Tuesday, October 26, 2010

We have been looking at the skill of summarizing. Here is the latest strategy we've been using. It is a table that can be used to summarize most narratives.

Somebody	Wanted	But	So	Then
Eckles	To hunt for a dinosaur in the past by travelling in a time machine	He got really scared and was sent back to the time machine. On his way, he stepped off the special path built to protect the past, and killed a butterfly	By killing one butterfly, he effected everything in the future	When they got back to their present in 2055, little things like spelling were changed but also big things like the new dictator president. The Safari guide was angry and shot Eckles.

Some of us use the table to summarize The Sound of Thunder while others used it to summarize a scary story called The Guest.

School of Rock practices have started. We are preparing to sing two songs at the Rememberance Day Ceremony. This year, Ray, Shellie, and I are looking for full committment. If students want to be part of our final show, they need to be participating now too.

Students should dress in clothes that can get messy for tomorrow. Please send in duct tape.

Monday, October 25, 2010

Hello

While we gear up for Halloween, we are also trying to wrap up some of our other units. Here is what we did in math to prepare for our quiz tomorrow:

I had each class member guess how many pieces of candy they thought they'd collect on Halloween. I put each answer on a sticky note on the blackboard in a haphazard manner. Then I had the kids pick out the smallest value and the largest. I put these on the left and right hand side of the board respectively. Then I asked the kids what range was. With some help from our peers, we determined that range was the difference between the largest value and the smallest value (calculated by subracting the smaller digit from the largest). Scott showed us how he calcuated this value in his head with mental math. Then I had Jasper and Sophie arrange all the data in order. If they found two or more of the same number, they stacked them to make a column. Once they completed this, we were able to determine the mode by looking at the highest column. Next we had Marian and Desanka start at either end, and moving one step at a time, move towards the middle. The class helped them decide what to do when they got to a column of same numbers. They told us to move up this column because each sticky note represented a piece of data and we needed to find the middle of all the data, not just each individual value. We found two numbers in the middle because we had an even set of data. We found the middle between these two numbers by adding them together and dividing by two. This was our median. Next we discussed how to calculate mean. Since we had so much data, we decided to use a calculator to add all of the data and then we divided it by 30 (since we had two away today).

Now we had range, mode, median, and mean for our set of data. We reviewed what each different piece of data meant.

Next we pretended that Ray did the same survey. What would it mean if his mean was higher but his median was lower? This could mean that he may have had a few individual scores that were much higher to drive the mean up, but that he had fewer numbers to the right of the median in the higher range.

Thank you to those of you who donated boxes and decorations. We're still looking for more huge boxes and duct tape. We are also looking for some people power on Wednesday. Please come and help whenever you can.

In Literacy, we read The Sound of Thunder by Ray Bradbury. The kids were riveted. If you haven't read it, I highly recommend it. You can read it online here.

We are continuing to look at summarizing. We are using a chart to fill in the following information: somebody, wanted, but, so, then. With this table, we are able to create a pretty succinct summary of most narratives.

Projects are very close to completion. At this point, I think I will wait to assign an at home project for another unit.

Thursday, October 21, 2010

Sorry I haven't posted in a while. Things have been a bit busy!

We have made some great progress with our Haunted House. Thank you to Norma, Tina, Janet, and Petra for helping with our mask making adventure. The kids were fabulous and endured the petroleum jelly and plaster masking very well! I've done this project in previous years but they have never turned out so well. These are going to be super creepy and well made.

Today we worked on our schedule and we planned our areas. We will be building props next Wednesday. If you would like to come in and help, just shoot me an email. We will likely be starting first thing in the morning. I will have an even better idea of all the materials and props we will need by the end of tomorrow.

The social studies projects are nearing completion. We were able to take a look at some of Ray's projects to identify which ones were published well. The kids have been doing a good job at implementing some of these same characteristics into their projects.

