News for March 30

News for March 30

At the beginning of the week, the class reviewed the material in the data management math unit in preparation for the unit test. The students all did very well on the test. Good job!

Also this week, we started a new early morning routine. The students have each written a math quiz consisting of a mix of addition, subtraction, multiplication and division questions as well as, some mental math questions. Each morning, the star student is in charge of giving his/her quiz to the class.

Our new unit in math is motion geometry. The children learned about moving shapes across a surface using grid coordinates, reflections (flips) and translations (slides).

In science, the children learned about the difference between, and sources of, natural and artificial light. They also discussed how light travels in straight lines (rays) and how light bounces off surfaces in different ways.

The class finished watching the DVD, "The Miracle Worker" which details the early life the Helen Keller, an inspirational deaf/blind woman. The students worked on summarizing the story and wrote why they thought the movie was titled "The Miracle Worker" . They also expressed, in writing, their opinions of the movie and if they would recommend the movie to a friend. It was a very moving experience to watch the children witness how Helen, as a deaf/blind child navigated her world and how she was able to make the connection between American Sign Language alphabet and objects in her world.

The students used what they know about cursive writing and reflections across a "mirror line" to create an artwork using their names written in cursive and coloured with chalk pastels. Then they wrote a reflection on the creative process, including what the art was communicating and what they thought they did well and what they could do to improve next time.

Books read aloud this week:

My Light (The sun's energy) by Molly Bang

Cinderella Penguin or The Little Glass Slipper

The Magic School Bus Explores the Senses by Joanna Cole

The Room 5 Interview Show!

This week Areena and Enoch interviewed Jennifer Thomason. We were very lucky for Jennifer to stay after the interview to answer the children's questions and to demonstrate how a hearing aid works.