Grade 3 English
November 6, 2009 by Kim
Filed under Parent's Advice
By Alexis Burling
November 4, 2009
Grandchildren learn to get more out of the books they read, and begin to master the mechanics of writing
By third grade, students focus almost exclusively on reading to learn. Teachers help third-grade readers zero in on the main ideas and supporting details of paragraphs, and children learn how to use chapter headings, tables of contents, and indexes. When reading fiction, third-graders begin to make predictions and inferences, and to think about characters’ motivations. Teachers show students how to use small charts known as “graphic organizers” to help track the main ideas, characters, and themes in their reading. In writing lessons, teachers concentrate on the mechanics: grammar, spelling, and handwriting. Students are evaluated based on how they write (including proper sentence structure and correct use of the parts of speech) and on what they write (including well-organized thoughts, descriptive language, and clear dialogue). Teachers also expect students to stay on their main point throughout a piece of writing, which is often a challenge for very young writers. To practice these skills, third-graders will create outlines to write stories that have a beginning, a middle, and an end, and they will be asked to edit and correct their own work. As part of their daily homework, third-graders study weekly spelling and vocabulary lists, and keep a record of their personal reading selections.
Teaching to the Test? Since the federal No Child Left Behind Act became law in 2002, schools have put increased emphasis on standardized tests, especially in English and math, and teachers have sometimes feel pressured to forgo “outside the box” methods in favor of preparing their students for the high-stakes, end-of-the-year tests. English teachers have noted that many of these tests are featuring more easier-to-grade multiple-choice questions and fewer short-answer essay questions. Critics say this shift has been detrimental for kids who are better at expressing what they have learned in writing than at answering a question with only one right answer. They also complain that focusing on the test, and the kind of questions it asks, pigeonholes young students into a single, rigid way of learning.
* The 20th Century Children’s Poetry Treasury (Knopf, 1999) was compiled by the country’s first Children’s Poet Laureate, Jack Prelutsky, and contains 211 poems from 137 writers, including Langston Hughes, Ogden Nash, and Karla Kuskin. This exhaustive anthology will introduce grandchildren to many types of poetry.
* Stone Soup magazine offers 48 pages of stories, poems, book reviews, and artwork, all created by kids for kids. Inspire your grandchildren to strive for publication at an early age by sharing this one-of-a-kind publication with them.
* Reading a 500-page novel may seem too daunting for some third-graders, not to mention plenty of time-challenged adults. But Caldecott Award winner Brian Selznick’s The Invention of Hugo Cabret, (Scholastic, 2007) an engrossing mystery set in 1930s Paris, contains enough full-page charcoal drawings to make the task manageable for ambitious, advanced students.
* Third-graders become comfortable using a thesaurus to help them find just the right word for their writing assignments. Joshua Kendall’s The Man Who Made Lists (Putnam, 2008) is a historian’s glimpse into the life of Peter Mark Roget, the man who created the famous thesaurus that still bears his name. Kendall’s book is for adults, but grandchildren fascinated by words will be eager to hear what you learn from it.
For Young Puzzlers. Wordsmiths young and old love a good crossword challenge. Doing a crossword together on the couch or at the park is a great way to bond with grandchildren, and a great way to build their vocabulary. There are plenty of crossword anthologies for young people on bookstore shelves, but you can make a special crossword puzzle for them, or create one with them, at a free website like this one.
It’s Okay to Act Out. “Reader’s Theater,” in which students act out short plays in their classrooms, is a popular elementary-school activity. But now that your grandchildren are a little older, and doing more writing in school, they may be ready to write a short play of their own. It could be about your family, a vacation memory, a favorite athlete, or a comic-book hero. Help the kids assemble costumes from clothes around the house, do a couple of rehearsals, then put on a show for family and friends.
Thank You So Much. Appreciation goes a long way, especially where gifts are concerned. Teach your grandchildren the importance of gratitude and proper etiquette, and help them boost their writing skills, by having them write thank-you notes after their birthdays. Before the kids start writing, take a trip to a card shop so they can choose their own stationery and pens.
