News for April 26

News for April 26

Another four-day week in Room 222 but the children were very busy, sorting books by different criteria, making sculptures out of aluminum foil and learning the steps of doing a science experiment.

In math, the children continued to use the 100 read aloud books in math activities. This week the class concentrated on ways to sort the books and how to tally the amount in each category and remember that the total should equal the number of books in the bin (20 books per bin per research group). The groups sorted the books into male/female authors, soft/hardcover, fiction/non-fiction/near fiction and they totaled up the number of pages read using calculators. We have now compiled the information from the groups and we will work on discussing the results next week. The children will present their findings to the class and a video of our "100 Books Math" will be made and posted next week.

In writing, during the two short four-day weeks the class is reviewing the term two word wall (spelling) words covered so far, with an emphasis on homophones (for example, aloud/allowed). The students finished their book reports and wrote the good copies that will go on display on the day of  the 100 Books Party.

In guided reading, the small reading groups reviewed non-fiction text strategies and learned about two famous mountains: Mount Everest and Mount Fuji. Did you know that Mount Everest is almost 9 kilometers tall? That Mount Fuji is almost 4 kilometers tall? One of our read aloud books this week was a book about the largest animal on Earth, the blue whale. The class is interested in blue whales since last week we measured the length of our 100 books at over 27 metres, with is about the length of a blue whale. Did you know that the heart of a blue whale is the size of a small car?

In science, the class explored how water works to move into areas that are dry by watching what happens when a capsule containing a piece of foam is put in water. The class reviewed the steps of the scientific method: purpose, materials, method, observations and conclusions and used this framework to write about what happened. Basically, the water moved into the capsule and the sponge soaked up the water and increased in size to break apart the capsule to reveal that the foam was is the  shape of an animal!

In art, the children had fun exploring aluminum foil and how to create figures and objects. The tricky part about working with foil is that since it is a metal, it's difficult to tape, glue or staple it. So the students learned some strategies to work with the foil to create arms and legs, for example, that stay attached to the figure and don't fall off. The children also incorporated some recycled yogurt containers (from the snack program) in their art. The students then wrote about what is happening in their art and how they made it. This "foil art" will go on display in the glass cabinet between the lunch room and the auditorium.

On Tuesday, morning, the students began swim classes again. (I am unable to post photos as pictures are not allowed to be taken in the pool area.) On Tuesday afternoon, the class went to the auditorium to see the play, "Head a Tete", a play in English and French about cooperation and friendship.

Finally, on a sad note, Mrs. Pickles our frog died over the long weekend. As I reported a few months ago, Mr. Pickles also passed away. So, there was another class discussion about the circle of life. However, on a happy note, the water snail laid some eggs! (Please see the photo in the "update" posting). I've seen snails lay eggs before and some simply dry out and were not viable. But one year, the eggs hatched and we had hundreds of baby snails! Let's see what happens this time...

Books read aloud this week:

The Blue Whale by Jenni Desmond
Pelle's New Suit by Elsa Beskow
Rumpelstiltskin retold by Edith H. Tarcov