We reviewed our fraction skills with Hershey’s chocolate bars. We compared fractions and found equivalent fractions!

I can…
Reading- Create and revise images
Be on the lookout for a video on this skill!
Writing- write a personal narrative about spring break, and a response to literature.
Grammar- use present, past, and future tense verbs. (review- quotation marks)
Math- use fractions
Check out the videos under the “video” tab!
Social Studies- describe our local, state, and federal government

Students are having fun learning about Rube Goldbergs by playing Mouse Trap! 😊

Theme 13: Making Laws

After reading: Chickens may not Cross the Road and other Crazy (but true) Laws, the students chose a law and tried to explain why that law may exist!

Check out some of these crazy laws:

It is forbidden to fish for whales (Oklahoma state Law)

No one may drive while asleep (Memphis, Tennessee)

It is against the law to carry an ice cream cone in a pocket (Lexington, Kentucky)

After the students shared their explanations, we then had them create their own silly law! We will be voting on these laws during our next Explore More Monday!

I can…
Reading: use strategic reading to monitor my understanding.
Check out the strategic reading video (under the video tab)
Writing: write a fantasy.
Grammar: identify helping, linking, and action verbs. (Review: pronouns and capitalization)
Math: compare fractions.
Check our the fraction videos (under the video tab)
Science: draw and describe a Rube Goldberg.

Order forms are due next Friday, March 20th!

I can…
Reading: monitor understanding by reading strategically
Video: Coming Soon!
Writing: write a fantasy story (How to Catch a Leprechaun)
Grammar: use action, linking, main, and helping verbs (review capitalization and pronouns)
Math: identify equivalent fractions and fractions greater than one whole
Video: Coming Soon!

*Third grade students will be taking the PARCC on Monday and Tuesday morning.

Theme 12: Explorers in Space!

Over the past couple weeks, each student researched a planet. The students took the information they found and turned it into a fact-filled flip book! For this Explore More Monday, we trained like an astronaut and “traveled” to all of the planets. We sure did learn a lot! 🙂

Before traveling to each planet, we had to prepare to explore space. What better way to learn how to do this than from real astronauts at NASA.
Video: Train like an Atronaut

It was time to train like an astronaut!

After each activity, the students took turns presenting the research for each planet!

I can…
Reading- Categorize information
Video: Categorize Information
Writing- Publish a report and describe a fantasy.
Grammar- identify articles and write titles correctly
Math- name equivalent fractions
science- describe the 6 simple machines

PARCC testing will be begin on Monday, March 9th. Please see the information below:

Dear Dunlap Grade School Families,
In March, our third-fifth grade students will be taking the new PARCC assessment. PARCC is an acronym for Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers and is based on assessing a student’s knowledge and understanding of the Common Core State Standards. The assessment will measure a student’s “readiness” for college and careers in both literacy and math. Students will take the Performance Based Assessment (PBA) in March and an End of Year assessment (EOY) in May which will create a baseline for a student’s growth over time.
Please note the PARCC assessment dates below and make every effort to get your student to school on these days. Regarding scheduling, students who receive special education services may be assessed on a different schedule that provides them access to individual accommodations as written in an IEP.
Student attendance on testing days is extremely important. Students must arrive on time for school. The first session begins at 8:00 a.m. Students arriving late are not allowed to enter the testing room after the start of testing. Please avoid scheduling appointments on testing days as there is limited time for makeup testing prior to spring break.
In the past, ISAT scores were used as part of the identification process for Enrichment Eagles at the elementary level and the Power Literature and Advanced Math classes at the middle school. The PARCC scores will take the place of the ISAT scores starting this year.
All students will have an opportunity to take practice exams at school before the official testing. Sample problems and practice tests for PARCC are available at http://parcc.pearson.com/practice-tests/. There will be a second session of testing from April 27- May 15.

We started off our day by reading Diffendoofer Day and signing each others PARCC encouragement t-shirts. Just like in the book, we will do GREAT on this test! 🙂

Next, we read Bartholomew and the Oobleck!

It was time to make our own Oobleck now!

After our Oobleck adventure, we went on a scavenger hunt! We searched through Dr. Seuss books to find ingredients for our very own Seuss Mix. Once we had all our ingredients, we were able to make it! We ended our day by enjoying our Seuss Mix and watching Horton Hears a Who! 🙂