Terry Fox

A reminder to everyone that our Terry Fox Run is tomorrow. We will be going rain or shine. Students should dress appropriately and bring a water bottle. We will be eating our second nutrition break at the park so the more litterless your lunch is, the better.
Students from 207 are collecting Toonies for Terry and pledge forms for the run can be brought in at any time.
I have heard back from many people about the class meeting. I hope that most of you will be able to attend.
Thank you to everyone for handing in your homework on time!

Referendum

We have been taking a close look at the Ontario election in our class. Today we discussed the referendum. If you don't know what the referendum is about, ask! Someone from our class should be able to help you understand the question so that you can make an informed choice.

Our class meeting will be next Tuesday at 6:00. I hope everyone can make it to this very important event.

It's Settled

Well, it looks like we're all here to stay. There will be no changes in the junior grades so we can all take a collective sigh of relief. Now that we know that no one is moving, we can look at booking our Class Meeting. I would like to have one as soon as possible but I would also like to maximize participation. I am going to propose next Tuesday at 6:00. This will be an opportunity to discuss homework routines, future projects, group snack, and any other issues. I hope at least one member of every family can attend.
The second homework booklet was handed out today. Please continue to make homework a priority at your house.

Sick

As you've no doubt heard, I went home sick today. It seems as though we're dropping like flies in room 310. I encouraged everyone to try and stay healthy today.
I will be off again tomorrow. This time it will be to take my son to two appointments. I am going to do my best to stop by the Family Breakfast first.
In class, we have successfully conquered multiplication. Yeah for us!
In Language, we've moved on from sentences to paragraphs. The students are busy writing one of each of the four different types: descriptive, expository, persuasive, and narrative.
We are also in the midst of a hot election. To better understand the election process, we've been participating in a mock activity. The students have been divided into "political parties" based on their hotdog topping preferences (why have all our social studies lessons been food based?). Some parties are bigger than others and thus have more representatives to send out to the "ridings" at our school. The votes have not all been cast yet but I'll be sure to update you on the winner as soon as all the ballots have been counted and recounted.
Have a great weekend.

Multiplying Methods

Today in math we began our look at multiplication. We discussed three different methods: the old school way, the break it down method, and the new school way (aka lattice method). By the end of class, most students said they were feeling fairly confident with at least one of the methods. Ask your student which way they multiply!

We began a new routine calle Goal Setting today. This is a weekly assignment we will complete in class. It requires the students to set two meaningful, realistic, and measurable goals. One goal will be an academic goal and one will be a personal goal. Ask your students which goals they set for themselves this week.

Please continue to hand in the Parent Questionnaire forms.

Peanut Butter sandwiches, homework, and Broadview

For those parents who are interested, Broadview is inviting all interested parties to their instrumental concerts. This is an opportunity for you to get a peek at what they have to offer in case you are considering Broadview as an intermediate school. Check out their website for a schedule of upcoming concerts.
http://www.broadviewmusic.ws/

On Friday, the class played an interesting game to get us ready for our social studies unit. It involved the kids working within a small group that represented a country. The goal of each country was to collect the pieces necessary in order to make "peanut butter sandwiches". They had to decide on what type of government they wanted to elect (monarchy, dictatorship, democratic). They were given a brief description of their country's economic state and some initial supplies as well a list of what they needed to survive. It was a very interesting game and I'm sure the students will have lots to say about it if you ask them at the dinner table.

A new piece was added to our homework routine this week. It is a homework duotang. It will be handed out on Mondays and due on Thursdays. We will be easing them into this routine so the sheets are fairly manageable this week but the workload will increase soon. There is a homework policy and a homework plan that needs to be completed. I am trying to encourage the students practice these habits so that later on in their scholastic careers, these habits will be easier to stay on top of.

Today there is an added piece of homework. Students in grade 5 were asked to find the names of the three main candidates in the upcoming provincial election. Grade 6 students were asked to take a look at the food labels in their kitchens. They should jot down a list of the different countries that the food items were produced in.

A reminder that the Family Breakfast is this Friday. I sent home a note about it today.

