April 27th - May 1st

Greetings Grade Four Students and Families!

As we begin our sixth week of distance learning and school closures, I want to once again, begin my weekly post by reminding everyone that the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual health/wellness are a priority for everyone at this time.  Learning activities and goals set out by teachers are optional.  Families must make decisions that suit their individual needs.  Please prioritize the health and wellness of your family and make decisions about distance learning that work best for your family!

Our attendance at weekly google hang outs is growing steadily! We had 13 participants this week! I am hoping this number will be even bigger next week. We did a 'check-in' with each other and talked about Earth Day as April 22nd was the 50th anniversary of this special day. One of the students aptly said that every day is earth day and I couldn't agree more! The invitation to next week's hangout was sent on Friday.  Please mark your calendars and join the hangout a couple of minutes early so that we can begin on time! I am really enjoying seeing all of the student's faces and catching up. It is really special that we are able to come together in this way. Of course, it isn't nearly as good as the real thing but it is the best we can do under the circumstances.

A few students shared writing pieces from their 'Time Capsule' project. I really enjoyed reading Naomi's letter to her future self. If students haven't completed their time capsules, they can continue to work them.  For students that are ready to share their time capsules, I am inviting them to do a 'Show and Tell' on Flip Grid - the link has been included in the Monday, April 27th slide. That link will remain open for kids to contribute as they finish!

The google slide deck 'Gr. 4 Weekly Work' offers some exciting new learning opportunities.   Over the next few weeks in language we will be writing speeches! Included in the instruction slides, are some awesome examples of student speeches to watch that will hopefully inspire the students.  This speech writing adventure provides an opportunity for students to explore their passions and interests and to share then with others! I am super interested to see what topics students choose for their speeches. Final topic choices must be approved by me BEFORE they begin writing the first drafts of their speeches. When we are finished our speeches we will share them either in a hang out OR on a Flip Grid - I haven't decided yet!

In math we are finished with fractions and decimals up to the tenth and the hundredth. We are now  shifting our focus to a new math strand: geometry. Students will learn about the properties of quadrilaterals, 3-D Prisms and Pyramids. Students will also get a chance to explore the skeletons and nets of 3-D figures and the difference between skeletons and nets.  There are a couple of fun math games to explore too! Lesson instructions and useful information are on the slides and worksheets are in the Math folders of their Google Drives.

Please remember to share photos with me so that I can put them on our class blog!

As always, if you have any questions or concerns, or there is any way that I am able to support learning from home, please contact me via email: ruth.stratford@ocsb.ca

Please note that I continue to maintain my half-time teaching schedule and can only be reached in the mornings.  

Mrs. Stratford

Photos of the Week!

Nicky shared his chocolatey fractions with me telling me 5/12 are yellow, 2/12 are green, 3/12 are blue, 1/12 is pink and 1/12 is purple!

Noah has been enjoying bike rides with his family and working hard on his math from home!  

Mrs. Heagle was finally able to complete a needlepoint tapestry that she started a long time ago. I think we can all agree that it turned out beautifully and we cannot wait to see it framed! 

During our family exercise hour last week, we had a race (not my idea)!  Of course the three kids finished in the top three podium positions but we all made it over the finish line which was the most important thing! 

April 20th - 24th

Dear Families,

As we begin our fifth week of distance learning and school closures, I want to begin by saying that physical, mental/emotional and spiritual health and wellness are a priority for everyone at this time.  Learning activities and goals set out by teachers are optional.  Families must make decisions that suit their individual needs.  Please prioritize the health and wellness of your family and make decisions about distance learning that suit your own needs.

This is our Virtual Spirit Week at St. Augustine school (details outlined in previous post). Learning goals for the students have been added to the Google Slide deck for this week which can be found in their Drives on the Student Portal. Students may choose to share work with me as they complete it OR share it all at the end of the week on Friday. If  students choose to do work on paper rather than in the Google Drive, then consider taking photos of it and creating a document that can be shared with me. How students complete the work is really up to them but in order for me to be able to provide anecdotal feedback, I have to be able to see it and they need to share it with me!

Last Wednesday we had our second Google Hangout/Meet as a class.  Our numbers are increasing each week which is great. It was wonderful to see everyone. We all agreed that we are enjoying spending more time with our families but that we miss each other and all of our friends. 

One of the things we did in last week's Google Hangout/Meet was to review etiquette for having hangouts. Here is a quick summary of the main points discussed:

• Be on-time for the hangout 
• Do not show up at the meeting dressed in pyjamas but rather in clothes that would be appriate for school (no need for the uniform)
• Set yourself up in a central room in the house such as the dining room, kitchen or family room
• Make sure that you are comfortable with what people can see in your home behind you
• Participants can always choose to block the camera if they prefer to be heard and not seen 
• Your microphone should remain on mute until you are called upon by your teacher to speak 
• The 'Chat' function is not to be used during the Hangout. You behave in the meeting just as you would during class which means you would not be having conversations with other people while the teacher is talking
• Raise your hand if you have a question and wait your turn to speak
• Listen attentively to others and avoid distractions of home
• As your teacher, I will be the first to start the Google Hangout/Meet. Once I have logged on, you will be able to log on. I will also be the last one to log off when the meeting is finished.  

As always, if you have any questions or concerns, or there is any way that I am able to support learning from home, please contact me via email: ruth.stratford@ocsb.ca

Please note that I continue to maintain my half-time teaching schedule and can only be reached in the mornings.  