Editor’s Note: Alexis Burling is a freelance book reviewer and writer in Brooklyn, N.Y. She also edits and writes for Storyworks, a classroom language-arts magazine published by Scholastic.
We would like to know what you think? dan@youngchronicle.com
Source: Grandparants
Medal of Honor Recipient – Private First Class U.S. Army Lewis Albanese
By Dan Samaria
Publisher/YC
November 5, 2009
Each week we at the Chronicle will be honoring one of these true heroes.
We will call it Medal of Honor Recipient of the Week.
We hope you will join with us to honor these true heroes. Who have given us the greatest sacrifice that one could give their life, to save their fellow soldiers?
We would like to know what you think. dan@youngchronicle.com
This Week’s Hero: Private First Class, U.S. Army, Company B, 5th Battalion (Airmobile), 7th Cavalry, 1st Cavalry Division, Lewis Albanese
Place and date: Republic of Vietnam, 1 December 1966.
Entered service at: Seattle, Wash.
Born: 27 April 1946, Venice, Italy. G.O. No.: 12, 3 April 1968.
Citation:
For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action at the risk of his life and beyond the call of duty. Pfc. Albanese’s platoon, while advancing through densely covered terrain to establish a blocking position, received intense automatic weapons fire from close range.
As other members maneuvered to assault the enemy position, Pfc. Albanese was ordered to provide security for the left flank of the platoon. Suddenly, the left flank received fire from enemy located in a well-concealed ditch. Realizing the imminent danger to his comrades from this fire, Pfc. Albanese fixed his bayonet and moved aggressively into the ditch. His action silenced the sniper fire, enabling the platoon to resume movement toward the main enemy position.
As the platoon continued to advance, the sound of heavy firing emanated from the left flank from a pitched battle that ensued in the ditch which Pfc. Albanese had entered. The ditch was actually a well-organized complex of enemy defenses designed to bring devastating flanking fire on the forces attacking the main position. Pfc. Albanese, disregarding the danger to himself, advanced 100 meters along the trench and killed 6 of the snipers, who were armed with automatic weapons.
Having exhausted his ammunition, Pfc. Albanese was mortally wounded when he engaged and killed 2 more enemy soldiers in fierce hand-to-hand combat. His unparalleled actions saved the lives of many members of his platoon who otherwise would have fallen to the sniper fire from the ditch, and enabled his platoon to successfully advance against an enemy force of overwhelming numerical superiority.
Pfc. Albanese’s extraordinary heroism and supreme dedication to his comrades were commensurate with the finest traditions of the military service and remain a tribute to himself, his unit, and the U.S. Army.
Source: US Military
Who Were Our Presidents? Part 14
By Dan Samaria
Publisher/YC
Nov. 5, 2009
Editor’s Note: How many of us along with our children? Know who our Presidents were and what they have done in Office.
Each week we will pick a President and tell you about them and their Accomplishes.
We hope that you will enjoy this series. And let us know what you think? dan@youngchronicle.com
14. Franklin Pierce 1853-1857
Franklin Pierce became President at a time of apparent tranquility. The United States, by virtue of the Compromise of 1850, seemed to have weathered its sectional storm. By pursuing the recommendations of southern advisers, Pierce–a New Englander–hoped to prevent still another outbreak of that storm. But his policies, far from preserving calm, hastened the disruption of the Union.
Born in Hillsborough, New Hampshire, in 1804, Pierce attended Bowdoin College. After graduation he studied law, then entered politics. At 24 he was elected to the New Hampshire legislature; two years later he became its Speaker. During the 1830’s he went to Washington, first as a Representative, then as a Senator.
Pierce, after serving in the Mexican War, was proposed by New Hampshire friends for the Presidential nomination in 1852. At the Democratic Convention, the delegates agreed easily enough upon a platform pledging undeviating support of the Compromise of 1850 and hostility to any efforts to agitate the slavery question. But they balloted 48 times and eliminated all the well-known candidates before nominating Pierce, a true “dark horse.”
