Reminder that if your child is hoping to participate in the Parade of Lights this Saturday, permission forms must be completed and returned tomorrow. This includes the bottom portion of the first page and the second page.

Upcoming Dates and Reminders

• Tomorrow (November 20) is a PD Day
• November Scholastic orders are due Monday
• Parade of Lights Permission forms were sent home today and are due no later than Wednesday, November 25. The bottom of the first page and the entire second page must be returned in order for students to participate.
• Christmas Concert Food Order/Volunteer forms are due Friday, November 27
• This year's Christmas Concert will be taking place on Thursday, December 10 from 5:00 pm to approximately 6:30 pm

This year, our class will be singing Jingle Bell Rock!

Seven Flipped

As part of our exploration of patterns, over the past two days we have been working on the following problem.

I have given students the challenge to show parents, siblings, other family members, or friends how this problem works and what strategies they have used to help find a solution. This can be done over the next week or whenever you have time and nothing needs to be brought to school to show it has been completed. Enjoy!
*Hint: The diagram above shows an example of ONE move :)

Interviews

Just a reminder that if you scheduled an interview that they will be taking place this evening. Since I will be conducting both Grade 5 and kindergarten interviews I will be running from one room to the next sometimes. My Grade 5 interviews will be held in our classroom (room 175 - the old computer lab) and I ask that you please only use the door in the hallway (not the sliding doors in the learning commons). As well, please be mindful of the time as I am fully booked this evening and please knock on the door at your scheduled time. I look forward to seeing you!

Also, if you were unable to book a time and would like to meet, I am available most mornings and some days after school should you wish to meet in person. Otherwise, we can also schedule a phone interview if you would prefer.

Postcards for Peace

Today we talked about the Postcards for Peace program. Students are asked to write an anonymous thank you message that will be given to a veteran or still-serving member of the Canadian Armed Forces. The rough copy is to be completed tonight as homework (in their Language notebook). Here are some things we came up with to write about:
- it should say Thank you
- Why are you thankful?
- What are you able to do because of what they've done?

As cold season approaches, we are in need for kleenex in our classroom. We currently have a few boxes but I know that they won't last long! If you are able to help us out, it would be greatly appreciated! Thank you in advance!

Today we did a Math Chat based on the picture below. Students were given several minutes to write down the questions that came to mind when they saw this picture. Then they had a chance to ask these questions withing their groups. Lastly, we went over a few of the questions as a class and tried to answer them. It was lovely to see students embracing multiple answers and viewpoints! 

For example: How many candles are there? You could say 12 (in total), 9 (ones that are lit), or 3 (not lit). 

Field Trip and Other Important Information

Field Trip
This afternoon, a permission form was handed out for our field trip to the Carp Fair next Friday. This trip will include all Grades 4, 5, and 6 students. If you are able to volunteer please let us know ASAP. Also, please return completed permission forms as soon as possible!

Scholastic Book Clubs
Reminder that Scholastic orders are due Wednesday. This year, Scholastic is offering a new feature where parents can pay online using a credit card if you do not want to pay be cash or cheque. For more information, please check out: file:///C:/Users/e28257/Documents/ParentPayGuide_Parent.pdf
Some parents do not realize but for every purchase made through Scholastic, your child's teacher receives Scholastic money that can be used to purchase resources for the classroom.

Meet and Greet
Next Thursday we will be holding our Meet and Greet from 4:30-6:00. This year we decided to do a different format than in previous years so that it is easier for parents with multiple children at our school to be able to make it to each classroom. This new format will not consist of formal presentations in the classroom but instead is a time for you to meet your child's teacher and ask any questions you may have about routines, etc. Students are also invited to show their parents around the school, show what work they have completed thus far, and to explain their daily routines.
     Next week I will be sending home a letter explaining some of my expectations and routines. Should you have any questions or comments about it, please feel free to let me know during the Meet and Greet. Hope to see you all there!

Please play " Place Value Pirates" for 10 minutes tonight.

Friday's Brain Booster

Below is the Brain Booster we started on Friday. It is proving to be a very challenging one but also quite enjoyable! Several students asked me to post it on the blog so they could try to work through it on the weekend (completely optional!) so here it is:

Reminder, tomorrow is Spirit Day/Wear Green and White Day!

Welcome Back!