The students did a fabulous job during our lockdown today. They sat silently and treated the practice seriously.

Sunday, October 17, 2010

While I have a moment to think, I thought I'd fill you in on a few things going on in the next couple of weeks.

It has come to my attention that many of you may not know a lot about the changes to our reporting periods here in Ontario. Here is a link that will hopefully answer any questions you may have.

Sitting here after my kids went to sleep, I thought I'd enjoy a quiet moment to myself, then I had a thought...HALLOWEEN IS IN TWO WEEKS!!! That means we have two weeks to pull together our Haunted House. We are going to be really busy with a lot of projects related to getting things ready. For our Arts program, we will be working on masks that will help to project feelings and create tone, as well as creating our props. As part of our props, we are going to be introducing the use of media into our Haunted Museum by incorporating video elements. We have already completed the data management side of our project by creating and conducting a survey to help guide our process. We will also have to look at time and how we will create a schedule that allows the entire school a chance to see our production. Next up, we will be looking at procedural writing characteristics and we will be using procedural writing to describe our process. I will be asking for support in the form of cardboard boxes, volunteering during prop making, and donation of any extra bits of Halloween fare you may have lying around.

I'm feeling a little disconnected having worked with your kids for 6 weeks now without having even spoken to so many of you. If any of you are having any concerns, or if you are at all feeling curious about anything, please feel free to make an appointment with me. I am usually available after school.

Thank you to all of the volunteers who came along on the field trip. Your help was greatly appreciated.

Parliament and Currency Museum

Whoa. What a fantastic day we had!

The Parliament Buildings was where we started our trip. There was a little waiting at the beginning but the library alone was worth the wait. We learned that you can't just take books out with a library card, you have to be a Member of Parliament. I you happen to be an MP, you may think about checking out a book about birds. Make sure not to lose it though since it costs $14 000 000! I was very impressed with the kids and their questions. I was even more impressed with some of the answers our kids supplied. The research they have been doing for their projects seems to be paying off! One of our smarty pants even knew that the final process for which a bill becomes a law is called the Royal Assent! We were a bit rushed to get through the tour but it has left them wanting. If you're ever looking for a weekend or summer activity, you may want to plan another trip back there.

The National Bank was where we headed to next. I had never been. They gave us an excellent presentation on currency. We learned a lot about our bills. The kids found the "puzzle number" and the "ghost picture" really interesting. We also learned that we are getting new bills next year which will be printed on polymer! After the presentation, we toured the Currency Museum and saw a 3000 year old coin from China!

While waiting for the bus we got to play on the lawn of the Supreme Court. The kids were well behaved and we all had a good time.

I will be at home tomorrow with a sick little girl. The kids will be too busy to miss me. They are counting pizza money, working on their research projects, writing in their communication books, and trying to finish their Coat of Arms. I hope everyone has a restful weekend!

Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Today was one of those crazy days where I felt like we never even sat down!
During math, I met with the grade 5s about mean and mode. We were also treated to a presentation in Ray's room about the Smart Board which is an interactive white board. It is a mobile unit and I'm hoping to learn how to use it in the classroom.
After our first break, we met with Yasir Naqvi (not Nasir Yaqvi) who is our local MPP (not a city councillor-SORRY!). He did a great job at presenting and really showed us concrete examples of how he has been able to make differences in our community. It was really interesting!
Next up, we headed to the gym for picture day. The company was great and the kids are all coming home with proofs TODAY! If you want to order, just fill out the envelope.
We also did some brainstorming for our Haunted Museum, practiced some Ultimate skills, had a fire drill, and talked about some school house keeping issues.
Please remember that all students should be leaving at 2:30. If they are not accompanied by a parent, they should not be in the yard after 2:45.
Our field trip is tomorrow. Please dress appropriately for the weather and pack a lunch that will be easy to eat and filling. Thank you to those parents who are volunteering!

