Clairlea Players - Bravo!

Just a quick note to say how wonderful the Clairlea Players were today in their production of Skin. The acting and staging was excellent, as was the narrative, which dealt with racism. Congratulations to all the boys and girls who acted in this play and thank you to Ms. Park and all the "behind the scenes" people who made the play happen. I know how much work went into this. Thanks also to our terrific student teacher, Mr. Baron who came out tonight and stayed behind to help pack up gear. Cheers! Last but not least, I'd like to send appreciation out to the families who came out tonight to show your support. I'm sure you were all very proud.

There are numerous photos of the production which I will upload over the next day or so.

A special congrats to the Fantastic Fives who were in Skin: Megan, Nathan, Mathew, and Thomas. You were all terrific!

Ms. Hawkins

Perfect Pop From Quebec's Coeur de Pirate

Mme. Trott gave Ms. Park a disc of tunes by Quebec's Coeur de Pirate. Ms. Park in turn played many of these tunes a few weeks ago for morning music. Listening to the songs that week, I fell in love with the bright, cheery mood of the music. Mme. Trott gave me my own copy of the songs today. Woo-hoo!

Check out this sweet and innocent video. It's exactly the kind of music you want to hear as you watch the spring robins bobbing around.

P.S. Thank you so much Phoebe and Nicolas for sitting patiently through two hours of adults talking about all-day kindergarten and internet safety at the Ward Meeting tonight. Having the two of you present your blogs really brought meaning to the evening and proved what great things kids can do if you put technology in their hands and give them freedom to create.

Bravo!

Ms. Hawkins

P.S. I see Nic's already blogged about his blogging speech. Awesome. Love that you were so honest about the evening. And yes, I was happy because you and Phoebe were making me happy! By the way, freaky Avatar.

Clairlea Players This Wednesday

The Clairlea Players Present

The Clairlea Players Present

SKIN

By: Dennis Foon

Adapted for Clairlea by: Ms. Park

Wednesday, March 31st

7 p.m.

In the Gym at Clairlea

Several students from our class will be performing in this production, directed by Ms. Park. Please come out and support our kids. I have a previously scheduled workshop after school that day, so I'm going to beg Ms. Park to have the students present it to the school.

Best,

E. Hawkins

Morning Run

I've been hearing great things about how vigorous morning exercise helps children concentrate better. It also helps teachers on the dark side of their thirties work off the old spare tire. To that end, we'll be going for a daily morning run starting Wednesday. Please come dressed for the weather. Unless the rain is slashing down, we'll aim to run shortly after the morning bell. We'll be back in for "Oh Canada" and the morning announcements.

A little bit of this...

Leads to this...

Or at least this...

This Week in Room 204

Kiko staring at bird feeder. Spring must be here!

Hello,

This is another week of change. We finally will meet our newest student, Kanta. The kids are really excited about her arrival. No pressure. Welcome Kanta! On behalf of the class, I'd also like to welcome our new student teacher. Mr. Baron is studying at the Faculty of Education at the University of Ottawa and will be teaching in our classroom over the next few weeks. While I'm riding the Soul Train of Thankfulness, I'd also like to send a shout out to Ryerson Nursing Student John, who has been working with our class on Healthy Living. He's also been a great math coach. He will be with us three days a week for two more weeks.

I think I'm forgetting something - or someone. Have we been short a student lately?

Wait, I think it's this person below, but I've forgotten his name.

To the long-gone student, we welcome you back with Lego hard rock action.

Here are some of the things we'll be working on this short week:

Language: Monday, we are lucky to be hosting dub poet Dwayne Morgan in our classroom. Students will be listening to spoken word poetry as well as writing and performing some of their own. Thank you to Mrs. Brathwaite for making this happen. We will continue looking at different poetic forms this week.

Students will also be completing their parodies this week and I hope to have them all filmed by Thursday in Library. Some students restarted their parodies and it will be their responsibility to work to the deadline. Spelling and grammar continue.

Math: Fractions and decimals. I will be handing back last week's math test along with other pieces of work. Please sign and return envelope. Please do not send back work. Students who had difficulty on the test will have the opportunity to be retested.

