Category: Assignment Info

Our main project before Spring Break is to design a playground! 

Due on March 7th, Tuesday. Playground Rubric 2017

Recently, the Suncrest PAC has been discussing ways to improve the playground (in fact, some of your parents are on the committee to help figure out what new equipment to purchase.)

Your job will be to work with a group of designers to pitch ideas for how the PAC could use their money to provide more equipment in the extra space we have for the intermediate area.

You will:

1. Work with a group. Use the seven norms of collaboration and the ladder of inference as your guide.

2. Measure the area provided outside so you can accurately represent the space available.

3. Do some research on playground equipment individually.

4. Bring your ideas to the group. Each person must contribute one piece of equipment to the area, but you can come to the group discussion with multiple ideas.

5. Come to consensus about the pieces of equipment and layout.

6. Make a draft drawing for the layout. Talk about the size of each item in relation the the real size of the playground area. Be able to justify your ideas and think about safety, area to move around the equipment, and overall size of each of the items in the space. 

7. Each person will construct a mini version of their equipment and then put them together into a full model. You will need to build it to scale, and we will talk about this together as I want everyone to use the same scale.

8. Each of you will write a paragraph for your proposal on the playground about your specific piece of equipment. Models should include colour and if equipment is movable, it could also move in the model, which would make a more effective presentation. The paragraphs you write will be put into one write-up for your playground model.

9. You will be marked on your individual piece of equipment, your individual paragraph, and your ability to work toward consensus successfully by solving problems independently. I will ask you to reflect on how this went on the rubric at the end.

10. We will then present our ideas to representatives from the PAC. They may not be able to use your ideas, because ultimately they have a budget they need to work with AND they are also making improvements to the main playground, replacing older items with new. BUT, they are interested in seeing what your ideas are, because it will definitely tell them what kind of equipment you are interested in for the future!

Hello Parents and Students,

At the beginning of this year, I explained to you that we would do two types of math this year — independent math and applied math. The students have been doing CSI Math for applied math this term, typically twice a week, and then for independent math, they receive time twice a week to work in the Math Makes Sense textbooks provided to us.

In MACC, I always try to be responsive to the students, and the feedback they have given me is that they are enjoying the Applied Math (me, too) and the Independent Math is not as engaging due to the repetition in the book. I have also noted that the progress in the book is going too slowly given their abilities, so it is time to make an adjustment.

For this reason, Independent Math now works like this (explained to students today):

• For each unit, do the “Show What You Know” ending section first. It is at the end of the unit chapter.
• Turn in the “Show What You Know” to Ms. D. It will serve as a pre-test for the unit. When I mark it, if you receive 90% and above, then you will not need to do any more homework for that unit, and you can go ahead and take the unit test for a mark.
• If you receive less than 90% on the pre-test, then you will only do lessons in the unit that will help you do better on questions you missed.​ When that is complete, check your answers independently, ask me questions as needed, and then take the unit test for a mark.
• When you turn in “Show What You Know” please mark it with your name, grade level of the book, and the unit number, so I can mark it more quickly.
• Please be patient, as you can always work on Applied Math activities while waiting for your mark from Independent Math.
• If you have done more homework for a unit, please turn it in — it was not wasted time, and I will take note of your efforts!

Here is some more information about your debate on ethics and fairy tales. We will be working with our teams on the following steps and then presenting the debates around February 21st:

• Step One:  Brainstorming Ideas (individually and with our team, using the PRO/CON worksheet I gave you)
• Step Two:  Organize Ideas (which ones are important; give each argument a 3 word name)
• Step Three:  Structure Our Speeches (Create a 1 minute speech that has an introduction, statement of your position, and arguments to support your position)
• Step Four: Make Arguments REAL (Reason, Evidence, Analysis, Link)
• Step Five: Present in front of the class

What will our debate format look like?