Welcome back everyone! If you've found this site, AMAZING!! :) 

This is our class blog. I will use it to keep you informed about important upcoming dates, events, and other things going on in our classroom. Our photocopier has been broken for the last week so I have not be able to get my back to school letter ready to send home. I will send it home by Friday at the latest. In the meantime, I invite you to please submit your email address under the "Follow by email"section on the left hand side. This will ensure that you receive email notifications each time I post something new.

Thank you in advance for you patience as I get this blog up and going again! :)

Report Cards

Report cards will be distributed at the end of the day on Wednesday. If your child will be absent on Wednesday, they will receive their report card on Thursday. If you know that your child will be away Wednesday and Thursday, please let us know and we will arrange to have it available at the office for pickup along with all of your child's school things (notebooks, duotangs, etc.).

Thank you for your cooperation!

Scholastic Reminder

This is just a reminder that several students have still not cashed in their certificate for a book that were given as a Christmas gift. Like I've been telling the students, these can only be used this year and they are a gift certificate (like one from any story) that takes $4.99 off the price of a book (or the book is free if it is $4.99 or less). These are NOT replaceable (like any other gift certificate).

If your child still has their certificate, tomorrow is the last day to submit them and we will have to cross our fingers that the order arrives before next Thursday (the last day of school).

Thanks!

Golf Trip

So it looks like Mother Nature is on our side! There is only a 40% chance of showers now for tomorrow morning which means our Golf Trip is on for tomorrow! Here are a few important things to remember.

1. Please ensure that your child is at school ON TIME tomorrow since we will be taking attendance and then leaving right away. 
2. Please ensure your child brings water, snacks, a lunch, sunscreen, and a hat for tomorrow since we will be outside ALL day. Also, please ensure your child wears running shoes, since it is a long walk, and is dressed appropriately (must meet school dress code and no jeans).
3. A note to all Parent Volunteers: Thank you again for offering to join us on this trip! You will be required to walk with us (both ways) tomorrow in order to help with ratios. So, please ensure you are also well prepared for the day (see #2 above). Thank you again! :)

Math Help (Algebra)

This past week I received several notes with concerns about algebra. Like I told the students, we have been doing algebra for over a month as part of other strands. For example, when we were focussing on area and perimeter, I would give students the area of a figure and the length and then I would ask "What is the width?" This is algebra but I have just recently given it a name :) 

A worksheet that I sent home as homework this past week had some challenging questions on it. I told students when I handed it out that some questions on the sheet were ABOVE grade level and that they should give them a try. I did not expect them to be able to solve all of those ones but this is how we can work towards a level 4 (which is above expectations).

If you would like to do more algebra practice at home, here are some links that you may find useful. As well, before school ends, I will be updating this blog with games and links (to worksheets, etc.) which will be available over the summer. I will not be taking the blog down so if you wish to play some educational games over the summer you can still access them if you wish.

New Game:

Equation Maze

Websites to get worksheets:

http://www.math-aids.com/Algebra/Algebra_1/Equations/One_Step_Integers.html

http://www.math-drills.com/algebra.shtml

**Please note that there is no way to choose on these websites if there are negative numbers or not. At the Grade 5 level, we do not deal with negative numbers but it is an awesome challenge for students who have already grasped this concept.

*We have also reviewed that some worksheets may write things differently. 

For example if the equation wants you to multiply they may write it in 2 different ways.

1. 2a = 6 (a = 3)
2. 2 x a = 6 (a = 3)

We have talked about the fact that #1 is the better way to write it since this will help to limit confusion especially if we use the letter x instead of a.

If the equation wants you to divide, they may also write it in 2 different ways.

1. (as a fraction) b/5 = 4 (b = 20)
2. b ÷ 5 = 4 (b = 20)

We have talked about the fact that #1 is the same as saying "b divided by 5 equals 4" just like #2 but it's another way of writing it.

Please check back later today to see if we will be doing our Golf Trip tomorrow or on Wednesday! Mrs. Haime and I will be making the decision at some point this afternoon or early evening.

Thank you!!!

Thank you to all of the parents who participated in our "Student for a Day" trial! Based on the feedback from parents and students, I think it is definitely something that I will offer again next year. Thank you again for your support!

Grade 5 Field Trip

Permission forms for our Grade 5 field trip went home today. We will be walking to the Kevin Haime Golf Centre on Monday, June 15 (Rain Date: Wednesday, June 17). We are able to do this trip because of the activity fees paid at the beginning of the year. Completed forms are due back no later than Tuesday, June 9. (Completed forms consist of the bottom portion of the first page and the entire second page.)

A copy of both forms has been placed in your child's Google Drive (in the "Homeroom" folder) so that they can be access from home. The second form can also be completed electronically, printed, signed, and returned.

