Thursday 31 January 2013

What We Learned Today...January 31st

The two lucky AR winners from our class!
We started off our morning by reading the short story, The Tell Tale Heart by Edgar Allan Poe.  This story fits in quite well with our Mystery Unit but also is a perfect segway into our next Short Story & Poetry Unit.  After we finished the story the students split up into their "Daily Five" groups and began working on the assignments at each station. (Reading, Spelling & Grammar, Word Work and Creative Writing)  However, since the story took quite a while to read we only had time for two station switches and will complete the full activity tomorrow.  
In Grade 8 Math the students continued to work on their 5.4 handout as well as their Chapter Review on Pg. 188.  On a side note, I just received an email from IXL.com letting me know that in 24 hours our class has already completed 500 math questions.  Well Done!

After Lunch the students had Arts. Ed with Ms. Norris and had one last class period to work on their Social Justice Drawing Assignments. Note: This assignment is due tomorrow!  In Science Mr. Csada continued to review the Optics and Vision material to help the students study for thier Test next week.  Another Note: The Science Test is on Tuesday, February 5th.
During the last hour of the day we had our month end school wide assembly in the gym.  Congratulations to our Blessed Mother Teresa Award winners for the month of January!

Due Dates & Homework:

Math:
Grade 8
Handout 5.4 will be due on Tuesday, February 5th

*Math Quiz is on Tuesday, February 5th

Science: Optics and Vision Unit test has been moved to the week of February 4th.

Arts. Ed

Grid Drawings are due on Friday

Overdue Assignments:

1) French Poster Assignment
2) "What's in a Name?" Blog Post
3) Social Group Drawings


Reminders:-
- Hot Lunch forms will be due February 5th.

-Downhill Ski forms need to be handed in by Tomorrow.

Wednesday 30 January 2013

What We Learned Today...January 30th

Learning about Lent from Mr. Meyers

Today we were very fortunate to have Mr. Meyers come out again and visit our classroom.  He spent time with us today teaching us about the importance of Ash Wednesday and the history behind why we recieve ashes on our foreheads.  Mr. Meyers also taught us more about Lent and about the three major concepts associated with it: Fast, Pray and Give.  As per his usual visits, the students were quizzed throughout his presentation and were treated to different sweets for each answer they gave!  I know I speak for the entire class when I say we really appreciate whenever Mr. Meyers visits because we learn so much and have a great time doing it!  (If you want to check out the really cool Lent Calendar Mr. Meyers showed us, you can check it out at Busted Halo)
In Grade 8 Math the students were given the 5.4 handout, "Surface Area of a Cylinder" and worked on it during the hour.  *Reminder: We have our Unit 5 Quiz on Tuesday, February 5th.  You may bring your study sheet into the quiz with you, so make sure you have it written out for Tuesday!

After lunch we had French and we continued our Music Unit by learning some basic French statements for going to a concert.  At 1:15 Mr. McCulloch came in for Health and continued to teach about healthy eating practices (I believe the students may have viewed part of the documentary "Super Size Me"). 
During the last hour of the day we had Social and continued our Colonization Simulation Unit.  Today was very important class because each group participated in an event that simulated the First Encounter between each group.  Students will learn next class what consequences (good or bad) this will have on their group and the direction the unit takes. 

Here's some more pictures from today:


Working hard on Mr. Meyers quiz!
Eating some Pretzels as part of Mr. Meyers presentation.




The French meeting the Algonquain

The Algonquain meeting The Plains

Due Dates & Homework:

Math:
Grade 8
Pg. 186 - Is due on Thursday
a)1-4, 6, 8
b) 1-3, 5, 6, 8-10
c) 1, 2, 6b, 9, 11-13

Handout 5.4 will be due on Tuesday, February 5th

*Math Quiz is on Tuesday, February 5th

Science: Optics and Vision Unit test has been moved to the week of February 4th.

Arts. Ed

Grid Drawings are due on Friday

Overdue Assignments:

1) French Poster Assignment
2) "What's in a Name?" Blog Post
3) Social Group Drawings

Reminders:-
- Hot Lunch forms will be due February 5th.

-Downhill Ski forms need to be handed in by Friday

Tuesday 29 January 2013

What We Learned Today...January 29th

Taking a second to pose during Cross Country Skiing.

This morning we began our day differently than we have in the past.  Instead of our usual half-hour AR period, we started right with the "Daily Five" stations and incorporated AR time into one of the stations.  Students rotated stations every 20 minutes between Silent Reading, Word Work, Spelling & Grammar and Creative Writing. 
In Grade 8 Math the students continued to work on their assignment from Pg. 186 in the textbook.  Students who finished early got a chance to work ahead on their handout for tomorrows class and some even began testing out IXL.com for some extra practice.  *All Grade 8 students have been given their user names and passwords and are now able to log on to IXL and check it out.  Grade 7's will be given their user names and passwords tomorrow.

After lunch the Grade 8's went to work with Mr. Csada while the Grade 7's went cross-country skiing for the afternoon.  I got the chance to go with the Grade 7's so I took some pictures from our adventurous afternoon that you can see below!