Science: Forces - Activities and experiments galore. We will also be looking at strong shapes and bridges.

Social Studies: Students will continue working on his/her Aztec Codex. If time allows, we will look at family life and recreation in this ancient civilization.

Homework: Students will continue working on their Poetry Journal (due next Tuesday). There will be a math fraction/decimal sheet to work on (due this Thursday).

Speaking of parody, here are some middle school students doing a parody of Devo. Weird was invented a long time ago.

Here's the real Devo. They were making music when I was a kid - that's how old the band is.

Room 204 Speaking at Ward Meeting

I have been invited by trustee Gary Crawford to speak at the upcoming Ward Meeting on the topic: Understanding Social Networking. Nicolas and Phoebe will be joining me to talk about the amazing blogging community that we have in our class and the explosion of artistic work and writing that we've seen in Room 204 in recent months.

Mr. Knerim has posted the flyer for the meeting on the Clairlea Blog http://clairlea.blogspot.com You'll need to scroll down to the bottom of the screen to view it.

The meeting is on Tuesday, March 30th 7-9 at Regent Heights PS 555 Pharmacy Ave, South of St. Clair.

A light supper and child care will be available. If you are interested in attending, please email Helen Watling at helen.watling@tdsb.on.ca or call 416-393-8815

We are citizens of the world!

Have a lovely weekend.

Erin Hawkins

Dance Field Trip Form Reminder

Hello,

Ms. Park has once again included our class in the annual Earl Haig dance recital. The dancing is fabulous and it's great for kids in an elementary school to see dancers at the secondary level.

Please send in your consent forms along with the $5.00 required as soon as humanly possible. The recital is on April 7th.

Thank you,

E. Hawkins

Dubious dancing (below).

Astounding dancing (below).

Phoebe-tastic Origami

Grade Five kids are not boring. For proof head on over to Clairlea The Way To Write for Phoebe's latest musings. Phoebe is a student in our class who likes garage-pop, loves pie, and enjoys begging her teacher to install a cappuccino maker in the classroom. She also can't stop writing and drawing manga.

Her brain is a veritable Play-Doh Fun Factory of good ideas.

Phoebe's recent posts are amusing. I love that she's obsessively making origami and leaving them as gifts for the waitstaff at Kelsey's.

Keep blogging. I smell a book deal in your future. Move over Tavi the Style Rookie!

P.S. I see your Unicorn and raise you a "Heads Will Roll" by the Yeah Yeah Yeahs.

Ms. Hawkins

Video Games and the Toronto Public Library - Room 204 Weighs in

Students read an article from today's Toronto Star about how the Toronto Public Library is looking for $300, 000 to buy video games for its collection. They are also looking to set up gaming clubs at eight of its locations. Journalist Jesse McLean looked at both sides of the debate and there are compelling arguments to be made on both sides. On one hand, librarians feel that more children and teens will borrow more books if they know they can borrow video games. Guilderland, N.Y. has seen a 20% increase in teen book borrowing since the town library began carrying video games. On the down side, there are teens in Toronto being treated for video game addiction at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health.

So, what do the students in our class think? Overall, most of the girls in our class said they do not support the idea of the TPL circulating video games and the boys were split. Here are some quotes from their written response:

"I think that it's a bad idea. You want kids to come and read because the library is a place to read and work, not play video games. If they fill the place with video games, they might as well call it an arcade! As a child, I would say that every kid would be going there only to play video games." - SK

"I think this is a good idea because kids love video games, so they would rush into the library." - SH

"No, it's a bad idea because a man got shot in a taxi and the person who shot him was imitating GTA (Grand Theft Auto). Still, a part of me thinks it's a good idea." -CM

"If the library offers video games kids will want to go. If they go to the library more often they might get more progress." - MM

"I think this is a bad idea because if they start putting in video games, most kids will only come in for the video games. It could also make no kids read at all." - AD

"I think this is a good idea to put video games in the library because some videos have a lot of reading. The wii is good because you have to move to control it." - DS