Please check back soon for other important upcoming dates.

Comparing Fractions and Decimls

Today we reviewed how to make fractions into decimals and decimals into fractions. The picture above can be used as a tool to help complete the Math Homework that is due tomorrow.

Reminders:

* This week is Week 2 for our Novel Study "Time for Andrew" so you should be on job #2

*Proper Fractions, Improper Fractions, and Mixed Numbers Worksheet is due tomorrow (#4-7 & Try This - the rest was due last week)

* Equivalent Fractions sheet due tomorrow

Thank you again to the students who took advantage of the extra time and help I provided to everyone today from 12:05-12:45 and 2:00-2:15. It really shows your initiative to get it done, use time wisely, and to try to understand new concepts.

Fractions Videos

Here are some videos about fractions that your child may find useful.

The above  video has a good hint on how to remember numerator and denominator at the 2 minute mark. 

Fraction Anchor Charts

Here are the anchor charts that we have co-constructed as a class. Students may find these helpful when completing work at home. Also, please make sure you check out the Math tab since I will be posting some new math games.

*Just click on an image to make it bigger/open in a new window.

Different types of fractions:

How to show equivalent fractions, change mixed numbers to improper fractions, and change improper fractions to mixed numbers:

Reminders

1. The St. Stephen Walk-a-Thon will be taking place Friday morning. Please ensure you bring your completed pledge form to school that day! If you know in advance that you will not be here that day, please bring your pledge form in on Thursday.

2. Hot Dog Day is Friday, May 8. Orders can ONLY be placed online. Please do not send any cash or cheques to school.

3. Student for a Day: The last day that we will be doing Student for a day is May 22. Reminder that parents are only able to come in on Tuesdays and Fridays which means that there are only 3 more weeks that parents can come and join our class.

4. Education Week: Next week is Education week. Thursday, May 7 is Spirit Day, our Open House, our Education Week Liturgy, and the Gospel Values Assembly.
Open House is 8:00-9:00
Education Week Liturgy is at 9:15
Gospel Values Assembly will follow the Liturgy

Math Homework

Tonight everyone has math homework. Many students are at different places with the 3 worksheets. The three worksheets are entitled: "Number Sense and Numeration: Division by 10 and 100", "Using Grids to Find Perimeter and Area", and "Calculating the Area of a Rectangle". These should be find in each student's Math duotang since they were asked to put them in there before they changed classes today.

Long and Short Division

Today we looked at the steps for both long and short division and then practiced several questions as a class. For homework, students are asked to complete #1 & 2 of the worksheet as well as check out the game listed at the top of the page (if they have time). Students can do either long division or short division (whichever they rather) but they need to show their work. I understand that this may take longer for some students to complete and that schedules are busy but it would be greatly appreciated if each student could please spend up to 30 min of quality work completing this task. Below, you will find 2 videos that we watched today. I replayed the videos while students were working as well so that they could follow along if they wished.

Long Division Video:

Short and Long Division: *Please note that for this video, we only watched the first 1 minute 40 seconds because the Grade 5 expectation is to be able to divide a 3-digit number by a 1-digit number.

Math Homework

1. 94 x 69
2. 21 x 10
3. 99 x 85
4. 73 x 96
5. 21 x 88
6. 48 x 11
7. 76 x 22
8. 64 x 15
9. 61 x 87
10. 98 x 25

These 10 questions are optional (unless there is a note in your child's agenda) and are due Thursday morning. There will be an incentive for students who complete the work by Thursday morning.

Challenge:If your child finds the above questions easy, please complete the Challenge.
Create your own multiplication word problem that involves 3 digit by 2 digit multiplication and find the solution (remembering to show your work).

Math Homework

Today, as a class, we worked through several multiplication questions that were 2 digit by 2 digit (the expectation for Grade 5). Below is a picture of a few examples that we did together and below that you will find the Math Homework for today. Students were given time to work on this during class. The amount of time though depended on when students completed the Language activity from today.

Copy the following questions into your Math Notebook and answer (remember to show your work).
1. 20 x 43
2. 68 x 18
3. 57 x 99
4. 30 x 15
5. 47 x 67
6. 62 x 30
7. 99 x 55
8. 74 x 88
9. 15 x 90
10. 93 x 99
11. 12 x 44
12. 73 x 91

*This is due tomorrow.

Thank you so much to Ms. C who came in this morning as our first "Student for a Day". We hope you enjoyed your morning with us!

