Hey friends,

Don’t forget tomorrow we head to Central Park for Forest Friday!

As always, dress for the weather – we go RAIN OR SHINE. Tomorrow will be “shine”, so please remember to dress in layers, bring a water bottle, and hat/sunscreen if you’re sensitive to the sun.

But most importantly, bring your good attitude and sense of adventure!

We made it to March!

Snow Drops and Crocuses are out and we’ve been lucky to have some sunny days. Looks like Spring is upon us!

Spring Equinox is March 20th. In the Northern Hemisphere, this date marks the start of the spring season.  Equinox occurs at two specific moments in time when the sun is exactly above the equator. After Spring Equinox, the Northern Hemisphere begins to be tilted more toward the Sun, resulting in increasing daylight hours and warming temperatures.

Get outside and enjoy the lovely whether when you can!

Some important dates:

• Forest Friday – March 12th. Last day before Spring Break. Dress for the weather, which is calling for rain!
• Spring Break – March 15 – 26. School resumes Mar. 29th
• St. Patrick’s Day – March 17th. Celebrate the luck of the Irish!
• Spring Equinox – March 20th.
• Good Friday – April 2nd (no school)
• Easter Monday – April 5th (no school)

Division 1 friends:

The Maywood Library is holding a contest for the most holds by division. There are some rules, so please read below! We are a group of voracious readers, so I don’t doubt that our class has a good chance of winning!

Contest! Prizes! Reading! Library!
The purpose of this contest is to give you a chance to practice using the online Library catalogue.

Rules

1. Contest runs from February16 to March12  (four weeks).
2. Theclasswiththemoststudentswhoplaceholdsusing the online catalogue during that time, wins.
3. You can only place a hold on a book in the week when your class does NOT come to the library for book exchange. That gives you two chances.
4. A hold means you place a hold online and then you actually check the book out of the library. This means you should choose a book that’s ‘In’ the library.
5. You can only borrow one book at a time, so if you already have a book checked out, you need to return it (you can return it on the day you borrow the new one). If you put holds on two books and they are both ‘In’ the library, I give you the first one that comes up on my list.
   Check the Library Blog for more information

Last Friday, your child was sent home with their first formal report card. Included in this package was a Term 2 Overview. Please sign and return the report card envelope.

Also, FSA’s are upon us. Grade 7’s have been sent home a letter explaining more. Please return the letter signed by this Friday if you wish for your child to be exempted from this testing.

This month at a glace:

• Forest Friday/Report cards go home – Feb 12
• Rainbow week: wear blue Monday, red Tuesday, pink Wednesday, green Thursday.
• Pink Shirt Day – Feb. 24th (wear pink!)
• Pro-D – Feb. 26th (no school)

Parents and students: 

We’ve now completed our week of Blogfolio sharing. Students have been preparing their best work and sometime this last week, should have sat down with a parent to share their blogfolio.

A blue checklist went home with students to help guide them through their Blog share. Parents, you were to check this with your child and let me know if anything was missing. You were also asked to comment on at least one of your child’s writing blogs. In the gold-coloured info letter that went home last Monday, there were suggestions on how to give feedback, however it ended up being on the back side of the part that was to be signed and returned to me! (oops)

Go to this link for suggestions on how to give effective feedback (Lanaway’s Lounge).

Stapled to the blue checklist was a pink Language Arts Learning Map with assessment and reflection from both myself and student. This created an opportunity for you to discuss with your child how they have been progressing in Language Arts (oral, reading, and writing), their writing goals, and to better understand what their next steps and goals are.

I hope you have enjoyed this opportunity! If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Parents: If you have not yet had a chance to do this with your child, please do try to get to it. I am still collecting the blue checklist with your signature, once it is done. I need this for my records. Thank you for your cooperation.

Students are preparing their Humans of the Land blog, to be shared later this week when they share their Blogfolios with parents/families. They have been preparing to share their best work in writing, ADST and this latest, the Humans of the Land blogpost.

Students: don’t forget to share an electronic copy of a picture you’d like to include in this latest blog. Monday I will need to have all pictures received. If you only have a hard copy picture, please snap a picture with your device or bring it to school and I will do it. Thank you!

Due to last Forest Friday being cancelled, we’ve rescheduled for this Friday. Sorry for the short notice, though Div. 1 has known since this Monday, so hopefully we are all ready now! Weather is calling for cool, crisp skies but sunny! My favourite!

Parents:

A notice will be going home shortly re: a non-formal point of progress happening before the end of the month. Students have prepared some writing samples with reflections on their strengths and next goals for the coming term. We will be having a blogfolio share, with reflections on some of their best and favourite work! I will let you know when we are ready!

Just a few reminders for this month:

• This Thursday is TWIN DAY. Find a friends to be twins with!
• This Friday is Forest Friday – Jan. 15th (9:30-12:30)
• This Friday is also BLACK shirt day. We celebrate Black Lives by learning more about Black History and wearing a black t-shirt this Friday.  Div. 1: you can bring a shirt to wear after we return from Forest Friday.
• Science:  UNIT test in EVOLUTION. A study guide has been handed out and should help, but it is not ALL. Please gather all your notes from Clearly Stated videos and PowerPoint to help with this.
  • Div. 2 test is next Tue., Jan .19th
  • Div. 1 test is next Thur.,  Jan 21st

Wondering where the online Homework Board is?

This has been moved to Teams. Science and Socials have their own channels in Teams, while I have a separate Team for Ms. Lanaway’s Math 6/7 Math Group. Parents: if you’d like access to this information, you will have to have your child sign into Office365 and into Teams for you.

* Please dress for the weather this Friday. We go RAIN OR SHINE. If it’s sunny, it might be cold! Dress warmly and bring gloves.

Well, friends, the season’s holiday is fast approaching!

As we near the end of the week, and beginning of our two-week holiday, I would like to thank families for their diligence and adaptability during these difficult and somewhat stressful times. This fall presented many challenges to us as we made our way back to school.  We’ve had to adapt to changes in how we work, learn and play.  Students, parents, and teachers alike have all stepped up the plate! While we’ve had to let go of some of our favourite things to do (or ways of doing them), we’ve also gained in learning more about ourselves and each other; building on our capacity for empathy and understanding. It’s been a privilege to be a part of your child’s learning this term!

I know that the holidays may be very different for some us this year. Maybe we won’t be able to visit the people or places that we love. Please take heart that we’re turning a corner and by spring we should be in a different place.

I wish you and your family a wonderful time off together!

During this time of isolation, don’t forget to use our outdoor spaces for fresh air and exercise, to do the things that bring joy and renewal. In this time of togetherness, within our small family bubbles, remember that as the winter solstice returns the light, so too does hope return, bringing us a new year, with new possibilities!

I am at home this week, but can be reached by email. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or require assistance. Take care!

Please don’t forget that this Friday morning, Divisions 1 & 2 will be going to Central Park – RAIN OR SHINE. We leave after washing hands in the morning at about 9:20, and will be making our way back in time for lunch. We should be back in the building by 11:30ish.

Remember to dress for the weather. This is your week to purchase a rain poncho if you feel you need one. Please refer to the blog post – How to Dress for the Weather to reacquaint yourself with how to prepare for this Friday.