May 27 to 31

We had a great week in Room 22! We had a great whole school field trip to Bowness Park with the students from Belvedere Parkway School! It was wonderful for the students of Ranchlands to meet some of the students at Belvedere Parkway School. Not to mention the beautiful weather. We are so impressed with how Room 22 behaved during the field trip.

We also had a fire drill this week. I am so proud of how Room 22 proved to be leaders of Ranchlands! They were silent and reminded younger students to not talk.

The lockdown on Wednesday went very well too! We are so proud of you, Room 22!

Math

This week in math, the grade 6s began learning about ratio and percent. For example, if there are 2 teachers in room 22 and 23 students, what is the ratio of teachers to students?

The grade 5s continued working on geometry. We looked at parallel and perpendicular sides of 2D and 3D shapes.

LA

This week in LA, we began writing our own Greek myths. We discussed the elements of a Greek myth, which include:

-       gods and goddesses are central characters

-       gods and goddesses have special powers

-       A natural phenomenon, occurrence, or event is explained by the myth

-       A lesson is taught or a cultural or moral value is explained through the myth

-       Gods and goddesses interact with mortals

Ask us to tell you what our myth is about
We also continued working on reading comprehension!

Science
This week in science, we looked at Trees and Forests. We learned about how everything in a forest is interconnected, i.e. how everything depends on everything else. We also discussed food chains and food webs. Ask us about primary, secondary, and tertiary consumers.

Social
This week in Social Studies, we began reviewing the Iroquois Confederacy. We learned that this form of democracy was very different from the Ancient Athens model. Ask us some of the important differences between the two.
Here is a link that shows a Mohawk village from about 1600.
http://exhibitions.nysm.nysed.gov/iroquoisvillage/

We have a busy week next week getting our Grade 6s ready for their PATs!

May 21 to 24

Just a reminder that all of our volunteers are invited to a tea to show our appreciation for all that you do!

Volunteer Tea is Friday, June 7 10:30-12:00pm.

Please R.V.S.P before June 1st.    

On Friday, the grade 6’s were lucky enough to have a tour of the junior high HD Cartwright. The students were able to see some of the classes and get a feel for life in junior high.

Math

This week in math, we continued working with geometry. We looked at the 6 different types of triangles: equilateral, scalene, isosceles, acute, right, and obtuse. The grade 6s looked at finding the missing angle in both triangles and quadrilaterals. Both grades continued working on their Geometry City Map project. We also began looking at order of operations. The acronym to remember is:

Brackets (or parenthesis)

Exponents (Grade 6s do not have to know this)

Division
Multiplication
Addition
Subtraction

Try to solve this equation: 2 + 5 x 4(10 5) x 3 =

LA

We have continued working on reading comprehension. We have also started working on a “free write” project. Students are to choose one of the three types of writing we have studied this year, i.e. nonfiction, story, or news article. Students have each picked a unique topic to research and then write about. I am so proud of the ideas Room 22 has come up with! For example:

How can Canadian schools improve?

How does global warming affect penguins?

The Titanic

Social

We continued our investigation into Ancient Athens this week. In particular, we looked at the Greek God Hercules and the myth of Arachne. We also learned about social networking in Ancient Athens, which is much different than today’s version! If you are interested in watching more videos on Ancient Athens, here is a link to a great website:

https://www.nationalgeographic.org/education/ancient-greece/

Science

We had a great week learning about Evidence and Investigation. First, we learned about fingerprints and the different patterns that we can have, i.e. loop, whorl, arch. We then did an activity where the students collected their own fingerprints using graphite. Ask us which pattern we have! You could also do this activity at home and examine your family members fingerprint patterns. We also looked at how footprints can provide evidence in a crime scene. For example, when a person is running, their footprints are typically farther apart with deeper toe marks.

We also put a circuit into our French houses! Students chose between a buzzer and a light. They had so much fun doing this activity!

Recess fun.

Coming up:

May 30th- School picnic meet and greet at Belvedere Parkway School (notice coming Monday)

PATS- please start reviewing sections of the blog, watch for a new page coming this week.