Due Dates & Homework:

Math:
Grade 8
Pg. 186 - Is due on Thursday
a)1-4, 6, 8
b) 1-3, 5, 6, 8-10
c) 1, 2, 6b, 9, 11-13

*Math Quiz is on Tuesday, February 5th

Science: Optics and Vision Unit test has been moved to the week of February 4th.

Arts. Ed

Grid Drawings are due on Friday

Overdue Assignments:

1) French Poster Assignment
2) "What's in a Name?" Blog Post
3) Social Group Drawings


Reminders:-
- Hot Lunch forms will be due February 5th.

-Downhill Ski forms need to be handed in by Friday

- Girls Basketball Practice Team has a game on Wednesday, January 30th @ Deshaye at 4:00

Monday 28 January 2013

What We Learned Today...January 28th

Re-Learning the Steps to Gangnam Style

We had a great start to our week this morning with a nice school wide-assembly in the Gym.  During the assembly Ms. Grad talked about the Gospel Readings from Sunday and also the importance of the Apostles Creed.  To end the assembly, we even got a chanc to say the Apostles Creed together as a school. Once we got back to the classroom we started our "Daily Five" ELA stations and students switched every 15 minutes from each station.  So far the students have really impressed me with testing out this new way to teach and learn ELA!

In Grade 8 Math we continued to learn about calculating the Surface Area of a Cylinder before the students began their assignments on Pg. 186. 
Also in Math News, our class recently signed up for a trail on IXL.  This website provides the students with extra Math practice and lessons that are paired with our Saskatchewan Math Curriculum.  I've made an account for each student (both Grade 7 & Grade 8) and will give them their usernames and passwords tomorrow.  If you would like to check out the site tonight just click on the link above and explore IXL. 

After lunch the students had Arts. Ed with Ms. Norris and continued to work on their Social Justice Grid Drawing Assignments.  These assignments are due this Friday, February 1st.  In French we quickly reviewed regular ER verbs and some irregular verbs (Faire) as well as some reasons why people go to a concert. 
During the last hour of the day the students continued their dance unit by learning the dance steps to the popular Youtube song "Gangnam Style".  The students should be quite familiar with this dance seeing as we practiced it every day in September as part of our Brain Breaks. 


Reminder:  Please bring back your Downhill Skiing forms by this Friday, February 1st. 


Due Dates & Homework:

Math:
Grade 8
Handout 5.3 is overdue
Assignment from today:
Pg. 186
a)1-4, 6, 8
b) 1-3, 5, 6, 8-10
c) 1, 2, 6b, 9, 11-13

Grade 7
 Mr. McCullochs math class can continue to work on their tests tomorrow
Pg. 149 Practice also due

Science: Optics and Vision Unit test has been moved to the week of February 4th.

Social: Group Drawings are overdue

Overdue Assignments:

1) French Poster Assignment
2) "What's in a Name?" Blog Post
3) Social Group Drawings

Reminders:-
- Hot Lunch forms will be due February 5th.
- Girls Basketball Practice Team has a game on Wednesday, January 30th @ Deshaye at 4:00

- Grade 7's will be going Cross Country Skiing tomorrow, January 29th. 

Thursday 24 January 2013

What We Learned Today...January 24th

Our new seating arrangement. Yes, that meant me too!

Unfortunately I had to be away at a PLC meeting all morning, but the students were in the very capable hands of Mr. Krammer.  They started out their morning with their usual AR period before moving on the ELA.  In ELA the student's read the article "Investigating the Aurora Borealis" and were tasked with answering Before, During and After response questions on an accompanying handout.  We will continue with our Daily 5 stations next week and may even add the fifth station to test out. 
The student's had another change in their schedule today as Ms. Norris was away for a meeting and did not have Phys. Ed.  Instead, Mr. Krammer continued to teach the Digital Citizenship lesson on Strategic Searching that we began last class. 

During Religion students were given the opportunity to look over their "What's in a Name?" Blog Posts and use the blogging rubrics to assess their own post.  I will be working with each student individually next week and we will go over their self-assessment.  At 1:15, the students had Health with Mr. McCulloch and we ended the day by watching the end of the movie we started on Tuesday. 

*Reminder: There is no school tomorrow as it is a TPD. 

Due Dates & Homework:

Math:
Handout 5.3 is Due Monday
 
Grade 7 - Chapter 4 Test on Monday


Science: Optics and Vision Unit test has been moved to the week of February 4th.


Social: Group Drawings are overdue

Overdue Assignments:

1) French Poster Assignment
2) "What's in a Name?" Blog Post
3)Any of the 3 Advent Blog Posts


Reminders:-
- Hot Lunch forms will be due February 5th.

- Girls Basketball Practice Team has a game on Wednesday, January 30th @ Deshaye at 4:00


- Grade 7's will be going Cross Country Skiing on January 29th. 