Today, we also had Jeff Humphries in. He is a teacher working as a SEA Trainer which is someone who helps the students who have special technological equipment. He was really helpful to the whole class and is going to come back and do some training with the students on how to use certain software. In the meantime, he let me know that a lot of the software is available to all families-for free! To download it, goto www.premierathome.com. The login is "ocdsb" and the password is "family". As part of the suite, there is a talking work processor which reads back what the kids have typed in, a pdf equalizer, and a universal reader which will read things off of the internet. Check it out and let me know what you think.

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

I hope everyone had a great thanksgiving. The students certainly look a little fuller to me.

First, I want to thank everyone involved for getting those newspapers in on time! I believe this is a record for me. I received all but one newspaper on time! Yay! I will do my part and try and get them back to you as soon as possible.

We have a busy week ahead with the field trip and picture day.

Today we tried to finish some textbook work in math. The grade 6s were looking at a set of data about housing prices that a realtor sold. The question asked them to calculate mean and median and asked them to reflect on which they thought represented the data for effectively. For this question, we discussed how most of the data hovered around $161 000 -$174 000, except for one number which was $260 000. For this reason, we chose the median as a better average since the mean would include the $260 000 and be higher than most of the data set.

We had a special treat when Megan (our new Principal) came in and taught a lesson to the class. She spoke mostly about leadership and the power of words. We hope to have her back soon.

In Literacy, we did a short lesson on the conjunctions and, but, or, nor, for, so, and yet. We discussed how using them in sentences could enhance their sentence fluency. In our Communication Books, for practice, I asked them to reflect on how words are powerful. They were expected to write an introduction, body, and conclusion (as always) but were also required to use at least 2 conjunctions and 3 different types of sentences (imperative, declarative, interrogative, exclamatory) to increase their sentence fluency. They did a great job too!

We are now doing reading buddies to wrap up our day.

Please remember to look spiffy for picture day tomorrow!

Happy Thanksgiving

We had a fabulous Friday here in Room 310.
In Math, we played "Is It a Minute to Win It?". I went onto the website for the telvision gameshow called Minute to Win It. In the show, contestants are asked to complete a task in under a minute. I replicated some of these tasks in class. Each person was placed in a group. Each group perform each task and timed each player doing it. Then they calculated the mean time it took for them to perform the task. We did pretty good! Most of the mean times were under a minute. It was a lot of fun.
In literacy/art/social studies, we discussed Coat of Arms. We looked at common heraldic elements and symbols. Students are working to create their own including the shield, the supporters, and a motto.
In gym we played Dr. Dodgeball because that was what won the vote on our blog. We also played a little bit of Teacher's Revenge. The kids begged for it, I swear.

Next week we will start to do some serious planning for our Haunted House. We conducted our survey and I am happy to report that the circus theme did not get chosen (I have a serious clown phobia). We will be doing a Haunted Museum.

I hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving. I am particulary thankful this year for the kids in room 310. I am thankful that they are respectful and appreciate my sense of humour.

Please remember that Parliament Building field trip forms and newspapers are both due on Tuesday. Please help the students respect these deadlines.

Thursday, October 7, 2010

Hello!

We had a busy and productive day here in 310. In math, we did some textbook work to review mean, median, and mode. Further review may be required. I have a very active and scintillating lesson planned to review the concepts tomorrow. We will need timers for this lesson. If you have a digital watch or stopwatch that we can borrow, that would be very helpful.

