IMPORTANT INFORMATION
Spring Concert Information A reminder that students are to wear blue or green shirts without any letters, images, or logos and dark pants/leggings. The school will open at 6:00 pm. Students will come to their class and we will sort them from there. Pick-up will be from their class. I need to see the whites of your eyes before they can leave. (SAFETY FIRST!) Zoo School April 9 - 13 VOLUNTEER CALLOUT!! Thank-you to the volunteers who have contacted me in the past couple days. We still need the following: Monday: 1 volunteer Tuesday: 3 volunteers Wednesday: 2 volunteers Thursday: 2 volunteers Friday: 2 volunteers IMPORTANT DATES March 22: Spring Concert M-Z March 23: PD Day - No School for Students March 26 - April 2: Spring Break April 3: Classes resume April 9-13: Zoo School OUR DAY 121 days to go, 59 days left. Today started with the Thursday Night Spring Concert Crew going through their dress rehearsal. Sounding fabulous! After recess, we tackled the loose ends: Six-Room Poetry Pen Pal Letter Animal Research Drawing Harry Potter reader’s response layout elements Heart Challenge (drawing, measuring, and labelling) Measurement & Addition Peru Symmetry illustration The students worked diligently, getting their work done, or almost there. It was a solid day of “Spring Cleaning” for our work, so when we come back from the well-deserved break, we can ease into our prep work for Zoo School, and the rest of the year! Have a safe, fun-filled, and relaxing break! Cheerios! Ms Lauf IMPORTANT INFORMATION
Spring Concert Information
Zoo School April 9 - 13 VOLUNTEER CALLOUT!! We are in desperate need of volunteers for our Zoo School. If you are able to make it for any day, please email me. IMPORTANT DATES March 21 & 22: Spring Concert (evening; more information to follow) March 23: PD Day - No School for Students March 26 - April 2: Spring Break April 3: Classes resume April 9-13: Zoo School OUR DAY 120 days to go, 60 days left. WOW! I am truly inspired and impressed by all students and the work they are doing with their Six-Room Poetry. I will take pictures of their final work and send it home with them when we are all done. Might I suggest a Poetry Reading Night, served with some good cheese and crackers? We also worked on our animal research. Many students have finished their research and are now drawing their animal and adding in interesting bits of information. This afternoon was the Dress Rehearsal for the Wednesday group. Many wrinkles were ironed out, the Thursday group was a fabulous audience, and the voices and music filled my heart. What a treat to see everything come together. Cheerios! Ms Lauf IMPORTANT INFORMATION
Spring Concert Information A reminder that students are to wear a blue or a green shirt without any letters, images, or logos and dark pants/leggings. Zoo School April 9 - 13 VOLUNTEER CALLOUT!! We are in desperate need of volunteers for our Zoo School. If you are able to make it for any day, please email me. IMPORTANT DATES March 21: Fun Lunch (Jugo Juice) March 21 & 22: Spring Concert (evening; more information to follow) March 23: PD Day - No School for Students March 26 - April 2: Spring Break April 3: Classes resume April 9-13: Zoo School OUR DAY 119 days to go, 61 days left. Today, we focused on the last of our animal research pages, with exception to the life cycles. We will look at the different types of life cycles tomorrow. Today, our focus was Parental Care, Habitats, Threats to Habitats (& Animals), and How to Protect Their Habitat. Many students could not immediately find the information they needed, so a quick group meeting was called. We looked at how the information we are looking for is not always presented in a neat and headlined package, but that we might have to dig into a paragraph under a different topic. We also began our sketches of the animals in our Visual Journal, using the technique of “drawing from the inside”, which means begin with a small element, such as an eye, and draw from there. This gives better detail, and the right proportions, not to mention it really develops the observational skills. After lunch, we continued our work on our Six Room Poetry, and many students are finished their rough copy. I will now provide them with final feedback, and they are good for their good copy. For Spring Concert, the whole school practice the finale, as well as our Grade 3s & Buddies Storm Hand Song. It really is sounding pretty amazing! Cheerios! Ms Lauf IMPORTANT INFORMATION
