Insect Field Trip

Last Thursday, we headed out to F.L. Schlagle Library in Kansas City, KS. In the fall, we had an expensive insect unit in science. As Spring comes back to Kansas, the insects are coming back as well! At the library, students were given nets and insect boxes to check out their catches. We looked up the insects that were caught and then let them go.

 

 

We reviewed what makes an insect an insect (six legs, three body parts, etc.). Then, the students got to look at some insects under glass and microscopes.

 

After we spent the morning focusing on science, we had a picnic lunch at a park shelter. The students did a quick measurement activity and then it was PLAYTIME!! That was the highlight of the day for the students, of course.

 

 

 

 

New Room in the Fall!

Our school district built a new elementary school to help relieve the size of the school I teach in. Currently, we have two extra buildings for the third and fourth grades. Next year, I will be back in the normal building and have a regular-sized classroom! I have been on Pinterest finding some great ideas for organization and ideas to go along with my fish/ocean theme.
     

     

       

Last Days of School Countdown

We have balloons to celebrate the last 15 days of school. Each day we pop a balloon and get to do whatever activity is on the balloon.

Here are some of the activities in our balloons:
-choose your own seat for the day
-whip out the shaving cream and write on your desks
-extra recess today
-movie & ice cream party
-bubble blowing day
-get your EXPO marker and write a nice note on at least four other desks
-multiplication ice cream party
-relay race: boys v. girls

Area - Island Conquer

For students to practice their area skills, my students played Island Conquer (created by Laura Candler). Students work in partners, chose colors, and draw cards with coordinates. The students take turns creating rectangles from the coordinates and figure the area. After all the coordinates cards have been drawn, students find out which partner conquered more of the island.

Area - Dream Home

My students are LOVING learning about area. We created an anchor chart together to remember that area means the inside of a shape or the top/surface of an object. Then, we got a little creative with our math! I got this great lesson from Blair Turner on TpT, called Dream Home. The students get to design their own dream home with whatever rooms they would like. I had my students find the area of each of their rooms and write it on the back of the papers. They got very creative with their houses!

 

My example :)

 

Bare Book

Each year, every 3rd grader makes a Bare Book. The students' writing and photos from the school year are glued into the book. Their Bare Book is a sort of scrapbook of their year in third grade.

Students decorate a cover for their Bare Book & fill out an All About Me page:

   

One of the first things we do in August is an Investigating My Name sheet and a heart map where students write about things close to their hearts:

Next is the students' Insect Report and a nonfiction writing about Thanksgiving:

Students wrote about what they want to be when they grow up and we photographed each of them with a chalkboard and their dream on it:

Next is a Santa's Stuck and letter to Santa:

Each student wrote a descriptive writing about popping popcorn using their senses and a New Years resolution:

Then, the history of snowmen and our Snowmen pics:

Students wrote what they would be like if they were teachers (why kind of teachers they would be, what they would teach, what rules they would have, how their classroom would look) and an illustration:

 In November, students wrote about what change they would like to see in our country/world and illustration:

Students created a Meter of Memories where they write memories of third grade on a meter long piece of paper (that's the yellow sheet poking out of the blue pocket) & I glued in a poem from me, long with that will be a pic of me and the student for the inside back cover: