Wednesday, January 31st Update!!

Hello Everyone!

Just a quick update to keep everyone on track, as we have had some absences and we have lots going on!

Understanding Immigration!

So far, we have discussed the push and pull factors for why people emigrate and immigrate, and we also learned about some of the larger migration paths taken by people in the world.

How do we determine who gets to immigrate into Canada? Students were asked to read profiles of potential immigrants to Canada, to determine which five out of a group of twelve would be allowed into the country, and then to discuss the selection criteria we would use to make decisions about who comes in or not. We all agreed making decisions about immigration is hard! Tomorrow, we will evaluate the applicants we thought should come into Canada by using the real Canadian Immigration point system that helps determine who receives entry.

How did we get here?

Each student has selected a character to tell the story of how we all came to be in Canada. This includes First Nations, explorers, fur traders, wartime immigrants, and refugees. Everyone will research their characters using the websites provided on the blog or books found in the classroom, then answer questions about their character found here. Once the research is completed, students will write a short speech telling their character’s story in the first person, as they pretend to BE the character! Everyone will make costume and prop pieces to help represent their character’s story, challenges, and time period. Then, we will present our characters! This will be done over the next two weeks.

Our characters so far include:

  • Someone on George Vancouver’s ship
  • Immigrants working on the CPR
  • Syrian, Columbian, and Russian refugees from different time periods
  • A First Nations person crossing Beringia
  • A Viking explorer
  • Alexander Mackenzie
  • A European immigrant to the Prairies
  • Fur Traders and HBC representatives
  • James Cook
  • Henry Hudson
  • John Cabot
  • Samuel Champlain
  • French settler in Montreal
  • Chinese immigrant during the time of the Chinese Head Tax
  • Jacques Cartier

Migration of Animals and Biomes!

So far, we watched Planet Earth: Pole to Pole to learn more about the biomes of the world and how animals migrate between them. Students have researched the biomes, found different characteristics of each one, and created a map to show biome locations in the world. This map is due tomorrow, Thursday, February 1.

Our next step is to talk tomorrow about bird migration, as we will be visiting the Reifel Bird Sanctuary on Friday. You may want to visit the Sanctuary’s website to see where we are going, to find out what kinds of birds are there, and to learn about its history. Please dress for the weather, as it will likely be cold and wet. Thank you in advance to our parent drivers who will help us get there on Friday!

Quilt of Belonging for ART!

Today, I introduced the Quilt of Belonging book, which explains how a huge quilt was created with almost 300 squares representing the many, many cultures in Canada. You can find out more about the quilt, which toured here in Vancouver during the Winter Olympics, on the Quilt of Belong Website. As we look closer at the core competency for personal and cultural identity, students will think about what their own culture is. They will then create an artistic square, using paper and other art supplies, to represent their culture and to add to our class Quilt of Belonging. I look forward to seeing all of our cultures put together into a vibrant quilt presentation!

What is culture? Today we defined it as the way we do things. Here are some things that may shape your culture. Think about these, think about how you might represent those things on the quilt with a symbol, picture, or colour, and begin to sketch designs for your square in the quilt. Think about how your square will have a border of some type and symmetrical designs in each of the four corners. We will be working on the squares Monday afternoon. You may want to have a discussion with Mom and Dad to help!

  1. When looking at your family background, what country or countries did your family come from? Which country plays a role in your identity or they way you do things at home?
  2. What symbols, family artifacts, artwork, or other object represents you and your family? What kinds of things do you like to put up in the house as decor?
  3. Do you celebrate a religion? Does the religion play a role in how you do things at home? Do you have any specific beliefs?
  4. Are there specific celebrations, festivals, traditions, and holidays your family thinks are important?
  5. What foods are important to your family? 
  6. What clothes are worn in your family? Any traditional outfits that represent your culture?
  7. What colours does your family identify with? What kinds of colours do you see around the house?
  8. What animals, natural places, or weather best represents you and your family?

