Welcome to Ms. Serafin's Third Grade Class!

Welcome and "About Ms. Serafin"

Welcome to the 2012-2013 school year!  I hope you have enjoyed your summer and are ready to embark on an amazing journey together!  My name is Jennifer Serafin and I will be your child's third grade teacher. 

This year will be my sixth year teaching at Medlock Bridge Elementary.  I graduated from the University of Florida where I earned both my Master of Education and Bachelor’s degrees.  I grew up in Florida, and I am an avid Gators fan-Go Gators!  I live in Buckhead, like to travel to serve people around the world, run, and volunteer around Atlanta in my free time.  This summer I traveled to Kenya, France, and Haiti! Wahoo!

As a teacher, I hope to motivate my students to discover their strengths and abilities in the academic curriculum as well as on a social level.  I strive to provide an encouraging and stimulating classroom environment where my students can excel not only in academics but also as a cohesive classroom community.  I have very high expectations for my students because I believe all students are capable of achieving success!

This year we are thrilled to invite Mrs. Jessica Vu into our classroom as she completes her student teaching portion for her degree at Georgia State University. After 10 years in sales, she feels blessed to have the opportunity to follow her passion of working with children and furthering her education. We share a similar philosophy for how children learn so I have no doubt that we will make a great team for the few months she will be with us!

With your participation and support, both in and out of the classroom, I look forward to a phenomenal year that will prove to be exciting, enriching and an extraordinary experience for all of us.  Please feel to contact me with any questions or concerns at serafinj@fultonschools.org. 

I look forward to seeing you at Curriculum Night on Tuesday, August 21^rd at 6:00pm.  Please visit our classroom blog to stay up to date on daily homework and class happenings at http://serafinhomework.blogspot.com and connect with me on edmodo – http://edmodo.com/serafinj. 

Class Schedule and Specials Schedule:

Specials Schedule

(11:50-12:35)

Monday:     Music        

     Tuesday:         PE  *wear sneakers!               

Wednesday:  Media/Computer Lab        

Thursday:       PE  *wear sneakers!       

     Friday:        Art           

           

                                   Daily Schedule

7:15-7:45:  Arrival/Morning Work

7:45-7:50:  Announcements

7:55-9:15:  Math

9:15-9:30:  Recess

9:30-11:10:  Reading/Language Arts

   *Healthy snack during this time

11:10-11:40:  Lunch

11:50-12:35:  Specials

12:35-1:30:  Writing Workshop

1:30-2:10:  Science/S.S./Health

2:10:  Planners/Prepare for Dismissal

   2:20-2:45:  Dismissal

 

Thursday, 5/10 HW

• Write at least 2 poems
• Finish the math game if you have not

Please send me the American Heroes video pleaseeeee?!

Pics!!

Field Day!  Can you spot the teacher??.

Luke and I after his play.  He played Eeyore in Winnie the Pooh!

Franklin Delano Roosevelt

Eleanor Roosevelt

Thurgood Marshall

Lyndon B. Johnson

Paul Revere

Frederick Douglas

Patiently waiting :)

Mary McCloud Bethune

Susan B. Anthony

Cesar Chavez

This picture does no justice to all of the beautiful flowers I received from yall on flower day!

Birthday Flowers and Cards!

Joseph and I after his play with CYT - Suessical

Relay for Life - WOW!!!

Also, the students have fundraised $146, with an additional $150 sent in from parents, and my double of $500 - we are up to $793 - we would love to have full class participation - even just a dollar will help!  :) 

Tuesday 5/8 HW

• ELA:  super sleuth detective assignment
• Health:  alcohol and tobacco venn diagram

I hope this health unit has opened up discussion and healthy dialogue - prevention is so much better than intervention!!!! 

Videos/Pics from yesterday:  please email me the video of the song at the end or any pics for the blog at Jennifer.serafin@gmail.com (it will fill my fulton email in 4 seconds!!)

Thank you to everyone who brought in snacks, supported their kids, and helped me celebrate my birthday.  I am SO grateful!!  YALL ROCK!!!!!

Relay for Life donations will go for the next week - we are up to $793 plus a little change ($146 from the kids, $150 from parents, and my $500 double)- please consider donating! 

Wed. 5/2 HW

• ELA:  study vocabulary for quiz on Friday and spelling test on Friday
• Field day is tomorrow!!!!!  Bring in a clean change of clothes for after field day
• Return the RSVP for Showcase and Signed Papers, as well as any order forms

Tuesday HW 5/1

ELA:  study spelling and vocabulary (words are hard - please study!!)
Math:  none  so they can prep for Showcase!
SS:  memorize speech and prepare outfit.  They can bring it to school on Friday and change here.  :)  Then it will stay at school for Monday's showcase! Wahooo!!!!