Wednesday 23 January 2013

What We Learned Today...January 23


This morning we began our day with our usual AR period before moving on to ELA.  In ELA we switched things up and tried out a version of the "Daily Five".  Essentially for this activity, the students were split up into four groups and were each designated a specific ELA station to start at.  After 15 minutes the students switched stations and started the activity at their new station.  Since today was test run, we only ran four stations: Silent Reading, Word Work, Spelling and Grammar and Creative Writing.  I think it ran quite smoothly and the students did an excellent job staying on task at each station. 
In Grade 8 Math we quickly reviewed how to find the area of a circle before moving on to calculating the Surface Area of a Cylinder.  I've posted a video below that also explains the same concept if you would like to review what we looked at today or were having some difficulty.

 

After the lunch the students had Arts. Ed with Ms. B, (no relation, just same letter) who was in for Ms. Norris today.  During the half-hour the students continued to work on their Social Justice Drawing Assignments. After Arts. Ed Ms. B stuck around for Science and helped the review for their test and were given study sheets for Primary & Secondary Colours of Light.
In Social Studies the students continued to work in their Colonization Simulation groups before coming back to the class for the last 20 minutes to work on our new seating arrangement. 

Here are some more pictures from today:

Tech & Talk Break
At the Grammar/Spelling Station


At the Word Work Station
Playing some Just Dance during recess!



 Due Dates & Homework:

Math:
Handout 5.3 is Due Monday

Science: Optics and Vision Unit test has been moved to the week of February 4th. 

Social: Group Drawings are due on Tomorrow

Overdue Assignments:

1) French Poster Assignment
2) "What's in a Name?" Blog Post
3)Any of the 3 Advent Blog Posts


Reminders:-
- Hot Lunch forms will be due February 5th. 

- Grade 7's will be going Cross Country Skiing on January 29th. 

Tuesday 22 January 2013

Mystery Skype! January 22nd





This morning the students were here extra early to get prepared for our Mystery Skype at 8:30.  We've been preparing for this Skype for the past week, and it really showed as our class looked like a well oiled machine throughout the entire activity.  Each student had their own responsibility and executed it to perfection. 

Ms. Millwater's class started off the Mystery Skype with a few correct questions in a row before we got our turn to ask a few.  Both classes were exchanging great questions and making significant progress in trying to figure out the others location. We knew that they were somewhere in the UK and they had figured out that we were somewhere in Canada.   In the end though, Ms. Millwater's class ended up guessing our location first but gave us a few hints to help us figure out their location.  (They are located near the Sherwood Forest in the UK & they have a population of roughly 30,000)  After some thought, the students guessed that they were in Nottinghamshire, UK and they were absolutely correct! 

Overall it was an amazing experience and we learned quite a bit about Ms. Millwater's class and Nottinghamshire, especially the time difference. (They were just ending school as we were starting).  I would like to thank Ms. Millwater's class for participating with us in such a cool activity and we hope to connect again in the future.  A big thank you also goes out to all the students for coming to school extra early today as well as the parents for getting them here so early.  Our class would also like to thank Ms. Stewart-Mitchell and Mr. Benko for joining us today for our Mystery Skype, it was awesome having you both here to check out our project!

Now on to the rest of the day!  We spent the first half hour of the day with our usual AR time from 9:00-9:30.  At 9:30 we changed up our usual ELA period in honour of the Mystery Skype this morning.  Since the students came to school early on their own time I repaid them by giving them free time and showing a movie for the first part of the morning. 
In Grade 8 Math the students began to work on Handout 5.3  - Calculating Surface Area of Prisms.  *This handout will be due on Friday

After lunch, the students finished up their movie from 12:45 - 1:15 before Mr. McCulloch came in for Health.  In Health, the students continued to present their Diet Presentations to the rest of the class.  During the last hour of the day the students split up into their colonization groups and each group followed their instructions for the days activities. 

Here's a few more pictures from our Mystery Skype:

















Due Dates & Homework:

Math:
Handout 5.3 is Due Friday

Pg. 179 - Due Tomorrow
A) 1-3, 5, 6, 8
B)1, 3, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12
C) 1,3, 5, 10-16

Science: Optics and Vision Unit test is on January 29th (Part 1) and January 31st (Part 2)

Social: Group Drawings are due on Thursday

Overdue Assignments:

1) French Poster Assignment
2) "What's in a Name?" Blog Post
3)Any of the 3 Advent Blog Posts


Reminders:
- Downhill Skiing forms went home today. Parents please take a look at these forms.

- Grade 7's will be going Cross Country Skiing on January 29th.

Monday 21 January 2013

What We Learned Today...January 21st

 
We started the week off with a brief assembly in the gym before heading back to the class for AR this morning.  Near the end of AR we had a special visitor (or should I say two special visitors) come to see us.  Ms. Stewart-Mitchell and her newborn daughter Micaela Skye stopped by to visit and share some stories with us as well as see what's been happening in our classroom this year! 
At 10:00, to celebrate our school becoming BYOT (Bring Your Own Technology), we started a new Digital Citizenship lesson on Strategic Searching. 
In Grade 8 Math, we took some time to review 3D Objects and Nets before continuing with the assignment from Pg. 179 on Calculating Surface Area.

