Ms. Ballarin's Class

“Educating the mind without educating the heart is no education at all.” Aristotle

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Happy Diwali

November 8, 2023 / / 0 Comments

After reading “My Diwali Light” we did a pointillism art activity. Pointillism is an art technique where we used little dots to colour in the picture.  This took a lot of patience and focus and they turned out great!

Here is the art:

 

Big ideas: 

  • Creative expression develops our unique identity and voice 
  • People connect to the hearts and minds of others in a variety of places and times through the visual arts 

Curricular Competency 

  • Explore elements, processes, materials, tools, and techniques of the arts 
  • Develop processes and technical skills in painting to refine artistic abilities 
  • Demonstrate increasingly sophisticated application and/or engagement of curricular content 

First Peoples Principles of Learning: 

  • Learning takes patience and time 

Content: 

  • elements of design: line, shape, texture, colour, form 

Core Competency: Creative Thinking 

  • Creative growth requires patience, readiness to take risks, and willingness to try new approaches 

Learning involved: 

  • Students learned the significance of following step-by-step instructions with careful considerations when engaging in art activity using mixed media 

 

Science Experiments

November 2, 2023 / / 0 Comments

Today, we did 2 experiments. The first one was cooking an egg to demonstrate both a physical and chemical changes.

(We forgot to take pictures of this)

We also conducted an Oobleck experiment. We used the Scientific Methods to conduct the experiment. We learned that Oobleck is a Non-Newtonian Fluid – it looks like liquid but feels like solid! 

Question: What happens when you mix cornstarch with water? 

Hypothesis: I think that when I mix the supplies, the mixture will become ______________. 

Supplies: 

1/2 cup of cornstarch 

1 cup of water 

Test the Hypothesis following this process: 

Step 1: Add water to a cup. 

Step 2: Add food colouring. 

Step 3: Add cornstarch. 

Step 4: Mix everything up.  Mixture should be able to be picked up like a solid but still flow like a liquid. This is a Non-Newtonian fluid. 

Step 5: Record observation. 

Conclusion: We  learned that slime is a non-Newtonian fluid which is neither a liquid or solid depending on the forces acting upon it and does not have a constant viscosity. 

Big Idea: Materials can be changed through physical and chemical processes. 

First Peoples Principles of Learning: Learning takes patience and time. 

Curriculum Competencies: 

  • Observe objects and events in familiar contexts 
  • Ask questions about familiar objects and events 
  • Make simple predictions about familiar objects and events 
  • Make and record observations 
  • Sort and classify data and information using drawings,  pictographs and provided tables 
  • Compare observations with predictions through discussion 

Content: 

  • chemical ways of changing materials 

Core Competency: Critical Thinking and Reflective Thinking 

  • I can ask questions and consider options. I can use my observations, experience, and imagination to draw conclusions and make judgments. 

 

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Haunted Houses for Sale!

October 27, 2023 / / 0 Comments

Today, we read a story about a haunted house. In the story, we heard about different parts of the house and any people/creatures that live there and fun things they do.

Students got creative and wrote a house listing to sell their haunted houses! The spookier the better! Here is our bulletin board:

Stellaluna

October 27, 2023 / / 0 Comments

This week, we read a book called “Stellaluna”. I have attached the book below:

We then discussed and completed the story elements sheet:

Once this was complete, we did art bat to decorate the hallway and classroom! We used tempera  paint to paint the background and then bats which students were able to place where they wanted 🙂 Here is our bulletin boards:

Big Idea: 

  • Inquiry through the arts creates opportunities for risk taking
  • Through listening and speaking, we connect with others and share our world.
  • Language and story can be a source of creativity and joy.

