Category: Uncategorized

Based on the most recent news from the past weekend’s tragedy of the findings at the residential school in Kamloops, BC, we had a meaningful and insightful conversation discussing part of our country’s history. Many of us recognized the significance of residential schools and the impact that it had upon Indigenous culture, communities and families. Although the history surrounding residential schools is difficult to think about and hear, we discussed the importance of not shying away from something that makes us sad, as this is part of Canada’s story and it is a truth that needs to be discussed and reflected upon. Ask your inquisitive citizen about the three stories that were read, Not My Girl, When We Were Alone, and When I was Eight, what did we take away from these stories? What were the teachings of these books? In conjunction to the stories, students selected an illustration that they connected to. We took on the perspective of a young Indigenous child, at the age of 8, which is the age of many in our classroom, and reflected upon how we think many students would have felt. For example, in Indigenous culture, long hair represented strength and pride. Once children arrived to at the residential schools, many children had their hair cut off. Furthermore, children were forbidden to speak their native language and were forced to learn and only speak English. As students took upon their new perspective, they shared their thoughts and feelings on what many children may have experienced emotional.

In two of the written pieces above, you can see the students’ reflection on the negative impact that residential schools had. For example, one student reflected upon what it may feel like if they were forced to learn English and forbidden to speak their native language,  “I would be heartbroken if my language was taken away from me. It is a sign that I am proud of my culture! It would make me feel so distant from my family. It would be like I wasn’t me anymore, and I love myself so it would break my heart!” Another student reflected upon what it may have felt like having their long hair cut off, “I do not like it if my hair was cut short. I would feel mad and sad.”

How would you feel forgetting your spoken language that you speak with your family? If reunited with your loved ones, how would it feel to no longer be able to communicate with your family? How would it feel to no longer recognize or enjoy the food you once loved, your once favourite foods are now unrecognizable and no longer enjoyable? Would you feel like a stranger? Would you feel disconnected and an outsider? Could you ever feel whole as a family again? 

Below is a link to one of the Indigenous picture books that we read that highlighted a little girl’s experience at a residential school, and the grit and determination that she had within herself to persevere and rely upon her inner strength to make it through such a difficult time in her life.

Here is another link to an Indigenous story that we listened to. How did you feel after hearing this story. What is a take away that you have from this book?

As Artists this week we combined our artistic and written skills to reflect upon our DNA. As Scientists, many of us recognized the word DNA, as the tiny molecules that make each of us unique individuals. This week I put a spin on DNA and had us reflect on our DNA as our own and unique Dreams, Needs + Abilities. Dreams are important to have, they are goals that we can set for ourselves, we can have both short-term and long-term dreams in our life. As we reflected upon our needs, we thought about something that we need in our lives (we discussed the importance for our needs for survival, but what is something else you may need to feel safe, to feel loved, to get through each day?). Our abilities reflect what we are capable of doing. Seen below was our first step, painting our backgrounds for our portraits. Keep reading and you will find some examples of our finished product that we completed by the end of the week. I hope you and your families continue to discuss your DNAs – what are your dreams, needs and abilities. For example, I dream of one day travelling to Greece and exploring the world with my children. I need a goodnight hug and bedtime story with my son before he goes to bed each night. I have the ability to take risks and try hard things, like going skydiving!

In Science we continue to investigate the states of Matter through exploratory experiments. On Thursday, we were introduced to the following ingredients:

1/2 cup of milk

1tsp of vanilla

1tb of sugar

1 small zip lock bag

1 large galloon zip lock bag

4 cups of ice cubes

The ingredients were mixed together in a small ziplock bag. This small ziplock bag was then placed in a larger ziplock bag that contained 4 cups of ice cubes and 1/2 cup of salt. We wrapped the bag of ice in a tea towel to protect our hands from the cold while we took turns shaking the bag vigorously.

Ask your young scientist what occurred next. At the start of our exploratory lab our small ziplock bag continued a liquid – it had a fixed volume, but not a fixed shape. After 6 minutes, we unwrapped the ice cube bag to discover that our liquid had turned into…  ICE CREAM! As seen in the photos below we were THRILLED with the results. Why and how did our liquid change states of matter into a solid? What are characteristics of a solid that lead us to this conclusion?

Our hallway now has a splash of colour with our story map kites. Our story maps served as our graphic organizer where we collected our brainstormed ideas for our original story. This includes identifying our characters, setting, problem and solution. Once our story map kites were complete we moved onto our stories, from there we moved onto the editing stage. Seen below you can find our editing checklist that all our authors referred to in order to ensure that their finished writing displayed their best efforts.