After lunch from 12:45 - 1:15 we had one last Mystery Skype practice session in our classroom to help us prepare for the real deal tomorrow morning at 8:30.  *Please remember that students need to be at the school by 8:15 tomorrow morning so we can get prepared for our Mystery Skype at 8:30.
In Science, Mr. Csada spent the hour reviewing the Optics and Vision unit in order to help students prepare for their Unit test on January 28th and January 30th. 
During the last hour of the day the students had Arts. Ed with Ms. Norris and continued to work on their Social Justice Drawing assignments. 

*Reminder: Students please be at the school by 8:15 tomorrow morning for our Mystery Skype Session! I will be at the school by 7:30 tomorrow morning if students need to come early due to their ride situation.


Due Dates & Homework:
Math:

Pg. 179 - Due Wednesday
A) 1-3, 5, 6, 8
B)1, 3, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12
C) 1,3, 5, 10-16

Science: Optics and Vision Unit test is on January 29th (Part 1) and January 31st (Part 2)

Overdue Assignments:

1) French Poster Assignment
2) "What's in a Name?" Blog Post
3)Any of the 3 Advent Blog Posts

Reminders:
- Downhill Skiing forms went home today. Parents please take a look at these forms. 

- Grade 7's will be going Cross Country Skiing on January 29th.

Friday 18 January 2013

What We Learned Today...January 18th

Taking a second to pose during Phys. Ed
We started the morning with our usual AR period from 9:00 to 9:30 before moving on to ELA.  During ELA the students continued to take turns recording their rants on the iPads while the rest of the class watched the end of The Goonies.  Next week we will continue to record these rants and hopefully have them edited into a class Podcast by Thursday.
In Grade 8 Math the students continued to work on their Surface Area assignment from pg. 176.  (Entire assignment is listed below)

After Lunch the students had Arts. Ed with Ms. Norris and continued to work on their Social Justice Grid assignment.  Ms. Norris has indicated that certain students who are a little behind in this assignment should be taking it home to work on for homework as it will be due soon.  At 1:15 we had Social Studies instead French today and the students got into their Colonization groups and spent the hour working on their group information and drawing handouts.  These drawings will be due on Tuesday, January 22nd.  Any students who have not finished them by then will be unable to participate with the rest of the their group until they are completed. 
For the last hour of the day the students had Ms. Norris again for Phys. Ed and they participated in various basketball drills. 

*Note: Our Mystery Skype session is coming up quick and I just wanted to remind everyone that the students will need to be at the school at 8:15 a.m. on Tuesday, January 22nd.  I'm very excited for this as I'm sure the students are as well!

Some Pictures from Phys. Ed today:



Due Dates & Homework:

Religion: "What's in a Name?" Blog Post is due Monday, January 21st


Math:

Pg. 179
A) 1-3, 5, 6, 8
B)1, 3, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12
C) 1,3, 5, 10-16
 
Science: Optics and Vision Unit test is on January 29th (Part 1) and January 31st (Part 2)
 

Overdue Assignments:

1) French Poster Assignment
2) Killers Tall Tale Reading Response (Handout)
3) The Hermits Secret Reading Response (Handout)
4) Any of the 3 Advent Blog Posts
5) Social Trade Questions



If you are also missing the handout to help answer #5, here is a link to the document online: http://docs.plea.org/pdf/TRADE.pdf
(Please skip to page 16 for the Opportunity Cost Handout)



Reminders:
- Mystery Skype is Tuesday January 22nd at 8:30 a.m.

- Grade 7's will be going Cross Country Skiing on January 29th.

Thursday 17 January 2013

What We Learned Today...January 17th

Practicing Mystery Skype in the Library
This morning we had our usual AR period before moving moving on to ELA.  In ELA, the students continued to record and edit their rants in Garageband.  Since we only have two school iPads, students took turns recording and editing while the rest of the class watched the movie, The Goonies, which tied into our Mystery Unit.  Students rant podcasts are coming along quite nicely and will sound awesome once we put them all together next week!
In Phys. Ed Ms. Norris continued to have the students perform their Space Jam Dance as well as some basketball drills. 

In Religion students continued to work on their "What's in a Name" blog post.  These blogs will be due on Monday, January 21st so we can move on to the next part of the assignment.  At 1:15 Mr. McCulloch came in to teach Health and the students continued to present their Diet Power Points. 
During the last hour of the day we spent the hour in the Library practicing for our Mystery Skype next week.  We were even lucky enough to compete against Ms. Wiebe and a few students in the office. 

Here's some more pictures from today:








Due Dates & Homework:

Religion: "What's in a Name?" Blog Post is due Monday, January 21st

Math:

Pg. 179
A) 1-3, 5, 6, 8
B)1, 3, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12
C) 1,3, 5, 10-16

Handout 5.2 will be due on Tomorrow

Overdue Assignments:

1) French Poster Assignment
2) Killers Tall Tale Reading Response (Handout)
3) The Hermits Secret Reading Response (Handout)
4) Any of the 3 Advent Blog Posts
5) Social Trade Questions


If you are also missing the handout to help answer #5, here is a link to the document online: http://docs.plea.org/pdf/TRADE.pdf
(Please skip to page 16 for the Opportunity Cost Handout)


Reminders:
- Mystery Skype is Tuesday January 22nd at 8:30 a.m.

