Formative Math tests are in !!

The first formative math test is in. these are tests to be given at the end of each unit. they are made up by Duval County and they are difficult. ALL third grade students in Duval county should be taking them sometime this week. I will be reviewing skills such as mult/div/arrays/multiples/equations/skip counting and more on Monday and Tuesday. the test will be on wednesday. These are skills that have already been taught and most have been tested so we should do well. Additionally, I will starting the next Math unit--flips, turns, slides, and area. Thanks.AG.

social studies study guide

A social studies study guide will be given today-test on wednesday! thanks ag.

Mid Terms

In looking at mid term results I thought that math was good and bad. 20 students attained either an A or a B--that's very good but there were too many D's and F's. It seems like students that came to third grade with good second grade skill are doing very well while students with low second grade skills are struggling. I'm trying to change that by going over certain essential second grade skills but trying to teach both second and third grade math skills sometimes is difficult on students--too much too fast !. Social Studies and Science is another matter-- Probably the lowest grades I've seen-- they MUST study !!! A science and social studies study guide which is exactly like the test is put on the overhead and they are to copy it and study it. Apparently many did not do this. The good news is that there is still time to improve the grades. A couple of A's will do wonders on raising a grade. So parents please encourage your child to really study for these two subjects. thanks AG.

social studies study guide

A social studies study guide was given yesterday. Test on Thursday. Also, I will be giving 2 math tests on Friday. They will be on Subtraction with regrouping and Place value which are really second grade skills but which I've found are not where they should be for my classes. Thanks.AG.

Upcoming Tests

Tomorrow Wed-9/17 I will give the first Science study guide and the test will be on Friday. Remember the Study Guide is EXACTLY like the test so if the students actually study we should have lots of A's. Also, on Friday there will be a math test--when do I multiply, when do I divide. By Friday we will have worked on that for a little over a week. Thanks AG.

Factors test results

Both classes did an extraordinary job on this test with 27 A's and B's out of 38 grades. Additionally, there were only 2 F's. However, the next skill we will tackle is division and the next test will be "When do I multiply, when do I divide". It will take the same format as the previous test about mult/addition. That is, ten word problems and the student will have to know what operation to use and must solve it correctly. Historically this is a tough test for some sudents so please encourage your child to pay attention and ask questions. Thanks.AG

quick note

Please remember Math test tomorrow on factors and arrays. Thanks AG.

second math test

The results were mixed- good news/bad news. the good news- seventeen students made A's or B's which is good BUT TOO MANY failed the multiplication test, not knowing the concept. This is especially disappointing because we have relentlessly been practicing each day for 8 school days which should be more than enough--ask the seventeen students that did well! I will be reinforcing multiplication again sometime next week because now they have to learn "when do I divide" which is perhaps a more difficult skill. I will go over and over these skills (mult/div.) prior to the test BUT the class needs to start paying more attention. In addition, we are studying factors and sometime next week probably thursday (9/11) they will have to find the factors of a number, write the number sentence, draw the arrays and correctly label the arrays.I will most likely give homework on this-so be on the watch for it. We have already worked on this starting on last Thursday 9/4 and about half the class seems to have it already. In order to do this students need to be able to SKIP COUNT which as I've said before is CRUCIAL for sucess in third grade.I remind the class EACH DAY to practice skip counting at home for 5-10 minutes each night. The last thing- the Social Studies test---it was HORRIBLE!!!!! Too many F's. A study guide was given which was just like the test and students had 2 days to study 7 questions plus I gave them time before the test to study and we still had too many F's. Science will be the same procedure and the grades must improve. Please check this site often as I will notify you of study guides and test that are upcoming. thanks AG

Math test on Halves

Just wanted to briefly share the results. 23 students out of 40 recieved A's. that's about 59% of my two classes--that's very very good. However, what's not so good are the F's ---TOO MANY (8). When a teacher see's as many A's as we had it usually indicates that the lesson was well taught. Why then too many F's ? well some students don't have the backround skills to transition to third grade and some students just don't pay attention and some students just make careless mistakes. This particular test was actually pretty easy as is Friday's Math test. In Friday's folder you should see 2 math tests and a social studies test. Thanks. AG.