Happy Hallowe'en!

I hope you all have a great time Trick or Treating, if this is your tradition. I was telling the class how in Scotland we do a similar thing but we carve out turnips, which we take with us, and when we stop at a house we have to sing a song or tell a joke or do something to earn our treat! It was fun to compare and contrast the two traditions.

We agreed that whatever your tradition, or if you do not participate, that this is your right and your decision to make and that we should respect everyone's decisions.

I was so proud of my students today. They are transitioning to being real ambassadors of kindness and moving from just thinking about their own excitement. They made the morning Kindergartners feel so special by inviting them into our classroom and showing real interest in their costumes when they walked through our class. Those inviting smiles and compliments really made their day. Thank you parents for raising such kind children.

Thank you also for sending in costumes that not even the most sensitive child would be scared of. I have never been in a school where both parents and children were so thoughtful. Having worked with refugee children in a previous school, I know first hand that masks and swords can be very scary and we want all children in school to feel safe at all times. I can honestly say that I did not see one mask or weapon on any child as we paraded round the whole school.

These children just covered their faces for the photo.  Don't They look great? (I couldn't resist the last photo!)

Ask the students what we did all day and I hope they will say that they did fun things! Now let me now tell you what they actually did:

In art/science we practiced our observational drawings. We had to draw what was really there and not what we imagined in our head. For that reason, I picked an odd shaped scarred pumpkin. My husband was very curious as to why I picked the one I did! After drawing it, we opened the pumpkin and used our senses to describe it. The students had to pick the 5 best describing words they could think of out of the many choices they came up with. Here is a journal from one student:

In math they learned about referents. We used this new skill to give a more accurate estimate of how many seeds were in the pumpkin. We decided that 10 was a good referent number. After seeing what 10 pumpkin seeds looked like, we eyeballed the pile of seeds to give a much more accurate estimate than we had already given.

Another mathematical activity we did was to create a 'Monster of Symmetry.' Here we practiced doubles and symmetry.

We had a fun day and I wish you all a safe night. Happy Hallowe'en!

Popcorn and Earth Rangers!

Two highlights of our week were being able to buy popcorn for an after lunch snack and seeing the animals in the Earth Rangers' presentation! There was a lot of interest and many students now want to become an Earth Ranger and be ambassadors for animals!

It was a great chance to see wildlife up close and to hear lots of facts about them.

Well, this weekend gives me the chance to review the students' writing skills in being able to follow the criteria of:

• being able to write using full sentences that show complete thoughts
• mark their sentences with upper case letters and periods
• being able to write in short paragraphs where all related ideas are bundled together
• being able to revise their work so it makes sense 
• being able to check their work for the spellings of words that are high frequency sight words (such as they, like etc) 
• being able to include introduction, three arguments, one counter argument and a tie up

This work also gives me the opportunity to find out what it is that they feel would make a difference to their learning. This whole learning opportunity came about because one child brought in a letter expressing that they wanted to have a special event in the class. That sparked a huge interest in how we can make changes happen and how we do this in the real world. When learning is authentic, students really buy in and work very hard to learn new skills in order to have their voice heard.

I was impressed by how well the students know themselves as learners by expressing that they can be distracted in class so might find a privacy screen helpful or that they want a floor table as they find it more comfortable than working at a table. I will try to honor their requests but I may have to do some creative thinking around having a bird in the class. I am not sure how that would fly with the CBE (ha ha).

Housekeeping:

Tuesday - Please send (non violent) Hallowe'en costumes in backpack (should you want to dress up)

Weekly Dispatch

Hello Parents/Guardians Please check out your child’s teacher’s blog on our website by clicking here: http://school.cbe.ab.ca/school/kennethdtaylor/teaching-learning/classes-departments/Pages/default.aspx Our Fieldtrip / Activity Fees have been uploaded, please access your MY CBE Account to pay these https://webapps.cbe.ab.ca/MyAccount/Account/LogOn?ReturnUrl=%2fMyAccount%2f                                                                  Annual Pumpkin Give Away, BBQ & Mini Pumpkin Decorating Event See attached flyer for details Annual Pumpkin Give Away  Here is your weekly Dispatch for October 30th – Nov 3rd

We had a great afternoon on our virtual field trip to Drumheller where an expert talked to us about rocks and minerals and quizzed us on our knowledge. They even asked really difficult questions, such as what the name of the dinosaur found in Alberta was called. Luckily we had one paleontologist expert who knew the answer! Having a virtual field trip, where they took us on a tour of the Tyrell Museum was a great alternative to bussing there (and nobody got car sick!)