Math — Measurement, Multiplication, Area:

Our Math Quiz has been postponed so we can finish presentations of the machines PowerPoints and slideshows tomorrow. Since we are having the field trip on Friday, we will do the quiz on Monday, February 5th. If you are absent, just do the quiz when you return.

If you are away, please do pick up the math game and You Do the Math handouts that may have been distributed. Right now, page one of the You Do the Math Skyscrapers should be done as well as the Metric Conversion practice so you are prepared for Monday’s quiz.

Some students also needed to re-work challenge problems from the Wonders of the World Pyramids and Terracota Warriors math, which involved multiplication and surface area. These are challenging problems, but keep at them! You have the answers now, so please do re-work them to see how you can improve your computations. If you need help, we can talk in class.

Language Arts:

Most everyone has finished their debate paragraph and we are ready to start debating! We will start tomorrow by practicing improvised speechmaking for rebuttals. I look forward to hearing everyone’s arguments!

Other:

Upcoming field trip heads up — February 23rd we will be going to Britannia Mines as part of our next unit. Please mark your calendars.

Have a great night!

Ms. D

 

Update January 19th! Getting going with a new unit

Hello Everyone!

Here are some quick updates so everyone knows what is going on in our class!

New Unit, Migration!:

I asked the class the question, “How did we get here?” I didn’t mean, how did we get to school this morning, or how did we get to grade 4/5. What I meant was how did we all get here? What is our story of how we ended up having our lives here? 

We have begun exploring Canada’s story, beginning with the First Nations who came here via Beringia, then the explorers who came here from Europe, and the immigrant groups who found a new home in Canada. It is a complex history with so much to cover. We will go over our history in a general way, so we are aware of the timeline and reasons people came to Canada. Then, I will ask everyone to become a specialist. Each student will choose a character (either an actual, named character, or a creative, made-up person from a specific time period) to research in more detail. They will create a mini-monologue for that person and present it in a creative way. More details on this to come, but I have asked everyone to begin thinking of WHO they might want to research in more detail or WHAT time period they want to focus on for the project. I think this will be a fun way to learn more about the story of Canada!

I also asked everyone to take home a family tree and map, as we would like to map everyone’s migration journey. This may mean having a conversation at home about the journey previous generations made to eventually end up in Canada. The family tree and map are due on Monday. Thank you in advance for your immigration stories if you are willing to share!

A short unit quiz from unit two will be on Monday. Please review questions from your journal from when we did the unit review together. It will be multiple choice and short answer.

Language Arts:

We are finishing up our last unit by preparing for debates on technology. Each student is asked to have 20 pieces of evidence prepared on cards by end of day Monday. Debate teams have been assigned. We will write debate speeches and talk about persuasive language next week, which will be followed by the actual debates! I look forward to the conversations. Remember, your opinions need to be backed up with some actual FACTS and QUOTES from your research!

For general grammar and writing practice, we will also be doing the following during the next few weeks.

  • Vocab Study: Each Monday, students will independently choose 10 words from the advanced vocabulary list I provided that they do not already understand. In their journal, they will write short definitions for each one and two sentences for words that are the most challenging. On the next Monday, a partner will call out the words to give them a spelling test for their journals. So, our first spelling test of challenge words is next Monday.
  • Byrdseed Grammar and Phunny Enuf: Using two resources for more advanced students, we will do mini grammar lessons in class between other unit activities. Hopefully this will provide a fun way to review some common errors found in students’ writing.
  • 642 Big Things to Write About: Students will be asked to do some creative writing using a choice of writing prompts. After doing several, we will choose one to revise, to work on in more detail, and to edit carefully for publication.

MATH:

Students were asked to practice metric conversion using websites found on the blog. If you haven’t done this, please do so!

We have been developing a deeper sense of multiplication, discussing multiples, factors, digital roots, square roots, divisibility, order of operations, and more. Some of this work is done in our journals and a part is done through playing games. If anyone has difficulty immediately recalling multiplication facts up to the 12s, I recommend using these games for extra practice. We even made some games of our own, especially for student who were ready to practice more advanced numbers.

