It has been just over a month since the first day of school, and I am so happy to say that the students seem to have settled into a room which looks quite different from what they have been used to so far. While the desks are far apart, the children still have many "socially distant" ways of interacting with each other. 

We started our year with a unit on realistic fiction and studied all the four elements of fiction in detail. The students enjoyed learning about character traits and tried their hand at describing their own personalities. I would say they were quite accurate in assessing themselves!

Our next unit is on informational texts. Students examined the difference between fiction and nonfiction and will soon learn how to identify main idea and supporting details. 

In the meantime, we are also working on building up our vocabulary and spelling skills.

Community Reading Day

Deputy Chief Bennet was our community reader this past Friday. He read the book, Thank You Omu! to the students. It was a great picture that talked about the importance of sharing what one has with others. Children enjoyed the book as well as the wonderful insights that Deputy Chief Bennet shared with them. Here are a few pictures from that event.

Valentine Fraction Fun Event


On the eve of Valentine's Day, we had our Fraction Fun event. Students created artwork inspired by  Ed Emberley's  Picture Pies, decorated Valentine Bags, and played games. You guessed right! All these activities were based on fractions, our current unit of study in math.

Ed Emberley Picture Pies

Students used fractional parts of circles ( whole, 1/2, 1/4, and 1/8) to create some beautiful designs. After cutting out the parts, they glued the pieces together to make clowns, dogs, flowers, and walruses to name a few. Amritha and Swati who were the parent volunteers at this station were incredibly patient with the children while the youngsters chose their designs and colors.

Valentine Bag Decoration and Estimation

In preparation of Valentine Exchange, students decorated bags with stickers, doilies, colored pencil, and pompoms. Allison and Stacey led this station and they had the unenviable task of ensuring that supplies lasted for all the students! After the children decorated the bags, they had to estimate the fraction of decorations. They were encouraged to use benchmark fractions such as 1/2, 2/3, and 3/4. Once the fractions were estimated, students recorded their guesses on bag labels. This station challenged students to apply their knowledge of fractions to estimation skills.

Games

This station was wonderfully led by Liz who has a great sense of humor! Students played dice games and worked with tangrams to make heart and other shapes. Liz tried to help students through the challenges and the youngsters truly appreciated her inputs. Mr. Dimen, our new assistant principal joined us and he encouraged students to keep trying as they worked on tangrams.

It was indeed a fun-filled afternoon with loads of learning and laughter. Thanks to all the awesome parent volunteers who made it possible.

Exploring Fractions

We began the unit on fractions with a great hands-on activity. Students worked in groups of three to show fractions using different materials such as construction paper, yarn, and play dough. Each group was assigned a specific fraction to work with and present its work to rest of the class. Children explored fractions such as halves, fourths, sixths, and tenths.

After all the groups were done with their assigned fractions, we conducted a "museum walk" so that they could examine what others had done. It was such a wonderful sight to see students truly appreciate each other's work and take notes on how fractions could be made with diverse materials. 

This week ( 2/9) we will use fractions to make art!

There are three ways to contact me.

Write a note in your child's agenda book.

E-mail me at rabbaraju@hopkinton.k12.ma.us. I check e-mails before and after school and will respond as soon as possible.

Call me at 508-497-9860, extn: 3214. I check messages after school and will return your call within a day. If it is an urgent message regarding dismissal change notification, please contact Ms. Lipocky or Ms. Napolitano at the school office.

Class Expectations

Agenda Book and Homework Folder

Students are expected to take the agenda book and homework folder home everyday. Please check these items regularly for assignments, reminders about school activities, test dates, corrected papers, study guides for tests and other important flyers. You may use the agenda book for writing notes to me.

Homework

Students in grade three will receive 15-30 minutes of written homework four times a week. Homework is given on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday nights. Nightly assignments, as well as reminders, will be recorded by the students in their agenda books. It is expected that they turn in completed homework by the due date. In addition to written homework, students are required to read for at least 20 minutes per night Monday through Thursday nights and study their math facts.

If your child forgets to bring in homework assignments to school, please do not drop them off in the office. As third graders, students will be working towards developing independence and responsibility. You can help by encouraging your child to complete the homework and turn it in by the due date on their own. Please contact me if your child is consistently spending more than the recommended time of thirty minutes or struggling to complete the assignments. Modifications and accommodations can and will be made for students who cannot complete the assignment within the time guidelines.

Specials for the Year 2019-20

Specials Schedule 2019-20

Monday: Library

Tuesday: Music & Physical Education

Wednesday: Art

Thursday: Physical Education

Friday: Health