- Grade 7's will be going Cross Country Skiing on January 29th.



Wednesday 16 January 2013

What We Learned Today...January 16th

Some of the girls at Basketball practice!

This morning we started off with our usual AR period until 9:30 and then moved on to ELA.  We were fortunate enough to have access to the school iPads during ELA today so students began to record their rants on Garageband and edit them into short Podcasts.  We will be continuing to record the rants over the next two days and hopefully by next week, have them edited into one full class Podcast.  In Grade 8 Math we continued to learn about calculating Surface Area for 3D objects and began the textbook assignment for 5.3.  (See full assignment below).  If you are having some difficulty with calculating the Surface Area check out the video below that also helps to explain it.



After lunch the students had Arts. Ed with Ms. Norris and continued to work on their Social Justice Grid Drawing Assignment.  Ms. Norris has indicated that this assignment will be due soon so I will post the due date once it has been assigned.  At 1:15 Mr. Williams (in for Mr. Csada today) came in for Science and worked with the students on reviewing for their Unit Test. 
During the last hour of the day we assigned roles for our upcoming Mystery Skype next week and the students had a few practice sessions against me.  The students got lucky in the first game and beat me, but they werent' as lucky the second round as I guessed they were the small island of Palau for the win.  *Reminder: We will be having our Mystery Skype next Tuesday at 8:30,  so please ensure you are here by 8:15 so we will have time to set up and prepare! 

Due Dates & Homework:

French - Album Cover assignment is due Thursday, January 17th

Math:

Pg. 179
A) 1-3, 5, 6, 8
B)1, 3, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12
C) 1,3, 5, 10-16

Handout 5.2 will be due on Thursday

Overdue Assignments:
 
1) Killers Tall Tale Reading Response (Handout)
2) The Hermits Secret Reading Response (Handout)
3) ELA Ghost Story Good Copy
4) Any of the 3 Advent Blog Posts
5) Social Trade Questions

If you are also missing the handout to help answer #5, here is a link to the document online: http://docs.plea.org/pdf/TRADE.pdf
(Please skip to page 16 for the Opportunity Cost Handout)

Reminders:
-Girls Basketball Game for Tomorrow has been cancelled. We will have a practice at Deshaye from 3:30-4:45 instead.
- Mystery Skype is Tuesday January 22nd at 8:30 a.m.

- Grade 7's will be going Cross Country Skiing on January 29th.

Tuesday 15 January 2013

What We Learned Today...January 15th


 


Our new religion table
Today we started the morning out with our usual AR period before moving on to ELA.  AR Reminder: Students must have at least 10 AR points by the end of the week or they will be spending some time with Ms. Norris and Ms. Folk reading during recesses. In ELA the students worked on finishing up their rants and some students actually began recording them on the iPads.  Our goal is to have every ones rants recorded by the end of the week so we can turn them into our very own class rant podcast.
In Grade 8 Math we began to look at Surface Area and how to calculate it in relation to the areas of the faces of a 3D Object.  Since this is quite a big concept and can often confuse students, I will be spending two days teaching this before giving out an assignment. 

After lunch in Religion, the students continued to work on their "What's in a Name?" blog post assignment.  These posts are being written on our Kidblog site and if you would like to read them just have your child use their log in as the site is privacy protected.  In Health Mr. McCulloch had the students present their Diet Power Points to the class. During the last hour of the day I showed the students their marks present marks in each class and what assignments they still needed to get in.  Students were given this hour to catch up on this homework before I send home progress reports tomorrow.  (Some reports were sent home today with the grade 7's but was unable to print all due to technical difficulties with our printer)



Due Dates & Homework:

French - Album Cover assignment is due Thursday, January 17th


Math:


Grade 8 - Pg. 173 (Due Tomorrow)

a) 1, 3, 4, 6, 7, 10

b) 1,3,4, 6-8, 10, 13

c) 1, 3, 7, 9-13


Handout 5.2 will be due on Thursday


Overdue Assignments:


1) Killers Tall Tale Reading Response (Handout)
2) The Hermits Secret Reading Response (Handout)
3) ELA Ghost Story Good Copy
4) Any of the 3 Advent Blog Posts
5) Social Trade Questions


If you are also missing the handout to help answer #5, here is a link to the document online: http://docs.plea.org/pdf/TRADE.pdf
(Please skip to page 16 for the Opportunity Cost Handout)


Reminders:
-Girls Basketball Game for Tomorrow has been cancelled. We will have a practice at Deshaye from 3:30-4:45 instead.


- Mystery Skype is Tuesday January 22nd at 8:30 a.m.

- Grade 7's will be going Cross Country Skiing on January 29th.