3, 2, 1 EDIT IT! 

• Fix 3 spelling words
• Replace 2 words to become triple scoop words
• Upper case letters to start each sentence
• Period at the end of each sentence
• Rewrite 1 sentence to become even better!

In P.E. we have begun another unit, BADMINTON! The students were thrilled with the new skills that they were learning and it took a lot of persuasion on my end for us to exit the gym as they were all having such a great time!

Have a restful + beautiful ‘long’ weekend. Enjoy your Monday off! I will see everyone bright + early Tuesday morning.

Take care ~ Mrs.Ralph

In Social Emotional Learning, we read the picture book “The Way I Act” by Steve Metzger. Throughout the book we listened to the verses (without seeing the illustrations), and inferred what the characteristics were that were being described. As a follow up discussion to the book we discussed how every individual may show and express their feelings differently. How do you show that you are nervous, excited, disappointed, overjoyed etc? Students then individually completed a worksheet that highlighted different emotions and they described how they showed that particular emotion.

As scientists, we continue our exploration of Matter. Through a hands-on (and taste safe) activity, we explored how root beer floats illustrate various states of matter. During our ‘exploratory lab’ students distinguished the states of matter for the cup, ice cream, root beer and foam. For bonus points, students identified whether the cup was transparent, translucent or opaque. Who knew that science labs could be so fun and delicious!

Later in the week we worked on identifying the various properties of Matter. Can you describe property elements for shape, colour, texture and size? In connection to Language Arts, can you also come up with synonyms for some of the vocabulary? For example, what are some synonyms for the word big, small etc. As a class we are collaboratively making our very own 3D Properties of Matter bulletin board. Stay tuned for our finished product.

A new theme this week was ADST – Applied Design, Skills + Technologies

This week we received a mission to plan and design, collaborate as a group, and execute a marble run structure out of recyclable materials. Our first step was to individually plan out our design for our marble run that must include at least 5 obstacles. Once that was complete, we then came together as a group to share our insights and combine all our ideas to come to a one united idea. Next up, what materials do we need? This week we strictly focused on planning and collaborating. Next week we will begin constructing! Lots of excitement over here!

I spoke too soon, this week’s planning sessions quickly evolved into the beginning of construction. Students were so focused and peacefully collaborated their ideas within their group, that they were ready to begin the building process for their structures. I must apologize to the other classrooms whom we share a hallway with, as our hallway was BUZZING with excitement and communication yesterday and today (Thursday + Friday).

As artists this week, we were inspired by French artist Georges Seurat who developed the technique of Pointillism. Pointillism uses distinct dots, that when viewed from afar the dots appear blended together to create a visible image. Students were free to choose a portrait of their choosing and then be an artistic risk-taker to explore the technique of Pointillism. Students quickly came to realize how time consuming this was and the patience that it required.

In Language Arts, we continue to work on our persuasive writing, employing a strong, authentic author’s voice to persuade and change our readers’/audience’s thinking. This week after reading the story, Can We Save the Tiger? by Martin Jenkins, we discussed various animals that have become extinct and those animals that are deemed high risk for extinction and/or are currently endangered. Students selected an animal of their choosing to write about. The purpose was for students to persuade their reader with reasons for how and or why they should protect and save this animal from endangerment.

Above you will see a draft that a student expanded upon from their ideas that were brainstormed and collected in their graphic organizer. This morning over breakfast, as I read the morning paper I came across an article that outlined how human activity was impacting the songbirds in the tri-cities. I brought in the article and read some highlights to the class. Immediately, hands shot up into the air and I repeatedly heard the word “connection! CONNECTION!” The students quickly recognized and realized the similarities between this article and our writing theme from the week. Another student commented that not only was the tri-cities article persuasive, convincing the reader to be mindful of the bird’s nest, but it also showed elements of instructional writing, as the author outlined ways that humans can be mindful and prevent the destruction of these birds’ nests. This was a beautiful moment to witness the students transferring taught concepts from within the classroom to real-life situations in our surroundings. Can you make more connections to the themes and big ideas that we are discussing in class to your surroundings?

Happy Weekend! Stay safe + healthy!

