October 20th, 2016

As students' independence has been growing, we have been adding more and more independent work centers to our classroom. Today we added one of my favourites - Tynker. Tynker is a website that allows students to learn the basics of computer programming and coding. This is done through more simplified visual blocks that aim to build students computational thinking and problem solving skills. As students progress, they are able to move into more text-based coding. What can you make with Tynker? Probably some of the most exciting things for students are the ability to make and play mobile games or the ability to learn how to modify Minecraft. My favourite part of the program is knowing that the class is developing important 21st century thinking skills. 

In Math today, we started our new unit on Patterns and Equations. Today we were learning to describe patterns and to write pattern rules. As a class we modelled patterns on the board with counters. I was so impressed with how involved all the students were. Students were helping one another to build the next term of each patterns, sharing ideas, and communicating. It was a great way to start a new unit! 

In Language Arts today, we began to publish our paragraphs from our paragraph books. I shared a Google Doc with students and asked them to type out their finished paragraph. This gives students the chance to create a third draft and to edit spelling and grammar mistakes. Students were also able to add a video or a picture that they wanted to include with their paragraph that was related to the topic. Why practice typing in a Google Doc first? Well, it allowed us to get more practice using and organizing our Google Drives. Today we reviewed where to find documents that have been shared and how to add and organize these documents into students' Drives. Next, we learned how to copy a document that was "View Only" so that we could edit our own copy of the document. I also like typing paragraphs as a Google Doc first so that when students are learning how to use their blogs, they don't have to worry about losing their work. They have a hard copy saved! 

In Social Studies, students continued to work on learning some of the major waterways that can be found in Canada. Today we added lakes to our growing repertoire. We also mapped oceans, bays, rivers, and lakes in our Social Studies binder, as well as added legends to our maps to differentiate between the different types of waterways. Keep reviewing your geographic features at home! Remember, you can play all the games we play in class by using a computer at home. We only have one map feature left before we move on to regions. Stay tuned for our learning about scale next week.

In Science, we have completed looking at clouds. So far we have studied the water cycle (evaporation, condensation, saturation, and precipitation), looked closer at precipitation (rain, snow, freezing rain, hail), and now we have learned about four common types of clouds (cirrus, stratus, cumulus, and cumulonimbus). We have one more experiment to conduct on the dew point to help us to prove that their is water vapour in the air, then we will be moving on to the sun and daily and seasonal weather changes! 

Agenda
Language Arts:
- Read 20 minutes

Math:
- Review 12x Tables

Science:
- Cloud Observations (due Monday) 

French:
- Quiz (Tuesday)

Health:
- PEAK Basketball (Monday)

Tech & Trades Academy - Mondays (3:00-4:00 pm)
Grade 5/6 Guitar Club - Thursdays (2:45-3:45 pm)
Grade 5/6 Volleyball - Mondays and Wednesdays (2:45-3:45 pm)
Recycling Leaders - Thursdays (lunch recess)

Halloween Family Dance - Thursday, October 27th (6:00-8:00 pm)

Parent Teacher Interviews - November 2nd and 3rd (register at Christina Gordon) 

Spirit Week for United Way - Monday (Wacky Tacky Day) 
​