March 2, 2015 week Bannock Making and More

Bonjour Parents and Students,

On Friday, we studied the Treaty 4 Flag, Saskatchewan Flag, Canada Flag and Metis Flag. Ask your child to tell you which symbols are on each of these 4 flags. Have your child tell you the colours of each flag, as well. 

Listen to this popular song about Canada with your child: This Land is Your Land   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WSjMuKh1Wpo

Check out the following link about Regina and the raising of the Treaty Flag in 2011 at Regina’s City Hall.    http://cjme.com/story/photosvideo-treaty-4-flag-raising-reginas-city-hall/27445

Ramona writing activities this week included cartoon drawing and speech bubbles.  The children did a GREAT job illustrating their work and using capitals and punctuation.  In addition, they each wrote a personal letter to Ramona, who was sick and at home.  You will be able to see your child’s writing pieces displayed in the hallway when you come for the CELEBRATION OF LEARNING STATIONS in late March.  Today’s Ramona lesson and Monday’s will entail writing a puppet theatre dialogue which they will present in pairs next week.  

We continued with Urdu lessons with Miss Hina Momin on Tuesday.  We reviewed the first 12 letters, wrote a pop quiz and then continued on with the 6 following letters.

A fun French activity on Tuesday was cartooning, this time about Garfield and John and the ‘lil Jinx cartoons.  The children used their winter vocabulary and we created sentences on the whiteboard for them to use.  They really enjoyed this!

Mathematically, we have used ten rods and units, ten frames, lining up numbers in columns, 100 charts with skip counting by 10s and 1s.  For example:  28 +47 using a 100 chart . . . Find 28 on the 100 chart and count down the column by 10s… 28 +10+10+10+10+10 (so down 4 hops) and over 7 more.  Your child should be able to show you.   I continue to reinforce and to review expanding of numbers… 28 is the same as 20 + 8 and 47 is the same as 40 + 7… Then you group the tens together for easy addition and the ones.  I can demonstrate more at the Celebration of Learning Stations coming up in late March.

We have used the hundred chart to skip count forwards and backwards.  We have used place value mats (ten rods and units) and we have demonstrated “traditional” borrowing for subtraction.  Please practice these strategies at home with your child. See the photos.

BANNOCK/GALLETTE making experience will occur this afternoon.  We will begin today’s lesson with the story STORM AT BATOCHE, by Maxine Trottier, followed by the cooking activity.  Yesterday, the children wrote the recipe in their journals.  We hope you have a chance to make this delicious bannock at home with your child. 

As well, kindly send back your choice of CELEBRATION OF LEARNING  times as soon as possible. I did receive most on time, today.  Your child will receive his/her Term II Report Card on Friday, March 20^th.  The Celebration Stations will occur on the 26^th (evening) and the 27^th (morning) at the designated time of YOUR CHOICE.

This week we welcome Aazan (Gr. 3) and Alexandra (Gr. 2) to our classroom.

Our next Star of the Week (March 23^rd) will be Keithan.  Nana is the Star of the Week (March 30^th) following Keithan.

We WILL be going to BOGGY CREEK VALLEY on Tuesday, March 10^th, weather permitting.  Remember to dress in LAYERS!  Bring extra mittens and socks.  Bring a bottle of water and a hot dog to cook over an open fire.  

I am still looking for PARENT VOLUNTEERS.  Please email me or write in your child’s agenda.  I NEED HELP!

REMINDER:  GRADE 3s swim on Monday, March 9^th & Wednesday, March 11^th.

Ms. Selimos 

Feb. 23rd 2015 week Red River Jig, Ramona Fun, Circle of Courage Generosity and RESCHEDULED BOGGY CREEK VALLEY

Greetings Parents and Students,

It is hard to believe this is the last week of February!  Next week is a short week with P.D. Day on Thursday and Teachers Convention on Friday.  Students have NO CLASSES on those days.

As you are aware, Boggy Creek Valley has been rescheduled for TUESDAY, MARCH 10^TH.  I am need of parents to join us on this day.  We will leave school at approximately 10:30 a.m. Cross your fingers for warmer weather.

WRITING TRAITS FOCUS THIS WEEK:  WORD CHOICES.  The children are learning about verbs (action words) and NOUNS (person, place or thing).  Strong verbs are exciting and make your actions CLEAR.

MATH:  Solving problems involving subtracting and adding 10s.  EXAMPLE:  Keithan is playing a game.  On his 100 chart, he started at 56 and ended at 16.  Which number did Keithan subtract?  See photos.

