Denali Montessori ~ Room 177: March 2016

Thursday, March 24, 2016

Dear Parents,

The 3^rd graders will be taking the Alaska Measures of Progress (AMP) tests starting Tuesday, March 29 through Thursday, March 31 and resuming on Monday, April 4. Friday, April 15 is a make up day. The tests will start promptly at 9:30 each day. 3^rd grade parents please send your child well rested, well fed, and relaxed and ready to do his or her best. We won’t have spelling tests or homework for next week due to the 3^rd grade testing.

Here is an updated list of our scheduled field trips. On Friday, April 1 we will be taking a bus to UAA to see a musical production of “The Wizard of Oz” from 9:15-12:30. Chaperones please meet in Room 177 by 9:00. Tuesday, April 19 we will be visiting the museum from 9:45-2:00. Wednesday, April 20 we will be going to the U.S. District Court to be part of a trial and possibly visit some jail cells from 9:45-12:00. Thursday, April 28 we will walk to the Pioneer School House for a tour from 12:30-3:00. Thursday, May 12, we will make our final museum visit from 9:45-2:00. The last day of school, Thursday, May 19 we will have our annual Primary Wing Barbecue at Valley of the Moon Park from 10:00-2:30. Put these dates on your calendar and we would love to have you join us if possible.

I have sent third quarter report cards home in today’s folder. Please take a few moments to talk with your child to celebrate his or her accomplishments and discuss some areas he or she needs to improve. Teaching your children how to set goals is an important tool and gift that you can give them.

The students have settled back into a nice work cycle this week. We have been studying capitalization, word analysis, numbers and operations, math operations and facts, grammar, writing, spelling, writing friendly letters, animal and continent research, and more. In addition the 3^rd graders have been taking AMP practice tests to familiarize them with the format. It’s been a great week!

If you have any questions or concerns, please e-mail me at moyer_craig@asdk12.org or call or write me a note.

Sincerely,

Craig Moyer

Thursday, March 3, 2016

Thursday, March 10 we will walk to the Anchorage Museum to see the new exhibit “Near the Bear”, watch the planetarium show “River of Bears”, eat lunch; explore art exhibits, the Discovery Center and the Spark Lab. We will leave at 9:45 and return at about 2:30. Chaperones please meet in Room 177 by 9:30. Please remember to pack your child a lunch and drink that day unless you ordered a lunch from the cafeteria.

Here are some more scheduled field trips we have planned. On Monday, March 21 we will be walking to the Performing Arts Center to see Junior Theater’s “Dino –Light: A Glow-In-The-Dark Adventure”. We will leave the school at about 11:15 and should return by about 1:30. On Friday, April 1 we will be taking a bus to UAA to see a musical production of “The Wizard of Oz” from 9:30-12:00. Monday, April 18 we will be visiting the museum from 9:45-2:00. Thursday, May 12, we will make our final museum visit from 9:45-2:00. The last day of school, Thursday, May 19 we will have our annual Primary Wing Barbecue at Valley of the Moon Park from 10:00-2:30. Put these dates on your calendar and we would love to have you join us if possible.

Tonight, Thursday, March 3 the 3^rd grade parents are invited to meet the intermediate teachers and talk about the developmental characteristics of the 9-12 year old child in the Denali Montessori Library at 5:30 p.m. This is a great way to meet our wonderful intermediate teachers and have any questions you may have answered.

The homework I have sent home in today’s folder is due Friday, March 25. We have a short week next week and will not take a spelling test. The students will be tested on these words when we return from Spring Break.

The students have been studying measurement, language usage skills, quotation marks, descriptive writing, math facts and operations, spelling, reading skills, friendly letters, working as a team, and more. We have also started a continent study of Europe. I know several students have been to Europe and I encourage them to bring pictures and artifacts that they could share with the class. The students will share them in small groups of students at a time. I also invite any parents that would like to share their cultural background or visits to Europe as well. It has been an action packed week.

If you have any questions or concerns, please e-mail me at moyer_craig@asdk12.org of call or write me a note.

Sincerely,

Craig Moyer