Category: Important Reminders

Great Field Trip Today! And Change to Office Hours

Great Field Trip Today!
  • Thank you to Max’s, Naomi’s, and Michael’s moms for coming with us on our trip to MOA! We appreciate your help!!
  • We enjoyed the program on the potlatch and then had an opportunity to see the rest of the museum.
  • Tomorrow we will debrief together and continue our work finishing this unit on human rights and action. I am looking forward to our projects!
Change — No Office Hours on Tuesdays:
  • In order to better accommodate changes in my afternoon schedule and to ensure time to talk with everyone, I will no longer be having open office hours on Tuesdays. Please make an appointment to see me if it is something longer than a quick question. I am also always on email and will respond as soon as possible. Thank you in advance for your understanding!
Assignments, Agendas, Blog, etc.:
  • Please note the blog is not the daily agenda. There are times I do not update daily. Students are responsible for writing down homework/reminders in their agendas, which I write on the board and discuss at the end of each day.
  • Please check your child’s agenda daily. I found several students leaving agendas in the cloakroom, so I am going to be checking more carefully if the agendas are signed.
  • The blog is a great tool for knowing what we are doing in class for our large units, and I recommend you check it and comment on it, please!
  • If your child is doing something at home that is not on their agenda list, please ask them, “Do you have to do this for the next day?”
  • If your child is unable to do an assignment, please encourage them to talk with me about what their plan is for getting it done. Better to communicate than not do it. Better late than never.
  • Students received back assignments they turned in, except for Tuning In. They received Checks from my quick marking system on this, as explained in my beginning of year handout.
  • Assignments are stored in their blue binders. Students can take them home, but they MUST return back with them to school.
  • We have project work coming up and a specific criteria sheet will be provided for marks. They will be bringing this home for signature soon.
As always, please let me know if you have any questions or if there is something I can help clarify.
Thank you!
Ms. D

Museum of Anthropology Trip Thursday, October 6th

Just a reminder that we will be at the Museum of Anthropology October 6th, Thursday. I am looking forward to the program we will attend, which will involve learning more about the potlatch tradition. We will also have the opportunity to see the rest of the museum after lunch. Students need to bring a disposable lunch, snack, and water bottle for their visit. Given space on the bus, no large backpacks are allowed, so please limit what you bring or use a simple string bag to hold items.

***Please do not bring a camera and/or valuables. Ms. D will take photos during our time there, as will other parent volunteers. Thank you!

One of the exhibits we can see is called:

LAWRENCE PAUL YUXWELUPTUN: UNCEDED TERRITORIES

Lawrence Paul Yuxweluptun is an artist who uses abstract painting and sculpture to communicate about emotions and issues surrounding land and First Nations groups in British Columbia. Please see the MOA’s web link to learn more about him and watch the video at the bottom.

POTLATCH

Read about First Nations Background here so you are better prepared for our program. We have spent time talking about many of these things in class, and will revisit them this week before our trip. There is also a map of First Nations in BC you can look at that contains the traditional names of groups mentioned in the museum.

Agendas Sent Home Tonight!

Hello Everyone,

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Today we passed out our beautiful, new agendas! A pink notice was sent home to pay for them online via the Suncrest main website. 

Here are our roles for helping keep students on track with home studies or reminders using the agenda tool:

Student:

  • At the end of the day, write down everything from the board.
  • Write everything down because Ms. D might not post everything on the blog. 🙂
  • Bring the agenda to school every day.
  • Remind parents to sign your agenda.
  • Monitor homework and sleep. Including 20 minutes of reading, homework should not be more than 60 minutes/night. You need 10-12 hours of sleep. You also need down time to process the day and be ready for the next one.
  • Put homework and notices in your homework binder. Avoid taking class binders home when you can.

Teacher:

  • Clearly write reminders, notices, school events, and homework on the board
  • Sign agendas at end of day several times a week. When we have big projects or events at end of the day, the teacher may need to check it the next day instead.
  • Put extra notices on a clip up at the whiteboard for those who missed them.
  • Check to see that parents are signing agenda.
  • Post to blog to help keep everyone informed.

