A Few Reminders...

Just a few reminders for the days to come:

-Next Tuesday there will  be an Advent Liturgy to celebrate the 3rd week of Advent. It will take place from 11:00-11:30 a.m. in the gym. All parents/families are welcome to attend. Some of our students will be reading at the liturg. If your child has been asked to read, please ensure they practice the reading that they will receive on Friday. 
-Wednesday, December 19th is our Christmas Concert at 1:00 p.m in the gymnasium. Students need to wear Christmas colours to school that day but NOT antlers or hats that light up. Should your child wear these, they will need to remain turned off during the performance.

Mini Research Project - Christmas Around the World

We have been researching Christmas traditions around the world in grade 4/5. Students have been working hard to create a 'Google Slide' presentation about their country (we picked the countries randomly using Class Dojo) which they will present to the class (see the paper copy of the success criteria that was sent home last week). This has been a school-based project, however, for homework, students need gather an artifact or symbol that relates to Christmas in their country (i.e. a special food, a type of ornament, etc.) by WEDNESDAY NEXT WEEK. Obviously, if your child chooses to bring in a food item as their symbol, it must be a non-perishable item.Copies of the success criteria both for the google slide project, oral presentation and project rubric, can be accessed from home via the student portal and their drives, however, they are not to do any work on the project from home other than to gather their artifact/symbol. Hopefully, we will be ready to start presenting projects by Wednesday/Thursday next week.

Sleigh Ride by Leroy Anderson - Cup Song Practice REVISED POST

We have decided to modify the CUP SONG to SLEIGH RIDE for the upcoming Christmas concert..
We have simplified PART A so that it is 'CLAP CLAP BUMBLEBEE, CLAP - UP-DOWN.' Students do this 8x for PART A. All other parts are the same. 
Above is a link to the music we are using for the performance.
We are no longer watching the instructional video to practice. Instead we are using this ANCHOR CHART along with the music above:

Word Study in December: Christmas Themed Words

Throughout December we will be reviewing Christmas
themed vocabulary. The words that are in BOLD will
be in this week’s word study quiz and the remainder
will be in next week’s quiz. There will be NO QUIZ
on Friday December 21st.

Advent angels announcement
Bethlehem candles celebrate
chimney Christmas decorations
eggnog elves festive
goodwill greetings Holiday
Jesus Joseph Mary
miracle mistletoe pageant
poinsettia presents reindeer
sacred sleigh stocking
togetherness tradition vacation
worship wrapping paper wreath

Home Practice of Basic Math Facts

We have been practicing our multiplication facts in class by doing timed drills (2's up to 9's). Students should already be proficient at solving 0's, 1's and 10's multiplication facts. Proficiency of basic math facts (addition, subtraction, multiplication and division) is essential for your child. They need to be able to solve facts quickly and accurately so that they can apply their knowledge to more difficult and higher level, problem solving activities in ALL areas of mathematics. I strongly suggest that students practice their basic facts at home in order to improve speed, accuracy and recall! There are many activity sheets that can be easily downloaded from the internet for practice at home.

Math Focus Update

We have launched a new 'Data Management' math unit! The focus of the unit will be on 'Collecting and Organizing Data.' Over the next few weeks this will be our main focus in math. We will also continue to practice multiplication facts, engage in problem solving activities and solve algebraic equations (missing number questions, questions with multiple operations/steps and including solving equations in parenthesis). 

Grade 4 Learning Goals for the Data Management unit are:
-Create and interpret stem and leaf plots
-Create and interpret double bar graphs
-Compare two data displays by making inferences
-Understand how to figure out a median and what a median tells about a set of data

Grade 5 Learning Goals for the Data Management unit are:
-Conduct a survey, organize, display, and analyze results, and consider the
  effectiveness of the methods used.
-Consider data collection methods such as the type of question asked and issues
  related to bias in order to collect representative data in a survey
-Use broke-line graphs to show trends when one variable is discrete
-Use a thermometer to measure temperature and calculate temperature change
  using both primary data and secondary data

Brain Teaser!