Probably because the Democrats stood more firmly for the Compromise than the Whigs, and because Whig candidate Gen. Winfield Scott was suspect in the South, Pierce won with a narrow margin of popular votes.
Two months before he took office, he and his wife saw their eleven-year-old son killed when their train was wrecked. Grief-stricken, Pierce entered the Presidency nervously exhausted.
In his Inaugural he proclaimed an era of peace and prosperity at home, and vigor in relations with other nations. The United States might have to acquire additional possessions for the sake of its own security, he pointed out, and would not be deterred by “any timid forebodings of evil.”
Pierce had only to make gestures toward expansion to excite the wrath of northerners, who accused him of acting as a cat’s-paw of Southerners eager to extend slavery into other areas. Therefore he aroused apprehension when he pressured Great Britain to relinquish its special interests along part of the Central American coast, and even more when he tried to persuade Spain to sell Cuba.
But the most violent renewal of the storm stemmed from the Kansas-Nebraska Act, which repealed the Missouri Compromise and reopened the question of slavery in the West. This measure, the handiwork of Senator Stephen A. Douglas, grew in part out of his desire to promote a railroad from Chicago to California through Nebraska. Already Secretary of War Jefferson Davis, advocate of a southern transcontinental route, had persuaded Pierce to send James Gadsden to Mexico to buy land for a southern railroad. He purchased the area now comprising southern Arizona and part of southern New Mexico for $10,000,000.
Douglas’s proposal, to organize western territories through which a railroad might run, caused extreme trouble. Douglas provided in his bills that the residents of the new territories could decide the slavery question for themselves. The result was a rush into Kansas, as southerners and northerners vied for control of the territory. Shooting broke out, and “bleeding Kansas” became a prelude to the Civil War.
By the end of his administration, Pierce could claim “a peaceful condition of things in Kansas.” But, to his disappointment, the Democrats refused to renominate him, turning to the less controversial Buchanan. Pierce returned to New Hampshire, leaving his successor to face the rising fury of the sectional whirlwind. He died in 1869.
Learn more about Franklin Pierce ’s spouse, Jane Means Appleton Pierce.
Source: White House
Editor’s Note: Todays’ homework: We would like to know some of President Franklin Pierce’s accomplishments as President.
If you can give us some, you can win a prize. You can contact us at dan@youngchronicle.com
Ambassadors For The Blind Follows Helen Keller Footsteps
By Danielle Azzolina
November 3, 2009
Editor’s Note: Photo Rocco Fiorentino (left) and Kid Reporter Danielle Azzolina hold vibrating canes for the blind at a brainstorming workshop lead by Professor Nitish V. Thakor, Ph.D., from Johns Hopkins University. (Photo Courtesy Danielle Azzolina)
We would like to know what you think. dan@youngchronicle.com
Ever since I was 7 years old and read my first book about Helen Keller I was fascinated with her story. Helen could not hear or see. I was amazed that someone who lived in the dark and quiet world Helen did could learn to communicate so well.
Recently I had an opportunity to interview Helen Keller’s great-grand niece, Keller Johnson-Thompson, and ask her questions I have pondered ever since I learned about Helen Keller. Johnson-Thompson is head of the Helen Keller Foundation.
I also learned a lot from my friend Rocco Fiorentino, who is blind. He took me to the Fall Festival at the New Jersey State Library Talking Book and Braille Center (TBBC) in Trenton, New Jersey, recently.
I learned so much that I have written two stories that have been collected for you here.
- Helen Keller’s Legacy: Keller Johnson-Thompson discusses the life and contributions of her Great Grand Aunt Helen Keller.
- In Helen Keller’s Footsteps: Rocco Fiorentino talks about how Keller inspires him to continue her legacy of education and assistance for the blind.
Library for the Blind
Statues for the blind are reachable and textured so the blind can “see” the art work through their fingertips. This sculpture can be seen—and touched—at the New Jersey State Library Talking Book and Braille Center. Photo Courtesy Danielle Azzolina.
