Our class has begun an interdisciplinary unit in Science/Art/Religion/L.A. on the five senses, beginning with the sense of sight.
“Open the Eyes of My Heart” 5B students singing this inspiring worship song written by Michael W. Smith“Open my eyes to see clearly the wonders of your law.” - Psalms 119:18
“Look not to what is seen but to what is unseen; for what is seen is transitory, but what is unseen is eternal.” - 2 Corinthians 4:18
“The eyes of the Lord are in every place, keeping watch on the evil and the good.” - Proverbs 15:3
In Math class we have been learning about input/output tables and getting creative designing function machines.
This student combined our Science class learning to make a “digestive system”-themed function machine!Our innovative students have initiated an inquiry into aerodynamics and principles that optimize flight machine design. In other words, we have paper airplanes everywhere in class—but it’s fun to work with the next generation of great inventors! Over the next few weeks we will do some flight time tests to assess the merits of different design features and graph the results. Here are the new Spelling words for next week. What creative sentences of your own can you create to show the meanings of these words?
Here is an overview of what we have been exploring lately in our class.
SOCIAL STUDIES: What motivates people to immigrate to Canada? In Social Studies, we began exploring the topic of changing trends in Canadian immigration over time and the push and pull factors. This mind-map shows our whiteboard note-taking of the students’ ideas during our class discussion.
Today we watched the above video, which fleshed out our understanding of push and pull factors even more. Then students began writing short essays on the topic using a structured template. The goal of this assignment was to both capture students’ learning, while also helping them work through a helpful model of a way to clearly communicate their ideas in the social sciences. Above you can see some great examples of draft essays on “Canadian Immigration: the Push and Pull Factors” as well as some summary graphics of the the big ideas we are exploring.
Click here to download KYAK magazine with lots of rich historical information for students about immigration to Canada:
LANGUAGE ARTS/RELIGION: On Friday, we practiced the fifth “High 5!” reading strategy: summarizing!
The practice of transforming what you have read into your own words is powerful because this act of creativity helps you make connections to and within the text and thus remember it more fully and accurately.
After carefully reading a text about saints, as a class we discussed the big ideas.m, and small groups of students identified what they believed to be the main points of the text. Then, I modelled how one could weave together the big ideas of this text into a summary paragraph, distilling 18 sentences of text into just 6 sentences. We discussed that writing a summary is an artful process that involves trying to really understand the author’s purpose for writing and determining the relationship between ideas.
MATH: Keep reviewing place value concepts—we are starting to build upon this understanding with new units of study this week. *Parents/Guardians, please check your email inboxes for a note about homework and a “Math Support Letter” I emailed today with specific tips for how families can support their children with their journey through the grade 5 math curriculum this year. SCIENCE: Students have continued to learn about the digestive system in Science class. Today we did a short “open book” quiz on the topic. Next Monday, we are lucky to have a special guest speaker: an endoscopic nurse who works to help assess and support digestive health. SPELLING: Here are the spelling words for this week. What creative sentences can you write to show the meaning of the words in context?ARTIST SHOWCASE: A lovely portrait of a friend, by artist Gabriela.
Ready to feel inspired? This week in Career Ed., our students enjoyed discussing their dream jobs! It was very special to be in the room hearing their exciting and noble plans.
We established criteria for writing a well-structured paragraph, and then students got creative communicating their big visions.
I was so pleased to see so much determination and clarity of purpose at this young stage in life!
The students also practiced their public speaking skills while reading their “Dream Job” pieces aloud to partners and small groups. We proudly present to you this learning showcase of some of our great young leaders…
A Teacher
A Hockey Pro and Gamer
A Teacher and Author
A Marine Biologist
This week in Math, we continued reviewing how to write numbers in standard form, expanded form, and word form.
We have been learning this content through a variety of methods, including direct instruction, sorting games, hands-on math manipulatives (base ten blocks), small group practice, math songs, and tutorial videos. *The next important step is for students to reinforce this learning with practice at home. Mastering an understanding of place value is a vital building block in the grade 5 math program.
Each student has now brought home a “Check-in Quiz”. It is very helpful if you can please review this quiz and ask your child how he/she is doing with identifying and writing numbers in standard, expanded, and word form.
HOW CAN I HELP MY CHILD PRACTICE MATH? There are many video tutorials online (such as the one below) that may be helpful in supporting students to study place value concepts at home. Please visit this link to see some of my recommended math tutorials: scroll down to look under the category of Place Value and Standard, Expanded, and Word Form: https://inquiryninja.com/math-tutorials/
Also, there is a free website some teachers and families like to use to create an unlimited number of math worksheets on a wide variety of topics. Check out www.commoncoresheets.com and search under “Value & Place Value” for dozens of versions of worksheets and answer keys.
We have been reinforcing our understanding of basic math facts and place value through inventing our own flash card games and other open-ended math challenges. Students have many ways to enrich and challenge themselves in math, including electing to do advanced problem solving, logic puzzles, and work though grade 6 content as desired.
