Very Cool, Mind-Blowing, SLO-MO videos!

Click the link and enjoy!  Fascinating!

http://www.buzzfeed.com/daves4/gifs-that-will-teach-you-a-damn-thing-for-once-in-your-li

Time Flies When You're Busy!

Can you believe it's practically May? Just the thought of that makes my head spin!  Our days have been and will continue to be jam packed with so many things. As the 4th teacher coming into the room this year, we're playing catch up to ensure as much of the curriculum as possible for two grades is covered This is definitly challenging but we will continue to buckle down and do the best we can.

Here are the things we are currently focused on in room 203:

Health - safety practices in various situations (e.g., pool, fire and ice safety, public and internet safety and more). We will be wrapping this up soon and moving on to Substance Abuse and healthy choices.

Language - we are currently working on writing our first personal narrative.  We are off to a great start - topics are chosen and we will be working on this until the end of May.  We will then be moving into letter and descriptive writing in the month of June.

Math - we are working on 2D shapes and their attributes. We have also been working with measurement.  These two units will be wrapping up soon with a test later next week (Friday).  Then we will be moving on to Money followed by Fractions.

Science - I'm currently delivering two science strands to both grades - growth and changes in plants (gr.3) and pulleys and gear (gr.4). This will be it for science.

Social Studies -  we are soon starting up our Pioneers and Ancient Civilization units which will take us to the end of the year.

Students along with the aid of their families can certainly get a head start on any of these upcoming things by doing a little preliminary research.

Social Studies - Ancient Civilizations:  https://sites.google.com/site/1ancientcivilizationsforkids/home

                        - Pioneers: http://www.projects.yrdsb.edu.on.ca/pioneer/home_eng.htm


Science     Plants: http://www.sciencekids.co.nz/plants.html

                  Pulleys and Gears:  http://www.linktolearning.com/grade4science.htm
                   (must scroll down until you see pulleys and gears)

Math:  Any math strands for both grades: http://www.adaptedmind.com/Math-Worksheets.html?gclid=CLnd3vOG-b0CFchFMgodiTYA3w

Useful Math Website

This site provides opportunities for learning, practicing online and also allows you to print worksheets!
http://www.adaptedmind.com/Math-Worksheets.html?gclid=CLnd3vOG-b0CFchFMgodiTYA3w
For now, choose your grade and scroll down until you see GEOMETRY - this will be good practice for our upcoming test next week!

EQAO dates and info

The dates have been selected and our gr. 3 & 6 students at Clairlea will be writing the EQAO tests during the week of June 2 - 5.  The exact writing schedule is yet to be determined however students are highly encouraged  not be away on those days.  EQAO work will continue to come home between now and then. I would like to encourage Students and families to continue visiting the EQAO website for sample tests and answers.  The more exposure they have to the test format the better off they'll be.  More info regarding how to physically and mentally prepare for the upcoming test will be provided soon.  

DON'T forget about your BEANS!

Nooo…not jelly beans…your MUNG beans!  They need to stay moist in order to successfully begin the germination process.  Please make sure you check them twice daily, ensuring they are kept in a warmish spot.  

New Spelling List

What A Day!

Yes….today was a great, great day.  You can see from the pictures that the kids totally enjoyed themselves.  The egg dying and colouring was a big hit, and I've never in my life seen chips and cheesies disappear as fast as they did today. We have EATING MACHINES in our class! Thank you to all who contributed to the chocolate and chip buffet!

Unfortunately, some eggs did not make it home in one piece, or at all…some got through slippery fingers, and some got mistakenly snatched up by the wrong person. But, you could see that the method of dying is very straight forward --- shaving cream and food colouring.  Perhaps you'll have an opportunity to do some more at home. Also, don't forget about the melted crayon on the hot egg!  Works like a charm…(a proper egg stand would have come in handy for dealing with those hot eggs). Happy Easter to all…Enjoy the long weekend with your families.

Tomorrow!

I'm very excited for tomorrow.  We have yet to decide on the movie we'll watch…tomorrow morning we shall take a vote!
With regards to the boiled egg, below is a very simple  procedure  families can follow at home.

The Perfect Boiled Egg

1.  place egg(s) in a pot.
2. Fill pot with water - about 1 inch above the egg(s)
3. add 1 cap full or 1 tsp of white vinegar to the water.
4. turn stove on to medium heat.
5. place lid on pot and bring water to a boil.
6.  let boil for 2 min.
7. Turn off heat.
8.  Allow eggs to sit in water with lid on pot for 10min.
9.  Drain hot water and run cold water into the pot until eggs have cooled.
10. Voila! Your perfectly boiled eggs.

EQAO - Grade 3

The grade three's have another night off from EQAO homework.  They will only need to be studying for their spelling test tomorrow.

Grade 3's and Homework

The grade 3's are asked to take a break from their EQAO packs tonight and work on their book review and science homework.  Both of these items are due back tomorrow!

