Week 32 - May 5 - 9

Hey gang! This is a full and busy week. Do your best to show up each day, on time, and ready for learning. Over the next couple of weeks, you'll see more and more of Ms. Scherr, and a bit less of me at the front of the room. Here is the plan:

Science: We will complete the lab report from last week's lab. Do a great job on these, folks. Lab reports are your opportunity to demonstrate your understanding of the science behind the experiment, but to showcase your best, neatest, most accurate work. We will crack on with Newton's 3rd law of motion later this week. Expect in-class presentations, as well as a chance to show your understanding by way of your own demonstration.

Social Studies: You will read and research the idea of "poverty". What that word means in different situations and contexts can be quite different. Does poverty exist in our community? This is an eye-opening subject, as many students in our school have never experienced a lack of basic needs, nor do they expect to. During discussion, find ways to be brave. Speak up and make contributions. There is a "social" element to Social Studies. You are urged to raise your hand and share your understanding. Good questions and great responses are the bread and butter of Social Studies learning. 

Math: Ms. Scherr will turn our focus to some basic algebra concepts this week. Believe it or not, you've been "doing algebra" all along! When your grade 2 teacher presented you with 3 + ☐ = 5 and asked you to fill in the blank, you were asked to think algebraically. That's it! Nothing to be frightened of, okay?

Language Arts: The Skeleton Tree gets pretty exciting - some might say intense - from this point on. If you have been, or will be away, please do the best that you can to stay current with the reading. For example, several students were absent this Monday and missed the reading of chapter 10. Remember to complete your Sketch-and-Caption for each chapter. And aim high with the Writing-in-Role pieces. This week, Ms. Scherr will also introduce a number of "Choice Tasks" for students looking to extend their understanding.

Writing: You have a pen pal! Your letters have been sent to Sweden, and we await replies. In the meantime, consider what you would like to learn from your pen pal. 

Immunizations: Thursday is the day for your follow-up immunization. This is the second dose of the one you received in the fall. 

Swimming: This Friday we will head to the rec center for swimming. This time, if you would like to be dismissed from the rec center (at around 2:25), have your parents send an email. Thanks. 

Enjoy your week, all!

Week 31 - Apr 28 - May 2

Hey there! We've got a big busy week this time around. Here's the plan:

Student-Led Conferences: On Tuesday, you will be dismissed at the end of block 4. Then, you'll return to the school sometime between 4 and 6:10 to host a family member or two (or three or more!). The conferences end at 6:30, and you'll need at least 20 minutes to run your conference. Plan accordingly. I look forward to seeing you and your family members here!

Math: This week we will run through some government math. Elections are gold mines of data. We will explore the meaning of percent, and visualize the House of Commons both before and after the election. 

MTWI: Our Wednesday morning bunch, who do not participate in Band, will present a Minute to Win It game. Be prepared! If you do not bring your supplies, or you have not built clear game instructions and team lists, we won't get a chance to play your game. Fun!

Social Studies: In addition to our mathy look at the election, you will turn your attention to the topic of global inequality. First up? Access to clean water. Ms. Scherr will take you through some activities and tasks to help you understand why this is an important issue in our world. 

Science: We'll run an experiment this week to again confirm Newton's 2nd law. As you build your lab report, remember to keep your work presentable and readable.

Language Arts: Thank you for your "friendship" writing pieces. They're great! I'm impressed with how you feel about the value of friendship. Some A-1 sentence fluency is on display with these pieces. Well done. You'll get feedback on your writing this week.

Drama Show: On Friday afternoon, just about our whole school will head off to Oak Bay High's theater. Our school's drama club has been hard at work, putting together a noisy and entertaining little show. The choir is involved, and so is the Jazz Band. Congratulations in advance to those of you who are taking part. The rest of us, we'll be an appreciative audience. Parents, I'll need at least one parent-volunteer to walk over to the high school with the class in the afternoon. Please let me know if you are available. It should be a fun show! 

Enjoy your week, everyone!

Week 30 - Apr 22 - 25

Wait... what? This is our 30th week together? Already? I guess they're right when they say that time flies when you're having fun. Here's the plan for the week ahead:

L.A. - With The Skeleton Tree up and running, the novel study will be the central focus of your L.A. learning over the next few weeks. Ms. Scherr and I remind you to stay current with the reading, and to show (and tell) as much as you can about the story in the related tasks.