For anyone in upper math, we are focusing on math properties. Please take a look at this website on math properties to expand your knowledge in this area.

You can also practice using the properties and order of operations here.

Here are some games for order of operations.

Ms. D also gave out a challenge from Perfectly Perilous Math about the deadly pendulum. Answer to be discussed on Monday! We will continue doing challenges for fun from this book.

NEXT — We will be working from YOU DO THE MATH: Skyscrapers as we put together measurement, multiplication, operations, area, perimeter, and other math skills to talk about building, construction, and engineering. More on that next week.

OTHER:

Young People’s Concert next Thursday morning!

Tennis will be coming up as an activity for PE in early February!

Please do check out our lovely zentangle, watercolour trees posted on the bulletin board to the right of Ms. Hetrick’s room, near the office and the side doors of the school. Everyone did an amazing job of using elements and principles to make these!

Students will begin working again on French-games.net, so stay tuned.

Field trip coming up on February 2nd, Friday. Many thanks to everyone who volunteered to drive!

Have a great weekend!

Ms. D

New Unit! The Way We Move

Hello Everyone!

We are in the process of finishing up our last unit! Over the next week, we will do our PowerPoint presentations about machines we think have had the greatest impact on humanity and continue preparing for our debates about technology.

But it is time for a new unit, and we will begin to have discussions about it! Here you go:

Unit Focus Statement: Migration is a response to challenges, risks, survival, and a natural need to explore.

Areas of Inquiry: Covering Socials, Science, LA, ART, PE/Health

  • Human migration and it impact on Canada and the world (which will involve discussions about explorers, fur trade, gold rush, and times migration occurred in our history)
  • The reasons people move throughout the world
  • The nature of EXPLORATION (not just that of explorers!)
  • The biomes of the world
  • The similarities between humans and other animals as related to migration
  • Becoming more aware of world geography

We will also continue to look at MATH in the following ways as part of Math Makes It Work:

  • Measurement and Metric Conversion (how it involves the base 10, multiplication, division, and decimals)
  • A deeper sense of multiplication
  • Area and Perimeter
  • Geometrical shapes, angles
  • Math related to Skyscrapers from the book You Do The Math

We will also continue to work on FRENCH, focusing on the following:

  • French Immersion students will be working on reading French graphic novels and creating conversations amongst themselves for presentation
  • Beginning French students will focus on basic conversations and do presentations in front of the class in partner groups
  • All students will focus on countries where French is spoken in connection with our geography studies
  • All students will continue to use technology for their French studies through Duolingo and French-Games.net

This unit will take us through February 20th approximately, and then on to the next one!

Ms. D

SFU Fun Opportunities for Students

Hello Everyone,

I wanted to pass along some information about upcoming programs for elementary, middle, and high school students interested in computer science and engineering! 

Please find a brief description of upcoming programs below with detailed information available at the SFU website at https://www.sfu.ca/fas/news-and-outreach/community-outreach.html

As I am only passing along information and can’t answer questions, please direct inquiries to fasevent@sfu.ca 

Technovation (January to May 2018)

Open to girls ages 10 to 18. The Technovation Challenge teaches middle and high school girls how to make an app for a mobile phone using AppInventor.  This 12-week, online, after-school program is structured so that groups of girls (ages 10-18) learn how to identify a problem, design and test a solution, collaborate with a team and communicate effectively.  Each team will work though the Technovation curriculum with assistance from a mentor. 

Girls Get IT (May 26, 2018)

Open to girls ages 9 to 11. Each year, the Faculty of Applied Sciences hosts a great opportunity for girls aged 9-11 to learn about the fields of Computing Science and Engineering! Participants take part in various activities and have the chance to talk to current students about what it means to be a computing scientist or engineer. All activities are supervised by SFU faculty and staff. Girl Guides Canada participants complete all requirements for both their computing science and engineering badges. 