READING/WRITING:  This week, the children wrote paragraphs about their own personal experiences of being “sick”, just like Ramona.  They each read their paragraph to the class before displaying it in the hallway bulletin board.  

JOURNALS:  On Wednesday, we revisited our Circle of Courage Goal; Generosity and each child wrote a paragraph in his/her journal explaining how he/she has demonstrated generosity this term.  U of R teachers, Tayah Rutzki and Keigan Duczek, assisted with the lesson.

On Wednesday, with Mrs. Pankewich’s class, we participated in a lesson about Chinese New Year.  We talked about the Chinese Zodiac and the Year of the Pig. We discussed food, clothing and special activities for those who celebrate Chinese New Year. See the following videos:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oEYq5Wqb2qQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8etqkmb7YbsGenerosity

Roan was our fabulous STAR OF THE WEEK.  Roan enjoys spending time with his older sister, Brynn, his parents and grandparents.  He is playing hockey this winter and is looking forward to spring football.  He has visited Calgary, Disney World and Mexico. He loves the Magic Treehouse reading series.  He spends time at the cabin in the summer, where he swims, boats and fishes.  He has a pet frog, fish and a hermit crab.  

On Monday, we read the story Fiddle Dancer, by Wilfred Burton.  On Thursday, Grade 1 Teacher Intern, Miss Gold, joined our classroom to teach us how to dance the Red River Jig. The dance consists of a resting step and 3 to 4 fancy steps.

RESTING STEP: kick right, step right, step left, step right

FANCY STEPS:

1.    BUNNY HOP (v-formation): jump to left then back to original spot, jump to right then back to original spot 

2.    MARCH: lift right leg and slide/ drag back and then do the same with the left leg

3.    CHI-GALLOP (rocking horse/miniature horse):  hop on left and jump, hop on right and jump. Then repeat with left leg as starter 

Miss Gold discussed the significance of the sash.  The sash had hundreds of uses.  A few examples include:  rope, calendar, belt. Now it is used for jigging (dancing) with the girls wearing it on their shoulder and the boys, on their waste.

We listened to the music of the Red River Dance and then tried the different dance moves as 2 classes and then demonstrated to each other, in small groups of 8 to 10.  To end the lesson, Miss Gold read Wilfred Burton’s newest book, Call of the Fiddle.

Yes, it has been a week of indoor recesses.  Hopefully the weather changes for the better, next week. 

Please send your child to school on Friday morning with his/her READING LOG AND MINUTES TOTALED.  Friday is the last day for sending Scholastic Book Orders, as well.

Keep warm one and all!

Ms. Selimos

        

Go Pats Go and Feb. 9, 2015 week with Selimos

Hello Parents and Students,

Spring Break is nearing and hopefully the weather will IMPROVE!  The children will hopefully be able to enjoy Feb. 16^th week of holidays outside, playing in the snow and enjoying some fresh air and sunshine.

Thank you to Katy, Imogen’s mom, for the sharing an amazing presentation, slide show and videos of COSTA RICA last Friday!!!!!

Outdoor Education Teacher, Louise Krueger, joined us on Monday morning to discuss the Boggy Creek Valley trip, which will take place the first Wednesday we are back from Spring Break.  We reviewed clothing expectations, lunch items, science experiments which we will try on site with the kids, and more.

On Tuesday, Urdu teacher, Hina Momin joined us for lesson 2.  We reviewed the first 6 letters of the alphabet, took a “pop” quiz and then learned the next 6; jeem (J), chay (ch),hey (H), Khey (kh), dal (d), dal (DAL).  Check out the following Urdu alphabet videos with your child: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F_mtfgm_tL0 

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x1ahuv7_urdu-alphabet-jingle-education-in-urdu-for-kids_shortfilms

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z719EX52iSc

On Thursday we welcomed University of Regina ECS 100 students, Tayah Rutzki and Keigan Duczek, who will be working with us in our Grade 2/3 classroom, every Thursday morning until early April! J

For Social Studies (Treaties focus) we explored Google Maps from Planet Earth, to continents, to Canada, to SK, to Regina, etc.  The children found it very interesting to locate Grant Road School and other buildings.  Explore Google Maps at home with your child.  Find your home on Google Maps.  Look for the Regina airport, Legislative building and more.  We also watched a video called The Seven Grandfather Teachings which focused on the 7 principles; wisdom, love, respect, bravery, honesty, humility and truth.  You will find this video on the School Board ROVER SITE, which you have access to.  It is absolutely worth watching, as parents, with your children.  In addition, we read a story called Where Do You Live?  This story was written in “e-mail format” between cousins who were writing letters to each other, learning about each other’s community.  One lived in the city (urban) and the other lived in the country (rural). 

