'The Good On Ya' Song

LAST WEEK OF SCHOOL - June 22nd - June 26th

Dear Families,

This is our 14th week of distance learning and our final week of school for the 2019-2020 school year!

Everyone should have received my goodbye email this morning. I hope folks enjoy the song that my big brother made for all my wonderful grade 4 students. I will post a copy of it on the blog if you missed it!

This week things have been greatly simplified.  In Language our focus is the flip grids on the learning slides, completing the Gr. 4 Memory Slide Show and individual reading. If you are looking for additional activities, you may complete a daily journal in your journal document. In math things are a lot more self-directed. I am suggesting you visit the Prodigy website (link on the student portal) and/or peruse some of the math websites linked on this blog. Complete any unfinished math work in your drive and be sure to share your work with me. I will continue to provide feedback to those that share work! 

If you have any questions or concerns or need to touch base with me for any reason, I can be reached each morning via email at: ruth.stratford@ocsb.ca

Sincerely,
Mrs. Stratford

June 15th- 19th

Dear, Families,

This is week #13 of distance learning. Time certainly has flown by! Summer is just around the corner and the school year is beginning to wind down, however, we will continue to engage and participate in learning activities over the next couple of weeks!  

Parents will begin retrieving student belongings from school this week. I am sure the students will be very eager to have their things back! See last week's newsletter from Mrs. OBrien for all of the details related to the picking up of student belongings. Don't forget to bring any overdue library books with you. There will be a place for you to deposit them.


Father's Day is this coming Sunday! I want to take this opportunity to wish all of the Father's and Grandfather's out there a great day! It's a day to celebrate all of the important men in our lives (Dads, Grandpa's, Uncles, etc.). I wish all of you celebtrating this day, a relaxing, special day with your families.

Last week we had a smaller turnout at our weekly hangout, however, it was very productive! We talked about the 'Memory Slide Show' project and what it means to set personal goals.  We also did a Number Talk and played a Kahoot together.

Here are some of the exciting things that were shared at last week's hangout: Ms. Carisa finally got to visit her grandmother who has just moved to Ottawa and has been self-isolating in her new long-term care facility. She was able to see her through the window and chat with her on the phone; Layla is on the hunt for a new bike that will fit her. So far she hasn't had any success but they are still looking; Naomi was supposed to get her new puppy in August but received the wonderful news that they will be getting her early. Pandora is the new addition to their family!; Jessica and her mum went for a long bike ride together and did some shopping. She also has a new powerbar in her room which enables her to plug in all of her devices, etc.; Daniella had another swim in her mum's friend's pool and she tells us that the water was a refreshing 70 degrees Farenheit (about 21 degrees celcius!); Mila introduced us to her hamster Ginger and also reports that she has a new silver/turquoise bike whcih she is riding every day; Kristen's puppy Camilla is making another trip to the vet for her second round of vaccinations; Nicky was telling us all about the plans for his mum's birthday which was last Wednesday. Nicky's Dad was planning to cook a surprise barbecue dinner for his mum!; Julia went bike riding and mini-putting on the weekend. Unfortunately, their excursion ended with her 5-year-old step-sister having an accident and requiring stitches in her knee; Danayit was telling us all about the tomatoes and carrots that she and her mum planted in their mini backyard garden.

This week in math we will be doing a daily math word problem and exploring the Mathletics digital resource. In Language we will continue to work on our slide show, do journal writing activites and read. 

I will be holding 'office hours' again today from 10:00-10:30 a.m. Your child received an google hangout invitation to my office hours last week. It's an opportunity for the students to and ask me any questions they may have in real-time.

Have a wonderful week! If you have any questions or concerns or need to touch base with me for any reason, I can be reached each morning via email at: ruth.stratford@ocsb.ca

Sincerely,


Mrs. Stratford

A Message from Mrs. Cook our Library Technician!

We have an exciting reading service available through Sora, the student reading app, which provides free
24/7 access to ebooks and audiobooks. Learn more about Sora and its perks for you and our students
here: https://meet.soraapp.com/. What better way to engage a student’s mind than through reading?
Starting April 15 – July 31, 2020, the Sora Sweet Reads program will offer a collection of Juvenile and
Young Adult titles that will be prominently displayed in Sora for quick and easy unlimited access. You can
explore the title offerings and learn more about the program here: https://resources.overdrive.com/sora-

sweet-reads/.

June 8th - June 12th

Dear Families,

This week is week #12 of distance learning! We have been experiencing a lot of flip-flopping in the weather patterns. Quite frankly, I wish the weather would just make up it's mind because my outdoor plants were not happy in last week's cold streak! I sincerely hope that your family continues to maintain a schedule that enables everyone to stay happy, healthy and productive.

As was mentioned one of my posts last week, I will be holding 'office hours' each Monday from 10:00-10:30 a.m. Have a look at last week's posts for more information. Your child received an google hangout invitation to my office hours last week. This is not a mandatory hangout but simply a chance for your child to log on and ask me any questions they may have.