Rocks have really sparked our interest and many students have been starting rock collections. We eagerly await the dull, rough edged rocks that we put into the rock tumbler to have some (artificial) weathering take place. We think that the sand will smooth out the edges and we hope to get some shiny smooth rocks by the end of the process. We will keep you posted as to how that is going. Mrs. Njie took the rock tumbler home to do its thing on her basement floor!

In class we have also made our own artificial sedimentary rock. We all know how to do this and can explain the process to you. We wrote about it in a 'How to ...' piece of writing. We talked about how we use models in science to help us understand real things. Scientists use models all the time. I wonder if you can discuss with your child what a good model for igneous and metamorphic rock might be!


We have been showing our understanding of math by completing a sheet like this one. Please take a moment to ask your child to write down a three digit number and fill out this sheet. This will help you know what your child needs more practice on at home. They should be able to complete each section fairly easily.

I know that a lot of students are getting excited for Hallowe'en and we have been discussing a few things in class. We all agreed that some people like to celebrate hallowe'en and some do not and whatever we choose, that is absolutely fine.  There are some School Traditions that are explained below. Please don't feel you have to dress up or take part but please do take the time to read the rules surrounding expectations. This will avoid the disappointment of being asked to remove part or all of the costume (and we really don't want to do this).

For Parents: - please let your parents know via your blog that Halloween costumes should not have masks (safety hazard), makeup (too complex for at school), weapons or be violent/inappropriate costumes (e.g. the clown from It, Freddy Kruger, etc.); students can bring a second healthy snack for themselves for the afternoon learning fun.

We thought we could be creative around the snack - the children had lots of ideas, such as peeled grapes to be eyeballs or sugar peas to be worms! Let your imagination run wild, but please note, we are asked to bring in healthy snacks! Your child will get enough candy when they go Trick or Treating!!

We will be doing activities in school that are loosely, but not specifically to do with Hallowe'en (such as estimation of how many seeds a pumpkin will have and counting the seeds, looking for efficient strategies. As you can see, there is more math than Hallowe'en in this activity (but don't tell the children that!). Please let me know if you are uncomfortable with your child taking part.

Housekeeping:

Popcorn will be sold on Wednesday and Thursday so if you want to take part, bring in your toonies.

Today’s blog entry comes with two stars and a wish!

Star #1  

We have worked really hard at understanding what a paragraph is and how to write a persuasive piece of writing. We completed a shared piece of writing to review how to revise and edit a piece of work that is organized into multiple paragraphs. We chose from the things that the students wanted voice and choice in and decided to write about why we thought we should have more floor tables in the class. By modeling this work, the students had the opportunity to see and hear the thought processes involved in such a piece of writing. I was impressed by their arguments and counter argument  and will be passing by the shops this evening to pick up a couple more! We can start using them as soon as the students have followed through with their action plan (see below)! I decided  not to hold them to the initial proposal that one student had and most of the the class agreed to that they would club together to buy me a horse if they broke the new tables:)

Star #2:

In science we have been looking at how geologists classify rocks using observable features such as color, luster and cleavage and tests they perform on rocks, such as the streak test. 

The students sounded so professional, for example by describing a rock as having a non-metallic earthy luster. Ask your child to describe this rock using the new scientific language they have been practicing.

In math, we continue to practice the skills to become more proficient at manipulating numbers as well as adding and subtracting them.

Wish #1

A reminder to please keep all school books inside a plastic bag at all times and to not let younger siblings read books from school. Younger children might rip pages by accident and don't always know what clean hands are!  Food items and drinks that are kept in backpacks can spill. If books are in plastic bags then they are safe. If the school plastic bag get lost or ripped then please put the books in a clean grocery bag or replacement ziplock bag if you have one. 