Ronin was our amazing STAR OF THE WEEK.  Ronin came to Canada from Nepal. He lives with his mom and dad.  He enjoys martial arts and loves to swim.  He has traveled across Canada (Calgary, Vancouver, Banff and more).  He enjoys camping and fishing. He LOVES school and is a very enthusiastic student.

Mathematically, this week, the children are learning how to add using different strategies.  They are working on understanding TENS and regrouping. We have used ten frames and ten rods/units.  They have been introduced to writing the 2 numbers (addends) in columns, as well as in rows.  They know that the answer when adding is called the SUM and the 2 numbers you add together are called the ADDENDS.  Please review the following steps and reinforce with our child at home:  

EXAMPLE:         27 + 4=

                         20+7+4=   20+ (7+4)=    20+11=  31    

       

On Thursday, our class held MATH OLYMPICS with our 2 university students.  The kids worked in teams of 3 to kick a “tissue ball” and measured using non-standard units (ten rods).   The purpose was to learn how to count 3 numbers using a 100 chart and of course, to have fun.  Try this game at home, using your own non-standard units.

Congratulations to PATS TICKET winner, Sabah, who won the tickets for the Friday, February 13^th Pats Game vs the Swift Current Broncos.  Hunter was the lucky winner of the Pats t-shirt.  Brodie and Nate won Home Depot gloves and Roan was the lucky winner of the Friday, February 20^th Pats Game vs the Saskatoon Blades.  THANK YOU TO EVERYONE who participated in the Goat Getter fundraiser.

REMINDERS: 

1.     Reading logs due on the 27^th… so read over the break.  

Ramona chapter 6 should be FULLY read by Mon. 23^rd.

2.     Boggy Creek Valley trip on Wed. 25^th

3.     Ramona Novel Study:  Make sure you have read Chapter 6!

«ROAN IS STAR OF WEEK Feb. 23^rd«

Enjoy the Spring Break Week everyone!  Classes resume on Feb. 23^rd

Feb 2 2015 week with Selimos - Foot Art, Urud Lessons Too

Greetings Parents and Students,

We discussed the BOGGY CREEK VALLEY TRIP on Wednesday.  See your child’s agenda for the details re:  clothing and food requirements.  Please join us for this wonderful experience on FEBRUARY 25^th if you can! I already have a few parents joining us.   THANK YOU!  Send $3 cash or pay on-line for the bus cost.  I need permission trips returned immediately.  As well, I would like you to send 1 cup of the “assigned” ingredient before February 13^th, as we will make the trail mix in class next week, before Spring Break.

On Monday, we took off our socks and did some “Foot Art”.  The children had many giggles and enjoyed this crazy, fun Ramona art lesson!  Thanks parents, for participating in this activity, at home, with your children.  They could hardly wait to share YOUR creations with us.  The class photos are priceless! TOMORROW, the Ramona grocery shopping meal assignment is due.  Feel free to go on-line to various groceries store to find prices with your child.  We surfed:  Superstore, Safeway, Sobeys in class. 

We welcomed Urdu teacher, Miss Hina Momin to our classroom on Tuesday.  She will be joining us one hour per week for the next month or so, to teach us about her language and culture.  The Urdu alphabet has 36 letters and the alphabet is similar to the Arabic language when writing it.  The oral language (spoken language) is similar to the Hindi language.  It is the official language of Pakistan. Proud Urdu speakers in our classroom this year are:  Zeeshan, Emaan and Danish.  When you write in Urdu, you write from the right side of your page, moving left; the opposite direction of English!  We studied the first 6 letters:  alif (A), bay (B), pay (P), tay (T),  thay (Tt), say (S) and practiced writing them and saying them.  Please have your child recite them to you at home.  See photos 1 to 5.

We began our new GRADE 2 math unit this week.  Can your child skip count by 10s starting at a “different” number?  EX:  6 + 50 or   17+80        See photo “Adding Tens” and try this activity at home with your child using DIMES. Continue to drill basic addition and subtraction facts. As well, we worked on expanding to add.  Your child will be able to show you his/her work at home. 

