Hello and I hope you all had a restful weekend.

Today, the grade 4’s and 5’s have begun switching teachers for math. All the grade 5’s will be with me (Mrs. Cramb), while the grade 4’s will move to Ms. Wong’s class. I recommend the grade 4’s check her blog for math assignments while I will sometimes post the grade 5 work here.

Grade 5’s began reviewing patterns today.  The homework is to complete the 3 questions on page 5 of the text book.  (The text book is available online.  Please ensure your child writes the login and password in their planner if they don’t remember.)  If the work can not be completed in 30 minutes, please write me a note in their planner so I know time was spent working to understand the concepts (which is the point of the homework).  It is OK for them to come back with questions to help guide their learning.  They are MUCH better than tears from anxiety.  Thank you for supporting your child.

Hi Everyone,

Welcome to our grade 4 and 5 class.  We are Division 3 and are getting to know each other.  It’s hard to believe we are already half way through September! It still feels like summer out there.

It has been a busy week.  We have been hard at work learning grammar, reading and writing skills, getting exercise and finding out what we remember about how to solve math problems.

Please watch for all the important notices we have been sending home and be sure to return them as soon as possible.  Most important is the package of student verification forms. Remember to read with your child (or listen to them read) every day.

Hi everyone!  I had a wonderful summer holiday, I hope you did too!  I spent lots of time with my family at home as well as sailing, kayaking and swimming when it was nice and warm.  I also enjoyed many walks with my dog Ty. 

This week we are reviewing the 7 Habits while we get to know everyone in our community this year.  That includes welcoming our new principal Ms Henderson as well as some new teachers.  This Friday we will be practicing “Habit 7” or “Sharpening the Saw” by having a games day organized by our grade 7’s, followed by a family picnic for lunch (byol and   blanket!) and then a celebration of learning (COL) at 2pm.  Families are welcome to join us for the day.

Stay tuned for more updates as we get them!  I am thoroughly enjoying my time with all our students this week when they come for their lesson about Habit 5 with me! See the cute movie here about whole body listening!

Our guest blogger today is Isobel

Today was a fun day for div. 3. We started our day with a book called ”Shin- chi’s Canoe.”  It was about some First Nations children who had to go to a residential school. It was very sad because their experience at school sounded terrible, nothing like school today. In the book, Shin-chi and his older sister Shi Shi Etko must go to residential school again. Chin-chi has never been to residential school before. Before the children leave, they ask their father for a dug out canoe. He also gives Shi Shi Etko a small canoe as a little keepsake.Before they get to the school, Shi Shi Etko gives Chin-chi the canoe. At school Chin-chi cannot talk to his sister. He makes a new friend, and together they steal food because they are so hungry. Chin-chi often visits the river because he knows that when the Sock eye salmon return, it is time to go home. One day he floats the canoe down the river because he knows that it will get home. My class was very confused by this because that canoe was very special to him. Maybe he thought that the canoe would remind his family of him. Finally, the Sock-eye salmon returned and it was time for him to go home. He was greeted by lots of hugs, and their dad was in the workshop finishing off their very own dug-out canoe! Some observations my class made were ”Maybe the canoe was a symbol of the culture she needed to keep hidden” which is a big thought because I think that was a key point in the story.   by Isobel

We also had a guest with us today, Val from the YAP (Young Actors Project).  She taught us some drama skills. Ask your child what they got to act out and what they learned!

Reminder we are going to Wildplay in Maple Ridge next Wednesday .

Some of you still need to complete the online waiver and return your permission slips.

Remember, Monday is a pro-D day for the teachers. Have a great long weekend!

Hi folks we started investigating solutions this week.  Yesterday, several students planned and carried out their own investigations.  

We started with the following:

“Is ___ a solution?” Prove it! Several students thoughtfully considered what they know, made predictions and then proceeded to explore. Please write a comment below and let us know what surprises or challenges you experienced.  If you are still planning your inquiry, feel free to post your thoughts.

