Pancake Breakfast--March 27We put our taste buds front and center on Wednesday, March 27, during our pancake breakfast, which is an annual follow-up to our visit to the Troy Nature Center. During our visit to the Nature Center we learned about the role photosynthesis plays in sap production and the process involved in turning sap into syrup. The breakfast was a tasty conclusion to our learning, made even more special by it being pajama day!. Our hungry third graders went through 90 pancakes, three pounds of sausage, 32 ounces of pure maple syrup, and half a bottle of Mrs. Butterworth's! No one asked about having snack this morning!
                           From Sunshine to SyrupWe had a beautiful day for learning at the Stage Nature Center in Troy. Students were introduced to the concept of photosynthesis while learning how trees form sap that can eventually become maple syrup! We learned that trees can be tapped for the first time when they reach 10 inches in diameter--at about 40 years of age! We also learned how evaporation removes the water from the sap when it's boiled. It took about ten gallons of sap to make the 32oz of maple syrup we'll have at our pancake breakfast!
                                 Music Program                          March Is Reading Month Fun!             Freaky FridayStudents got "freaky" for a good cause! Students donated $5.00 to help purchase new books at Leonard. Our class raised over $80!
   Non-fiction Book ParadeOur third graders got into the spirit of March is Reading Month by dressing as their favorite non-fiction topic. The whole school paraded through the building in a celebration of reading! It was like mini-Halloween with a literary twist!
                                    Valentine's DayValentine's Day is always a huge favorite in the third grade and this year was no different. Student began the day by showcasing their amazingly creative Valentine boxes. That afternoon we enjoyed a fun-filled party thanks to all the efforts of our room mom, Mrs.Teli, and all the parents who helped and made donations.
                            Valentine BoxesStudents showed off their creativity by making some of the best Valentine boxes I have ever seen!
                        Valentine CatapultsStudents eagerly took on the challenge to research then build a catapult that would launch a piece of Valentine candy the furthest. This hands-on adventure took planning, testing and revising to create a simple machine that would fling candy across the room. Many lessons were learned outside of science, including the need for perseverance and compromise when you are working as a team!
                                        Snowy FunWe had been waiting for some snow to play in for a long time and today was finally the day!
            Owl PelletsA naturalist from the Stage Nature Center visited our school sharing her vast knowledge of owls and their food chain. Under her direction, students were able to dissect sanitized owl pellets, discovering how each pellet told the story of what the owl had eaten. Afterwards, students sorted their bones into a display then wrote about what they learned and what misconceptions had been clarified. Thanks so much to Mrs. Campan who volunteered to help out and to the PTO for providing funding for this program.
                                                                    Holiday PartyThanks to Mrs. Teli and all of our parents who helped and made donations, the kids had a wonderful time at their holiday party! The games were so fun and kept everyone so busy! As you can see, there were many, many huge smiles that afternoon!
                                                                                                           Science Meets Art for the HolidaysWe looked at the leaf structure of perhaps the most well known of the holiday plants, the poinsettia, discussing how water moves through the veins and feeds the plants. We also discussed how the "flowers"are actually groupings of leaves. The bracts, or leaves turn red after they are kept in the dark by growers for 12 hours a day for several days. The lack of light is what makes the leaves turn colors, similar to how tree leaves change color in the fall when they are not undergoing photosynthesis. The students took their knowledge of plant structure and represented it in an artful way with their poinsettia paintings.
                                     Packing Stockings for Marines OverseasWe spent the morning stuffing 30 stockings with all sorts of great items the kids brought in, to send to soldiers serving overseas during the holidays. This act of giving made the holidays brighter for 30 Marines, and for our students!
                             Election Day!Students took part in a mock election run by our fourth grade students. We had to register, go to the polls, then mark ballots in a voting booth!
The Robot Garage~November 6Students used their engineering skills to create a basketball free-throw shooter out of lego-robotics. Working in pairs, students followed step-by-step directions to create, test, then modify their shooters. A great learning experience for all!
                                                                  Halloween 2018What a wonderful day we had celebrating Halloween! Thanks so much to Mrs. Teli and all the other parents who helped make this an afternoon to remember.
Getting Ready for the Parade and Party!
                                   Parade Time!
                    Halloween Party!                                                       Karaoke PartyOfficer John Julian from the Troy Police Department came through on his promise to host a karaoke party for students if Leonard made their goal for the fun run. As you know, not only did we make our goal, we beat it by over $2000 dollars! Watch the video below to join in on the fun!
Shadow RecreationsStudents used what they learned outdoors to experiment with the sun's location and shadows indoors.
           Human SundialsStudents did a day-long exploration tracking the sun's relationship to shadow on Earth. By going out five different times during the day, students observed that their shadows actually moved clockwise, mimicking a sun dial. In the middle of the day, their shadows were straight overhead just like the 12 on an analog clock!
Tracking Shadows! Human Sun Dial Video                                                     Perfect PartnershipsStudents work with partners throughout the day in reading, writing, math and more! These partnerships are selected by me and last about 4-5 weeks. During this time it is so nice to see students build relationships with a classmate based on a trust and a pledge that they will help each other be the best they can be. Our latest partnerships are shown below. When students me their partner, they took a selfie and air-dropped it to me so I could add their names and print. Looking forward to seeing the great things these partners will do over the next month or so.
Fun Run 2018The kids did a great job and had a lot of fun during our annual fun run. Thanks so much to all the parents who made donations. These funds help cover many of the special things we do in third grade. A special thanks to Mr.and Mrs. Bosman for all the time and effort they put into organizing and running this great Leonard event.
                                                                    Marvel MathWe were very lucky to see a Marvel comic book artist teach us how he uses math in all of his drawings. He showed us in real-time how he draws and divides geometric shapes to create all of his characters. He showed us examples of Spiderman, Captain America, Batman, Wolverine, the Hulk and many, many more! Thank you PTO for bringing this to Leonard!
Reading With a Furry FriendTo celebrate the end of our first reading and writing units, students brought furry friends to school to read and write with. Many students airdropped me selfies at the end of reading time!
                      Student Council Elections
I was so proud of our boys and girls who made posters and gave speeches to be our class representatives. This was an election that truly had no losers; everyone who ran was a winner just for trying! This year Emma and Shaurya will be representing our class at morning Council Meetings. Below are some pictures of our candidates with their posters and giving their speeches.
The Relatives Came Read Along~Sept. 14, 2018
Thank you so much to all of our relatives who came for our surprise event. It was a great day to enjoy a few good book and a few good treats with family and friends. The boys and girls used the Cynthia Rylant book, The Relatives Came, as mentor text for a personal narrative they wrote. Writer's NotebooksRoom 14's Greatest Superheroes!Our First Week Was Awesome!Watch the video below to see a few of the things we were up to during our first week of school.
The First Day of School~August 28, 2018xx
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