EXAMPLES:  43+9 =

            40 +3+9=

            40+12=

Our cursive letter of the week was Kk.  Please practice letters e, l, h and k (under curve loop) at home with your child.  They are excited to learn how to hand write their names, as well.

This week, Mrs. Pankewich’s class joined us for our new unit of study in February:  Treaty Education.   Our lessons will cover:  “A Treaty is a Promise”, Respectful Relationships, Harmony Bracelets, Sharing the Land and Its Resources, Ceremony and Dance, Flags, Louis Riel and Bannock Making.  On Tuesday we read “A Promise is a Promise” by Robert Munsch and discussed how we feel if we keep a promise or break one.  We related it to personal experiences at home, in the classroom and on the playground.  On Tuesday and Wednesday we created Treaty Posters:  As long as the sun shines, grasses grow and rivers flow.   Each child wrote a “personal” promise on his/her poster. On Wednesday and Thursday, respect was our “theme”, where child created a cartoon using speech bubbles about problems he/she has encountered on the playground and how to solve them.  We read the book:  Where Did You Get Your Moccasins? and discussed some of the new vocabulary, as well.

For French, we continue with our Valentines vocabulary for this week.  I have also introduced a “Body Parts” theme.  On Tuesday and Wednesday, we played HOLLYWOOD SQUARES, a game show, to reinforce new body words such as:  eyebrows, knee, neck, elbow, etc.  Check out the following link:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oJ5zj3YQ0Tg    Bonjour Monsieur Comment Ca Va; Body parts song.

Imogen was our adorable STAR OF THE WEEK.  She loves to spend time with her older brother, her mom and dad and her grandparents.  She enjoys her beach days at the cottage on Hornby Island in British Colombia.  She has traveled to Hawaii and to Costa Rica with her family.  She is allergic to bananas.  She enjoys swimming, building sandcastles and riding her bike.  We are looking forward to Imogen’s Costa Rica presentation with her mom Friday afternoon.

Cheers,

Ms. Selimos

Egg-citement in the Grade 2/3 Class - Week of Jan. 25th, 2014

Dear Parents and Students,

I hope everyone enjoyed this last week of January in the classroom. I certainly did! J

Photos 1 to 5 feature measuring our body parts using cube –a-links with our Grade 4 Learning Buddies.

 Imogen helped us to demonstrate a science experiment involving vinegar and baking soda.  Have your child explain the “explosion” they saw.  This is something you can try at home to show them how gas was created using a liquid with a solid.

We wrapped up our Measurement Unit this week and used units such as pennies, marbles, cubes, paperclips and more to measure mass of objects in the classroom.  The children discovered:  the heavier the unit of mass, the fewer units you need to measure something heavy.   Review vocabulary this week included:  Categorizing from heaviest to lightest and vice versa.  Grade 2 math binders went home on Wednesday for you to explore and to discuss with your child.  Please return by Monday, February 2^nd.

Our next Gr. 2 math unit:  Addition and subtraction to 100!!!! Yes, ONE HUNDRED!  Continue to drill flashcards of +/- to 18 at home, play card games, Crib and use my on-line math websites, as many students still need to learn their facts automatically. Practice, practice, practice.

Check out the following French videos on-line about VALENTINES:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MHefacW-L5U   Charlotte Diamond’s song;  Embrasse 4 Fois

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=39H0grYG9KA Matt Maxwell’s song; La St. Valentin

The children enjoyed singing these 2 songs and more.

Parents of Grade 3:  Return the Math video-taping permission slip by Mon. Feb. 2^nd, along with the Gr. 3 swimming permission forms.  If you plan to pay for the bus transportation fee of $10 on-line, please let me know in the agenda. 

The children are REALLY enjoying the RAMONA QUIMBY, AGE 8, novel study projects.  Lots of class time is provided, but the children are to take their Ramona novel and writing assignment home each night.  PLEASE SEND THE ENVELOPE, NOVEL AND ASSIGNMENTS to school each day, with your child’s agenda. 