Visiting a library for the blind is an incredible and unique experience for a sighted person. For instance, I noticed some very unusual sculptures. The first one I observed was low to the ground so every part of it was reachable. Different parts of the sculpture were textured so the blind people who visit the library can “see” the sculpture through their fingertips.
T-Shirts were available for sale with the alphabet in Braille and sayings like, “Here Comes Trouble.” Braille uses a series of raised dots to represent letters and numbers. It was invented in the mid-1800s by Louis Braille, a French educator who lost his sight when he was 3 years old.
The library has printed books, Braille books, and audio books. The audio books now on cassette will soon be converted to a digital system. I walked through aisles and aisles lined with green boxes. Each one held several audiocassettes. I was overwhelmed by the number of tapes available.
I also saw the radio center where blind people can tune in and hear numerous newspapers read aloud.
Rocco and I attended a workshop lead by Professor Nitish V. Thakor, Ph.D., from the Biomedical Engineering Dept. of Johns Hopkins University. The professor invited a few people to come and brainstorm ideas to improve products or maybe inspire new products to assist the blind.
It was really interesting to hear the problems the visually impaired have—things I never would even know to consider.
One person mentioned—and all agreed—that one big problem with using a cane to guide you is that it only feels what is on the ground. It can lead to being hit in the chest or head by protruding objects. A suggestion was made to develop a device that could beep or warn of an obstacle close ahead at a level higher than the cane’s tip.
I asked about two canes that the professor had on a table in front of him. These canes vibrate if an object is close by.
I had never been involved in a brainstorming session before. These people were really trying to solve big problems. I enjoyed being part of it.
Although events like this festival are helping people, I learned that it is still difficult for families with blind members to get the support and help they need. The most difficult is often educating blind kids to read Braille. They need many hours of training to learn to read and to learn mobility—all important aspects to helping them lead self-sufficient lives.
The amount of training children need and the amount of training available are not evenly matched. Many kids wait long periods between training and that delays their progress.
I hope someone is brainstorming ideas to help solve that problem!
Source: Scholastic News Online
Healthy Kids Day at the White House
By Henry Dunkelberger
November 3, 2009
Editor’s Note: Photo First Lady Michelle Obama takes a turn with the Hoola Hoop during the Healthy Kids Fair on the South Lawn of the White House, October 21, 2009. (Photo Credit: Haraz N. Ghanbari/AP Images)
We would like to know what you think. dan@youngchronicle.com
Simplicity, convenience, and flavor are the three key ingredients to eating healthy, said First Lady Michelle Obama at the White House Healthy Kids Fair on Wednesday. Adding exercise is the key to a healthy, happy life.
It was the perfect Autumn Washington day—cloudless and cool—as a group of about 100 kids and parents from area D.C. public schools gathered on the South Lawn of the White House to learn about healthy eating.
Chef Tod Gray from Equinox Restaurant in Washington, D.C. talks to Kid Reporter Henry Dunkelberger at the Healthy Kids Fair on the South Lawn of the White House, October 21, 2009. (Photo Courtesy Henry Dunkelberger)
This reporter joined the group as part of the press, reporting for the Scholastic Kids Press Corps. In the press pen with CNN News, Fox News, NBC, CBS, as well as other media, I worked hard to write notes as camera crews, photographers, and the other reporters rallied for a good position.
As the First Lady stepped up to the podium, everyone fell silent. Mrs. Obama spoke about how requiring schools to provide nutritious meals will help create healthy kids.
“Kids are spending a third of their time at school,” she said. “So if they go to school and eat a lunch that’s loaded with calories and fat, then all the efforts that we [parents] try to instill at home, gets knocked off a little bit.”
One in three children are obese or severely overweight, which can lead to serious health problems including diabetes, high blood pressure, and even cancer, she noted. Mrs. Obama said her goal as First Lady is to take the junk food out of schools and replace it with good choices that include lots of fruits and vegetables.
Exercise, gym class, and recess are also a high priority. Mrs. Obama believes the country’s future depends on healthy kids. She wants schools to educate kids on how to stay healthy with nutritious food and provide fun and interesting opportunities for exercise.