• Team 1: One Minute Speech with arguments for person 1 (Captain)
• Team 1: One Minute Speech with arguments for person 2
• Team 2: One Minute Speech with arguments for person 1 (Captain)
• Team 2: One Minute Speech with arguments for person 2
• 10 minute break to prepare rebuttals/response
• Team 1: One Minute Rebuttal for person 3
• Team 2: One Minute Rebuttal for person 3
• 3 minute break to prepare Conclusion
• Team 1: Conclusion (one of three team members)
• Team 2: Conclusion (one of three team members)
• VOTE: Who won? Ms. D and the class will vote together

Where should you look for info to support your debate?

• News Articles (facts versus opinions)
• Personal Stories (of your own or of others – anecdotes)
• Stories/Books (chapter, picture books and short stories)
• Other fairy tales
• Movies (especially non-fiction)

If you are looking online for evidence, where should you look? (Some examples)

• News websites: Globe and Mail, Vancouver Sun, Province, NY Times, CBC, NPR, The National, Global TV, CTV News, CHEK News, or news collections on Google News
• Education websites that end in .edu or Government websites that end in .gov — for other stories that support your question
• News Magazines: Wired, Popular Science, Fortune, Economist, Forbes, Time
• Human Rights Websites: Amnesty International, Unicef, United Nations
• Sports Articles on: ESPN, Sports Illustrated, and other newspapers
• Celebrity Stories may work: People, Time

What kinds of things should you avoid for evidence?

• Blogs (wordpress, blogger) and opinion pieces/editorials in newspapers, which are opinions versus facts
• Wikipedia – great for looking up quick facts, but not for research or deeper information generally
• Lists of things — a list won’t be helpful
• Sites ending in .com, which are businesses
• News organizations which may be overly biased (for example, Fox News tends to be conservative, and Huffington Post tends to be liberal — they aren’t bad news sources and can be used, but be aware they have a specific point of view.)

We will continue working on this in class. More to come!

Hello Everyone!

So, start thinking about your MYSTERIES you need to write. Today, we did a crazy writing exercise, using story cubes dice (which you can find at Granville Island Toys if you liked them), and a group-writing technique to construct short mysteries.

Here are the documents you need to do the MYSTERY WRITING project: Mystery Words, Mystery Elements Writing Guide, Mystery Graphic Organizer, Super Sleuth Peer Editing Sheet, and Mystery Writing Rubric. 

Your stories should be approximately 4 pages (12pt font (Comic Sans/Times New Roman or Arial), typed, double spaced using 1.5 spacing option) and need to have (a):

• Beginning: Start with a HOOK, introduce interesting characters and setting. Try to come up with a name for your characters that would appeal to everyone, not just you. Remember this story is a mystery. It can have funny elements, but the story needs to make sense and not be silly.

• Middle: Talk about the CRIME, the SUSPECTS, the CLUES, and key ACTION as the characters try to solve the mystery. You will need a DISTRACTION, some WITNESSES, and a RED HERRING.

• End: Solve the crime. Who did it? What was their motive (why did they do it)? What is the reward for solving the crime OR how do the characters end their story?

• CSI Details: Use the labs we have done so far during the unit. How will fingerprints, a crime scene, dental records, fibres, bones, etc. be used as clues and evidence?

• DESCRIPTIVE Language: Use our brainstorm lists in the classroom to add adjectives to your stories to make them more interesting. Describe the character, setting, and clues with exciting words. How will you set the mood? This is a mystery, not a funny story, so what kinds of words would you hear? Use a thesaurus actively to look for synonyms.

• DIALOGUE: Your story must have some dialogue. I would like to see 10 sentences in quotes in the story. Remember how to indicate dialogue.

• INDENTS: Remember to indent paragraphs (except for the first one) and to start a new line when a new speaker starts speaking!

• EDITING: Make sure you edit your work. Use a dictionary for spelling and/or spell check. Have a peer look over your work using the mystery peer checker worksheet from Ms. D.

Stories will be due Friday, February 24th. Time will be given for planning and writing in class, so not much will need to be done at home. For those who need the extra time, though, if you do take it home (which means Ms. D has written story writing for agenda on the board), then please do not receive help from Mom and Dad beyond spelling and/or editing questions. The ideas need to be your own, and I should visually see you doing the majority of the work at school, so I can help you with your writing process. Thank you.