"Yes, it's a good idea because it would make the library feel like home." - TJ

"I think this is a bad idea because people will only come for the video games, maybe even trick their parents that they are going to read, but they are going to play video games." - NZ

"I think this is bad because you don't learn by playing video games and a library's for reading not playing or running around. They might as well have a lounge to watch movies. - ER

"I think because the people who play video games will get so into it, it won't even be funny. Then you will not go outside for maybe six hours. It's a horrible idea. Sorry. - QH

"I think this may not be a good idea because: 1. They have too little branches for the video games and they'll have to expand it if their plan works. 2. If they want the video games, they'll go right for them. They won't see the books if they're so interested in the video games." - NL

"I think this game thing is a bad idea because then the library will be filled with kids fighting and saying it's their turn to play. Also, parents of the children might think that the library is spoiling their children and taking the children away from their studies. - AP

"I think it is a good idea because it would attract kids to the library. Kids would read until it's their turn." - NE

"I think this is going to be a good idea because some games have a lot of text so you can read while playing games." - GJ

There were a lot more thought-provoking ideas, which will be shared in class and on the bulletin board display outside the class. The news offers so many learning opportunities.

It's in Their Hands

Incredible children, astounding creations... See what your kids have been up to in Visual Arts on the Room 204 Student Blog.

Here's an illuminated sand art performance. Dig it.

Fabulous Cinquain Poems

Today students learned about cinquain poems. Sibghat, Jonathan, Dimitri, Grace, and Anum have offered to share their poems on the blog for your enjoyment. * Please note that one of the lines on the cinquain instruction sheet in the poetry journal was accidentally cut when I was assembling the page. Students were given a new instruction sheet in class today, which they were asked to take home to guide their work. Thank you.


Albert Einstein - By Sibghat

Albert
Smart matter
Fast, positive, happy
Albert Einstein's birthday March
Greatest

Something - By Jonathan

Something
Is everywhere
But you can't see it now
It is very clear in the air
Swine flu

Hockey - By Dimitri

Hockey
Fast, fun, hard scores
He shoots, he scores - goal - Yeah!
Goal, slapshot scores
Goal!

Peace - By Anum

Peace out
Unite the world
The world, quiet happy
"I" was never a word in here
Unite

Ninja Toast - By Grace

Crispy
Karate Chop
Dangerous, fun, awesome
Never mess with the Ninja Toast
Ninja Toast!

Poetry Journal Extension/New Student/Eddy Grant

Hello,

Due to the long Easter weekend coming up, I've changed the deadline for the Poetry Journal homework assignment. It is now due Tuesday, April 6th. Thanks.

I'd also like to welcome Kanta to our class. Tomorrow will be her first day and I'm sure everyone will make her feel welcome in her new class. In case you're keeping score, we now have 31 students. Yes, we now have as many students as Baskin Robbins has flavours of ice cream. Things that make you go "Hmmm."

Here's Eddy Grant to get the week off to a retro funky start.

This Week in Room 204

Hope your March Break was a knock out!

Hello there,

I hope everyone is rested and ready for action. Term 3 is here - we're soaking in it. It's going to be a long term, affording us the opportunity to go deep into important areas of study. Towards the end of the year, we will reinforce what we've learned and put the polishing touch on writing. We still have a long way to go. With hard work, we'll get there.

Here's what's on the menu this week:

Language - Writing/Reading: We will be reading and writing a great deal of poetry for the next few weeks. This week, students will be given a diagnostic reading assessment using a wonderful poem by Langston Hughes. Every day, students will learn about different forms of poetry. This week we will be writing alliteration poems, cinquain poems, Clerihew poems, concrete poems, and found poems. This will tie in with a major homework assignment that will be explained in class on Monday.

We are also returning to our spelling program with word study groups. As well, we are hitting the grammar books. Grammar is important!

Math - Number Sense & Numeration: We will continue working on fractions and if the class seems ready, we may begin decimals towards the end of the week. There will be a short quiz on fractions Thursday or Friday.

Science: Forces - We will review our examination of simple machines. There will be a short quiz on Thursday. Students must be able to name and describe the six simple machines and list five examples of everyday objects that would fall into these six categories.

