Important Dates and/or Reminders:
- I am hoping to launch FreshGrade with our parents soon. You will be getting an email (hopefully this week) with an invite to join and see your child's portfolio. For more information see FreshGrade's Parents section on their website here. My goal is to post at least 2 pieces of evidence of learning each month in the key areas of reading, writing, and numeracy. You can access your child's portfolio online via a computer or by downloading the free FreshGrade parent app onto your device. It would be wonderful if you could comment on your child's learning. There is also space for your child to comment through the student app. Soon I will showing our class how to login to their portfolio to post, reflect, and comment on their learning.
- Lochside Trail walk is on Wednesday, weather permitting. Students need to come prepared with good walking shoes and a light jacket. If it is raining, we will postpone for the week. Each week I need at least 1 parent to join us. I have made a sign-up on a google doc for parents to indicate which week they'd like to join us. I have allowed space for 3 parents to join us if we have more than one parent wanting to come. Feel free to sign-up as often as you'd like! The link is here.
- Fun Lunch is on Friday.
- Shannon Toronitz, our school counsellor who is at Lochside on Wednesday mornings, has shared a link to her padlet page for families who are looking for resources and support in our community: https://padlet.com/baygulls5/mfzp40u3v9kj
- Halloween is next Monday. At Lochside we do not wear our costumes to school so nothing gets lost or broken, however, students are invited to come to school with wacky hair and wear orange/black if they'd like.
- November 1/2/3 are 'early dismissal' days at 1:48pm for parent-teacher conferences. I would like to meet with each family over those three days. Please follow this link to sign-up for a conference. Anyone with the link is able to enter their child's first name only into a free slot. If you are accessing it on a smartphone or other device, you will need the google docs app and a sign-in. You do not need to sign-in if you are using a desktop computer.
Spelling
- Lesson 7 focuses on the letter 's' and how it can sound like /s/ as in purpose, /z/ as in resemble, or /zh/ as in usually.
Reading Studio
- This week we continue to talk about the story mountain and connect it to our reading. We will also start to look at features that help us read and understand non-fiction books. This will help us when we start to look for information for our bears and body systems unit. We have already started to look at title, heading, sub-heading, bullets, fact box, and sidebar. This week we will look at bold print, coloured print, italic print, parentheses, and pronunciation guides and talk about how these features helps us make sense of the information.
- We are getting ready to publish our stories this week by revising using ARMS: add details, remove words/sentences, move words/sentences, and substitute for better words. We will also edit our work using COPS: capitals, organization, punctuation, and spelling. To publish our work, we will be using Google Docs for the first time and signing in to our GAFE accounts.
Gym
- For the month of October we will be focusing on soccer skills. This week we will talk about positioning in soccer and the rules of the game.
Numeracy
- This week we are looking at estimating differences. We complete activities in class to show our learning but will also have a time for reflection, using the 'Draw and Tell' app. We will also use Reflex Math in the classroom to practice our basic facts. Reflex has been set-up for the year using your child's student number as the password. You can access Reflex from home here. Type in 'snorris' for the username, click on 'Division 3,' and look for your child's name.
Social Studies/Science
- This week we will look at the environment where bears and humans live and talk about how they adapt to live in their environment.
STEM
- It's been a while since we've had a 'STEM' challenge (science, technology, engineering, and math). Students will work in groups and be given a challenge to complete. They will need to work together by planning, building, and reflecting on the challenge. We are focusing on Compassion this week and showing compassion during this challenge by caring for others by including them, being fair, helpful, and willing to share.
Computers
- We have been working through our Digital Passport through Common Sense Media. Tuesday will be our last class session to complete all 5 badges. If students do not complete their passport, I will be asking them to work on it at home. If this poses a problem for a student, I can have them work on it at school.