Library and Sense of Touch

Today we had our first day at the the library. Students will have the opportunity to independently go to the library each Monday afternoon during Montessori work period. Please remind your child to bring their library book back, each Monday.

We explored some science centers today. Ask your child, which 3 centers (s)he worked through today and how they used their sense of touch.

I can use my sense of touch to make predictions and observations

 


I can you use my sense of touch to explore textures.

   

Read to Someone and Buddies

Today we reached our goal of 20 minutes of Read to Self! We have been building up our stamina since the first week of school. Minute by minute, students have practiced getting started right away, reading quietly, staying in one spot, and reading for the whole Read to Self time. We reach our goal!! This means students will be rewarded with a flashlight Friday. Next week, on October 4th, please send in a working flashlight (and maybe some extras if you have them) so we can turn out the lights and sit under tables and read by flashlight. If next week goes well, students may even get to bring a stuffy to read to on Friday We'll keep you posted!

Because we reached our goal for Read to Self, we started working on Read to Someone. We explored reading to a partner today by sitting in EEKK position - Elbow-Elbow Knee-Knee

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Today we also met our grade 4/5 buddies. We'll meet with our buddies on occasional Fridays to read, do art, and other fun activities. Ask your child if they remember his/her buddy's name.

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Terry Fox Run Tomorrow!

The Terry Fox Run is tomorrow.  Reminder: if your child brings in a ten dollar donation, they can bring a crazy piece of clothing that Mrs. Halsall will wear during the run!!  

It will not be nice out, so please dress your child for the weather.  

Today we watched a film on Terry Fox, found on the Terry Fox Foundation website.  The children discussed the qualities that Terry Fox possessed that makes him such an inspirational leader (still today!) 

Since our big question this year is about change, while we watched the video we thought about how being diagnosed with cancer changed or effected Terry's life story.  Did he response positively or negatively to this event?  How did he take a negative situation and do something positive with it?  How did a regular kid become such a national hero?

Each child put a sticker and tattoo into their communication folder.  Have a discussion, about the Terry Fox Run.  Why is it an important legacy?  How will it help others today and in the future?  What will motivate your child to do their best tomorrow?  Help you child fill out the sticker, to wear tomorrow.  Ideas:

I run for:   

-a family member/friend who has struggled with cancer

 -Terry Fox (a hero)

- A cure for cancer

-People everywhere

Terry ran through rain and snow!

Reminder:  The weather does not look fabulous on Thursday for the Terry Fox Run.  Terry persevered through all kinds of conditions and challenges during his marathon of hope and so will we.  As we race into fall (hum...winter) weather, please ensure you are sending your child dressed for the weather.   Students will be outside in cold and wet weather,  before school and during recess on a daily basis,  so ensure that have hats, mitts and warm and waterproof jackets. 

I can use historical thinking vocabulary.  

Today we talked about simple timelines about our lives.  We used the terms past, present and future to describe when events in our personal stories take place.  We talked about sentence starters or phrases that help us describe when an event has happened

PAST                                           PRESENT                             FUTURE
-Long ago                                    -Now                                    -Later
-Before                                         -Today                                  -One day
-When I was....                            -Currently                             -After tomorrow
-Last year                                    -Right now                            -Next
                                                     -Presently                             -Some time

We talked with partners about strong memories from the past, or of past events that impacted our lives, then we brainstormed some of our hopes, dreams and goals.  This showed us how the future is exciting!
Regular stories have a beginning, middle and end like a line segment.   We discussed that our timelines look like a ray, with a starting point, a middle (the present) but with an arrow showing that the future is continuing.  We had a good discussion about how we set goals in our present to achieve our dreams in our future.  We can shape our future with our choices today. 

This term we will be helping your child create some learning goals which will be posted on IRIS.  You can help your child prepare for this, by discussing what areas they hope to grow in. 

I can decompose numbers.

Today we used "Bonds Models" again, to practice breaking up numbers.  Some children discovered they can use patterns to show the different ways.  Using a pattern helps us know we found all the ways.  Together we used unifix cubes to show a "Staircase Model" to show the combinations that make the number 6. 

