Gliding into the New Year

We began our first day back to school with Off to a Running Start. It is so exciting to see the improvement in the running. All students are now expected to run at least 1 lap (they must complete a minimum of 2 laps). Many in the class are already able to complete 3 laps! In the gym, we have begun a basketball unit. We are working on dribbling skills through various drills and games. We also enjoyed our first session of ice skating today as well. Remember to wear a longer pair of socks to prevent skates from rubbing against the skin. Thanks to those parents who came to help out with laces!

Our Science unit for this term in Weather. We began our investigations looking at two properties of air - air can move and air can hold water. Two experiments are helping us to 'see' the water vapour in the air. In the first, we had two glasses of water at room temperature. We then added ice to one glass. After about 15 minutes, we were able to feel the condensation on the outside of the glass. For the second experiment, we put some water in a dish and are leaving it out to 'see' evaporation in action. Another key concept we learned about this week is the water cycle.

Both grades have begun new Social Studies units. The grade 3 students are learning about their community. I am hoping to take them on a community walk to explore some of the services that are provided in the neighborhood. Grade 4 students are beginning to look at the history of First Nations groups in Canada. Ms. Anaquod helped them kick-off the unit by introducing them to her culture, the Muscowpetung. Students enjoyed tasting some of their traditional foods such as moose and bannock with rose hip jelly.

This term in Health & Career Education, we will be using a newer program called Steps to Respect: A Bullying Prevention Program. To begin the unit, we are exploring what healthy friendships look like. Students worked in small groups to brainstorm qualities they would look for in the ideal friend. We will be looking at RESPECT as the foundation of a healthy friendship. If you happen to hear your child talking about a DNEIRF, they are talking about a 'backwards friend' - someone who pretends to be your friend only because they want something from you.

In Math, the grade 3 students just began a unit on measurement. They will be learning about perimeter next. The grade 4 students are currently working on addition with regrouping up to four digits. We also learned a great game that can be played with a deck of cards. It's called 'Decide the Digits'. Using the Ace through 9, turn over a card and have students decide where the digit should go: the thousands, hundreds, tens or ones place. The goal is to make the highest number possible. The game requires students to use their knowledge of place value and also involves an element of probability and chance.

Finally, in Language Arts, we are beginning several new focuses. Our Word Wall has 10 new high-frequency words that are commonly misspelled (because, people, want, until, off, have, said, they, friends, and laugh). We are also focusing on using a new strategy that good spellers use - using a visual confirmation when spelling words from rhyming families. For example, words like fight and bite are rhyming words. Students can use the rhyming patterns -ite and -ight  to spell other rhyming words and then decide which spelling is correct. They are learning to use a dictionary to cross-check. Finally, we will be learning some Nifty Thrifty Fifty words. These words are multi-syllable words that contain prefixes and suffixes.

In Writing, we are beginning to focus on the trait of Organization. This trait includes beginnings and endings, as well as the use of sequencing (or transition) words. We are building a 'Menu of Beginnings' that includes the following:

• start with a question
• use dialogue
• describe the setting
• use a startling fact
• single word
• give an opinion
• begin with a hint of what is to come

Our reading focus is on determining main idea. Students are learning that the main idea is what the text is mostly about. It is usually given in the first sentence of a paragraph and sometimes repeated in the final sentence of a paragraph.We will be largely focusing on nonfiction texts in both whole class and guided reading.

As we move forward into another busy term, please remember to check your child's planner for reminders and assignments. Thank you for your ongoing support!