Pink: 

Heartbeat

Spelling Words                 

difficult

probably

beginning

direction

discover

excellent

important

imagine

energy

remember

different

another

beautiful

dangerous

government

interest

becoming

description

engineer

wonderful

Vocabulary Words

Segment Three (pp. 147-180)

trance – a state of being so deeply absorbed in something as to be unaware of one's surroundings

tentative – not fully worked out or developed

precarious – depending on unknown conditions or chance events

avert – to turn away

unfurl – open or spread

pesters – annoy; bother

dignified – having or showing a serious and reserved manner

Green: 

Ramona Forever - Week 2

Spelling Words:

1.     simple

2.    total

3.    apple

4.    title

5.    central

6.    purple

7.    signal

8.    normal

9.    middle

10.  able

11.   terrible

12.   people

13.   medal

14.   handle

15.   single

Vocabulary Words:

1.   resolved: 

2.  weary

3.  sober

4.  dawdling

5.  scant

6.  feeble

7.  indignant

8.  grim

9.  delighted:  great pleasure or joy

10.            astonished:  surprised

11.            dismal

12.            ceaseless

13.            mute:  silent; not able to speak

14.            genuine

15.            feeble

Thursday HW

• ELA - all:  Study Vocab and spelling words
• Math:  HOTS POW due
• SS:  study your part, look for your outfit
• Relay for Life - coins and donations! 

I sent out this email this afternoon: 

1.      Showcase:  As a reminder, the Student Showcase is Monday, May 7^th at 8:15am.  Please arrive at 8:10 to our classroom, room 314.  To prepare for the showcase, each child is to dress up as their American Hero and memorize their lines by next Friday, May 4 for our dress rehearsal.  J  An RSVP will be going home on Monday.

2.      Pizza Party:  Tomorrow we have a pizza party as an extra incentive to continue our great work and behavior as we close in on the school year.  Children still need to bring in/buy what they would normally purchase in the cafeteria (pizza parties are in fact illegal.  Shhhh!)  If we meet/beat our Relay for Life goal, we will have one more at the end of the year!!

3.      Relay for Life:  As a school, we are doing a coin drive for Relay for Life, which benefits the American Cancer Society.  It is being held Saturday, May 5 at Johns Creek HS, so we are fundraising until Friday, May 4.  We have challenged the class to join our collective efforts to help others – our goal is to bring in $5 each to reach $125 as a class…. But our class record is $250.25 -  and we are looking to beat it!  In an effort to motivate the class, I will DOUBLE the entire class’ fundraising up to $500!!!   If you would like to make a tax-deductible donation, checks can be made out to The American Cancer Society.   Please help your kids with odd jobs around the house to be able to bring in a portion of their earnings to donate.  Also, all coins are welcomed-it is a coin drive!!!

Note:  I have been blessed to have fundraised both of missions trips this summer, so I have money left over in my “charitable funds” account-otherwise, this poor teacher would never be able to do something like that! 

Wed. 4/25 HW

• Ms. Pippin mentioned there was a tizzy at the end of the day in TAG trying to get their homework.  If you see this, OK, otherwise between tomorrow in class and tomorrow night, it will get taken care of.
• Math:  HOTS POW
• ELA:
• Pink:  100-120 and literature circle job
• Green:  chapter 3 and literature circle job
• All:  poetry hunt:  poetry is all around you - where do you see it? hear it? what do you observe?  Bring in your findings!
• SS:  practice your parts! make a plan to get your outfit.  Goodwill and thrift shops, your neighbors, and older kids who did it last year are all your friends! Be creative!
• Relay for life $ :)  We are up to $10.10!!!

Tuesday 4/24 HW

• Math:
• HOTS POW
• ELA
• Pink: 
• first five vocab words in your vocab book
• literature circle job
• Green: 
• Read chapter 2
• Complete literature circle job - slot #2 (the one after you did today)
• SS:
• Practice your part
• Begin planning and gathering your outfit.
• Parts must be memorized! :)
• Relay for Life Challenge:
• Our school is fundraising for Relay for Life with a coin drive - our goal is to use our "give" portion from our allowance to school.  We are all challenged to bring in $5.  :)

Monday, 4/23 HW

• Math:  HOTS POW
• ELA:
• Pink: 
• bring in any type of apple
• study vocab - quiz tomorrow
• finish response journal if you didn't in class
• Green: 
• Read chapter one of Ramona Quimby, Age 8 if you didn't in class
• Study vocab (20 words - 5 each day!!)

