Ms. Coutts' Class

End of Year Thoughts

June 26, 2024 / Ms.C / 3 Comments

As another school year draws to a close, I am thankful for sharing my time with all the wonderful students of Division 5. It has been amazing to watch you grow, change, solve problems, stretch yourselves, and experience new things. This year, I hope you have learned that you CAN do hard things! I am proud of how far all of you have come, and I look forward to seeing what you get up to next.

For our community members who are moving, we will miss you! I hope the friends and connections you’ve made here will continue after you’ve gone on to your next adventure.

Wishing all my students and their families and wonderful and safe summer. Thank you for all your support and care in the 2023-2024 school year. This summer, I hope you get the down time you deserve, and opportunities to follow your passions.

With care,

Ms. Coutts

Math + Art – Mandalas

June 21, 2024 / Ms.C / 2 Comments

Division 5 planned and created chalk mandalas this week. When I came across this giant box of 64 different chalk colours, I KNEW we had to do this project!

First, we looked at examples of mandalas and learned that the word “mandala” is Sanskrit for circle. A mandala balances visual elements symbolizing unity and harmony. Then, students worked in small groups to design and plan a mandala on paper. They practiced how to use a compass to draw a circle, and were introduced to the concepts of radius and circumference. Next, we learned how to use a pencil as a centre point, connected to a piece of chalk with string, to recreate our designs on a larger scale outside. Students worked together to create beautiful mandalas. We discussed how this type of art is temporary and becomes a part of the community, enhancing and beautifying the space its in, even if for a short time.

You can check them out before the rain washes them away near the entrance to University Highlands, or enjoy them in perpetuity on this blog!

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Math + Art – Yarn

June 18, 2024 / Ms.C / 0 Comments

Division 5 created art based on the work of Nike Savvas, an Australian contemporary artist. She creates large-scale installations that explore transformations of space through colour, light, movement, and optical effects. Her pieces involve mathematical patterning and 3D objects. Each student created a set of eight plans. Each plan had a mathematical pattern based on the numbers 0 – 15, arranged around a circle. Students carefully chose colour schemes to complement and enhance their patterns.

As you can see below, students achieved varying levels of rhythm and harmony in their creations, depending on adherence to and execution of their planned patterns.

It Was a Wheelie Great Week!

May 31, 2024 / Ms.C / 0 Comments

This week Division 5 has been learning lots about the simple machine called “wheel and axle.” On Wednesday we went to Rollerland at the PNE to learn some new skills on rollerskates. We learned how to safely fall, and how to move ourselves forwards and backwards on the rollerskates. There were many falls, but most people managed to keep getting back up and trying again. All that perseverance led to lots of growth throughout our session–I was very proud of our students!

We were up to our eyeballs with knee pads, elbow pads, wrist guards, and so many laces to tie!

Have you ever tried the limbo on skates?

The lighting was bad but the feelings were good!

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On Monday and Thursday we participated in HUB Cycling workshops on how to enjoy our bikes safely in the community. We went over safety checks for the bike (ABC) and helmet (2V2). Students learned about right of way, hand signals, and some rules of the road. When we got on the bikes on Thursday, students were able to practice what they were learning on “mini-roads” on our school field.

Stop, use a hand signal, and proceed when safe!

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It was a “wheelie” busy week!

(okay, I’ll stop now with the “wheel” pun now…)

Digital Compositions

May 10, 2024 / Ms.C / 0 Comments

Students have been learning how to find and manipulate images using various settings in Microsoft Word.

They were tasked with creating a composition using 5-6ish images that would represent who they are. They have learned about copyright and creative commons images, how to insert pictures from within Word (using “Online Images,” “Icons,” and uploading from Files), and how to find copyright-safe images using Pixabay. (However, I have a suspicion that they are still developing their understanding of copyright based on some of the images they’ve included!) Students also learned the difference between a regular image and a vector, and students can now create their own vector using the Remove BG website. We focused on how layering images can create a cohesive composition, in addition to manipulating image size, crop, and rotation.

Below is our “digital bulletin board.” Please click on the thumbnail to see the larger size.

Greenwashing

April 19, 2024 / Ms.C / 0 Comments

As part of our media literacy studies, and in preparation for Earth Day next week, students in Division 5 have been discussing the concept of “greenwashing.”

We examined some political cartoons and advertisements to analyze their messages. We discussed the commentary of the cartoons–reading “between the lines” about the environmental impacts of our society and corporations. The ads were especially interesting to analyze, and students were keen on identifying the different greenwashing strategies used to persuade potential customers to purchase a product or service.

How is greenwashing being used in these ads?

Here are some good tips for spotting greenwashing (from The Sustainable Agency)

Maker Mondays

April 9, 2024 / Ms.C / 0 Comments

Most Mondays students have a chance to explore a variety of hands-on ADST (Applied Design Skills and Technologies) activities. Students work together using critical and creative thinking in their problem solving, and strengthening interpersonal skills through communication. They are always very proud of their creations and eager to share! They’ve been asking me to do a post highlighting what they’ve been working on, so I will be adding to the gallery below as I take more photos. Keep checking back!

Some of the activities include:

Textiles – knitting, crochet
Strings and Beads – friendship bracelets
Keva Blocks
Card Structures
Lego
Pattern Blocks
Turing Tumble (a physical “computer”)
Snap Circuits
Paper Cutting
Sculpting
Geoboards

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Building Consensus

April 3, 2024 / Ms.C / 2 Comments

Working in groups is a significant part of learning and decision making, in school and many career fields. This requires us to be active listeners and contributors in order to build understanding and work towards a common goal. On our first day back from Spring Break, it was time for a desk change. We’ve tried various arrangements throughout the year so far, but this time the students decided on how the desks should be organized.

As a large group, we brainstormed the various arrangements they’ve experienced in the past, and discussed the possible design constraints (shape and size of the room, number of desks, etc). Then students broke into small groups, where each group used tiles to design a possible layout. They had to discuss and negotiate different possibilities before having to reach a consensus on which design they thought best suited our classroom. They recorded their designs on large paper and outlined pros and cons for their design, considering issues around use of space, mobility, and “chatter.” Groups presented their ideas to the whole class, and then students voted.

In the end, groups had varying degrees of success in terms of their ability to reach consensus and to express their ideas clearly. Interestingly, the layout that received the most votes was rows of pairs! I wasn’t sure if we would be able to fit them all with space for mobility as well, but it worked pretty out (with my own edit of two groups of three). Overall, we were successful as a class in creating our new arrangement.

Our final decision on an arrangement: rows of pairs.

Self-Portraits

March 13, 2024 / Ms.C / 0 Comments

Division 5 created a two different portraits this term.

The first was a “half ‘n’ half” portrait where one side was part of a lesson in proportionate sketching, and on the other side, students used symbolism to represent who they are and what they like. After reading What Are Your Words? students added descriptive words to their portraits.

The second self-portrait was inspired by the art of Chuck Close. Students chose poses to represent themselves in a photo, then used weaving, drawing, shading, and painting to finish the portraits. Students used pencil crayon and pen to add texture to their face, hair, and clothing. The background includes alternating patterns, with attention to complementary warm and cool colours.