In Science class, we continued to learn about the digestive system. Today we reviewed our study guides and this TED Ed video on digestion, then students were invited to illustrate their own diagrams of the digestive system as a study tool. As well, we watched a brief excerpt from “The Magic School Bus”, an episode about journeying inside the digestive system. Families who wish to continue watching the show, can find the link here.
In Language Arts, we have also been reviewing capitalization rules and how to properly use end marks and avoid run-on sentences. A fun moment when some students figured out how to play a magical, familiar tune—do you recognize it?
We hope you are enjoying a weekend of reflection and togetherness. Here are some highlights from our learning on Thursday and Friday…
ORANGE SHIRT DAY: On Friday we joined in an assembly to acknowledge the meaning of Orange Shirt Day and to affirm that every child matters. All this week our 5B students have been learning about the injustices Indigenous children were subjected to in the residential school system. We’ve learned about the work of the TRC (Truth and Reconciliation Commission) and it’s 94 Calls to Action, and we discussed how we are all responsible to take steps to move towards reconciliation. Brainstorming ways we can all acts as peacemakers right now was empowering. Students wrote reflection pieces to communicate their learning.
On October 1st, we honour the feast day of St. Thérèse of Lisieux, also called St. Teresa of the Child Jesus or the Little Flower. Our class enjoyed watching this biography of this young saint who has inspired so many. In Religion, students also discussed what it means to be a saint, and we enjoyed this beautifully illustrated story of the life of Saint Francis of Assisi. In Math, we have also been looking at comparing and ordering small and large numbers, while continuing to review place value concepts in fun ways, such as with this “Fortune Teller”-style game. CAREER ED. GUEST SPEAKER: Dr. Peter, Mathematician What is the biggest number that exists? Is infinity a number? What do you do in university math? These are some of the big questions students asked our visiting mathematician on Friday. It was lovely to be able to introduce my husband, Peter, who is the biggest fan of numbers I know! He joined our class to inspire students to see the creative side of advanced mathematics. He gave a general introduction to calculus and presented some interesting paradoxes. Peter loves using math extensively in his career as a data scientist at a video game company. Before becoming a data science and father to our three sons, Peter worked as an instructor in the Math Department at UVic, taught kids’ camps at Science Venture, and completed degrees in Pure Mathematics at the B.Sc., M.Math, and PhD levels.
Fun fact: Some people are naturally drawn to math at an early age—but some don’t discover their interest for it until much later in life. Peter didn’t feel his calling to the discipline until his third year of university in a Physics class when he saw the beauty of formal proofs modelled for the first time. To make sure our students don’t have to wait as long as he did to awaken to the wonders of this mathematical universe, Peter showed us some fascinating proofs around the concept of a favourite topic: infinity!
Set Theory: A weird fact about infinity…Mathematicians would say there are theoretically the same number of positive integers (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6,…) as there are positive even integers (2, 4, 6, 8, 10,…)—even though there are seemingly HALF as many numbers in that set! That’s because each number in the first set has one-to-one correspondence to another number in the second set, with no number left unmatched. Mind boggling!
CAREER ED.: Learning about careers, academic disciplines, sports, hobbies, art forms, and other enriching domains is so interesting and inspiring when we hear from folks who are working directly in these fields. Please reach out if you have an area of specialty you would be willing to share with us as a guest speaker in our class. Our school’s diverse community is an incredible resource, and we love to learn alongside you!
Email: tpoirier@cisdv.bc.ca
(We ensure that all guest speaker presentations are carefully vetted and aligned with our curricular goals and school mandate.)
Choice Time: Wonderful creativity by our awesome students today! Sneak Peek: Check out next week’s spelling words, which I selected after reading students’ latest writing samples—it’s so rewarding when we can teach directly to learner’s immediate needs and see exponential growth!
Today was especially meaningful as it was our first Mass of the school year, and we accompanied our little buddies in the grade 2 class on the walk to the parish. After lunch we returned to our Social Studies unit on the history of residential schools in Canada and the journey to reconciliation. Then we experienced a prayerful reflection upon the song “Open the Eyes of My Heart” followed by students discussing their understandings of various Bible verses on the theme of eyes, the sense of sight, and awakening. Scroll down for more highlights…
We have spent time in Language Art working on the third reading strategy in the “High 5!” approach: Analyzing Text Structure. Noticing the elements of organized, well-structured text helps us to better understand the meaning of what we are reading, and it also teaches us about important ways we can organize our own writing to improve clarity and impact.
In Math, we have been exploring place value.
What does reconciliation mean to you? In Social Studies, we have been learning about the meaning behind “Orange Shirt Day”, also known as the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. We have been studying past discriminatory government policies and actions, specifically the history of residential schools in Canada.
Education is an vital part of Reconciliation. Our class has been learning about the history and contributions of Indigenous people in Canada.
In Religion, we discussed this “Liturgical Year” video and discussed the difference between sacred traditions and customs.
Happy Thursday, everyone! I hope you enjoy a nice long weekend! (There is no school for students tomorrow since it is a pro-d day.)
We finished the week with fun ADST explorations of engineering and design. Students were challenged to innovate within the constraints of limited materials (just index cards). Indeed, we saw so much creativity on display—especially as students rapidly built their own new knowledge through communicating and collaborating.
