Blog

Hello, 5B families!

We hope you enjoy the performances below and some details on our latest learning activities!

An optional activity I presented to students today was to make a construction paper box (see above for the tutorial we created in class) and to fill it with fun and creative Christmas-themed questions. If your child made one of these question games, you could use it to spark great family discussion and creativity.

It’s possible your child was still hard at work on his/her nativity scene construction today and didn’t get a chance to make the game; so here are the questions below to use as you like. An idea to jazz things up and create a longer lasting game is to write out the questions on craft sticks.

• If you had to name your child after a reindeer, which one would it be?
• What baked goods do you love to eat around Christmas time?
• What dish do you hope to see at Christmas dinner?
• If you had to name the new 10th reindeer, what would it be?
• Imagine you are a chef at a burger restaurant and you need to come up with a new burger for the menu called “The Christmas Burger”. Describe it! What makes it so “Christmasy”?
• What do you think would be a really thoughtful Christmas gift?
• What is a fun festive activity for a Saturday afternoon in December?
• What is one of your favorite Christmas smells and why?
• What is one of your special Christmas memories?
• What is the best way to spend Boxing Day?
• What is the best Christmas drink?
• What is your favorite Christmas cookie?
• What is your least favorite holiday side dish?
• What is a memorable Christmas gift you have received?
• What is the most annoying Christmas song?
• What item would make a really silly or strange Christmas ornament?
• If Santa gave you $100,000, what would you buy with it?
• If you could travel anywhere in the world for Christmas, where would you go and why?
• If you got a yacht for Christmas, what would you name it and where would you take it?
• If you had to make tree ornaments from just one type of item, which would you choose?
• If you had to decorate a Christmas tree using only things that symbolize the events of this last year, what would be on it? 
• Invent a new Christmas-themed breakfast cereal. 
• What ingredients would be in it?
• Is there any Christmas gift you definitely don’t want?
• Name a store you’d love to get a present from.
• Challenge: name five foods that are green and five foods that are red.
• Sing the first lines of the first Christmas song you can think of.
• What would you love to see dress up as Santa Claus? Why?
• Fill in the blank: Christmas isn’t Christmas without _______.
• What is a favourite Christmas memory you can share?
• What is a fun new Christmas tradition you might like to start?
• What is the silliest or strangest thing you have seen or heard of being done by an “elf on the shelf”?
• What role do you believe Mrs. Claus plays in Christmas?
• What makes a nice Christmas morning breakfast?
• List three things you remember receiving in a Christmas stocking?
• What are three things you would like to see in your own Christmas stocking?
• Imagine you are getting a new puppy or kitten for Christmas? What would you name it?
• Whose singing voice just “sounds like Christmas” to you?
• Who in you family does most of the dishes after Christmas dinner—or how does the clean up work get done?
• Name a Christmas movie you have seen or heard of?
• What is your favourite Christmas song?

Hello, 5B families!

We have spent this week enjoying Christmas crafts, buddy time, making creative DIY nativity scenes, decorating our mini-Christmas trees, making snowflakes, and practicing liturgical dance with ribbons and flags in preparation for the January Mass that grade fives are helping to lead. Here are two videos for you…

As well, the students have enjoyed some creative Christmas writing activities…

“White Elephant Gift Exchange”: On Friday morning, we will do an anonynmous gift exchange of second-hand or regifted items. No need to spend money! Some gifts will just be silly or small…like a spoon or paper clip or an old Paw Patrol figurine. Basically, choose and wrap one random thing in your house that you don’t need or want anymore (so long as it is clean and “school appropriate”).

There are two main purposes of this acitivity: (1.) it is silly fun, and (2.) it’s a great opportunity to model and practice social skills and language around gratitude, even when we recieve something unexpected. Don’t worry if you can’t think of anything to bring because I already have enough “white elephant” type gifts for each student, but students often have more fun choosing, wrapping, and bringing their own “junk items” to regift, so they are welcome to do so. We ask students not to bring more than two items maximum. 🙂

Civvies Friday: Remember to wear red, green, and white clothes for fun this Friday. We will have an assembly this day at 10:30am. Then it is early dismissal at 12:00pm

Hello, 5B families!

I created some tutorial videos to show the “box method” of multi-digit multiplication. Polling my students over the years, I have found so many end up loving and preferring this method over others—even if they resisted learning it at first. Check it out!

The BC Math curriculum emphasizes the importance of empowering students to apply flexible math strategies, rather than narrowing using simple tricks that may leave students without a sense of the bigger picture of how numbers work together. The box method in particular offers students a tidy way to increase their accuracy and understanding of the meaning of what they are doing, especially when multiplying those larger numbers.