We had an EGG-CITING time on Thursday morning celebrating Chapter 3 of Ramona Quimby, Age 8 by Beverly Cleary in class.  Our principal (Mrs. Campbell), vice-principal (Mr. Chernoff), teacher librarian (Mrs. Lindstrom), administration secretary (Mrs. Ewing) and Educational Assistant (Mrs. Abbas) participated in the lesson. We began the lesson with the adults modeling reading of parts of the chapter using voice, fluency and expression. Next, some of the students were invited to read aloud.  After, we took turns sharing about our own personal embarrassing moments.  Everyone “cracked” up.  Then, we had the “egg” cracking experience.  Should we “rap, rap, rap” the egg on our heads like Ramona’s class or should we “whack” the egg on our heads?  Mr. Chernoff and Grade 2 student, Roan  ended up with RAW EGGS all over them. My goodness!  What a mess!  How could this happen?  Our lovely, helpful, Mrs. Ewing, came to the RESCUE and helped to wash and shampoo Roan’s hair and to clean him up at the sink, just like Mrs. Larson did for Ramona in the novel. Following the feast of hard- boiled eggs, seasoned with salt and pepper, each child created a card (Circle of Generosity goal) for our wonderful Mrs. Ewing, thanking her for all she does each and every day at the office of awesome Grant Road School.  Over the lunch hour, we created a “LOVE SONG” to the tune of “Jingle Bells” about Mrs. Ewing, which we sang and presented her with at the office. We went live over the intercom at 2:10 p.m., singing it like “rock stars” to the entire school! 

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REMINDERS: 

1.  Grant Road Cookie Dough Fundraiser $$$$ due on Feb. 6^th.

Cheques made to:  GRSPA (Grant Road School Parent Association).

Fundraiser profits will go towards I-Pads for the school.

^2.     Ramona:  Read first half of chapter 4 by Mon. Feb. 2^nd, latter half by Wed. Feb. 4^th and first half of chapter 5 by Fri. Feb. 6^th

^3.     «RONIN IS STAR OF WEEK FEB. 9^TH«

4.  SCIENCE EXPERIMENT HOMEWORK is due on Tues., Feb. 2^nd (Liquid experiment at home to discover which 5 items dissolve).

5.    VALENTINE’S DAY:  If you choose to have your child participate, please include the entire class. VALENTINE cards and goodies are to be sent and exchanged on FRIDAY, FEB. 13^th. There are 24 children in the class.  An easy way to label cards or treats is to put YOUR child’s name on each card/treat:  From ____.  This is an option, if you don’t wish to write each child’s name on the treat.

6.    Goat Getters Fundraiser – We are trying to raise money to purchase goats for families overseas.  The children are asked to bring 25 cents for each ticket they wish to purchase.  There will be a draw for prizes over the next 2 weeks.

Jan 19 2015 week with Selimos: RAMONA FUN, MATTER EXPERIMENTS AND MORE

Hello Parents and Students,

This week’s PWIM (Picture Word Inductive Model) lesson (photos 1 & 2) reinforced ALPHABETIZATION.  Try playing some dictionary games, alphabet games at home.  You could use the weekly spelling list to reinforce this language concept.  Try alphabetizing 3 words, then 5 and work up to 10 with your child.  Remember to use spellingcity.com for spelling game activities.  Our phonics letter of the week was Jj.

We will be wrapping up our Measurement Unit next week and have used units such as pennies, cubes, paperclips, straws and more this week, to measure mass of objects in the classroom.  The children have discovered:  the heavier the unit of mass, the fewer units you need to measure something heavy.   Vocabulary this week included:  Categorizing from heaviest to lightest and vice versa.  

The children also used string to measure length of curved items (length around a water bottle, their heads, etc.)  and then to straighten the string and measure with non-standard units (cubes, popscicle sticks, etc.) to find the length.  Math binders will go home next Wednesday for you to explore and to discuss with your child. 

If you have not signed the MATTER POP QUIZ from Tuesday, please do so and return with your child to school by tomorrow.  We have had a lot of fun doing a few experiments this week.  The children should be able to explain to you “why oil and water don’t mix.”  Oil and water are said to be “immiscible”, because they do not mix.  The oil layer is on the top of the water because of the difference in density of the two liquids. Oil is less dense than water and so it is on top.

Go to http://scifun.chem.wisc.edu/homeexpts/layeredliquids.htm for the RAINBOW IN A GLASS experiment and try it at home.  This was another experiment we tried on Wednesday.  THE KIDS LOVE EXPERIMENTS!

