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Yearly Archives: 2017

May 22nd, 2017 – Portfolios, DVDs and Fishing

Hello Families!

I am in a state of shock, but the final week of the year has arrived.  It seems like only yesterday the year was beginning, and I was getting to know your kids.  Now, the end has come.  To me, the first and last days of school are kind of romantic, in that it brings back so many memories of my childhood.  I can only hope your child has enjoyed the year as much as I have.

Today, your child should have brought home his/her “School Days…” portfolio and DVD.  Their final homework assignment was to share these items with you, so I hope you have time to look them over and reminisce on the year that was third grade.

Just a reminder that our last day fishing trip will take place from approximately 12:30 to 2:30 at Bowling Lake.  No equipment is needed…just some comfortable shoes and an eager attitude!  🙂  Should you want to join us, simply fill out the volunteer registration online (see the fishing note in the “Events” tab above for the link) and you’re good to go!

Thanks for reading and all your help this year!

Eric Wachter

May 8th, 2017 – Return to Normalcy?

Good Morning Families,

This week, we’ll return to normal…mostly!  No chicks hatching, no field trips to Memorial Stadium…just business as usual.  We’ll have our final spelling list of the year, and end the week with our Embryology assessment.  I hope your child came home with lots of stories and fond memories of our fuzzy little friends.  Check out the pictures link on the site, as I’ll add a few class pictures of the chickadees (and Memorial Stadium).  But, while they are fun, it’s always nice to get back to the regular routine.

We do have one really fun event scheduled for this Wednesday that is definitely not normal!  We have been practicing fractions for the past two weeks during Interventions.  Each day we review a skill, and if a child can answer the “exit question” correctly, that child earns a “piece of pie” coupon.  Today, one of those coupons will be drawn from each Math class and that student will have the chance to SMASH a pie into Mr. Roberson’s face!  We’ve done this for several years and it’s been a great way to motivate the students to earn those coupons.  Mr. Roberson does a great job egging the kids on, but it’s the students that will have the last laugh!  🙂

Your child should have brought home an informational letter regarding our last day of school fishing trip to Bowling Lake.  If you would like to join us, please go online and fill out the volunteer form information.  If you already did this for the Memorial Stadium trip, there is no need to fill it out twice.

Thanks for reading and have a great week.

Mr. Wachter

May 1st, 2017 – “A chick, chick here and a…Husker athlete there?”

Good Morning Families!

I am just amazed we’re already upon the last three full weeks of school.  While we are wrapping things up, there is soooooo many fun things yet to do!

This week our little chickadees will be hatching.  Wednesday will be a big day for us, as they are due break out.  We had 12/12 eggs developing properly two weeks ago, so hopefully we’ll have a good batch!

We will also…rain or shine…take our tour of the UNL Athletic Department facilities on Wednesday.  The majority of this trip is indoors, but we will have a chance to run out on the field and take some pictures.  Please have your kids wear Husker red, if possible, and wear a light jacket in case of rain.

If you’re planning on joining us, you will have had to sign up as field trip volunteer (those were the pink sheets that came home).  We will meet at the Tom Osborne statue on the NW corner of the stadium and begin our tour at 10:30.  It takes roughly and hour, and we’ll board the bus and return to school by 12:00.

Cameras are allowed at school for both the chicks and the field trip.  I will also be taking A LOT of pictures, and the kids will all get copies in their end of the year portfolios.

Because of the chicks and the field trip (and a few other oddities this week), we will not be having a spelling list.  We just won’t have the proper amount of time to study in class with all our extra curricular activities.  That leaves us with one final spelling list next week (Unit 6, Week 5).

As always, thanks for reading and for everything you do to help your child succeed in school!

Eric Wachter

April 24th, 2017 – Winner, winner, chicken…embryos!

Good Morning Families!

Your child probably reported to you that our growing little chicken embryos are doing great!  They were candled last Wednesday, and thankfully all twelve of our little buddies are growing properly.  If all goes well, they will begin to hatch on or around May 3rd.  Keep your fingers crossed they keep developing!

This week is Unit 6, Week 3 of reading.  We’ll have spelling this week, even though it’s only a four day week again.  In Math we’ll wrap up Telling Time with our Unit Test on Thursday.  We’ll spend most of this week practicing elapsed time, which is always tricky to master.  Any extra practice at home regarding elapsed time questions would greatly support what we’re doing in the classroom.

Just a reminder that our field trip to Memorial Stadium is coming up next week on May 3rd.  You may have noticed the typo in the letter I sent home, in regards to volunteering.  Should you choose to volunteer, please let me know by this Friday.  (I think one of the dates listed last Saturday, by accident.)  If you want to review that note again, it’s listed under the “Events” tab of this web site.  Or, I can send another home with your child.

Thanks for reading and have a great week!

Eric Wachter

April 17th, 2017 – Return to Normalcy & Memorial Stadium Field Trip

Hello Families!

I hope you all had a restful weekend and got to enjoy time with your family during the four day break from school.  It was so nice to feel the sun and a little warmth this weekend!

This week we’ll return to a degree of normalcy for most students.  There are a few that will be taking the NeSA-M test still, but most have finished those exams.  We will have spelling this week (Unit 6 Week 2), but I’ve decided to end the Literacy Homework for the year.  That weekly assignment was designed to prep the kids for the NeSA-ELA test.  Considering those are over, I think we’ll consider that assignment over, as well.

