Wednesday, September 13

 Hi parents,

We had a pretty great day today. In the morning, we revisited the 'scoop sentence' lesson from yesterday, and talked about how its good to include sentences of a wide variety of different lengths when writing paragraphs. Even though it may be tempting to make every sentence long and detailed, it's usually better to throw in a few short, simple sentences, and medium length sentences, to keep things interesting. The students wrote short paragraphs about a topic of their choice, using single, double, and triple scoop sentences.

In math, we continued to work on rounding. It's been a bit of a struggle. I think we may have moved a bit too fast, and now we need to slow down and really work through the concepts. Practicing rounding at home will always be helpful :)

We reread the book about Maria Montessori, and focused on the idea of the moveable alphabet. The students worked in groups to make their own 'moveable'-style words. They did an awesome job cooperating and completing the project in ways that were creative and unique.

In the afternoon, we made official kickball teams ('Green Evees' and 'Red Pandas'), and played a game a of kickball outside. I think its really beneficial for students to get to experience being on a team with their classmates - it can lead to new friendships and stronger connections, as well as giving the students the opportunity to win as a team, lose as a team, and do so with grace.

Have a nice night!

Zac

Dot Day - September 15

 

This is based on the book 'The Dot' by the way.

Tuesday, September 12

Hi parents,

I've really got to thank the students for the incredibly hard work they put in today.

In the morning, we practiced sentence writing, using this week's spelling words. We talked about complete vs. incomplete sentences, and how even a small sentence can be complete (for example, "I like cats."), and a long sentence can still be incomplete ("I like cats because they are fluffy and.")

The Grade 3 students were asked to write 5 complete sentences, and the Grade 4s did 10. I honestly didn't think they'd be able to do it, but somehow, they did. We'll probably be writing 12 page essays by the end of the year.

The writing was actually the easy part of our morning though, as we also had a fire drill, and then learned about rounding. I am really bad at teaching rounding. There's just so much math vocabulary involved, it is a deceptively complicated concept, especially when you start having to round the same number to the nearest ten, hundred, thousand, etc... By the end of grade 3, we'll be rounding to the nearest hundred-thousand.

I think the best way to learn rounding is just to do it. So that's what we spent a lot of our morning doing. Today, we just worked on rounding 3-digit numbers to the nearest ten, and then to the nearest hundred.

It was a struggle, but eventually we got there, and I truly commend the students for their perseverance! 

In the afternoon, we learned about Maria Montessori, and the origins of the Montessori method, by reading a Little People, Big Dreams book about her.

We also talked about the Daily LA Station "Listen to Reading". For this station,  students are able to listen to books be read aloud, and build an appreciation for the expression, volume, and pacing used by 'professional' readers. 

If you have an extra pair of headphones that your child could use for Daily LA, please send it to school with them! 

If not, that's okay, we have a few sets at school too.

Have a nice day!

Zac

Monday, September 11

 Hi parents,

We had a pretty good day today! Our Mondays often end up following a similar kind of pattern.

The students start out with Morning Math, where they practice basic facts, or other concepts related to what we're currently focusing on in math. We have a sharing circle every Monday morning as well, where the students have an opportunity to share whatever they want with their classmates. Usually we talk about what we did on the weekend, but it's pretty open-ended.

We always do journal writing on Monday mornings too. The students usually have the choice between writing about their weekends, or doing a different writing prompt. Today's alternate prompt was writing about a favourite toy.

Another classic "Monday Activity" that we did today was spelling practice. On Monday, we usually have an explicit lesson that goes over the weekly words and teaches the 'tricks' and word patterns. Of course this week the only trick is practice - we did have a good discussion about why it's important to learn sight words though.

In math, we continued to work on naming huge numbers, into the millions. The students worked on writing written numbers (for example, seven hundred fifteen), as numerals, and vice-versa.

We ended our morning with gym. Due to excessive screaming we had to run laps instead of playing tag the whole time.

In the afternoon, we had Music, Daily LA, and more work period. For Daily LA, we focused on creative writing, and brainstormed a list of ways we can use writing. The class followed their hearts and did some creative writing that they chose themselves.

