Family Storybird

Below is a sample Storybird by a family a few years back. 

NOTE: Your topic does not have to be about families like this one; any topic is just fine.

3K Candy Maps

Candy Map USA

For our culminating project in our current social studies unit, students in 3K created a physical map of the USA using different colored frosting and various sizes and colors of chocolate chips. I might be a bit biased, but I think they turned out great! Thanks again to those that chipped in to help cover the cost of supplies and to those that helped lead small groups.

A Day with the Easter Bunny

Candy Map USA

Dear 3rd Grade Parents,

This week in class we’re wrapping up our social studies unit on geographic landforms.  We have spent three weeks reviewing surfaces such as mountains, rivers, and prairies, but we will also learned new vocabulary such as a peninsula, isthmus, and tributary.

For our culminating project (before the test), students are going to create a 3-D physical map of the United States. This project, fittingly named Candy Map USA, uses candy, frosting, and sprinkles to represent the major lakes, rivers, mountains, desserts, and prairies.

We love doing this project every year, but there are quite a few supplies that we need to purchase out-of-pocket to make it work.  If you’re able to donate $1 or $2 to help cover some of these expenses it would be greatly appreciated! 

                                                                                   Thank you for all you do!

Candy Map example from last year

Valentine's Day Party

Valentine's Day Party

Last Thursday, February 14th, students in 3K had a Valentine's Day Party. We handed out Valentine's, created an origami heart for Mom and Dad, and played a fun game as a class. 

Landsat 8 Launch

What Is a Satellite?

A satellite is an object that moves around a larger object. NASA has more than a dozen Earth science satellites in orbit. They help NASA study the oceans, land and atmosphere. These man-made machines are launched into space and orbit Earth or another body in space. There are thousands of man-made satellites. Some take pictures of our planet. Some take pictures of other planets, the sun and other objects. These pictures help scientists learn about Earth, the solar system and the universe. Other satellites send TV signals and phone calls around the world.

Why Are Satellites Important?

Satellites fly high in the sky, so they can see large areas of Earth at one time. Satellites also have a clear view of space. That's because they fly above Earth's clouds and air. Before satellites, TV signals didn't go very far. TV signals only travel in straight lines. So they would go off into space instead of following Earth's curve. Sometimes they would be blocked by mountains or tall buildings. Phone calls to faraway places were also a problem. It costs a lot and it is hard to set up telephone wires over long distances or underwater. With satellites, TV signals and phone calls can be sent up to a satellite. The satellite can then send them back down to different spots on Earth.

Landsat 8

On Monday, February 10th, NASA launched Landsat 8 into orbit from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. This new satellite will spend a minimum of five years taking millions of pictures of Earth. Landsat 8 will cover the entire planet once every 16 days. Its main mission is to provide a detailed record of how Earth changes over time, such as the amount of urban growth or deforestation.

One of our classmates was lucky enough to witness the launch from the EROS data center outside of Sioux Falls. Below are some of the great pictures and videos he brought back to share!

Enjoying some of the exhibits at EROS

A 3K student captures the launch of Landsat 8 from his front row seat at EROS data center outside of Sioux Falls

Video taken by 3K student 

Landsat 8 is already orbiting space and sending back pictures

I Spy Page

This week our class is kicking off our mystery unit! In our reading, students will become a sleuth (detective), gather clues, chase red herrings, and ultimately attempt to solve the mysteries. Our mystery unit extends into our writing as students examine I-Spy books. Students will then create their own riddle to match a designed scene. We will focus on word choice and rhyming throughout the project.

Mission: Bring in a bagful of miscellaneous and random objects from home to create a scene like you’d see in an I-Spy book. Objects need to be fist-size or smaller. The more objects the easier it will be to rhyme and the more difficult it will be for the reader to solve the riddle!

Due Date: Objects can be brought in all this week. Students will begin setting up their scene starting on Thursday, February 14^th. The bag of objects will be sent home at the end of the following week.

Below are some completed I Spy student examples from previous years:

Valentine's Day Party