If you read yesterday's post, you'd know that we have a bit of a mystery on our hands. Why does our measurement of our combined class paper chain (743cm) not equal the combined measurements of the individual group paper chains (669 cm)?

Here are the AMAZING ideas that we shared today:

Chiara (& 9 other students agreed) - "Maybe it would be longer because there was more space in the hallway to stretch it out."
Lukas - "Maybe when Mrs. Stratford connected them and did repairs, it made it longer."
Giorgio - "It's possible that when we were carrying it out to the hallway, the chain stretched out."
Joseph - "Maybe the loops got squished and flat as we carried it."
Allie - "It's possible that the metre stick we used wasn't accurate."
Jaydee (& Ben) - "It's possible that when we used our fingers as markers, we moved them and therefore we measured incorrectly."
Ryan (& Chiara) - "Maybe the tape was sticking out and made the chain bigger."
Megan - "Perhaps the carpet made the chain wrinkled a bit and then they were shorter."
Ricky - "When we cut the links to connect all the chains, perhaps we made them bigger."
Keenen - "Maybe when we taped them, they got stretched out and longer."
Valentina (& Addison) - "When the chains were measured on the carpet, they looked a bit crooked and not straight."

'The Longest Paper Chain'- Collaborative Activity

We spent this morning talking about collaboration and engaging in a collaborative task. To get things started, we brainstormed ideas about what COLLABORATION means to us. We created a 'Y Chart' about what we think collaboration is...what it LOOKS LIKE, SOUNDS LIKE and FEELS LIKE. The students had many good ideas to share about collaboration and this is what our 'Y Chart' looked like before our collaborative activity:

Next, the students were split into small groups and presented with the challenge of creating the longest paper chain possible with only 1 piece of g.o.o.s. paper, tape and scissors. The activity required them to work collaboratively with their peers by problem solving, devising a plan of action, listening to each other's ideas, etc.,  Here they are working away:

After about 30 minutes working on their challenge, these were their final products:

Our longest chain was 195 cm, second longest was 180 cm, third longest was 142 cm, fourth longest was 77 cm and our fifth longest was 75 cm. During our activity consolidation we discussed what we learned about collaboration and what we needed in order to be successful at the challenge. We talked about errors we made and the things we would do differently if we were to repeat the challenge. 

Here are some of the ideas they came up with:

We also added to our 'Collaboration Y Chart:' 

Finally, we decided it would be fun to connect all the chains together in order to to make one huge paper chain! The students were amazed to see their enormous paper chain laid out down the hallway. They were even more amazed to learn that at the 1968 Summer Olympics, American Long Jumper Bob Beamon, won the Gold Medal with a record breaking 890 cm jump- way LONGER than our 743 cm paper chain! Our final measurement of 743 cm will lead to tomorrow's brain teaser: Why do our measurements of the individual paper chains add up to 669 cm rather than 743 cm?  

Remembrance Day

On Friday morning we celebrated Remembrance Day as a school. It was an extremely moving celebration for everyone and it was nice to see so many of our parents in attendance. This is a picture of the class wreath that we presented:

Earlier in the week, the students wrote postcards of thanks to Canadian soldiers past and present.

Word Study Quiz Results & Green Reading Logs

From this point onward, the Word Study books will NOT be sent home each Friday. Instead they will be sent home at the end of each month. I am spending too much time trying to collect all the books each week and we need the books to be at school for Word Study activities! Also, just a reminder that the Green Reading Duotangs are due this coming Thursday, November 1st. Thank you.