Science AL!VE (Throughout the year)

Open to grade K to 9 students depending on the specific program. Science Alive provides opportunities for youth to explore science beyond the textbook through hands-on, interactive discovery which stimulates their interest and fosters confidence. A student-run not-for-profit organization based at Simon Fraser University,  Science AL!VE is supported by the Faculty of Applied Sciences, and a member of Actua, a national organization that reaches 225,000 youth annually. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

Our First Day Back! January 8th

Hello Everyone,

Just some quick updates from MACC n’ Cheese.

  • Reifel Bird Sanctuary February 2nd: Please ask your parents if they are willing to drive on Friday, February 2nd, for our field trip to the bird sanctuary. We need about 8 more passenger spots to make this work.
  • Gym Shoes: Make sure on Monday/Wednesday/Friday you have runners. You can’t run in boots, so you will have to sit out if you don’t have proper shoes. Having to sit out multiple times can affect your mark. Thank you for remembering proper footwear.
  • Report Card Envelopes: Please return report card envelopes, signed.
  • Most Influential Machine: Choose the machine or technology you think has had the most impact, positive or negative, on humans and the world. Do 15-30 minutes of research on this item tonight. You will be creating a PowerPoint of at least 10 slides that explains what the machine/technology is, how it works, its history, and the reasons you think it is the most influential. We will work on these all this week.
  • City of Ember: Please finish the novel before end of week. Please complete questions in your journal.
  • Tree Art: Great work today discussing the elements and principles of art, drawing trees outside, creating the outline of your tree, and finelining it. Next step — zentangle! If you didn’t finish the outline and finelinining part, use silent reading tomorrow to complete it so you stay on track.
  • Britannia Mines Trip All Day Feb. 23rd, Friday
  • Absences: This is a short term overall, and we have our next report card on March 16th before Spring Break begins. If you know you will be absent for a few days, please let me know the dates. Check the blog while away and ensure you stay up to date. When you return, make sure to check in and complete work that was missed so it can be counted for term two report cards. Work for term two is due by March 2nd.

As you consider which machine or technology to choose for your PowerPoint, check out this list of some of the Greatest Engineering Achievements of the 20th Century.

Have a great evening!

Ms. D

Rube Goldberg!

Hello Everyone!

Using our knowledge of simple machines, we will be building a Rube Goldberg machine! Before we begin, please do some investigation. On Rube Tube you can watch a variety of Rube Goldberg contraptions and get some ideas. You can also read about Rube Goldberg himself on this biographical website.

Consider the DESIGN PROCESS as you create your own contraption!

  1. Ask a question – What task will your machine complete?
  2. Imagine what you would do – Brainstorm ideas and watch Rube Tube.
  3. Plan and consider materials – Make a draft in your journal and a list of supplies
  4. Create something based on your plan – all day Friday or Monday
  5. Reflect, make adjustments to improve, and document changes — Journal!
  6. Present final product – Show it to Ms. D

You will have a whole day to build. The contraption must use at least three simple machines. Documentation of all your building steps is a must! I will be marking both your journal and your final presentation, so even if your product is amazing, you need written observations. Even if the machine doesn’t work, you need to show evidence of having considered simple machines and be able to explain your process to me.

We will build the machines on Friday during a large chunk of the day. Begin looking for ideas and materials from home. I have a lot of building supplies here, but if you need something specific, then please look at home. You shouldn’t need to buy anything new, so please focus on recyclables and toys you already have.

One way to make your machine more interesting is to consider how it might tell a story. When you watch the OK Go video on Rube Tube, it is based on a song. How does it tell a story or have a message?

I look forward to seeing your machines!

Update December 8th!

Hello Everyone,

Just a quick update to bring everyone up to speed with what we have been doing in the classroom!

Unit Work – Science:

We continue to talk about simple machines and how they are used in more complex technology!

