Tammy Stradiotto Third Grade

Welcome to our 2008/2009 classroom website

Wow, First Quarter has come and gone all too quickly. Our hats are off to all of the 3rd graders and their amazing success last quarter!

Second Quarter will be NO less exciting! We are already working on interesting new projects and concepts.

Thanks to all of you who donated so generously to our Thanksgiving donation to families in need. About 50 boxes of mashed potatoes were given!! Wow!! Again, our BIG THANKS go to you!!

Third grade is an exciting year academically. The curriculum is inspiring and filled with dynamic learning opportunities at every corner. Students should come eagerly to school each day since there is ALWAYS something new and interesting going on in our classroom. One of our goals is to cultivate a love of and respect for learning about the world around each of us.

Weekly Letter

Each week you will receive a letter informing you about the week's important dates and academic items. Both parents and students should read and sign the letter. Then, the signed bottom portion of the note should be returned the following day. The upper portion should be kept for your reference.

Important Dates:

• Dec. 1st- Sepulveda Basin Wetland field trip notice sent out; November BOOK IT due; December BOOK IT begins.
• Tuesday, Dec. 2nd- Library
• Wednesday, Dec. 3rd- Chapel
• Friday, Dec. 5th- Book report due; Field trip slip is due.

Important Academic Items:

• Math- 0's-6's multiplication tables, perimeter, line segments, word problems, comparing numbers, fractions, and time;
• Reading/Language Arts- Proper use of commas; possessives; nouns; expository text; friendship oral presentations; Short quiz on nouns and possessives on Friday; In class we will read Raccoon and Make Way for Ducklings. Chosen books for our book report should be completed and brought to class daily for our book report.
• Religion- Begin the study of Ruth; Family tree project;
• Spelling- Lesson 12;
• Social Studies- Ch. 3; Group landform project;
• Science- Ch. 4;
• Handwriting- Size, proportions, and spacing;

If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me by email at: tammystrad@att.com

Check back frequently for additional and new information about the exciting activities,
projects, and concepts being studied in the 3rd Grade.

Teacher Goals:

1. To inspire and motivate students in a positive academic and social environment;

2. To enhance the learning experience of each student by creating a variety of
interesting lesson plans and activities in each subject;

3. To challenge students academically and to help them to be successful with new concepts;

4. To instill in students a desire to make great choices, to be good to others, and to
always do their best;

2008/2009 3rd Grade Curriculum:

Math- Saxon curriculum and Macmillan text: Telling time; reading and making graphs; identifying and writing numbers; measurement; geometric shapes; odd and even numbers; adding, subtracting, multiplying, and dividing; borrowing and carrying; money; patterns; reading and writing fractions; multiples; line segments; collecting and interpreting data; reading a thermometer; estimating; exponents; word problems; reading and making calendars; number lines; negative and positive numbers; decimals; place value;

There is an assessment after every five lessons.

Grading is based primarily on the assessments, but also includes daily class work and
homework.

Science- Scott Foresman:

Unit A, Life Science- How plants live and grow; how animals grow
and change; living things and their environments; changing environments;

Unit B, Physical Science- Matter and how it changes; forces, machines, and work;
energy in our world; sound;

Unit C, Earth Science- Changes in the earth’s surface; materials of the earth; the sun,
planets, and moon; clouds and storms;

Unit D, Human Body- The body’s systems; staying healthy;

Each chapter will be followed by a written assessment.
Grading is based on daily work, reports, projects, experiments, participation and tests.

Social Studies- Mc Graw Hill:
Different types of communities; landforms; countries of North America; world oceans;
hemispheres; equator; important U.S. bodies of water; using map scales; reading maps;
climate; natural resources; Native Americans; geography; Spanish influence; Pilgrim
communities; government; reading and making a flow chart; reading grid maps; using
reference materials; reading time lines; history of various communities; individual and
group research of topics; Each chapter will be followed by a written assessment.
Grading is based on daily work, reports, group projects, participation, and tests.

Religion- Standard Bible Curriculum:
Using the Scripture and resources included in the Standard Bible curriculum,
students will increase their knowledge and understanding of the great God
we worship. Through our studies, students will grow in their faith and
gain an enhanced understanding of their ability to make great choices with
the help of our Lord.

First Quarter- Students will study the concepts of faith and obedience as displayed in the
lives and choices of the men and women who reigned as Israel’s judges.

Second Quarter- This quarter will focus on the sharp contrast between Saul, a man who
trusted in his own abilities, and King David who was anointed king because he was a man
after God’s own heart.

Third Quarter- Students will learn about the Life of Jesus, His miracles, and His divine
teachings.

Fourth Quarter- This quarter’s lessons focus on the beginning of the Christian church
as recorded in the book of Acts. We will also study the choice of Peter, Stephen, and Paul,
to carry out Jesus’ Great Commission.

Each week we will also have a memory verse due on Friday.
Grading is based on memory verses, written work, individual projects, group projects,
notes, participation, and tests.

Spelling- Houghton Mifflin:
Spelling of words and a knowledge of word patterns; syllables; spelling-meaning strategies;
vocabulary; proofreading skills; dictionary and thesaurus skills; writing application; study
skills; prefixes and suffixes; word forms; abbreviations, capitalization, and punctuation;
Our spelling lessons each week will consist of students writing each word 3x, workbook pgs.
that correspond to the lesson being studied, sentences (odd units) and a story (even units),
and a test. The student sentences should be 7 or more words each, should not start with “I”,
each sentence should be numbered, and the spelling word must be underlined. Student
stories should be 1-2 pgs. with no spacing between lines, or 2-2 ˝ pgs. with one line
spacing. Sentences and stories should be neatly written, should demonstrate an
understanding of the meaning of the words used, and should follow proper grammatical and
punctuation rules.
**Grading is based on 3x each, workbook pages, sentences, stories, additional
assignments, and tests.

Language Arts: SRA Mc Graw Hill
Our reading texts contain stories written by highly credited authors.
Their widely published books, journal articles, and research studies
lead the field in areas such as phonemic awareness, phonics instruction,
comprehension skills, and strategies instruction.

Essential tasks and skills include:
Oral and silent reading skills; comprehension; forecasting; summarizing; learning about the
different types of writing; writing process strategies; improved and refined writing skills;
writing workshop; oral speaking; small and large group discussion skills; book reports;
research; using reference materials; spelling; vocabulary; grammar, usage, and mechanics;
listening and interviewing skills;

The reading series contains the following six thematic units:
Unit 1: Friendship
Unit 2: City Wildlife
Unit 3: Imagination
Unit 4: Money
Unit 5: Storytelling
Unit 6: Country Life

Our reading incentive program “Book It”, sponsored by Pizza Hut, is an excellent and
highly effective motivator.

Language is included in the SRA program and is further supplemented by a text from
Loyola University Press. Skills will include the items listed below:
Sentence, riddle, couplet, poem, paragraph, essay, and story writing; dictionary practice;
letter writing; library skills; nouns; pronouns; adjectives; verbs; adverbs; punctuation and
capitalization; grammar;

Grading is based on daily work, reading, listening, participation, book reports,
projects, and writing assignments.

Handwriting: Scott, Foresman
Our handwriting class will focus on improved legibility and formation of letters. The strong
reading/language arts correlation of our handwriting workbook enhances language
development as well. The lessons and activities are enjoyable and effective.
Grading is based on letter formation, spacing, legibility, written work in handwriting, and written work in other subjects as well.

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