The Writing Process & Story Writing

We have begun story writing in grade 4/5! At the beginning of last week, I showed the students a picture of a puppy who had torn apart a roll of toilet paper. We discussed what the puppy might have been thinking, why it tore apart the paper, what the owners would think if they discovered the mess the puppy had made, etc, Then I told them that I decided to write a mini story about the torn up toilet paper from the perspective of the puppy. I imagined that the puppy was angry to be left alone all day, bored, trying to send a message and communicate it's feelings, etc., Then I showed them two different photos. One of a polar bear with it's paws up against a truck window, and the other of a group of geese - one of whom, has dived off the edge of an waterside cliff. They chose which story prompt to use for their own story writing. Once they had chosen their story prompt, they then had to choose which perspective they wished to write from (either the mother goose who saw her gosling dive off a cliff, the gosling who dove off the cliff, the polar bear with it's paws up against the truck window or the person sitting inside the truck). We began our writing by using story planners in order to map out all of the elements of the story (setting, problem, plot action/events, conclusion/resolution of problem). Most students have already completed their first draft of writing. Next steps are revising and editing our rough drafts (reading them to make sure they make sense, checking for consistent tense and voice, editing for spelling and punctuation, etc.). The final step in the writing process will be publishing. So far, the stories are looking great. I think we have a lot of budding creative authors in grade 4/5! 

Progress Reports & Parent Teacher Interviews

The Progress Report will be sent home on Tuesday, October 30th, 2018. Interviews will be held on Thursday, November 1st.  Please remember to complete and return, the bottom portion of the pink interview sheet which was sent home today with your child. I am looking forward to discussing your child's progress with you next week!

Spirit Week for Students October 29th-November 2nd

As part of our 'United Way' Fundraiser, there will be a 'Spirit Week' for students from October 29th-November 2nd. The suggested donation is $5.00 per student for the whole week! Here are some of the scheduled 'Spirit Week' activities:

Monday, October 29th = Crazy Hat &/or Hair  Day

Tuesday, October 30th = Class Colour Day. Our
class colour is RED!

Wednesday, October 31st = Orange & Black Day

Thursday, November 1st = Gum Day

Friday, November 2nd = PJ Day

Writing Focus in Language Arts

We are exploring various forms of narrative writing. Over the past couple of weeks, the students have been producing personal recount writing using the format taught in class (orientation sentence which introduces the topic of the recount, organizing word such as first, then next, finally, etc., and then a personal comment to wrap up the recount). We have been honing our editing skills by rereading our writing in order to detect errors in verb tense, punctuation, capitals, spelling and any missing linking words that connect ideas. I have been encouraging students to use the classroom dictionaries to correct misspelled words. Next, we will be exploring the writing process (planning, drafting, editing, revising, final draft) and writing fictional stories. We will be using story organizers to plan our stories and create first drafts.

  

Prodigy Math

Students have been given new 'Prodigy Math' accounts and passwords. Math Prodigy is a gamified presentation of math curriculum which enables your child to practice his/her math skills and have fun at the same time!  It is an extra tool available to you and your child to help them build their overall math competency, confidence and skills. There is a link under 'Helpful Resources' to the 'Prodigy Math' website and your child should be able to log himself/herself onto the program. Login sheets will be sent home with your child by the end of this week so that you can explore this resource at home!

Exploring with Patterns!

We are currently exploring patterns in grade 4/5! 

Grade 4 Learning Goals: 

-Describe how a repeating pattern continues and create repeating patterns.

-Describe how growing patterns continue, and create growing patterns.

-Describe how shrinking patterns continue, and create shrinking patterns

-Accurately follow a pattern rule and make predictions based on that rule.

-Propose a pattern rule that describes a given pattern and make 

 predictions based on that rule.

Grade 5 Learning Goals:

-Describe and extend patterns and relate numerical patterns to 

 shape patterns.

-Represent a pattern using tables of values.

-Represent a pattern with a pattern rule.

Picture Day This Friday October 19th!

