Friday April 1st TGIF

This has been a really strange paradox of a week it went by pretty fast but also seemed to drag- or maybe it was me that was dragging!

We had a nice surprise visit today from Mrs. Adamson and Mr. Winterburn of the local Squamish Legion. They came to award prizes for the local Remembrance Day poster and writing competitions. In our class, we were awarded:
 1st prize in the coloured poster category $50, a pin and certificate went to Randy (his poster has been entered into the next level of the competition in the BC/Yukon category)
2nd prize in the Poetry competition went to Ashleigh and Matthew who collaborated on a poem called The Birds Still Fly. They each received $20, a pin and a certificate.
Savannah was awarded $5, a pin and certificate for an Honourable Mention in the poetry competition.

CONGRATULATIONS to you all- I am very proud of your efforts and work for this annual competition. I love that so many of you take advantage of the opportunities that we have available. Remember that even in high school the Remembrance Day competition is one that has been very worthwhile for many reasons.

The local Legion will be asking the community of Squamish to sign a giant Canadian flag to send to our soldiers in Afghanistan in the near future- the date is yet to be announced.

Being April Fool's day we played a little joke on the grade sevens before they could 'get' us!! You should have seen their faces and heard some of the excuses and complaints about the PRETEND shot (vaccination) that they were told were scheduled to be administered this morning at 10am!!! LOL
I couldn't keep it going for long because some were so upset that they wanted to call home! It was priceless but funnily enough they weren't so amused!! Wonder why? (snigger, snigger)

Homework
Practice instruments and parts in the upcoming band concert
Read those class novels (Ch 6-10)
Please return the forms regarding the meeting on Thursday April 7th at 7pm

General Day
Started with DPA- floor hockey

Met with the local Legion #277 representatives Mrs. Adamson and Mr. Winterburn for awards and congratulations

Band practice

Science Ch 4 introductory booklet on Matter and qualitative properties

Public Speaking forum - we have eight students involved in it this afternoon. 2 are Masters of Ceromonies and 6 are delivering speeches.
Having completed the speeches now- I would like to let all the students who spoke know that I am grateful for their bravery and presentations. There were a couple who had stage fright to the point that their speeches were a little awkward but most speeches were well written and rehearsed. I enjoyed listening although always my heart is in my mouth and I experience nerves for every speaker!
Three speakers will be moving onto the next (District) level - announcement of those speakers will be Monday after the staff have a chance to review and consider the merits of today's speeches.

Back in class- we had (I tried) to reflect on the difficulties of our afternoons this week- it has been a particularly busy and frantic week- the first back from our Spring Break. The students generally have been having a problem with focus. I asked what they thought about shifting around the afternoon classes and moving the DEAR time to later in the day- I guess we can try and see if there is any improvement to general ability to focus and behave appropriately. At DRSS in junior high the reading block is before the last class of the day. Maybe that's why - it is probably strategic!
I wonder if it is a sugar crash that the students are experiencing considering what some are eating at lunch. Perhaps I'll ask them to keep something to eat in the afternoon instead of consuming everything before recess some do! I can try but I don't really think that changing nutrition habits this last few months in the school year will have any impact but in our upcoming helath units it might be worth a few discussions.

We took a few minutes before packing up to head to computers to preview the busy week ahead next week. Reminders that on
Monday April 4th extra band practice #2 Bring instruments
PM ? first team experiment for Science unit
Tuesday April 5th Band Concert with guests Carson Graham at 10am
Thursday April 7th Maureen Palmer, director, visits to meet the students informally (no cameras) and she will be staying to meet any parents interested at 7pm that evening
Friday April 8th PM working with HSSS Biology 11 students in the design of a bacterial growth experiment

Computers to finish the day- I always like to provide the students with some free time once in a while to get a real idea of what they are logging into- of course, there are school rules that they are well-versed in BUT it is quite interesting to see the variety of on-line sites, games and activities that the students get into. Perhaps at a later time I can provide some insight to parents without sacrificing the trust of the students!!

3pm Dismissal
Have a great weekend.Mrs. J.