are interested in eating lunch with your child at 10:50, please wait by the cafeteria until the class arrives to avoid unnecessary interruptions. More importantly, it is imperative that you contact Donna Crisler in advance so she can prepare adequately. It is important that students bring a water bottle to school every day. Drinks other than water are not permitted.
3. Birthdays – We love to celebrate birthdays! Please let us know a couple of days in advance if you are interested in sending in a treat for your child’s birthday. We will celebrate birthdays during the afternoon. Children who have a summer birthday may celebrate their half-birthday. There are 19 students in both third grade classrooms.
5. Book Club Orders – Throughout the year, both teachers will send home a variety of book club orders. Please make one check payable to Scholastic for all book club orders. If you are interested in purchasing books for birthdays, Christmas, or other special events, and you do not want your child to see them, just write us a note or place it with your order stating the instructions of who will pick up the items.
If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact us. We believe in the three-leg stool concept. In order for your child to have a successful school year, then all involved parties (child, parent, and teacher) should communicate effectively. Communication is vital in your child’s education. We will return voice mail messages as soon as possible. Emails and planners are the best methods of communication. Additionally, please check the website for important information.
We are very excited about this year and hope our enthusiasm is contagious enough for your child to catch. Thank you in advance for your involvement and support.
Mrs. Theresa Law email: (859) 331-6333 ext. 207
Mrs. Bridget Schleper email:
(859)331-6333 ext. 209