March 31 - April 4

I was away this afternoon at a math workshop and I am so excited for the new resource that I have to use with the children.  We are just waiting for the release of it before I can use it. 

Thank you for returning your beef jerky envelopes.  I am looking forward to my order coming in myself!

Tuesday

• Gymnastics starts.  Please make sure your child has a pair of shorts and a short sleeve shirt.
• Library books are due back.

Friday

• no school today for students as staff have a district PD day

Week of March 24-28

Sorry for the late post and I hope as this reaches you, you have all just come back from the Parent Habit Hang Out at the school.

Remember to ask your hold about our new visitor student - Yukino. She will be with us for two weeks.

Curriculum:
Health- we started Theme V today. Please have those conversations with your child.

Math - we are working really hard on our math basic facts - primarily multiplication and division. Practicing facts for five minutes a day will make a difference. Driving in the car, doing dishes or just before bed are ways to get some questions in quite easily. Grab a deck of cards and have your child teach you how to play 'Multiplication War' or 'A-Maze-Ing'. Of course too we have access to mathfactspro.com to use as a resource.

Week at a View
Monday
- library books back
- Theme V started today

Tuesday
- hot lunch day
- assembly at 12:30 p.m.
- remember to wear your moustache
- Family Fun Night 6:30 in the gym

Wednesday
- Theme V

Friday
- frolicking today

March 17 - 21

You should have seen the mess that those sneaky little leprechauns left...our room was a DISASTER!  Mrs. Scheldrup thinks it was because we tried to catch them this year with our fabulous traps, only it was more of a taunting.  The leprechauns took pictures of themselves in the traps and left.  There is always next year, we'll have to try again!  Thank you to all the students who quickly got to work cleaning up, putting the room back in order so that we could get to work. 

Reminders:

• Celebration of Learning is tomorrow night from 6-8 p.m.   It is a come and go opportunity and I would love to see you all there.  It is a great chance to for your child to lead you through some of our daily routine activities. 
• The book fair goes tomorrow as well while you are here for Celebration of Learning.

Monday

• Library books are not due today as we will not be switching books tomorrow.
• Friday letters to be returned.
• Trickster/Fundraiser letter coming home today

Tuesday

• Library - - we will have the opportunity to shop at the book fair.
• Celebration of Learning 6-8 p.m.

Wednesday

• Field trip to the SAAG at 12:30.  Thank you to the parent volunteers. 

Thursday

• The grade 4/5 classes will be walking over to Westminster School for a presentation about the Artic.

Friday:

• No school for students - I will be available if parents require an interview. Come to the Celebration of Learning first, and we might not need to meet - your questions may all be answered!

March 10 - 14

First of all, I would like to thank Logan for entering our class name in a draw for Hurricane's tickets and for the luck of the draw.  I was sad though that I didn't get to sit with you and enjoy the game but I'm glad you got to spend the evening with your friends and family.

Secondly, I was super excited this morning when the Leprechaun Traps came in.  They look very intriguing and inviting  - let's just hope we catch a Leprechaun or two this year!  Your child will be presenting their trap in science class.  Projects not handed in today are considered late (don't forget, the letter went home Jan. 21st!).

Lastly, Tuesday, March 18th is our Celebration of Learning!! It will start at 6:00 p.m. and run until 8:00 p.m. It is a come and go event that I'm hoping all parents will be able to attend with their child. This is a fun event and students always look forward to showing off all of the hard work they've done throughout the year. See you there!

Curriculum:

• Language Arts: Last week we started a writing unit based on the Dr. Seuss book, "The Lorax." This ties in nicely with our new science unit.
• Math: We are just finishing up fractions and decimals. 
• Science: We will be starting our "Waste in our World" unit this week.

Link of the Week:

• Big Brainz: Ms. Scheldrup sent the staff a link around about a really neat math website. There is a home element and a school element. Part of it is free, and part of it you need to pay for. Mrs. Samayoa and I were looking into it and watching the videos and thought it looked like a really great way to practice math facts. It's in video game format which makes it really appealing to kids. They can move through the levels learning math all the way. We're deciding whether or not we'll buy it for next year, but I thought parents this year might want to take advantage of it.

This week:
Monday:

• Leprechaun Traps due
• Library books are due - reminder students there is a challenge from Mrs. Chase for the Book Fair
• School Council Meeting tonight 6:30

Tuesday:

• Tone it up Tuesday

Wednesday

• Hot lunch money due

Thursday:

• Book Fair starts today!  We will get an opportunity to shop during our library class next week.