Math - Let's wrap up our look at division with decimals this week. You have a couple of different strategies to employ and, while you almost always have a choice in which one to use, sometimes one strategy works better than another. The trick is to learn when to try the partial quotients strategy, and when using long division may actually give you a clearer answer. You'll get your chance to show your strength with both strategies on a quizzy this week. 

Science - Newton's 2nd Law, which shows the relationship between force, mass and acceleration, remains our focus this week. You'll get involved with a hands-on lab this time. Be sure to run the experiment carefully and accurately, okay? And remember that a neatly presented lab write-up is an important element to your scientific learning. 

Writing - We will work on completing the paragraph about friendship this week. Pay close attention to the task criteria. This one is due on Friday.

It is late April as you are reading this. For many, this can be a challenging time of year. It is easy to become wrapped up in your own self-interest. Sometimes this results in decision-making that may not reflect who you are, or how you wish to be seen. Collectively, we may have a tendency to get loud. We might take longer to transition from one task to the next. We might misplace our patience, our empathy, our respect for others. Intentionally or not, we might end up contributing to a classroom environment that is less than ideal. It’s important to pause and reflect on how our actions affect those around us. Be conscious of the effects of your decisions. Today, I call on you to lead with your heart, and to be the person you expect of yourself.

For your calendars:

Apr. 23 - World Book Day

Apr. 29 - Student-Led Conferences - early dismissal

May 2 - Drama show at Oak Bay High

May 9 - Swimming at OBR

May 16 - Pro-D day

May 19 - Victoria Day holiday

Enjoy your week, everyone.

Week 29 - Apr 14 - 17

Well hi there! Thanks for staying up to date with what's going on in our class.

This is an exciting week. Ms. Scherr has joined us, and she will be around for the next six weeks. Ms. Scherr is a 3rd year education student, and she is also a Monterey alumnus. Cool! To begin, she will take over Language Arts. As her time with us progresses, Ms. Scherr will take on more and more responsibilities for our class. A practicum is a pretty important moment in a teacher's development, and a good experience can really help launch a successful career. Thanks in advance for supporting her learning by participating to the best of your ability, making good choices, listening well, and by being here.

Language Arts: Our first novel study of the year will get underway this week. We have a brand new set of novels - each of you will get a copy of The Skeleton Tree by Iain Lawrence to borrow. Look after this book, please. It is an awesome story, and is one of my favourites for kids your age. Make sure you keep up with the required reading. And make sure you don't read ahead of the class (I know many of you will be tempted!). Keep up with the assignments, being sure to keep these safe in your binders as we go. You'll be covering 3 - 4 chapters per week; some reading may need to happen at home.

Writing: We will pick up where we left off last week. You'll remember that we brainstormed about friends and friendship. Now we'll turn our ideas into a paragraph. When revising your piece, I'll ask you to focus on sentence fluency.  

Math: We'll continue our look at dividing decimals this week. Expect a little check-in task before the end of the week - I'd like to know if you are ready to move on.

Social Studies: In case you hadn't noticed, there's a federal election on. This week, we'll learn about one of the federal candidates and our new PM, Mark Carney. 

Science: This week will be all about Newton's 2nd Law of motion. This one is the "mathy" one: scientists have worked out ways of measuring and recording force, mass and acceleration. We'll get into a couple of demontrations, and a lab, to help us understand this dynamic.

That's all for this week, folks!

Week 28 - Apr 7 - 11

Hi Everyone, this is another full week of school - another full week of fun! Here is the plan:

Math: You will get an opportunity on Tuesday this week to show what you know so far about decimals. This includes decimal concepts like fraction equivalents of tenths and hundredths, place values of decimals, reading and writing decimals, comparing and ordering decimal values, adding and subtracting decimal values, multiplication of decimals (to thousandths) by whole numbers, each in problem solving contexts. Wow, that seems like a lot to know. But if you've done the practice pages, you know what to expect.

By the end of the week we will move on to look at dividing decimal values by whole numbers.

L.A.: We'll explore "perspective" and "point-of-view" in our reading strategy work this week.

Writing: Let's finish the "animal-instrument" task that you started with a partner last week. Then, we'll look at one more kind of clause that you can add to sentences to enrich them with detail. 