First Peoples Principles of Learning:

  • Learning takes patience and time

Curricular Competencies:

  • Explore elements, processes, materials, technologies, tools, and techniques of the arts
  • Develop processes and technical skills in a variety of art forms to refine artistic abilities

Content:

  • elements of design: line, shape, texture, colour, form
  • principles of design: pattern, repetition, rhythm, contrast
  • exchange ideas and perspectives to build shared understanding
  • through listening and speaking, we connect with others and share our world
  • elements of a story; character, plot, setting, structure (beginning, middle, end), and dialogue

Core Competency: Creative Thinking

  • Creative growth requires patience, readiness to take risks, and willingness to try new approaches

Learning involved:

  • Students learned the significance of following step-by-step instructions
  • Students demonstrated increasingly sophisticated application and/or engagement of curricular content
  • Students demonstrated an understanding of story elements

Books We Read This Week

October 19, 2023 / / 0 Comments

Last week Ms. Papapanagiotou introduced students to a chapter book called “Dragon Girls” by, Maddy Mara

This week she introduced, “Dragon Masters” by, Tracey West

We also read:

Wednesday:

“Pig The Fibber”

Thursday:

“What are your words?”

 

And I began a read aloud chapter book:

“Dinosaurs Before Dark”, which is from Magic Tree House series and it is book #1

Story Workshop

October 19, 2023 / / 0 Comments

We have begun Story Workshop. Students use loose parts to create a story. This past week we focused on characters! Some students began book making from their Story Workshop creation!  This past week there was a lot more stories to do with Halloween! Here are some Pictures:

 

 

Big Ideas: 

  • Stories and other texts connect us to ourselves, our families, and our communities. 
  • Language and story can be a source of creativity and joy. 
  • Everyone has a unique story to share. 

Curricular Competencies: 

  • Create stories and other texts to deepen awareness of self, family, and community 

Learning Involved: 

  • writing processes- may include revising, editing, considering audience 

First Peoples Principles of Learning: 

  • Demonstrate awareness of the role that story plays in personal, family, and community identity 

Core Competencies: 

Critical Thinking  

  • I can try a new idea when something doesn’t work 

Creative Thinking 

  • I can try different ways of doing things 

Communication 

  • I can share my ideas and questions 
  • I can listen to others 

Social Responsibility 

  • I can share my ideas with others 

Forest Walk

October 19, 2023 / / 0 Comments

 

Last Wednesday, we took our learning outside for a nature walk with Ms Shellard’s class. We look forward to many opportunities this year to provide students with outside learning lessons. We asked your child to discuss with you what they discovered on our walk down to the park and to share why they picked their three different items. The students in their groups were encouraged to guess which area or tree around  the park or walk that their items came from. Stay tuned for more outdoor learning and for more information about our upcoming tree study.

Big Ideas:

  • Living things have life cycles adapted to their environment
  • Objects and shapes have attributes that can be described, measured, and compared
  • Effective collaboration relies on clear, respectful communication
  • Designs grow out of natural curiosity

Curricular Competencies:

  • Explain how participation in outdoor activities supports connections with the community and environment
  • Use Social Studies inquiry processes and skills to ask questions; gather, interpret and analyze ideas; and communicate findings and decisions
  • Engage in problem-solving experiences that are connected to place, story, cultural practices, and perspectives relevant to local First Peoples communities, the local community, and other cultures
  • Demonstrate curiosity and a sense of wonder about the world
  • Experience and interpret the local environment
  • Compare observations with those of others
  • Generate and introduce new or refined ideas when problem solving

Learning Involved:

  • Experience and interpret the local environment
  • Exchange ideas and perspectives to build shared understanding
  • Develop and use multiple strategies to engage in problem solving
  • Recognize the relationships between people and the environment in different communities
  • Compare observations with predictions through discussion

First Peoples Principles of Learning:

Learning ultimately supports the well-being of the self, the family, the community, the land, the spirits, and the ancestors

  • Learning is holistic, reflexive, reflective, experiential, and relational

Core Competencies:

Critical Thinking

  • I can ask questions and consider options. I can use my observations, experience, and imagination to draw conclusions and make judgments

Creative Thinking

  • I get new ideas when I play and explore

Communication

  • I can share my ideas and questions
  • I can listen to others

Social Responsibility

  • I am kind to others and our environment
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