We have spent time this unit talking about the structure required to set up a city, as related to FORM=FUNCTION!

• We took some time to identify key features of maps, as we looked at different types of maps from around the world (key vocabulary: grids, compasses, longitude/latitude, key/legend, scale, city maps, and topographical maps.)
• We talked about services needed if you were to set up a city. We looked at Burnaby’s City Services, and we made a chart of services provided at a municipal, provincial, and federal level.
• We also imagined what the first cities would have been like. Where are cities located? We determined they are close to resources that give us our basic needs and economy.
• How do cities change as the population grows? We drew some diagrams about the imaginary Joe Land that grew over time, and then talked about how structure changed and increased as more people moved in!

Now, we are working with a partner to create our own city, which we will advertise with the hope that people will want to come and live there!

Steps to Create the CITY:

• Decide on a city name and the country it is in. Make sure the name isn’t taken. Think about how the name will be appealing to the people that might live there.
• Your city must be on a coastal area that has water access of some sort. You must design the other topographical/land features for the area.
• Think about what kind of city this is. What is its main economy? How does it make money? How will that impact the design of the city?
• How does this city get its needs met and how does this impact its design? Think about its location in relation to resources. How do the natural surroundings meet the needs of its economy?
• What is the population like and how does that affect the design of the city? How many people can live here? What services will there be? What kinds of things do the people who work here want to do?
• Make a draft copy of your city. Use a piece of 8.5×14 paper to make a draft design. It does not need to be to scale. This is just to get a basic idea of your plan.
• Use the Seattle map I provided on the board or another similar-sized map for help with scale. You need to provide a scale for your map, as well as a legend/key, grid marks, and other features. The Seattle map we went over is a great guide, as it is the same size as the large piece of graph paper for your final map.
• Once you have a scale, start sketching out where things will go on the large piece of graph paper. You need to first label the grid. You don’t have to draw grid lines, because they are already on the paper, but you have to label the lines. Then, get a ruler out. Start sketching out the city in pencil, but measure as you go. Are the buildings, roads, and features of your map realistic? You may want to think about the real sizes of things out there. Again, use the map as a guide.
• Colour in the map after you are sure you have it set up correctly.
• Create a brochure to advertise your city, which will talk about your economy, key features, and reasons to live there! (We will talk about this separately next week.)

Criteria for Your Map:

• Well thought out. You have answers to the questions I have asked above. You have shown you are a THINKER about your plan, and that you are KNOWLEDGEABLE using information from our unit.
• Final map is attractive, neat, and well planned.
• Grid lines have been labeled appropriately.
• A key/legend, compass, and other map features as seen on maps provided in class have been provided.
• A scale has been provided on the map, and it was used to decide how big things are and where they are placed. The map features should look appropriate sizes and appropriate locations from one another.
• The map shows the structure of the city. In other words, people would be able to get their needs met and get around through the city, too. City services, resources, economy, and basic needs have been considered.
• Location of natural features should be realistic and appropriate for the type of city you are designing. They should also be appropriate sizes using your scale.

Good luck creating your city! Rubric to follow in class on Monday. City maps are due Friday, Dec. 9th

Hello Everyone,

French dialogues are now due on Monday, but please work on them at home. Everyone was working well, and we needed more time to finish them. Be ready to go for Monday.

LIBRARY TOMORROW! Math Quiz, too!

Here are the videos we looked at today as part of science and social studies discussions around our unit:

City Services of Burnaby

History of Vancouver 

Nikon Universcale

For French Beginners — If you want a fun way to practice pronunciation and to remember basic phrases in French, here are the songs we were playing in class, along with some others you can watch and repeat to get a sense of the language:

Comment tu t’appelles Video for French Help

Bonjour Video Song for French Help

Au Revoir Song for French Help

French Greetings Song for Children

French Months

Thank you,

Ms. D

We will be working on a mini research project about structure. Each of you has chosen a specific area to research, approved by Ms. D in class.

