Happy Weekend Everyone!
I hope that you find time to enjoy the sunshine and the beautiful spring weather this weekend! Let us know what you’ve been up to via the Ask Me question on Seesaw or the Home Reading folder!
We have completed the first ten days of our 30 outdoor challenge at school!! We’ve been lucky to have had some gorgeous weather but let’s be honest…I think we need some rain to help get the dusty streets and sidewalks under control! Reminder: there is no school on Monday so Day 11 of our outdoor learning will not take place until Tuesday!
Tuesday is also our 3rd running club meeting. As you know, we’ve decided to change things up and have run club in the mornings this year (8:10 on Tuesdays and Thursdays). We have had about 40 kids join us so far but would love even more! This run club is about developing/maintaining a healthy lifestyle and getting some fresh air. Being outside before school has actually helped those of us involved get a great start to the day! It’s not too late to join! Students in the run club in grades 4-6 do not have to participate in the Fit Run in June. So if that’s holding you back…don’t worry. You can be new to running to join or you can also walk and work your way up to running. Parents: Thank you for joining us! You don’t need to commit to coming each session or even each week. You can choose to help supervise, you can walk or you can run. We’ve had at least 5 parents out to each session so far and we really love the community feel that it creates having students, parents, daycare and teachers out together. We hope to see you soon!!!
Here’s a recap of last week at school!
-We finished A Boy Called Bat and have started a new book called The Wishtree. On Friday we actually sat outside our window near a tree which might just become our very own Wishtree! I also finished pre-reading The Wild Robot Escapes and have decided (by request) that it will become our next (and possibly final) read aloud choice. Some students have already chosen to purchase and read their own copy of the book and are aware that there was a chance I’d be reading it to the class. Those students are welcome to bring in their copy and read along with me when the time comes!
-The grade 4 book club was a success. We had 20 kids join us!! I think we have time for one more book… then it’ll be summer book club time! We will let the grades 4-6 kids know ASAP about the book choice and the meet/eat/treat time. Grade 3s you will get your chance at a book club in the summer. That one will be open to all students (tell your friends in the other classrooms) 🙂
-Book Clubs with 122 and 126 are going well too! We will finish our books by the end of the month and present a maker piece to the other groups. After that…we will keep this time slot to do some drama!!
-We have been doing a daily edit to help develop editing skills. Each morning the students are greeted by a message on the board. It’s a letter that outlines what is taking place on that day. They get a chance to fix an error before the announcements begin. After the announcements we finish up any corrections as a class until the letter makes sense. The kids love being detectives! Give it a try at home! We are looking for: uppercase letters in the correct spots, punctuation, homophones, contractions and spelling of commonly used words.
Looking for a weekend edit?! Copy this out (be mindful of proper letter formation) and bring it to school on Tuesday. Good luck finding all the errors!
-Multiplication is going pretty well. Some students would benefit from at home practice of skip counting and basic facts. This can be done anywhere and anytime! Out for a walk or in the car or during the intermission of the Jets game…just ask some questions! Example: skip count by 4s to 40, name the doubles facts to 20+20, explain how any factor multiplied by 4 is related to doubles, use flashcards, etc. Throw in some addition/subtraction/compatible numbers too!! This will all help to develop recall and 5 minutes if regular practice can go a long way 🙂
-Our first We Belong Day with our vertical teams was great! We (123,124,125 and PM Nursery) listened to a great story, did some dancing with Mrs. Silk and then wrote down a word that described how dancing made us feel! Next time the kids will change stations and the teachers will repeat the same activity with a new group of students! Great job on remembering to wear clothing that reflected who you are. We loved hearing all the stories about why you chose your outfit 🙂
What’s happening this week/month?!
-May 17 is Outdoor Classroom Day and May 18 is Planting Day so we are thinking of combining these two themes and spending the day outside (Friday, May 18). Any ideas?! We have some ideas but would love to hear what you’re thinking!
-This week we will choose our plant/soil/environment inquiry topic. I will be asking the students to write down their top 5 wonderings and we will go from there!
-We will also continue our research on provinces and territories
-Monday is Day 2 and because there is no school there is also no Genius Hour. I’m thinking about giving the kids time on Friday instead. There are a number of students/groups ready to present their work. So we will make time for that and for a work period as well
-Don’t forget to get your book order in if you plan on making an order this month. I’ll be sending that in this week. After that you’ll have one more chance to order before summer!
-As many of you already know, Murray is taking a team of Grade 6 students to the Global Finals for Destination Imagination!! If you are interested in supporting this exciting opportunity please visit the GoFundMe page below!
Montrose School is going to Knoxville Tennessee in May but could really use your help. Please donate/retweet @WinnipegSD @IDODI @MontroseWSD Montrose School D.I. Tennessee Trip https://t.co/tslTEHg9je
— Murray Mandzuk (@MurrayMandzuk) April 28, 2018
I think that’s all for today! Enjoy your weekend!
#GoJetsGo
Until next time,
Danielle