  • We used rulers and blocks to do a CANTILEVER balancing challenge in groups,
  • We looked at how cantilevers are used in bridges and cranes,
  • We read about fixed and movable pulleys and tried to make some of our own to deliver messages across the classroom,
  • Ms. D set up a fixed pulley clothesline system across the classroom to deliver messages,
  • Ms. D brought in some 3D printed pulleys and spring scales to experiment with lifting loads and reducing the force required,
  • Students had opportunities to either play with or build mini machines using hydraulics and simple machines,
  • We used iPads to play the game Simple Physics to explore cantilevers and other physics principles in contruction,
  • Students experimented with inclined planes while playing with “Build Your Own Wooden Pinball” engineering sets from the AWIM Engineering Design Group, and
  • We read together multiple picture books showing the many simple machines INSIDE of other, more complex machines, which led to interesting conversation!

We have been doing a lot of great experimenting in class! Pictures to come as soon as I can get them all re-sized and posted.

We also began talking about mechanical advantage and how WORK is expressed in joules, FORCE is expressed in Newtons, and DISTANCE is expressed in meters as we solve math equations about force! W=F x D. Our next step is to do some experimenting with forces and ramps AND to build a Rube Goldberg machine!

Unit Work – Socials:

We read two entertaining picture books called Nerdy Birdie Tweets and The Fabulous Friend Machine, which led to great conversations about how social media has impacted our lives. Students discussed the pros and cons of new technology for communication, and then they made lists in their journals of the top ways to ensure social media safety!

We created a larger list of all technologies out there, and then as a class began deciding whether those technologies were positive or negative for humanity and the health of the planet. A week ago, through a group web activity, we discussed how all technologies have an impact, as their existence and/or use is interconnected to the environment, to natural resources, and to all aspects of our lives. Each student chose 5 technologies or inventions and wrote the positive and negative impacts. This handout was due Friday morning.

All of this work is preparing us for a final project in which students have to choose an invention they believe has had the greatest impact AND prove their case through research. We will also be having classroom debates on the impact of video games and social media.

Thank you for all of the great TIMELINE work you did, showing how CREATIVE THINKING has been used over time to make technologies! You can see some of the timelines in the hallway near the music room, and then some I will find room for in the classroom.

Math:

Some of our math is interconnected with the unit, as we have started discussing mechanical advantage, which will require some math equations, problem solving, and multiplication!

We also have been doing measurement! I encourage everyone to find measuring tools at home and to practice using both metric and imperial systems to measure! Find ways to use and to discuss measurement at home as we explore it at school!

Math survey projects are now complete and marks are going home Monday. Some of the projects are displayed in our classroom.

Language Arts:

Based on our work from the TED Talks, we will continue to work on areas of grammar and language students need to review, such as parts of speech, sentence construction, transition words, and proper paragraphing. We will also continue to work on advanced vocabulary lists throughout the rest of term two, such as the Greek and Latin word list we have used to invent new words, to write pretend magical spells, or to create new monsters from our imaginations.

In connection with our unit, we are reading the book City of Ember, to further discuss what the world would be like without technology or with scarce resources. Students are primarily reading the books in class and answer questions as we go. We are also analyzing the book through the READING POWER model, which I will talk about more in a future post.

Holiday FUN!

This month is all about MAKING as we get ready for the holidays. So far, we have made three mini projects, and there will be more to come next week! We participated in the HOUR OF CODE on December 8th, and I hope to bring out other technology tidbits before we go to break.

We are doing a Secret Santa and each person, if they chose to participate, was assigned a person from class. Each person provided a wish list of 3 items that are under $5. Please do not spend more than that on Secret Santa. Made items are totally okay, too, although do try to follow the wish list as possible.

Reminder to be looking for WHITE ELEPHANT gifts, too, as you voted as a class to have this fun gift game again on Dec. 22nd! Only find one if you will be there that day. Guidelines:

  • If you can’t find a gift, please see Ms. D  — I will help!
  • Please avoid food and used stuffies, as we have lots of allergies in the class
  • Gift items do not have to be expensive and can be any recycled gift you have
  • Ideas: books you have read before, gifts you received you don’t want, toys you are done playing with, building/making supplies, craft kits you aren’t going to use, or mugs/kitchen items you don’t want anymore.
  • Gifts should be clean and usable
  • Gifts should be wrapped without any names on them at all
  • Gifts can be hidden inside of other boxes to fool the people choosing them 

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Ms. D directly via email, not on the blog. Thank you!

