Hello, 5B families!
It’s wonderful to be back to school and to see all these big kids who all seem to have grown so much in the last few weeks of Spring Break!
Here is what we have been exploring and a preview of what’s to come…
In Math, we have introduced the relationship between decimals and fractions using models.
As well, for optional enrichment, I introduced (for students who chose to join in) the basics of algebra. We talked about how variables are symbols that represent numbers and modelled how to solve one step equations.
Another favourite enrichment challenge students have enjoyed in class is our deck of “geometric riddles”. Here are some sample questions—how amazing that students have been able to work together to find solutions to some of these!
In Science, we have been exploring states of matter.
Coming up on April 25th, we will go to Swan Lake Nature Sanctuary to see the wildflowers and birds and for a workshop on how to identify different types of rocks; this will support our Science units on Geology and Natural Resources. Following that, we will do a short unit combined with ADST learning standards on the topic of simple machines.
In Social Studies, we have been looking at the history of British Columbia and Victoria (check in assessment on that tomorrow), and next week we start a unit on government. We will have a field trip to the BC Parliament Buildings on Thursday, May 30th for a tour, information session, and to watch an award-winning historical play entitled “Our Place in Politics”—more information to come next week.
In Language Arts, this week we have been tightening up grammar and word usage and moving on to how to correctly punctuate dialogue with quotation marks tomorrow.
As well, our new Spelling list is posted below and students were instructed to bring home their Spelling duo-tangs for further practice with the word worksheets assigned. Continuing our practice from before the break, I ask students to practice the word list in both printed and cursive form.
In Religion, we have continued to expand our Bible knowledge. We have been analyzing the lessons in Bible stories, including Noah’s Ark and Feeding the Five Thousand. We watched and discussed the dramatic interpretation of the latter story as well from “The Chosen” and have begun plans to do our own class retelling as well.
In Career Education, the focus this term is on guided independent inquiry in students’ areas of passion which may connect to their future career aspirations. All students are invited and supported to plan and carry out their own “Personal Interest Projects” (P.I.P.) on topics of their choosing. At the end of June, all students will practice their speaking and leadership skills by doing a short presentation for their class to share what they have been working on—some students may have completed finished products of learning to show (like a booklet of poems, an invention, a song, a graphic novel, a new board game, etc.), while others may simply share their progress (like “here is the first edited chapter of a novel I am writing about dragons”)
Before the break, students brought home a written plan of their project ideas after we did several planning sessions in class. This project can be done entirely in class time at school—yet a hope is that they will be so excited in their work that they will be motivated to expand their explorations at home. For a decade I taught a “Personal Interest Projects” course as extracurricular enrichment and I have made available to students my P.I.P. course video library in the form of a YouTube Playlist. For your reference, here are some of the videos we have discussed in class. They explain what a P.I.P. is, why they are helpful for students, and how to narrow a topic form an inquiry question and carry out independent research.
TiffanyPoirier.com 