Autumn Equinox

Autumn Equinox:: Au Revoir Summer!

FACT: Seasons change as we orbit the sun.


Spring • Summer • Autumn • Winter

Twice a year, around March 20 or 21 and Sept. 22 or 23, our sun shines directly over the equator. That event marks the beginning of spring or fall. What is the equator?

Public Domain photo

e·qua·tor
[əˈkwā•dər]
noun
an imaginary line drawn around the earth equally distant from both poles,dividing the earth into northern and southern hemispheres and constituting the parallel of latitude 0°.




In March when the sun shines directly over the equator, the event is called the spring or vernal equinox. In September when the sun shines directly over the equator, the event is called the fall or autumnal equinox.

The Autumnal Equinox will occur in Los Angeles, California, U.S.A. on Saturday, September 22, 2018 at 6:54 P.M.

Things to look for in fall:


1. Deciduous (di•si•jo͞o•əs) trees will change color and drop all their leaves. Evergreen trees will not. Evergreen trees will stay forever green. :-) Why do the leaves of deciduous trees change color? Use World Book Online to research. Remember, do NOT copy sentences. That is plagiarism, and it is against the law! Take notes, and then turn your notes into your own sentences.

Photo by Grandma Barb




Photo by Grandma Barb

2. On the equinox, there are exactly 12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of night. The day and night hours are equal. However, as we continue into fall, the days will get shorter and the night hours will get longer. This pattern will continue until we reach the winter solstice. That is the longest night of the year and marks a new season, winter.




3. Because the northern hemisphere is now tilted away from the sun, the days will start to become cooler. People will change their behavior.What sorts of behavioral changes will your family make as the days get shorter and cooler? (In southern California, we have mild climate. We don't get too cold in our community.)


There are many fall festivals or holidays. Watch the BrainPop video about fall to learn about the many harvest festivals celebrated. Do you celebrate any of these autumn holidays? If so, please share so we can learn from you!

Check out the FREE BrainPop video about Fall.

4. Some animals in the northern hemisphere will change their behavior. As fall leads to winter, some animals migrate, or move, to a warmer area. Others try to fatten up for the winter they know is coming.

Again, BrainPop Jr. has a video about fall.
Check it out by clicking here.

Share some fun facts about fall! Did you use BrainPop or World Book Online as a reference?

If you were in the southern hemisphere, tell us what season you are enjoying right now. How are you changing your behavior?

Back to School Night 2018-2019

Normally, Ms. Tulbure's class looks like this.

Photo by Ms. Tulbure

Last night, the classroom looked like this!

Photo by Ms. Tulbure

Photo by Ms. Tulbure

It was Back to School Night!
Parents came to hear about third grade!
Lots of information was shared about classroom expectations, curriculum, and resources. 

One of the main topics discussed was blogging.

Educational blogging has so many benefits! Thank you, Mrs. Morris, for this blogging diagram. 

To learn about blogging from a student perspective, watch this video Mrs. Yollis made with her third graders about why they love blogging.  

 

She also shared a wonderful video about supervising and guiding children on the web. It is a great video that really drives the point home. Thank you, Bill Genereux, for the fabulous movie. 

Parents left thoughtful notes for their child.  Everyone loved it!

*      *      *      *      *

What are you excited to learn about this year?

Parents, how is third grade different from when you were in school?

No Power...No Problem!

The third day of school was an exciting and challenging one. We had no power!

That didn't stop this class, we took our supplies outside and problem solved!

all photos by Ms. Tulbure

We worked on art projects....

We practiced our math facts playing a game called Salute. This is where one person, 'the general' gives two cards to two friends and tells them to 'Salute.' The students place the cards on their forehead. Then, the general can either tell them the sum, difference, or product of the two numbers. Since students can only see one number, their goal is to guess their missing number. 

What a fun way to practice math facts!

 

  

 

 Even though having no electricity was a challenge, the students had a fun day!

What things run on electricity?

What was a challenge today for you?

Teambuilding!

Today was our second day of school!

We continued our adventure! 