Spring Concert Information We are excited to present our Spring Performance of Water Dance on March 21st and 22nd. The staff and students have been working hard on songs, dances, and artwork. If your child is not able to attend the evening performance, please contact your child's teacher and let them know. 1.) When is/are my child(ren) performing? Students with last names beginning with A to L will perform on Wednesday afternoon and Wednesday night. Students with last names beginning with M to Z will perform on Thursday morning and Thursday night. 2). Clothing We ask that the students wear blue or green shirts without any letters, images, or logos and dark pants. Zoo School April 9 - 13 1). VOLUNTEER CALLOUT!! Zoo School is fast approaching, and we need 5 volunteers each ! Please let Jodi R (Room Coordinator) know or myself if you can come. You can volunteer of 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 days. There is room on the bus, OR free parking if you want to meet us there. Meet Ms Lauf’s mum! You will get to journal! Get a tour of the penguin filtration system! Spend some personal time with the hippo, giraffe, or brown eagle! Learn storytelling! 2). Zoo School Information I had my meeting with Andrea Beatty and Natasha McKay from Zoo School and Calgary Open Minds last evening. I have a wheelbarrow full of information to pass along, which I will do in the form of a letter. I will be sending that and the field trip form home shortly before Spring Break. I began sharing information with the class today, such as respectful and on-task behaviour, listening to they adult of the day, not wandering off, the penguin filtration system, the behind the scenes animal experience, storytelling, and that the week at the Zoo is our classroom. I will continue to support the students leading up to and during the visit. IMPORTANT DATES March 21: Fun Lunch (Jugo Juice) March 21 & 22: Spring Concert (evening; more information to follow) March 23: PD Day - No School for Students March 26 - April 2: Spring Break April 3: Classes resume April 9-13: Zoo School OUR DAY 118 days to go, 62 days left. I believe the leprechauns jinxed my blog on Friday. (Insert shaking fist and dramatic eye roll here.) On Friday, we finished our leprechaun traps, which were then strategically placed around the classroom. Alas, no leprechauns were caught, AND the room was trashed! They did leave behind some ‘gold’ coins. I did remind students not to put those coins in their mouths as we don’t know what they are made of, not to mention I have never done the Heimlich maneuver on a live person. We painted our second Spring Concert painting today for Mist. We tried out the watercolor pencils, which will come in handy for our time at Zoo School (we need volunteers), and when we go to Fish Creek if the snow melts. Students also did peer feedback for their Pen Pal letters. I will go over and provide the big kahuna editor feedback, and then we are good for final copy. After lunch, we did some measuring. Students were given a sheet with different lengths (in centimeters). They were also challenged to measure starting from different points on their ruler. We discussed counting on, and how the ruler is really a number line. They were then asked to add up all their numbers. Next, we will discuss different strategies for adding many different numbers. The day ended with a first rehearsal for the concert in the gym. It is sounding mighty fine! Cheerios! Ms Lauf IMPORTANT INFORMATION
Spring Concert Information We are excited to present our Spring Performance of Water Dance on March 21st and 22nd. The staff and students have been working hard on songs, dances, and artwork. If your child is not able to attend the evening performance, please contact your child's teacher and let them know. 1.) When is/are my child(ren) performing? Students with last names beginning with A to L will perform on Wednesday afternoon and Wednesday night. Students with last names beginning with M to Z will perform on Thursday morning and Thursday night. 2). Clothing We ask that the students wear blue or green shirts without any letters, images, or logos and dark pants. Zoo School April 9 - 13 1). VOLUNTEER CALLOUT!! Zoo School is fast approaching, and we need 5 volunteers each ! Please let Jodi R (Room Coordinator) know or myself if you can come. You can volunteer of 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 days. There is room on the bus, OR free parking if you want to meet us there. Meet Ms Lauf’s mum! You will get to journal! Get a tour of the penguin filtration system! Spend some personal time with the hippo, giraffe, or brown eagle! Learn storytelling! 