A Memorable Digestive System Lessons—and more!

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Hello, 5B families!

We enjoyed a school assembly today, and we were inspired to see the “Fruit of the Spirit Awards” presentations.

Now what is going on in these photos? Oh my! This was a fun one…

We started a unit in Science about THE DIGESTIVE SYSTEM. This was a hands-on activity that I’m sure you heard all about at home! Haha! (If not, ask your children what they made today—the medical term!) We learned about mechanical digestion, the physical process of breaking down food into smaller pieces without altering its chemical composition. It begins in the mouth, where teeth chew and grind food into smaller fragments, increasing its surface area. Mechanical digestion also occurs in the stomach as it contracts and mixes food with gastric juices, turning it into a soupy mixture called chyme.) We also learned about chemical digestion. This is the process of breaking down food into simpler substances through chemical reactions. It also starts in the mouth with the release of enzymes that begin to break down starches. In the stomach, gastric juices work to break down proteins. The majority of chemical digestion occurs in the small intestine, where enzymes from the pancreas and bile from the liver further break down carbohydrates, fats, and proteins for absorption.
Here is our new spelling list for the week. These are words that I noticed have been more frequently misspelled by students. I harvested the words from students’ recent expository writing sample on healthy living.
In Language Arts, we discussed the next reading strategy in the “High 5!” method, which is QUESTIONING, and we continued to practice the ACTIVATING BACKGROUND KNOWLEDGE strategy.
In Health Ed., we enjoyed another “Open Parachute” lesson, this time on the topic of understanding and managing anxiety and worry. We practiced some breathing and visualization techniques, and discussed other coping strategies, emphasizing proactive action and “controlling the controllables”.

Reminder: Tomorrow is the Terry Fox Run! Wear your gym strip and consider bringing a toonie or more to donate to cancer research.

Please remember to bring in your “Earthquake Comfort Kits” and Student Verification Forms as soon as possible. Thank you for reading and signing the agendas every night. We want to keep you informed.

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