It's the second week of 3rd grade and we are continuing to work hard on our rules, procedures, and learning.  We are building our stamina in Daily Cafe', starting up writer's workshop, beginning to learn about communities and citizenship, and exploring place value & addition in math!  So much to do, so little time it seems! 

In addition to your child's homework of reading for 20 minutes and one math page per night, we are working on spelling activities IN CLASS this week.  Once students have practiced the spelling activity expectations with me in class, they will start them up on their own next week at home.

Also, if you have not turned in your green WCPSS emergency student card, please do so immeadiately.  We need that important information as soon as possible in case of an emergency, thank you!

If you have any questions please contact me via email at: [email protected].

Have a great week!

Spelling- Starting Monday, every week students will be receiving spelling words and have to complete spelling homework each night with these words.  The “Speller’s Choice” worksheet, located in their homework binder and it displays various activities worth levels.  At their own pace, students must complete 3 level III activities or 2 level IV activities by Friday.  Students need to try to refrain from using the same activity more than once a week.  Spelling homework should be completed in their homework binder, behind the Spelling Tab (this will be added next week).  Each new activity needs to be labeled with their name, date, activity name, and level.  We will be practicing this in class and will continue to model quality homework in class next week.

Writing –To begin our Writing Workshop, our class will be decorating our Writer’s notebook with pictures of ourselves and fun stickers.  Please send these in with students on MONDAY, thank you!

Math – Wake County uses the Houghton Mifflin Math Expression Curriculum and we will be sending home Family Letters for each unit.  This week we will be exploring our math manipulatives and start working on addition & place value.

Homework –Next week, students will complete their spelling homework in class, but will still need to read and do math at home.  We will be working very hard to practice quality homework and are holding ourselves responsible for our work.  Each night students will have spelling homework, reading for 20 minutes, and will be receiving math homework more consistently.  Both students and parents have responsibilities when it comes to 3rd grade homework.  I hope we all can work together in supporting their learning!  Parents, please remember to sign the reading log in the binder AND to look for any notes home in their Student Agendas.

Arrival and Dismissal - The bell will sound at 8:45am and students will then enter the building.  Bus riders and daycare vans will enter the front doors of the school.  Carpoolers will enter the door facing the large parking lot.  Students arriving carpool should be dropped off at the appropriate doors and they can then make their way down to their room independently.  If they need assistance getting to the cafeteria for breakfast or to the classroom during the first few weeks, staff members and safety patrol will gladly assist them.

A second bell will sound at 9:15am indicating the start of the instructional day.  During this thirty minute period students will be working on their morning work at their desk quietly.  Students arriving after 9:15 will be marked tardy. 

At 3:35pm the bell will sound for carpool students to report to the multi-purpose room/gymnasium.  Bus riders will remain in the room until their bus is called or displayed on the television monitor, which will begin at 3:45.  The office will close for student check-out at 3pm, so if you need to check your student out of school at the end of the day, please do so before 3pm.

Notes to the Teacher - As a teacher, I like to communicate with home as often as possible.  Phone calls or notes home will not always be negative in their subject manner, but may also be positive about your child’s behavior, conduct, and/or work habits.  Please do not view a note or call from me as a “bad” thing, I am an “equal opportunity communicator!”  If for any reason you need to contact me about your child or other questions/ concerns, please feel free to send a note to school with your child or email me.  I am best reached by email and I am able to more quickly respond that way.   Otherwise, leaving a message at the front office or a note will your child will work well too.

Parent Volunteers - I enjoy having volunteers in the classroom.  Having an organized plan or duty for volunteers works best for me in the past years and is much more valuable to student learning.  I typically like to have volunteers sign up to file papers, make copies (I will need to “train” these volunteers on the BRES machines), creating class books, assisting with celebrations, providing treats when asked, field trips, and most importantly working with small groups of students in different subject areas.  Assistance in any of these areas is very helpful to me. 

We are still working on our classroom procedures, practicing how to follow the rules, and becoming more familiar with everyday activities.  Therefore, I usually refrain from having parent volunteers in the classroom for the first few weeks of school.  If you will be “visiting” the school and/or child, I ask that you primarily use lunch to do so.  Visiting the classroom unexpectedly interrupts & distracts student learning, especially during the first few weeks of school.  It would be greatly appreciated if meeting a student for lunch that you waited for them in the cafeteria and also parted ways from there as well. 

Please remember to make sure that you have filled out the proper WCPSS Volunteer Clearance Forms at the front office computer.  If you have been cleared by the county previously, you may need to check that it is updated.  Wake County requires that volunteers update their forms on a yearly basis.  Thank you for all of your cooperation and future assistance!

Behavior System – Our classroom has theme of teamwork for the school year.  We are working with a Team Themed Behavior Chart where there are different levels of conduct.  Every student starts on “Starting Lineup” and then can move their clip up or down depending on their behavior, work habits, and conduct.   All Star students will be receiving a ticket to possibly earn a reward/prize each Friday!

ALL-STAR:  I go above and beyond by putting others first. I set a very strong example for my teammates.

Starting Lineup:  I understand and practice appropriate behaviors most of the time.

Second String:  I am needing a few reminders to practice appropriate behaviors.

Penalty Box:  I am not practicing appropriate behaviors even after several reminders. I need to make a plan to help me make better choices.

