Third Grade

Information

Hello Third Grade Families! We are so excited to be working with your students this year.
Please read over the following information with your child and sign and return the page at
the end by Wednesday, August 31, 2016. It will count as a homework grade in your childs
homeroom class.

Grading

Attendance

The students are graded on the following

scale. In addition to the A, B, C scale, you will
also see the students conduct grade, labeled
with E, S, or P.

Students are expected to be on time each

day. Instruction begins promptly at 8:00 AM.
Students arriving after 8:00 AM are marked
tardy, and those arriving after 8:30 AM are
counted absent. It is required to provide a
written note or email to the front office if
your child has been absent, including the
date, homeroom teacher, students full
name, and the reason for the absence.

ACADEMIC GRADES
A: 90 100%
B: 80 89%
C: 70 79%
F: 0 69%

Grade Break Down

Major Grades (tests, projects, papers): 25%
Daily Grades (classwork, quizzes): 70%
Homework: 5%

!!

BEHAVIOR GRADES
E = (Excellent) Student has surpassed all
requirements and expectations of the
classroom, follows all rules, and is continually
being a role model student
S = (Satisfactory) Student has met all
requirements and expectations of the
classroom, follow rules, and is a good student
P = (Poor/Needs Improvement) Student is
struggling with requirements and
expectations of the classroom, following
rules, and needs to improve his/her behavior

Dress Code

HSI follows a specific dress code. Students

must wear the appropriate uniform shirt,
pants or knee length shorts, close-toed
shoes, and student ID. Absolutely no hooded
pullovers or hooded jackets are allowed.
Please see the student handbook for more
information.

Class Rules

SCHOOL-Wide Behavior

Be respectful to all students, teachers, and

staff.
Follow directions the first time they are
given.
Raise your hand to speak.
Keep your hands, feet, and belongings to
yourself.
Be responsible for your own learning.

Accountability Program:

These are general rules. On the first day of

school we will discuss as a class what rules
we need to maximize our learning. We will
add to the general list any additional rules we
decide on and post these in our classrooms.

Rewards/Consequences
Students who earn positive Dojo points will
receive awards, such as coupons that can be
used for in-class prizes. (No shoes, use a pen,
etc.)

Students who choose not to follow classroom

rules will receive consequences relevant to the
rule broken, including loss of Dojo points. For
example, if a student plays during work time,
they will have to complete the work during
recess.

We will also adhere to the following discipline

tree for reoccurring behavior issues.

Step 1: Verbal Warning

Step 2: Loss of Dojo Points/Written Warning

If the behavior continues after this, any

combination of the following will be used:
Parent Contact
Teacher/Parent/Student Conference
Discipline Referral

Class Dojo
To help monitor student behavior this year,
we will be using Class Dojo. This is a school
wide program that all teachers/faculty will
be able to access, however parents will only
need one log-in. Once you have joined our
class you will be able to check your childs
progress anytime. You will also be emailed a
report every Friday. This report will break
down which teacher gave points and for
what behaviors. Students can earn points for
positive behaviors such as being on task,
following directions, and helping others.
Students can also lose points for negative
behaviors such as being off task, or not
following directions.

Tables will also have the opportunity to earn

Dojo points. Tables may earn points for all
working cooperatively and following our
G.R.O.U.P.S. acronym ( Get along, Respect
others, On task only, Use quiet voices,
Participate, Stay in your group). The table
with the most points will be able to earn a
prize.

The entire class will earn Dojo points as well

when everyone is showing on task behavior.
The class will be able to earn treats this way,
such as a popcorn party.

Please note, parents will have access to their

individual students Dojo points, but table and
class points will not be sent home. If you
have a question about these, please contact
the teacher.

Daily Folders/Homework

Absences/Make Up Work

Important information from school will be

sent home in the daily folder. This is a place
where we can communicate with parents!
Please check the folder daily for important
papers and information about upcoming school
events.

When a child is absent, they are responsible

for making up any work that they miss.
Students should pick up their missing work
from each teacher. They will have one day for
each day of school they were gone to make up
the work.

Homework is important because it gives

students an opportunity to practice what we
learned in class. Homework will be graded
partially for accuracy and partially for effort
and completeness.
Homework is assigned by each classroom
teacher.
Homework may also be unfinished class
work.
If a student is absent when something is
due, the assignment will be due on the day
when the student returns to school.
Students will bring home graded papers and
school information in their daily folder. Please
review the information and keep all graded
work at home. Please monitor grades in the
school database.

Much of our classroom work cannot be done

at home (readers theater, math
manipulatives, science experiments, etc.), so it
is important for students to have regular
attendance.

!
!

1 day late = 10% off (90% A max grade)

2 days late = 20% off (80% B max grade)
3 days late = Incomplete
At this point, parents will be contacted
and the student has 2 weeks from
the original due date to make up the
assignment for a maximum grade of
60%. Failure to turn in work after two
weeks results in a 0%.

