Hello All,

This week students will have homework packets on more short vowel spelling words, The Ballad of Mulan Practice Book pages, and 6 more pages of multiplication practice (2s, 3s, and 4s). I was impressed with the quality of most students' homework last week. The assignments were completed neatly and accurately. Thank you for looking over your children's work and initialing the pages. I think this added accountability helps the kids understand that good quality work is something that we all expect of them! We will have a multiplication test on the 2s, 3s, and 4s in a couple of weeks, so encourage your child to use the practice sheets to memorize the facts.

On Thursday all four third grade classes will be going to the fair. We will be there all day so students must bring a lunch including a drink. They are NOT allowed to buy anything so please don't send them with money. Adult chaperons will not be treating kids to drinks etc., although we are asking the drivers to cover the $5 cost of the fair parking. Thanks so much to the six parents that volunteered to spend the day at the fair!

Also on Thursday, at 6PM, we will have Back-to-School Night. I will go over the organization of the classroom and give you an overview of the academic highlights of the year. This is an adult event, so please arrange to leave kids at home. I look forward to meeting you all.

Have a great week,
Carroll

HI All,
I hope you are enjoying the lovely three day weekend!

This week I will be sending home a questionnaire for parents who wish to volunteer in the classroom. Please respond by Friday, as I will be scheduling volunteers according to responses to the form. In the past, I've had sign-ups at Back-to-School Night, but that can be problematic for people with several rooms to visit. I will attempt to give everyone their preferences for volunteer time, but depending on response, may need people to alternate weeks. I will send out a schedule and begin with volunteers on the 20th of September. I'm looking forward to working with all of you who are able to come into the classroom. For those of you who can't volunteer regularly, I encourage you to schedule one or more days off during the year to chaperon on a field trip. It really makes a difference to your kids. Finally, I will also have some "at home" volunteer opportunities.

On Tuesday, students are bringing home a complete homework packet (usually Monday.) The work includes a spelling list and sentences to study for Friday's test, a Practice Book page addressing the spelling concept, and multiplication practice pages. All of this work is to be completed and handed in each Friday. In addition, students are to turn in their Reading Logs on Fridays, and math homework every day. While the majority have been responsible, several kids have forgotten their Reading Logs or math. Also, please check over your child's work for completion, and quality (including neatness). Let me know if your family would prefer to receive the packet on Fridays, in order to work ahead on the weekend.

Finally, I received quick responses to the Fair permission slip and have exactly enough drivers. If you have not returned your child's permission slip, please send it in on Tuesday. Some drivers still need to submit forms and information to the office. If you are one, please send it in on Tuesday as well.

Thank you for all your hard work at home,
Carroll

Hi All,
Whew! What a first week. After Tuesday's hot weather I sure was happy to see that Aptos fog roll in! The kids and I are all settling in, getting to know one and other. We have been working on routines and procedures this week. I have introduced two of the six Lit. Circle "jobs", and we've jumped right into the math curriculum. As you probably noticed, the math homework is quite rigorous. I appreciate the support I've seen parents giving their kids with this work. The quality has been good, and most students have returned their work each day, as expected. I do accept late homework, but I prefer the kids to keep up and develop the habits that they'll need throughout their school and work life. I'll explain more at Back-to-School Night on the 16th of September. A few students also need to bring in their Mystery Bags, which were due on Friday. We will look at 5 or 6 bags each day this week.

This coming week students will bring home a homework packet on Monday. This packet is due on Friday, but may be turned in sooner. There will be a test on Friday of each week that will include the words and sentences on the list. This week's spelling words are the months and days of the week, but there are no sentences to study. The packet also includes September's Reading Log. Children are to read OUT LOUD for 15 minutes each day and return the log to be stamped on Friday. This is an ORAL reading contract and doesn't include the hours of silent reading your child may do each week. Please sign the log each day, but your kid can fill out the rest.

On Monday students will also be bringing home a permission slip for our first field trip, to the SC County Fair. Please return these slips immediately, especially if you are volunteering to drive. The district is requiring us to hand in the Driver Forms well in advance of the actual field trip, on the 16th of September. The first six volunteers to return their slips will get free admission to the fair; all others will have to pay their own admission. Students get in free.

Several kids also brought home a second copy of the PVUSD Internet Agreement. Every child must have a copy on file before we can use the Computer Lab. If your child has a copy of this agreement in their folder, please send it in on Monday. In addition, please return your green forms and yellow cards if you have not already done so.