Parent:

  • Sign agenda every evening and check to see if there are notices
  • Sign Reading Around the World duotang for 20 minutes of reading
  • Monitor child’s time spent doing homework. If it becomes a habit to be doing more than 60 minutes every night, talk about how class time is being used, whether or not the work really needs to be done that night, and time management.
  • Encourage your child to speak with me directly about concerns.

REMINDERS FOR TONIGHT:

  • Conference forms due as soon as possible
  • Student Forms packets need to be returned
  • Terry Fox $2 Drive
  • Rumblebot Race tomorrow, so bring supplies to work on or bots you have worked on at home
  • Agenda $ pay online
  • Music Cover Sheet due next Monday when we have music

Have a good night!

Ms. D

Rumblebots!!!!!! An exciting afternoon of energy and force!

Hello Everyone!

We had a great day, doing the following:

  • Discussion about human rights around the world
  • Continued read aloud of A Night Divided
  • Continued Math Assessments to determine level in independent math
  • Science Lesson on ENERGY (Kinetic, Potential, Gravitational, Thermal, etc.)
  • Rumblebots challenge!!

Ms. DeTerra brought out her Rumblebots Racer Track and challenged students to build mini racers to go on our vibrating track! Racers need to be no wider than 6cm and no longer than 10cm. Today they were only able to use bristol board and scissors, but for tonight, I open the challenge to using other materials. Please bring them in if you want, as I will give some time tomorrow for building and then have one scheduled race for all of us. We had a lot of fun today! Congrats to Michael on building the winning racer today. Let’s see what happens tomorrow!

See the Rumblebots Racer video for more information on this challenge. Family members are welcome to help!

Please see all the forms today and make sure to verify student information. Please return forms as soon as possible!!

Have a great night!

Ms. D

Genetics Lab Tomorrow! & Other News April 21st

Hello Everyone!

Tomorrow please be here at 8:45 AM on time to leave for the BC Cancer Agency Genetics Lab via bus. Sophia’s and Naomi’s parents will be joining us, thank you! We will be done at 12:00 – 12:15 PM, then return to school, have a quick lunch, and go to music class at 1PM. Please bring a snack, water bottle, and lunch. You also need closed-toe shoes as we will be in a lab setting.

Our DRAGON BOATING TRIP was approved by the School Board May 25th 9:45-11:45, June 1 9:45-11:45, and June 8 9:45-12:15. Cost is $25, due on April 29th along with the forms. A hard copy of the notice goes home tomorrow, but here is the Dragon Boating Parent Notice MACC and Required Insurance Form Dragon Boating. All students must pay $25 to participate, even if they already plan to not be here for one session, as the payment is based on overall numbers for staffing at the Burnaby Canoe and Kayak Club.

Dragon Boat DRIVERS who told me they could drive need to reconfirm the dates, let me know how many students in the back seats you can take, and then fill out a driver’s form from the office.

Student Led Conferences times on April 28th have been confirmed via your child’s agenda. When you show up, please understand it is an open house setting with multiple people participating. There will be stations, snacks, and a community feeling as your child leads you in some activities and shows a bit of their work. At this time, only students with their parents will be allowed to be in the main classroom space due to the number of people that signed up.

Geology!: If anyone wants to see the PowerPoint we discussed today about BC Geology, you can view it here.

Other Items!

  • ROCKS: Look up the rocks on the list for our rock ID lab, which will be on Wed. Also, read the Rock Cycle handout and see if you have questions.
  • GOVT LEADERS: Please fill in the names of your government leaders! Due Wed.
  • SCALE MODEL: We will have time for painting tomorrow, but if any more work needs to be done, make arrangements with your partner so it is done for Thursday.
  • NO SCHOOL on April 25th and 26th
  • EARLY DISMISSAL on April 28th and 29th at 2PM
  • NO SCHOOL on May 13th
  • MUSICAL on May 18th/19th (our night is the 18th)

Social Media and Discussions TIP

Here’s some advice we have been discussing in class, and it applies to both social media conversation AND contributing to discussions or asking questions in class.