Rainbow in a glass 

You will need the following materials: 

• four different colors of food coloring (e.g. red, yellow, green, blue) 
• five tall glasses or clear plastic cups 
• ¾ cup (180 g) of granulated sugar 
• a tablespoon for measuring 
• 1 cup (240 ml) water

In the first glass, add one tablespoon (15 g) of sugar. In the second glass, add two tablespoons of sugar, three in the third glass, and four in the last glass. Then add three tablespoons (45 ml) of water to each glass, and stir until the sugar is dissolved. If the sugar in any of the glasses will not dissolve, add one more tablespoon (15 ml) of water to all of the glasses, and stir again. When the sugar is completely dissolved, add two or three drops of red food coloring to the first glass, yellow to the second, green to the third, and blue to the last glass. 

In the remaining glass we will create our rainbow. Fill the glass about a fourth of the way with the blue sugar solution. Next, carefully add the green solution to the glass. Do this by putting a spoon in the glass, just above the level of the blue solution. Slowly pour the green solution into the spoon, raising the spoon to keep it just above the level of the liquid, until the glass is half full. Add the yellow solution, and then the red one in the same manner. What do you notice about the colored solutions? 

The amount of sugar dissolved in a liquid affects its density. The blue solution has the most sugar dissolved in it and is therefore the densest. The other solutions are less dense than the blue solution, so they float on top of it. The densities of the solutions should be very close however, and the solutions are miscible, so you will see that the layers do not form well defined boundaries as in the first experiment. If done carefully enough, the colors should stay relatively separate from each other. What do you think will happen if you stir up the liquids in the glass?

 The children are REALLY enjoying the RAMONA QUIMBY, AGE 8, novel study projects.  “If you could choose anyone in the WHOLE WORLD to babysit you, who would that be?  What would you do?  Where would you go?”  There were some very interested paragraphs about:  celebrities, scientists, athletes, as such and more: Michael Jordan, Abraham Lincoln, Edmonton Oilers, Riders, parents, family members (uncles), and teachers, of course. 

This afternoon, we will be creating BIKE SAFETY posters, to remind Ramona to follow the safety rules when bike riding.  The posters are due on Tues. Jan. 27^th.  Lots of class time is provided, but the children are to take their Ramona novel and writing assignment home each night.  PLEASE SEND THE ENVELOPE, NOVEL AND ASSIGNMENTS to school each day, with your child’s agenda. 

REMINDERS:

1.      FYI for CHAPTER 3:  Send a photocopy or hand-written favourite egg recipe to school for RAMONA EGG DAY on Thurs. 29^th.

2.    «IMOGEN is our STAR OF THE WEEK on Monday, 26^th«.

3.   READING LOGS DUE Thurs.

4.    FRIDAY 30^TH = PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT DAY = NO SCHOOL FOR STUDENTS

5.  «RONIN IS STAR OF WEEK FEB. 9^TH«

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Grant Road Cookie Dough Fundraiser $$$$ due on Feb. 6^th.

Cheques made to:  GRSPA (Grant Road School Parent Association).

Fundraiser profits will go towards I-Pads for the school.

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VALENTINE’S DAY:  If you choose to have your child participate, please include the entire class. VALENTINE cards and goodies are to be sent and exchanged on FRIDAY, FEB. 13^th. There are 24 children in the class.  An easy way to label cards or treats is to put YOUR child’s name on each card/treat:  From ____.  This is an option, if you don’t wish to write each child’s name on the treat.

CLASS LIST: See parent email for names. 

REMEMBER YOUR PYJAMAS FOR TOMORROW!

Have a great weekend!  Enjoy the weather!

Ms. Selimos

January 12th, 2014 week with Selimos RAMONA QUIMBY novel study, MATTER unit, FRENCH songs and more

Hello Parents and Students,

Hooray for outdoor recesses!  The kids have been enjoying the outdoors again!

This week, we used our printing books and learned how to cursive write the letters “e and l”.  We also wrote a winter poem in French (photo 1).  Have your child sing it to you.  Feel free to review the 2 letters for handwriting at home.

Emaan did a great job as Star of the Week.  She enjoys picnics with her mom, dad and 2 sisters.  Emaan was born in Toronto.  She celebrates Eid and speaks Urdu.  Her favourite colour is purple and she loves to eat lobster.  In her spare time, she enjoys reading and swimming.

We focused on the calendar for math for a good part of the week.  See photos 4 to 7.  Your child should be able to READ the days of the week and the months of the year.  Here are some questions to ask your child:  How many months are there in one year?  How many days in this month (show them a month on a calendar at home)?  Name the month BEFORE April.  Name the month 2 months AFTER May.  How many days are there in one week?  How many days in two weeks?  If today is Tuesday, January 22nd, what is the day of the week 3 days later?  Which is the second month of the year?  In which month is your birthday?  Which month comes before your birthday?  We played a “Months/calendar” game. 