2). Zoo School Information I had my meeting with Andrea Beatty and Natasha McKay from Zoo School and Calgary Open Minds last evening. I have a wheelbarrow full of information to pass along, which I will do in the form of a letter. I will be sending that and the field trip form home shortly before Spring Break. I began sharing information with the class today, such as respectful and on-task behaviour, listening to they adult of the day, not wandering off, the penguin filtration system, the behind the scenes animal experience, storytelling, and that the week at the Zoo is our classroom. I will continue to support the students leading up to and during the visit. IMPORTANT DATES March 21: Fun Lunch (Jugo Juice) March 21 & 22: Spring Concert (evening; more information to follow) March 23: PD Day - No School for Students March 26 - April 2: Spring Break April 3: Classes resume April 9-13: Zoo School OUR DAY 116 days to go, 64 days left. The Leprechauns are coming! The Leprechauns are coming! We are going to be RICH! Rich in knowledge, that is. Today started off with a Spring Concert Mixed Media Art Extravaganza! We looked at colours of storm clouds (not just black or gray), composition, we discussed background, mid-ground, and foreground, and we talked about proportion and scale in relation to composition. We will finish them up tomorrow. Side thought: Why is background and foreground written as compound words, but not mid-ground? After a snowy recess (Come on Spring! Get in there!), we began our Leprechaun Trap Slam Build. This ties in quite nicely with TWO science units (Building with a Variety of Materials, and Testing Materials and Design, focus on design and appropriate fasteners) , AND Math (Measurement, and Addition).
We will finish it up tomorrow, with a verbal reflection of what worked, what roadblock popped up, and how they overcame it. Cheerios! Ms Lauf IMPORTANT INFORMATION
Spring Concert Information We are excited to present our Spring Performance of Water Dance on March 21st and 22nd. The staff and students have been working hard on songs, dances, and artwork. If your child is not able to attend the evening performance, please contact your child's teacher and let them know. 1.) When is/are my child(ren) performing? Students with last names beginning with A to L will perform on Wednesday afternoon and Wednesday night. Students with last names beginning with M to Z will perform on Thursday morning and Thursday night. 2). Clothing We ask that the students wear blue or green shirts without any letters, images, or logos and dark pants. Zoo School April 9 - 13 1). VOLUNTEER CALLOUT!! Zoo School is fast approaching, and we need 5 volunteers each ! Please let Jodi R (Room Coordinator) know or myself if you can come. You can volunteer of 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 days. There is room on the bus, OR free parking if you want to meet us there. Meet Ms Lauf’s mum! You will get to journal! Get a tour of the penguin filtration system! Spend some personal time with the hippo, giraffe, or brown eagle! Learn storytelling! 2). Zoo School Information I had my meeting with Andrea Beatty and Natasha McKay from Zoo School and Calgary Open Minds last evening. I have a wheelbarrow full of information to pass along, which I will do in the form of a letter. I will be sending that and the field trip form home shortly before Spring Break. I began sharing information with the class today, such as respectful and on-task behaviour, listening to they adult of the day, not wandering off, the penguin filtration system, the behind the scenes animal experience, storytelling, and that the week at the Zoo is our classroom. I will continue to support the students leading up to and during the visit. IMPORTANT DATES March 21: Fun Lunch (Jugo Juice) March 21 & 22: Spring Concert (evening; more information to follow) March 23: PD Day - No School for Students March 26 - April 2: Spring Break April 3: Classes resume April 9-13: Zoo School OUR DAY 115 days to go, 65 days left. We continued our observational drawings today. This is where students spent time looking at their natural object, looking for line, tone, and texture, and then draw from the inside out. The skill from this exercise is to build observational skills. That’s not just