“We don’t just want our kids to exercise because we tell them to,” she said. “We want them to exercise because it’s fun and they enjoy it. And we want them to learn now how to lead good, healthy lifestyles so that they’re not struggling to figure out how to do that when they’re older.”
Uhm-mm Good!
Food and easy-to-prepare healthy recipes were also part of the Healthy Kids event. Everyone, including the press, was escorted to an area where a vast array of food was on display waiting to be tasted. I could hardly wait to sample the flavors and interview the chefs and nutrition experts.
My first visit was to the White House Chef’s station where I tasted a baked apple. My mouth was watering as I sunk my teeth into a sweet tasty apple prepared by pastry chefs Bill Yosses and Susan Morrison.
“We wanted to make something people can do at home easily, something kids can do themselves,” Bill Yosses told me about the food choices available at the event. “We want it to be simple, with ingredients they already have in their house so they don’t have to go out shopping at the last minute.”
The other chefs agreed with Yosses that “simplicity, convenience, and flavor were the most important criteria” for picking recipes for the fair.
The definition of “treats” is also an important part of learning to eat healthy.
“When I was growing up, we didn’t have dessert every single night,” Mrs. Obama said. “My mother would tell us, ‘Dessert is not a right, it’s a treat.’ So we had it on special occasions. I have to tell my kids this: you don’t get dessert every night of the week, otherwise it’s not a treat, it’s just something that you do.”
Executive White House Chef Christeta Comerford agreed with the First Lady, adding her own tricky thoughts about treats.
“Do not go for the treats before you eat the real food,” she said. “It’s not for every day eating.”
Good health is about cooking all the different color vegetables, she continued. “You need to have a good, balanced meal,” she told me.
The next stop on my tasty trip was at Chef Koren Grieveson’s station. Grieveson was named one of Food and Wine magazine’s 2008 Best New Chefs. I tried her zucchini quesadillas, one of my favorites at this event. It is a quick and easy nutritious snack that I think most kids will love.
Todd Gray, owner of D.C. Equinox restaurant, said his recipes support healthy eating AND local farmers. He was serving “sweet and zesty popcorn.”
“Rather than fly produce all the way across the U.S. and use all that jet fuel or trucks to truck it, doesn’t make that much sense,” he said. “[At my restaurant] we prefer supporting small family farms.”
I finished up my taste testing with registered dietitian and best-selling author Ellie Krieger. Using all the “colors of the rainbow,” she presented a lively assortment of flavorful fruit. So does Ellie Krieger ever get junk food cravings?
“Yes! I think if you eat healthy most of the time, there’s always room for some junk food or things that are not healthy,” she said. “Just eat them sometimes. And the really healthy foods, you should eat most of the time.”
Time to Work it Off!
Jumping rope, Hula Hooping, and obstacle and relay courses were no problem for healthy and fit Michelle Obama—or at least almost no problem. The Moon Bounce is the only area the First Lady ran past, but she was definitely running. She tried her hand at Double-Dutch jump roping, but that didn’t do so well. She even kicked off her shoes to try again. She then ran barefoot through the obstacle course, showing how much fun getting healthy can be.
Make a Pledge
The First Lady asked the kids and parents attending the event to pledge to live a healthier lifestyle. I decided to join in.
My plan tonight is to core and slice apples for another taste of the now famous “Baked Sliced Apples.’ You can give them a try, too. Here’s the recipe!
Baked Sliced Apples
6 apples (cored and sliced)
½ oz. butter
½ tsp. cinnamon
¼ cup maple syrup, honey or brown sugar
1/8 tsp. nutmeg
½ cup rolled oats
½ tsp. salt
¼ cup raisins or any dried fruit
¼ c. apple juice
Combine all ingredients. Place in a buttered baking pan. Bake at 350 degrees in a preheated oven for 45 minutes (or until golden brown crust appears). You can also add a cup of your favorite nuts for added protein and flavor.
Enjoy!
Source: Scholastic News Online