Happy Holidays and have a good weekend!

Ms. D

Communication Competency! Update Friday December 1st

Hello Everyone!

Happy Holidays are upon us! Ms. D set up her holiday tree in the classroom today so we can fill it with some maker projects over the next three weeks, which connects well with our unit on machines and technology. I look forward to having fun making things with all of you! If you have any ideas of smaller, holiday tree projects we can do, remember students, feel free to comment on this blog entry with ideas! Next week, we will also celebrate the Hour of Code!

Today students worked away on projects. There is the Socials Technology Timeline and the Math Survey Project, both due Tuesday end of day. Many students are choosing to take some of the work home, and there are also dedicated periods in class to work on both projects on Monday and Tuesday.

Students received their math quiz marks, and parents please do sign them so they can be returned right away to student portfolio folders in class. Thank you! Everyone did very well and they are using the learning in their current math project.

We spent a lot of time talking about Communication Skills during the first term, and now we are moving on to unpacking Creating Thinking! Today I sent home a Parent Letter Core Competencies, a copy of the Communication Competency Profile from the BC Curriculum, and a Communication Competency Reflection Handout. Students began reflecting on their communication skills in class, and I ask everyone to please continue the conversation at home about future goals and areas of growth. Handouts are due back to me on Monday, thank you!

We will finish up TED Talks and French quizzes early next week! Thank you for all of your hard work and collaboration in groups over the last few days. 

Have a great weekend!

Ms. D

Charting Technology’s Impact! Update Wednesday, November 28th

Hello Everyone!

Yesterday was very exciting! We worked with tools, measured our stuffed animals, collaborated with peers, and did some great learning together.

Unit: Socials

We are continuing our conversation about technology’s impact on humanity and our world. Each student has chosen an area of technology, such as communications, entertainment, transportation, or health, to research further. With their findings, students will create a timeline of technology developments! We have looked at some timeline examples in class, and a wide range of non-fiction books on inventions and machines are available to use. We discussed strategies for using non-fiction resources, such as using synonyms for our topic as we look through the table of contents or the index. 

Timeline criteria includes:

  • Use no more than 4 pieces of legal-sized paper to create the timeline,
  • Use a ruler to make the “line” for your timeline down the center, and then mark off specific dates. I showed examples in class.
  • Use both words and coloured pictures to illustrate the changes in technology. Limit any words to the name of a technology, the date, and 1-2 sentences about the technology or change in history.
  • Make sure to focus on machines, technology, and devices. We don’t need the whole history of your topic area. Our focus is machines.
  • Write words in pencil, then go over it in fine liner at the end so it is visible.
  • We will display these in the hallway, so make sure all words and pictures are appropriate.
  • We will have one week, and you may use time in class and at home.

Unit: Science and Art

As we talked about simple machines, we discussed how the WEDGE makes work easier because it helps us split things with less effort. We looked at sandpaper and its purpose, and we talked about how the edges of sand particles (the small rocks and minerals in sand) act as tiny wedges, splitting away the wood slowly to smooth it down.

Each student received a piece of wood to sand down, and everyone said it was hard work! Then, we used another machine, the hammer, to put nails into our wood piece in a pattern. This will become a lovely piece of art after everyone finishes connecting the nails with coloured yarn and string! I look forward to the finished product. And I enjoyed watching everyone work with hammers and learn how to use simple levers successfully — for some it was the first time! Stay tuned for more making projects during the month of December! And thank you to all parents who donated hammers for us to use. They will be returned shortly, as soon as students finish up.

Language Arts

About half of the class has finished their TED Talks. During the delivery of these speeches, students are practicing their communication skills from the BC Core Competencies by listening attentively, providing positive feedback afterwards, and practicing the gentle ways to give and to receive constructive criticism to improve for next time. With every project, we are exercising our self-assessment muscles, and hearing feedback from peers helps students find the words to fill out their assessment rubrics.

