Picariello News

March 2015 Edition

Dear Parent/Guardian,
Where does the time go? I cant believe we are already
in the month of March. The month of February came and
went without me getting a newsletter home to you. Please
accept my sincerest apologies. Mother Nature kept us on our
toes with all of the snow. Four snow days within a two week
period and then it was vacation.
Term Two will be closing on Thursday, April 2 rather
than Friday, March 20th. The term was extended due to the
loss of days because of weather related issues. The end of
the term also coincides with the second set of parent-teacher
conferences. They are on the Weymouth school calendar for
Wednesday, April 1st and Thursday, April 2nd. More
information should be coming home from the office as the
date approaches.
The third grade concert will be held next Wednesday,
March 11th at 10:00am. Ms. Isaac has asked that the children
wear black/navy pants and a purple/green shirt.

March marks Womens History Month. In honor of all of

the many women who have shaped the world we live in
today, all third graders have been assigned a biography
book report. Each student chose a book about a woman in
class yesterday. The outline for the book report will be
coming home tomorrow. These Timeline book reports are
due on Tuesday, March 31st and will be displayed on the
walls outside of our classroom during parent conferences.
Students in third grade will be taking the PARCC test
this month. We are a Computer-based Testing (CBT) school
so all students will be administered the test on computers.
This first part of the test is the Performance-based
Assessment (PBA). The second part of the test, which will be
administered in May, is the End-of-Year Assessment (EOY).
You may look at practice samples of PARCC type questions
by following the link below. You just have to click on ELA or
MATH and then the grade level (3).
http://parcc.pearson.com/practice-tests/
In math, we are finishing up the foundations of
multiplication and division. Our next adventure leads us to
fractions. Students will continue to take math fact drills 2-3
times a week. These drills will focus on multiplication and will
then move on to division as we enter into third term. I cannot
stress how important it is for each child to master their math
facts for speed and mastery. Mastery of addition and
subtraction facts is a second grade benchmark whereas
mastery of multiplication and division facts is a third grade
benchmark.
A big shout out to Grady Salfity, Jennifer Nguyen, and
Joshua Cazeault! They have completed the Xtra Math
program. CONGRATULATIONS! Each has moved on to the
advanced program.

As always, if you ever have any questions or concerns

please contact me.
Sincerely,

Dates to Remember
Friday, March 6th: Book Orders DUE
Tuesday, March 10th: HALF DAY: Teacher Inservice
Wednesday, March 11th: 3rd Grade Concert @ 10:00
Tuesday, March 31st: Timeline Biography DUE

Classroom Supplies Needed

Pencil-top erasers