Each Monday in the newsletter, the bottom portion is the homework recording sheet. It will include places to record reading, spelling practice, and fast facts. Parents will need to initial each box verifying the homework was completed and return it the following Monday. Your child’s homework folder will also contain a “Homework Helps” sheet that will give you strategies to help your child to the best of your ability.
Reading: The best way for a student to get better at reading is to read. This is why students will be required to read at least 20 min a day, 5 days per week. Ideally, they will read Monday through Thursday then once over the weekend. Third-graders make the transition from picture books to reading mostly chapter books, so please support this goal at home by helping your child read (and finish) more chapter books.
Spelling: Each week students will have a spelling list. We will be doing a few activities in class for them to learn these words. However these students are in third grade now and old enough to take responsibility to learn the words. The words will be included on the newsletter every Monday. The homework helps sheet will include ideas of how to practice spelling words and learn them. You do not need to return any spelling homework, only initial the boxes on the homework sheet.
Fast Facts: In order to succeed at mastering addition and subtraction facts as well as multiplication tables, we will be sending home nightly practice. Students will begin the year practicing and passing off addition facts. Once these are mastered, they will move on to subtraction, then multiplication. Addition and subtraction facts from 0-10 and multiplication from 0-12 will be mastered. Each Monday, a half sheet with four different sets of facts will be sent home. One of the four sets should be completed each night, and then initialed on the homework sheet. Please sent these completed sheets back to school on Monday! Flashcards will also be available on the Park View website as well as on our class blog if you feel you would like to give your child additional practice.
Online Tests: Third grade is the first year students get to experience online testing. This can cause challenges for some students. In order to lower the anxiety level at testing time, each will be taking a weekly practice quiz at home online. If you do not have internet access, I will send home a paper copy of the quiz. The homework folder will have more information on where to go and how to login.
Book Reports: There will be 4 book reports throughout the year in October, November, February and March respectively. The book report sheet will be included in the homework and can be found on the blog as well. The due dates will be included on the newsletter.
As an incentive to return homework, each month every child that returned 100% of his or her homework will participate in Fun Friday, which will be a fun activity for the students that will vary each month. At the end of the year, the students who returned 100% of his or her homework will attend a final party. If your child does happen to forget homework one day, he or she may attend the DARE program after lunch to make up any missed homework, or complete the missing homework during recess.
Each Friday, except for the days we have Fun Friday, we will have 2 students present a science experiment. Each child will have the opportunity to share an experiment with the class. Please prepare a experiment at home and practice it so your child knows what to do. You are also more than welcome to come and help your child with his/her experiment.