Contact Information
The best way to contact us is through email.
We check e-mail throughout the day and will
respond as soon as possible. We can be
reached by phone, however, it is difficult for
us to take phone calls during the day.
HSI: (512) 383-8378
www.hsiaustin.org
Jasmine Simmons
[email protected]
Whitney Powell
[email protected]

Looking forward to a great

year in third grade!

Mrs. Simmons
Mrs. Powell
Miss Massman

Thank You,

Tammy Massman
[email protected]

Language Arts & Reading

ClassWork

Curriculum
Our class will be working on the following
topics throughout the school year:

Fall Semester units

Reading Strategies
Poetry
Fiction
Drama
Expository

Spring Semester units

Fables and Myths
Media Literacy
Expository: Procedural
Expository: Cultural and Historical Texts
Biography and Autobiography
STAAR Review
Research Project & Presentation

If a child is unable to complete an

assignment in class, it will be placed in the
students classwork folder. If a student did
not finish class work by Friday when it is
collected it will be graded and placed in the
grade book as incomplete. The student will
receive this work back marked incomplete
and they will have an additional week to
complete it.

Accelerated Reader
All students will be participating in
Accelerated Reader this year. Students
select a book on their reading level, read it
independently, and then take a
comprehension quiz online. It is important
for students to read at their reading level, as
this helps build fluency and comprehension.
Students earn points when they pass the
comprehension quizzes.

Each nine weeks, students will have a goal

for the amount of points they need to earn,
and will receive incentives for meeting and
exceeding their goals! In addition, we
encourage you to check out books from the
public library which they can take quizzes on
in the classroom. If your child would like to
take a quiz on a book from the public library,
please have them bring the book to school.
It will be returned once the quiz has been
taken.

Please visit http://www.arbookfind.com/ for

more information or contact your students
reading teacher.

Math
Curriculum

Math Notebooks

We will be using Go Math this year. The

curriculum offers active, engaging, and
explorative ways for students to learn.
Students at Harmony School of Innovation
will have hands-on experiences in all subject
areas.

In class we create a math notebook. This is a

place for students to take notes and keep
track of the various skills we are working on.
Students will take these back and forth
between school and home. The notebook
becomes a great reference if students get
stuck during independent work. It is up to the
student to keep up with their notebook.

Fall Units

Unit 1: Place Value

Unit 2: Addition & Subtraction
Unit 3: Multiplication
Unit 4: Division

Spring Units

Unit 5: Algebraic Reasoning

Unit 6: Fractions
Unit 7: Geometry
Unit 8: Measurement
Unit 9: Data Analysis
Unit 10: Financial Literacy
Unit 11: Cumulative Review
STAAR Testing
Unit 12: Step Up to Grade 4

Class Website
http://mrspowellthirdgrade.weebly.com/
If you have questions about homework or
what we are going over at school, please refer
to the website. If you do not have internet
access, please let me know!

Science & Social Studies

Science
We will be using Stem Scopes to enrich the
minds of our young learners. The curriculum
offers active, engaging, and explorative ways
for students to learn. We will be conducting
labs and taking a hands on approach to
Science.

FALL SEMESTER UNITS

Safety & Tools
Investigation Skills & Interest
Classifying Matter
Changes from Heat
Mixtures
Forms of Energy
Force & Motion
Magnetism and Gravity
Earths Forces
Earths Landforms
Formation of Soil
Resources

SPRING SEMESTER UNITS

Careers in Science
Weather
The Sun & Water Cycle
Space
Life Cycles
Adaptions
Inherited Traits
Environments
Food Chains

Social Studies
In Social Studies, we will be using Social
Studies Weekly

FALL SEMESTER UNITS

Where in the World Are You?
Changes
Celebrate Freedom
The Founding of a Nation
Money
Explorers
Good Citizens
Communities and Education
Communities and Communication
Communities and Transportation
Communities and Health
Heroes/Inventors
Communities and Safety

SPRING SEMESTER UNITS

Communities and Recreation
Communities and Change
Communities and Resources
Communities and Money-Markets
Communities and Money- Business
Black History
Communities and Money - Scarcity
Communities and Money
Interdependence
Community Heroes Historys Heroes
Community and Culture Writers
Community and Culture The Arts
Communities and Culture Texas
Celebration

Parent Survey
Student Name:
Date of Birth:
Allergies:

Parent/Guardian 1:
Phone Number:
Email:

Preferred Method of Contact (circle): phone

email

Parent/Guardian 2:
Phone Number:
Email:
Preferred Method of Contact (circle): phone
!
Do you have internet access at home? yes no
!
I would like to receive information: electronically
paper copy
!
What language would you like information sent home in? English

email

Spanish

Please sign below to certify that you have read and understand the contents of this document,
including all the policies it spells out.

I hereby certify that I have read and understood all the policies and procedures spelled out in
the Third Grade Information Packet. I understand that if any of these policies are to change, I
will be notified by the teacher(s).
Students name:

!
Students signature:
!
Parent/Guardian name:
!
Parent/Guardian signature:
!
Date:
!

Please let us know if you have any questions or need clarification over anything presented in the
Third Grade Information Packet!