Students Are Drafting Their Wax Museum Reports!

Students are using their new Google accounts to begin drafting their wax museum reports.  Students have learned how to log into their accounts, create a document, share the document with their teacher and begin typing using their research notes.  Check the newsletter in this week's Friday folder to learn more about student Google accounts.

Wax Museum Costuming Information

In order to help students look the part, we start to think about costuming ideas once they have selected the hero they will research.  Costumes are not elaborate, but we try to put items together to make them resemble their hero and help them “feel” the part.  Creative thinking and items from the closet usually do the trick.  (See Amelia Earhart, Thomas Edison, and Neil Armstrong below.)

Typically, a student will work with their family to create their costume.   As teachers, we try to support students who need to complete their look with our small classroom collection of clothing and props along with some creative thrift shop purchases.  

If you have some extra costuming items cluttering up a closet, you can send those in and help us build our collection.  Check the list below for some ideas!

Possible Costume & Prop Items

• Old fashioned looking dresses, blouses, & skirts
• Sport jackets
• Handkerchiefs, scarves, shawls, & ties
• Wigs or hats

Shh...

We are making Balloon Cars!

We will be beginning a unit on force and motion over the next few weeks.  Part of the unit involves making balloon cars. The students don't know this yet, so help to keep it a surprise!  We will be needing various supplies for this project. Over the coming week, please send in anything you may have at home. Here is a list of the types of things we will need:

Jet:
Balloon
Flexible straw
Rubber band or tape

Body:
Water bottle
Toilet-paper tube
Juice box
Disposable cup (paper or plastic)
Fast-food or deli “clamshell” container (where the top and bottom connect with a seam in the back)
Ice cream container (pint or quart)
Milk carton (individual size)
Cardboard sheet
Orange-juice can

Axles:
Straws
BBQ skewers
Chopsticks

Wheels :
Plastic bottle caps
CDs
Cardboard circles

Connector for attaching wheels to an axle:
Dry sponge
Foam
Clay
Marshmallows

Here is a website about it if you're interested:

http://www.instructables.com/id/4-Wheel-Balloon-Car/

Third Grade Wax Museum

The Wax Museum is one of the most memorable projects for third graders!  Third grade researchers will be reading about a hero or heroine, taking organized notes, and writing a paper to teach others about this important person.  Students will then compose a monologue that they will deliver as their hero or heroine - in full costume!  

Our Wax Museum presentations will be on:

Tuesday, March 25 from 1:30-2:30 

Wednesday, March 26th from 6:00-7:00

Ways for Parents to Get Involved with Wax Museum

There are many ways that you can help our kids prepare for Wax Museum!  

Here are some of the ways that you can help:

• Send items that can be used for costuming
• Help students rehearse their monologues  ( We will need volunteers to help students rehearse and offer feedback from March 17th to March 24th)

• Help students dress in costumes for daytime performance (We will need volunteers to come on Tuesday, March 25th from 12:45 to 1:30)

• Help students dress in costumes for evening performance (We will need volunteers to come on Wednesday, March 26th from 5:15 - 6:00)

 If you would like to help, please complete the volunteer sheet that will be in your child's Friday folder.

Finding our Heroes!

Today students learned more about biographies from Ms. Bolas.  After our lesson, we looked through tables and tables of biographies to find a hero to research.  Ask your child who they will be learning all about!

Learning about Elizabeth Blackwell

Smart
Stubborn 
Curious
Brave

These were some of the words students used to describe Elizabeth Blackwell, the first female doctor. Today we read Tonya Lee Stone's book, Who Says Women Can't Be Doctors: The Story of Elizabeth Blackwell to learn about another heroine in preparation for our wax museum.  Students discussed the impact she made and the courage she showed as she made history.

Learning about Wilma Rudolph!

We learned about another great heroine today - Wilma Rudolph.  Students were amazed to see her grow from a sickly child to a confidant Olympian.  We thought about her traits and decided she was perseverant, confidant, hardworking, and courageous just to name a few.  She has inspired generations of people to dream big!

Kathleen Krull's biography about Wilma Rudolph inspires us all to look at obstacles and see opportunities!


We watched a video to see Wilma run.  Check it out!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RLmn7MsDhHU

Learning about Dolores Huerta - A Hero to Migrant Workers

This picture biography by Sarah Warren tells Dolores' story so well.  

In preparation for third grade wax museum, we are examining the lives of heroes.  First we read about Dolores Huerta who fought a battle for fair wages and safe workplaces for migrant workers. Students made lists of her traits and discussed how she showed courage and made an impact in her community.   

Our Upcoming Visit to Orange County Historical Museum

On Thursday, October 17th, the third graders will be heading out to Hillsborough to the Orange County Historical Museum.  We will be touring the museum and learning about the lives of mill workers in Orange County in the late 1800's.  This will help build on what they have been learning about Carrboro's past.  This is a great experience for our third grade researchers.  To learn more about this museum visit this link: http://www.orangenchistory.org/

If you have not signed your child's permission slip, please do so as soon as possible!

Visiting Carrboro Graded School

Last week, third grade researchers visited the old Carrboro Graded School which is now Town Hall. Students learned that this school had not one, not two, but eight grades!  They also learned that class sizes could reach as high as 45 students per class and that the principal also taught 8th grade.  Students also learned about the beginnings of their school building back in 1958.  We are learning about Carrboro's history and thinking about how things have changed over time.

Learning about Mill Houses

Today third grade researchers traveled back 100 years to learn about Carrboro's own mill houses.  We took notes listening for important dates and interesting information. Researchers drew sketches and recorded questions for further research.

We are 100% Smart!

We have been looking at 8 different ways that people can be smart.  Students have thought about how they are body smart, people smart, self smart, music smart, picture smart, nature smart, logic smart, and word smart.  We have read about famous figures and watched videos about kids just like us and thought about the kinds of smart we see in them.  Today we made a pie chart to show the ways that we are smart.