Social Studies: Ancient Civilizations - Ancient Mexico: Students will learn about the Olmec culture, chocolate money (mmmmm), Aztec hieroglyphs, and we will begin constructing Aztec books called codices. Lot's of fun and learning.

Homework:

1. A two-week poetry assignment will be handed out tomorrow. The idea is for students to write a poem a day, based on what we learned in class that particular day. All instruction will be included with the assignment. It is a fun, creative project that will expose children to a wide range of poetic forms.

2. Math fraction sheet.

That's all. Have a great week!

Jazz hands of appreciation for Miss Esling. We'll miss you!

Solid Gold Dancers now and then. Never before have I seen a group of children so willing to get up and dance for no particular reason.

And here's to the great rock vocalist of our class.

La la la LAAAAAAAH!

Myles the Rockstar - The Gift That Keeps on Giving

Do you remember this boy?

Yes, it's the Clairlea Poet Laureate surrounded by a bunch of poetry enthusiasts who look vaguely familiar - though it's been a long March Break.

Aidan's mother has a great parenting/family life blog, which you should bookmark http://growinguptoronto.blogspot.com

Here's the exciting news from her most recent post: Aidan's award-winning poem, "Myles the Rockstar" is featured in the latest edition of Today's Parent. Too bad Aidan wasn't on the cover.

Here it is.

Do check it out. Aidan - we're so proud of you!

Ms. Hawkins

Day Trip to Varley Gallery

Yesterday my family spent a magical afternoon surrounded by art and nature. We drove up to Unionville to visit the Frederick Horsman Varley Gallery. Varley is my favourite painter of the Group of Seven. He was born in Sheffield, England in 1881. He immigrated to Canada in 1912. Six years later Canadian War Records commissioned him to illustrate the war in Europe. When he returned to Canada, in 1920, he became a founding member of the Group of Seven. Throughout his life, he painted numerous landscapes and portraits. He spent his last years living with arts patron Kathleen McKay in her house in Unionville (a short drive north of Toronto).

Lake Garibaldi, B.C., 1928

Vera, c. 1930: I love Varley's colour palette of choice, blue and green. Nature informed much of his work.

An Early Look at Oliver and Lenny

I had trouble photographing the gerbils last night. These critters move quickly and the pictures either turned out too dark and blurry or too bright and flashy. I will say this, Oliver and Lenny are super cute and they will bring a whole lot of love to our class.

This is Oliver. He looks a lot like Rosie and he's very calm and happy as rodents go.

Oliver in foreground and Lenny in background.

Little Lenny reminds me of a kangaroo mouse.

Paper towel roll: Oliver's chew toy of choice. Yes, his eyes are red anyway, but the flash makes them look even crazier. By the way, this is how my eyes look when I wake up.
These gerbils have really furry tails. Maybe someone can write a fairy tale about the furry tails.
No this is not a ghost gerbil. I like this camera effect. It was a creative accident.
I built a penthouse apartment for them on the upper level. They really dig it, but the mat is yet another chew toy.

Oliver

Little Lenny - I'm so glad I didn't trade you in for a friendlier gerbil.

Take me to your leader.

Bloggers Busy Blogging

Most of our bloggers have been busy writing and posting interesting photographs and videos during March Break. Mathew has been blogging about Florida, Nic has been posting all kinds of interesting pictures and comments (love your photo essay of Home Depot carpentry projects you've made), Justin has been busy writing on The Zone, and Grace had a very unhappy face post today. Grace, you are a fine writer and one of the funniest people I've ever met. Just be yourself and you can't go wrong. Keep up the great work!

Ms. Hawkins

P.S. Don't forget to wear your bike helmets and if you're in a car, your seatbelt. Just take it from the crash test dummies. Love this dance.

Gerbil Update

Although Lenny moves around the cage like greased lightning, my husband convinced me that he should not be returned for a cuter gerbil. Well, he was right. Lenny is growing on me. With all the classroom pets at home, plus our own, Duncan and I counted NINE pets in our house right now. Kiko is a mouser and he's onto the hamster and gerbils. They are shut away in other rooms where the cats can't get at them. Oh, the torture.

