Curriculum Central

We are now full swing into the school year. Our weekly schedule is fairly set and definitely full. We have two larger blocks of science each week as well as two blocks of social studies. Math and language arts happen every day. Language arts encompasses Writer's Workshop, Free Write Fridays, Word Work, Shared Reading, D.E.A.R., Read Aloud, and Guided Reading (which is just getting underway). In addition, we have two blocks set aside each week for health and career education, one block for music and a double block for art. Filling out the final spaces are things like Class Meeting, Spotlight, Library, Computers, and Gym. I guess that explains why I am tired at the end of the week!

Our staff enjoyed an inspirational day of professional learning at the end of September with Dr. John Mighton, founder of JUMP math. He also spoke with a group of about 50 interested parents that evening. Again, this day reminded me of how much I love mathematics. I hope that I am able to convey that enthusiasm to students. The grade four students began the year with an introductory unit on fractions. This unit is meant to build enthusiasm and confidence. It definitely met the billing. Students were very confidently adding and subtracting fractions with different denominators by the end of about two weeks. When told that they were doing grade five and six mathematics, they begged for high school math! We have now moved into our first unit on Patterns and Algebra. Students will be learning to identify increasing and decreasing patterns both numerically and with symbols, to explain the pattern rules, and to extend patterns successfully. We are also working on mental math skills about 2 or 3 times a week for about 10 to 15 minutes of our math block. This weekend students were to be practicing the 2, 3, 4 and 5 times tables up to 25.

The grade 3 students in Mr. Smather's class began with a unit on Time which they were tested on last Tuesday. They are now working with numbers. Ask your child to teach you the Target Game at home. Other ways to support learning in mathematics are to work on mental math skills through games like Modified "Go Fish to 10". Develop a list of all the number pairs which add up to 10 with your child (1 and 9; 2 and 8; 3 and 7; 4 and 6; 5 and 5). It is also helpful for students to see how the numbers can be switched when adding to get the same sum. For example,  4 + 6 = 6 + 4. Then remove all 10's and face cards from the deck. The ace card is always the 1. Shuffle the cards, deal each player six cards, and place the remaining cards face down in a pile. Before play starts, players may lay down any number pairs that add to 10. Once beginning the game, a player may be holding a 3. They could ask the other player for the number 7. If the player has the card, they must give it to the first player who puts down the pair of cards. This player resumes their turn. If the player does not hold the card requested, they respond "Go Fish". That player picks up a card from the pile and player two now takes a turn. Play ends when one player gets rid of all their cards. Players receive 4 points for being out first and one point for each pair of cards that equal 10. This game is easily modified to make it easier or harder (remove cards and play totals up to 5 or add the face cards and play totals up to 12).

In Social Studies, the grade 4 students are currently learning about world geography. They will be responsible for knowing the following spelling words for their current unit:

• North America
• South America
• Europe
• Asia
• Africa
• Australia
• Antarctica
• Pacific Ocean
• Atlantic Ocean
• southern
• northern
• hemisphere
• Canada
• Vancouver

The grade 3 students have begun with a short introductory unit on Community. We are now looking at communities in British Columbia. Thank you to those families who have sent in photos of a community in BC that you have visited or know something about. These photos will be returned to you at the end of this unit. Our learning intention is to know some interesting sites to see and communities to visit in British Columbia. To demonstrate their learning, students will be labelling a map of British Columbia with different physical features (islands, lakes, rivers, plateaus) and important communities (Vancouver, Victoria). They will also read reports on three different communities in BC: Ahousat, Fort Nelson, and Kelowna. These reports focus on four ways to describe a community: population, location, environment and community life. At the end of the unit, students will be asked to create a postcard that describes features of a community of their choice.

I look forward to meeting with everyone this week during our goal-setting conferences. I will be working with the students on Monday to prepare them for this conference and helping them to select an appropriate goal.  Our conferences will be only 15 minutes in length so the focus will be on understanding the goal and the role of each participant (teacher, parent, student) in achieving the goal. Confirmation times will be sent home Monday. See you then!