Science: Newton's Laws of Motion will be front and center of our science learning this week. Let's make some stuff move!

Skating: Friday afternoon. (Parents, I am still looking for volunteers for this excursion - one to walk with us to the rec center, and more to help tie skates once we arrive (at around 1:00pm).

Next week we will be joined by Ms. Scherr, who will be with us for a six week practicum. Look forward to a new voice and new ideas over the next little while. 

Have a wonderful week, folks!

Week 27 - Mar 31 - Apr 4

Welcome back, gang! Term 3 is upon us: it is time for a fresh start. Are you ready? Do you have all the supplies you need? Are you feeling prepared to take on new challenges, and to take advantage of new opportunities in our school community? (There's lots to get involve with... grab onto these opportunities while you have the chance!) Let's go!

Math - this week, let's pick up where we left off in our look at computation of decimal values. First up, rounding, estimating and multiplying. Remember to keep your place values well organized!

Writing - this is another one we will pick up where we left off. Before the break we were exploring sentence fluency. This week, we'll begin to write longer, detailed sentences while we practice using clauses. 

Social Studies - What are tariffs? Why do they matter? What is a "trade war"? And what is the Trump adminstration up to, anyway? Information on these topics will come to you in a couple of different formats this week. Pay attention! It's important!

Science - After wrapping up our look at the Solar System, we will move on to a new unit. Newton's Laws of Motion help us understand much of what we know about the way things move and interact. Expect hands-on tasks, class demonstrations, experiments over the next few weeks.

Enjoy your week, all.

Week 26 - Mar 10 - 14

Here we are, folks. It is a big week. The YE Market goes ahead on Wednesday afternoon and evening. 

YEP - So much to remind you of here, I've gone point form and simplified:

• Float - $20 in coins to make change
• Cashbox - a small box, a pencil case, with your name and division clearly on it
• Tablecloth and tabletop display (see Monday's Daily Agenda for more about this)
• Packaging and other extras (price tags? info cards? intruction manuals?)
• Have a demo piece ready to show off
• Transportation for your products on Wednesday
• Water and Snack 
• Cash boxes stay at school until Thursday (that's when we'll do our accounting); Mr. Pite will lock them up when not in use. Your profits and loan repayment and float repayment go home Thursday.
• Do not take orders for the future: once the market is over, your business is closed down
• Market is open 12:40 - 2:50, and from 5:00 - 7:00. Attendance for both of these sessions is super important!
• Stay for the duration (even if you sell out)
• You will get a chance to go shopping at the market. To avoid confusing your accounting, you must bring your own $$ (no dipping into your cashbox for shopping money).

We've put a tonne of work into this project, gang. Do your best to make sure all you need is here on Wednesday, that you have made enough product, and that you are well-rested and ready for a great day!

Math - We'll do some money math this week; of course we'll do it for real on Wednesday at the market and on Thursday when we do our accounting. 

Language Arts - The focus this week is on YEP stuff, and practicing the oral language we'll use to talk to our customers. We will also begin to reflect on all that we've learned over the term.

Science - Your Solar System Object lap-books are looking great. We'll get these completed and have a chance to share our lapbooks on Friday. 

Report Cards - These have been rebranded as "Learning Updates" and will be available on ParentConnect on Friday afternoon. 

Enjoy the week, everyone! 

Week 25 - Mar 3 - 7

Hi All. Just two weeks remain before a well-deserved break! Here is the plan for the week ahead:

YEP - Your product building should be well underway. Aim to have everything ready to go by early next week, okay? Once Market Day is upon us, there are no more chances! We will be working on some of the final bits and pieces here at school: your money plan needs finishing; your market day business sign/poster will get done in class, and we will work on how to talk to customers. These are important pieces to cover, but there certainly are other things you can do at home, too. Here are a few things you can do at home to help prepare for next Wednesday:

- Bring your receipts! What have you spent on supplies and packaging? These receipts must be collected here at school - they're vital to the financial literacy part of the project. And they are needed to calculate how much money you'll need to pay back to your parents after the sale. 

- Packaging. If time and budgeting permits, you may wish to find a way to attractively package your product. Remember, you must stick to your $40 budget! Don't buy bags, boxes, fancy paper wrapping, etc. if it will break your budget. If you can make packaging, remember to include your branding in a visible way.