We want the books safe for when younger siblings come to school:)

Housekeeping:

-                     -       A letter was sent home regarding the Christmas market

-                    -          School photos have been taken

     -    The following message has been sent to you from the office. Here it is       again, in case you missed it:

Hello Parents & Guardians,

Our fees have been loaded for all students in your MY CBE Account.  All fees can be payed online using your My CBE Account https://webapps.cbe.ab.ca/MyAccount/Account/LogOn?ReturnUrl=%2fMyAccount%2f

It is important to notice that we have bundled the lower costs fees as we are unable to collect an online payment for less than $10.00.  You will find the breakdown of the bundled fees in the description.  Please note that you can pay for these fees either all at once, or pay them in installments. Ken Taylor School Fees Grade 3 2017-2018.pdf 

Please see the attached document for a detailed description of the of these fees.

Please feel free to contact us if you have any further questions or require assistance if online payment.

Barb Rocca

Administrative Assistant, Kenneth D. Taylor School

Calgary Board of Education | cbe.ab.ca

t | 403-817-3504

Happy Tuesday!

Yesterday all the staff had an exciting day learning with Miriam Trehearne. One of the things that really made me think was a chart she showed us that highlighted the difference in cumulative number of words read between children who read and hear books a lot and those who do not. Over the course of a few years a huge and widening gap appears in the graph that shows the difference in words read between the two groups. So please, make sure your child is reading as much as possible!

She also stressed the importance of learning vocabulary. She reminded us that new words have to be heard and used in many contexts and many times before they become part of the students’ language. We found two words in our class read aloud today and acted out these words, explained these words and used them in sentences. Ask your child what these words were. Try finding some interesting words in your home reading books and then use them at every opportunity.

Over the last week we have been learning about persuasive writing. The students are practicing their skills by writing to me to persuade me to get  various things such as a class pet! Don’t worry, your turn will come next. By then the students will have had more practice and will be able to give some good arguments and counter arguments for what it is they want!

Housekeeping:

- Photos on Wednesday

- Assembly on Friday

- Next Tuesday we have an in-class virtual field trip with The Royal Tyrell Museum

Happy Thanksgiving!

Continuing the work about identity, the students wrote about the best part of themselves, based on the book The Best Part of Me.  This allowed the students practice in writing out a plan prior to writing a draft.

After we finished our draft, we read our work through to make sure it made sense and said what we wanted it to say. We then modeled how to revise our work by adding in more details, using the prompt ‘tell me more’ or changing words to be more specific or interesting. We read our work again to see if it still made sense.! We also modeled where to add punctuation. We talked about when we read our work through we notice the natural pause when we read our work out loud. This can mark where the periods go. Last we checked our work for spelling mistakes.

We decided that good work that required a lot of thinking looks messy! Our published copy looked really neat as we really worked really hard on our printing.

In math, we have been practicing adding and subtracting 10, 9 and 11. We have also been practicing saying three digit numbers without saying ‘and’ so that we say, for example, three hundred forty two. We have played lots of games to help us understand place value, such as ‘write a three digit number with a 4 in the tens place’ or pull apart 127 to show it in expanded notation (100 + 20 + 7). We have also been practicing adding and subtracting two and three digit numbers. Most of us still find adding and subtracting with regrouping very challenging so this is an area that we will be spending some more time.

In science, we thought about how scientists need to make careful observations. The students learned about the story of Edward Jenner and how he invented the first vaccination by looking carefully at cows! Ask your child that story as they practiced retelling this story. They did a great job summarizing the main events in their journals.

The highlight of our week was finding cool rocks right on the school property. We still can’t believe the variety we found! Like us, each rock truly is unique!

Have a safe and Happy Thanksgiving! See you on Tuesday.

HOUSEKEEPING:

-Picture Day form went home earlier this week
-Book Truck form home. Please fill out and return the bottom section.

-Library on Friday 

Please read the following messages:

Jacket Racket

Dear Parents, Jacket Racket is a volunteer organization with the goal of ensuring that every child from Kindergarten to Grade 12 has a warm winter coat to wear to school. 90% of donations come from schools. The jackets are then distributed to children in schools where there is a need. This year we are inviting our students and parents to participate in a coat drive for Jacket Racket.  They accept gently used warm winter coats, snow pants, hats and mittens for all ages. Often whole families are outfitted, so any size is welcome. A box will be set up in the Embassy for collection from October 10, 2017 to October 24, 2017 We encourage you to generously support this worthy project. It is a great opportunity to help students who may be less fortunate.           www.jacketracketcalgary.com Thank you for your support. Student Leadership Group and Mrs. Fraser