Tuesday June 9th, I will be working on report cards and out-of-the office ALL MORNING. I will be back on Wednesday June 10th!

On Thursday, June 11th @ 2:00 p.m.  Mrs. OBrien will lead us in a second virtual  ‘Praying in Colour’!  Perfect for all ages.  Please feel free to join along with staff members, students and family members! Grab some colouring utensils, some paper and get creative and reflective! Simply click on the link below, shortly before 2 p.m. on Thursday to join our virtual google meet. In order to be able to join the meet directly, please login using your child’s OCSB google account.  Say ‘hello’ and wave and then mute your mic (to eliminate excess noise). We would also ask that you not use the chat box during this time of prayer. Our themes on Thursday will be around well-being, equity and peace. 

We had a very busy but productive class hangout last Wednesday with 16 students in attendance! We reviewed learning expectaions and covered some important housekeeping items (overdue library books, work assigned for the week, office hours and the purpose for office hours, etc.). The number talk portion of the hangout went well but students are reminded to bring appropriate items to the hangout for the math mini lessons (whiteboard, markers, paper, pencils, etc.).

We also shared our news and there is a lot going on: Derel hosted special visitors at his house and also had a visit from his cousins; Iviya made brownies with marshmallows on top; Jessica and her family made lollipops and she says they were pretty good but VERY sticky; Julia is loving her Ninjaline course and also had lots of fun last week celebrating her Dad's birthday (there was a drive-by parade birthday celebration for her Dad); Layla has made a few trips to Ardene to get some cool items and she is also excited about going to her aunt's place in Petawawa this week; Mila's dance teachers hosted a Zoom class and they played last year's dance recital over Zoom since they were not able to have a recital this year; Naomi biked to her cousin's house with her Dad and sister. She also got FIFA 20 for her Nintendo Switch; Nicky continues to Facetime his cousins and bike with his family; Remi's puppy went for another round of vaccinations and is doing great; Saphira celebrated her sister's graduation from Algonquin college. She and her family decorated the house and got an ice cream cake! They had a lot of fun; Austin celebrated his cousin's birthday by playing soccer and visiting outdoors; Jacob's Dad got a new gravel bike and Jacob made a Lego Technic car which he shared with us; Sarah has been reading lots of Raz kids books and helped to clean up the basement; Maryam finally lost her wiggly tooth and received $10.00 from the tooth fairy under her pillow; Kristen took her dog to the green house centre and she rolled in the dirt so much that she needed a bath when she got home; Mrs. Heagle enjoyed a wonderful walk with her husband at an outdoor nature reserve and was amazed to hear all of the Spring Peepers (frogs) singing away.

We finished our Hang out by playing a Kahoot that I put together all about measurement. We will do another Kahoot this coming Wednesday at our hangout, so if your child is able to bring a hand-held device to the hangout to use, in addition to their computer, it would be really helpful.

The main forcus in Language this week will continue to be reading, short writing assignments and the 'Collaborative Memory Slide Deck.' In math we will be reviewing addition and subtraction concepts including: adding and subtracting whole dollar amounts, adding and subtracting using mental strategies, estimating sums and differences, adding and subtracting four-digit numbers, addition and subtraction problems. 

Have a wonderful week! If you have any questions or concerns or need to touch base with me for any reason, I can be reached each morning via email at: ruth.stratford@ocsb.ca

Sincerely,

Mrs. Stratford

Notice Regarding Thursday June 4th!

Dear, Families,

Tomorrow morning I will be going into school in order to pack up student belongings. As a result, I will not be checking my email in the morning. I'll be back online on Friday June 5th!

Thank you for your understanding,

Mrs. Stratford

Important Information about Next Week!

Dear Families,

On Monday, June 8th, I will have 'office hours' between 10:00 and 10:30 a.m. The students will receive a google hangout invitation that they may accept, however, the hangout is a 'drop-in' format with the purpose of assisting students with any questions they may have, etc., in a synchronous (real-time) fashion. It is not an occasion for them to come and just chat and socialize. If they join, they should have their questions ready and be prepared to exit once they have received the help they require.


 I will be unavailable this coming Tuesday, June 9th as I will be spending the morning focussed on writing report cards. As a half-time teacher, I am entitled to a half-day in order to devote to report cards. I will be available on the mornings of both Monday, June 8th and Wednesday, June 10th. If you have any urgent questions then you may email our school principal or another one of your child's teachers.

                                                                 Thank you for your understanding,
                                                                 Mrs. Stratford

Overdue Library Books!

                                  Dear Parents,

Today you will receive an email from me regarding your child's overdue items from the learning commons. Please return the when you come to the school for your scheduled pick-up of your child's belongings. If you do not have these item(s) at home, you DO NOT need to email me. They may be in the classroom and  I will collect all library books when I go in to tidy up and organize your child's belongings. If they still haven't been located, then Mrs. Cook will be in touch. 