Here's a funny video using time lapse photography. I put a cardboard tube in the gerbil cage while Duncan was having his bath tonight. When he came out the tube had been demolished by Oliver.

Stuff to do During March Break

Back when I was a child, if I ever said, "I'm bored," my parents would say, "Smart kids don't get bored." That would soon have me hopping on my bike and to heading to the park, or maybe pulling out craft supplies from the cupboard.

There are lot's of things to do in the city during March Break, many of them are free. The weather is supposed to be milder and sunnier this week, so why not go to one of the many excellent parks in our city and go exploring? Families with bikes could head down into the Don Valley and bike down to Lake Ontario. Getting kids outdoors is the best thing parents and educators can do. I'll be blogging about this down the road.

I would avoid the Science Centre. We drove past it last March Break and the lineup for the parking lot stretched out onto Don Mills Avenue. I can only imagine it was packed inside.

There are oodles of things to do at the Toronto Public Library. I've copied and pasted some events from their site which you'll find below. There's nothing wrong with getting on a bus and visiting a different branch. If you've never been to the S. Walter Stewart branch (my local library) in the Coxwell/Mortimer area, you should check it out. It has to be the coolest looking, most kid-friendly library. There is a rocket ship in the basement!

Have fun and get outside!

Ms. Hawkins

Children

Magic, music, storytelling, theatre and MUCH, MUCH MORE! Have some fun at the Library during March Break.

For information on FREE children's programs and events at your local branch, look up your branch here.

SPECIAL Touring ARTISTS and PERFORMANCES

These amazing performers will be appearing at several library branches during March. For performance dates and times, click on the branch name.

Mystifying MAGIC

The Magic of Jason Palter Lots of comedy and audience participation..... parents join in too. For dates and times: Locke, McGregor Park,Pape/Danforth, Perth/Dupont, Queen/Saulter

Mark Lewis' Magic Show Lots of comedy and audience participation. For dates and times: Barbara Frum,Cliffcrest, Jane/Dundas, St. James Town,Palmerston, Yorkville

Owen Anderson presents the Magic, Mirth, & Mayhem Show! A magical adventure featuring giggles galore, silly rabbit Ruby, and lots of audience participation! For dates and times: Jane/Sheppard, Mt. Dennis, Oakwood Village, Runnymede

Magical comedian, Stephen Elvaycombines amazing 'sleight of hand' with a comic wit and charm... a memorable show not to be missed! For dates and times: Jones, New Toronto,Swansea Memorial

Vincent Lem presents Magnificent Magic For dates and times: Bridlewood, High Park, Long Branch,Maryvale, Riverdale

Rollicking MUSIC

Alistair Ant Soli & Rob present a fun and engaging interactive musical concert with an appearance by puppet personality Alistair Ant. For dates and times: Albion, Centennial,Humberwood, Main Street

Gather 'Round the Campfire: Music with Andrew Queen Andrew Queen's music will put a smile on your face. Simple, silly lyrics get everyone singing right along with new takes on old camp favourites. Wacky action songs and original fairy tale tunes. For dates and times: Dawes Road, Hillcrest,Sanderson, Wychwood

Canadian Musical Journey: Music with Jim Parker Travel on a Canadian musical journey with popular entertainer Jim Parker. For dates and times: Eatonville, Malvern,York Woods

Ken Whiteley, singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. Join in and sing-along. For dates and times: Bloor/Gladstone, Forest Hill

Markus combines upbeat melodies with quirky lyrics in his 'toe-tappin' knee-slappin' music. For dates and times: Lillian H. Smith,Spadina Road

Mystic Drumz and the Legend of Marshmallow Island A music safari goes around the world in search of amazing instruments and sounds. For dates and times: Beaches, Black Creek,Mount Pleasant, Northern Elms, Rexdale

Turkey Rhubarb Sing, move and laugh with Turkey Rhubarb, join in and sing traditional songs in English, French and Spanish. For dates and times: Dufferin/St. Clair, Mimico

