Sunday 29 January 2017

Remember tomorrow is a P.D. Day. I will see all students back on Tuesday, with any library books to exchange.
Our Swim to Survive begins this week, on Friday Feb. 3 so please make sure your child comes to school with all the required items that day.
This Thursday is Sweater Day!  Please see this link Sweater Day Info. created by some of the students in our class for more information.
The grade 4 students brought home permission forms last week for the upcoming ski trip. You must pay on line for this event. The online payment receipt should be sent in with the form.
We are still collecting items for our Valentine's Day "All Things Italian" basket. Please send items in by February 6th. Some grade 4 students also still need items for their Engineering Challenge project.
For homework this week, students will bring home their math books to complete work. Please be sure the book gets returned to school each day.
Please see the updates below:
Math: We are almost finished up Data Management and will be moving into Measurement. Both grades will start this unit with measuring time. Grade 4s will be finishing Data Management this week looking at Stem and Leaf Plots.
Language: Most students have finished their paragraph writing about goal setting. We began oral presentations last week and will continue this week.

Sunday 22 January 2017

Many of us have been enjoying this mild winter weather. It does mean, however, that the rink has been closed until further notice - likely later in the week, weather depending. If skating has been planned for your child for the beginning of the week, it has been postponed.
The grade 4 Engineering Challenge kicks off tomorrow afternoon. Your child will need supplies in order to be successful with this ongoing weekly task. Please send items listed in the January 9th post in with your child as soon as possible.
Each homeroom class will be collecting items to create a theme basket to be used at the upcoming Valentine's Dance on February 10th. Our class' theme is "All Things Italian"! We will be looking for the following items to be donated: pasta, herbs, pastries, cookies, sauces, oils, red and white tablecloth, spices, seasonings, two candles, pasta bowl, gift cards or anything else you would like to contribute that suits this theme. If you want to contribute a specific item, please either send in the item or write a note in your child's agenda to avoid duplicate items. Please send in all items by February 8th.
Please see the updates and homework below:
Homework: Your child should be spending time on Raz kids and Dreambox this week. Please write a note in the agenda if you have any difficulties with either of these. I have changed some reading levels for some children. Some homework on paper may also be coming home.
Math: We continue with data management, looking at a variety of different types of graphs such as pictographs and circle graphs.
Language: As we finish our goal setting paragraphs, students will make a cover that is appropriate for their goal. They will also present these goals orally to the class.


Sunday 15 January 2017

Grade 3 Homework  Grade 4 Homework
We had a great first week back at school!  The students were happy to see their classmates and the guinea pigs again.
Grade 3 students should have come home with their Swim to Survive information sheets and permission forms. Please return permission forms as soon as possible if you have not already done so. Also, please return the volunteer slip if you are able to volunteer on any of the days.
Our afternoon class will be skating for phys. ed. once the ice is ready. Your child will need skates and a helmet to participate in this activity. More information will be coming home from Mrs. Mahusky when the ice is ready.
We will have the Humane Society in to visit our afternoon class with a dog on Monday Jan. 16th (tomorrow). Please write a note in your child's agenda with details if they have an allergy to dogs or if they have a fear of animals that may impact the visit. This visit is linked to the Gospel value of Stewardship of Creation (valuing all life), our Science curriculum (Understanding Life Systems), and our Health Unit of Personal Safety and Injury Prevention.
Please see the attached homework and updates below:
Math: We have been reading graphs to gain a more thorough understanding of the data presented. We have also been working on sorting by a variety of attributes. An attribute is a property of an object or person; something you can say it has such as size, colour, shape, etc. We have been using Venn diagrams to sort a variety of objects. This helps demonstrate that some objects can be sorted by two or more attributes. For example you could short shapes by colour (red) and number of sides (4). Some shapes would be red, some shapes would have 4 sides, and then some shapes would be red with 4 sides.
Language: We continue to work on our goal setting and paragraph writing through the New Year's Resolution activity.

Monday 9 January 2017

A very happy New Year to everyone!  It was great to see all the students refreshed and happy back at school today.  We each shared our favourite part of the holiday. We spent some time reviewing material covered before the break. We also had a visit from our new principal Mrs. Di Labio.
Some of you may have noticed that the grade threes are scheduled for Swim to Survive this week. Not to worry - this is not our grade 3 class.  Our class will be participating in Swim to Survive on Feb. 3rd, 10th, and 24th.  More information will be coming home regarding this shortly.
Homework will start again next week. For this week, you can discuss with your child appropriate goal setting and achieving. We will be looking at this in class this week as it relates to New Year's resolutions.
Please see the updates below:
Math:  Before the break, each student conducted a survey of class members regarding student's favourite Christmas tree ornaments. We conducted this survey again today. We are now using that information to create graphs. Students will also be reading a variety of data displayed to answer questions about the information given.
Language: We are writing about our New Year's resolutions. We are using graphic organizers to help outline what steps need to be completed in order to achieve an identified goal. We will also be using this graphic organizer to identify timelines to complete these steps. This information will be used to work on paragraph writing. Grade 3s should be writing at least 2 paragraphs and grade 4s at least 3 paragraphs. The students will be using a checklist to complete this task, as well as for editing purposes.
Science: The grade 3s will be reviewing their Soil information before starting their unit on Structures. The grade 4s will be reviewing their information on Rocks and Minerals before taking a closer look at Pulleys and Gears. The grade 4s will be starting the Engineering Challenge at the end of the month with other junior classes. Below is a list of materials we are asking each student to collect and donate if possible. More information will be coming home shortly.
Visual Arts: We watched a video that demonstrated some techniques used with paint and a variety of application tools. We will be exploring this in a hands-on fashion later in the week.

Engineering Challenge materials:
paper, cardboard, newspaper
 string, yarn, rope, fabric
 glue, play dough, tape
 popsicle sticks, tongue depressors, toothpicks, skewers, chopsticks, dowels
 wooden pencils
 plastics, styrofoam, rubber
 CDs
 spools (wooden, plastic)
 bottle caps (plastic)
 paint, decorations straws, rubber bands
 paper clips

 sand and Play-Doh