Green: 

Ramona Forever - Week 1

Spelling Words:

1.      water

2.    over

3.    never

4.    under

5.    river

6.    number

7.    wonder

8.    tower

9.    rather

10.  finger

11.  center

12.  prefer

13.  better

14.  border

15.  fever

Vocabulary Words:

1.  scarce: not plentiful, hard to find 

2.  triumphant:  successful; victorious

3.  exasperation:  the feeling of being highly annoyed

4.  sustained:  continued without stopping

5.  conspiratorial:  relating to scheming or plotting an evil plan

6.  unrelenting:  not giving up

7.  commotion:  noisy excitement; confusion

8.  reluctantly:  unwillingly doing something

9.  contented:  satisfied; happy

10.      cross:  hard to get along with; irritable

11.      plight:  a very unfortunate situation 

12.      suppressed:  hold back something

13.      quarrel:  disagreement; argument

14.      ferocious:  fierce; wild or threatening in appearance

15.      nuisance:  annoyance, pest, irritating

16.      encumbered:  weighed down

17.      wistfully:  feeling or showing a deep desire to do something

18.      aloof:   disinterested; not engaged

19.      rueful:  causing sorrow or pity

20.      eager:  excited

Pink: 

Heartbeat

Spelling Words                 

practice

members

dinner

suppose

except

problem

shallow

stubborn

logger

cotton

object

shelter

distance

pattern

captive

publish

sitting

tractor

servant

hidden

Vocabulary Words

Segment One (pp. 1-81)

queasy – somewhat sick

shrivel – to shrink and become dry and wrinkled

phantom – something (as a ghost) that seems to be there but is not real

earnest - a serious state of mind

miraculous – extraordinary or abnormal

mottled – to mark with spots or blotches of different color or shades of color as if stained

infinitely – without limits of any kind; boundless

rummages – to make an active search especially by moving, turning, or looking through the contents of a place or container

badgering – to annoy again and again

forlorn – feeling sad and lonely especially because of being left alone

Thursday 4/19 HW

• Math:
• Study for timings!
• Green:  patterns page (1 side)
• Pink:  algebra page (1 side)
• ELA:
• Finish word relationships poster (started 3 weeks ago - should have been done!)
• Green:  if not done with Chapters 1-7 skinny bones response, finish it! 
• Pink:  word search and crossword for Heartbeat Vocab (must study this week!!!)
• Bring in a piece of posterboard
• Return signed papers
• Read in supplies: 
• pillow/blanket/slippers/popcorn/book

Wahoooooo!!!!!!!

Let's all breathe a collective sigh of relief - testing is over!!!  Thursday and Friday return to our normally scheduled days. 

We will be having a read-in on Friday to celebrate!  Kids can bring:

•  a towel or small blanket
• pillow or stuffed animal
• popcorn (I can pop them during lunch!). 
• Book(s):  The read in will last from 1:30-2:15, so they also need reading materials for that time.  They have been great with novels on their lexile level. 
• Mrs. Martin or I will help them if they do need some assistance.  :)

Blonde moment alert:  After filing, grading, organizing, etc. at 2:10, I realized I did not STAPLE signed papers.  They will go home tomorrow. I am entering grades now, so they should be caught up.  There are way less grades as we spent ample time reviewing for CRCT as well as the week taking the test. 

We will continue with algebra and test soon.  I will let you know once I get a gauge on how much they remember from pre-crct cram time.  :)

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU for all of the delicious, salubrious (healthy!) snacks!!!  The kids looked forward to it everyday.  We also enjoyed our popsicle party, albeit inside, today.  It was an awesome catalyst for a multiple intelligences creative writing prompt.  They had free range to write about banana popsicles:  poems, stories, interviews, songs, etc.  I will post pictures and videos as we complete them!  :)

Showcase!

The Third Grade Student Showcase:

Our American Heroes

Will be presented on

Monday, May 7^th.

Presentations will begin at the following times:

Serafin & Usher -   8:15

Davis & Molesa -   8:45

Bellagamba/Neuburger -   9:15

Please plan to attend this very special event!

No HW

Hello!  NO homework and final unit SAMS test for unit 8 has been scheduled for after CRCT.  :)

Happy testing!  Get rest, feed them or send it in-something healthy! 

Welcome back! Last night of hw till 4/19 WOOOOOO

Hello!  Tonight is the last night of homework until Thursday, 4/19!  Hope yall are excited!! 

ELA:  make up something creative to go into the Miss Malarkey and THE TEST book!  (silly poems, skits, picture, etc. about the CRCT! Help take the stress off!)  Here is an example of one of the pages:

Math:  study guide and quiz 1:  complete and review.  Parents, please sign the study guide :)

It's just a test, but we will try our best!  We will eat breakfast and get our rest!  :)  GOOOOO CRCT!
-Go to bed 30 minutes early (Unless you are in the 7:00 hour already)
-Eat a healthy breakfast (may send in something healthy to eat here at school if no time at home!)

Math study guides:  They will not load via Word, so I snapped pics:  Pink and green have the same three pages, the 4th page is only for pink group. 

PINK only-