November 23, 2023

Hello families, 

This week we created final copies of our Norval Morrisseau inspired art. Norval Morrisseau, also known as Copper Thunderbird, was an Indigenous Canadian artist from the Bingwi Neyaashi Anishinaabek First Nation. He is widely regarded as the grandfather of contemporary Indigenous art in Canada. We learned about oral storytelling and as we practiced our art we listened to three different legends: Turtle Island, Thunderbird, and Salmon Boy. Students chose one of these animals for their guided drawing. In this art we focused on including bright colors and bold lines using sharpie and alcohol markers. 


 
 

In math we continued to build our understanding of place value through a S.T.E.M. building assignment. Here are the goals that each grade is working towards. 

Grade 1: I can represent and explain quantities with 100 using math vocabulary such as "digits, place value ones, tens, hundreds, and thousands"

Grade 2: I can represent and explain quantities with 1000 using math vocabulary such as "digits, place value, expanded form, hundreds, and thousands"




We are now moving into representing numbers using a number line. Number lines will help us as we review skip counting and move into addition!

 


In literacy we continued our short vowel review using the UFLI mats. Students played a fun verbal recognition game to identify vowels (short and CVC words). I threw in long vowels and more difficult words to challenge those students who are ready! 



As we practice adjectives, students were asked to describe a picture using strong adjectives and apply "sky, grass, ground" printing. On Thursday students learned about peer feedback and gave feedback to a partner on their work. 



We also learned about synonyms. In groups students utilized "Word Hippo", an online thesaurus to brainstorm different synonyms for common words.



Here is how we practice words through spelling time. We have learned all the ones up to capital letters so far.  Below are a few ideas for how to practice sight words at home as well.



In addition, here are some decodable books and other resources you can use at home with your child to practice reading!


Words of the Week
or
one
had
by
word 
but
not
what
all
were
Spicy
country
might
sometimes

In gym we have been practicing our soccer skills through independant, partner and collaborative drills. It is great to see all the perseverance as students learn to control the ball and develop their target skills. 


We completed our Science groups on Tuesday. On the last two days Grade 1s continued exploring  physical changes and measurement of objects, and Grade 2s put their learning to the test and explored different objects, identifying the different properties of each. 

On Wednesday each grade did a Science assessment with me to demonstrate their understanding of matter. 

Grade 2:

 

Grade 1:


Later in the week we prepared for our Monday Zoo Field Trip by reviewing and practicing scientific sketching using the plants in our classroom. 



Tea Time Tuesday

I am happy to announce that Room 8 will be bringing back Montessori Tea Time Tuesday! It will take place on the 1st Tuesday of each month.   During this time students will have the opportunity to practice life skills such as preparing, serving and cleaning up tea service alongside Ms. Greenhall. The two flavours I will be providing for tea are peppermint and chamomile. If you wish to send a different tea flavour for your child, I am happy to provide warm water for them. 

Starting next week, students who wish to participate are invited to bring their own non-breakable, labeled mug to keep at school (these will be returned at the end of the year). Students will be responsible for cleaning and caring for their mug for the remainder of the year.  Our first Tea Time will be Tuesday December 5th. I look forward to enjoying tea with the class!


Important Dates:

  • Monday November 27th - Zoo Field Trip Penguin Palooza 

  • Tuesday November 28th- Online Art Card Orders Due
  • Thursday November 30th - Hat Day - The Saucy Bread Company Fun Lunch
  • Tuesday December 5th - First Tea Time Tuesday
  • Friday, December 8th - PD Day No School
  • Thursday, December 14th - Winter Concert Event 6:30-8:00 (more info to come) 




Hello families,

Looking to shop for books online through Scholastic year round? I have set up a scholastic account for our class! Happy reading!

Class Code: RC358893


Below are our two classroom accounts for Khan Academy Kids and EPIC reading if you want to use them at home!

Khan Academy Kids
Please note that when in a topic you may need to switch between "grade 1" and "grade 2" to reflect your child's needs. Happy learning!


EPIC Reading
Our class code is: ypq1713