Friday, May 30

 Hi parents,

We had a great day today. In Gym, we wrapped up one of the most epic Kickball series we've ever had with an 8-8 tie, which tied the series as well.

The spelling quiz was less easy than I expected! I didn't get a chance to send them home but I will on Monday.

In Science, we talked about the concept of 'waste', in all its forms, including time, energy, money, etc. The students came up with goals for how they can reduce waste for the month of June.

We did Daily LA, and then started learning cursive. We learned the letters 'l', 'e', and 't'.

Stay tuned for next week's spelling words (coming later this weekend) and have a great weekend!

Zac

Thursday, May 29

 Hi parents,

We had a great day today, and a bit more of a normal school day.

In the morning, the students wrote stories about 'Lemon', the bear puppet that Elder Shirley brought yesterday. The stories were meant to be short and simple, but still feature a clear problem and solution. We talked about how when telling a story, it can be helpful to really slow down and drag out the events connected directly to the problem and solution. Things like establishing setting and describing characters are important too, but the problem and solution are what really make or break a story, and they deserve extra focus.

In Math, we did some data collection for our Ever Active Schools project. The students went around the school and surveyed other classes to find out how everyone got to school today. We analyzed the data as a class and found that our prediction (nice weather = more walking) was somewhat true. 

Elder Shirley was excited to see our Display Case and spent much of the lunch hour helping our class make it even better!

The spelling quiz is tomorrow!

Have a nice night,

Zac

End of Year Book Return

 

Wednesday, May 28

Hi parents,

We had yet another special day at school today - I almost feel bad for the students, they haven't had a predictable school day in ages - but I don't, because we keep getting to participate in cool activities.

Today we spent the entire afternoon working with and learning from Elder Shirley. She taught the class about hoop dancing, shared stories of Alberta's history, and constantly had the class laughing and smiling with her puppets and stuffies. It was an awesome experience.

In the morning we worked on artwork for an Ever-Active Schools Banner Contest. The students are designing banners to promote the safe drop-off zone across the field. The winning designs will be turned into actual big banners that we'll display on the fences next year.

We also learned about adding and subtracting fractions, and adding and subtracting mixed numbers.

Have a nice night.

Zac

Welcoming Elder Shirley

 

Tuesday, May 28

Hi parents,

Our sharing assembly went so well today! The students were professional, knowledgable, friendly, and engaging, and did a fantastic job answering questions. I really enjoyed checking in with each group and grilling them to see how well they knew their stuff. Honestly I was a little worried after yesterday's rehearsal, but today they brought their A game. And Alberta Bound sounded better and better each time.

That took up our entire morning. In the afternoon we went over this week's unusual spelling words, and discussed what each one is an abbreviation of, went outside for gym, and had Music.

Exciting news - tomorrow our class is spending the entire afternoon working with Elder Shirley!

Have a nice night,

Zac

S.W. (wk. of May 25)

 Spelling List A (May 26 - 30)

St.	mm	km	NW	SE
Mr.	Dr.	Mt.	Ms.	cm

 

Spelling List B (May 26 - 30)

Feb	Apr	l	ETA	i.e.
Rd.	Mrs.	etc.	AB	Aug

 

Spelling List C (May 26 - 30)

Sept	tbsp.	mph	gal.	oz.
etc.	lb	e.g.	kg.	blvd.

With this week being so busy, I figured some easier spelling words would be nice, and believe it or not there's a section in the curriculum about kids needing to know how to spell common abbreviations. So that's what this is.

For the quiz, I will be reading out the full form of each word or phrase. The kids will only be excepted to spell the abbreviated form. I'll be picky about capitalization for words like NW, ETA, and SE.

GLHF

Monday, May 26 (Showcase Assembly Tomorrow!)

Hi parents,

Today was a pretty busy and crazy day for our class but I'm still happy to be back. :)

We spent time this morning finishing up posters for the assembly tomorrow, which you are welcome to attend from 8:45 - 9:30am. This assembly is more of a 'showcase' than a regular assembly, which means parents and students will be able to circulate the gym and visit different stations, dedicated to different sub-topics around the question: "What is the story of Alberta?"

The students did a fantastic job on their posters. Everything looks awesome. Based on our dress rehearsal today, they could still use work with the presentation aspect of it. Please ask lots of questions - the students have all learned a ton about their topics, but they won't necessarily tell you about it unless you ask.

In math, we learned how to add and subtract fractions with the same denominators. It's really easy. I challenged the students to take it a step further and add fractions with different denominators by applying their knowledge of equivalent fractions.

