Weekly Update October 5 - 9

 

Upcoming Events:  

• Friday, October 9th: No School for Students, Staff Day

• Monday, October 14:: No School, Indigenous Peoples Day

Dear Families,

You will notice that I have not assigned much homework this week, this is because we have our Maine Through the Year Assessments on Wednesday and Thursday. Wednesday we will be doing the math portion of the test, on Thursday we will do the reading section. Next week we will have an additional day in case students need to finish either (or both) sections. 

In addition to our testing, we will be finishing our first literacy unit “Classic Tales.” Our class has enjoyed reading The Wind in the Willows and Alice in Wonderland. Be sure to ask your child about their favorite characters and their favorite adventures within these stories. We have also finished our introductory math unit and are beginning the second that will focus on multi-digit addition and subtraction, as well as, beginning multiplication and division strategies.

I hope you are all enjoying the beginning of October, and Maine at its autumn finest. 

Warmly,

Sarah

Homework:

Monday: Bar Graph homelink

Tuesday: Read for 20 minutes

Wednesday: Read for 20 minutes

Thursday: No Homework!

Weekly Update September 28 - October 2

 

Upcoming Events:  

• Tuesday, September 29th: School Picture Day

• Thursday, October 1st: Stuffy Day in our Classroom - SMALL stuffy

• Friday, October 9th: No School for Students, Staff Day

• Monday, October 14:: No School, Indigenous Peoples Day

Dear Families,

It was great to see everyone at our Open House last Thursday. I hope that it was beneficial for you to have a glimpse of your child’s classroom, their work, and our allied arts classrooms. Someone asked about fall parent / teacher conference sign-up, I will send out that information via email in a few weeks.  Fall conferences are scheduled for November 5th.

Tomorrow is Picture Day! Please contact the Pond Cove office if you want to order pictures and have misplaced the order form.

Thursday, October 1st we are having a stuffy day in our classroom to mark the milestone of finishing our first month of third grade. I have reviewed these expectations with my students, but here are a few guidelines. Stuffies should be small enough to fit into backpacks, please help your child select something small that will fit their desktop along with their work. Please don’t send in stuffed animals that have distracting noises, etc. I want to make this a fun extra for my students so you and your child’s cooperation is much appreciated so we can all enjoy the day.

Great job getting into the homework habit! Remember that frustration is never the goal. If your child is frustrated please have them bring in the assignment so that I can review the work with them. Thanks for a great September everyone, welcome October!!

Warmly,

Sarah

Homework:

Monday: Fact Family Homelink

Tuesday: Multiply by 2s Worksheet

Wednesday: Multiply by 5s Worksheet (remember a stuffy for tomorrow)

Thursday: Bar Graph Worksheet

Weekly Update September 21 - 25

 

Upcoming Events:  

• Thursday, September 24th: Third Grade Open House 6:00 - 6:30pm

• Tuesday, September 29th: School Picture Day

Dear Families,

We are really hitting our stride in our classroom. Students are familiar with our third grade schedule and routines and we have been getting some great work started. In math we are introducing elapsed time and beginning a year-long project that includes calculating the amount of time between sunrise and sunset then plotting this data on a bar graph at least monthly throughout the year. This is one of my favorite third grade projects because it leads to so many interesting discoveries and discussions. In our literacy block we continue our book study of The Wind in The Willows (studying characters, settings, plots, and themes), we continue our review of long vowel patterns (ae, ai, ea, ee, oa) and also building stamina for independent reading.

We are wrapping up our weather unit after a spectacular visit with Ted McInerny but will continue to observe and record our weather through December.

You will find a packet of this week’s homework in your child’s folder. I have reviewed expectations with our class of doing just one page a night and bringing the packet back to school each day so I can check in with your child’s work. Remember that homework is supposed to be a review of concepts learned at school and should not be a point of frustration. If your child is having trouble completing any assignment throughout the year, encourage your child to either take a break or bring it back to school unfinished so that I can help with the learning - I am always here to help!

Warmly,

Sarah

I look forward to seeing everyone at our open house on THURSDAY 6:00 - 6:30!

Homework:

Monday: Bar Graph Homelink

Tuesday: Elapsed Time Homelink

Wednesday: Strategies for Multiplication Homelink

Thursday: Introducing Division Homelink

Weekly Update September 14 - 18

 

Upcoming Events:  

• Wednesday, September 16th: Channel 8 “Weather at our School”

• Thursday, September 24th: Third Grade Open House 6:00 - 6:30pm

• Tuesday, September 29th: School Picture Day

Dear Families,

We have a fun and exciting week ahead! On Tuesday third grade will have a bus safety assembly to review expectations and talk about how we all play a part in keeping everyone safe. On Wednesday we have the weather at our school events. Remember that the 5:45 - 7:00 time is completely optional and a parent / guardian needs to remain onsite during that time morning time. You are responsible for bringing your child home at 7:00.

