Welcome to 3rd Grade!
My name is Kristine Kolles and I am the 3rd grade teacher here at St. Timothy’s. I currently live in Monticello with my husband Myles and our 4 daughters. I graduated from St. Cloud State University in May 2013. As a child, I attended St. Timothy’s school from K-6th grade! I love teaching in the same building that sparked my desire and love for education.
I am proud to be your child’s teacher and am committed to doing everything within my power to make this year successful for all of us. Third Grade is an exciting time for your child and an important part of setting up future success in school. I look forward to getting to know each student and supporting them in learning. If you ever have any questions or concerns, please contact me via email.
(3rd Grade leading the end of the year prayer service)
3rd Grade Notes:
Religion:
Word of Life (Augustine Institute) is the religion curriculum used in third grade. Word of Life uses four golden catechetical threads: salvation history, Christian anthropology, heroic virtue and character formation, learning through discipleship.
Math:
McGraw-Hill “My Math” is our math curriculum. It is built around rigorous standards and mathematical practices. It delivers conceptual understanding, procedural skill and fluency, and application to real word problems.
Language Arts:
We use the HMH Into Reading curriculum which stresses building a love of reading, foundational skills, vocabulary, and comprehension. Our Language Arts block begins with a whole group focus lesson followed by a Daily 5 (Daily 5 is a way of structuring the reading block so every student is working independently in meaningful literacy tasks). This allows me to work with small groups or one on one with students to work on reading and writing strategies that will address their individual needs.
The spelling program consists of 34 weekly units. Each unit highlights a pattern or phonetic theme. Students also become familiar with proofreading as well as using a dictionary. Writing units such as a personal narrative, letter writing, research paper, and instructions are integrated throughout the year.
Social Studies:
We use the TCI (Teacher Curriculum Institute) social studies curriculum. It adds an interactive and engaging approach to teaching social studies. Later this year, students complete a culture research report using multiple sources.
Science:
Using the Mystery Science hands-on curriculum, we study Fossils and changing environments, Life Cycles, Heredity, Survival, and Selection, Weather and Climate, Forces, Motion, and Magnets.