At the end of the day, I sent home some important forms and a calendar for this year's PD Days, breaks, etc. Please fill out those forms and send them back soon!

Have a nice night!

Zac

Spelling Words! (Week of September 10)

 Spelling List A (September 11 – 15)

Was	Play	Where	You	Come
Are	Like	Want	Went	With

 

Spelling List B (September 11 - 15)

Because	From	Going	How	With
Good	They	Said	Saw	After

 

Spelling List C (September 11 - 15)

About	Eight	Across	Against	Enough
Bottle	Belong	Grown	Visit	Quite

Last week when I wrote my needlessly long explanation of spelling words, and how we always focus on word families and patterns, I forgot to mention the exception to that rule - the 'sight words'. 

These are words that we use all the time in writing, but don't necessarily follow common spelling conventions. I find it helpful to focus on these words every once in a while because they are so commonly misspelled, and there isn't really a good way to learn them other than just practicing. 

Even in grade 4, the sentence "I whent whith my friends..." pops up all the time in writing. Hopefully this practice helps!

Good luck!

Friday, September 8

 Hi parents,

As of just two minutes ago, our internet came back. It's like it knew how much I wanted to update the blog.

We had a great day today. In the morning, we had music, then went to the welcome back assembly, where the students learned about 'grace and courtesy' at Lake Bonavista School. Grace and Courtesy is a core Montessori value that promotes organization, kindness, and a general attitude of calmness that will hopefully will stick with students long after their time at our school.

This year, our class will be continuing our 'wisdom inquiry' from last year by delving into Montessori philosophy - I'm really looking forward to getting that started up.

We had our first spelling quiz of the year, and it was a big success. The students did a great job following along and writing words as they were read. There was virtually no calling out, so we got through it pretty quickly. We had a discussion about not comparing your spelling scores with your peers - it doesn't matter how other people are doing with spelling. It's all about personal growth. 

Next week we'll revisit this, and students will have a chance to choose new word lists, which I also will post on the blog, in case you want to get a head start over the weekend.

In math, we learned how to name very large numbers, 7-digits or more. Thinking: ____million, ______ thousand, ______ (or, "blank million, blankety-blank blank thousand, blankety blank blank" ) is surprisingly helpful. The students picked this concept up pretty quickly, but practicing at home would probably help too!

Just come up with any 7-digit number, write it down, and practice reading it aloud. Once they've done a few successfully it will likely just become second nature.

We ended our day with more exploration of Daily LA Literacy Games. Looking forward to starting Daily LA for real next week!

Have a nice weekend,

Zac

That's a lot of work for the first week of school!

Thursday, September 7

 Hi parents,

Sorry about the lack of blog post - the internet was down at school all day!

We had a great day today. The students wrote acrostic poems using their first or last names, we practiced writing numbers in expanded form, and read the book "How Big is a Million?"

The class practiced writing numbers up to 1,000,000. We're going to spend more time on the skill of hearing a number read aloud, and then writing that number accurately. It gets pretty tough with large numbers that have '0's in various place value spots. Students are also having a bit of trouble knowing how many 0's to put for numbers beyond 1,000. But I am still amazed by how much they know! I was thinking this concept would take at least a month to cover, but now I'm thinking only a couple weeks. :)

Our first spelling quiz of the year is tomorrow - should be a fun time. Have a nice night!

Zac

Wednesday, September 6

 Hi parents,

We had a pretty good day today!

In the morning, we did our regular morning work period (which is quickly becoming a comfortable routine!), and worked on math basic facts, spelling practice, and work from earlier in the week. Some students even took it upon themselves to finish work from last week, which really exceeded my expectations for the fourth day of school.

The students went to Music, and when we got back, we did some work with word families and spelling. I feel obligated to do a certain amount of review work, with it being the first full week of school and all, but the students are just blasting through it and I think we'll be learning new stuff way earlier than I expected. 

