Day: February 11, 2016

Spanish Exploration on the West Coast

Today we discussed some of the history of BC. Who came first to the coast? What country appeared here first? Did you know that Vancouver Island used to be called La Isla de Quadra y Vancouver? And that Quadra was the Spanish explorer who did a lot of the charting of the region before George Vancouver did? Why are there so many islands and places on the west coast that have Spanish names? This has been a hot topic of debate for a long time, although we often don’t hear about it. The history of the region has changed over time as more artifacts are discovered that prove who came first to BC. Here are a few articles to explore about this controversial bit of history!

Globe and Mail Unearthing B.C.’s mysterious Spanish roots

National Post  How the discovery of a 460-year-old English shilling in B.C. could help rewrite the early history of Canada

A student’s prezi about the history of early explorers in BC Spanish Explorers in BC

(heavier reading) British Columbia Open Textbook British Columbia in a Global Context

Canadian Geographic Spanish Explorers in BC Map

You Tube Spanish Explorers in BC

 

Great story to read and watch about a former refugee

Here is a great story about Milana Vayntrub, an actress and comedian. “But Vayntrub is more than just an actor: she’s a comedian, a producer, and a former refugee. And now she’s speaking out about her experience on the behalf of her refugee assistance charity #CantDoNothing.”

Go see the article to learn more about what she is doing about the Syrian Refugee Crisis.

Why It Matters That This Woman You See Almost Every Time You Watch TV Is A Refugee

If you have found any articles you wish to share about this topic, please let me know by responding to this post!

Fantastic Chinese New Year Celebration, Wednesday Feb. 10

Wow! What a great Chinese New Year celebration! I haven’t seen it done so elaborately before in other schools, so it was great to see everyone’s excitement and performances. Thank you to all of Division 5 for their musical contributions; to Shelley for playing piano; to Emma, Sylvia and Shelley for ribbon dancing; to Emma and Sylvia for fan dancing; and to David, Adrian and Shelley for the beautiful banners. If I missed anyone, I apologize, but I was impressed with all of your work and that you all contributed to the school community! (Division 5 is starting to make a name for itself at Suncrest after this and the Reader’s Theatre presentations last week!)

Today we began working on puppet pals, which is an app in which you can make a story, record your voice, create backgrounds, etc. If you have an iPad at home, I highly recommend it. There is a free version, but we are using the Puppet Pals HD Director’s Pass. Everyone experimented with the app today, and we will be using it to make a story about our animals, their migrations, and the biomes where they live.

We are also finishing up our Quilt of Belonging pieces, which are due by EOD Friday.

We read more chapters from Lemoncello and we are now working on a language arts project to create a fabulous game Mr. Lemoncello would want in his collection! The game must 1. Be creative, 2. Be a board game, 3. Involve some strategy, and 4. Not be a game we have copied or found elsewhere. We will construct the games and share them with other partner groups in class.

Tomorrow we have a socials and science quiz on migration. We reviewed material yesterday and today. Please use your binder to study: key vocabulary, push factors, pull factors, criteria for immigrating into Canada, the difference between a 1st and 3rd world country, biomes, migration cues and types for animals, etc. I see many of you left your blue binders here when you packed your bags, so I hope you are all set for tomorrow?

Don’t forget our Reifel Bird Sanctuary field trip slips!

Have a good night!