Preparing parents

I thought this would be good to share with parents ahead of time because I use this to help with report cards. It is in the support document from the province

and I think parents are not aware of what the scale represents. If your child receives 1 they are not failing. ND would be a failing mark. I am not trying to make you worry but this is a document that I think is very helpful for parents. 

Also reminder that the specific conference meeting time for us to meet will be sent home tomorrow. You can always sign up the day of. Just fill a blank time.

Update

Sorry things have been crazy this last week with my grandma passing away and report cards but I will try and bring everyone up to speed.

The students finished their dioramas and started presented and unfortunately some will have to wait until Monday. The project quality was good by some but many groups will have to learn from this experience. 

The design process involves a lot of pre-planning and research in the beginning but many groups did not spend much time doing this. I had to stop several groups from building and send them back to that beginning step. The other problem was the written reports. Some groups did not include enough information and edit them well. Hopefully their diorama will compensate for this. I hope to have them marked by parent triads. They will be on display in the library for the week. To those of you who worked very hard congratulations . 

The Cheerboard trip has been rescheduled for Dec. 2. 

Also some of the late science design projects will be shared on Monday. 

Don't forget to bring in your triad conference sheet I sent home to schedule 10 minutes with me alone! I will be sending these back on Wednesday. 

Update

First order of business...

The students were given a design project for science. It is due on Monday. Students can take a picture and bring it in or email it to me at wjensen@sjsd.net. They can chose to bring it in to share otherwise. Students are encouraged to think outside the box. (Try not to help out as much as possible. I know it's hard because this challenge is sooo exciting.) 

I have included a picture of how I would get started so you have some idea. The objects do not have to look like the organ but just represent it instead. 

Next order of business is the diorama. We found that more time was needed and so students will have Thursday as well. This means that the plans, completed model and written report must be handed in Monday. Here is a picture of one that has come along nicely.

And a few others...

More business...

I will running my conferences differently then what you may have had in the past and have sent home a letter explaining it. This is a copy of the letter.

Please return the letter and also book online! 

On November 19th we will be traveling to the Cheerboard to pack hampers in the afternoon. If you would like to join us then please email me. If you have not done a criminal background check you can still volunteer but cannot come on the bus. This means I will give preference to those who have had the paper work done. I will let you know if you are needed through email. A permission slip will go home on Thursday. Thanks

November 1

The quiz in nutrition is moved to Tuesday. I feel that students will be better prepared that way. 

Here is a Halloween picture of the class. 

Halloween

Tomorrow we will be having a fun Halloween afternoon. Nothing fancy but we will be playing some games. Students are welcomed to bring a treat for each student but please remember to make sure it is nut-free. 

There will also be a quiz on nutrition in Science on Monday. Students should use a copy of the food guide, nutrition notes and old assignments to review for it. There will be some matching and short answers. 

 We have just started our Social Studies dioramas so they will have 3 double classes to work on it next week (that is over 6 hours of class time!) Students are welcome to bring their own supplies in. 

For Math homework students must count and sort their Halloween candy they collect. This should be done on a tally sheet. Instructions will be given on Friday. They wil use this data to complete some graphing activity. 

Another reminder is picture money was due today (you can do it online too). Also a new book order went out and they are due November 6. This is a great opportunity to get your kid excited about reading. I remember getting to pick out one book in every order and was excited when it arrived.  (Yes they were around back then but the books were only $1.25 each.) 

Sorry for the delay but our formal spelling program will start next week and I will be trying to do a Monday to Friday system. I will also be sending home Boston pizza reading sheets for any student wanting to do complete home reading. I do not use a home reading program in grade 5 but if a student needs extra support then a program will be set up. 

Have a great Halloween and check back for photos on the weekend. 

Potlatch success!

We had our potlatch today and it went well. (Okay I am a little tired, kind of life having a birthday party for 24 kids.) The food was delicious and thanks to those who brought it in. Also thanks to those who brought in their gifts. We were short a few but we managed to find enough stuff in my treasure box! 

Also I have to send a huge shout out to the moms who helped set up the food, serve it, and clean up. Thank you Mrs. Paterson, Mrs. Gaulton and Mrs. Arnason. Here are some pictures of the day. 

We will be starting our dioramas next week so if you have a box about the size of a paper box you can bring it in, along with any supplies you want to use. There will be 4 double classes to work on it in the class.

(Also I hope everyone had a chuckle about my spelling error in the social studies letter home! 😜 I will be correcting that one!)

Potlatch update

Tomorrow is the potlatch! The students will not need lunch. I have two parents who are helping set-up so the students will eat at 11:30 and then go out for a recess break. After lunch the students will share their totem pole and mask. Then we will play the gift stealing game to represent status. In order for this to take place I need every student to bring their assigned/chosen items. Please check below to verify. If you have gift beside your child's name then you need to bring in 2 gifts valued between $2 and $3. Hey can be dollar store items and need to be wrapped. They can even be wrapped in newspaper or paper. Any questions email me at wjensen@sjsd.net and I will get back to you ASAP. 

Drew-perogies/sour cream

Brayden- buns/butter

Garrett- meatballs

Julia - cheese and crackers

Ashly- casserole

Blake- macaroni 

Abby - hash brown casserole

Maya- drinks

Kyra - veggies and dip

Ava- salad

Sophie - fruit platter 

Jersey - salad or dessert

Any food can be sent in cold and we will warm it up or put in oven. Just send any instructions. Also plan for 25 people! 

Bringing gifts are:

Samuel

Jaime

Branden

Ian

Josh

Amber

Michael

Noah

Iliana

Diana 

Liam

Tyra

Hopefully you have all seen or heard about the letter that was sent home Ocotber 13th and this is not a surprise. If not then I told the kids they better suck up to their parent and do the dishes for them tonight. They should also start the conversation with, "I have something I forgot to tell you and I have learned my lesson..."