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POD: Working on our Cityscape Together for Art

It was a windy morning on the playground, and the wind always makes the air feel colder than it really is. Please make sure you are coming to school dressed warm, even if you plan on heading straight to breakfast.

We began our day with a school-wide assembly. A note was sent home last night about the future of Napan School, and many students arrived this morning with questions and predictions. The truth is, at this point we do not yet know what the future will look like. What we do know is that the rest of this school year will continue as usual, and that we are all going to be just fine.

When we returned upstairs, we got to work on our spelling words ending in –ed. Today’s words were pulled, brushed, jumped, and blasted. Our dictated sentence was “Who called my name?” We checked for a capital letter at the beginning, proper punctuation at the end, and made sure one of the words used an –ed ending.

We completed our maze and our Heggerty listening games before shifting into math. Today we reviewed the shorthand and longhand on an analog clock, what each hand represents, and how to read time accurately. After a quick snack, the Grade 3s went with Ms. Corcoran for a short quiz, while the Grade 1s completed a time worksheet and a color-by-addition activity.

After recess, our JMH mentors returned to work with us. I hope everyone remembered to be respectful, focused, and kind during their activities.

In PE, we practiced our basketball skills again—pivoting, dribbling, shooting, and passing. Hopefully this extra practice helps our players during tonight’s game against Millerton.

Following lunch, we headed into art, where we worked on drawing a cityscape. We practiced working individually and then combining our ideas as a group.

In Social Studies, we learned about the difference between weather and climate, and we explored the concept of the equator. Students were surprised to learn how different things can be for places located near it.

We ended the day by continuing our work on our cityscapes, signing our home-to-school books, and packing up. Some students headed home, while others left early to travel to Millerton for tonight’s basketball game.

Good luck, Cubs — make us proud.
And remember, we skate tomorrow, so get lots of rest tonight.

POD: Doing a little workout before basketball in PE

We started the morning with a cool but pleasant day, much drier than yesterday. Students came in and went straight to work. Our spelling words were yelled, blinked, licked, and trusted as we continue focusing on –ed endings. Our dictated sentence was “Who pinched you?” and our “Show, Not Tell” was “It felt like winter.”

We completed our Heggerty listening games and maze before beginning our writing program. Today, we wrote three sentences about what we know about cats and three sentences about what we know about dogs. We are continuing to work on capitals, periods, and clear sentence structure.

In math, we reviewed probability and then took a look at telling time on analog clocks, which will be an important skill moving forward. After that, it was time to head outside for recess.

Following recess, we went straight to PE, where we continued practicing our basketball skills—pivoting, passing, and shooting form. Afterwards, we joined Ms. Lehnart for Guidance and went on a wellness walk outside, focusing on calmness and mindfulness.

After lunch, we came in and did a short session on the Reading Park app, followed by a UFLI passage. Once that was complete, we headed across the hall to see Ms. Doucette, where we continued learning about the sun, moon, tides, and changing seasons.

We wrapped up the day with a conversation about responsibility—doing what we are supposed to do, when we are supposed to do it. We read another chapter of School Days According to Humphrey, where Humphrey fixed the Ito family’s clock. Then we completed our Book of Gratitude using the prompt, “I was responsible today when…”

Everyone signed their home-to-school books, and a new hot lunch memo was added inside.

With that, we packed up and headed home.
Get lots of rest, and I will see you tomorrow.

POD: Cool Day and Cool Looks!

We started the morning with our regular routine. Our spelling words were 18, 27, 36, and 45. Our dictated sentence was “The two bosses were nice.” Our “Show, Not Tell” sentence was “She was good at math.” We worked through our maze and our Heggerty listening games before moving into writing.

In writing, we continued practicing capital letters at the beginning of sentences and proper punctuation at the end. These are small details, but they make a big difference in our work.

During math, we explored Canadian coins again and took a closer look at probability. We talked about the chances of something happening and whether an event is certain, likely, unlikely, or impossible. The class had fun coming up with examples for each one.

After recess, our JMH reading tutors arrived with new activities to help build our reading and language skills. When they left, we squeezed in a quick read to self before lunch. Our pizza arrived a few minutes late, but we had no trouble finishing it before the bell rang.

Following lunch, we had a little time for responsible choice and then began UFLI Lesson 64, which focuses on the ending –ed. Students were excited to see how many words they already knew that follow this spelling pattern.

In Social Studies with Ms. Doucette, we were thrilled to get outside for a season-change scavenger hunt. We searched for signs of fall all around the school grounds—fallen leaves, bare branches, cool air, and more.

We finished our day with our chapter book School Days According to Humphrey. Today we learned that Humphrey is going home with Hurry-Up Harry for the weekend. After that, we watched a short video about responsibility and its opposite, excuses, and then spent a little time on Reading Park before enjoying some free choice time.

Once our home-to-school books were signed, we packed up for the weekend.

Get lots of rest, and I will see you on Monday.

POD: Learning about Seasons

This morning was cold, but without the wind it actually felt crisp and refreshing — as long as you were dressed properly. We began with our regular morning routine. Our spelling words were 98, 87, 76, and 65. Our UFLI dictated sentence was “The new buses have benches.” Did you remember to add -es? Our “Show, Not Tell” was “His drawing was good.” We also completed our Heggerty listening games and our maze before moving into math.

In math, we reviewed representing numbers and fractions. We also looked at skip counting using Canadian coins, especially nickels and dimes. Being able to count money using skip counting will help us as we move into addition and real-life math situations.

After recess, our JMH reading mentors arrived with more fun activities. When they finished with their groups, we headed to PE where we continued working on our basketball skills. Today’s focus was pivoting, passing, and learning how to tuck our elbow when we shoot. Great effort from everyone.

At lunch, some students enjoyed the outdoors while others chose to go to the gym to keep practicing basketball. A memo went home today for the basketball team — our first game is next Wednesday against Millerton.

After lunch, we headed upstairs to Mrs. Potts’ room for a special Starfish Award presentation. A Starfish Award is given to someone who spreads kindness and positivity, and we were very excited to see Ms. J receive hers.

Back in the classroom, we worked on our books before going across the hall to see Ms. Doucette. Today’s lesson focused on the sun, the moon, tides, and how the seasons are beginning to change.

We finished our day by reading a little more from our chapter book. Humphrey has started switching up some of the job names that Ms. Brisbane created for her classroom, but she doesn’t seem to mind one bit. Afterwards, we watched a short video on responsibility, since it’s our virtue of the month. Our Book of Gratitude prompt was “I am responsible for…”

Once our home-to-school books were signed, we packed up and headed out for the buses. This week has been short and very quick, so make sure you get lots of rest tonight.

Tomorrow is our last day of the week, and it’s also Pizza Day — my favourite.

See you in the morning.