Almost Feels Like Spring!

Wow!  The sun was out for a few hours yesterday and everything changed!  We even went out for a morning run, and everyone rocked it!  It was a great start to a busy week.  On Monday, we started our independent novel study.  Students need to get parent signatures on the assignment sheet before Thursday, so please take some time to check out the schedule and project ideas.  Most of the work will be done in class, but kids may need some reminding to ensure they aren't scrambling to finish up in the end.

Enjoy the last week of April!

 
Miss Kelly & Mrs. Soper

Long Weekend Update

Sorry for the delay from the long weekend!  Here's a photo of the homework board.  More info next Monday.

Mrs. Soper & Miss Kelly

Student-Led Open House & Early Dismissal

Just a reminder that we are dismissing at 2 pm this Wednesday and Thursday to facilitate our Open House on Wednesday and one-on-one meetings Thursday.  On Wednesday, your child will be sharing their self-assessment on the Core Competencies as well as sharing 3 things they are most proud of so far this year.

Here is the Kahoot to study for tomorrow's math test.

Look forward to seeing everyone on Wednesday!

Mrs. Soper & Miss Kelly

Core Competencies

Hey everyone! Hope you are enjoying the sunshine.  We have been talking about a new section of the curriculum, called the Core Competencies this week.  These competencies are meant give students tools to become reflective adults who are able to grow as people throughout their life, connect with their communities, and work well with others.  While we have been thinking and talking about many of this for years, this new framework gives students, parents, and teachers some concrete ideas to focus on.  Please ask your son or daughter what metacognition is!  You will be so impressed!

Just a reminder that next week is early dismissal on Wednesday and Thursday.  We will be hosting an Open House on the Wednesday where students have the opportunity to discuss their goals and show off some exciting projects, or past work they are proud of.  On Thursday we will be having one-on-one meetings with families with specific families.  We will send a message requesting a meeting this week if need be.

Friday is the due date for the second social studies assignment.  Once again, students had up to 4 hours of work time on this project.  The marks for the first assignment went home on Friday, so students will have the opportunity to see where they can improve this time around.

Finally, we are loving the A.C.E. Reports.  Articles have been interesting and the discussions have been lively.  We are so impressed by how prepared, confident, and organised the students have been so far.  Well done!

Have a great week!

Mrs. Soper & Miss Kelly

PS.  In the last blog post, I said the kids were working with Miss Walker for science this term - that was last term!  Instead, they are so lucky to be working with Ms. Byrne on Newton's Laws.  It's a challenging topic, but they are already starting to make some great connections.

Spring Fun!

It was so great to see everyone today!  The break was well deserved after an intense, but productive second term.  This final term, we will be reaping the benefits of that growth.  Today, we started talking about the Core Competencies in the new curriculum.  We will be focusing on 4 specific aspects of our personal growth this term.  The students will be sharing them with you at the upcoming Student-Led Conferences.

A.C.E. (A Current Event) Reports begin tomorrow.   An A.C.E. Report consists of selecting an article (not a summary), printing or cutting out the article, highlighting the important details, filling out a summary sheet, writing the summary in paragraph form, and then presenting their article to the class.  Students will each complete two articles this term.  It's a chance for them to look outside the classroom into current events, and to practice their public speaking skills.

Students will begin our next unit of science with Miss Walker tomorrow.  Her unit is completed primarily on the iPads!  It will be a great opportunity to experiment with new technology while learning about climate change over time.

Finally, on Saturday, April 1st at 1:00 p.m. UBC will be raising a 67 foot totem pole in honour of Reconciliation.  It will be raised outside the Biodiversity Museum at Main Mall and Agronomy.  Thank you Libby and Taryn for sharing this with us.  It is right up our alley!

Miss Kelly & Mrs. Soper

Spring Break and ACE Reports!

Happy Spring Break! We hope you are all having a restful day one of Spring Break.  I am almost done book one on my reading list and it feels great!  Find something great to read, maybe a current event/non-fiction article for your ACE Report even.  If you have left your sheet at school, here's a copy of one of the outline pages:

A.C.E. A Current Event

Title of Article: _______________________________________________________________

Source (newspaper and date): ___________________________________________________

(ü one) ____ local    ___ provincial   ___ national   ___International

Headline (what?) ___________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

Setting: (where? When?) ____________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

Characters (who?)

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Events (how? Why?)

1.     ______________________________________________________________________

2.     ______________________________________________________________________

3.     ______________________________________________________________________

4.     ______________________________________________________________________

Climax (what happened?)

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Opinion (I think…because…)

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Here is the schedule, so you can check your day!

Mrs. Soper & Miss Kelly

Countdown to Spring Break!

Big things are happening this week as we countdown to Spring Break!  We are continuing to work with our Artist in Residence on water colours.  So far, the work has been gorgeous!  We will send a piece home for you, but we have special plans for the other piece!  Details to follow.

Reports cards go home on Thursday.  Keep in mind that term 2 is a tougher term than the first because there is no more review.  We really get to dive deeply into new learning.

Finally, our first Ancient Worlds investigation is due on Friday.  Kids will have had 4 hours of class time to complete it.

It's going to be a great week, and an even better, and well deserved Spring Break!

Miss Kelly & Mrs. Soper