This week at school, our major focuses were on Multiplicative Thinking, solving the crime of the torched car, and continuing Among the Hidden.
In math students were challenged to think about multiplication as an array or area. We practiced using algebra tiles to complement this method, and then worked with our Grade 4 buddies to teach them what we learned. Our class helped facilitate the many activities to build this knowledge and were great leaders, even though the material was challenging for the Grade 4s. Using our forensic evidence, witness statements, suspect confessions, and police statements, our class successfully determined who committed the crime and what they should be charged with. We also talked about making good decisions and who to go to if they need help. We wrapped up our wildfire research with a lively discussion and written response. Everyone contributed, and our collective knowledge as a class is vast. Finally, we have continued reading Among the Hidden. Students are eager to find out the consequences of the latest plot twist. Ask them about the premise! Reminders: Vocabulary (Addition, Subtraction, Multiplication, Division) and written response #3 (Q- Compare and contrast the qualities of two main characters) are due on Monday. Students were also asked to look up the Charter of Rights and Freedoms to gain a basic understanding of what it is. I have posted a resource under the homework tab, clicking through the Social Studies button. Students may wear their Halloween costumes on October 31st, in the afternoon. They must change at lunch and their costumes may not include weapons, excessive gore, and any masks may be worn on top of their head or partially covering it, but not obstructing their face or vision. Happy Weekend! While we had another short week, it was a busy one!
This week we predominantly focused on our CSI unit, and preparation for our field trip. Students learned about the types of evidence detectives use to solve crimes, such as hair and fibre, fingerprints, and footwear impressions. We took our own fingerprints in class and made rubbings of our shoes to see the tread patterns in imperfections that come with wear and tear. We visited YouthLink, the police interpretive centre. While there, we gathered more evidence about our crime (some students already think they know who did it!) and experienced 3 modules about Drugs, Bullying and Online Safety. Students also learned how to make good decisions by listening to their brain, heart and gut. If one of those things says "this isn't a good idea" it probably isn't. Students received mini posters today to remind them to make good choices. Student vote results were released this week! We briefly touched upon them, but will be unpacking them next week and looking at them from a social and math lens. Student Vote Results can be found here! Homework: Written response on the independent novel they are reading is due Monday. And as the kids put it "ANYTHING ELSE WE DIDN'T FINISH". Phone calls were made by the students this morning if they need a little support getting things finished. Sorry this is a little late! I was very busy this weekend at a conference. Math is a priority for DGS, myself and I am sure our families, and I spent a significant amount of time in sessions for collaborative learning and numeracy strategies. I can't wait to try out some of my learning in the classroom!
We had another great week! Some highlights include:
Reminders: Field Trip Thursday, October 19th. Please pay online if you haven't already done so, and did not pay cash. This week we focused on learning more about the election candidates, to prepare for Student Vote. We will be voting on Friday, October 12 and students will get to experience voting at a polling station. Students should be discussing at home the different candidates, election issues, and spotting signs in their neighborhood.
We have started our Investigation and Evidence Mini-Unit to prepare for our field trip. There have been some great tie-ins to democracy and justice, and the students are very engaged and motivated to solve the crime. We worked on understanding place value of numbers by looking at data about the Saddledome, a current election issue. Check out the photo in the homework tab if you are interested in seeing some of the figures! We also took advantage of the mild weather and got outside to investigate the trees around our school. We did leaf and bark crayon rubbings and will be starting a art-related project in the coming weeks. Reminder: Field Trip Forms are due on October 12th. If you haven't already handed in the Media Release Form, please do so ASAP! I am missing 5. Have a safe and happy Thanksgiving weekend! I will be trying to update what we are learning about daily under the Homework tab.
Every Friday there will be a learning update on this page! This week's vocabulary words are: Forensic Science, Alias, Motive and Suspect. We will be starting our crash course in Forensic Investigation by solving a crime created by the Calgary Police Services.
Students will continue getting ready to vote by investigating more thoroughly our Mayor and Ward Candidates. An opinion writing assignment will be started on this in the next few days. This week's Math Challenge question is: You have a dartboard with a bulls eye worth 9 points and an outer ring worth 4 points. If you have unlimited darts and throws what is the highest score you CANNOT achieve. For example you cannot achieve 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7 etc. Click the button for the different types of government research project with a Rubric. This is Due Wednesday, October 4th. I have also attached a picture of a Level 1 vocabulary word set and a Level 4 vocabulary word set. Level 1- no pictures or visuals, definition is straight from a website, no understanding is shown. Level 4- pictures and visuals supplement definition that is in the students own words. Examples are given and understanding is shown. |