The last few weeks...

We have worked hard over the last few weeks. Learning and growing in 3rd grade has become smoother! We are working well as a class community and it shows in our mindset towards learning! We are all in this together~learning and growing from each other and with each other!

Fun in PE:

Sarah Plain and Tall Book Club Discussions: students practiced book club discussions by working on the strategies and skills in a whole group setting first and then off to small groups. They are growing in leaps and bounds!

Using Math Manipulatives to understand regrouping in addition and subtraction:

Science: Students study the structures and functions of the crayfish in order to see how crayfish survive in their natural habitat.

Halloween: Students spent the first half of the day learning. We even incorporated Halloween into math.

Parade and Party Time:

Happy Halloween!

Book Club fish bowl: One group of students demonstrated how a successful book club looks while the outside of the fish bowl watched and took notes. It was a great discussion!

Energy Assembly:

A Visit from Dr. Anne Reichel:Author and Scientist Dr. Anne came to read her new book, United Forest of Kind, to the 3rd grade. She went through the writing process and how she published her first book. It was an amazing learning experience!

Kelsey presenting Dr. Anne Reichel with a small token of appreciation for coming!

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Making a Connection and Building Community

Today we worked on getting to know each other better as a way to connect with each other and build a positive class communiity. The kids worked hard to draw and write about themsleves. We will be sharing these with our buddies in kindergarten next week. We also worked on learning to have good conversations with each other using "turn and talk" and being good listeners and precise speakers.

The Grove-Glenview

The students had an incredible time learning what it was like to be a Native American child living on the prairie in Illinois! Our trip to the Grove was a huge success! Students took part in hands-on activities in a replica of a Native American longhouse. The Potawatomi Indians used The Grove environment prior to the arrival of the Kennicott family. This unique program explored how this group of people lived and impacted the land, and looks closely at their culture and heritage. Topics included the importance of communal living, procurement, and processing of foods and medicine, tool use, singing and dancing, handiwork and games.

Take a look at some highlights from our week ~ It was busy and exciting!

Monday: Math: We started our mental math unit this week! It is one of my favorite unit in math. Here are some reasons why: 3 Reasons to Use Mental Math I am a huge advocate of mental math. However, there was a time when I questioned what the big deal about mental math was. I was one of those teachers who firmly believed that students should learn how to add and subtract using carrying and borrowing, and that was that! Well, was I ever wrong. When I began teaching mental math, I was astonished at the growth that students experienced. Students who were not “mathematical thinkers” suddenly “got it!” And the students who were already mathematical thinkers became even quicker with their facts! For those of you who are wondering why you should start teaching it, here are three good reasons. 1. Mental Math encourages actual understanding, not just memorization. When you teach students how to add an equation such as 19+23 using carrying, you are teaching a seri...

Mrs. Katchen's Class 2017-18

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