Welcome back! September has been a whirlwind of getting to know everyone and trying to fit back into routines of deep thinking and academic focus. If you haven't already, please fill out my Student Info form (click here) and signed up for Remind (click here)! The info sheet is very helpful to get some background information on the students I'm teaching, and I use Remind to... well, remind you of upcoming events, as well as Agenda messages a few times a week.
Please see below for a quick video overview of our first month back!
Please see below for our academic focuses in October:
Writing:
We'll begin by finishing up our first Realistic Fiction narrative writing theme, focusing on drafting and revising short stories. After Thanksgiving, we'll begin our first Opinion Writing theme, looking specifically at the structure of a persuasive essay.
In our Word Study lessons, we'll spend the month focusing on Letter-Sound relationships. We'll work on identifying and working with a variety of common (and less common) letter combinations, the sounds they make, and how they can help us to read and spell words accurately.
Reading:
Students will continue to read "Good Fit" books independently throughout the month. Our lesson focuses will be on summarizing well, and becoming familiar with other comprehension strategies.
Math:
Towards the end of September, we began to explore place value in decimal numbers. After wrapping this up, our main topics of focus in October will be looking at expressions and equations (including Order of Operations), and angles. Students will also continue to develop skills around identifying important information, note-taking, and checking their understanding.
Science:
We will spend the first part of October continuing to develop an understanding of waste disposal in our local community, and how the proper disposal, reduction, and elimination of waste is essential for living a good life. We'll conclude this unit by developing a "Waste Report Card" for Dr. Robert Plaxton School, evaluating our on-the-ground practices against the students' new understandings of best practices in this area.
Social:
In the second half of October, we will begin our focus on Alberta's Geographical regions with a research project. The students will develop an appreciation for the vast diversity in our province, as well as some of the more unique and fascinating landforms, animals, and sites available to be visited.
Wellness:
As the weather turns colder, some of our Wellness lessons each month will be in the classroom. During these lessons for October, we will be exploring our focus on, "What makes a positive community?" We will be specifically looking at healthy relationships, and how to build and maintain them.
French:
Students will continue to develop their French vocabulary throughout October. We will study a number of everyday phrases, and some specific school vocabulary, before turning our attention to numbers, dates, and calendars.
Art:
Our art focus for the month will be on colour and shape -- we have a fun GeomeTree project that we'll be doing in collaboration with Mrs. Harmon in Fine Arts. Students will exploring the mixing and blending of colours, then use the colours they've created to mood, harmony, and/or contrast in their final project.
Important Notes for the next month:
Monday Oct 9: NO SCHOOL (Thanksgiving)
Tuesday Oct 10: Picture Day
Wednesday-Friday, Oct 25-2: NO SCHOOL (PT Interviews on the 25th, then Professional Learning surrounding assessment and the new curriculum)
