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Monthly Archives: January 2018

January 29th, 2018 – Chick Week!

Good Morning Families,

It will be an exciting week in room 702, as our chickadees are due to hatch on Wednesday.  Hopefully all 12 of the little ones hatch!  It’s always the most memorable thing about third grade, and I’m so happy your kids get to have this experience.

We are cruising right through Unit 4 in reading, and will begin week 4 today.  You can expect a spelling list and reading homework to come home this evening.  The essential question of the week is, “How are people able to fly?”  We’ll enjoy several stories and a couple of videos about the history of flight.  Pretty cool stuff!

In Math, we will continue to practice telling time.  The lessons were a little hit and miss last week, so I hesitate to guess what days we’ll have homework this week.  My class will definitely have an assignment tonight.  The rest of the week we’ll play it by ear.

Lastly, your child will also bring home a note regarding our upcoming field trip to Morrill Hall.  The trip will be on February 8th, from 9:00 to 12:00.  The note includes all the details, including that parents are welcome to join us!  But, unfortunately there is a $7 fee per adult, should you choose to accompany us.

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

Eric Wachter

 

January 23rd, 2018 – Egg Candling Success!

Hello Families!

My apologies for not sending out this week’s email sooner.  We had no internet connection at school for much of the morning, and I’m only just now getting caught up for the day.  I hope you all stayed toasty warm yesterday, and were able to stay off the roads as much as possible.  I don’t know about you, but I’m ready for spring!

Last week we had great success candling our eggs!  All 12 of our eggs were developing properly, which is very rare, particularly in the winter!  But, as they say, we can’t count our chickens before they hatch.  Hopefully all 12 will hatch around January 31st, and we’ll have some new classmates for a couple of days.

This week is Unit 4, Week 3 in reading, and the kids should have brought home a spelling list today.  We will also have reading homework, and that assignment hopefully came home today, as well.

In Math, we’re switching over to measurement and telling time for the next several lessons.  My Math class had homework today (Homework 4-5), and I think we will have homework each night this week (Homeworks 4-6, 4-7 and 4-8).  However, that will depend on how each lesson goes, and whether or not I think they “got it” that day.  If I think they are struggling, we might have to bump a homework until the next day.

Well, stay warm and have a great rest of the week!

Eric Wachter

January 17th, 2018 – Staying Warm?

Good Morning Families,

I hope you’re all staying toasty warm this week!  I’m still in a bit of shock we had a “cold” day yesterday, but I suppose it is always better to be safe when it comes to extreme weather.  I’m glad we’re back today, as the kids have many fun things to work on this week!

Due to the short week, don’t expect a spelling list to come home today.  Three days is a pretty quick turnaround to learn a new list of words.  We’ll practice the skills and do some activities, but I’d rather use Friday morning to make up a lesson from the cold day, rather than squeeze in a spelling test.

We will have a Reading Homework this week, but I will count it as a “bonus” assignment and offer the kids a reward it they bring it back by Friday.  I considered skipping it, but the story is about Martin Luther King, Jr., and I’d hate for the kids to miss out learning about Dr. King and his life.

On Thursday, the workers from the UNL Extension Office will return to class and “candle” our classroom eggs.  That simply means they will shine a high powered light against the eggs to check their development.  Hopefully all twelve are growing properly, and your child will have exciting news to report that evening.

In Math we’ll keep practicing fractions this week.  You can expect a homework assignment from my class tonight, and perhaps on Friday.  We’ll play that day by ear as we try and get caught up from the missed day.

Keep warm and have a great rest of the week!

Eric Wachter

January 8th, 2018 – Happy New Year!

Good Morning Families!

I hope your new year is off to a great start!  I had a nice break, but I’m really ready to crank things up again.  I missed your kids terribly!  Seeing them walk in the room this morning really warmed my heart.

We will begin Unit 4 in both Math and Reading this week.  You can expect a spelling list to come home each Monday for the next five weeks.  We’ll also have Reading homework this week and each week during the entire 3rd quarter.

This week we will also start our Embryology unit in Science.  On Wednesday, we’ll have a dozen chicken eggs delivered and placed in our incubator.  Over the next three weeks we’ll learn all about how to care for them and help them develop into adorable little baby chicks!  If all goes well, they will hatch around January 31st or February 1st.  This is often the most memorable part of third grade and I’m so excited your child gets to partake this in this life cycle study!

One other item of note…you may hear your child discussing a change in his/her Reading or Math grouping.  This is very typical, and nothing that should alarm you as a parent.  The halfway point of the year is a time we often reevaluate groups and make a few changes to make sure your child is in an optimal place to learn.  If I have any major concerns or questions I will contact you, but don’t worry if your child’s grouping changes in the next couple of weeks.

Thanks for reading and have a great week!

Eric Wachter