Monday 14 January 2013

What We Learned Today...January 14th

We started out the week with a school wide assembly in the gym this morning.  Ms. Grad and some Deshaye helpers explained to us that Christmas was now officially over and to recognize this we replaced the white alter cloth with a green one.  After our brief celebration ended the grade 7's and 8's stuck around for a quick meeting with Ms. Grad and Ms. Norris to discuss BYOT (Bring Your Own Technology) and what we as a school need to do to prepare for it next week.  *Reminder: Students need to have their "Acceptable User Policy" forms signed and returnted to the school as soon as possible. 
Once we got back to the classroom at 10:00, students were given ther rest of the ELA period to work on their rants.  In Grade 8 Math the students worked on Pg. 173 as well as handout 5.2 during the hour.  (Pg. 173 will be due on Wednesday, January 16th)

After lunch we had Religion and the students were given blog response questions about their names.  Students will have to research what their names mean as well as why they were given those names.  So parents, your child should be interviewing you tonight about why you chose their name for them as well as what their name means. 
At 1:15 the students had Science with Mr. Csada and are continuing to review their unit on Optics and Vision.  During the last hour of the day the students continued to work on their Social Justice Drawing Assignments for Ms. Norris in Arts. Ed.

Due Dates & Homework:

French - Album Cover assignment is due Thursday, January 17th

Math:

Grade 8 - Pg. 173 (Due Tuesday)

a) 1, 3, 4, 6, 7, 10

b) 1,3,4, 6-8, 10, 13

c) 1, 3, 7, 9-13

Handout 5.2 will be due on Thursday

Overdue Assignments:

1) Killers Tall Tale Reading Response (Handout)
2) The Hermits Secret Reading Response (Handout)
3) ELA Ghost Story Good Copy
4) Any of the 3 Advent Blog Posts
5) Social Trade Questions

If you are also missing the handout to help answer #5, here is a link to the document online: http://docs.plea.org/pdf/TRADE.pdf
(Please skip to page 16 for the Opportunity Cost Handout)

Reminders:
-Girls Basketball Game for Wednesday has been cancelled.  We will have a practice at Deshaye from 3:30-4:45 instead.

- Mystery Skype is Tuesday January 22nd at 8:30 a.m.
 
- Grade 7's will be going Cross Country Skiing on January 29th.

Friday 11 January 2013

What We Learned Today...January 11th

Snowmaggedon!


I'd like to start this post off by saying how incredibly dedicated the students in our class are to their education.  Most classes at Deshaye today were missing numerous students due to the weather.  However, the students from our class braved snowmageddon and ensured they were at school today and ready to learn! We were only missing 7 students, when some classes only had that many in class today...Amazing!

Our morning started off with a half hour of AR before moving on to ELA.  *One quick note about AR: I've been informed that any students who do not have at least 10 AR points by the end of January will have to meet with Ms. Norris and Ms. Folk in the Library during recesses until they have achieved the required points.  This shouldn't be a problem for most students in our class, but just in case make sure you read, read, read this weekend and get those points if you are below 10!  In ELA students continued to work on their rants.  They will have the entire class on Monday to finish writing them before we move on to editing and revising on Tuesday. 
In Grade 8 Math the students worked on their assignment from Pg. 173 (see complete assignment below) as well as handout 5.2 - Nets of Three-Dimensional Objects.

After lunch the students had Arts. Ed with Ms. Norris and continued to work on their Social Justice Grid Drawing assignment.  Instead of French at 1:15 we had Social Studies instead and groups continued to work on their group handouts and drawing assignment.  During the last hour of the day the students once again had Ms. Norris and continued to perform their dances in the gym for Phys. Ed.

Reminder:
Personal Electronic Technology "Accept" Agreement forms were e-mailed out this week.  Parents, please sign these forms and send them to school with your child on Monday. 

Here are some pictures from today:

Playing Just Dance! during recess
Testing out our new Wii





Some more Just Dance!
The Algonquian group working on their handouts



Due Dates & Homework: 

French - Album Cover assignment is due Thursday, January 17th

Math:
Grade 8 - Pg. 173 (Due Tuesday)
a) 1, 3, 4, 6, 7, 10
b) 1,3,4, 6-8, 10, 13
c) 1, 3, 7, 9-13

Handout 5.1 is overdue

Overdue Assignments:

1) Killers Tall Tale Reading Response (Handout)

2) The Hermits Secret Reading Response (Handout)

3) ELA Ghost Story Good Copy


If you are also missing the handout to help answer #5, here is a link to the document online: http://docs.plea.org/pdf/TRADE.pdf
(Please skip to page 16 for the Opportunity Cost Handout)

Reminders:

-Girls Basketball A Team has a game at 3:45 at St. Timothy

- Mystery Skype is Tuesday January 22nd at 8:30 a.m.

- Grade 7's will be going Cross Country Skiing on January 29th.


Thursday 10 January 2013

What We Learned Today...January 10th

We began the morning with our usual AR period before moving on to ELA.  In ELA, students continued to brainstorm their topics for their "rants" and some students have already moved on to the drafting stage.  They are coming along quite nicely and we have a real broad of range of topics for the rants!  At 10:45 the students had Phys. Ed with Ms. Norris and they continued to perform their dances in gym.  These dances are currently being edited into a video by some of the students and I will post it on the blog once it is complete.

