15-Angry Ray

This morning, we were sitting in room 310, minding our own business and trying to learn about a writing technique called "exploding the moment" when in walked Ray. He was visibly angry and frustrated. He started questioning me and yelling about a mistake I had made when I handed out a permission form to his class. As he walked closer to me, his anger and voice both grew. I tried to diffuse his anger, but to no avail. Finally, he picked up a large cup of water, threw it at me (splashing several of the students in the process), and then stormed out. We were in complete shock.

Luckily, it was all a ruse. I had planned that little dramatic experience so that the class would have a "moment" to "explode ". After he left, and I calmed their nerves and filled them in on the gag, we dissected the moment into details. Now, they are writing about it in the first person, trying to be as descriptive and juicy as they can. I'm trying to convince myself that ten years of working together hasn't created some pent up anger in my colleague, as he was really convincing, too convincing.

In the end, he mostly got the room and the students with the water.

 He reached the other side of the room with his anger!

 The aftermath

 What we heard

 What we saw

 What we thought and felt

Next, we went to the computer lab to keep working on our brochures

THESE WILL NOT BE DUE ON MONDAY. Students are encouraged to work on them over the weekend. I will provide one more working session in class and then assign a due date.

The gentleman from CHEO came today for those students who handed in permission forms to participate in the study on student transportation. These students are coming home with pedometers and instructions on how to use them and the paperwork that they need to fill out. He will be back next Friday to collect everything.

Most of the School of Rockers just came back from an extra practice. Alan Neal from CBCs All in a Day was there to record some soundbites. We will be on the show Friday between 3:00 and 6:00. Check us out!

This was our daily problem today:

There are 7 girls in a bus.
Each girl has 7 backpacks.
In each backpack, there are 7 big cats.

For every big cat there are 7 little cats.
Question: How many legs are there in the bus?
 
I tried to explain to students that they needed to use words and/or pictures as they tried to visualize the problem. Some students are trying to do all of their computations in their heads. Others write out a mess of calculations over their papers with no words or explanations and easily lose their train of thoughts. This problem is attainable if they attempt to organize their thoughts as they solve the problem.
 
Students are now working on a One Point Perspective Surreal piece of art.

The idea was based on this piece of work that I found online.

 

We also read this book to prepare for a writing activity coming up.

Riddle

A box without hinges, key, or lid,


yet golden treasure inside is hid.

What is it?

No cheating. That means you Lukas.

Sixteen

Sixteen. Not that I'm counting.

Today Andrew came in for his regular weekly slot. The students worked on their ukulele skills and are gearing up to lead the school in song one morning.

We finished up our civilization game. Students were divided up into nomadic tribes and were lead through a series of scenarios. To start, each tribe had to describe the parcel of land they decided to settle on. Other rounds had them using available resources to build shelters, forage for food, solve waste issues, cultivate civilizations, and solve issues of potential battles.

There is a double sided field trip form in the students' bags. One side is for a trip to the National Art Gallery next Thursday. I will need two volunteers for this trip. We will be seeing the Van Gogh exhibit. The other side is to continue with our morning runs as we did in the fall. Please sign both sides and send in a cheque (made payable to Churchill Alternative School) for $5 as soon as possible.

Tomorrow at lunch we will be having an extra School of Rock practice with the student band and the ukulele club. Alan Neal from CBC's All In A Day program will be there to record some sound bites. It is an optional practice. I have the names of two students who do not have permission to be interviewed. If you have concerns about this, please let me know. Thank you!

Riddle

The one who makes it sells it.


The one who buys it doesn't use it.

The one who's using it doesn't know he's using it.

What is it?

17

17 days to go!

Today's Daily Problem

Today, we went to the lab to work on our travel brochures for space. Most students have collected all of their research. We spoke about going above and beyond and looking to include more than just the necessary elements.
We will be working on these brochures in class tomorrow and on Thursday. Depending on their progress, I may assign the rest to be completed for homework. Please stay tuned.
Some are completing these by hand but some are using the computer. I taught them how to use text boxes to create a brochure template.

