December 6th to 10th

 Hello! The holidays are almost upon us as we have one more week before the break! Students continue to work hard in the classroom and I think that everybody is ready for a bit of relaxation time and time to spend with family and friends!

In Mathematics, we have spent time creating bar graphs related to the food donations that the students have graciously been bringing in to the school for the Calgary Food Bank. We have also finished our still life pictures about a number of the items brought in and have come to conclusion that there are a lot of cylinders (soup / veggie cans) and a number of rectangular prisms ( cereal and pasta boxes). 

In writing, the students were working on a walking story about an imaginary friend they may have had in their lives or still have in their lives! We focused on adding descriptive details, similes and Triple Scoop words to make our friends come alive in the mind of the reader! 

In Science, the students were hard at work as Rock Detectives and were given a number of rock samples that they had to perform various experiments on to determine if they were igneous, sedimentary or metamorphic rock samples. Some of the tests made it clear what type of rocks they had and they had to justify why they said a rock was one of the three types. And don't be afraid to ask your child which is the rock that is able to float on water!

In Social Studies, we have been comparing the students' own celebrations with those of other countries to look for similarities and differences we could find with food, music, language, dance and the time of year in which the celebrations occur. Students learned that no matter where the celebration takes place, it is a great opportunity for family and friends to get together and remember parts of their past.

As we get ready to close out 2021, I want to thank each and every student and parent for a great start to this grade three school year. The students continue to challenge themselves each and every day and want to increase their understanding of the concepts to the best of their ability. I will continue to encourage this approach into the new year in anticipation of moving onto grade 4 and a new school in the future. Have a wonderful rest of your weekend and see everyone either in their fancy Christmas clothes or their formal uniforms! 

November 29th - December 3rd

 Welcome to December! November seemed to fly by this school year and we are entering the last few weeks before winter break begins!  

This week in Mathematics, we have been working on identifying 3D objects in the classroom and also outside in nature. The students have been working on naming the faces, vertices, and edges found in each 3D object and also in connection with art we have created a still life drawing of the many items that the class has collected and will be donating to the Calgary Food Bank. Students had to create a picture that shows the various items found in the foreground, middle ground and background of the picture they are creating. We talked about layering our objects and adding details to the cans and boxes of food before us. 

In Writing, the students had created their own monster pictures and then wrote their own walking stories to describe the monster. Next week we will look at the writing and try to match it up with our pictures that are on display. Students tried to infuse as many Triple Scoop words as they can and also include some similes in describing their individual monsters. 

In Science, we continue to explore rocks and minerals and discussed the effects of water and wind on rocks. We looked at the composition of the earth with its various layers, the crust, the mantle, outer and inner core. Students also enjoy finding rock samples in and around the school and sharing them in our rock garden at the back of the classroom. Next we will be looking at how rocks are classified and identify what type of rock they may be.

In Social Studies, we have continued to look at the various areas that make up the culture of the countries we study. Areas like language, music, celebrations, food, dance and art help to define a group of people and next week we will be comparing it with our own cultural celebrations that make up our own connections to our communities and look for similarities and differences we can see.

So two more full weeks of classes to go before the break... I hope students can continue to show the focus and determination to do their best each and every day leading up to vacation time. The grade 3's are an amazing group that is capable of incredible things. Enjoy the rest of your Sunday and see you in formal uniforms on Monday morning!