Welcome to 3rd Grade Curriculum Night

Meet your child’s teacher….

• LINDZIE• I come from a small town in Utah.• I come from a Mother who is a Nurse, and a father who is a Aerospace Engineer. • I am the eldest with a half-sister from my mom, and a half-sister from my dad. • I am a newly licensed teacher, with a degree in Early Childhood Education.• I began my career in education with an internship in high school in 2009.• I have previously taught preschool for 5 years.• I have interned in the Bellevue School District in both Kindergarten and 1st grade.• I have been a Washington resident for 5 years, currently living in Issaquah.• I have two cats, and one dog. • I am an outdoorsy, adventurous person who likes to try new things.• I am a late night, driven, hard-working, caring teacher and adult.• I have passions for children, animals, the outdoors, art, and travel.• ADAMSON

The joy of learning is as indispensable in study as breathing is in running. Where it is lacking there are no

real students… -Simone Weil

Transitions ….Emphasis from oral answers in 1st and

2nd grade to showing evidence in written form in 3rd

grade .

Classroom Rewards

•Ticket Tin and Treasure Bin

•Students receive tickets for showing PAWS behavior in class

•Every Friday one ticket is drawn from the tin and that person gets to pick from the treasure bin.

•Free time points

•Students earn table points, for every 5 points earned, the students receive 1 minute of Friday free time. Students can also loose minutes for not following instructions.

New Reading Adaption: Mondo• Word Study and Phonics

–Foundational and language skills for proficient reading

• Modeled Reading/Read Aloud–Teachers model their thinking

while reading• Shared Reading

–Teachers and students read digital text together to construct meaning and develop reading, speaking, listening, and language skills

• Guided Reading–Small groups meet with teachers

to work on-level skills• Independent Reading

–Students apply what they are learning

• *Rotates between fiction and non-fiction.

MONDO learning focuses:

*showing evidence*cause & effect* summarizing*author point of view*Main idea & supporting details

Reading Resources

•Mondo•Great Books•Time for Kids•Aimsweb•Materials from science, social studies, math, and writing•Student free choice from library and home

Writing •Writer’s Workshop:-Narrative, Expository (Information), and Persuasive (Opinion) Writing

•Writer’s Notebook (journaling time in class and at home)

Handwriting: Zaner-Bloser curriculum-Introducing Cursive-We work in our handwriting

workbooks for ~25 minutes/2 days a week.

Math Expressions

Houghton Mifflin Math Expressions curriculum

• We have jumped right into multiplication and division.

• Study plan, Homework Helper, Study Sheet

• We work in whole group, table groups, and math partners. *Math Talk*

• Students will be expected to know all of their math facts by the end of 3rd grade!

Differentiating LearningThe students will be able to have differentiated leaning experiences through the use of technology such as the iTouch and laptops, through hands on learning experiences, and independent projects.

We have 12 laptops, 8 ipads, and a class set of ipods!!

Integrated CurriculumScience:• Geology (Rocks & Minerals)• Chemistry• Puget Sound Ecology*Field trip to the Seattle Aquarium

Social Studies:• Cultures in Our Community• NW Coastal Native

Americans*Field trip to the Burke MuseumGeography of Regions & States

Wow! So cool! We get to ….Research in books and on computers, have home projects, create power points, participate in-class science fairs using scientific process, have a Culture Fair, learn map/geography skills, experience SBAC testing in reading & math, authentic letter writing, community service, enjoy art projects (Mrs. Hochberg,, parent art docent, and Ms Adamson), listen to teacher reads, jump and jive with Ninja division and dancing feet multiplication, celebrate at a Potlatch, and more…..

Homework• Each afternoon, the students

fill out their Planner with the homework for that evening.

• *The expectation is that each student shows a parent or guardian this each night.

• I always include “I read for ___ mins.” to make sure the students are reading each night (at least 20 minutes).

*You will initial this each night.

• Math Homework will be given as each lesson wraps up- some lessons take more than one day, so math homework may not be given daily.

• Wednesdays will always be Spelling Word homework.• Other homework may include: research for writing, un-finished

classwork, or project work.• *Students who do not turn I homework each day will stay in through

recess to do the homework from the previous night.

Allergies and Parties*NO NUTS OR FLAX CLASSROOM

•We have several students with severe allergies. Because of this, I will check the ingredient lists for anything eaten in class- this includes childrens snacks, and anything brought in for a party. If the product contains any type of nut, or flax, the students will not be allowed to eat it in the classroom.

Communications• Monthly Newsletters via

Email• Conferences• SeeSaw• Email is always available-

Lindzie.adamson@mercerislandschools.org.

Apps in ClassSeeSaw: A way for students to show you their class work via video or picture. Somewhat of a Classroom FB or IG. You only see posts your child is tagged in.

Class timer: I use a timer app during transitions in class to keep the children on task

NoiseDown: To maintain appropriate noise levels in class, I use an app to monitor the noise level during silent work time.

Learning Apps: The students will use several learning apps on their tablets through the year.

Adult Volunteers

• Art docent & helpers• Great Books- begins in

January. • Chemistry Experiment• Field trips• Parties*Volunteers must complete a class online and pass a background check before beginning.

Thank you to the Mercer Island Schools Foundation!

Thank you to the West Mercer PTA!

Time to ask questions and sign up for conferences and volunteering.

Good Night