Week of January 23-27

Dear families,

This has been a busy week in Room 166!

I Friday's mailbag there is a permission form for a class trip on March 8 to sing with Jack Grunsky and to celebrate Canada's 150th Birthday! Please note that all payments at LKS are online. The online payment for this trip will be open from January 30 - February 10. Two parent volunteers are required. Forms are due back to me by February 8.

We learned about Chinese New Year this week! The children made dragon puppets with Miss. Santiago, saw a video about children doing the Dragon Dance, we read books about Chinese New Year, and the children learned what year they were born in (Dragon for JKs, Rabbit for SKs).

We had a visit from the Brentwood Library children's librarian. She read books to the children and invited them to come to the library any time. A package from Brentwood is in Friday's mail bag.

We celebrated three birthdays this week! Happy Birthday Maya, Maddie and Sarah!

The children did a great job at Friday's Sharing Assembly reciting the poem "Chubby Little Snowman." Congratulations to Ella who received a certificate for Kindness and Caring, and to Andrew and Hannah who received well-deserved certificates for Teamwork. I'm proud of you!

Thank you so much to James' mom who was our Mystery Reader this week! The moms of Ethan and Sarah were our volunteers for Pizza Lunch. Thank you so much for your time!

Friday was Pyjama Day at LKS and the children loved it! I think they especially loved bringing their stuffies to school!

The words of the week were HAS and WANT. The letter sound was Mm.

The next Scholastic Order is due on February 3rd. Thank you so much to Ruby for collating the order forms! Please remember to pay either by cheque or on line.

In Measurement, the children measured a paper penguin with goldfish crackers (certainly a non-standard unit of measurement!) and then wrote the number. One-to-one correspondence can still be a challenge for juniors, so encourage them to count a lot at home. :)

The children also compared objects and estimated which one weighed more, we discussed WHAT people can measure. Most children's answers were about the SIZE of objects. We will continue to encourage them to think about CAPACITY, TEMPERATURE, and WEIGHT as well. Baking/cooking with your child is a wonderful way to reinforce these concepts at home. With our Reading Buddies, we measured various things in the school hallway with your foot tracings. The children learned why we call a "foot" a "foot." Ask them to explain it to you! Next week we will finish our inquiry on Measurement by making a balance. Thank you Sebastian for sharing your tape measure with us! Thank you for bringing in hangers for this tool (and extras!).

The children also completed their "If I lived in a Snow Globe" art and writing, and it is proudly on display on the classroom bulletin board. They look fantastic! Miss. Santiago also explained that when you rub the plastic plate, energy is created and the confetti and glitter move. Just like we shiver or rub our hands together or jump up and down to create more energy when we are cold.

The children completed the writing about why they liked "Thomas' Snowsuit."

In the Computer Lab, Miss. Santiago is doing Peter's Nature Walk and Tynker with the kids, which is a coding website. Try it at home!

It finally snowed again! The children caught snowflakes on black paper, and we watched slow-motion videos about how snowflakes (snow crystals) form. They also helped me write a list of ingredients and the instructions on how to make a yummy snowflake with marshmallows and pretzels.

Finally, the children completed their "This is Me in January" drawing, writing and calendar. They are posted on the hall bulletin board and I have sent a copy home.

The Juniors will be receiving their first Progress Reports in February.

That's our news for this week! I hope you have a terrific weekend!

Week of January 16-20

Dear families,

I hope you had a lovely weekend. Last week we continued our inquiry about Measurement. Thank you Catherine, Phoebe, Rielle and Ruby for bringing in your own measuring tape! We talked about the difference between measuring tape and tape measures, and learned and practiced how to use them. IKEA has free paper measuring tape if you find yourself shopping there! Your child can measure while you shop! 😊 We watched a "How it's Made" episode about how measuring tape is made, and watched a video called "Inch by Inch."

We are also learning about thermometers and will be making a paper one in class. The children coloured in two thermometers, one for winter and one for summer. We will finish our unit on Measuring next week.

Please bring in a small plastic coat hanger with two little hooks on it so your child can make a balance. Thank you.

In Art and Writing, the children wrote what they would do if they lived in a snow globe and are making a snow globe with paper and plastic plates. Thank you Miss. Santiago!

The children had an amazing experience in the library last week inside the ROM's portable Planetarium!

The words of the week were COME and LOOK. The letter sound was Rr.

Thank you to Hannah's mom for being the Mystery Reader!

I sent home a list of high frequency sight words and a letter about "kid" writing.

Assuming the snow will return, this week we'll make snowflakes from marshmallows and pretzels and will measure a penguin with goldfish crackers (then eat them!). We read Deep Snow by Robert Munsch, will make paper snowflakes, and learned two winter poems.

In music, the children are doing Forest of Reading, Bingo, and a Lion Hunt theme. In computers the children are doing Book Flix stories about snow and Chicka Chicka Boom Boom.

I hope you have a terrific week!