Challenge 1: Build a Tall Tower
The tallest tower measured was 42.5cm!
Challenge 2: Build a Unique Structure
Challenge 3: Work Together
LANGUAGE ARTS: Today we reviewed the necessary components of sentences and challenged our creativity by trying to transform boring sentence fragments into fascinating complete sentences. MATH: We practiced determining pattern rules again, and then we reviewed place value. We also enjoyed a sidetrack musing about about the concept of infinity and then discussed what it means to write a number in standard, expanded, and word form.
RELIGION: In addition to our scheduled Religion classes, our explorations of faith and the Bible are interwoven throughout the school day. We have been developing our prayer practice, singing and reflecting upon carefully chosen praise and worship songs, and discussing virtues, Bible stories, and the students’ own related big questions. Today the concept of miracles came up and the students were enthusiastic about sharing their own connections and beliefs. It is such a gift to witness the courage, beautiful ideas, and faith of our students. A new song we learned this week is called “House of the Lord” and we had a blast trying out the children’s video with hand actions as a part of our DPA.CHOICE: After a productive academic morning, the students had earned some choice time—many enjoyed extra reading, connecting with friends, drawing, and personal interest projects. Some students have been enthusiastic about designing their own extreme versions of the classic “Snakes and Ladders” game.
Monday, Sept. 25 is PHOTO DAY! Please wear your full uniform, and since we have PE, you are welcome to bring your gym strip in case there is time to change into it to be more comfortable.
Wednesday, Sept. 27 is Mass at St. Patrick’s Parish at 10:45am and full uniform is expected for this day too.
SPELLING: We had our spelling self-quiz today. Here’s a sneak peek at next week’s spelling list. Feel free to start dreaming up your own creative sentences to show the meaning of the words in context!
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.
We have wrapped up week two, and it’s been a blast! I’m really enjoying my first year teaching at our school—what a blessing it is to work with such kind, hard working and enthusiastic students!
We explored so much this week, as you can see below…
Math: We learned to identify Roman numerals to 20, and for a challenge some students tested their speed mentally calculating elapsed time shown on two classic clocks.Math: We introduced a new unit on working with the rules for increasing and decreasing patterns with words, numbers, symbols, and variables.Physical Education: We joined other local independent schools at the fun soccer tournament today! Everyone played so well and showed amazing school spirit!Health Ed. & Language Arts: We had lots of small group discussion time to brainstorm our ideas and get feedback on our poetry and other writing projects. Language Arts & Art: The students worked hard this week to watercolour paint self-portraits and to write metaphorical “I Am” poems—you will be amazed! We will do a full post on this work next week. Career Ed. & Health Ed.: We brainstormed and illustrated some guidelines and safety practices for our class. Social Studies: We enjoyed “Meet Terry Fox” as a read-aloud and discussion prompt.
Social Studies: In preparation for next week’s Terry Fox Run, we watched this video. We will also be transforming and sharing our learning by writing biographical poems to teach others about the life and contributions of this Canadian hero. Career Ed./Health Ed: Our class enjoyed a powerful lesson on friendship skills using the “Open Parachute”program video and discussion prompts.
Music & Band: Our students have loved starting up their musical year with Mr. Oliver, and they have all selected their new instruments. As well, we learned a new worship song: “Heaven Meets Earth”, a beautiful tune by the group All Sons and Daughters.
In the Agendas: Students were invited today to bring home their spelling self-tests and check-in math quizzes covering telling time on analog clocks and calculating elapsed time. (Students are welcome to rewrite any test or quiz any time.) Students have also brought home a “student verification form” for parents/guardians to sign, and we ask that “Earthquake Comfort Kits” come in as soon as possible. We know there are lots of forms in the beginning of the year—thank you so much for your time!
We had a productive Monday! In Math, we reviewed telling time and focussed on calculating elapsed time with the timeline method. (Click here for a tutorial if needed.) We will have a check-in quiz on this topic on Thursday. Check-in quizzes are formative assessments to let students know where they are having success in their learning and where they need to focus their energy.
In Language Arts, the students brainstormed words they felt we should include in our first spelling list. We will work with this list in creative ways this week and then students will conduct a “self test” on these spelling words on Friday.
Next, in our “reading strategies” lesson, I introduced the “High 5!” method for improving students’ comprehension of expository text.
Today we read a scientific text about wolves and then explored related comprehension questions. Employing the High 5! strategy, we first brainstormed a mindmap of connections and information that students already knew about wolves.
We later reinforced our new learning about wolves with this educational video.
Students enjoyed their first Physical Education class and were briefed on the soccer field trip they will participate in this Friday.
What does it mean to be healthy? What steps can people take to be healthy? In Health Education, we had great discussion about what advice students would share with others about how to be healthy. Then they planned and wrote a paragraph to share their advice. I offered a template students could use, but invited them to make it their own and show off their writing skills.
Then, students enjoyed their first Religion class with Ms. Wark!
Note:
The Welcome Back BBQ is on tomorrow from 5pm-7pm.
This is a chance to see our classroom and come meet in person! I hope to see you there.
Tiffany Poirier 