In our class, we have also been teaching the traditional multiplication algorithm; I will be assessing students’ use of both methods this term.

I have encouraged students to use their rounding and estimating skills to check the reasonability of their multiplication answers. As well, we have asked students to try the traditional method directly after using the box method to note the differences and use it as a “double check” of their work.

*At this stage in the year, it is completely fine for students to use their multiplication charts to help them find smaller values (such as the 6, 7, 8, and 9 times tables). Of course, I’d like them to learn these by heart eventually; but for now, accuracy when applying the multi-digit multiplication methods is the priority goal.

If you are helping your children study at home, you might ask them to demonstrate the box method for you, and if they are struggling, please have them watch one or more of these videos. Thank you!

Hello, 5B families!

In Religion class we are learning about Advent and preparing our minds and hearts for the season. Prayer has been a key focus, and we have explored the history of Saint Nicholas.

A key question for research and reflection has been, “What is the meaning of Christmas?”

We have started a new cross-curricular challenge in Religion, ADST, and Art where each student creates his/her own unique 3D nativity scene from scratch use crafting materials, recycled bits, or found objects. We discussed the important features of a nativity scene and looked at many examples online for inspiration.

Students may use any safe materials they like in this open-ended project that is due by Dec. 21, and I have modelled in class how to use simple classroom supplies like crumpled paper, tape, a paperclip, and some foil to make a set of characters. (For more ideas, scroll down to the very bottom to see some photos from around the web of handmade nativity scenes.)

---

In Math this week, we continued reviewing multiplication up to one-digit by four-digits numbers. We have focused on the traditional method so far, but also brought in the box method for those who were interested.

We are emphasizing the meaning of multiplication using base ten blocks, arrays, and mental math strategies, and we are considering real world scenarios (e.g, “If I have 18 students and each student needs 6 cotton balls to make a snowman craft; how many cotton balls do I need all together?) Next week we will go deeper with two-digit by two- and three-digit multiplication. Here are two tutorials videos that can help:

We had fun this afternoon with our little buddies from the grade 2 classroom today. Students acted as leaders, teaching the little buddies the paper engineering skills they developed during our ADST “index card challenge” earlier in the term. The theme this time was to construct an “ice palace” and to choose one or more goals: make it tall, strong, and/or beautiful. Students could only use the index cards—no glue or tape; so the structures you see below are balancing beautifully on account of our students’ great problem solving! Well done, teams!

Now, please enjoy our “WRITERS’ SHOWCASE” featuring the 5B students’ wonderful field trip reflections… (more to come)

And now, here are some more images found online during a Google search of “nativity DIY” and “handmade nativity”…

Hello, 5B families!

We have had a lot going on: big essay projects, Term One Math Tests, Advent concert preparations, reading assessments, and a visit to “Ms. Poirier’s Christmas Tree Farm”!

We are now starting a big unit on multiplication. We reviewed some basics, starting with arrays.

Hello, 5B families!

Today we were treated to another fascinating guest speaker presentation that connected to our learning in Career Education and Science. Marita, a paediatric nurse joined us to go into more depth about hormones in the blood, specifically insulin. We learned about diagnosis and treatment for diabetes, type 1 and 2, and we learned more about preparing for a career in healthcare. The students had so many great questions and enjoyed rich discussion. Thank you, Marita!

In Social Studies, the students have been exploring an inquiry into “Canadian Identity”. We are investigating this topic from a variety of angles and students will synthesize their learning by writing a poem.

In Language Arts, we have been working on a larger essay project: a Field Trip Reflection Essay. I gave students a detailed instruction guide with examples and templates, and we went through the assessment criteria together. I have asked students to invest a solid effort on this essay and try to make this their best writing sample of the term. Students should hand in a proofread and edited copy this Thursday. They have had several blocks for planning and writing already and the focus of tomorrow’s Language Arts block is both giving and receiving peer feedback on their drafts.

I am eager to read students’ own ideas in this essay, yet parents are always welcome and encouraged to provide support as needed for spelling, punctuation, and grammar as a valuable home learning process. Spending time editing at home is especially important for students who enjoy writing longer, more detailed essays (or who struggle to focus in school) and who have thus spent less time in class in the editing process.

Students are welcome to print or type their essays.

Please see the photos of the assignment instructions below.

Hello, 5B families!

In Language Arts, we have started brainstorming and planning for our next major essay writing project. I won’t set a due date for this yet because the most important thing is that students work hard to create essays they are proud to share and that meet the assignment criteria—I know that takes time!