a white bone. That has small, rectangular cracks. That has hollow pockets in the inside. That is a hollow bone. It is off-white, ecru, mother-of-pearl, and foggy gray. That has gentle curves. It became very quiet in the class. We ended today’s drawing with a discussion, pointing out that it is about observation. Some students identified that it was frustrating to begin, but became easier when they slowed down, when they focused on drawing from the inside, and using feedback. We will continue our observations. After Music, we put our noses to the grindstones with the Pen Pal Letters, meaning students did self-editing. They will get a bit more time to finish up and then we will do peer feedback. After a slippery and icy recess (the students promised me to stay off the ice), we finished up the habitat and parental care sections of our animal studies. Some students began their animal drawings. Some students could not find info for parental care for their animal on their site. We will discuss what can we do when this happens, and where can we look to find the information we need, because, well, we still the info. After lunch, we spent time in our Six Rooms. I had some students sit with me to show them a strategy to piecing their poem together. It’s quite like a jigsaw puzzle! I am excited to see where they end up! Gym was a giant dance-off! Library was a giant book-taking-out-thing. We finished our day with a Glenbow Museum Journal Gallery Walk, and then talking about all the different ways we can document our learning. We will finish up our reflection tomorrow. Cheerios! Ms Lauf IMPORTANT INFORMATION
Sound Pattern/Word List Sorts Please note that there are NO Sound Pattern lists coming home. This is on account of it being a goofy week (Field Trip); and on that note, there is no Sound Pattern List coming next week either, as it is Goofy Week 2.0. We will resume the lists after Zoo School. ***To compensate for this, I have begun the self-editing process, where spelling is a focus. Spring Concert Information We are excited to present our Spring Performance of Water Dance on March 21st and 22nd. The staff and students have been working hard on songs, dances, and artwork. If your child is not able to attend the evening performance, please contact your child's teacher and let them know. 1.) When is/are my child(ren) performing? Students with last names beginning with A to L will perform on Wednesday afternoon and Wednesday night. Students with last names beginning with M to Z will perform on Thursday morning and Thursday night. 2). Clothing We ask that the students wear blue or green shirts without any letters, images, or logos and dark pants. Zoo School April 9 - 13 1). VOLUNTEER CALLOUT!! Zoo School is fast approaching, and we need 5 volunteers each ! Please let Jodi R (Room Coordinator) know or myself if you can come. You can volunteer of 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 days. There is room on the bus, OR free parking if you want to meet us there. Meet Ms Lauf’s mum! You will get to journal! Get a tour of the penguin filtration system! Spend some personal time with the hippo, giraffe, or brown eagle! Learn storytelling! 2). Zoo School Information I had my meeting with Andrea Beatty and Natasha McKay from Zoo School and Calgary Open Minds last evening. I have a wheelbarrow full of information to pass along, which I will do in the form of a letter. I will be sending that and the field trip form home shortly before Spring Break. I began sharing information with the class today, such as respectful and on-task behaviour, listening to they adult of the day, not wandering off, the penguin filtration system, the behind the scenes animal experience, storytelling, and that the week at the Zoo is our classroom. I will continue to support the students leading up to and during the visit. IMPORTANT DATES March 21: Fun Lunch (Jugo Juice) March 21 & 22: Spring Concert (evening; more information to follow) March 23: PD Day - No School for Students March 26 - April 2: Spring Break April 3: Classes resume April 9-13: Zoo School OUR DAY 114 days to go, 66 days left. Today, we had our Glenbow Museum visit. It filled my heart with happy to see so many kids been taking notes on what they were hearing and seeing. In the morning, we heard Blackfoot stories about Napi (Old Man) and Okotoks (Big Rock), tipis, and how the buffalo (bison) was used in different ways. After lunch, students had an opportunity to explore three different areas: The Warriors, The West African artifacts, and the Black Gold Embroidery exhibit. Students sketched and labelled things they found interesting. We will do a gallery walk tomorrow, and also have an opportunity to add more information. Please ask your child about their favourite things they saw/learned/discovered. Cheerios! Ms Lauf IMPORTANT INFORMATION