                                 Thanks ! 

June 1st - June 5th

Hello, Families, 

June has arrived and with it week #11 of distance learning! The signs of spring life and change have been numerous this past week. The heat wave prompted plants to grow in rapid time - one day the maple buds were semi-closed and the next day they were fully open. It was amazing to watch! Hopefully your family is able to get outside more and enjoy the fine weather we have been experiencing. Building outdoor body breaks into your daily routine is so important for the health and well-being of all members of the family.

There is a lot of information in this week's post. Please take a few minutes to read through everything carefully!

New Slide Deck and Today's Learning Goals
Here is the link to the new slide deck for the month of June: Gr. 4 Weekly Schedule (June). In Language today and tomorrow the focus is on self-directed reading and exploring the SORA app on the student portal. Students are also asked to write a descriptive paragraph of their shoes and school belongings. In Math today students are being asked to come up with review questions that I could use to create a Math Review Kahoot. The instructions for today's activities are on the slide deck.

Class Hangout:
There was lots of sharing at the start of our hangout this past week. Jessica is enjoying her pool and the soldering gun finally arrived, enabling her Dad to fix her scooter; Saphira has been enjoying a lot of time outside and has been alternating between her Mum's and Dad's homes; Naomi painted the garbage bin white that she and her Dad made together and the project is now finished; Austin went for a BBQ at his grandmother's place and continues to enjoy daily bike rides with mum; Danayit is still enjoying biking with her brother who got a new bike as his old one broke; Kristen's new patio set arrived and they are starting their garden; Layla got a new scooter from mum that is blue and black like the one she uses at her Dad's. She also got a new 18 foot slip-and-slide which she is enjoying in the heat wave; Mila finally got to meet her friend's new puppy; Nicky spent all of last weekend biking with his family and continues to have weekly movie nights and video calls with his cousins; Maryam made the exciting announcement that her family is planning to get a pet parrot; Daniella shared her plans to go swimming at her mum's boyfriend's pool; Sarah has been enjoying her backyard pool and had a competition with her siblings to see who could stay in the longest; Derel says there isn't much that is new except he is having tech issues and has to use his Mum's computer  to do his school work; Mrs. Heagle and Ms. Carisa had a good first 'Craft Club' on Tuesday; Mrs. Heagle also enjoyed having a 'We Chat' with her grand kids to celebrate her grandson's birthday.

As was mentioned in their Hangout Invitation, we will be doing a Kahoot on this week's hangout. It will be a bit of an experiment doing this on a hangout. If your child has a second hand held device (iPad, iPod, Tablet, phone, etc.) that they could use to log onto Kahoot during the hangout, it would be most useful. If they do not have a second device, there is no problem at all as they will simply open a second window on their computer and move in between the hangout and Kahoot. It should be interesting!

Returning Borrowed Tech Devices
The school board has made the decision that all electronic devices borrowed by students may be kept over the summer months and returned in the fall IF YOUR CHILD IS RETURNING TO OUR SYSTEM. If your child is moving to another school board in the fall, then you must let your child's teacher know and make arrangements to return any borrowed devices.

Collection of Student Belongings From School
Collection of Student Items will begin the week of June 15th. We are currently creating a schedule for all families of children in grades K-5. We are asking families with children in grade 6 to wait until AFTER the grade 6 Leaving Ceremony on June 19th so that all of the grade 6 leave-taking-items can be distributed at the same time. That means if you have a child in grade 6 and younger children at the school as well, you will need to wait until after the 19th as we have been asked to ensure that families only come once to retrieve items. Today's writing activity is a paragraph writing assignment asking students to describe their running shoes in detail (so that I can find them!). They can add an additional paragraph describing any other items they would like to be gathered for pick-up.

Attention choir members! 
Mrs. James still needs your help! Please read this important message from her:  We are in the process of creating a Thank You to share with our amazing choir directors for all of their hard work and dedication to the St. Augustine Choir. We are inviting all choir members to create a Thank You which will be incorporated into a Google Slideshow to send to them. Please feel free to use Google Docs or Google Slides which makes for easier sharing with Mrs. James @ carol.james@ocsb.ca  OR you could created something and upload it via email to Mrs. James.  Here are some ideas of things you could do: You could write a thank you note, draw a picture (in Google Slides OR draw a picture and upload it to Mrs. James), send a video message of thanks or even a video of you singing a song (which they would really LOVE) - OR - anything else you might think of to express your gratitude.  Please send your entries by Friday, June 5th so the slideshow can be completed and shared with our wonderful choir directors.

Link to School Newsletter: St. Augustine Weekly Newsletter

Have a wonderful week! If you have any questions or concerns or need to touch base with me for any reason, I can be reached each morning via email at: ruth.stratford@ocsb.ca

Sincerely,

Mrs. Stratford