Here are the details of the project again:

Galactic Travel Agent



You have become a Galactic Travel Agent. Your job is to create a travel brochure about a planet of your choice. Your goal is to attract humans to the planet for a vacation.

Your brochure should be scientifically accurate and informative by including qualitative data. For example, “Fun in the Sun” would not make sense for a brochure advertising Pluto because Pluto is so far from the sun (and is no longer considered a planet). You need to include:


Composition of planet (made up of)
Number of moons
Revolution (year)
Rotation (day)
Day/night temperatures
Planet size
Distance from sun
Surface features
And at least three (3) other interesting facts (more if you are aiming high)
Resources used
Use of pictures/graphs/color


Turn these facts into a description of what it would be like to visit this planet (What would the weather be like? What should visitors pack? What special attractions might they see?).


The use of effective writing techniques is important to think about when writing your brochure. Dull, boring sentences copied out of the encyclopedia or off the Internet are not wanted. Sentences come alive using:


• alliterations (three or more words in a row that start with the same letter)


• similes ( a comparison using as or like)


• exaggeration ( say things about your planet that stretch the truth)


• slogans


• rhymes


• short sentences (use the odd sentence that is very short for added impact, i.e. Visit now!)


• adjectives


• sentences with questions


Once you have researched your planet, a rough copy must be made before starting your good copy. I can supply you with an 11” x 14” piece of white paper that you can fold to use for your “good” brochure.


Your final brochure should be neat, colourful and make humans want to visit your planet. You may complete this  by hand or on the computer.

Make sure you have:
All of the necessary facts
A title page that is interesting to look at and has an obvious and interesting title
A resources section that lists the websites and books you used for your research
Colourful pictures
Neat writing (if doing so by hand)
Your name
Interesting sentences that describe the facts of your planet in terms of a travel destination
Other features of a brochure like: subtitles, maps, graphs, lists, etc)

Students also need to collect items and boxes for their conceptual art piece. They should be bringing these items into school as soon as possible.

Today, we had two visitors from the RCMP come in to talk to the students about cybebullying and mass fraud. Each student received a comic book to take home and discuss.

Upcoming Important Dates:
June 5th School of Rock Practice 7:00, Gym
June 8th PD Day
June 12 and 13: Health Curriculum
June 14th: potential field trip, more news to come tomorrow
June 15th: Lunch Time Monitors Thank You
June 18th: Chalk Festival
June 25th: Honouring Ceremony and Park Celebration
June 28th: Last Day of School



Riddle

Twice in a week, once in a year, at the beginning of eternity and the end of time and space. What am I?
If you know the answer, add it to the comments section.

18

I can't believe we only have 18 days left! I'm not quite sure how I feel about that.

In math, we are working on algebra and mental math. Here is the menu that the kids came up with!

Bomb Burger: A large burger. Finish it and it's free!

Fishy Fish Fish Burger: Made out of a fish that ate a fish that ate a fish. May contain chicken.

Squiggly Fries: Really squiggly and really fries

Frivolous Fries: Coated in energy drink powder. Watch out!

Looma Llama Smoothie: An awesome smoothie made of your choice of favourite ingredients. May contain chunks of llama.

Pure Gravy: A refreshing drink made of 100% pure Canadian gravy. Served with an extra large straw.

Mega Chocolate Slam: Chocolate icecream with giant chunks of chocolate served in a brownie bowl.

All in One Special: choice of burger+choice of fries+choice of drink

We tried mentally adding some bills together and then talked about how to solve an equation if an item from the bill was smudged out.

 Ask the kids who this is a picture of.

 Lyne Filion came and did a lesson with us on conceptual art. They have each chosen and written about a theme that they care about. Next, they are supposed to be collecting a small box and various items that may reflect their theme without being too literal. It is our hope to turn these things...

Into something like this...

Please remember that we have a practice for School of Rock in our gym tomorrow night at 7:00 to gear up for our big show this Sunday at 12:30! Check us out in the Kitchisippi Times!