Aquarium!

We had the most wonderful time today. I am absolutely exhausted and I know the kids are too! Here is a video of the Pacific Octopus from today. We were also able to pet sting rays and sharks. What an incredible experience!!

Ocean Animal Speech Homework

We have two weeks left in the school year!

Our homework for the remainder of the year will be to prepare for our ocean animal speeches and complete Xtra math. After completing their ocean speech your child will only have Xtra math. Please complete this each night. This should continue over the summer, as well. 

Thank you for all of your help and support at home!

Click HERE to download... 

Check out this anti-bullying video!

This week in room 12!

I hope you all had a wonderful Mother's day! 

The kids were so excited to share with me how they surprised 

you on Sunday. 

Last week was teacher appreciation week. 

I just have to tell ya' you have THE sweetest kids around!

I received so many wonderful notes, pictures and even a giant banner. 

I am so thankful for wonderful students who make me feel appreciated. 

Field Trips!!

We will be taking two field trips! Our first will be to the Gresham Library followed by lunch in the park. The next week we will be attending the Portland Aquarium! We're so excited to have some fun as we are nearing the end of the year. Please complete both permission slips and return them to school as soon as possible. I have included extra copies if you need one. Click on either picture to download. 

Math Homework: 

We are going to have plenty of sunshine this week! Enjoy it!

Welcome Spring! Homework and our May newsletter!

This week is our last week of state testing! Please remember to send your child with a healthy snack!!

I know you are just as proud as I am of all of the hard work we have seen. Thank you, for all that you do!

Homework: 

Homework: Monday, April 28th

For Monday and Wednesday's homework students will choose a science experiment. They will use Monday and Wednesday to complete the experiment and record their observations. 

I have provided everything students need for the balloon rocket experiment. Please do not go out and buy materials. Have fun! 

Click any of the pictures below to download the attachment. 

Homework: Wednesday, April 16th

Homework: 

Tell about a time where you had to do something you didn't want to do or something that you thought would be scary. Did you end up having fun or liking it more than you thought? For example:

MRS. NEWPORT'S STORY

 When I was younger my mom told me I had to join my younger sister and her friends for her birthday slumber party. At the time I thought I was too old to be hanging out with those "little" kids. I moped around and whined about how I didn't want to watch kid movies and tell scary stories with a bunch of first graders. My mom wouldn't let up though. At first I had a bad attitude. I was a big old grump. First the girls started reading spooky stories from a book one of them had packed. Some of those were actually really good and they even asked me to read some of the harder words. I guess that wasn't so bad. Then we got out all kinds of junk food. There was popcorn, chocolate, chips and even sparkling cider. The other girls started trying to throw the popcorn up in the air and someone else would catch it in their mouth. It looked like fun, but I just did not want to have to sleep with them. After a little while I gave in and started trying to catch popcorn that my sister was throwing in the air. Come to find out I was pretty good at it. After that, we took out an Uno game and decided to make a big fort that we could all sleep in. This was so much fun. Our fort was enormous and we could all sleep in it. We played Uno and then we painted out toe nails. Before I knew it I had fallen asleep and the smell of bacon was creeping into my nose. Morning had arrived. While I was eating my breakfast with my sister and her friends I realized that last night was one of the most fun filled night I had ever had. I'm so glad that my mom forced me to have some fun!

 Write about Remember to include a beginning, middle and end. 

You may not use the words THE END as your ending. Use proper capitalization, punctuation and spelling. Write neat and legible. 

Homework: Thursday, April 17th

Tomorrow is career day! As a school wide reward kids will dress up and show off what they want to be when they grow up. You can dress up or simply make a badge with your name and career. I think I am going to dress as a historian or maybe a marine biologist! I can't wait to see what the kids come up with!!

Problem Solving Homework. 

Click the picture below to download tonight's homework. Remember this document is three pages and includes homework for the entire week. 

Also, reading logs are due tomorrow!!

Homework: Tuesday, April 15th

In class we have been learning how to find fractions and mixed numbers (a whole number and a fraction) on a number line. Students have learned several strategies and may use what works best for them. 

Strategies:

1. Use jumps on the number line from one whole number to the next to determine how many equal parts it is cut into. 

2. Draw a fraction model on or above the number line to determine how many parts. 

3. Use circles to circle each space between the whole number to determine the number of parts. 

Watch this video below to learn more about adding fractions to a number line. 

Please click the picture below to download your homework for tonight. There are 3 separate pages. Homework for the entire week is included in this document. 

Homework: Monday, April 14th

We have been working hard to understand and identify cause and effect. It is easy for students to point out cause and effects in conversational setting. For example if I were to ask the effect of spilling my water they would respond with "you get wet". It is more difficult however, to identify cause and effect within text. 

