Jan 26-30

Well, the students are getting a real life example lately of a phenomenon we learned about when studying the Foothills Region: the Chinook!  I personally don't know if the +19 temperature is worth the winds, but what can you do?  At least the kids can go outside and play! 

Curriculum:

• Math: This week finds us delving into multiplication.  There are many strategies for learning the multiplication facts, and it is important for each child to find what works best for him/her.  It is expected that by the end of grade 4, these facts are committed to memory. There was an update from Alberta Education last year about it.  Please read it here.  If you would like some practice sheets for at home, you can generate your own here.
• Language Arts:
• Writing: I would like all students to either be finished or close to finishing their photography projects this week.
• Spelling: Lesson 6 Assessment this Thursday.
• Science: This week we will be exploring gears.
• Social: Ask your child how the Canadian Shield is named the way it is - we introduced this region last week and will continue learning about it this week.

This Week's Schedule:
Monday:

• Friday Letters due
• Library books due

Tuesday:

• Hot lunch
• Energy Day Assembly 12:30 p.m.
• Tone It Up Tuesday - many students are still not bringing water bottles
• Family Fun Night 6:30-8:00 p.m. Galbraith gym

Wednesday:

• Guitar Club after school for some students

Friday:

• Professional Learning Day for teachers; no school for students

Jan 16-Jan 23

Curriculum:

• Math: Continuing to find patterns in tables and charts
• Language Arts:
• Writing: If you are sending a camera for our writing project, please send it starting tomorrow.
• Spelling: new spelling words coming home today
• Science: This week we learn about belt drive systems.
• Social: We are finishing the Boreal Forest region and hoping to start the Canadian Shield region.

Notes:

• Wednesday in the computer lab, the students will explore Education City - an online resource that has activities for math, language arts and science.  They are able to pick the grade level that feels most comfortable to them in order to practice the skills they are learning.  Their passwords will be glued into the front of their agendas will be a username and password if you would like to use this program at home.  It is optional, but it's lots of fun and a great way to reinforce learning.
• Last week we had a prize day for Big Rocks.  Students were given one ticket for every completed assignment they had on the list with 30 as the total number they could receive.  Tickets were then used in a draw for a "mystery bag" that contained a prize.  Some students walked away with 2 or 3 bags!  Ask your child how many tickets they received for the draw. 

This Week's Schedule:
Monday:

• Friday Letters due
• Camera permission forms due

Tuesday:

• Tone It Up Tuesday
• Library day!

Wednesday:

• Guitar club for applicable students

Friday:

• Fake Injury Day - it has been decided that dress up days will no longer take place on the same days as Energy Day Assemblies so that it's only a half day for students to dress up.  For Fake Injury Day, students are encouraged to be creative in coming up with a fake injury but are asked not to use fake blood.
• Frolicking Friday

Jan 12-17

My apologies!  I saved it yesterday, but forgot to publish it for you!

Happy Monday!  I hope everyone had a great weekend.  Hopefully the weather will be warmer for all of us! 

Curriculum:

• Math: This week we will continue to look at patterns in tables and charts
• Language Arts:
• Spelling - Lesson 5 will finish this week with an assessment on Thursday.  Spelling City is due on Monday.
• Writing - Our new project requires a little assistance from home in the form of a camera.  Please see the note coming home.
• Reading - This week guided reading will take on a novel study format as the students will be broken into six groups to read one Flat Stanley novel each.  At the end of the book, each group will put together a book fair project to share with the rest of the class.
• Social: This week we plan to finish up the Boreal Forest region by looking at the oil sands, forestry, and how First Nations people used the region.
• Science: We will finish up with pulleys and move on to drive systems.
• PE: Snowshoes will not apparently be arriving until March and so PE will continue to be held in the gym for the most part.  However, please make sure your kids are dressed for the weather as we go outside for recess if the wind chill is -19 with the option to go outside if the temperature is hovering just a little lower.

This Week's Schedule:
Monday:

• Friday Letters due

Tuesday:

• Library day today!
• Tone It Up Tuesday
• Note coming home about our camera project

Wednesday:

• Guitar club for applicable students

Thursday:

• Lesson 5 Spelling Assessment

Friday:

• Frolicking Friday - weather permitting

Jan 5-9

Welcome back!  I hope you all had a great holiday filled with family, fun and relaxation!  I know I did and getting up on time this morning was a little challenging but knowing the excitement that the kids bring made it easier.  I look forward to breaks but I truly do love the routine!

Curriculum:

• Math - we will be quickly discussing the rules for multiplying 1 and 0 and dividing by 1
• Language Arts
• Writing:
• We have a focus on the New Year - looking backwards and forwards. 
• I hope you enjoyed your Christmas books!  The kids put an incredible amount of effort into them and I think they turned out beautifully.  If you would like to know your child's scores on the project, you are very welcome to make an appointment and come in to see them; or if you would rather I can send a copy home - just let me know! 
• Spelling: Lesson 5 word study started this week.
• Science: We are moving into learning about pulleys.
• Social: We will be finishing up the Boreal Forest Region this week
• P.E. - The snowshoes have arrived so please plan to have your child outside for P.E. classes on Mondays and Thursdays.