Yearbook Cover Design Contest

Have a nice day,

Zac

Wednesday, May 14 (Remember $6 Field Trip Donations!)

 Hi parents,

We had an awesome day today - the students really impressed me with how well they handled Fort Day. It was actually our quietest day this week, and they worked pretty hard too.

Believe it or not, there are 21 students in this picture

In the morning, we moved on to the next step of our Alberta Research Projects - writing rough copies of the paragraphs that will later be written on posters. Each student is responsible for writing 2-3 paragraphs relating to their topics, where each paragraph is focused on a 'sub-topic'. For example, a student researching 'Ranching' may include a blurb about the origins of ranching in Alberta, another on cattle / products of ranching, and another on famous ranchers like John Ware. In doing this, they'll provide a well-rounded and broad explanation of their topic.

In math, we practiced converting simple fractions into decimals. Grade 4 students also worked on simplifying fractions, and on writing decimal numbers as mixed numbers - for example, writing 2.75 as '2 and 3/4'

The afternoon was very easy for me as the students did Social Emotional Learning with Mr. Ripka, followed by Daily LA, Fort Takedown, and Music.

Since we don't have school on Friday, our spelling quiz will be tomorrow before we leave! And it's going to be hard, so please study tonight!

Have a nice night,

Zac

Tuesday, May 13 (Fort Day Tomorrow)

 Hi parents,

Today we spent a lot of time working on stuff for our assembly. The students started planning out what their posters might look like, by considering how to divide their topic into sub-topics.

In Math, we played Classroom of Doom. We had a lot of time to finish up work from yesterday!

We ended the day with Daily LA.

Have a nice night,

Zac

Monday, May 12

 Hi parents,

We had a pretty busy day today.

In the morning, we went over the new spelling words, and talked about homophones. The students used dictionaries to figure out which version of each word meant what, and then wrote sentences for each. Please practice this weeks words at home - they're going to be tricky!

In math, Grade 3 students practiced writing fractions. The Grade 4 students used those same fractions, but practiced writing them in simplest form.

We continued working on our social studies research topics. The students created "who, what, where, when, why, how" pages, to make sure they had a broad understanding of their topic. Tomorrow, we'll put their notes into sentences, and then next week, they'll start making the actual posters.

In the afternoon, the class wrote their own verses for Alberta Bound, by Paul Brandt. Then, they played Fraction Bingo, and went to music.

Fort Day - Wednesday, May 14

Our class has earned a "Fort Day", which basically means each student can bring one blanket and one flashlight, and we'll turn the tables into forts. Some students also earned the privilege to bring a stuffy (they know who they are) - that was a prize for their table winning the table point challenge in previous months.

Field Trip - Ann and Sandy Cross - Thursday, May 15

Thanks everyone for sending in your forms! Please do not forgot to also pay for the trip online!

Have a nice day,

Zac

 

Spelling Words (Week of May 11)

 Spelling List A (May 9 – 16)

to	by	too	there	two
their	here	they’re	buy	hear

 

Spelling List B (May 9 – 16)

ate	wear	your	eight	you’re
where	threw	through	their	they’re

 

Spelling List C (May 9 – 16)

censor	affect	there	your	whether
they’re	sensor	effect	their	you’re

 

The theme this week is 'homophones' - words that sound the same, but are spelled differently and have different meanings.

You'll notice a lot of overlap between the lists here - that's because I don't think anyone in the class has fully mastered the 'there / their / they're' and 'your / you're' uses yet.

Here's a twist - I will be reading the words in random order for the quiz, using sentences for context, to see if the kids really know their stuff.

Good luck!

Friday, May 9

 Hi parents,

We had a pretty good day today, and a very easy day for me because the students worked so independently. Our May Display Case is coming together!

In the morning, the students worked on their social studies projects, did the spelling quiz, and went to gym. We spent most of the morning working on secret poems. :)

We also had Music.

Stay tuned for next week's spelling words, and have a nice weekend!

Zac

Wednesday, May 7 (Reminder: Cancel Fun Lunch for May 15 - Field trip day!)

 Hi parents,

Today was another great day in Room 3, and not just because of the really cool assembly.

In the morning, we learned more about Haiku poetry, and focused on 'sound' words. We envisioned ourselves somewhere in nature, and listened to the sounds we might hear. We wrote the sounds down, and then expanded on those with some details, before taking it a step further and going into similie / metaphor territory. And we had to add a few more illegal words.

In math, we used the Montessori Fraction materials to model how a whole can be made up of multiple smaller fractions. For example, two quarters + one half = one whole.