Homework - math

Today we explored grams and kilograms.  We weighed various objects in the class to get a good sense of what a g feels like (we know a paper clip is about 1g and 1000 are needed to make 1kg!!) and we also weighed items to get a sense for what 1kg feels like (we know 1full canister of water weights 1kg).  Tonights homework requires students to search around their house for items that weigh about 1kg.  Worksheets should be in students knapsacks.  If it is not there (argh!) they are expected to simply create a web on a separate sheet with the various items jotted down that are about 1kg.  

This N' That

This is a short week because of Good Friday. Good Friday is a religious holiday observed primarily by Christians commemorating the crucifixion of Jesus Christ and his death. 
Because of the shortened week, our spelling test will be on Thursday which means the spelling homework for the grade 4's is also due on this day.  Book reviews (the new format) will be due as usual, on Wednesday.  
You may have heard that over the month of February and March the kids have been working to fill a glass jar with snowballs (cotton balls).  Each ball represents a good deed, or task that was completed or a job well done during a specific event, etc.  Well, as of last week, we filled our jar!! As a result, we will recognize our accomplishments with an afternoon celebration this coming Thursday.  We will have a movie going, we'll play games, decorate Easter eggs and enjoy one another's company before heading into the long weekend. 

This Thursday, students are asked to bring in 1 hard boiled egg for decorating,  As well, families are welcome to bring in a snack/treat for the class to enjoy, peanut free of course. 

New Spelling Words - For Both Grades

1. Sara
2. Nathan
3. Shristi
4. Timothy
5. Shemanta
6. Kyia
7. Zen
8. Jasmine
9. Michelle
10.Faith
11.Anisha
12. Summer
13. Joanna

New Book Review Format - Starting this week

This week the gr.3's and gr.4's got a new book review outline. Some of the components remain the same but there is an addition on the back that requires student too identify 6 facts that they learned from reading their book.  As well, they are required to identify the publisher and the publishing date.
This will also be due next Wednesday.

Spelling Words - For Both Grades

Narrative Writing Unit Terms

1. narrative

2. narration

3. dialogue

4. elements

5. introduction

6. conclusion

7. brainstorm

8. editing

9. grammar

10. spelling

11. Capitalization

12. frequency

13. heartbeat

14. climax

15. opening

16. transition

17. powerful

Science Test Reminder

The Grade 4's will be writing their Light test on Monday - their completed study sheet is coming home this weekend.  Happy Studying! Below I've attached an outline in the event that a forgetful student leaves it behind.

What is light? List it’s properties.

Name  3 sources of artificial light:

Name 3 sources of natural light:

How are shadows created outdoors?

How do rainbows appear outdoors?

How can you create a rainbow without the sun?

Explain the term Refraction:

Name all the colours of the rainbow in the proper order:

Define the following terms and give an example for each:

Transparent:

Translucent:

Opaque:

Grade 3's - Listen up! It's almost time for EQAO!

If you haven't heard by now, the grade threes have been working on EQAO material daily, since the beginning of January.  It's time to take it one step further.  Today an EQAO package is coming home and will be taking the place of spelling homework until the end of May.  Once this package is complete, another one will come home. The first package is the 2010 test.  To see how your child is scoring, visit the www.eqao.com site.  If you're unsure about how to do this I've included a direct link to the scoring guides page here: http://www.eqao.com/Educators/Elementary/036/BookletsandGuides.aspx?Lang=E&gr=036&yr=10
I will be assigning the questions to be completed each day so please ensure that your child is not going forward with whatever questions they want.  There will likely be one language and one math question assigned each night.  This package needs to come back everyday so that the answers can be reviewed and corrected.  Please remind your child to ensure it is always placed back in the bag each night.  

A Pretty Fun Day…

Who knew procedure writing to be a good time?!  Using a hands-on-approach, the games we played today required us to follow a set of directions. This morning, the kids had fun guiding a blindfolded partner through an obstacle course using only directional words.   Later in the day small groups rotated through various board games…that too, was a great time! I was VERY impressed by the way the groups worked together and co-operated which has definitely earned them 3 snowballs in the jar!

Division - Lunchtime Help - Info

Our lunch time help group has reached the half way point.  Today we focused on the three's multiplication facts and learned that we can use a set of numbers to create a fact family and by using the set of numbers we begin to see patterns.  Try to spend some time reviewing this concept at home tonight. Tomorrow we will be doing the same thing with the 4's multiplication facts.  Below is an example of what the group was doing today.

3 x 5 = 15

5 x 3 = 15

15 / 5 = 3

15 / 5 = 5

Grade 4 Light Test

On April 7th the grade 4's will be writing a test on Light.  Today they were provided with a review sheet that contained all the info that they should be familiar with and confident in.  They completed the sheet with a partner today and I will be filling in the blanks where necessary in the coming days. In the mean time, this review sheet should be coming home and studied over the next 6 days.