In the morning we played more 'getting to know you games'. We searched for new friends and talked about their interests. 

photo by Ms. Tulbure

Later, students had fun "building" using the Kleenex boxes and the paper towels. They used teamwork and perseverance to build a pyramid. 

What does perseverance mean?

all photos by Ms. Tulbure

The tissue boxes are rectangular prisms, while the paper towels are cylinders.

Magnificent balancing work!

 

 

What was your favorite activity from today?

What do you do to make sure a tower stands tall and stable?

Remember to proofread your comment with a parent before you publish! All comments will go to me for approval before published publicly on the blog.

First Day of School 2018!

Welcome Back to the 2018-2019 New School Year!

Today was our first day of school!

We jumped right in and started our adventure! 

In the morning, students and families lined up to meet the teacher and hear a few opening remarks from the principal.

Photo by Ms. Tulbure

Photo by Ms. Tulbure

In class, we began by getting to know each other through teamwork and games.  

Photo by Ms. Tulbure

Photo by Ms. Tulbure

After recess, we lined up and got ready to open up and categorize all the supplies. 
Later, students dove right into reading their 'good fit book' and explored the various seating around the classroom. Look at the quiet and magnificent reading happening!

all photos by Ms. Tulbure

 

Students are excited for more adventures this week! Keep visiting the blog to see what they've been up to. 

What do you look forward to learning in 3rd grade? 

What is your favorite subject?

What is your favorite book or series?

Parents & Students

Remember to proofread your comment with a parent before you publish!
Also remember to only use your first name...no last names! 

 

Welcome Back 2018-2019

Welcome back to a new school year!

 

Here's a video greeting from Ms. Tulbure!

Parents and Students

This blog is the centerpiece of our classroom community. It is a wonderful space for sharing and learning together. Here is a link to an article Mrs. Yollis wrote about the benefits of classroom blogging. I hope you'll have a chance to read it before our Back to School Night.

☼     ☼     ☼     ☼     ☼

If you are a new or returning student, please leave a comment telling me about yourself. What did you do over your summer break? What adventures and experiences did you enjoyed? Be sure to limit personal information! 

Remember to proofread your comment with a parent before you publish! 

:-)

Happy Blogging!

Badger Claws Clauses

Badger Claws Clauses

A tip of the hat to retired teacher, Mrs. Ranney for this repost!

Ms Tulbure's students have been reading about a Chumash boy named Badger Claws. It's been a great way to learn about the Chumash culture! We've also started learning how to improve our writing using dependent clauses. 

What are dependent clauses?

Dependent clauses start with special words:

After, Before, Since, While, When, If, During.

A dependent clause ends with a comma and cannot stand alone as a sentence. It must be followed by an independent clause, which is a sentence that can stand alone!

Here are some excellent examples of sentences with dependent clauses from our story about Badger Claws. 

1. If mischievous Badger Claws had not gone into the hot sweathouse, he would not have been caught by the Shaman!



2. After the Shaman left the brave Badger Claws in the high mountains, Badger Claws took a nap.



3. If Badger Claws shoots the fluffy, furry rabbit, he will have to skin it, clean it, and cook it before he eats it.



4. Since Badger Claws couldn't shoot a furry rabbit, he practiced shooting down the bumpy trail.



5. After Badger Claws shot a furry, little rabbit, he needed to skin the rabbit's soft fur.



6. When Badger Claws woke up in the freezing night,
he saw two monstrous "grizzly bears!"


7. Since brave Badger Claws found out the tracks were littleraccoon tracks, he was laughing like crazy!


8. Before Aged One got home, he devoured several acorn cakes and then lied about it. 

9. During the first two moons, Badger Claws was able to construct an ap, make acorn cakes, and adopt an orphaned raccoon. 


10. While Badger Claws slept, the little raccoon escaped and ate several acorn cakes.  

How did you like our dependent clauses?

If you have a sentence with a dependent clause that you'd like to share, we'd love to read it! (Hey, that was a dependent clause sentence!)

Maybe you can leave a sentence with a dependent clause about your biography subject! 

Again, dependent clauses start with special words: After, Before, Since, While, When, If, During.