After lunch we had Religion and discussed the question, "What's in a Name?".  Students were assigned questions about their own name and will have to do a little research to learn what their name means and why it was chosen for them.  At 1:15 Mr. Williams came in to teach Health for Mr. McCulloch because he was away today.  Students continued to work on their Diet Power Point assignment.  During the last hour of the day we officially began our Colonization Simulation.  The students each got into their groups and began the first stage of the unit.  The students split up into their respective groups (Plains, Algonquian and French) and were tasked with electing a leader for each group as well as an organizer.  They were also given a handout with information on their respective group and now need to use that information to create drawings of their group.

Due Dates & Homework:

French - Album Cover assignment is due Thursday, January 17th

Math:
Grade 8 -  Pg. 168 (Due Tomorrow)
a) 1, 2, 3 (a,b), 4 ,5 , 7a , 8
b) 1, 2, 3 (a,c), 4, 6, 7b, 8, 9a
c) 1, 2, 3 (a,b,c), 8-11

Handout 5.1 is also Due Tomorrow

Overdue Assignments:

1) Killers Tall Tale Reading Response (Handout)

2) The Hermits Secret Reading Response (Handout)

3) ELA Ghost Story Good Copy

4) Any of the 3 Advent Blog Posts

5) Social Trade Questions
If you are also missing the handout to help answer #5, here is a link to the document online: http://docs.plea.org/pdf/TRADE.pdf
(Please skip to page 16 for the Opportunity Cost Handout)


Reminders:

-Girls Basketball A Team has a practice tomorrow after school from 3:30 - 4:45

- Mystery Skype is Tuesday January 22nd at 8:30 a.m.

- Grade 7's will be going Cross Country Skiing on January 29th.

Wednesday 9 January 2013

What We Learned Today...January 9th


We started out the morning with our usual AR period before moving on to ELA. In ELA we quickly reviewed the characteristics of "rants" before looking at the 4 steps to writing a rant. Before the students began writing, we watched one more rant by Rick Mercer as inspiration. (You can check out the video below) Note: For the assignment students have been asked to write a rant on the topic of their choice and it must be 30 seconds in length (1 page typed).
In Grade 8 Math the students learned about the Nets of Three-Dimensional Objects. They also got an early start on their assignment on pg. 174.

After lunch the students had Arts. Ed with Ms. Norris and continued to work on their Social Justice Grid Assignments. At 1:15 Mr. Csada came in and taught Science- He still
Hasn't set a test date yet but has instructed the students to begin studying for the test. During the last hour of the day in Social we began our new colonization simulation unit. Students were split up into 3 groups today (Plains, Algonquian and French) and they will be in these roles for the first part of our simulation. This will be a very interesting unit because it is all student directed learning. Every decision the students make in their groups will have a consequence that will impact what happens in the simulation.

Note to parents: As part of our ELA unit, you may remember we had a "Mystery Skype" practice session with another class in Regina just before Christmas. However, a real "Mystery Skype" session takes place between two classrooms in that are located in different countries.  I'm excited to announce that we have found another class to partner with from another country for a real Mystery Skype. (I can't list the country yet, the students will have to figure this out during the actual Mystery Skype) We will be Skyping on Tuesday, January 22nd, but due to the time changes between countries, the only time we can Skype at is 8:30 a.m.  This will mean students will have to be at the school by 8:15 a.m. so we can set up and prepare before the Mystery Skype takes place.  I will be sending a note home tomorrow with the students explaining exactly how this event will work!


Due Dates & Homework:

French - Album Cover assignment is due Thursday, January 17th

Math:
Grade 8 -  Pg. 168 (Due Friday)
a) 1, 2, 3 (a,b), 4 ,5 , 7a , 8
b) 1, 2, 3 (a,c), 4, 6, 7b, 8, 9a
c) 1, 2, 3 (a,b,c), 8-11

Handout 5.1 is also due Friday

Overdue Assignments:

1) Killers Tall Tale Reading Response (Handout)

2) The Hermits Secret Reading Response (Handout)

3) ELA Ghost Story Good Copy

4) Any of the 3 Advent Blog Posts

5) Social Trade Questions
If you are also missing the handout to help answer #5, here is a link to the document online: http://docs.plea.org/pdf/TRADE.pdf
(Please skip to page 16 for the Opportunity Cost Handout)


Reminders:

- Mystery Skype is Tuesday January 22nd at 8:30 a.m.
- Grade 7's will be going Cross Country Skiing on January 29th.

Tuesday 8 January 2013

What We Learned Today...January 8th


We started out our morning today with our usual AR period from 9:00 - 9:30 before moving on to ELA.  In ELA we spent the first half hour looking at how using supporting details in our answers really helps to enhance our writing and how it helps the reader to see our point of view.  In the second half of ELA we continued to look at the characteristics of rants and viewed some great rants by Canadian Comedian Rick Mercer as part of his show, "The Rick Mercer Report".  Tomorrow we will continue working on rants and the students will get the opportunity to write and eventually perform their own rants.
*Check out one of the humorous rants we viewed today below:

















For Grade 8 Math the students finished up their textbook assignment from yesterday and began to work on handout 5.1.