Yesterday, we had a wonderful walk around Deer Lake, exploring our local habitat and seeing some of the life forms.  

Below are some pictures of things the students found interesting.  You can add your comments below to share what you enjoyed most about our walking field trip.  

Today, we spent some more time, learning about “How to…” writing.  Yesterday was quite entertaining when I tried to follow the students’ instructions for brushing my teeth.  The students learned what needs to be included!  Please help your class mates by giving some tips in the comment section.

You are welcome to also comment on something you enjoy doing at school other than recess and lunch! Try to be specific and explain why you enjoy the activity.

Don’t forget to ask your parents for an email address that we can use to give them access to your e-portfolio which will be coming soon!

Welcome back from your two week holiday!

We have had a terrific day of learning!  I thought I’d share a few photos as conversation prompts with your children tonight.  When you ask them what they did today, and they answer “nothing” you can use these to help guide their thoughts.

Topics we are exploring now:
Math 5:  Fractions / Equivalent Fractions. Can you name some equivalent fractions for the image below? 
Writing.  Topic: Your choice. 
Goals: 1. Make it interesting
2. Make sure its not confusing.

Science: Solutions and Mixtures. If you want to check out the video we were watching today click here!  H.W. is to find and make a list of solutions and mixtures at home, and think of an experiment you might like to do.  We will soon be linking this to “body systems” !  Stay tuned.

Today’s homework was to play outside and enjoy the sun, then later read for pleasure!

Don’t forget to bring gym strip everyday.  Track practice is tomorrow 8:05 am.

This month we have anti bullying day coming,

Chinese New Year, and Healthy Heart activities as well as our focus on Habit #4: Think Win Win.

In class, some of the big ideas we are focusing on learning about are:

• Writing: text features, poems, persuasive writing, and short stories. To see some of our class poems, click here
• Reading: developing good strategies for improving comprehension and fluency. To access the chapter assignments, click here.
• Social studies: Things that have shaped Canada and  past discriminatory practices in Canada
• Science: Resources – renewable and non-renewable and which  is the most important resource
• Math – we are almost finished our unit on developing  multiplication and division strategies –  UNIT TEST will be at the end of next week.
• French- we just finished making some very creative mobiles to explain a little about ourselves, our likes and dislikes.

Technology skills: are helping us communicate our learning, but also helping students develop their understanding of how to be a great digital citizen.

Please comment on which theme you think is most important to recognize and explain your reason.  Write your comment in the format of a short letter to me.

Grade 5 Leadership: We have been hard at work leading our school to reduce the waste they bring in their lunches. We have made posters, prepared speeches and poems and tallied the number of pieces of garbage brought by each class. The big question is, are we making a difference? Here are some facts you may find interesting: 

Please comment on what you think and why.

Today we logged on to our computers and used WORD to create a list of things we have done so far this year. There were several things that the students wanted to highlight:

Brainstorm of our Ideas

Pumpkin patch – sunny day, Oct 27^th, hot chocolate, buddies,

Science- arcade, marble drop experiment

PE – dodge ball

Cross country – competition, running, winning

Odyssey

3 D art – cool

Lavel’s disappearance

Students were asked to choose one topic to write about for our blog.

stay tuned for our student “NEWS”.

Here is a sample of what you might see coming:

In the news! Division 3 participated in the annual great pumpkin hunt on Tuesday Oct 27^th.

This isn’t what actually looked like, but it felt like it was a huge field of pumpkins at our school….
Today we got to help our little buddies carve their pumpkins.

It was lots of fun.

What kinds of problems did you encounter when you did this task? Did you need to collaborate? How did you solve your problems? Please leave your comment as a letter to me by clicking on the “comment” link below.

FYI for tomorrow:

Costume parade will begin after 1 pm. If you wish to bring costumes, students will be invited to put them on at lunch time. This will be followed by a class tasting of “healthy” snacks. We have discussed bringing fruit (to dip in chocolate), or muffins or other healthy snacks to share. This is not intended to replace any meals so please provide a normal lunch for your child.
Thanks