Scintillating Science Fun

Mad Science presents: FIRE and ICE Be dazzled and amazed by frigidly fun, big burp, bubbling bubbles, indoor fireworks, thrilling Swoosh Whoosh Ah Bottle. For dates and times: Alderwood, Goldhawk Park, Northern District, Parliament, Bendale

Mad Science presents: SPIN POP BOOM Awed by chemistry and physics? Wow to exothermic reactions - Genie Out of a Bottle and a Giant Foam Snake. The fundamental forces of planet Earth are summoned and a glass bottle goes bungee jumping. For dates and times: Agincourt, Morningside, North York Central

Mad Science presents: UP UP AND AWAY Every wonder about air? The Mad Scientist will make a hot air balloon, create giant smoke rings and demonstrate movie FX’s. There’s a thrilling grand finale – the wondrous and floating powers of a Mad Science Hovercraft. For dates and times: Bayview

Super Science A super spectacular hands-on science demonstration. For dates and times: Burrows Hall, Downsview, Elmbrook Park

Spellbinding STORYTELLING

Judy Shier Weisberg, Ventriloquist Engaging storytelling with talking puppets and dolls For dates and times: Brookbanks, Eglinton Square, Port Union

Noriko Yamamoto, Silent Storytelling The Funny Little Woman is a Japanese tale of a magic spoon and a runaway rice ball. For dates and times: Deer Park, Kennedy/Eglinton, St. Clair/Silverthorn, Weston

Thrilling THEATRE

Applefun Puppets presents Robin Hood and the Dragon After the puppet show, children are invited to meet the puppets. For dates and times: Amesbury Park, Evelyn Gregory, Steeles, Woodview Park

ET the Mime presents the Mime Show A hilarious and interactive mime show – after the show ET will teach some cool mime tricks. For dates and times: Gerrard/Ashdale,Woodside Square

Little Red Theatre presents Darkness and the Butterfly Based on the book by Ann Grifalconi and inspired by an old African saying "darkness pursues the butterfly." For dates and times: Davenport, Don Mills, Pleasant View

Naomi Tyrrell presents Mime, Mask and Music Red Dog needs rhyming words to finish his new rap. Betsy needs help with her birthday party invitation and Gretchen wants to remember a sign language song. For dates and times: College Shaw, Humber Summit

Cindy Cook from Polka Dot Door Puppets, songs, dance call and response and lots of participation – make learning about literacy, safety and the environment FUN! For dates and times: Albert Campbell, Annette Street, Fairview, Guildwood, Highland Creek,Taylor Memorial

… And that’s just the beginning! There is much more March Break Fun at your local branch.

New Classroom Pets

Today was such a miserable cold and rainy day. My husband was working and it seemed like our entire street had taken off on vacation. Duncan and I decided to head out and have fun anyway. We visited the St. Lawrence Market and bought some interesting food. After that, we took a streetcar to Criter's Castle, where I bought two cute gerbils. They are both male this time. Duncan named the big friendly one Oliver. He looks very much like Rosie. We decided to get a companion who looked very different so we wouldn't mix them up. Lenny (I named him after Lenny from Laverne & Shirley) is small, dark browny black and very fast. He hates being picked up. I'm wondering if I should take him back tomorrow for another friendly one. Hmmm.

If you're reading this, I hope the weather hasn't "dampened" your spirits for the holiday.

I'll be back with more pictures and fun. Check out the Travis video I posted yesterday. It starts off slowly, but eventually an octopus goes flying across the table of a fancy dinner party. Duncan was in hysterics when I played it for him.

The original Oliver (I'm sure this is where Duncan got his idea from)

The original Lenny (bottom left)

Bye!

Ms. Hawkins

Mac vs. PC

He's a Mac.

And he's a PC (as well as a former Mole and international man of mystery)

What does this all mean? Check out the first posted parody on the Room 204 student blog, linked over to the right. While you're there, check out the terrific work by our classroom bloggers. They've got big ideas about how to make Toronto a more livable city.

Thanks to Mr. Knierim for filming and posting.

Erin Hawkins

P.S. I'm a Mac.

Have a rocking good March Break! I'll try to post some ideas of fun things to do in the city. Stick around for joy.

Love this song and video. Time to dust the old bike off.