Team Sonntag Schedule
Morning Work       8:45-9:15am
Morning Meeting   9:15-9:20am
Daily 5 - Literacy Block
(Reading/Writing)    9:20-10:10am
Specials                10:10-10:55am
Literacy Block      10:55-12:05pm      
Lunch                    12:05-12:35pm
Literacy Block      12:35-12:55pm
S.S./Science         12:55-1:30pm
Recess                  1:30-2:00pm
Math                     2:00-3:00pm
Team Time           3:00-3:30
Dismissal              3:35pm

“Leadership and learning are indispensable to each other.”

~John F. Kennedy

Family & friends, please join us on Thursday, June 28th, at 2:15pm for the movie premier of Fractured Fairy Tales!  Our students have been working very hard on interpreting our skits and plays.  We have incorporated those reading objectives with social studies objectives, where we integrate technology.  So therefore we have turned a live play into a movie!  We are so excited to share these movies with you.  Popcorn and juice refreshments will be served as well!  Please check out the formal invitation below and let us know if you will be attending!

With EOG's completely finished for the entire school, you can see the excitement for the end of the year building in all of the children.  They are finishing projects, working on plays, and planning end of the year celebrations!  It's such an exciting time of year when the stress has been lifted for many students and they can simply enjoy learning for the sake of learning.

With only 2 weeks left in the 2011-2012 school year, please continue to check your student's homework and weekly notes.  There are many activities happening around the school and we don't want anyone to miss a thing!

Important Dates:
6/22 - Field Day!
6/29 - Last Day of sch

Welcome back Team Sonntag!  I hope everyone had a relaxing and enjoyable track out.  The students shared lots of fun and exciting things about the activities they did over the break.  It was great to hear about all the fun in the sun and family time they got to have!

Over the break, students were sent home with EOG scores from our testing back in May.  If you did not recieve testing information please contact myself or the office.  Students who receive a level 1 or 2 on the EOG in math and/or reading will be retested next week, June 11th - 14th.  Review packets also went home to keep their minds fresh and practice those skills over the past 3 weeks.  We will continue to review this week with those children who will be retesting.

As we return to our regularly scheduled day at BRES, students will also resume having homework.  For the next few weeks students will need to complete the assigned math workbook page and read for 20 minutes.  The reading must be recorded in their reading log and signed by an adult.  The math page must be completed as well.

Again, welcome back Team Sonntag!  Let's have a great last 4 weeks of the 2012-2012 school year!

As this week comes to a close I would like to thank all those students who are working super hard to practice their reading & math skills every day.  The students who practice hard and apply themselves each and every day, go without asking when they can stop.  They continue to push themselves to be at their very best and I appreciate their hard work so much!

In two weeks Track 2 will start the EOG tests on May 7th -10th.  That leaves us with two more weeks of intense instruction and review of skills from the past 3 quarters.  It is very important that all students are getting lots of rest each night, eating a healthy breakfast, and trying to keep themsleves as healthy as possible.  I know sometimes it is inevitiable that our children get sick, but let's do our best to keep them healthy during such a critical part of the school year.  Practicing these good habits will help make the process of testing much more relaxed and anxiety/stress free.

 I am very happy to say that for the first time this entire school year, EVERY SINGLE STUDENT HAS COMPLETED ALL OF THEIR HOMEWORK EACH NIGHT!  This is something that I have been stressing for the students and finally it has happened!  Hooray!

Please read the information going home about field day, brining in the game of Battleship, and bringing in recipes that contain fractions on Monday.  I really want the students to get a sense of how everthing they are learning pertains to their real life outside of school.  Thanks so much!

Important Dates:
April 27th - Early Release
May 3rd - Talent Show
May 4th - Q4 Interims go home
May 7-10th - EOG's!
May 11th - Track Out!
June 4th - Return to school
June 22nd - Field Day

An important note went home from administration on Monday about the change in the EOG dates for track 2.  In this note it informed families that the dates had been changed to May 7th - 10th, 2012.  This will place EOG's during the week of school before our last track out.  This opportunity does push the date closer than the original date in June, but it also allows us less time for the students to be out of school without the rigor and preparation before hand.  If you have any questions about the dates please let me know. 

We all know how important a good diet is for students, especially when they have testing like the EOG's.  So for the past few years, I have asked for donations and volunteers to bring in healthy breakfast foods for the students to eat before the test.  The school cafeteria of course always serves a well balanced meal, but we need extra foods packed full of brain power!  Foods like, hard boiled eggs, granola, yogurt, bagels, string cheese, fruit, milk, juice, etc... are all great ways to start out the day.  I will be sending out an electronic sign up for those who have given me their emails and if you do not have email, please let me know and we can sign you up the old fashioned way.  The process of serving this food is generally very quiet and relaxed.  The table is set up outside the room where students can get their food and then return to their desk to eat & relax quietly.  Once the food is served I will need to close the door and prepare them for the test ahead, so I would need parents to be able to clean up the table & food and leave the hallway clear for the rest of the day.  If you are interested in helping out this way, you may also sign up.  Thank you!!!!

Learning Objectives:
Language Arts:  Verifying facts & ideas in nonfiction, writing plays & skits
Math:  2D & 3D shapes and characteristics
Science:  Plant Growth & Development
Other:  Skill review for EOG's

Important Dates:
April 27th -  Early Release
May 3rd @7pm - BRES Talent Show...come see Nate K. perform!!
May 4th - 4th Quarter Interims
May 7th - 10th - EOG'S!!!!!!
May 11th - Track out
May 18th - Spring Carnival
June 22nd - Field Day
May