Meet the Teacher Night Handout

Once again, my apologies that my computer did not want to print this on meet the teacher night. Here is the hand out I had for you. I will also email it.

  September 19th 2012 
 Jules Quesnel Elementary
  Meet the Teacher Night

 Welcome to grade 3! We are division 11 in room 304. My name is Jessica Chapelski, more commonly known in the classroom as Mme Jessica. I am looking forward to a year full of fun and growth with your children. We have already had a great few weeks, and I am sure the rest of the year will be even better! The following general outline is to inform you about the school year ahead, as well as about our classroom goals.

  French Language Arts
Students will
 - continue developing their writing skills through guided writing practices
- continue practicing their oral language skills in the class by sharing in front of small groups and the whole class
- developing vocabulary through weekly dictées (spelling tests). I will post the words on Mondays on the blog (mme.jessica.chapelski.blogspot.ca) and we will test on Fridays. Students will be practicing the words and doing associated activities in class. My goal for dictée is not to have students memorize words, but instead understand their spelling, meaning, and be able to use them in an appropriate context.
 - Learning and practicing appropriate grammar and writing conventions - Learn and practice reading comprehension strategies.
 - Continue to practice and learn to enjoy reading. We will read everyday in class, and we will have a home reading program that will be set up in the next week.


   Math
- We will be using the French version of Math Makes Sense. This can be a language-heavy text book, so many French lessons will be included. There is a possibility that I will use Jump Math, which we will discuss.
- Math lessons will be had at least 4, if not 5 days a week
- Students will learn to represent, compare, and order numbers up to 1,000
 - Adding two 2-digit numbers, as well as questions that add up to 1,000
- Multiplication of two 1-digit numbers. This is something that would be great to practice at home with flashcards!
- Measurement using multiple types of units.

  Science
 - A big part of science is learning to ask questions about what is happening and why it is happening. We will work hard to learn the scientific process
- We will be studying plants and space!

  Social Studies
- Communities, how they grow, change, and how they are made up will be a big part of our social studies curriculum. In particular, we will be studying early British Columbia
- We will also spend some time looking at Canadian Geography

  Fine Arts
- Fine arts will be integrated into all curriculum areas.

  Gym - We have gym on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Fridays. Please ensure students wear appropriate gym clothes on these days, or have a pair to change into at school My biggest goal for students in PE is to have them enjoy being physically active.

  Library - The library is open in the mornings and after school Mondays-Thursdays. Our library exchange day is Wednesday mornings. Students may bring their books home to read there.
 - I also highly recommend bringing students to the VPL to check out other books. The Central Library downtown has a great selection of French books.

  How to support your child’s learning
- Please support your child by speaking to them about what they learned or did at school during the day. This can really help re enforce learning. - Please check student’s agendas for notes on homework. - My homework policy is that work that is not finished in class is done at home. There may be a few times that students are sent home with work on a project, or a mini project to do that night.
 - Make sure you provide a quiet area without distractions where your child can do their homework/reading.
- I expect students to always try their best and be respectful at school. We have spoken quite a bit in class about what this looks like, and we will be continuing to learn about this throughout the year. Right now, we are really working hard on not talking when others are talking.
 - I would really like to work with students this year to become more independent young beings. Students will have jobs in the classroom, and be responsible for keeping it tidy. It could be a great tie in to give students additional responsibilities at home, such as dishes, making their bed, making their lunch once a week. We can’t expect them to be perfect at this. Sometimes they will leave the classroom messy, sometimes they’ll forget their agenda or homework at home, sometimes they’ll forget to make their bed or feed the dog. It’s normal that they’ll forget things, so don’t be too hard on them. They need proper encouragement and guidance to be successful.
 - If your child has issues on the playground or with friends, I am more than happy to help out to solve it. I can arrange to sit down with them, and we can come up with a plan together.

  Communication If you have anything you would like to talk about, please set up an appointment by calling the school, or emailing me. I am more than happy to meet with you. I look forward to a wonderful year!

 Mme Jessica