Casa Loma

Learning about Medieval architecture.

African Heritage Month Concert Details

Clairlea's African Heritage Month concert will be held March 2nd, shortly after we return from lunch. Students and teachers have been hard at work preparing for it. I have seen and heard some wonderful things lately when walking down the hallway. I would like to welcome parents to join us. Our class will be featured in a video presentation created by Mr. Knierim. I have seen it several times now and I still have trouble watching it without getting misty-eyed. Bring tissues if you are coming. A big thank you to Mr. Knierim from all of us in Room 204. Oscar beckons. 

This Week in Room 204

Yes, I stayed up to watch the Oscars last night. It's a strange ritual I go through each year: sit in front of the TV for four hours to watch actors receive awards for films I probably won't get around to viewing until my son is shaving. Anyway, I was glad to see that the Academy finally took my advice and hired an Australian to host the show. 

By virtue of our field trip, a cookie-decorating morning, and "Flap Jack" Friday, it looks like we've got another short, calorific week ahead of us.  Thank you to everyone who offered to come along on the trip to Casa Loma and the theatre. Normally, we would be in great need of assistance. Unfortunately, we only have enough theatre tickets for the students and the three teachers who will be supervising this trip. I am very grateful to Ms. Park for making this field trip happen and to Mr. Knierim for assisting us. Recently, Ms. Park and I have attended a number of workshops hosted by Theatre Direct and the TDSB Equity department. We are fortunate to have such a fantastic teacher at our school. 

This week, we will be working on the following:

Language: Writing/Media Literacy - We will be wrapping up our unit on Persuasion. Completed persuasive essays are due Friday, Feb. 27th. We will also complete our critical look at print advertising. 

Reading: Small group discussions following our shared reading of a children's book about the AIDS epidemic in Africa. 

Math: Algebra - searching for the great "unknown" and problem solving. 

Social Studies: The Municipal Government (review).

Science: Sound - the ear and how profoundly deaf percussionist "hears" music. 

Health - tobacco and alcohol. 

Please remember to visit Ms. Park's Drama blog and Mr. Knierim's Clairlea blog. One stop shopping for all of your Clairlea needs. 

 

Feb. 17-20th

Hello,

Now that we're all rested and reacquainted with loved ones, let's throw ourselves back into work, with wild abandon! Here are some of the things we will be working on this week.

Language: By Friday, I hope to see rough drafts of completed persuasive essays from most students. Several students have been sick lately, so it will be a bit of a game of catch up.

Spelling/Grammar: Prefixes, and subject/verb agreement. 

Media studies: Students will be given a piece of packaging to analyze. Prior to this, we will review fonts and text features on packaging. 

Math: We will be reviewing Measurement (area & perimeter), with a quiz or two. No need to study. I've been marking Geometry work and some students seem confused when it comes to using a protractor correctly. I will review this as well and try to sneak in another quiz next week to help boost marks. We will also be starting a short unit on algebraic equations. Yes, your children are writing essays and doing algebra. High school, here they come!

Social Studies: We will be wrapping up our look at the Federal and Provincial government. 

Science: We will complete our Sound Centres from last week. I will be bringing in my viola. Ear plugs optional. I didn't say I could play.

Art: Perspective using fabric. 

Homework. For African Heritage Month, students will research a Canadian woman of African or Caribbean heritage. 

Artsjunktion, Junktion, What's Your Function?

I finally had a chance to experience Artsjunktion today. Teachers in the TDSB can visit this wonderful place (located in the basement of Ossington School) and stock up on odds and ends from manufacturers, stores, and other places. I loaded up on a number of things, including a stack of film transparencies that looked like they were used for advertising in the '70s and '80s. I know already that they'll come in handy in our study of Light. My son also found a toy hammer and a brand new coffee canister from Tim Hortons. He's already using the canister to house his rock collection. 

Check out some the pictures of my haul on the sidebar. I hope to soon have pictures up featuring the beautiful things created with these off-beats and pieces. 

Family Math Night

Just a reminder that Wednesday night is Clairlea Family Math Night. After a hearty dinner, take a stroll over to the school and then give your grey matter a workout. C'mon! There's nothing on TV that night except Dancing With Former Child Actors and Sofie. I checked.

Join math instructor Susan Pitre in the gym between 6:45 and 7:00 for an explanation of three-part problem solving and the importance of problem solving.  We will then break off for two-20  minute sessions. Ms. Small and I will be with the Grade 4 families in room 207, and the Grade 5s will be with Mr. Landry and Mr. Mitkovski's in Mr. Mitkovski's room. 

See you there!

Pizza Lunch Forms, Lunch Bags, and Handwashing

I had intended to send the new Pizza Lunch forms today, but in the hustle and bustle of the day, I dismissed the class with the forms still on my desk. They WILL come home tomorrow and you are asked to return them by this Thursday. Sorry for the last-minute notice. 

Last week I helped clean out the lost and found. It wasn't a pretty sight. Let's just say there were numerous science experiments marinating in the lost lunch bags. I counted over 20 lunch bags that did not have names on them. Please grab a big marker and write your child's name, preferably on the outside. Our class is pretty good about remembering lunch bags, but every now and then, one does go missing. 

Lastly, Clairlea is on a hand-washing campaign. There have been many stomach viruses floating and plenty of children missing school days. Please do not send hand sanitizer. Apparently, sanitizer kills the good bacteria, as well as the bad stuff. I am encouraging the students to wash hands before recess and lunch. Good old soap and water is all you need. The entire school has seen a video about the way germs spread. We're trying our best to keep kids safe and healthy. Do the sleeve sneeze - cha-cha-cha!