As scientists we are currently exploring the topic of MATTER. Everything has Matter! As curious learners we are taking in our surroundings and closely examining the states of matter that objects are, and if and how they can change their state. On Monday, we took our curiosity to ‘the lab‘ and participated in an experience. During our ‘lab’ we followed the scientific procedure by stating our question, hypothesis (making a strong, logical and educated guess to our question), record the materials used, wrote down the procedural steps, then recorded one’s observations and finally stated a conclusion to our findings. Our question for this experiment was based on our wonder, can an object be two states of matter at once?

As the students observed the materials of cornstarch and water combine, many quickly came to the realization that we were making OOBLECK! The classroom walls were vibrating from the excitement of the students. Was this gooey slime a liquid or a solid? Or, was it in fact BOTH? Ask your scientist what their conclusion was based on their findings of this experiment.

As writers we continue to work on our ability to take our brainstormed ideas, that are recorded in our graphic organizer, and expand upon them by incorporating detail, examples and descriptive language. Moving forward, we will continue to work on being receptive towards feedback during the editing stage to ensure that our writing can be the very best that it can. As good authors, we will ensure that our writing always includes proper punctuation, this includes the use of capitalization at the start of the sentence and a period at the end of the sentence to mark the end of our thought. During the editing stage we are also working on our vocabulary and expanding our word bank. Rather than using the word good, students are encouraged to use a triple-scoop ice cream word that is rich is description, such as fantastic, splendid, terrific, superb, outstanding.. and the list goes on!

As responsible citizens we continue our discussion about the environment and how we, can make a difference. This week we discussed ways that we can reduce our individual carbon footprint. In connection to our writing we continue to practice our instructional writing by utilizing strong, clear and direct language.

This afternoon we read the story The Two Sisters by E. Pauline Johnson, illustrated by Sandra Butt. This story is an Indigenous, Vancouver legend. Again, we discussed the importance of First Peoples’ oral story telling and how it is an integral part of their culture. The students remembered that story telling is not shared for the purpose of entertainment, so they quickly became engaged with the story to try and decipher the moral, the lesson or the teachings of the story. Throughout the reading, students shared their curiosities, their wonders and their enjoyment for the book. As we neared the end of the story, students came to the realization that this legend is based on a local mountain on the west coast, The Two Sisters, or commonly known as the Lions. As promised to the students, I would not retell the legend behind the creation of the mountains, as they were eager to retell this legend themselves to teach you the history behind it. If students need a little refresher, please find the provided link below, a good historical resource to fall back on.

https://www.legendsofvancouver.net/two-sisters-vancouver-bc

A conversation that stemmed from this book was ” was this true?” As the curious learners that we are, I used this opportunity to highlight our Social Studies skills which consists of using our inquiry skills to ask questions, gather, interpret and analyze ideas. It is vital to ask questions to gain more information and to further our learning. Soon, students were building upon other’s ideas and questions, creating a stimulating dialogue. Yes, this is a First Peoples’ legend and traditional belief for many, but does this mean that we all need to believe this legend? We discussed and showed appreciation towards exploring aspects of First Peoples’ oral storytelling as well showing an awareness for how many stories in First Peoples’ cultures connect people to land.

In Math we continue to show our mathematical thinking in various ways, this can be through oral discussion, the use of manipulatives, concrete or pictorial representation. Students are encouraged to explore various modes of representation to illustrate their knowledge and understanding. The grade 2s continue to learn strategies to accurately add and subtract with, and without regrouping. We have primarily been focusing on boxing the ones when looking at at an equation and then carrying the tens to the ten’s place. Grade 3s have just begun their journey with division, and have quickly caught on to the similarities between multiplication and division. Stay tuned to learn more about the mathematical strategies that we will be learning to expand our skill-set to illustrate our mathematical thinking.

In Physical Education, we continue to learn and practice how to control our bodies in a safe manner while being in a shared space with our peers. During group activities and games, we continuously practice our flexibility (by going with the flow), demonstrating good sportsmanship and monitoring our exertion levels during physical activities.

Due to Covid-19 and us being unable to hold our annual student-led conferences that occur typically during the month of May, I encourage you to visit your child’s blogfolio as I strive to update each individual blogfolio with artifacts of your child’s learning and progress. On some posts there will solely be a picture, where as on other artifacts it will be categorized as communicating student learning where I will be providing a written comment. I encourage you to view these artifacts of learning with your child. If you have time, can you and your child reflect on a learning artifact? can your child retell the purpose of the activity? what they learned? etc, if possible, I encourage you to write a written response on their own post.

Thank you in advance for your continued support and involvement in your child’s learning journey.

