Began teaching at Shalom: 2006

Education:     1985 Graduate of Shalom Christian Academy.
                        1991 Graduate of Eastern Mennonite College.  BA in Elementary Education (K-8) with emphasis on missions
                        and family studies.

Past Teaching Experience:     Logos International School, Cambodia, substitute teaching (K-8), 2004 - 2006
                                                    Kingsway Elementary School,  6th grade, 1993 - 1996
                                                    Wayne County Schools, Substitute Teaching, 1992/1993
                                                    Wayne County Christian School,  6th & 7th grade combined class, 1991/1992

Hobbies:  Reading, hospitality, outdoors/nature, missions travel and family time

Favorite Verse:   For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.   2 Timothy 1:7

Church Membership:  Marion Mennonite Church

Family/Background: I grew up on a dairy farm in Chambersburg.  My parents are Ruth A. and Lester E. Martin.  After college graduation I married Paul Holderman.  We lived and worked in his home area of Orrville, Ohio for 5 years.  Later we decided to begin our family, and I became a full-time mother.  In 1996 we moved to Chambersburg to work with my family on the farm and raise our young children. We returned to Chambersburg after serving in missions with Eastern Mennonite Missions for 3 years in Cambodia.   Our three children Jake, Rachel, and Ben are students at Shalom.   

     

Curriculum:

General:  Along with the academic learning in the classroom, I enjoy interacting and learning with my students outside of class.  We will enjoy several field trips related to topics of study, class socials, extra recesses, class parties, and projects that make learning come to life.   I appreciate the involvement of parents as they use their unique gifts to enhance our class experience.  

Math:  Saxon Math 3  integrates mathematical strands throughout the year to provide ongoing practice for students to master new concepts, problem-solving strategies, and skills.  Students use hands-on manipulative  to learn telling time, measuring, place value, temperature, money, etc.  Daily fact practice helps students to master addition, subtraction, multiplication and division facts.  Daily practice and homework sheets are provided to reinforce and assess the daily lessons.  Written and fact assessments are given after every five lessons.  

Science:  A Beka's Exploring God's World demonstrates the unique plan of God for each of His creations and the communities in which they live.  Third grade explores how they are wonderfully made by focusing on the nervous system and senses.  They observe how plants grow, explore their jobs, and identify their many varieties.  They learn to classify animals by constructing an animal picture notebook.  They research the communities of the desert, ocean, pond, forest, and the farmer's field in which both plants and animals form communities.  They observe the weather and water cycle and how it affects the earth .  Through the use of  reading, hands-on activities, experiments, and collections students expand their understanding of God's world and His plan for them in the world.
The studies also include the use of trade books, cassettes, videos, experiments, field trips, and hands on activities.

Reading:  Since the fundamentals of phonics has been set in the previous grades, the students are now ready to  further their learning by reading.  The use of chapter books such as Sarah, Plain and Tall, Skylark, Stone Fox, Charlotte's Web, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory supplement books from  the A Beka Reading series for third grade .  Weekly Read & Think Skill Sheets are used to improve comprehension and reading speed.  Other activities include:  discussions, vocabulary tests, dramas, writings, videos, creative booklets, story mapping, Book It! contest, etc..  The goal is for each child to become an independent reader. Actions of various characters are challenged according to Christian principles.

Spelling: Students review phonics sounds and spellings. Each spelling list contains words related to other subject areas. Vocabulary words and definitions complete the list. A Beka workbooks, alphabetical order, games, etc. are used to challenge the learner.

Penmanship:  Students are taught from the biblical perspective to form cursive letters correctly so words and thoughts are communicated clearly.  Letter formation, slant, alignment, and spacing are areas of greatest concentration.  A Beka curriculum is used.

Language Arts:  The language arts consists of learning capitalization, punctuation, usage, synonyms, antonyms, and homophones with the use of A Beka Workbook.  The Write on Track Text exemplifies basic writing skills for developing stories, plays, poems, and reports.

Social Studies:  Our Communities by Macmillan McGraw-Hill, 2005,  uses the eight strands of Social Studies which include:  citizenship, geography, social
studies skills, government, history, science, technology, and society, culture, and economics.  It includes 5 units which include People Build Communities, Communities Have History, Communities at Work, Communities Have Governments, and Many Cultures, One Country.    The following questions will be answered:  How does the land shape a community?  How have communities changed?  What jobs do people do? How does government work in our country? What cultures make up our community?

Bible:  The Hero's of Faith, Servants of God curriculum from Mennonite Publishing House portrays a model for children of this age group.  The hero is a person of significance who makes mistakes and is faithful in asking forgiveness.  All of us have the potential to be a hero in God's eyes.  The study includes men, women, and children who perform deeds of valor as well as humble acts of faithfulness, love, moral, and strength.  One activity that is a big hit with students is drawing symbols on a T-shirt (with fabric markers) which reflects a reminder of a particular faith hero from our study.   Memory verses relating to units of study are learned each week.

Class Happenings 2007-2008:

   
                  Daily Cursive Practice                                                                                     Bowling at Nelly Fox-Race for Education Reward 

   
                Elementary Christmas Program                                                Third Grade Field Trip to State Capitol

       

                3B Class Field Trip to Wilson College Farm                                        Cooperative Group Learning

     

                            3B lining up after recess                                                                                            Chapel Opening - 3B playing recorders

   

                        Science Teams working on pond creation projects                                   End of Year Class Social at Mrs. Holderman's