Feb. 9-12th You'd Better Knock, Knock, Knock On Wood

It's another short, but sweet week. Here are some of the things we will be working on over the next four days, fingers crossed:

Language/Writing: After investigating the history behind some common and not so common superstitions, students will write a poetic response to the superstition assigned. Preparing for this lesson, I was amused to learn that the original purpose of hanging colourful toys on strollers was to ward off evil spirits.  And here I was thinking they were just to distract junior while you ordered your coffee. 

We will also carry on with our persuasive essays. Students will be given a rough draft deadline on Tuesday. Tick tock...

Media Literacy: Students will continue looking at the sneaky ways companies persuade us to buy things we don't need, but must have. 

Math: Geometry continued. There will be a short quiz on Thursday afternoon. Students must be able to correctly measure angles with a protractor and differentiate between a right, obtuse, and acute angle. They must also be able to recognize equilateral, isosceles, and scalene triangles. I am available after school on Tuesday and Wednesday for small group support. If you would like to work on measuring angles with your child at home, but you do not have a protractor, please write a note in his or her agenda and I will send one home. 

Social Studies: With an assembly and a four-day week last week, we ran out of time to learn about the long and difficult process involved in becoming a Canadian citizen. We will get to it this week. Time permitting, we will look at Canada's prime ministers. 

Science: Sound - Learning centres will be in place this week for students to explore sound and apply the scientific method to predict pitch. 

Art: Watercolour botanicals inspired by the secret language of flowers from the Victorian era.

Homework: 1. Grade fours - double digit multiplication     Grade fives - triple digit multiplication

2. Reading Response Journal

3. Bring in a piece of packaging from any product that interests you and be prepared to discuss it with your group. 

* If you did not hand in last week's homework "How to Build a Yummy TV Burger," it is still due. We will be using the information gathered in this assignment for future work. I am missing this work from a number of students. 

THE REMINDER

Please try to bring in your field trip form and $10.00 by Thursday. If you haven't brought in your $3.33 for The Breadwinner, please also aim to have it in by Thursday. 

* Envelopes of marked work will be coming home next week. 

Thank you

Craft Clubs in the Works

Two craft clubs will be starting in the near future. One will be a lunch-hour craft club for Primary students, which will be run by Clairlea parent Ginny, alongside Mrs. Rule and myself. This club will take place on Fridays. 

Starting soon I will be running a craft club for Junior students after school on Tuesdays from 3:30-4:15. We will either be knitting or learning how to crochet. I hope to have the details hammered out within the next week and will let interested Juniors know what the plans are.

The maximum number of students will likely be 20. If the response is greater, we will draw names from a hat. I surveyed our class and found that a very limited number of boys expressed an interest in learning how to knit or crochet. For this reason, I think it is fair that boys who are interested in the Junior Craft Club, automatically be included in the club as a gesture of encouragement.

This is a great opportunity for French and English students to get to know one another while creating something artistic, having fun, and staying warm. Permission letters for both the Primary and Junior Craft Clubs will available to interested students soon. 

Winter Activity Day/Field Trip Update

Just a reminder that this Friday is Winter Activity Day. For those not participating in outdoor activities, there will be indoor activities at Clairlea. A big thank you to Mr. Church for all of the hard work that goes into organizing this special day. I have bumped up the long division quiz to Thursday, since there will not be any classes on Friday.

As mentioned in my last post, Room 204 will be attending Theatre Direct's production of Binti's Journey on Feb. 26th. Since the play will take place in the afternoon Ms. Park and I thought a morning visit to Casa Loma would complete the day. We are in the process of booking a Medieval walking tour, which should be fun and informative. Details forthcoming.

February 2nd-6th

Happy Monday,

This week we will be working on the following:

Language 

Writing - Persuasive Writing. With research completed, students will begin writing their essays. Mini lessons will focus on writing strong introductory paragraphs and topic sentences, attribution, the use of direct quotations, and how to construct solid conclusions.

Reading/Media - Clichés. Just in time for Valentine's Day, we will finish up our look at clichés in song lyrics and why we need to avoid them in our writing. We will take a close look at Avril Lavigne's "Keep Holding On" and Chris Brown's "Forever." Who will take the prize for the most clichés? Stay tuned. 

Math - We have just started Geometry. Students will be working with protractors. We will be measuring the angles of various triangles to determine if it is a right, acute, or obtuse. We will continue working on long division as well. There will be a short quiz on long division on Thursday. Students comfortable with the short-cut long division may use that method, so long as they arrive at the correct answer. 

Science - Monday, we will be completing Pulleys and Gears by designing and constructing a pulley system with a milk carton. The Sound unit begins humming along on Tuesday. I will be bringing in some interesting instruments and there will be plenty of "hands-on" investigation as we examine pitch and frequency this week. 

Social Studies - We have completed an intensive look at the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, as well as the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. This week, we will learn about what it takes to become a Canadian citizen. Our Canadian Province and Territory research will provide the foundation for tourist videos which the students will plan and film over the next two-to-three weeks. We will kick off this project comparing Ontario's tourism commercials then and now. "Give us a place to live. And a place to grow..." 

Art - Elements of Design - Perspective: Students will create a landscape collage. Please bring in clean foam trays, if you have any.

Field Trip

On February 26th, we will be going to Theatre Direct's production of Binti's Journey, an adaptation of Deborah Ellis' book, The Heaven Shop (which centres on the plight of AIDS orphans in Africa). I will begin reading this book to the class this week. Look for field trip permission forms soon. 

Literature Circles Coming Soon

Speaking of Deborah Ellis, I will soon be running literature circles in our class. We will be reading Ellis' The Breadwinner. I can order this book in sets from Scholastic at a price that works out to $3.33 per book and the book is the student's to keep. The Breadwinner is also readily available from the Toronto Public Library, if you choose to go that route. 

If you wish to order the book, please bring $3.33 in as soon as possible and I will place the order. 

Thank you.