
Specials are Spot On
3rd Grade January News
Art
In Miss Pinto’s art room the third graders have been busy for the past month working hard on their abstract art! We have earned stamps in our passports for sculpture, drawing, painting, technology and even mixed media in our art passports. We assessed our own work through the use of a whole class rubric to determine whether or not we would earn our stamp in our passport. After reading and assessing our work, some of us went back to add more to our work and reevaluate it to improve our work and definitely earn our stamp!
We then switched over to our next choice art project, learning all about STILL LIFE artwork. Some of us brought our own objects in from home that we felt were special, and others of us searched the art room for special projects. We then arranged them and began our next project. We discovered that it was tricky to understand what to do with our projects, and as we tried to create a work of art that represented those objects, we learned what it is like to draw from real life and observation! We even showed each other how to begin, build and create a still life, and helped our peers to further understand what STILL LIFE art is. For this new choice art project, we now have CLAY available as a new media to choose from. Many of us chose to create clay sculptures and work towards our sculpture stamp! We will continue working on these still life works of art for another week or so before we switch over to our NEXT choice art work!!!
For more information please visit the art webpage here.
Miss Fausette’s 3rd graders are working with ceramics. Students are practicing clay building and joining techniques to create adorable and magnificent toad houses for our amphibious friends.
The sculptures will be set to dry until the clay becomes ‘bone dry’. The art works will then be ready to be fired in the kiln. The heat creates a chemical change that will turn our clay into bisque ware. Students will then be able to apply glaze, a glass-like compound, to their work and the sculptures will be fired for a final time. The resulting ceramics will be worth the wait!
Miss Pinto and Miss Fausette would like to send out a huge thank you to all families who made purchases through our Art to Remember art fundraiser! This fundraiser has helped add very special materials to the art rooms and we are so grateful for your support of our art programs! Information about the delivery date of orders will be announced soon!”
Miss Pinto and Miss Fausette
Music
During the month of January, third graders continued practicing recorder, reading notes on the treble clef staff, and counting rhythms. Their recorder skills increased by leaps and bounds! Most classes have completed their “white belt” recorder tests, though some students will finish this week. Please be advised that students are expected to bring their recorder to each music class. I have loaners to give out when students forget, but they are not allowed to take belt tests without their own recorders! This ensures that students begin to take responsibility for their instruments, a skill they will need if they play an instrument in fourth grade!
Now, students are working on learning the yellow belt song, “Gently Sleep”. Yellow belt testing will begin within the next couple of weeks! Be sure to check the recorder karate section of the website for a tutorial video if your student is struggling to play this song. “Gently Sleep” reinforces the beginning recorder skills they are already practicing. Now that our recorder unit is up and running, students should expect tests to occur more frequently and they will soon have the opportunity to start progressing at their own pace through the belt levels! Please feel free to send me an email if your student is really struggling with the recorder or if you have any concerns. I will try to help in any way I can. Thank you for your support of the recorder program at home!
Mrs. Maldonado
Physical Education
During the month of December the students worked on basketball skills and worked out in fitness lab. They also continued to assess and support their classmates
with push-ups.
Dribbling – Right and left hand while standing and moving.
Crosses, behind the back, and through the legs.
Dribble around one leg and then the other.
Two ball dribbling with and without a partner.
Dribble, stop and pivot.
Hand-eye challenges
Figure eights rolling and dribbling.
Drop and catch front to back.
Drop and catch between legs with a bounce or in the air.
Two ball passing with a partner.
Passing - We taught correct technique of chest, bounce and overhead pass.
Passing around a defender was shown and practiced.
Providing a target and watching ball into hands when receiving from passer.
Shooting - Correct technique of shooting one handed with other hand (guide) on side of ball.
Proper follow through of shooting and guide hands.
After working on technique, children were able to play some shooting games.
Around the world, make it take it, 21 and horse were some of their choices.
The children have also been working hard on their fitness and have shown a lot of improvement.
Coach Boscarino and Coach Ruel
Library Media
During the month of January, 3rd grade students have been working on writing book reviews with Mrs. Flannery. We have discussed the elements of a book review and focused on practicing our word processing skills. Students reviewed the differences between what Google Drive is vs. Google Docs. When creating our document we also learned basic elements such as how to capitalize on the keyboard, how to use spell check,, and how to insert an image into our text. Students then helped create a winter themed display with their reviews. The display will be going up on the library windows this week!
With Mrs. Hill, 3rd graders took part in the following read alouds:
Phineas L. MacGuire…get’s cooking! by Frances O’Roark Dowell (2017 Nutmeg Nominee)
Lulu’s mysterious mission by Judith Viorst (2017 Nutmeg Nominee)
If you have any questions in regards to your child’s library experience. Please don’t hesitate to contact us or locate more information on the library webpage.
Mrs. Flannery and Mrs. Hill
The Specials Team
Email: rflannery@easthamptonct.org
Website: www.easthamptonps.org
Location: Memorial School, Smith Street, East Hampton, CT, United States
Phone: 8603654020
Facebook: facebook.com/MemorialElementarySchool
Twitter: @EHPublicSchools