Tonight, I would like students to read the story and identify the cause or effect in the story. Please encourage your child to underline the evidence in the text to support their answer. They must go back and search the text, write in complete sentences and use capitalization and punctuation. 

Click on the image below to download this weeks homework. There are 3 pages attached to the document. They include the homework for the entire week. 

Homework: Thursday, April 10th

Please remember that reading logs are due tomorrow. Your child should be filling in the title(s) of the book(s) they read for the nightly 20 minutes. If you read more please indicate this, as well. 

Also, don't forget that we are no longer doing weekly spelling lists. 

Use this time to practice and become fluent in your multiplication facts!!!!! 

Students must have facts memorized for 4th grade!!!!

Homework: Problem Solving

Homework: Wednesday April 9th

We had an awesome day today! Each Wednesday students who have earned a class reward have the opportunity to share, teach or read aloud to the class. One student read aloud from Charlie and the Chocolate factory. Another chose to read her homework story and a third shared a sand dollar that she found at the beach. Rebecca was our first student to choose "Teacher for a Day".  She taught us how to draw Bad Kitty, a character from one of her favorite book. This was so much fun and a joy to watch!

               

  

Logan's mom volunteered in our classroom today. Thank goodness because our painted paper factory was a huge success. We painted paper different shades of blue and will be working over the next week to create a flip book to keep all of our information about the different layers of the ocean. 

HOMEWORK:

As I have been checking homework lately I have noticed that students are not putting in the necessary effort to complete assignments. Students are often giving one word answers, not writing legibly, and over all not putting in their best effort. The 3rd grade teachers plan homework so that it will take no more than 20 minutes to complete if students are on task. This does not include the nightly reading.

The homework requirement for 4th grade are much more rigorous. I want students to understand that the 20 minutes of homework they are given should be completed according to the directions given and should without a doubt show the students best work. If this is not the case I will ask students to re-do the assignment during their lunch recess. As always, as soon as the work is done they are free to return to recess. 

For tonights homework: Please write a story. It may be about anything you would like. Be creative. Write one paragraph for the beginning, one paragraph for the middle and one paragraph for the end. 

Thank you for all of your help at home!

Homework: Monday, April 7th

Here is your homework for tonight! Now hurry and get it done so you can get out there and enjoy some sunshine!! :) 

Homework: Wednesday, April 2nd

Today, we learned about the Ocean! For homework tonight, students will complete a KW (with no L) for the ocean. In one column they will write what they know about the ocean and in the other what they want to learn/know. 

Homework: Tuesday, April 1st

Students were to copy the Polygon chart into their journal and complete all parts. The scan is very light, but hopefully you can make sense of it. 

Welcome Back and Happy Spring!

Can you believe that we are rounding that last corner toward the end of the year? Your little ones are on their way to become 4th graders! The end of the year is all about preparing them for that next step.  

I am excited for all that we are going to learn this last term!

Below you will find the homework for tonight, a note about spelling and our monthly newsletter. Click on any picture below to download. 

Homework: Tuesday, March 18th

You may click the picture below to download and print. You may also copy the work into your homework journal. It is multiple pages though so make sure to click the picture to view all pages. 

Thank you for all of your help and support at home. 

Remember to eat a healthy breakfast and bring a filling snack. 

Two more days or math state testing and then we are onto Spring Break!

This week in room 12....

First off, Happy St. Patricks Day! 

We started the morning off with a pinch or two, but don't fret. 

Lexi suggested a hug instead and the kids seemed just as excited about that. 

I cannot believe that Spring Break has already arrived. 

This entire month has been spent preparing for the state assessment. 

I am excited to get back to our regular routine this April. 

I have not been completing newsletters or writing in our owl folders. Everything in our classroom is running at a faster pace than ever and there is hardly a minute to spare. 

I have decided that with this website as a way to communicate with families I will only be doing a newsletter once per month. I will try to include all important events and information there, but be sure to check the website, as well. I will begin writing in the folders each Friday again after the break. We will also start spelling and math fact practice again. 

THIS WEEK: 

1. Your child's report card will come home with them today. Please return the signed envelope right away. You may of course, keep the report card. 

2. The Math State Assessment continues through the week. Please make sure to get your mathematician (child) to be a little early. Don't forget to eat a healthy breakfast in the morning and bring healthy snacks to school. 

3. Ulises, Hannah and Madison are our students of the month for March!! I am so proud of how hard they have been working throughout all of the math, math, math we have doing this month! We will recognize their hard work during the assembly at 9:45, this Wednesday. 

4. This Thursday homework for spring break will come home. We are asking that students practice and master as many multiplication facts as possible. I am sending flashcards home with them. Your child should also be reading and keeping a log to return after the break. 