French

Thank you to everyone who has completed their French quizzes online. Ms. D will start doing the oral quizzes today and over the next couple of days, as it will take time to get through everyone.

Math

Thank you to everyone who did their homework and brought in a stuffed animal yesterday! We had a wide variety of interesting critters! The purpose was to have something to measure and to begin our new unit Math Makes It Work. We talked about the differences between the imperial and metric measuring systems, and then discussed how it is important to know how to use both! Students used both systems to measure the height, width, and breadth of their animals. Meanwhile, we also created a measuring wall, where we put down the measurements of all students in the classroom, along with the heights of our stuffed animals. It will be interesting to see if everyone’s height changes as the year goes on!

Math quizzes were completed, and I will hopefully have marks from these by the end of the week. 

Math Survey projects are due next week on Tuesday. Use your time wisely in class to get your data from the surveys organized and to talk with your partner about how you will display the data on one poster in an interesting way. Remember you have a rubric with criteria on it in your math binders!

Reminders!

  • If any parent knows of an engineer or science-based person who would like to come in and talk — or anyone who works with technology (digital or any kind of machines) — then please let Ms. D know! We are looking for visitors!
  • Please save recycled items, particularly tubes and interesting bits for building. The students will be doing a project next week that involves a need for parts!
  • Library on Wednesday, so reminder to bring in your books!
  • Please return signed work back to the classroom as soon as possible, so we can put it in our black portfolios!
  • Break does not start until Dec. 22nd. If you are planning on leaving early, please let me know ASAP, as we will be doing unit activities until the end. Thank you!

Have a great day! I look forward to December, as we will have Hour of Code next week and lots of maker things to do leading up to the break!

Ms. D

Quick Update on Friday, November 17th

Hello Everyone!

Just a quick update of what we are doing as we head into the weekend!

  • TED TALK: Everyone has finished writing these, and we will print them in class on Monday. Please practice your speech over the weekend, as we will present them on Thursday, November 23rd.
  • UNIT-TECHNOLOGY: We began our unit by defining technology and creating a poster to document our current feelings on whether technology is a benefit for humanity overall, or not. We began talking about technology pros and cons, and we read two great parodies by Ayn Droyd to talk about the impact social media and personal tech devices have had on our lives.
  • UNIT-SIMPLE MACHINES: We identified the types of simple machines, and we have begun trying to identify where we see them in the more complex machines around us. We discussed how a machine is something that was designed to make work easier — we hope! Today, students lifted Ms. D with a large wood lever to discuss how levers work! We discussed LOAD, FULCRUM, and EFFORT, and how the distance of the load from the fulcrum can make work easier or harder. Please finish the Simple Machines Handout for Monday.
  • MATH: We are finishing up some math material from unit one, reviewing types of graphs, practicing some more with decimals, and we even talked about probability using Monopoly and Yahtzee games today. Some students are still working on making their Google Form Survey online for our math project, and hopefully the surveys will all be ready early next week to send out!
  • ART: If you haven’t brought a rock yet, please bring one for Monday!
  • FRENCH: Please finish all French quizzes on Human Body, Numbers 1-20, and Foods from French-Games.net before Thursday, November 23rd. Some of you may need to catch up at home with the lessons, so you can do the quizzes more quickly in class and show results to Ms. D. We will have a formal quiz on Dec. 1st on saying the ABCs in French, saying your numbers 1-20, and writing the basic human body parts. Everyone is making a vocabulary list for themselves using the website to study. French Immersion students are working in the French Literature Books on French summaries, as well as reading Debrouillards Magazine for further French practice.
  • BUILDING! Please bring in any tubes you have at home in the recycling!!
  • NO SCHOOL NEXT FRIDAY NOV. 24th
  • CARIBOU Results Posted, please check online

That’s all for tonight. Have a great weekend!

Ms. D

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