Many children also discovered the commutative property of numbers when adding. 

Children realized that 1+4=5 is the same as 4+1=5, noticing that you can add the addends in any order and still arrive at the same sum. This is an important principle, that helps kids be flexible when working with numbers when doing mental math. 

Monday's super secret science surprise!

Well, it went off without a hitch! Thank you parents for not telling your children about our popcorn surprise - they loved it!

We used our sense of smell and hearing to identify a hidden popcorn maker, making popcorn. It took a bit more time to figure out what the sounds and smells were because we couldn't use our eyes to tell us.


Together we watched, listened, smelled, felt and tasted the popcorn. Students came up with some great describing words to describe their senses as we explored the popcorn.

We even had students and teachers from other classrooms stopping in to see what we were doing. It was so much fun! Thanks to everyone for your support.

I can sort by two attributes.

Today we further explored sorting. First, we started by using hula hoops to sort shapes together as a class. Then we used hula hoops to sort each other. We sorted students by grade, hair colour, clothing, etc.

Afterwards, students used a Venn diagram to sort shapes. We talked about sorting by using two different attributes - colour, shape, size, thickness, material, texture.


This student sorted by size and shape.





This student sorted by colour and shape.


This student sorted by colour (warm and cool colours) and shape.

Terry Fox Run

On Thursday September 26th, CJP students and staff will be participating in the Terry Fox run. Our class runs at 9:25am until 9:55am.  Families are welcome to join while we run or walk, or just come to cheer us on. Please bring appropriate outdoor shoes, a water bottle and clothing for the weather that day. 

If, students and families would like to donate to the Terry Fox Foundation they can  in the following ways:

• by contributing online by visiting http://www.terryfox.ca/captainjohnpalliser  Tax receipts will be issued by the Terry Fox Foundation for on-line and cheque donations over $20.00 . 
• by sending cash or cheque (made payable to The Terry Fox Foundation) to school.   

All monies raised at the school through our event will be forwarded to the Foundation to further the cause of cancer research.  The deadline for donation is October 1, 2019. 

A Montessori Tradition: The First Great Lesson

Today we did the First Great Lesson on how the universe came to be.  It is a powerful and exciting story with many cool experiments and demonstrations.  You can ask your child why Mrs. Wacker has sparkles in her hair!  

We also started sharing our personal stories about our names.  We have been enjoying learning about how our peers received their names. 

Homework in backpacks

I can decompose numbers.

We have been exploring ways of representing numbers.  Children have used tally marks, ten frames, pictures and number symbols.  Today we explored number bonds, to show how we can break a number apart.    It has a big circle to represent the whole number and two smaller circles to represent parts the number can be broken into.

This student is using a bonds model, to explore the number 5.   5=3+2

He also used this model to make 5=0+5,  5=4+1, 5=1+4 and 5=2+3

Breaking numbers apart (or decomposing numbers), is a very important skill that helps us with our mental math. 

I can explore and share my personal story.

In Social Studies, we will be exploring the unit:

1.2 Moving Forward with the Past: My Family, My History and My Community

We are starting this unit, by exploring ourselves and our personal stories.  This unit will require a lot of parental assistance, as the children will need to gain information about their personal stories through conversations with their families.  

Today we read the story Chrysanthemum, by Kevin Henkes.    Your child has a sheet in their backpacks.  Please read the instructions and complete the form over the next couple of days.  We will be taking time for children to share their "Name Story" with the class.  (Picture of sheet below). If you need more space, please use the back of the page.   If you child has more than one name you can discuss that.  If your child has a name in another language, you can print on the sheet so it can be shared.  You or your child, can fill in the boxes with jot notes, but please make sure you have a good discussion and invite questions.  We are learning how each of our students is unique and special! 

 Oral speaking is an important skill to build your child's confidence.   Practice, asking the questions on the sheet and having your child answer them.  Make sure they include details and can speak to each question.   

We will start sharing tomorrow, and will share our names over the next week.