In Literacy, we continued to work with our project partners. Most groups have answered half of their research questions. If you have access to the Internet at home or to a public library, some students may benefit from more research material. These would mostly be grade 5 students. Here are the topics:

Mark, William, and Callum: How a bill becomes a law in Canada.
Eric and Fraser: The Parliament Buildings
Daphne and Sage: The Canadian Charter of Rights
Julia and Nadia: How to become a Canadian Citizen
Tracy, Vita, and Annika: China
Nick and Matt: Brazil
Chloe and Sophie: Mexico
Benn and Imran: United States
Marian and Olivia: United Kingdom
Liam and Ryo: Japan
Scott and Calvin: United Kingdom
Jasper and Sean: United Kingdom
Brayden and Luca: Japan
Jacob and Cameron: United Kingdom
Desanka and Josephine: India

We also have been working on preparing for our Haunted House Extravaganza. We are looking at the project as a business. We started by creating questions for a survey whose answers would help guide our planning. Once we have collected and interpreted the data, we will move forward with the planning stage. If you have large pieces of cardboard, they will definitely come in handy.

Try Again

Here is another try with the Candy Division video. Hope this works.

Newspaper

Just to be clear, the newspaper is now homework. A completed newspaper will be the ticket they need to get in the door on Tuesday, October 10th. Here are the expectations:

Newspaper Title: Appropriate font, borders to make it stand out
Headline Story: Stand out headline, byline, story starts with a brief summary as an introduction, include a picture
Extras: Newspaper includes other extras. These extras should represent information about themselves in the form of elements found in a newspaper (comic, weather, sports, want ad, movie review, etc)
Looks like a newspaper: The eye is drawn to the Header (title, date, weather), Footer (usually an ad), and the headline story (title and picture)

We will not be working on these in class anymore. I will send them all home today. We spoke about finishing these before the long weekend so that they can enjoy their time, or waiting until the last minute and have it hanging over everything they do all weekend long.

Bridgehead

Today we also had a guest speaker from Bridgehead come in and talk about fair trade. She spoke to us about the farming process of coffee and what fair trade means. Did you know that there are only 2 beans in each coffee cherry? and that many of these cherries are handpicked?
The two important things that I wanted them to take from the presentation was about fair trade and purchasing power. Please ask your student what they think purchasing power is.

Monday, October 4, 2010

I hope you had a lovely fall weekend! I'm not sure if you've noticed, but I am trying to make the blog a little more interesting for the STUDENTS of room 310. I will start to place poll questions on the side. Many of you have mentioned how helpful the blog is. A couple of students tell me that they sit down with a parent and read it together.

In math, we are continuing to look at data management. So far, we have completed the census and used the results to create bar graphs and pictographs of our choosing. Today, we began a discussion on mean, median, and mode. So far, we have only defined the words. We will look at these terms in a more practical example tomorrow.

In Literacy, we met with our research project partners in the computer lab. We spoke about powerful search tools like the quotation marks. Then the students had time to look for the answers to the questions that they created to guide their research. We also spoke about making note of any bibliographic information.

We also continued to work on a reading assessment known as CASI. This assessment has them reading a short narrative and answering questions to show their understanding of what they've read. We have broken down this assessment into three chunks and today most of us completed part two of three.

The students have been working hard on their personal newspapers. Most of them are close to finishing while others are further behind. At some point this week, I will assign the completion of their newspaper for homework. Here are my expectations for their newspapers:

1. A neatly printed newspaper title, published to look like a newspaper (we had examples in the class and looked at the fonts, the names, and the use of lines and borders).
2. A headline story including a headline, byline, and a story with an introduction and conclusion.
3. Other written pieces reflecting commonly found items in a newspaper (crossword, sports, weather, comics, want ads) that reflect things about themselves.
4. Elements to make their newspapers look like a newspaper (graphics with captions, header and footer elements, borders, lines).

A reminder that students will need to have a recorder for October 21st. Steve's Music sells them for $5.99. Please let me know if you will have difficulty getting a recorder in time and I will make arrangements.

Coming up this week will be a guest speaker on the topic of Fair Trade, the Family Breakfast on Thursday, continued collection of October Scholastic and tie-dye forms.

Please make sure to hand in cheques rather than cash. Cheques should be made payable to Churchill Alternative School unless otherwise stated. Please do not write cheques out to CASC unless specifically stated.