When you make a contribution to a discussion, ask yourself:

  1. Is it useful?
  2. Is it helpful?
  3. Is it interesting?
  4. Is it kind?

If you can’t say “yes” to all of those questions, then put yourself on “pause” and take a moment to reflect.

  1. Can you change the wording of what you are saying so it will be better received?
  2. Is there a better time or opportunity for what you want to say?
  3. Is this the right audience?
  4. Why am I saying this? To get attention, or to really contribute to the discussion?

 

Field Trip Survey — Please get parents to respond

Hello Everyone,

Please ask your parents to help you answer this survey as I plan two field trips in the future. These are trips I have not committed to YET, and this survey will help me plan whether we do them or not. If these trips don’t work out, don’t worry, I have some back up plans, and we can always plan something for end of year!

  1. If we were to go to the BC Cancer Agency for a half-day genetics lab and tour of their facilities on April 22nd, would your parents be willing to pay $10 for the cost of the bus? The PAC funds I receive would help lower it to $10 per student.
  2. If we were to do Dragon Boating in May/June for three sessions at $28 per student (cost = $7.30 per hour session), would you want to pay this and go? They have significantly raised the rates for the school dragon boating program this year, as it used to be $10 per student for all three sessions. All equipment is provided, but we have to get to Burnaby Lake.
  3. If we were to do Dragon Boating in May and June as above, I need parent drivers who are also willing to participate in dragon boating with us. Please respond and let me know if you are a parent who has time during the school day to join us. No experience is needed, but you would get wet and you would be rowing and/or helping with steering at the back of the dragon boat. No cost for you other than participating and driving.

Please let me know what you think!

Thank you,

Ms. D

For Parents — Google Hangouts

Dear Parents:

I hope this finds you well!

just wanted to take a quick moment to advise all of you that many students from our class are using Google Hangouts (a chat room through Google if you have gmail.) This is not something recommended or encouraged by me through our District tools, and it is unmonitored conversation occurring between students. Students are using their private gmail accounts for this and they are doing it after hours, while not at school.

I would recommend that you please check in with your child to ensure they are using this appropriately. While most conversation is no doubt friendly and positive, I think it would be a good idea to check in with them. Please also refer to my previous post on the blog about technology and safe social media practice.

I will also be addressing in class again the appropriate things that can be discussed online. While it is great to talk with people and have a chat online, it is not appropriate, for example, to talk about other people from class who are not part of the chat at the time.

Thank you for your help and support as we teach them to use their tech tools in appropriate and safe ways.

Kind Regards,

Ms. D

Blog Access and Google Drive

Hello Everyone,

Today we spent some time organizing how we access electronic tools for use in the MACC program.

First, we practiced logging into the blog interface and making comments as subscribers to the website. As a reminder, if you want to leave a comment on a post, please use your user ID and password. If you were absent today, I am happy to show you when you return.

Second, we discovered our new google drive account, which has been set up by the Burnaby School District. We practiced logging in, using the “google docs” tool, and collaborating on a document with a partner. This tool will allow us to share documents with Ms. D more easily, use tools such as google docs to create work for class, and to collaborate with other students.

All students promised that when using either Google Drive or the Blog, they must:

  • Practice social media safety
  • Only write things that would be okay if viewed publicly
  • Not mention their last name, name of the school, last names of friends, and other identifiable information
  • Use respectful tones with one another at all times
  • Only post appropriate material
  • Only use these tools for school work, not personal conversation or chatting between friends
  • Protect the password provided to them for these sites

I can tell we are very excited about having these tools, and I look forward to using them with students more frequently. My hope is that students will begin to do some blog posting as I have been doing. Look for their contributions to come!

Ms. D

 

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