Math Quiz Next Friday, October 12th

The students will have a small math quiz next Friday. Here are the concepts that the
students should review at home in order to prepare for the quiz:

Grade 4's:

-Representing, comparing and ordering  whole numbers up to the 10,000 place value in

Standard Form (i.e. 4694), with Base Ten Blocks, Expanded Form (i.e. 4000+600+90+4)
and Words (i.e. four thousand, six hundred, ninety-four)

-Rounding numbers to the nearest 10, 100, 1000 (i.e. in the number 4694 - the 1000
place value is indicated so this number would be rounded to 5000)

-Comparing numbers using the greater than and less than symbols
(i.e. Greater than: 4694 >4600, Less Than: 4600<4694) and order whole
numbers from least to greatest/greatest to least

Grade 5's:

-Representing, comparing and ordering  whole numbers up to the
100,000 place value in Standard Form (i.e. 124 694), with Base Ten Blocks,
Expanded Form (i.e. 100 000 +20 000+4000+600+90+4) and
Words (i.e. one hundred twenty four thousand, six hundred ninety-four)

-Rounding 6 digit numbers to the nearest 10, 100, 1000, 10 000 & 100 000

(i.e. in the number 124 694, the 1000 place value is indicated so this number
would be rounded to 125 000)

-Comparing numbers using the greater than and less than symbols (i.e. Greater
than: 124 694 >124 600, Less Than: 124 600 < 124 694) and order whole numbers
from least to greatest/greatest to least

October 1st- October 4th

We have a busy week here at St. Augustine School!

Monday - Milk Program begins
               - Orange Shirt Day
Wednesday - Terry Fox Run. Please remember to send in your pledges!
Thursday - Pizza Day begins
                 -Thanksgiving Mass at 11:00 a.m. All parents are welcome!
                - Rain Date for Terry Fox Run
Friday - PD Day! No School!

We are currently participating in a school-wide food drive in support of the Ottawa Food Bank and their tornado relief efforts. The food drive goes from October 1st-October 10th. Here is a list of their most needed items:

Baby Diapers,Baby Food & Formula,Canned Fish & Meat,Canned Vegetables & Fruit,Cereal (Whole Grains),Dry Pasta (Whole Grain) & Sauce,Legumes (Canned or Dried),Peanut Butter,Rice (brown),Crackers,Large cans/containers of juice,Fruit cups and juice boxes (size suitable for school/camp lunches),Canned flaked meat (chicken, ham, or turkey),Canned carrots, canned green & yellow beans

This Week..

I am hoping that everyone managed to stay safe over the weekend in light of Friday's tornado. I am sure many of you were without hydro for an extended period of time and I hope that it has been restored to you and your families!  I feel very blessed that no lives were lost in this tragic event and have been inspired by the strength of our community during this time of crisis. 

A few things to share.....

-Thanks to all parents for donations of classroom supplies such as tissue, markers ,etc. It is most appreciated. If you wish to make a donation to the class, please jot a note in your child's agenda and I can provide you with some suggestions. 

-Thanks also for taking the time to complete all of the forms that were sent home the first week of school!

-Last week some of our girls represented St. Augustine at the girls soccer tournament. This week it will be the boys turn!

-We are still collecting headphones for classroom tech use. Please label your child's headphones!

-This week we will begin our 'Classroom Jobs' in grade 4/5.

-The schoolwide Terry Fox Run is just around the corner on October 3rd     

-If you have any donations of non-fiction books, fiction novels, graphic novels, etc., that would be appropriate for the grade 4/5 level, it would be most appreciated so that we can build up our classroom library!

Have a wonderful week! 

Working with Whole Numbers & Identifying Number Patterns

We have been practicing naming whole numbers represented in standard form, words, expanded form as well as identifying the value of individual digits within larger numbers. 

For example:

Standard Form: 14,908 
Words: fourteen thousand, nine hundred, eight
Expanded Form: 10,000 + 4000 + 900 + 8

We have also been practicing converting numbers from one form to another.

For example:
one hundred eight thousand, seven hundred fifty four (number words) = 108,754 (standard form)

There is a place value chart posted in the classroom for students to refer to. They must remember that digits in larger numbers are grouped into houses and each house has space for only 3 digits! When representing numbers in words or standard form, the houses must be separated by commas. I always tell them to leave a little space between houses as well. When representing numbers in expanded form, the different values are separated by a plus sign.

We have started to talk about patterns, in particular number patterns. We are a applying our knowledge of place value to identify number patterns, pattern rules and to create our own number patterns. These two areas will continue to be a focus in math class!