After lunch we had French and the students spent the class working on their Album Cover assignments.  These assignments are turning out quite nicely and most students are on the last stages of the assignment.  *Remember, this assignment is due on Thursday, January 17th.  At 1:15 Mr. McCulloch came in for Health and the students continued to work on their Diet Power Point assignment.
Instead of Social Studies, we finished up our Digital Citizenship lesson from Friday.  Students learned lot of digital vocabulary today and the Grade 7's competed head to head against the Grade 8's in a digital knowledge quiz.  Unfortunately for the Grade 8's the Grade 7's came back and tied the game on the very last question of the quiz, so the game remained a tie!


Due Dates & Homework:

French - Album Cover assignment is due Thursday, January 17th

Math:
Grade 8 -  Pg. 168 (Due Thursday)
a) 1, 2, 3 (a,b), 4 ,5 , 7a , 8
b) 1, 2, 3 (a,c), 4, 6, 7b, 8, 9a
c) 1, 2, 3 (a,b,c), 8-11

Overdue Assignments:

1) Killers Tall Tale Reading Response (Handout)

2) The Hermits Secret Reading Response (Handout)

3) ELA Ghost Story Good Copy

4) Any of the 3 Advent Blog Posts

5) Social Trade Questions
If you are also missing the handout to help answer #5, here is a link to the document online: http://docs.plea.org/pdf/TRADE.pdf
(Please skip to page 16 for the Opportunity Cost Handout)


Reminders:

- Grade 7's will be going Cross Country Skiing on January 29th.

Monday 7 January 2013

What We Learned Today...January 7th

Going Retro! Playing some DDR during recess.
Our class was quite a bit smaller this morning due to the fact that the Grade 7's were off Cross Country Skiing with Ms. Norris and Mr. McCulloch.  We began our morning with a school wide assembly before having a half hour AR period.  During ELA the Grade 8's had a work period they could use to catch up on any overdue assignments or get a jump on some that are due soon. 
In Grade 8 Math we quickly reviewed viewing three-dimensional objects and students were assigned page 168.  (See below for full assignment)

After lunch students continued to work on their album cover assignment in French.  Note: This assignment is due on January 17th.  In Science the students watched an interesting powerpoint Mr. Csada put together about Light.  Mr. Csada has informed me that there will be a unit test coming up sometime near the end of January - I will post the exact date once it is confirmed.  For the last hour of the day the students had Arts. Ed with Ms. Norris and continued to work on their Social Justice Drawing assignments. 

Due Dates & Homework:

French - Album Cover assignment is due Thursday, January 17th

Math:
Grade 8 -  Pg. 168
a) 1, 2, 3 (a,b), 4 ,5 , 7a , 8
b) 1, 2, 3 (a,c), 4, 6, 7b, 8, 9a
c) 1, 2, 3 (a,b,c), 8-11

Overdue Assignments:

1) Killers Tall Tale Reading Response (Handout)

2) The Hermits Secret Reading Response (Handout)

3) ELA Ghost Story Good Copy

4) Any of the 3 Advent Blog Posts

5) Social Trade Questions
If you are also missing the handout to help answer #5, here is a link to the document online: http://docs.plea.org/pdf/TRADE.pdf
(Please skip to page 16 for the Opportunity Cost Handout)


Reminders:

- Grade 7's will be going Cross Country Skiing on January 29th.

Friday 4 January 2013

What We Learned Today...January 4th



Working hard on their French assignment!
Today we got back into our usual rhythm and began the morning with a half hour of AR time.  After AR we moved on to ELA and continued working on response questions from the rant the students read yesterday about Veronica Mars.  Students then brainstormed possible topics for rants of their own and may even have the chance to write and perform them next week.  In Grade 8 Math we began our new Surface Area unit by learning about the views of three-dimensional objects. 

After lunch the students had Arts. Ed with Ms. Norris and continued to work on their Social Justice drawing assignment from last year.  In French the students continued to work on their Album Cover assignment.  Note: This will be due on Thursday, January 17th.
During the last hour of the day the students were once again with Ms. Norris for Phys. Ed and they took turns performing their dances for the rest of the class.

Here's some more pictures of our classes hard work during French:







Due Dates & Homework:French - Album Cover assignment is due Thursday, January 17th

Overdue Assignments:

1) Killers Tall Tale Reading Response (Handout)

2) The Hermits Secret Reading Response (Handout)

3) ELA Ghost Story Good Copy

4) Any of the 3 Advent Blog Posts

5) Social Trade Questions
If you are also missing the handout to help answer #5, here is a link to the document online: http://docs.plea.org/pdf/TRADE.pdf
(Please skip to page 16 for the Opportunity Cost Handout)


Reminders:

- Grade 7's will be going Cross Country Skiing on Monday, January 7th and January 29th.