- Float. For next Wednesday you will need a float from which you will make change for your customers. We will chat about what your float should consist of here in class. Like you did with your business development loan, you'll need to ask for another small loan to have some coins and small bills in your cash box at the start of the sale. Of course, this is another loan that will need to be repaid! You'll bring your float in your cash box next Wednesday - not before, please!

- Cash Box. Scour your home for a small box. It should have a closeable lid and for added security avoid clear plastic. This will become your personal cash register for the market.

- Market Display items. We'll talk about effective displays, bringing your product closer to your customers' eye level, and arrangement of your items on your well-decorated table. You will need to bring a table cloth. Successful displays often include racks or tabletop shelving, photographs, information cards, samples, and attractive, branded packaging. We'll look at some examples this week to get you thinking about how best to show off your product.

Also on this week:

Math - decimals. We'll explore adding and subtracting these "part-wholes". Keep your eye on those place values, gang!

Writing - Sentence fluency is my favourite writing trait. Let's explore how picture-book authors make use of the keys to fluency to make their text so readable and interesting. 

Science - the Solar System Object travel brochure/lapbook project continues this week. We'll set a due date for this one - stay tuned for news on that.

Social Studies - we'll look at media influence in marketing and elsewhere over the next couple of weeks. Soda, anyone?

Enjoy your week, everyone!

Week 24 - Feb 24 - 28

This week is a great opportunity to make a fine impression as we close in on the end of term 2. (Can you read between the lines, here? Something about you, your work, your work habits, and report cards, I think.) This is the plan:

YEP - I am becoming increasingly nervous about some students' progress. At this point, your little factory should be pumping out your product. Consider yourself "on track" if you have now built close to half of the units that you plan to construct. For most, this means you will need to increase your effort. If you are one of those who hasn't really started yet, please ask your parents for help in managing your time. We are just over two weeks away from our market day. Time is flying! There is much to do here at school, but your success with this term-long project depends on the work you are doing at home. Let me know if you need help!

This week for YEP, we turn our attention to the charitable giving portion of the project. You'll work with a small team to prepare a brief presentation about a chosen local charity. This will be presented on Friday (this is a hard deadline). The winning presentation moves on to the 'finals'; a showcase of the best from each of our five classes. Good luck! Perhaps your group's presentation will convince the Wolves team to give our 10% to your charity.

Math - it's "money math" season as we prepare for the Market. To that end, we will begin exploring concepts in decimals this week.

Writing - We will look at my favourite writing trait this week: sentence fluency. This is where we really get to start playing with language! We'll write short sentences. We'll write long ones, expanding our meaning by adding effective transitions, and by building clauses into our sentences as a way to add detail. 

Science - The Solar System Object Lapbook project oontinues this week.

Pink Shirt Day is on Wednesday.

Enjoy your week, everyone!

Week 23 - Feb 18 - 21

Hi Everyone! It is another short week with lots to get to. Here's the plan:

YEP - This week we'll begin to build a marketing package for your business. You'll decide on a name for your business, create a logo, write a "word ad" for a business card, and begin advertising your product to the people you know. 

In addition, we will begin work on your "money plan". For that to happen, you'll need to know how much money you have, and will, spend to build all of your product. The best way for you to do this is to save all of your receipts (these should be stapled into your business planning kit on page 19). If you have ordered things online, print your receipts and bring them in to the classroom. 

Side note: as of Tuesday this week, a significant number of you have yet to begin building your products. Please know that you have just 3 weeks to be ready for market day (March 12th). There is tonnes to do between now and then. Don't leave it to the last minute! Manufacturing your product will likely take longer than you think. And you'll need to leave time for packaging, pricing, and marketing your product. Things are going to get busy in a hurry. Ask your parents for help in managing your time, okay?

Math - We'll complete our look at Unit Rate this week. (Expect to tie Unit Rate to your YEP money plan!)

Science - Your Solar System Object lapbook project is underway. We'll review the criteria for an awesome booklet and we'll begin to turn our research into presentable language and formats. See in-class student samples for ideas.

Writing - This week, we'll look back at the goals we set for ourselves in Term 1 and write a reflection for Term 2.

CC Day on Thursday. Early dismissal for those who are all caught up. 

Enjoy your week, all!