Place Value Perfection

Place value and estimation is where we start our third grade math standards.  We have studying numbers and the place value patterns under 1 million for the last month.  If you are following us on SeeSaw I'm sure you have seen all the place value posts. We explored reading and writing numbers in standard form, base ten models, written form, and expanded form. We also learned important vocabulary like place, digit, value, and estimate. Exploring place value and developing number sense is foundational to all math concepts.  We practiced these concepts through games, paper pencil activities, iPad apps, whiteboard practice, and rich math discussions.

If you want some extra activities to play at home, check out Math Slides.  There is a great place value version and one called numbers >1000.  Another great app is called Mystery Number.  It is similar to this the number riddle games we have been playing in class.  The app contains four different games that give students lots of opportunities to explore concepts of number and place value. The games can be played with one player or two.  Check out Mystery Number ($1.99) on the app store. 

Here is a list of interactive web based games.  Each game works on place value concepts. Your child can click on the links for extra at home practice.

Build a Hundreds Chart
Skip Counting, 10, 5, 2
Base Ten Fun

Shark Pool

Scooter Quest. Play until level 3.

Fruit Splat.  Play the hard level.
Hockey Play level 2.

As you probably know, we are a standards based school.  This means, students don't receive letter grades based on an average or their classwork and assessments.  Instead, we are looking for mastery of specific content standards.  In order to be considered proficient in the area of place value and estimation, by the end of third grade, students must demonstrate that they can do the following:

Typing Club

Did you know third graders take their tests, including writing pieces, on the computer? They must know how to type! This week we started a free online typing tool called Typing Club.  The students worked so hard. The room was silent because they were concentrating so hard. We are going to strive for weekly typing practice.  I already heard that several children want to get on the blog at home and practice typing! They are loving it...and what an important skill this day in age.  Here are two great sites for teaching and enjoying practicing typing.  Happy typing!

Typing Club

Dance Mat Typing 

 

Amazing Artists

What do you get when Mrs. Jensen is the guest teacher?  A beautiful art lesson and a wonderful story  about Vincent Van Gogh.  Mrs. Jensen shared a great book called Camille's Sunflowers.  The book describes Vincent Van Gogh's time in a French village where he becomes friends with a family that lives next door to him.  It was during this period of his life that Van Gogh painted his famous sunflowers.  We used the text to analyze narratives.  After reading, we not only sequenced the plot events, we also sorted the events by important and less important.



Then, the students' favorite part!  They drew and painted their own sunflowers.  The students used oil pastels and a watercolor wash to create these amazing works of art.