Thank you to the 10 parents who attended our first parent evening last night. I very much appreciate your time and support. I hope you found some of the information we shared worthwhile and that you can make use of the computer web sites to help promote your child's learning at home this year. I look forward to reaching another 10 (or more) next Wednesday and that will account for 2/3 of our class. Don't worry if you can't make either meeting as the information shared will be sent home to you. It would be helpful if you returned the forms even if you cannot attend and that way I can send the information sooner than next week!
Tonight's homework
Novel The Giver- read for images (central pictures) from the chapters 13-15 (we did 11 and 12 in class today and started chapter 13)- the students will be using pictures, their own words and quotations to explain why their images are important
BRING NOVELS BACK TO SCHOOL PLEASE- I do not have enough extra copies and our class work is dependent on EVERYONE having a novel in their hands
Math nothing new but the students who claim to have left their exponents worksheet at home MUST bring them tomorrow. Thank-you
Spell Test #4 Thursday
Work which is overdue and I would appreciate being completed and handed in ASAP
- Novel reader response Ch 6-10
- assignment G p9 Communicating Skills- run on sentence work
- still missing some semi-completed class assignments from a few students (see those binders for green stickers!!) You know who you are.
Please return the yellow forms if you received them
General Day
Honestly as I get a little older the days seem to fly by faster and faster. Today one of the students had to remind me that it was 2:55pm already and that if I didn't start soon the dismissal bell would be sounding!! Huh!?
We started with a look at square roots and square numerals in Math to follow up the exponent lesson from yesterday. We also did a number placement activity that had many students going from wondering how it could work to finding a variety of combinations for the solution to a triangle puzzle in which using the numbers 1 through 6 each side of the triangle must add up to 12.
Music - today was Miss Sorban's first music session with the students and they seem to have enjoyed themselves listening to Thriller and singing a Coldplay number (Coldplay is a contemporary band FYI)
Novel BIG IDEA was to teach the students a reading strategy used by good readers- making mental images to connect and comprehend their reading. This strategy is a perfect match for the assignment for CH 11-15. First we listened to the pivotal chapter 10 before 'skimming' the text together to find language from which we could create pictures in Chapters 11 and 12. It took us a while but (I believe) the time is necessary to really transfer a how to model for students in order that they can complete the rest of the activity on their own. Lots of good questions and discussion about censorship and a life without images and memories.
The discussion and participation is part of the process and necessary for the students to connect their thoughts and ideas about their world to the one in the novel.
Ultimately the students wills be choosing a couple of images and using the novel, their own interpretation and a picture (image) to explain the importance of that image in chapters 11-15.
LUNCH already!
DEAR time - you could have heard a pin drop :) such improvement in their general ability to settle to an afternoon program. I am encouraged
Socials- to follow up our reading and thinking about the miners in Chile I found a poem which I call 'perspective' poem where the alternating lines are from the perspective of a different character. It is a very powerful interplay. We read and dramatised (thanks, Randy) a poem created by students called First Encounter- tomorrow we will take our different perspectives from the mine rescue and create our own perspective poems with partners! (how do you like my inadvertent alliteration?)lol
French- students are enjoying creating their haunted houses but I haven't seen any French on them yet- may need a reminder about the French part :)
Phys. Ed. today was student choice cooperative game. Matt and Nav took leadership of this and after a quick warm up we played "King (Queen) of the court". We are definitely doing better but there is still a bit too long of a delay in obeying the whistle signals. Another issue is that a number of students are not appropriately dressed for Phys. Ed. They need to be ready for stretching and running around and skinny jeans are not conducive to much stretching or movement- I have asked them to bring shorts or sweats and a decent pair of gym shoes. This is an expectation this year and will be a major part of the Phys. Ed. expectations in Grade eight next year. So they may as well get used to it now :)
Art to finish the day- we have a few projects on the go- the haunted houses for French, the Remembrance day posters and the name acrostics- students chose their project and we were so busy being artsy fartsy that we nearly missed the dismissal bell!!
Very productive and enjoyable day. Thanks everyone.
See you Wednesday. Have a nice evening.
Mrs. J.
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