Halloween Festivities!

Here's a look at our Halloween celebration. Thank you for helping to make this so much fun for the children!

Crew News 10.27.11

Thanks for reading all the important announcements! CogAT: Look for CogAt scores in Thursday folders today. They will be in a sealed envelope. If you are interested in more information or would like to know more about pursuing the Gifted and Talented Program, please visit: https://www.dcsdk12.org/ecm/groups/public/@webgifted/documents/webcontent/dcs752374.pdf Halloween Parade and Breakfast: Are you ready for the annual REMS Halloween parade? Please have students arrive at school in costume on Monday, October 31st. We will be doing a parade through the classrooms, having breakfast, and enjoying a few activities before IAs. Then students will change back into regular clothes, and we will have a normal day. :)      ~Costumes should be school-appropriate. No overly-scary costumes or weapon props. Please email me if you have questions.      ~A big thank you to Marianne, our crew parent, for facilitating the breakfast and celebration. THANKS! Save the Date 11/22: Please save the morning of 11/22 (the day before Thanksgiving break) for a special event to celebrate our students’ work in expedition. More information will be coming soon.

Crew Learning Expedition: We are launching our next case study this week. We will be looking at art as a way to learn about different cultures in Colorado. Students will build their analytical skills and use those skills to learn about different people in Colorado through the art they create or the art that is made about them. We have started learning about Native American art and Ute culture.  We are so lucky to have Ms. Brittany with an extensive background in art to lead us in this expedition! HINTS AT HOME: We have been talking about culture. How would you define culture? What is your culture and how do you show it?

Writing/Language Workshop: Students wrote a piece about their fall break with a focus on planning before writing and including details. We began a new genre study on TALL TALES. We read Paul Bunyan today, and we will be reading more texts to learn more about this genre. HINTS AT HOME: What ideas can you add to your seed ideas that you want to write about in writing? What do you notice so far about tall tales?

Math: This week we have spent some time reviewing Unit 3 concepts before moving on. I had students re-look at their assessment to double-check for errors, and improve understanding. HINTS AT HOME: Find authentic opportunities to solve money problems.

Reading Workshop: This week we started a new theme unit called “What is Electricity?” Students will be reading a variety of text and developing vocabulary about electricity. We are beginning to work on the reading comprehension strategy about how to synthesize. We talked about how as you read, you bring pieces of information together to form a new idea. HINTS AT HOME: Set a routine for 3rd graders to be reading every night. Have your child share with you what he/she can synthesize from the text and how it helps to better understand the text.

Spelling : Click here for spelling week 9.

Reminders:
Oct 31: Halloween Parade/ Celebration Breakfast: Please arrive in costume

Nov 3: Fieldwork to Denver Art Museum; Send sack lunch
Nov 4: No students; Professional Development
Nov 7-11: Fall Climbing 9:55-10:45am Click here for directions on how to sign up!
Nov 11-18: REMS Book Fair 

Nov 22: Save the Date: Expedition sharing event in the morning
Nov 23-25: No School for Thanksgiving Holiday

Crew News 10.6.11

Call for Chaperones Fieldwork on 11/3: We will be launching our NEW expedition after fall break. We will need 3 volunteers to chaperone for fieldwork on November 3rd. Please email me if you are interested! Reminders for Tomorrow: We do have school tomorrow:  Other schools in the district do not have school tomorrow, but Renaissance does. Then on Monday October 24th, there is no school for students. We will see everyone back from Fall Break on Tuesday October 25th. Money Games: For tomorrow, can you send in games that involve money? We are going to play these and talk about how they connect to our learning about understanding budgeting and money exchange. Photo Essay Celebration: We will have a celebration for our fantastic photo essay authors in the afternoon on Friday October 7th from 3:30-4pm. It will be a chance for family members to see the work students have been doing for our last case study in expedition and writers’ workshop. Students have been hard at work, and are putting together amazing products. Please come join us for this celebration Friday 10/7 at 3:30pm.

Crew Learning Expedition: We had the pleasure of two guest speakers this week that came to talk and play games with us to talk about budgeting and savings. Students have done a great job in discussing what a budget is, why it is important, and how to identify needs/wants. HINTS AT HOME: What is a short-term goal and a long-term goal that you want to save for?	Writing/Language Workshop: This week, we worked on our skills as editors, looking for mistakes in punctuation, capitalization, and spelling. Students edited their photo essays and parts of their independent writing. HINTS AT HOME: When you edit your writing, what mistakes did you notice? What goals do you have in writing after Fall Break?
Math: We finished our unit on measurement with some interactive lessons on perimeter, area, circumference, and diameter. Students will take the assessment on this unit tomorrow. HINTS AT HOME: Ask your child to define/identify new math terms: area, perimeter, circumference, and diameter. We will be launch Unit 4 on multiplication after Fall Break.	Reading Workshop: This week we wrapped up our reading theme called “What is Light?”  Students practiced making inferences and asking questions to better understand the text. HINTS AT HOME: Set a routine for 3rd graders to be reading every night. Have your child share with you what questions he/she is asking and how it helps to better understand the text.

Spelling : No Spelling during Fall Break. :) 

Library: All library books will be due after Fall Break.

Reminders:

Oct 10-24: Fall Break

Oct 25: Students return from Fall Break
Oct 31: Halloween Parade/ Celebration Breakfast

Nov 3: Fieldwork
Nov 4: No students; Professional Development
Nov 7-11: Fall Climbing 9:55-10:45am Click here for directions on how to sign up!
Nov 11-18: REMS Book Fair
Nov 23-25: No School for Thanksgiving Holiday