The Baldin Blotter TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2009

Monday, September 13, 2010

Contact Information:

Phone: 525-3256 Email: jbaldin@springfield.k12.il.us

Student of the Week

Congratulations to Jacob!Jacob will have his picture taken and

will invite a friend to eat lunch with him on the stage this Friday.

2nd Grade Spelling This week’s spelling list consists of 16 words that have the short e and o sounds (except: any, from, and of). Your child should be able to pronounce, spell, and use each spelling word in a complete sentence. The final test will be on Thursday (no school on Friday).

fox wet nut job leg fun went mop hug up any* of* red up from*

bonus words: block every

3rd Grade SpellingThis week’s spelling list will consist of 16 words with familiar spelling patterns. The final test will be on Thursday (no school on Friday).

pond luck drop lotrub stretch drum sockhunt crop shut chiphop much dodge dusk

2nd GradeThis week, we will read the second story in Theme 1 - Silly Stories. Our story, Julius, is about a pig from Alaska that teaches Maya and her family important lessons about fun and sharing. Ask your child what they have learned about pigs. We will continue to add new words to our word wall, discuss fantasy and realism, review compound words, and work with a diagram.

In math, we will continue Topic 2 - Addition Strategies. We will review previously learned strategies to add numbers together. Students will add three numbers (3+4+3). They can add in any order and get the same sum (answer to an addition problem).

In social studies, we will continue Unit 1 - Where We Live. In this unit, students will learn about different places in which people live. Students will also be able to describe the characteristics of each of these different places.

3rd gradeThis week, students will read an exciting legend about a brave Chinese girl. The Ballad of Mulan tells about bravery in a time of war. This legend will introduce the background on the centuries-old story of Mulan and its setting in long-ago China.

In math, we will continue with Topic 2 -Adding Whole Numbers. Students will use mental math and estimation to find sums. We will also use properties of addition (cummutative, identity, and associative) to find the sum of three addends and to add 2-digit numbers.

In social studies, we will continue Unit 1 - Our Community. In this unit, students will learn that a community is a place where people live, work, and have fun together.There are many kinds of communities in the United States. Communities around the world are alike and different.

No SchoolThere will be no school this Friday, September 17th due to a teacher’s workshop.

A/B Partners at Work

Students are working with their A/B partner tocomplete an assignment.

Your child should come home with homework every evening, except for Friday. Their homework should reinforce previously learned skills and concepts in math and language arts. It should only take 10 to 15 minutes to complete for 2nd grade and 20 minutes for 3rd grade. We encourage you to look over your child’s homework before they turn it in the following day.

EnVision Math WebsiteWe encourage you to access our new math series website. You can find supports for your child's grade level including videos that support lessons. Letters were sent home that included the instructions listed below.

Parents login to the regular site:http://www.pearsonsuccessnet.com and enter their child's lunch pin number for the user name and password. The number must be six characters long. Zeros are placed in front of the number to make it six characters.

If the lunch pin number is four digits (example: 1234), 001234

If the lunch pin number is five digits (example: 12345), 012345

If the lunch pin number is six digits (example: 123456), 123456

Homonym Riddles

A) Who is married to Uncle Beetle?

B) If four couples went to a restaurant, how many people dined?

Answers: A) Aunt Ant B) Eight Ate

A Scholastic Book order form came home in your child’s folder today. If you are interested in making a purchase, please return the completed form along with your payment. Your payment may be in the form of cash or a check/money order payable to Scholastic Book Club. Please have all orders/payment back to school by the end of this week. I will place the order on Friday and hope to have our order within 7 to 10 days. I plan to send home a book order each month. This is a great way to purchase books at a reasonable price.

Friday Fluency PracticeIn our school-wide effort to become fluent readers, a short passage will come home each Friday for your child to practice fluency. Please follow the directions on the passage, sign it, and have your child return it to school by the following Tuesday. Remember, fluency is the ability to read text with speed, accuracy and proper expression.

3rd Grade Math VocabularyResearch says...by using properties of addition, children can learn addition basic facts more easily.

Commutative (order) Property of Addition - you can add numbers in any order and the sum will be the same

7 + 5 = 5 + 7

Identity (zero) Property of Addition - the sum of zero and any number is that same number

5 + 0 = 0

Associative (grouping) Property of Addition - you can group addends in any way and the sum will be the same

(3 + 4) + 5 = 12

3 + (4 + 5) = 12

(Parentheses ( ) show what to add first.)