Friday:

• Frolicking Friday
• Report cards go home 

March 3-7

As I write this, the temperature has warmed up to a chilly -17 but yet warm enough to hear your child excited to go outside!  I look forward to the weather warming up and spring to be here! 

Curriculum
LA - starting a new unit related to Science with Dr. Seuss and the Lorax
Math - finishing up on fractions and decimals
Science - wrapping up our unit on Simple Machines

REMINDER - - the Leprechaun Traps are due next MONDAY!  (Also, don't forget to do the write up that goes with the project)

Update on the week at hand:
Monday

• Friday Letters due
• Library books due back
• Mrs. Heimbecker - our lead FNMI teacher from board office - came into our class this morning to do a presentation about residential schools and a kick off for our new social studies novel "Fatty Legs."  We will be reading this over the next couple of weeks on Fridays to learn about what the schools are and the impact they had on our society.  Ask your child what else they learned this morning from her.

Tuesday

• Library day! -There is a library challenge going on...ask your child about it!

Wednesday

Thursday

• Science test

Friday

• Frolicking Friday - weather permitting - cross your fingers!

Week of February 24-28

Welcome back! I hope everyone enjoyed their break. I know I sure had a great time watching Canada win gold after gold after gold! I also did some great sessions at the Teachers' Convention and have some new ideas to implement in our classroom and some new resources to use. I'm particularly excited about a book I bought called "Fatty Legs." It's by Margaret Pokiak-Fenton and it's a true story about an Inuit girl's experiences in a residential school. I read it with my class last year and we had some great discussions. The kids really connected with the story and enjoyed it. I'm so happy to now own my own copy. We are going to begin reading it on Friday during our social studies period as it relates to our social curriculum.

Notes:

• With the cold weather paying us another visit we are looking to be spending a lot of time indoors at school. This wreaks havoc on kids as they are stuck in a limited space with the same people for days at a time. We try to take more physical breaks but it's tricky. You can help at home by making sure your kids are getting at least a breath of fresh air (bundled up warmly of course!) and making sure they are burning off the energy that accumulates after a day indoors. This helps their learning tremendously. District policy says that we stay inside if the temperature, including wind chill, is -20. Even one degree warmer and we're going outside! Please make sure your child is dressed warmly enough for the weather.
• The leprechaun trap project is due two weeks today. If you have questions, feel free to send them with your child or contact me via email or at the school. Please remember that this is meant to be a FUN not stressful project! This a chance for your child to show off his or her knowledge of simple machines, to demonstrate their creativity and to have some fun doing it. 

This week's schedule:
Monday:

• Olympics Podium Pages due
• Library books due

Tuesday:

• Assembly at 8:30 a.m.
• Hot lunch day
• Tone it up Tuesday

Wednesday

• New Spelling City assignments (due March 12)

Thursday:

• Grand re-opening of the Helen Schuler Nature Centre. Activities will be going on until 6:00 p.m. and through the weekend. Visit their website here for more information.

Friday:

• Frolicking Friday (weather permitting)

February 10-14

Wow - February 10!  When I said that this morning with the students it sounded odd.  Where has half the year gone?  This week is a busy one with the finishing of Humphrey, cheering on our athletes and celebrating Valentine's Day at the end of the week.

One thing we did discuss in regards to Humphrey was unplugging our electronics and turning them off.  I did challenge those students that take their electronic devices to bed to try to leave them in the kitchen at bedtime.  Research has shown us that kids are not getting enough sleep (and even the deep REM sleep to develop) and it is due to our devices.  This is a challenge for us all really.  I also did tell the students that it takes 21 days to make it a habit, so let's try this out.  One step at a time!

Curriculum Update:
Math - fractions
Science - levers ** this is the last bit of the unit and we will be having a unit exam March 6.  For a heads up there is a review sheet on the webpage. 
LA - finishing up on Humphrey! Also, we are looking into the Olympics.... (that will be a homework assignment over the reading break)

Monday

• Library books due
• No Friday letters to return

Tuesday

• Library day today!

Wednesday

• Humphrey visits OUR classroom! 

Thursday

• 100 Day of school for Grades 1 & 2

Friday

• Valentine's Day party from 9-10 a.m.
• I HEART Humphrey wind up assembly 10:15 - 11:15 a.m.
• copies of Humphrey will be coming home with the oldest child
• Frolicking Friday!  Please cross your fingers for the weather to cooperate!

LASTLY - I forgot one student on our Valentine list - that would be Miss Kitana!  My apologies girl!