Aside from these exciting events we are getting our classwork up and running. In math we have reviewed routines, explored some of the math tools we will be using this year and have worked on telling time to the nearest minute. In reading we have begun our first unit called “Timeless Tales: Classic Stories”.  We are reading aloud The Wind in the Willows and studying characters, setting, event sequence, and character traits. In word work we have reviewed short vowel sounds and beginning long vowel patterns and spelling strategies for multisyllabic words. All of this in just the third week of school!

I look forward to seeing everyone at our open house NEXT week. As always, please feel free to reach out to me with any questions or concerns you may have along the way.

Warmly,

Sarah

Homework:

Monday: Telling Time to the Nearest Minute Homelink

Tuesday: Telling Time to the Nearest Minute Worksheet and Read for 20 minutes

Wednesday: Read for 20 minutes either by yourself or with an adult.

Thursday: Rounding Numbers  

WMTW’s "Weather at Your School" Program

We are thrilled to announce that our 3rd-grade students have been selected to participate in WMTW’s "Weather at Your School" program! On Wednesday, September 16, 2026, WMTW Meteorologist Ted McInerney will be broadcasting live from our school during the morning news. This is a wonderful opportunity for our students to see how a live television broadcast works and to showcase our school community.

To participate in the live television broadcast, students and accompanying family members should arrive at the school by 5:45 a.m. Please park in the high school parking lot near the fire station, and gather at the main entrance of our school. The live broadcast segments will air periodically between 6:00 a.m. and 7:00 a.m., during which students will have the chance to appear on camera, help share the local forecast, and participate in brief interviews. Participation in the early morning live broadcast is completely optional, please note that guardians need to stay onsite during this 5:45-7:00 timeframe then bring their child home until the beginning of school at 8:25. 

After the early broadcasts wrap up and the regular school day begins, Ted McInerney will conduct a weather presentation for all grade 3 students. During the talk, group photos will be taken, which will then be featured on the evening news later that day.

We look forward to an exciting morning showing Maine our school spirit! Please reach out if you have any questions about the schedule or logistics.

Mrs. Adams Weekly Update September 7 - 11

Upcoming Events:  

• Thursday, September 24: Third Grade Open House 6:00 - 6:30pm

• Tuesday, September 29th: School Picture Day

Dear Families,

We had a terrific first week of school! Our class is vibrant, intelligent, and doing some excellent listening during our learning times. Be sure to compliment your child on a successful first week and ask about the link our class earned about our Bags of Summer.

Third Grade Open House is Thursday, September 24th  from 6:00 - 6:30. Open House is a brief opportunity to get acquainted with your child’s experience here at school. The format is informal; students and parents will come to our classroom to meet me and browse some of the work we have started. You are also invited to see the allied arts classrooms. I look forward to seeing you all on the 24th.

Our school picture day is scheduled for Tuesday, September 29th . Enclosed in your child’s folder is the information for ordering pictures if you wish to do so.

Today we talked about having an extra set of clothes in our lockers (extra t-shirt, socks, shorts), in case spills or other mishaps that may happen. Sending a spare set of clothes is completely optional, but your child will likely feel more comfortable changing into familiar clothing if needed. If you decide to send in a small bag, please label it with your child's name and discuss with  your child where to keep the bag: either in their backpack or at the bottom of their locker.

Lastly, Ms. Karnes has asked teachers to share her letter outlining “How we use Technology”. You will find this information attached and posted on my blog. 

Warmly,

Sarah

Homework:

Tuesday & Wednesday: Read for 20 minutes either by yourself or with an adult.

Thursday: Telling Time Practice

How We Use Technology in Grades K–4

 

Parent Handout - 2026-2027

At Pond Cove, we want technology to be a meaningful tool that supports and enriches your child’s learning. Here’s how we use it in our classrooms:

• Learning Comes First – Technology is used to strengthen skills, explore new concepts, and extend classroom learning—not as a reward or free-choice activity.

• Balanced Screen Time – Students’ use of educational apps is kept short, purposeful, and age-appropriate. These apps provide extra independent practice with skills, following the time limits outlined below. These limits do not include teacher-directed use of technology for learning, such as research, writing, or other classroom projects that are connected to the curriculum.

• Kindergarten: less than 10 minutes per day

• Grade 1: up to 15 minutes per day

• Grades 2–3: up to 20 minutes per day

• Grade 4: up to 30 minutes per day
  
  

• Purposeful Videos – Any movie or video clips shown in class are directly tied to the curriculum. We do not use full-length movies as rewards, and only G-rated films are shown (unless parents give permission).
  
  

• Teacher Tools: Teachers may use a screen to display video clips, class agendas, and teaching slides.

• Snack Time – We do not show cartoons or other shows during snack breaks.
  
  

• Dismissal: Technology will not be used during dismissal time.

• Supervised Use Only – Devices are never used without teacher supervision.
  
  

• Monitoring Tools – Teachers are being trained to use Apple Classroom, which lets them see and manage what students are doing on their devices in real time.
  
  

• Keeping You Informed – Teachers will share with you how technology is being used in your child’s classroom so you always know the role it plays in learning. If you have technology questions, please reach out to your child’s teacher first.