Tuesday May 10th

Better Day today for so many reasons ...

#1 It wasn't Monday anymore!! Yeah :)
#2 Canucks are through to the third round of the Stanley Cup.
#3 Everyone seemed to be less grumpy in general and, yes,  that includes ME!

Homework
I have asked the students to take home and complete ONE incomplete assignment (I did a BIG Missing In Action assignment poster today in class after an assessment session last night so the students know who they are and what exactly is MIA)
To complete what specifically?
Socials travelogue, How Greece was Governed, questions
Science Ch 4:1 booklet (Describing Matter) Lab Report on 3 phases of matter
Novel activities as per independent choices from activity booklet due this Friday May 13th
The UBC forms were picked up today!
Reminders:
Don Ross Open House tomorrow 6-8pm
Camp commitment forms please
$2 to pay for a couple of students owing for the Japan fundraiser last Friday
Track and Field T/Th running W/Fri shot put and long jump
Remember forms of permission for the Mountain Bike Club- first ride was after school today (Thanks Mr. Parker)

General Day

French- great session today #2 on the conjugation of -er verbs
The students are managing very well to respond to the questions and translations that I am 'throwing' at them. Today we did a number of basic but varied activities orally asking for recognition of pronouns, endings of the various parts of the verb Aimer (to like/love) and where the words are place in sentences. Again parallels were drawn to our English grammar lessons.

Band

Math another good session today :) We managed to get through finding the area of paralleograms and triangles using the text Math Links 7 analysing first the different methods for finding solutions and making relationships/connections to finding the area of a rectangle. Successfully completed 7 assignments for practice for parallelograms and 7 more for finding the area of a triangle- good stuff

After lunch time today,  Tamara and her brother (Gr 5) were very brave (and organized) and conducted a very interesting presentation on Diabetes. Here is a scary thought- statistic? Dr. Art Hister- the doctor who presents his research on Global TV made this statement at a recent (Feb 2011) conference in our district
: Due to the prevalence of diabetes among younger and younger age groups, this current generation of children are statistically destined NOT to outlive their parents'.

Last week I was mentioning informally how worried I was about so many students not being aware that the amount of sugar they are consuming in various snacks and drinks could have a terrible effiect on their health when Tamara asked if I would like her to let the class know about how her brother's and their family life has been changed by diabetes (type II). When he was 5 years old and 100lbs, Tamara's little brother was one of the youngest children to be diagnosed with insulin dependent diabetes.
Today both brother and sister shared the story, the equipment , the tablets and medication, the types of insulin needed, the effects of low and high blood sugar on the body and even tested a couple of peer's blood sugar (both were normal although one was on the high side of normal at 8.6). Tamara had even made up a puzzle and bought four prizes for her lesson summary (I'd better hang onto my hat as she might be teaching the class soon :)) Great job, well done- I hope you are as proud of yourself as I am of you both :):):)

DEAR Silent reading time after the presentation. Everyone managed to settle to read and/or novel work.

Quick class-wide reminder about responsibility and organization of assignments - I have started to think about the end of year reporting already and want the students to 'step up to the plate' so to speak. Learning this sooner rather than next year (later) will help them deal with the expectations at the junior high- I can't imagine they will be as pampered with personal reminders, blogs, newsletters, homework 'posters' and check-ins as they are here next year in grade eight. Time to be more responsible for learning and organization.

Phys Ed. 2:15-3pm Shot Put technique and practice with softballs today- all students managed to fit in three throws each and we drilled technique- longer puts with the lighter softballs today- add a shot put and see the difference :) Good session - I just had to ignore the whining until they settled and actually managed to do a good job.

Back to class for pack up, homework and dismissal 3pm
Bike ride after school for those who remembered their permission forms, bikes and helmets. Please rememeber it is the LAW - you need a helmet- no ifs ands or buts- no helmet- no ride :)

Have a nice evening
Mrs. J.