South Mountain

Elementary

THIRD GRADE

Wausau, WI

NEWSLETTER
A Note to Parents
We hope this newsletter finds you all doing well! It has
been a busy start to the school year and the students
have done a wonderful job transitioning to a new
classroom and a new set of expectations, especially
with the switching we are doing between teachers for
the different academic subjects. We look forward to
talking with you further at conferences regarding your
childs academic and behavioral successes and needs
and will be sure to schedule time for you to meet with
both of us depending on your childs needs.

September/October
Mrs. Kirsch & Mrs. Egner

Cursive News
This year your child is learning cursive using the
program, Handwriting Without Tears. Letters are
systematically taught and continually reviewed.
Once students complete the workbook, we will
be encouraging the use of cursive in various
projects and assignments.

Reading & Math Minutes

Volunteering

For starters, thank you for your support at

home with helping your child reach their
weekly and monthly reading and math
minutes goals. Keep filling out those minutes
on the tracker sheet located in your childs
take-home folder.
Reading Minutes
Please count the minutes that your child
spends reading or being read to. Also, as
more information comes home regarding the
online access to our new reading series,
Wonders, please include any minutes your
child spends reading books online.
Math Minutes
We have heard from a few parents that the
math minutes have been more difficult to
fulfill. Minutes to be counted include:
flashcard practice of basic facts, time spent
completing XtraMath online, time spent
playing other online games that emphasize
fact fluency (ie.
http://www.arcademics.com/games/), or
playing card games that emphasize fact
practice. We will be sending home games

Parents/Grandparents: Thank you for your

patience in waiting for a classroom volunteer
schedule. We are finally settled enough to begin
a regular rotation schedule.

Third Grade Newsletter ~ Page 2

Classroom Highlights
Literacy
Students have been delving into the new reading series materials. Each week students will be exploring a different
essential question which all of the activities for the week will relate to. Students work on various comprehension skills
and strategies throughout the week during whole group activities as well as meeting with Mrs. Kirsch or Mrs. Egner
daily for more focused skill work tailored to different reading levels and abilities. Below is a quick snapshot of skills and
strategies emphasized thus far:
Week 1
Week 2
Week 3
How do people from
What can stories teach
What can traditions teach
Essential Question
different cultures contribute
you?
you about cultures?
to a community?
Comprehension Strategy Visualize
Visualize
Ask and answer questions
Comprehension Skill
Character, Setting, Plot
Sequencing
Sequencing
Genre
Fantasy
Realistic Fiction
Narrative Nonfiction
Vocabulary Strategy
Synonyms
Context Clues
Compound Words
Phonics Skill
Short vowels
Short vowels
Words with final e
Fluency Skill
Expression
Phrasing
Rate
Math
We have completed our first math unit centered on place value. Your child should have brought home their first unit
test so that you could see their progress. These place value skills will continue to be reinforced and reviewed
throughout the year. Our next math unit focuses on number sense in relation to addition and subtraction. Students will
learn about the properties of addition, mental math strategies for adding and subtracting multi-digit numbers, rounding
and estimating sums and differences.
Writing
Students are currently working on a narrative piece of writing while learning about the revising and editing process. We
look forward to sharing some published pieces with you at conferences!
Intervention/Enrichment
This is the time of day when your child may receive additional literacy support or enrichment support out of the
classroom. For students who remain in the classroom, we have been using this time to give students more
opportunities for writing through poetry.
Social Studies
Our first unit of the year has emphasized mapping and geography. Students are learning various mapping skills such
as using a map key and map scale. Students are also learning about different geographical concepts like latitude and
longitude and will be working to learn the U.S. states and capitals.

Helpful Website
Mrs. Kirsch has created a very helpful
symbaloo page that students can access with a
plethora of resources. The students have
already been using this site to access
XtraMath, Wonders resources and various
other links. Please bookmark this page at
home and feel free to browse around.

Upcoming Events
Bullying Presentation
Monday, October 19th
Parent/Teacher Conferences
Thursday, October 15th and Tuesday,
October 20th
Picture Retake Day
Wednesday, October 28th
District Professional Development ~ No
Classes
Thursday, October 29th and Friday, October