Mrs. Rowein's Blog

 Some students brought home homework today. Students who have not finished their Novel Study brochures brought them home. They need to be completed tonight and returned to school tomorrow for grading. Unfortunately, we have a handful of students who still do not know their lowercase letters. I have sent a worksheet for them to practice at home. Parents, please support your child with their printing. It is no longer in the cirriculum by grade 3 and 4 so we will not be spending extensive class time on learning lowercase letters. If you need any support or ideas for practice at home, let me know and I would be happy to email you some digital resources. Tomorrow is Cultural Day! Students are welcome to come dressed in culturally specific clothes or bring an artifact from home for show and tell.  :) Mrs. Rowein

 This week in Language Arts students have been learning about the Japanese style poetry, Haiku. They will be displayed on our Japan Cultural Day Board. We are also beginning a new unit on writing mechanics. Our focus will be on writing legibility, punctuation and  capitalization. In Math, the grade 3 have started their unit on measurement. So far, they have learned how to measure in centimetres using a ruler. Tomorrow we will be learning a fun technique using our knowledge of measurement to make symmetrical art. In Health, we have talked about the negative side effects of too much screen time. Thank-you parents for supporting your child with tracking their screen time at home! Students have began a new Science unit where they will be focusing on testing design of structures, building stationary structures, then building structures that move. Yesterday, students were given a challenge to build a tower out of only paper and tape. We found that the most successful structures were...

 Hi Parents, Your child may have already shared with you the screen time challenge we are doing this week. Tuesday, a sheet was sent home for students to track how much time they spend in front of screens every evening. Please assist them in tracking their screen time, and adding up their daily totals. This sheet is due back at school on Monday February 22. Today many students brought home writing homework. They are responsible for writing 4 short (5 sentences) paragraphs about either The Calgary Stampede, or Hurricane Katrina. They have also brought home a blue duotang which includes their 4 subtopics, with information from their research. This is a task that we have been working on for 2 weeks now. Students have had 5 hours of class time to complete their 4 short paragraphs. It is due back at school tomorrow, February 19.

 We are having a busy week full of fun projects!  In Language Arts, students are working on their final project for their Literature Circles. Both groups have a "connection piece" where they are investigating real events and places that inspired their novels. Yesterday, students finished writing their A Day in the Life Stories. I have enjoyed reading how students incorporated information about Indigenous way of life into their writing. In Math, grade three is in their last week of multiplication! This week our focus has been all about using multiplication in real life settings, and we have got to do some challenging problems. Grade three will have a multiplication quiz on Tuesday February 16. Another round of Learning Sprints has wrapped up. Ms. Somer and I are taking a week to look at student growth and achievement, and set some new writing goals to focus on after the long weekend.  Students have been busy learning about Great Britain to go along with our Cultural Day at...

 This week in Language Arts, both classes are finishing up their Literature Circle novels, and beginning their end projects. Both end projects involve students summarizing plot, characters, and themes, as well as making connections to the outside world. Students have also been busy with their cross- curricular writing, titles A Day in the Life. They are writing a story from the perspective of a Blackfoot or Dene character who lived 500 years ago. In Math, grade three continue to work on multiplication strategies. We are working towards mental strategies for bigger and more challenging numbers.  This week we began a large scale research project in preparation for Cultural Day. In the past, we have celebrated Cultural Night as a community event. Due to covid-19 restrictions, this celebration has been modified, and students will be partaking in a Cultural Day within school hours. Our class has chosen to learn about Japan and Great Britain.  More snow means more fun at recess...

Important Reminder: Report Cards are now available for your viewing on Powerschool. You must have a Powerschool account to log in and view your child's report card. Mrs. Fraser has sent instructions to your email to help you create an account if you do not have one yet. Feel free to email me if you have any questions! On February 10, we will be having a small Valentine's celebration as a class. Children are welcome to bring Valentine's for their classmates if they wish to do so. A class list will be going home tomorrow so that you can ensure everyone is included if you choose to give cards or treats.  Please make sure children are dressed fort the weather. That includes: hat, mitts, jacket, snow-pants, boots. :) Mrs. Rowein