Library this week is for returns only! All library books must be returned before March Break.

Tomorrow is also Beach/Tacky Tourist day.









March Curriculum Expectations are posted under the "Curriculum" link at the top of the page. Reminder that these are the curriculum expectations that we will be focusing on over the month and that some things may take longer than others but I will update the document as we go.

Thank you! and 3D Shape

Thank you SO much to everyone who brought in a second lunch yesterday for Double Lunch Day! As a school, we were able to deliver 300 lunches yesterday! Great job everyone!

3D Shape

We didn't get to the activity today with the 3D shapes so I have told students that they can bring in their object tomorrow. Today we did discuss what the assignment was going to be and some of the expectations so some students have decided to change their object.

Gem Jar

We filled out Gem Jar again! The class has voted and decided to do games for a block tomorrow during 2nd block. Students are welcome to bring games from home if they wish. If it is an electronic game, it must be educational (Dreambox, Fowl Words, Speed Grid, etc.).

Student for a Day

Today your child will be bringing home a letter with more information about Student for a Day. If you wish to participate, you will need to register online at https://misshodgins.youcanbook.me/ with the password in the letter. There are only 3 spots available per day (once these spots are taken the date will show as unavailable). You will only be able to book up to 4 weeks in advance and you must book at least 3 days before the day you'd like to join our class.

Please note that this is completely optional! I understand that most parent(s)/guardian(s) will need to book time off of work in order to come to visit our class and therefore I do not expect that everyone will be able to make it. I just wanted to give you all the opportunity to join our class for a day, if you wish to do so.



Spirit Week is next week!
Next week is Spirit Week at St. Stephen. Here are the themes for each day:

Monday Mar 9	Tuesday Mar 10	Wednesday Mar 11	Thursday Mar 12	Friday Mar 13
Pyjama Day	Students Dress Up/ Teachers Dress Down	Beach /Tacky Tourist Day	Jersey/ Crazy Hair Day	St. Stephen Spirit Day Green & White/STE Spirit Wear

Geometry Art

Last week we started creating pieces of art and then on Monday we started to use the app ShowMe to show various geometry elements. Check out some of the videos below!

Ash Wednesday Liturgy

Our Ash Wednesday Liturgy will take place at 9:30 tomorrow morning. All are welcome!

Updates

We filled our class Gem Jar!!!
As a reward, the class has voted to have a Pajama/Movie/Popcorn Day on Thursday. I will be providing air popped popcorn and students may bring their own special snack on this day if they wish. It must be nut free though and if they bring something to share with 1 person, they must have enough to share with everyone. If you and your child choose to send something to share with the class, please remember that, as a school, we have very strict health guidelines and we strongly encourage healthy eating (especially for morning snacks).


Teacher for a Block

Today, Mr. K.B. was teacher for a block. He led the class in a lesson on different polygons and had students share their ideas on the Smartboard. Great job Mr. K.B.!

Cinderella Story Debate
We have been looking at different versions of the story Cinderella (as it's told in different places around the world). Groups are based on the origins of the story and groups are now preparing for a debate against another country. Please stay tuned to see how the debates end up!

Weather Project Update

All of the students who have presented so far have done an amazing job! Like I have told the class, I will be away all day tomorrow (at Our Lady of Fatima) for a Kindergarten Networking session. So, we will continue our Weather Project Presentations on Tuesday. I also understand that there is a Girl's Floorball Tournament on Tuesday and a Boy's Floorball Tournament on Wednesday so I will ensure that all students involved in these have presented on the opposite day (girls on Wednesday and boys on Tuesday).

Also, since we are hosting the Floorball Tournaments, we will not be having Library this week so students may keep their books for an extra week.

Weather Project

Reminder that the Weather Project is due this Thursday and presentations will begin that day. Students are asked to have the Project Outline signed and returned to school ASAP. I will check their name off on the list and then they will be able to bring it home again that night to continue working on the project.

Just a few reminders:
1. Students have had 3 classes to work on this project using class time.
2. Students have been reminded that they must include a list of sources they have used (and Wikipedia DOES NOT COUNT!)
3. This is one of the main activities we are doing for persuasive writing so student need to remember to be PERSUASIVE. *See attached Persuasive Checklist.

Tomorrow morning we will be having a short liturgy for the Feast of St. Stephen (which was on December 26) followed by our OCGE Assembly. So, make sure to wear our school colours tomorrow for Green and White Day (in honour of St. Stephen's Feast Day)!