Step One:

Find out information about your topic related to FORM follows FUNCTION and the things we have been talking about in class. Use some of the research sites on the Articles of Interest page to get started.

Please record your resource. Use EasyBib if needed to help! 

You will need to use one encyclopaedia, 2 books, and at least 2 online sources.

Answer these questions, and make sure you record your notes to turn in!:

• What is the form of your structure? (You will need specific details, a labeled diagram with all of the parts labeled.)
• What is the purpose of your structure? 
• Who is the structure for? Who does it benefit or who was it designed for?
• How does it work? How is it built? How do the parts work together?
• What works well with its design? What does not?
• What would need to be changed to make the structure even better?
• Is there anything else that is interesting about the topic you have chosen?
• ONE QUESTION OF YOUR OWN: Make up a question and try to answer it.

Step Two:

Create a PowerPoint, Google Slides, or Prezi presentation with your research. You may not start on it until you show Ms. D your notes. If you have not done PowerPoint much before, then you should choose that one, as it is the easiest to work on.

Avoid putting too many colours. Choose a theme to work with so all slides look similar. Do not put too many words. Use visuals instead. Do not use pictures with any copyright symbols. Do not just use clip art. You will be presenting, so what you will say can be recorded on another sheet of paper as your script.

As you work on your presentation, make sure you save as you go. Name your file in this way without punctuation:

FIRST NAME     STRUCTURE Presentation    TOPIC    DATE (month, day, year – two digits)

For example:  Andrea Structure Presentation Skyscrapers 111516

Make a minimum of 10 slides, using this as your outline to share information from your notes. 

Slide 1:     Interesting Title of Presentation, Your Full Name, Date, Picture filling page
Slide 2:     Introduce the structure and where you would find it.
Slide 3:     Explain what the structure is for. Who uses it? What is its purpose?
Slide 4-6:  Explain how the structure works and how form follows function.
Slide 7:     Explain how the structure works well and how it does not work well.
Slide 8:     Explain how the structure could be improved or other design facts.
Slide 9:     Sum up all of your other slides, like a concluding sentence but in a slide!
Slide 10:   Thank your sources and list the Bibliography

Step Three:

Write a script for what you will say for each slide. Have a peer edit it. Then practice it so you can present it in front of the class. The whole presentation should not be more than 5 minutes long.

HOW TO WRITE A PARAGRAPH
Like we did in class together today!

STEP 1:   Get a topic

STEP 2:  Brainstorm anything you can think of around the topic

STEP 3:  For your first sentence of the paragraph, ask a question about the topic.

Example:  Why are maps important tools to humans?

Example:  Have you ever wondered why everyone needs to celebrate their birthday?

STEP 4:  For your second sentence of the paragraph, start with the TOPIC, the word ARE, and then write three things you think are true about the topic.

Example:  Maps are navigation tools, helpful for learning about a location, and show scale of larger areas.  (three things)

Example:  People celebrate their birthdays because they are marking the passage of time, people like gathering with friends, and having celebrations are fun.  (three things)

STEP 5:  For each of those three things, write 1-2 sentences to add to your paragraph.

Example:  Navigation tools like maps give you an overview of the area and allow you to travel to new places.

Example:  Since the early ages, we have had a need to mark the passage of time, either with a calendar, a clock, or with special occasions. A birthday is a personal marker of time given it shows how long you have been on the planet and how much life experience you have had.

STEP 6: Write a concluding sentence. This sentence is what the reader walks away with. It is the “SO WHAT?” Why did you write this paragraph and what do you want us to think about the topic. It will be what the reader will remember most.

Example:  Next time you are lost or in a country you are unfamiliar with, make sure you check out a map so you can find your way!

Example:  On your next birthday, remember that your special day means more than just eating cake and having fun, because it also marks a special moment in your life!

STEP 7:  Put it all together into one paragraph that is 7-8 sentences long. Make sure you indent at your first line. Give the paragraph a title.

STEP 8:  Have someone edit your work. Make changes. Write a final draft. Put your name on it!!!