Thanks you for all the great support this week. The kids jumped right into their homework responsibilities, which will grow throughout these first few months. Clearly, they had great support and guidance at home. We also received many donations, both monetary and material, toward classroom supplies, and several donations for the classroom funds, which are more general.

I'm looking forward to a great year. As you can tell, the 16th will be a big day for the third grade, and a wonderful opportunity for me to meet you at the fair and Back-to-School Night.

Yours,
Carroll Mayer

Dear Parents and Students,

Welcome to Third Grade! We are going to have a great year. There are a few changes to the school schedule, with a slightly later start (7:55) and ending (2:10). I am very happy to have Wednesdays back for Restructured Days, although the first one is a full day.

A short supply list is posted. Please don't send pencil boxes, as they take up a great deal of space and are underused by the kids. I will have communal boxes with markers, colored pencils, and other supplies, which we will pull out as needed.
In addition, if you have copies of Charlotte's Web, please bring them as we will start reading this wonderful book on Monday. Apologies to last year's second graders, who have already read the book. I will try not to have you repeat a lot of activities, but I love this book and have read it many,many times myself!

We are also going to hit the ground running with math homework on Monday night. In addition there will be a Mystery Bag assignment that will be due on Friday.

I look forward to seeing you on Monday morning at 7:55. Have a great weekend!

Ms. Mayer

Hi All,
I can't believe that we have reached the last week of school. This year has rushed by!

As I'm sure most of you know, we were unsuccessful with our chick hatching. Some of the other classes also had trouble, but it was still disappointing and sad for the kids. Fortunately, they were able to visit and observe the chicks in the other second grade classrooms during Rotations.

This week we will focus on finishing up odds and ends, and cleaning and organizing the classroom. I have not received all the permission slips or money for the Wednesday beach party, so be sure to send those in if you haven't already. I am also still low on drivers. Many of the parents involved in organizing the party are committed to being at the beach to set up. Please let me know if you can drive to and from the beach.

Finally, thank you so much for all your efforts to make this year a spectacular one! Your support week in and week out really enabled me to address two grade levels with confidence. I know that this year has been a growing one for your children, likely more than in an average year because of the responsibility they have shared in successfully mastering learning in a multi-grade classroom. Thank you for the opportunity to share in this growth!

Yours,

Carroll

Hi All,
It was great to see so many of you at Open House. I know the kids were excited to show off their desks, classroom, and schoolwork!

This week homework will continue as usual, although the third grade spelling packet is one of those shorter ones. Continue to read and record in Reading Logs, study for Timed Tests, work on nightly math homework, and --for the 2nd graders--Red Hot Readers. Lit. Circles will be completed for the year on Friday, May 28th.

This Thursday our class will be attending The Princess and the Pea at the Mello Center, along with the other primary classes. Several people still need to return their permission slips and $7.00. If there is a hardship, please let me know. The second graders have an additional permission slip for the second grade only field trip to the farm, where they will see the home of the hatched chicks. A few second graders need to return that permission slip as well. Our class is currently incubating chicks which should hatch on May 26th. Assuming all goes well, we will arrange for home visits with interested second grade families and will continue them into the summer as needed. I will let you know about this once we have hatched chicks.

Take care, and have a great week!
Carroll Mayer

Hi All,
As I am certain your children shared with you, we began CSTs last week. Both second and third grade took the first 2 portions of the Language Arts test. Fortunately, no one was absent on Wednesday or Thursday! We will continue this week, wrapping up the ELA and then moving into the 3 math sections. Your kids have been working hard, and have behaved responsibly by remaining quiet until all their classmates have had time to complete the tests. They have also enjoyed the gum, and snacks provided by the district. Please continue to avoid absences, unless your child is ill!

Our other big activity this week is writing the animal reports. Most of the third graders, and all of the second graders, have completed their research and are drafting the reports. Those third graders that need additional time will be bringing home paragraphs to edit and/or recopy throughout the week. In light of this, there will be no spelling homework. This extra time should also be used to work on dioramas, which are due the following week, on May 11th.

Finally, remind your child to work on Lit. Circles throughout the week, and hand them in on Friday. Several students forgot their Lit. Circles this past week. It really hurts the group when students are not prepared.

Have a great week; hopefully it will continue to be sunny!
Carroll