We also began NON-STANDARD measurement (no rulers) using string, cubes and craft sticks.  See photos 8 to 15. We measured the GINGERBREAD MAN using craft sticks after predicting his length and then we compared our own body lengths to his.

Photos 16 to 20 are from a morning math lesson where we used 2 different units:  cubes and colourful links to measure lengths of different objects.  The children concluded that the larger the object of measurement, the better it is to use a larger unit to measure with.  Example:  Use popsicle sticks to measure the classroom door, rather than cubes.  Cubes will take forever!  The number will be smaller.

I am SUPER EXCITED to begin a novel study of Beverly Cleary’s Ramona Quimby, Age 8 with the students.  Librarian, Mrs. Lindstrom, is helping us with this 2 month novel study project, as well!  EXPECTATIONS:  Please encourage and monitor your child’s chapter of reading.  They may read it independently or SHARE THE READING ALOUD with you.  Ask your child questions about the ½ chapter read. The RAMONA envelope and your child’s agenda reminders will help you to keep up with the expectations of the reading assignment and writing projects.  If you have any questions, please feel free to email me. 

The children enjoyed creating their own dollar bills as part of a Writing Traits assignment today, focusing on organization skills and details.  Imagine if you could design your own paper money.  What would it look like?  Write details about your bill.  What words and numbers are on your bill?  Include pictures, colours when you draw it.

The children drew themselves wearing their winter clothing and labeled their pictures in French.  Here are the links to the music and actions for the new action song “LA NEIGE TOMBE” we danced to and sang, about “la neige” (snow). 

  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YXdnrWeTICk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8k9fPOLoaBc

La neige tombe
The Snow is Falling
Chanson enfantine
(French)
Children's Song
(English)

La neige tombe sur mon nez
Oh, oh, oh! J'ai le nez gelé
Frotte, frotte, frotte mon nez
Pour le réchauffer !
Frotte, frotte, frotte, mon nez
Frotte, frotte, frotte ton nez
Pour le réchauffer !

La neige tombe sur mes mains
Oh, oh, oh! J'ai les mains gelées!
Frappe, frappe, frappe, mes mains
Pour les réchauffer !
Frappe, frappe, frappe mes mains
Frappe, frappe, frappe tes mains
Pour les réchauffer !

The snow is falling on my nose
Oh, oh, oh! My nose is frozen
Rub, rub, rub my nose
To warm it!
Rub, rub, rub my nose
Rub, rub, rub your nose
To warm it!

The snow is falling on my hands
Oh, oh, oh! My hands are frozen!
Clap, clap, clap, my hands
To warm them!
Clap, clap, clap my hands
Clap, clap, clap your hands
To warm them!

As well, we had a blast trying a water experiment with the concept of sink vs float for science.  We filled a basin of water and “tested” many items.  The children predicted what would happen to different objects.  See science photos.  At first, the cloth puppet floated and then sank.  The students were surprised.  The rock, scissors and eraser sank.  We discussed why they sank… metals, rubber items sink.  The kids discovered that plastic items like cube a links, Ms. Selimos’s empty water bottle and Ronin’s water bottle filled with some water, floated.  Wooden items like a pencil and popsicle stick floated.  The children “screamed with delight” when I took Brodie’s glasses to test…  His glasses SANK! The glass component was “heavier” than the plastic particles.  Parents, please fill your sink with water and “test” your children at home with a simple game of sink and float using items in your home.  Have fun!

   Matter Websites and Games

http://www.sciencekids.co.nz/gamesactivities/gases.html
Brainpop junior has many videos
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/scienceclips/ages/8_9/solid_liquids.shtml
http://science.k12flash.com/statesofmatter.html
http://science.k12flash.com/statesofmatter.html
http://www.harcourtschool.com/activity/states_of_matter/molecules.swf
http://www.catie.org.uk/testing_time_index.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tuE1LePDZ4Yhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tuE1LePDZ4Y  EXCELLENT video
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tuE1LePDZ4Yhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tuE1LePDZ4Y
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gfP4lwdehuA   Matter song
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C33WdI64FiY  Matter song
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jd0RXHfIKJQ  video
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYFAj50c7xM  scientific explanations   


Ms Selimos