In humanities this week, we started looking closer at the physical geography of Alberta. Students started the week by writing everything they knew about Alberta (including places, things to do, parks, animals, people, plants, special events, etc.). After watching a beautifully filmed “Travel Alberta” video, students were able to add to their writing & we reflected how lucky we are to live in such an amazing & diverse natural environment. Students were given a large physical map of Alberta to assist them in answering specific questions about cities/towns, the climate, important dates, historic sites, & natural resources. They needed to pay special attention to the legends & other special features like using the scale, graphs, and a timeline. The large map of Alberta was colour-coded showing different elevations, and we discussed how this affects temperature along with latitude (the further north you go the colder it gets!).
Students were introduced to the six regions of Alberta—the Canadian Shield, the Boreal Forest, the Parkland, the Grassland, the Foothills and the Rocky Mountains. They learned about the distinct features of each region & identified where each was located on a map. We watched a short video about note taking & the importance and value of this skill. As a class, we worked together to write jot notes for each of the regions, which will be a valuable skill for students when we start researching next week for our Alberta regions in-class project. Students were able to choose a region they wanted to investigate further on Thursday. The students will find out their partner on Monday to start the research process, which will eventually lead to a Google Slides presentation. We also spent some time this week working on our reading comprehension skills on “ReadTheory”—students are proud of all the knowledge points they’re accumulating by using the program regularly! Scholastic book order pamphlets went home on Monday and were due today. These booklets will be coming home on a monthly basis so if you didn’t get a chance to order, you’ll have another opportunity in a few weeks. Book orders can be conveniently ordered online by finding my name (Janice Jagger) on the Scholastic website, or sending your order form & cheque made out to Scholastic Canada to school (no cash please!). Enjoy your weekend! —Ms. Jagger
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It was a sea of pink this week as we participated in fun daily activities and raised over $10 000 for “Run for the Cure”—way to go Kodiaks! It was also a pleasure meeting parents at “Meet the Teacher” night on Thursday as we continue to get to know students and set routines at school.
In humanities this week, students finished up on their “All About Me” photography & written piece and they are now on display in the classroom—they look great! We also worked on mapping skills and identifying where Alberta is in relation to Canada. We discussed the compass rose found on maps and the cardinal directions of north, south, west & east. Students used an iPad to access Google Maps to answer questions identifying different parts of Canada to work on directional words. Legends on maps were also reviewed and students worked on some activities to practice reading legends & also complete some fun directional puzzles! As an added visual, they labeled a map of Canada with the ten provinces & three territories, and coloured in the province of Alberta. Students were able to articulate that Alberta is located in the western part of Canada. Next week, we will start looking closer at the geography of Alberta, and in particular the different natural regions. Students were also introduced to a new website called “ReadTheory” on Thursday (a link to the website is located in the sidebar under "Reading"). Each student was given a username & password to access this website at home and school. ReadTheory is an educational tool that offers online reading activities for all reading levels. It adapts its content to students’ individual ability levels, and with continued practice will help improve reading comprehension skills. Have a great weekend! —Ms. Jagger It was a busy first full week with lots going on around the school! Students are starting to get into the daily routines & are doing a great job navigating the building and finding their classes. One of the highlights this week was the visit from the Great Clips Mohawk Warrior Monster Jam truck & driver Bryce Kenny. Bryce delivered a great message of working hard to achieve your dreams as well as $5 000 of school supplies for our school! We are also looking forward to “Think Pink Week” from September 17th to the 20th. There will be daily activities next week to raise money for “Run for the Cure” including the dance on Monday. See the full schedule below:
We also went to the Learning Commons for an orientation about all the LC has to offer & students were able to sign out two books. Humanities class will always start with independent reading, and students are strongly encouraged to read at home each night. Later in the week, students attended a technology orientation in the LC and learned how to be a responsible digital citizen. Students also changed their password, and wrote it in their agenda. Their student id number & new password should be memorized, as we will be using technology on a regular basis. Both classes were introduced to the math website “Prodigy” today and they were very excited to start playing! Their prodigy username & password was stapled into their agendas and they can also play this valuable resource at home to practice their math skills. Have a wonderful weekend & I can’t wait to see all my students dressed in pink on Monday! —Ms. Jagger It was a great first week back and it's been wonderful getting to know all my grade 4 students! Everyone enjoyed lots of fun activities throughout the week including assemblies, a scavenger hunt, a bbq lunch, a pancake breakfast, and team-building games & activities. In my homeroom, we worked on establishing expectations and routines, & getting to know classmates, teachers, and the building. Getting their new locker was also a big highlight this week! As well, students participated in two mornings running through a mini time table of their schedule & were able to meet all of their teachers. I sent a copy of 4C's schedule home in the front pocket of their agendas and I've also attached it below. This Monday we are starting the full schedule and it will be a day 2a. I am excited to be teaching Humanities to both 4C & 4D this year. Humanities is bringing language arts and social studies together through a variety of learning opportunities.
In grade 4, students will listen, speak, read, write, view and represent to:
Have a wonderful weekend! —Ms. Jagger I'm looking forward to meeting all my new grade four students next week. We have lots of fun activities planned and I look forward to a positive & productive school year. Have a wonderful long weekend and we'll see you next Tuesday at 8:30 in the small gym!
—Ms. Jagger |
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June 2019
CategoriesResources for Practice
Reading: ReadTheory TumbleBooks Word Activities: Sight Word Bingo Sight Word Game Letter Blocks Bookworm TextTwist Coconut Vowels Word Toss Spelling: Spelling Practice Spelling Spree Story Writing: Story Writing Game Create your own Comic Storyboard Creator Poetry: Poetry Tools Rhyming Dictionary |