Mrs. Stratford

Virtual Spirit Week Next Week - April 20th-24th

Next week is the St. Augustine Virtual Spirit Week! Mrs.OBrien sent out a 'Hello Sharks' letter on April 16th, outlining all of the details about this special event. In her letter there is also a LINK to the FLIP GRID challenge outlined for this upcoming Monday. Here is the schedule:

Monday: Be Community Day.  Post your thank you sign in your window that you have created for all of the front line workers and share a video of it on FLIP GRID: https://flipgrid.com/b9e29903

Tuesday: Favourite Book Day! Dress up as a character from your favourite book.

Wednesday: Be Innovative Day.  Create a structure of items that you have found around your house.

Thursday: Pajama and Stuffy Day.

Friday: Be Well Day. Choose your favourite appropriate song and show us your dance moves.

Don't forget to email photos of yourself throughout the week and share them with Mrs. OBrien by sending her an email at: augustine@ocsb.ca

Go Sharks Go!!!!

April 14th -April 17th

                

Hello Grade 4 Families,

Happy Easter to all of the students and their families! I trust that everyone had a restful and enjoyable Easter weekend. It was very unusual to attend virtual Easter mass this past weekend. It is not the way our family is used to worshipping but I was once again reminded that there is nothing usual about the times we are currently in! Maintaining a positive growth mindset and flexbility is of the utmost importance.  Another first for our family was that we had an Easter get together with our extended family over the internet. We had a Zoom call with 34 family members spanning 3 provinces (Ontario, New Brunswisk and Nova Scotia) and 4 countries (Canada, New Caledonia, Australia and Sudan). It was wonderful to see everyone and it was almost as good as seeing them in person.

Slides with work outlined for the students, have been added to the google slide presentation that I shared with each student last week. Each Monday, the teachers will add their learning goals and activities to the slide deck.  Students must continue to access this information in the Language Folder within their Google Drive. They should also continue to check their email accounts for messages and updates. 

As we are in week #4 of distance learning, students should have already been accessing their Drive via the ocsb.ca Student Portal. If you need a quick refresher about how to access their Drive on the Student Portal, here is a handy instructional sheet that one of our teacher's made which you may find useful:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1jP30NzeFLso44T__Qf2EHIuj0ZZMrVAr/view

Each Wednesday we will have a Grade 4 Google Meet/Hangout.  Students receieved an email invitiation from me which I sent to their student email account for this coming April 15th at 10:00 a.m. This week's hangout will be the whole class but the following Wednesday (April 22nd), I will be dividing the class into a few smaller groups and having several smaller hangouts that will be approximately 15 minutes in length each. It is very important that all students continue to check their Drive and the classroom blog for learning goal updates.

I will continue to be available each morning up until noon, to answer any questions or concerns. I look forward to seeing the work the students do at home and providing my feedback. Also, please continue to send photos to me as it is wonderful way to share what the grade 4 students are up to!

I can be reached at: ruth.stratford@ocsb.ca

Cheers,

Ruth Stratford

Fraction Fun!

Naomi had some fraction fun with her apple snack this week!  She told me that three sixths of her apple slices had whipped cream on them and three sixths did not have whipped cream on them! In other words, half of her apples had whipped cream and half did not! 

I invite the students to hunt for fractions this week and snap a photo of them which I will gladly share! Maybe you will come across fractions in food, your toys, Lego, outside playing. Be creative and share your math thinking!

Religion News From Mrs. Gravelle & Mrs. Stratford

                         

During Lent and Holy Week, students are invited to watch the following videos as we prepare for Easter:

Holy Week

Palm Sunday

The Last Supper

For Religion, we are currently in Unit 4. Grade 4 students can continue to use the Growing in Faith, Growing in Christ program found in their ocsb.ca Student Portal or from the website: www.pearsoncanada.ca/growinginfaith/student-home

Student Login:

username: GIFGIC_student99

password: Student99

Students will click on the Grade 4 icon and have access to many activities including the electronic student resource, videos, music, Bible stories and Prayers, interactive activities and images. 

April 6th-April 9th

Dear Parents/Guardian(s),

Yesterday marked the beginning of Holy Week for Catholics everywhere. My family attended a 'virtual' Palm Sunday mass that was broadcast by our local church. While it was not the same as attending Palm Sunday celebrations in person, there was a sense of sacred gathering through the shared scripture readings and homily. 

As we begin our third week of school closures and distance learning, I am hoping that everyone remains in good health and spirits.

I shared a google slide presentation with each of the students (in the Student Portal, Hapara Workspace, Language Folder).  The slide deck outlines learning goals for this week in the areas of Math and Language. Your child's afternoon teacher will communicate learning goals for him/her separately.  Here is the link to the google slide presentation I shared with your child:
https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1axEWcZ4TJSs0M1BxKZJY8tXx6RRkp-KqucnCsX6O6gQ/edit?usp=sharing

I am trying to maintain my regular morning half-time work schedule. As a result, I check my emails regularly throughout the morning up until noon.  If you have any questions or concerns I will do my best to respond to them within this time frame. Many students have been sharing their work with me and I try to provide feedback, and answer any questions they may have, in a timely manner.

I am eager to help support you and your child during this period of distance learning.

God Bless,

Ruth Stratford

A Message From The Staff!

Photos of Learning From Home During Week #2

Thank you to all of you who contributed photos from your week at home. There are so many cool things happening and it is wonderful to be able to share pictures of each other. Our classroom family is physically separated right now and photos are a lovely way to see what our friends have been up to. Please continue to share with me for next Friday's post! 

Accessing online learning resources and hanging with the newest member of the family: Loki!

Reading time, having a tea party and playing with toys! 

                 
Playing a game of Battleship online with a friend! 



Concentrating hard on some school work and learning to sew! What a fabulous, handsewn zebra! 

 Out for a bike ride and fresh air. Cooking in the kitchen and cleaning up afterwards!