In the afternoon, we did Daily LA, and then went down to the gym for a very special Author visit - which also was an Athlete visit! Lisa Bowes (author of the "Lucy Tries Sports" series), and two players from the Calgary Cavalry, talked to us about soccer, sports, being active, and being resilient. It was really cool. The students all received their own copies of Lucy Tries Soccer too!

Finally, the students had an opportunity to rate their preference for topics in our upcoming assembly. Most students were able to get one of their 'top 3' choices. Our assembly (which is on May 27), will be set up as a 'showcase' in which students and parents can circulate the gym and learn about different aspects of Alberta and its history. We'll start researching those topics tomorrow.

Have a nice night,

Zac

Tuesday, May 6

 Hi parents,

We had a great day today and did a lot of work!

In the morning, the students worked in partners to read pages from our social studies textbook and answer comprehension questions about the Northwest Mounted Police, Whisky Traders, and Wolfers. Turns out Alberta in the 1870's was pretty much the wild west. 

In math, we did a follow up fraction activity, in which the students were given colourful strips of paper, and asked to cut them into fractions. This activity helped the students visualize bigger and small fractions.

In the afternoon, we did Daily LA, and then learned about Haiku poetry. We learned that Haiku are always about nature, and often have a 'season word', that gives a clue as to what season it is describing. The students wrote their own practice Haiku.

We ended the day with work period, and Ticket To Curlew.

Have a nice night,

Zac

Monday, May 5

 Hi parents,

Today was 'Music Monday', and it was an awesome day that felt more like a field trip than a regular school day.

In the morning, we went to the gym and watched a wonderful performance by a brass quintet from the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra. They also taught us about the origins of horn instruments, and how music can tell stories and express emotions. 

In math (this was pretty much the only non-music part of the day), we learned about Fraction Number Lines. The students drew equal length lines in their sketchbooks, and divided them into halves, quarters, eighths, etc. This activity helped them visualize equivalent fractions in a different context. It's tough to get out of the mindset of seeing '1' as a 'small number' - when it comes to fractions, 1/1 is pretty much the biggest number we ever deal with.

In the afternoon, we did more music Monday activities. The whole school went to the gym for an assembly, where we sang songs together. Ms. Kawchuk also invited me to play a few songs which was really fun. :)

We ended our day with - you guessed it - Music. 

Have a nice night,

Zac

Spelling Words (Week of May 4)

 Spelling List A (May 2 – 9)

being	going	doing	lying	aging
coming	loving	making	taking	living

 

Spelling List B (May 2 – 9)

moving	mining	boring	icing	running
setting	housing	smoking	fitting	driving

 

Spelling List C (May 2 – 9)

serving	winning	dripping	becoming	shipping
crossing	exciting	knitting	glancing	riding

These words are going to be hard. They all involve either dropping the e, or doubling a consonant, before adding -ing. Plus, aside from -ing, there's no consistent spelling rule. It's a lot to keep track of - practice as much as you can!

Good luck!

Friday, May 2

 Hi parents,

Sorry about the lack of blogs this week - its been weirdly busy for this time of year.

The last two days have been great for our class.

We've been doing a bunch more poetry, learning about Alberta's history, and delving further into our fractions unit. Today and yesterday we worked on this big math problem:

The spelling quiz went pretty well despite us having virtually no time to study the words this week. Thanks for all the work you do at home, it makes a huge difference.

In writing, the class had an opportunity to do their choice of the following:

-Start writing a brand new poem

-Add a second verse to a poem they've already written

-Write a 'good copy' of a poem they've already written

That went really well. Those 'student choice' activities always go over well in a Montessori room.

 Probably the highlight of the last two days, for me anyway, was watching the students make their 'hazardous materials safety' videos. They were so funny. But also, I do think the kids have gained a significantly better understanding of hazard symbols, and I'm sure they'll start noticing them all over the place now.

We ended our day by reading more Ticket to Curlew.

Have a nice weekend,

Zac

Upcoming Dates:

Monday - May 5 - Music Monday

Lake Bonavista School is thrilled to welcome a Brass Quintet from the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra on Monday May 5.   Thank you to School Council for this wonderful opportunity for our students!

This performance supports our learning of the Alberta Music Curriculum.  Some of the outcomes covered include:

• Awareness and appreciation of a variety of music
• Distinguish among the sounds of common musical instruments
• Recognize the instruments of the Brass Family

Wednesday - May 7 -Author and Athlete Visit!

Thursday, May 15 - Ann and Sandy Cross Field Trip