Once these essays are complete and in “Good Copy” form, we will illustrate them with watercolour eagle paintings—I’m so excited about this project. We will create some really special works to share with you!

---

Here is a look at the feedback form I will use when assessing essays. I will ask students to incorporate my feedback and do corrections to turn in a polished essay.

Hello, 5B families!

The following is a summary of what I shared in class today about our upcoming test in Math.

As a teacher myself, I aspire to do the same helpful things Mrs. McLaren did for me. She went above and beyond to teach me, but she also made me understand that “you can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink.” In other words, students themselves have to eventually just put time in and do the work—and when they do, their improved grades reflect that effort.

I want families to know exactly what to expect and how to help empower their children do the work to prepare for our final “Term 1 Math Test” that takes place in 8 days on Wednesday, November 29th.

NOTE: Today students worked on a “Math Term 1 Review Quiz” that is just for practice. I asked them to take it home, show it to parents/guardians, and get a signature so you can stay informed.

(Answer key posted below)

How much does this test “count” for? I have already assessed every student on all nine of the areas that this term test covers. My mark book is full—sometimes with multiple quiz rewrites. Yet, this term test will provide us with a big picture view of how well students are retaining that learning over time, and it is one final time before term one report cards are written to show improvement in areas that may have been challenging earlier in the term.

Is this the only test? Students have been invited to take home their 11+ math assessments this term, and I have done further in-class observations. It will be interesting for a student to compare his/her term of mark book scores with his/her final term test scores.

How much does it “count” for the report card? Following best practice, I will not be averaging all of student’s quiz and test scores in term one—instead I report on learning outcomes. So, a student who has struggled and scored in the lower range on quizzes this term could turn it around by studying hard to ace the final test, earning an “A” in Math in term one. On the other hand, if student shows a significantly poorer performance on portions of the final test than he/she did throughout the term, then I will meet with him/her to find out the cause. Then I will offer some more support and re-testing options.

What if a student just doesn’t like tests? I get it. Still, it’s my job to teach students study and test-taking skills and resiliency to prepare them for future academic success. Everyone will be expected to attempt the term one math test. Students are always welcome to additionally show me their learning through alternative formats, such as through a one-on-one math meeting, math games, and observations. Yet, please understand that I am required to submit my report cards on Dec. 4th, so that will be a hard deadline for any grade changes students were hoping to earn. That said, there is no real life “deadline” for learning math! Students will continue to deepen their learning over time, and I am delighted to keep sharing progress with families on these term one topics all year.

How can I help my child prepare for this test? You have already been helping by supporting math learning through the term! There is nothing new on this term test that we haven’t already covered and assessed in class. Looking over your child’s review quiz with him/her would be a great help! In addition, students can review their binder material of worksheets and past quizzes, and they can visit my MATH TUTORIALS page that has videos on most topics we’ve explored. CLICK: https://inquiryninja.com/math-tutorials/

Hello, 5B families!

Today we continued on with our unit on subtraction, using concrete exploration with base ten blocks to build our understanding of what happens in the traditional algorithm when rounding. See the sample questions below and a tutorial video for help.

In Language Arts and Science today, we spent time debriefing our field trip, recording our reflections and sharing our memories and lessons in small group dialogue. Students made notes with their answers to some reflection questions in preparation for organizing an essay later this week. (Scroll to the blog post below this to see our videos and photos from the trip.)

In Religion class today, we have been seeking to deepen our prayer practice. We returned to some “Alpha Course” content with the lesson titled “Prayer: Why and How Do I Pray?” Students were very thoughtful in using a Catholic lens as well as their own ideas to consider possible answers to this “Why do you think people don’t always get what they pray for?”

Please take note that our school’s Advent concert is on Tuesday, December 12th at 6pm. Students are asked to arrive at St. Andrew’s Cathedral by 5:30 pm.

We will be holding dress regular for the Advent Concert during school hours on the day of the concert. Students may wear civvies during the day. Please have students in a clean full uniform and polished black shoes for the evening concert.

The both of the grade 5 classes will be performing a song together: “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing”. Here is a background track that students may use to practice along with at home if they like.

Reminder:
There is no school for students this Thursday and Friday, the 23rd & 24th

Also, we will have our Spelling test based on last week’s word list this Wednesday—which is also CIVVIES DAY! (Thank you for bringing a $2 donation for that to support St. Patrick’s learning initiatives).

Hello, 5B families!

Here are some video and photo highlights from our very special field trip to the Raptors!

We also spontaneously worked in a bonus “micro field trip” to Goldstream Park for a bathroom break. It was fascinating to see the the salmon still spawning and the birds taking full advantage.