Holiday Events and More!

Hello Everyone,

Some great holiday events are coming up! On Friday, December 18th, our last day of school, we will be having a Pancake Breakfast, and our division will be eating away from 9:30-9:55 AM. It is also a pajama day for the entire school! Students can come in their pajamas, and everyone is allowed to bring a stuffie if they want (stuffies are to be kept in our classroom at all times to protect them, thanks!)

Also on our last day, we will have a Holiday Party as a class. We have each committed to bring something, and in today’s agenda we wrote what we volunteered to bring. If that item is a problem, please let us know!

Everyone received their name for a Secret Santa gift today! You can bring these in any time before Dec. 18th, and on that day, we will open them together. The idea is to make something for the person or if you buy something, to not spend more than $5. We made a list of fun suggestions on the board. The class voted on this as an event they wanted to do.

Another event for that day, during our party, is a movie and White Elephant gift exchange. Students are asked, if they are able, to find something that is still usable and hygienic, but that they no longer want (for example, a toy they don’t want, or bunches of random lego, or a book, etc.). It is to be wrapped, and then we will be sitting in a circle, drawing numbers, and each choosing a gift to unwrap; however, these gifts can be stolen! The purpose of the game is to see which gift you will end up with, and we talked about how you may end up walking away with something you might not want, but that this is what makes the game funny and fun! Ms. D has also committed to participate. If anyone has difficulty with finding something, no worries, as you can talk to Ms. D and we will find something in her stash for you to add to the tree. This is to be fun, not something that is hard to do. I even have wrapping paper if you need it!

Homework tonight is: Tuning In due tomorrow, 8 pieces of evidence for our video games debate done on the evidence sheets, and research ideas/facts for your presentation on the machine or technology you believe has had the most impact on society.

Also, I know many of the students are nervous about their first report card. We have talked many times about what an A, B or C means. An “A” is really going above and beyond, and a B is a great mark! It is not to be expected that everyone will get all As in every area, and at the same time, no one has a horrible report card for term one, and everyone did very well, overall! The marks given involved work we did, the participation rubric you all have seen, and also student input, as they evaluated themselves in each area of acacemics and the learner profile. Sometimes everyone is very hard on themselves, using language to criticize themselves harshly, and they really want to do well for everyone. Sometimes they tell me they are terrible at something, and we talk about how it is important to re-word that thinking and say, “I am challenged in that area, but with work, I can get it.” Sometimes we talk about how being good at things does take practice, and that everyone has different strengths they bring to our fabulous MACC group. We also talk about how stress around school is often counter productive, resulting in learning being associated with negative feelings. Everyone has worked very hard and contributed to our learning, and I have enjoyed working with each and every student. I know everyone has become more aware of themselves during term one, and that each person is working on specific areas of growth. I look forward to helping each of them with their goals in term two!

Have a great evening!