Montessori work period

  

Today was our 'official' start of Montessori work period. Students have been presented a couple Montessori lessons each to start their work period.
The pictures above are language lessons. Each child is working at their own ability level. Some are working on beginning letter sounds, others are sounding out consonant-vowel-consonant (CVC) words, and others are working on vowel blends (ea, ou, oi, etc.)
The pictures below are math choices. Some students are comparing numbers, others are counting and recognizing numbers, and others are ordering numbers.
Each student is beginning this year with familiar lessons so we can set ourselves up for success. Your child may come home and say he/she has already learned this lesson. That's ok! We need to start simple and develop our stamina so we can ensure everyone is successful during this uninterrupted block of time.

  

Yeaaaahhh clubs!

Today students were very excited to start clubs.  It was an introductory day, where children found the spaces they are going to go to each day, met their group leaders, talked about their plans for the club and played games to learn about the members of their group (so no pies were baked in the baking club!)

 Fall, Winter and Spring clubs are listed on a piece of paper in your child's lunch kit. 

We continued to explore the 3 different balance activities in our classroom. 


In activity, children explored algebraic concepts of balancing equations.  The children physcially placed the objects in a pan balance and could visually see when the scale was in balance, showing the two sides had an equal mass.  Children here also understood that there can more than one answer to a question. 

Zones of Regulation and Feelings

Today we introduced our Zones of Regulation - this is a really great program that introduces students to self regulation (i.e. managing emotions). Our whole school uses this language so it shouldn't be new to students.
Today we simply started by talking about the different feelings we feel. We then used some watercolour paint to paint some Todd Parr inspired art. Todd Parr is the author of the The Feelings Book.
Throughout the year we will encourage students to identify their feelings, which zone they are currently in (green, blue, yellow, red) and how they can help self regulate to manage their emotions. It's important that children understand that all feelings are ok to feel, we just need to ensure we're dealing with certain feelings appropriately, depending on the situation.

Mrs. Spitzer's Garden

I can develop my muscle memory printing letters the same way every time. 

We have worked on "Downers" and "Rounders" families.  When practicing, we only print one family at a time.  (for example, we didn't practice lower case "e" with upper case "E", because they are formed in different ways.)

Kids are encouraged to verbalize their motor plan... "talk through the steps they will take". 

For the "Rounders", kids will say:
-Leave space for my letter
-Start near the top
-Go up, back and around...


I can compare objects and quantities.  

 Today we looked at three different balance activities.  We compared the mass  of different objects, we used blocks to measure the mass of objects and we used the Montessori balance which shows us how to balance equations.    Often kids think equals means....put the answer here.  A balance, helps kids understand that "equals" means both sides of the equation are equivalent.    ex.  1+3= 2+2

Today we learned a "Ten Frames" game called war.  You can also play this game with regular playing cards.  Children needed to say their number (no counting) and how they knew.
ie.  "I have 8, because 8 is two less than 10."
      "I have 6, because 6 is five and one more."

"I win because 8 is greater than 6."

Being able to verbalize your thinking is very important in math.


Today we read a fabulous book named Mrs. Spitzer's Garden.   It made us do a lot of thinking, as the author used a garden as a metaphor for the diversity of children in a classroom.  This book will help launch us on our big question of the year: "HOW DO WE GROW AND CHANGE".

So far, students brainstormed that:
-we will get bigger
-we may lose and grow new teeth (lost one today!)
-we might develop new hobbies
-make new friends
-learn new skills

After we read the book, the children worked on their "cut art" and patterning skills to create their own unique flower.  We hope to have OUR garden ready for parent for our Welcome Back Picnic.

Literacy Block

Today we had our first literacy block. Within our Grade 1/2 team, students will be moving classrooms every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. We have created reading groups based on students' ability levels. Students will work with the same teacher for the next several weeks to develop specific reading skills at their level.
Each group is working on becoming independent readers. Today we talked about the expectations during our literacy block. We specifically talked about Read to Self, where students will be working independently to read their just right books.
Did you know there are 3 ways to read a book?
You can read the pictures by talking about them.
You can retell a familiar story to yourself.
You can read the words on the page.

We also talked about building our stamina. Students were able to follow the Read to Self expectations for 2-5 minutes, depending on their literacy group! By the end of the month, everyone's goal is to read for 20 minutes.