Sentences

We're nearing the end of our second week together and we're starting to get into a bit of a groove. I think the students and I are starting to get to know each other a little better and we're working on getting into some routines so that we can all get our work done and have fun too.
In Language Arts, we continued our look at the four different types of sentences. The students worked in a group to create a mysterious skit. Each character in the skit represented a different type of sentence and could only speak using that sentence type. The skits were very entertaining.
In Math, we are continuing to review number sense, addition, and subtraction. Today, we focused on setting up our math books properly so that our answers are easier to interpret. Next week, we will start looking at multiplication and division. We will be discovering different methods and working together to help everyone get more comfortable with these two operations.
We began an exciting art project today that focused on the elements of design and branding. By examining some pop cans, we looked at some of the tricks that companies use to generate certain feelings and convey different messages with their brand names, logos, and the colours that they use. Students brainstormed some original flavours and names of their own brand of pop. Aemon's dad, a graphic designer, will be coming in to give us some tips with this project as well. We are also going to be looking at the nutritional information on the pop cans and interpreting what it really means. So far, I have seen some very creative flavours and some brands that I wouldn't be surprised to see on the shelves of grocery stores one day.
On Wednesday, I sent home a parent questionnaire. Please find some time to fill it out. I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!

A Call to Order

What a great start to our business meeting routine. We had many excellent presentations and got through our agenda in such an orderly fashion. We discussed the benefits and negatives of having a class pet, classroom jobs, homework tips, lunch and snack ideas, our classroom library, our classroom games cupboard, and our rights and responsibilities as students in 310. Excellent participation everyone!
In class we also played a very spirited game involving puzzles in order to introduce the grade 6 social studies unit on trade. Ask the kids about the wheeling and dealing that they did.
We also learned about the four different types of sentences and some funny actions that we can use to help us remember them. In math, we are reviewing the four operations and number value.
Please remember to keep using that agenda to chart your reading homework!

Business Meeting

A reminder that our first official Business Meeting will be tomorrow (Tuesday, September 11, 2007). Appropriate business attire is recommended.
This will be the last week to make your reading homework a routine before more homework is added to the routine. Please make sure you are reading a minimum of 20 minutes each evening and putting this information in your agendas.

Reading Reminder

Thank you to everyone for doing such a great job at our homework reading routine. Almost everyone has remembered to read for a minimum of twenty minutes, write down what they are reading in their agendas, and ask an adult to sign their agendas. As the weeks progress, more elements will be added to our homework routine so it is a good idea to start making these routines a habit while the workload is light.
We started the day with a very difficult Daily Problem where our focus was on our method and not necessarily a correct answer. Letting cool heads prevail turned out to be another lesson learned.
Thank you to everyone who has returned the many forms coming your way. Please keep them coming!

Student Registration Verification

I have sent home a two-page form tonight. It is the "Student RegistrationVerification" form. Please review the information and make any corrections necessary. It should then be signed and returned as soon as possible.
Today we began a silhouette art project and focused more on our daily routines. We also began the day with a daily problem which is something that we will be doing to start each of our days. We read a book called "Little Mouse's Big Book of Fears" and talked a bit about phobias. In order to see how far we will go this year, each student created a time capsule that included a questionnaire and some math fact sheets. We also began preparing for our upcoming business meeting. However, if you ask the kids, the only thing that they will probably tell you about is that we had gym today. Go figure...
Have a great evening.

ps I will have some laminating to do soon if anyone is interested...

First Day

We had an excellent first day in room 310. I enjoyed meeting everyone and I especially appreciated all the kind words on my first day back from my maternity leave.
Today we discussed the new balance day schedule and how it might effect the types of food the students should be packing. It would probably be a good idea to pack two smaller meals rather then one large one.
I have been thinking about group snack and how it might work with our new schedule. What I would like to propose is that we think about group snack a little differently this year. I would like to put out a group snack near the beginning of the day and leave it out for the rest of the day so that the students can take from it when they are feeling hungry. For this reason, it would probably be easier to choose snacks that the students can grab and go. Items such as granola bars, fruit, cheese and crackers would all work well. Other snack items that may be messier or might not keep well if put out all day would not work out as well (yogourt, veggies and dip, chips and salsa). This could be something that we discuss at our class meeting. Until then, we will have to hold off on the group snack.
I hope that everyone is working to complete all of their homework. For now, that entails reading a minimum of twenty minutes and writing down their reading in their agendas. It is also important to go through all of the notices that were sent home. I would also like it if an adult from home could sign off the agenda each night.
I look forward to meeting you all very soon and I trust that the students all came home with good news about our first day together. I know that I had only good stories to share with Hayden and Scott at our dinner table. See you all soon!