GLENBOW MUSEUM FIELD TRIP IS TOMORROW!!! Please make sure your child has a regular lunch, and is on time to school. Sound Pattern/Word List Sorts Please note that there are NO Sound Pattern lists coming home. This is on account of it being a goofy week (Field Trip); and on that note, there is no Sound Pattern List coming next week either, as it is Goofy Week 2.0. We will resume the lists after Zoo School. ***To compensate for this, I have begun the self-editing process, where spelling is a focus. Spring Concert Information We are excited to present our Spring Performance of Water Dance on March 21st and 22nd. The staff and students have been working hard on songs, dances, and artwork. If your child is not able to attend the evening performance, please contact your child's teacher and let them know. 1). Tickets Any concerns about the tickets, please contact to office, and they will help you out. 2.) When is/are my child(ren) performing? Students with last names beginning with A to L will perform on Wednesday afternoon and Wednesday night. Students with last names beginning with M to Z will perform on Thursday morning and Thursday night. 3). Clothing We ask that the students wear blue or green shirts without any letters, images, or logos and dark pants. Zoo School April 9 - 13 1). VOLUNTEER CALLOUT!! Zoo School is fast approaching, and we need 5 volunteers each ! Please let Jodi R (Room Coordinator) know or myself if you can come. You can volunteer of 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 days. There is room on the bus, OR free parking if you want to meet us there. Meet Ms Lauf’s mum! You will get to journal! Get a tour of the penguin filtration system! Spend some personal time with the hippo, giraffe, or brown eagle! Learn storytelling! 2). Zoo School Information I had my meeting with Andrea Beatty and Natasha McKay from Zoo School and Calgary Open Minds last evening. I have a wheelbarrow full of information to pass along, which I will do in the form of a letter. I will be sending that and the field trip form home shortly before Spring Break. I began sharing information with the class today, such as respectful and on-task behaviour, listening to they adult of the day, not wandering off, the penguin filtration system, the behind the scenes animal experience, storytelling, and that the week at the Zoo is our classroom. I will continue to support the students leading up to and during the visit. IMPORTANT DATES March 13: Field Trip to the Glenbow Museum (all day) March 21: Fun Lunch (Jugo Juice) March 21 & 22: Spring Concert (evening; more information to follow) March 23: PD Day - No School for Students March 26 - April 2: Spring Break April 3: Classes resume April 9-13: Zoo School OUR DAY 113 days to go, 67 days left. We began our day by honing our field observation skills for Zoo School. There was an biofact or artifact at each table, and students wrote observations about their object. I also introduced them to Blind Contour drawings, where they sketch their object without looking at the paper. This is to help students develop their spatial reasoning, muscle memory, and proportion. Plus they are fun to do. This was followed by discussing our Zoo Animal research booklet, with special attention to Habitat and Parental Care. We will dive into these two sections on Wednesday. After recess, a story (If You Give a Cat a Muffin), and a snack, we began editing our Pen Pal writing, using colour! Students had to underline or circle the following: Content:
This editing process gives them a quick visual to help with their editing. No Pink in your writing? Reread and add end punctuation and commas to lists. 200 Yellow circles? Check where your capitals are. 82 ands? Reconsider your sentences and add variety. Blue? Look in the dictionary, think of sound patterns, and edit. The next step is for the to edit their work. After lunch, we strapped on the snowshoes, and enjoyed this glorious blue-sky day! We also talked about why those wearing the snowshoes did not sink into the snow, versus the students who’s snowshoes had fallen off, and they were walking almost knee-deep in the white stuff. (Answer: wider surface area!) We finished off our day with a math riddle/puzzle:
Cheerios! Ms Lauf IMPORTANT INFORMATION
SNOWSHOEING ON MONDAY! We will be going snowshoeing around the school grounds on Monday afternoon. Students need to have winter boots, warm socks, snow pants, mittens, warm jacket, and a toque, as we will be outside for about an hour. THE WINTER BOOTS ARE IMPORTANT, AS THE SNOWSHOES STRAP ONTO THE BOOTS. Spring Concert Information We are excited to present our Spring Performance of Water Dance on March 21st and 22nd. The staff and students have been working hard on songs, dances, and artwork. If your child is not able to attend the evening performance, please contact your child's teacher and let them know. 1). Tickets Any concerns about the tickets, please contact to office, and they will help you out. 2.) When is/are my child(ren) performing? Students with last names beginning with A to L will perform on Wednesday afternoon and Wednesday night. Students with last names beginning with M to Z will perform on Thursday morning and Thursday night. 3). Clothing We ask that the students wear blue or green shirts without any letters, images, or logos and dark pants. Zoo School April 9 - 13 1). VOLUNTEER CALLOUT!! Zoo School is fast approaching, and we need 5 volunteers each ! Please let Jodi R (Room Coordinator) know or myself if you can come. You can volunteer of 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 days. There is room on the bus, OR free parking if you want to meet us there. Meet Ms Lauf’s mum! You will get to journal! Get a tour of the penguin filtration system! Spend some personal time with the hippo, giraffe, or brown eagle! Learn storytelling! 2). Zoo School Information I had my meeting with Andrea Beatty and Natasha McKay from Zoo School and Calgary Open Minds last evening. I have a wheelbarrow full of information to pass along, which I will do in the form of a letter. I will be sending that and the field trip form home shortly before Spring Break. I began sharing information with the class today, such as respectful and on-task behaviour, listening to they adult of the day, not wandering off, the penguin filtration system, the behind the scenes animal experience, storytelling, and that the week at the Zoo is our classroom. I will continue to support the students leading up to and during the visit. IMPORTANT DATES March 12: Room 18 Snowshoeing March 13: Field Trip to the Glenbow Museum (all day) March 21: Fun Lunch (Jugo Juice) March 21 & 22: Spring Concert (evening; more information to follow) March 23: PD Day - No School for Students March 26 - April 2: Spring Break April 3: Classes resume April 9-13: Zoo School OUR DAY 112 days to go, 68 days left. This beautiful morning started with our Not-a-Spelling-Quiz Quiz! A few students came right in at bell, grabbing their spelling list to review, and were just ready to go. GREAT STRATEGIES! We looked at our Harry Potter reader’s response as well. We got together as a big group and discussed what the critical events were that happened that moved the story forward. We discussed the difference between character development and events. Next week, students will get the event map into their journals, and then from here on out, they will be adding in notes as the story is being read. After Music, we looked at a topographical map of Tunisia, and discussed how the green parts show vegetation, the bumpy lines indicated mountains, and the very flat yellow part in the south was the Sahara Desert. We also looked at a building in the desert and discussed what we notice what might be similar to here in Calgary. One student suggested that the building might be made out of sandstone, which we have here in Calgary. We talked about the City Hall and how it is under repair, why it is, and erosion. HUZZAH TO THE STUDENTS REMEMBERING AND USING OUR ROCKS AND MINERALS LEARNING IN SOCIAL STUDIES!! We also did some housekeeping today, by gluing in previous work into the Visual Journals. All students also finished up their Pen Pal letter rough copy, as well as most finished up their reflection on the Heart Challenge. I will be giving them feedback for next week, and time to adjust their responses, and write a good copy of the letter. A reminder that we are going snowshoeing on Monday, and that our Glenbow Museum field trip is on Tuesday. Cheerios! Ms Lauf |
AuthorMs Lauf Archives
June 2018
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