Little Bear’s Vision Quest by Diane Silvey, illustrated by Joe Silvey 

Before reading Little Bear’s Vision Quest written by Diane Silvey we discussed the importance of stories and how they are an integral part of Indigenous culture. Students learned that stories are not just for entertainment but they are told to teach lessons and these lessons typically focus on ways to overcome a struggle, how to change one’s attitude or behaviour, and how to be our best self. In this particular story, Little Bear learns to be kind, thoughtful and respectful towards others after being banished to a remote island and reflecting upon his behaviour. The students quickly observed that throughout the story, Little Bear’s coat was initially brown (as seen in the cover of the book). Once he had cleansed himself from the bad, negative thoughts and spirits and welcomed the Power Spirit, he was cleansed, and his body was now pure. Once he was pure, the students were in awe when they noticed that his coat was now pure white. The students thoroughly enjoyed this story and the various themes and lessons that they took away from the story.

What we took away from the story:

– Reflect on your actions and problem solve

– Treat others like you want to be treated

– People can change

– Be in control of your emotions

– Be respectful to others

– You always have good inside of you

– How to take responsibility for your own actions

– How to understand consequences

Our art work was inspired by Little Bear’s Vision Quest. Students drew their background, then applied water colour paint and then decided how they wanted to represent Little Bear. If you look closely you can see how the students chose to represent Little Bear, some decided to represent Little Bear being entirely pure, others wanted to portray him as he transformed towards his purity self. I believe these turned out beautifully. Underneath we wrote about what lesson we took away from this story.

Math:

The Gr 2s continue to power through their addition and subtraction unit focusing on numbers 1-18, next up comes working with numbers 1 – 100! Stay tuned to learn about some strategies that we will learn and employ to support us with our solving problem abilities.

The Gr 3s continue to work on their multiplication facts. As we become more familiar we have been relying on a multiplication chart to support our operations.

Social Studies: 

As we continue to learn about our Earth, we have been discussing pollution and the effects that contaminants have upon our air, land and water. Look at the images below, with your family, can you brainstorm and discuss the affects that the pollutants in the images have upon the environment?

In the images below you can see we did a similar activity in class. The students reflected upon the images of pollution and determined how these actions affect our planet.

Happy Friday + see everyone on Monday!

In Math, the Grade 2s continue to learn about data collection and analyzing their results. We started Monday off with some very challenging word problems. Can you and your family try and solve this word question below? If you can, please show your thinking on a separate piece of paper and hand it into Mrs. Ralph!

Charlie saw 19 butterflies on the long weekend. On Friday he saw 8 butterflies, he saw 3 more butterflies on Sunday than on Saturday. How many butterflies did Charlie see on Saturday and Sunday? **hint** remember to look at the total of butterflies that Charlie saw altogether, draw out your thinking in a graph. Good luck!

While the Grade 2s have been up to their elbows swimming in data word problems, the Grade 3s have begun a new unit in their textbooks, FRACTIONS! I love to connect fractions with food. When we share, we can make equal parts. When we split an orange, it can be divided into 2 equal parts, making a half or 1/2. When we cut a pie or a pizza to share between friends, we can cut it into 6 equal slices. If you can, please show your thinking on separate pieces of paper and hand it into Mrs. Ralph to solve the questions below.

Can you cut out a circle and cut it into two equal parts? Now, can you cut out a rectangle and cut that into 3 equal parts? Finally, can you cut out a square and cut that into 4 equal parts? If you can, please bring it in to show Mrs. Ralph! Good luck!

In preparation for Earth Day, which is on Thursday, April 21, 2021 we began to make ‘stained glass globes.’ Today was just our first day preparing them and they already look beautiful. How do you think we made them? It involves a coffee filter, markers and spray bottle! Stay tuned to see the finished product. As a family, can you discuss the importance of taking care of our environment? What are ways that YOU can reduce the size of your carbon footprint? How can YOU make even a small difference in protecting Mother Earth?

In writing we are beginning to explore a new genre of writing, Instructional Writing. What is the purpose of instructional writing? How are instructions used in our every day life? Some ideas that come to my mind include recipes, instructions to build lego or a robot, IKEA furniture assembly instructions etc. Can you think of other ideas that require instructions?

As a challenge, can you please give Mrs.Ralph explicit and clear instructions on how to grow a plant. Here are some instructional key words that you are encouraged to use in your writing: First, Secondly, Next, Then, Finally. By incorporating these transitional words will signal to your reader that they must move onto their next step. Remember to include in the steps the materials or equipment that you will need.