This Week's Schedule:
Monday:

• New spelling words going home today
• Library books dues

Tuesday:

• Tone It Up Tuesday - Indy 500

Wednesday

• New Spelling City assignments are up and due Jan. 21

Friday:

• New round of Enrichment starts
• Frolicking Friday - the weather is supposed to be better so please make sure the kids are dressed properly for an outdoor frolic

Dec 15-19

This is my last weekly update of the year!  I can hardly believe it!  It's been a great year and I've really enjoyed the part of it that I got to spend with your kids.  If I don't get to see you before the week is out, have a very merry Christmas and a happy New Year!  I hope this will be a time of rest, relaxation, and family togetherness. 

Our class has been enjoying a special December treat where they get to draw an activity out of a sock every day.  We chose one that had the students collecting change for a charity of their choice.  They chose the Last Chance Cat Ranch, a local rescue charity, as the one they'd like to support.  This will be the last week to collect change for this cause.  If you'd like to dig through your couch for some extra change, you are more than welcome to, however, please do not feel pressured at this hectic time of year.  Maybe the students could do some extra chores for a coin or two?  I know I have some cleaning around the house that my kids will be doing before Christmas comes! :)

This Week's Schedule (This will be a very busy week, so please make note of the events going on):
Monday:

• We had the first of our caroling sessions in the gym this morning
• Friday Letters due

Tuesday:

• Tone It Up Tuesday
• Caroling in the gym at about 12:45 p.m.
• Family Fun Night 6:30-8:00 p.m.

Wednesday:

• Walking over to Wilson to hear the Grade 8 French class share their Christmas books in French (look for the note coming home)
• After school skating at Adam's

Thursday:

• Holiday lunch in the gym at 11:45
• Red and Green Day
• Christmas Craft Afternoon - if you'd like to come help us make some crafts, extra hands are always appreciated (plus it's fun!).

Friday:

• Energy Day Assembly 8:30 a.m.
• Crazy Hair and P.J. Day
• Last day of school before holidays!!!  See you on January 5th, 2015!!!

Over the Holidays:

• Rest!
• Relax!
• Read! Don't forget to record on Reading Rewards!
• Practice your math basic facts!
• Play outside!

Dec 8-12

What beautiful weather we were treated to this weekend!  I hope you were able to enjoy it as much as my family did.  We were away for a hockey tournament and got to spend some quality family time together. 

Curriculum:

• Math:
• We will be having the quiz for the Clocks and Calendar tomorrow (writing the date with words and in metric notation; telling time to the minute in two different ways [e.g. 5:30 and half past five]; 24-hour clocks).  Booklets were due last Friday.  I am missing a couple, so please double check with your child to make sure they handed it in.
• We will be doing line symmetry and tessellations in both math and art for the next two weeks.  We don't really need to do tessellations in grade 4 but it makes for a very cool art project :)  There is a "Lines of Symmetry" activity in the "Geometry" section of Splash Math.
• Language Arts:
• We are working on a very special project.  That is all. 
• Spelling - Lesson 4 will be due at the end of the week with a dictation on Thursday
• Social: Just finished the Parkland Region and will be moving on to the Boreal Forest Region. 
• Science: We will be learning more about wheels this week.

This Week's Schedule:
Monday:

• No Friday Letters due
• Library books due

Tuesday:

• Tone It Up Tuesday - we strongly recommend a water bottle
• For students in choir - singing at City Hall

Wednesday:

• After school skate 3:45 p.m.

Thursday:

• For students in choir - singing at Park Meadows Village

Friday:

• No Enrichment until after Christmas holidays
• Frolicking Friday

Dec 1 - Dec 5

Welcome to December!  It's crazy, we only have three weeks until our Christmas break.  With that being said, there will still be a lot of work that will be happening!

Notes:

• Sock-it-to-em campaign.  This is put on through our caretaking CUPE and the socks stay within the district (even school).  Please send a new pair of socks, if you can.
• Please remember to send back the report card envelopes.

Curriculum:

• LA - writing activity from last week that will take us through to the end of the month.  We will explore a few varieties of poetry and different writings.   That's all I can say. 
• MATH - time - clocks and calendar.  We have been working on the 24 hr clock.  The next couple of days will consist of catch up and a few games. 
• Science - learning about rollers.
• Social - finishing up our adventure in the Parkland region.

This week:
Monday:

• library books due back
• Friday letters signed and returned
• Ask your child about the Christmas sock

Tuesday

• Library day

Wednesday

• guitar tutoring and practice 12:05 Music Room
• guitar club - 3:30-4:30 p.m.
• after school skate - 3:45 - 4:45 p.m. Adam's Ice Rink (with an adult)

Thursday

Friday

• Hot lunch forms due back
• Frolicking - please dress for the weather
• Last day for enrichment