On that note, I thought it would be good to review place value in numbers up to 1,000. We ended up going to 100,000 with virtually no trouble at all.

In the afternoon, we did more buddy reading, and played kickball in gym.

We ended our day with some more work period time.

Have a nice night!

Zac

Tuesday, September 5

 Hi parents,

I hope everyone had a nice long weekend!

We had a pretty good day today. The students wrote about their weekend adventures in their journals.

We discussed this weeks spelling words, reviewed short vowel sounds, and brainstormed some bonus examples of words for each vowel. The students did their first spelling practice of the year and seem pumped for our spelling quiz on Friday. I'm excited to see how it goes!

We also reviewed place value, and representing numbers using the golden beads material. There is a lot of reviewing in September, but we're getting through it faster than usual, so that's a great sign!

In the afternoon, we did Mindfulness, went to the Gym for some team-building games, and ended the day with buddy reading. 

Thanks for reading the blog! Have a nice night,

Zac

UPCOMING DATES:

September 21 - LBS Open House

Spelling Words! (Week of September 3)

Hello again!

Below, you will the spelling words that students in Room 6 will be working on next week, and also a needlessly long explanation about spelling practice.

Students will have the opportunity to choose ONE spelling list to focus on each week. In the classroom, we will talk about how to effectively choose a list that is a 'good challenge' - not so easy that it won't really teach you any new spelling concepts, but also not so difficult that it's overwhelming. 

Each week, the spelling lists will focus on specific letter sounds, blends, or patterns, as they appear in words of different complexities. For example, the words this week are all intended to review short-vowel sounds, though the words on List A are simpler than those on List C. This approach lets me teach the whole class a spelling concept, and then give the students an opportunity to apply that concept at a level that works best for them.

The goal of spelling practice is not to memorize words, but to learn a wide range of common spelling patterns, which will then allow students to attempt to spell unfamiliar words more accurately. For example, a student who learns to spell 'hot' and 'rob', would hopefully be able to spell 'rot' as well, even though that specific word was not on their spelling list.

At the end of each week, we will have a Spelling Quiz. These quizzes are meant to be low-pressure opportunities for students to showcase their learning, and experience what it is like to study for and take a test.  

I do not use the marks in my report card grades! However, seeing how students perform helps me to teach better. If everyone bombs a spelling quiz, it tells me that we need to spend more time on that concept. If an individual student has a tough time with a quiz, we might review that concept a bit more one-on-one.

Practicing for quizzes at home is completely optional. We will practice throughout the week in class. However, if you want to also practice at home, that can be a great way to boost your child's confidence and reinforce their learning. It's totally up to you. I will post the words each week on Friday.

Please let me know if you have any questions!

 Spelling List A (September 5 – 8)

Hot	Bag	Get	Sit	Cup
Rob	Ran	Red	Pin	Bun

 

Spelling List B (September 5 – 8)

Chop	Snap	Less	Strict	Rust
Floss	Stand	Tents	Solid	Stuff

 

Spelling List C (September 5 – 8)

Supply	Within	Animal	Energy	Content
Budget	District	Travel	Hundred	Problem

Good luck!

Friday, September 1

 Hi parents,

We ended our first week on a high note today!

In the morning, we practiced learning everyone's names, and then worked on 'about me' pages.

We talked about how crayons are a highly underrated colouring tool.

We did another ice breaker activity in which the students were given a vague topic (for example, 'Pets'), and then asked to sort themselves into groups based on their connection to that topic. It was a fun way of seeing how much everyone had in common, and things that made people unique.

We went outside to the big playground for some more socializing and exercise, and then did some quiet reading when we came back in. At the end of the day, I read the first story from "Sideways Stories from Wayside School". It's become a bit of a first-week tradition.

Thank you for reading the blog! I told the class I would put optional homework up, so here it is.

BLOG HOMEWORK:

Use your non-dominant hand to draw and colour a picture of a family member, friend, pet or teacher.

I will also be posting next week's 'spelling lists', and some information on how to study them at home, which of course is also completely optional. 

Have a wonderful weekend,

Zac