In Math, we’ll turn our attention to Telling Time.  This can be a tricky concept for some kids, so any extra practice at home is helpful.  We also received our eggs for our Embryology Unit last week.  They will be “candled” on Wednesday, and we’ll learn if they are developing properly.  Keep your fingers crossed!

This week your child will also be bringing home a note regarding our field trip to Memorial Stadium on May 3rd.  If you are interested in joining us that day, please read the requirements on the note on how to become a volunteer for the day.  (I also attached the note to the web site under the “Events” tab)  It’s a pretty simple process.  Hope you can join us that day!

Thanks for reading and have a great week!

Eric Wachter

April 10th, 2017 – NeSA Math Week and Embryology Begins

Hello Families!

This week most kids will take the Nebraska State Assessment for Math (NeSA-M) on Tuesday and Thursday.  Like the reading exams, these tests can be very trying and energy draining.  Please see to it your child gets good rest the night before, and a good breakfast in the morning.  I’ll do my best to cheer them on and encourage each student to give his/her best!  If the kids do that, I’ll be content that we did everything in our power to bring out their best!

We’ll begin our Embryology (Baby chicks!) science unit on Wednesday.  This will serve as a nice break to all our testing!  A dozen eggs will be delivered, and the kids will enjoy a short presentation as to how they will become “mother hens” over the next three weeks.  🙂  If all goes well, we’ll have some fluffy little pets to enjoy beginning around May 3rd.

Since most kids are wrapping up testing this week, we will again not have a spelling list or Literacy Homework.  Math homework will be very limited, as well, with all the exams.

Thanks for reading and thanks so much for all you do for your child!

Mr. Wachter

April 3rd, 2017 – Testing Season Continues

Hello Families!

Wabbit season! Duck season!  Wabbit season!  Duck season!  TEST SEASON!  If you recall the old Bugs Bunny cartoons, those words ring true in your child’s classroom right now.  🙂  Most kids have finished the NeSA-ELA Test, or will finish it up this week.  There is no rest for the weary, however, as we now embark on a condensed version of our Unit 5 Test in reading.  Thus, the kids will have no spelling this week, nor will I torture them with a Literacy Homework.  Next week we’ll shift gears to the NeSA Math Test, which we will be prepping for all this week in addition to our other exams.  If I melt your child’s brain, I apologize.  🙂

With hard work comes fun, however.  Last Friday we enjoyed a break with a movie and some treats.  This Friday the kids will become paleontologists for a day and excavate a fossil out of plaster of Paris.  This will take place Friday afternoon and will be a nice way to end a hard week.  The plaster can get a bit messy, so you might consider sending them to school wearing clothes that might get a bit dusty.

Thanks for reading, and thanks again for all you do to help your child succeed in school!

Mr. Wachter

March 27, 2017 – NeSA-ELA Week!

Hello Families!

This week the majority of kids in 3rd grade will take the much anticipated Nebraska State Assessment for English Language Arts (NeSA-ELA).  Those exams will take place on Wednesday and Thursday, from 10:00 to 12:00.  Your kids will have enough to worry about this week, so we are not having spelling or reading homework.  I think they deserve a break, considering the magnitude of those tests!  Please help your child get a good night of rest, a healthy breakfast and encourage him/her to simply do the best that he/she can!!!

Report cards will be coming home on Thursday.  As always, sit down with your child and have a chat regarding their grades.  I tell them all the time that EFFORT is EVERYTHING!  I hope their work equates to 3s and 4s, but 1s and 2s are simply reminders of what we need to keep practicing.  Life and school are a process, and we’ll keep working hard in 4th quarter to master all the skills of third grade!

Thanks for reading and have a great week!

Eric Wachter

March 20th, 2017 – Calm Before the Storm

Good Morning Families!

I hope you all enjoyed Spring Break and got to enjoy some nice weather with your families.  Now, the fourth quarter is upon us, and your child’s classroom is in for a busy end of the school year.

This week will seem pretty normal.  We’ll have spelling words, Literacy Homework, Math Homework, etc.  Our final preparations for the NeSA-ELA exam will continue this week, as well.  You might call this week the calm before the storm, because most kids will take the state reading exam next week, or the following week.  I will be sending home a more detailed letter with those dates and times this week, so be on the look out for that information.

These big exams often bring extra anxiety to students and teachers.  However, we have been preparing for these tests all year long and there really shouldn’t be any big surprises on the test.  Effort truly is everything to me.  If they try their best, then I will be happy.  It’s as simple as that!

Thanks for reading and have a great week!

Eric Wachter

March 6th, 2017 – Spring Has Sprung!

Hello Parents and Guardians,

Hard to believe we have come to the last week of third quarter.  Time sure does fly by!  It really feels like Spring has arrived, though I know we still probably aren’t out of the woods with winter.

It was great visiting with you all last week during conferences.  I hope I communicated how proud I am of your kids.  Even grades of 1s or 2s have promise, particularly if the student is working hard.  Grades, school and life in general are all about the “process” of learning, in my opinion.  We’ll keep working hard this last quarter and I’m confident everything will turn out as it should.

Your kids will see a pretty normal week of school.  We’ll have spelling, we’ll have Literacy Homework, and as we begin Fractions and Decimals, we’ll have regular Math homework.  As a celebration, the third graders will end 3rd quarter Friday by watching “Balto” in the afternoon.  A number of reading groups read the story of Balto, and the movie is just as entertaining.

I hope you all have a great week, and thanks always for reading.

Eric Wachter