TONIGHT'S HOMEWORK: 

1. Read for 20 minutes and write 3-5 sentences describing a character from the story. 

Homework for the week of March 3rd and State Test Preparation

Lately it is feeling like we rarely have a full week of school. I am sure you are feeling the same way and are looking forward to getting back to some consistency. With a snow day to end one week and begin another in addition to President's Day, last week was our first full week in a while. This week we have another three day week. I will be at school Thursday and Friday while the kids are home. I am preparing for report cards. Spring break is just around the corner and after we return we are working more rigorous than ever with many full weeks until the end of the year. 

It is difficult for me to teach and the children to study our spelling skill within a three day span. Because we have a three day week this week we will have the same spelling words this week and next week.

Every 3rd grader will be taking the Oregon Statewide Assessment. In class we work diligently to prepare students for this assessment and build excitement and confidence. This is a time to celebrate all of their learning! Next Monday we will begin the reading portion of the assessment. To prepare please complete the reading sample test packet with your child at home and return to school on Wednesday. We are also working on test taking strategies at school. Please contact me anytime if you have questions or concerns. You can download the packet by clicking the picture below. 

Homework: Thursday, February 27th

Homework: Wednesday, February 26th

Students should have brought home a notesheet today in their homework journals. They should have also brought home an article about the 2014 Winter Olympics. We are learning how to read, take notes, and respond to our reading in paragraph form. If you need to you can access the Winter Olympics article by clicking HERE

Homework: Wednesday, February 19th

As you know, we are learning about Earth as a planet. We have learned about the layers of the earth, it's resources, place in the solar system and much more. Today we learned about the oceans and continents of Earth. 

For tonight's homework please write 1 complete paragraph, indented, proper spelling, grammar and punctuation. If you could live anywhere in the world where would it be? Tell all about why you would live there. What would you do? Make sure that your paragraph is at least 5 sentences.


Today we began the Genius Club! The class is pumped!!! I can't wait to see what they come up with. More information below:

We also learned about the Ocean and Continents

Homework: Thursday, February 20th

Homework: Tuesday, February 18th

Below you will find the homework for tonight and our spelling words for the week. Click the picture to download. 

Homework: Wednesday February 12th

Click the image to download and print at home. If you are unable to print you can copy the problems into your homework journal. 

Homework: Monday February 10th

No school tomorrow. Here is the homework for Monday night. You have all week to work on it. I will send home this assignment and Tuesday's homework on Tuesday so if you want to get a head start tomorrow you can. :) Enjoy another snow day!!

Homework: Thursday February 6th

Use the spaces provided to create your equation. For example: If Mrs. Newport had 6 baskets with 24 books in each basket you could find the product by finding (20 x 6) + (4 x 6) = 120 + 24 or 144

Email Mrs. Newport if you have any questions (newport@gresham.k12.or.us)

Homework: Wednesday February 5th

We have been working on Expository writing and how to explain something through writing. Tonight please think of a familiar chore, brainstorm the steps needed to complete the chore successfully. Finally, write a paragraph explaining the chore. Remember to use transition words!

Homework: Tuesday February 4th

For homework tonight please remember to show your work. I know that we are not teaching this double digit multiplication in the traditional way. Believe me, at first I was thinking WHY, WHY, WHY!! I had a conversation with my husband the other night. I was explaining how we are teaching kids to break up the double digit number and multiply. Of course, while whining about how it seems so much easier to teach the cross multiplication he proved me wrong.

 He told me that even though he learned the traditional way he never pulls out a piece of scratch paper to multiply large numbers. He breaks them up in his head and puts them back together to find the final product when he is trying to figure something out quickly. 

When he explained it this way it reinforced for me the purpose of these new standards and the Common Core. 

The goal is to get kids thinking about the process, not just the answer.

 Teaching them to break the numbers down makes the concept usable to them. Yes, we often have a calculator with us, but it's important to understand our thinking, how we arrived at our answer and develop a deeper knowledge of numbers and how they work together. This is what the process we are teaching achieves. Thank you for your perseverance through all of the math challenges we are facing this year. Your children are incredibly bright and hard working. I am so lucky to be their teacher!

Homework: Monday February 3rd

Wow! Can you believe it is already February? I certainly cannot, but I am excited for the approach of March and some sunshine in our future. 

This week, please note that dental sealants will begin on Monday. They are getting to all kids in the school as they can so there is no set schedule. Our performance for poetry and dance will be on Wednesday February 5th at 11:20. We would love to have you there!

Last week I forgot to give the spelling test on Thursday. I gave it today and also sent home new words. I am glad to be back to a full week so that we can get back on track. 

Below you will find out class newsletter, homework for today, spelling words for the week, an invitation to our performance and our class list for Valentine's day (more info. to come soon)!