The blessed season of Advent is upon us! Need a quick refresher on the beauty of this season? Check out the link above! Students will be preparing themselves for this season of light daily with reflection and the design and construction of their own lanterns-a symbol of faith for Grade 6. We are still in great need of tin cans for lanterns-go through your recycling bins! We will begin in a few weeks. Christmas Hamper Project: Each year, St. Gabriel students and their families generously support a number of families from our sister school, St. Elizabeth. By providing these hampers, we bring light, love and hope to families in need. This year, our class is responsible for bringing in two cans of fish (tuna and/or salmon) as well as $2.00 to go toward the purchase of turkeys and fresh veggies and fruit. Students are encouraged to complete a chore at home to truly understand the concept of giving. New this year, we are also accepting Canadian Tire money to assist in the purchase of gift items for our families in need. Your generosity at this time, and always, is greatly appreciated. Donations will be accepted all week with a due date of Dec. 10th. What's happening in Grade 6? We have worked together through conflict resolution strategies following a few incidents during recess. Students are recognizing the importance of using bully prevention strategies and continue to apply their knowledge of empathy and Gospel values to their everyday lives. Open communication is critical and with continued practice and discussion, students will be armed with appropriate strategies to help them cope during challenging times. Math: We will be having a SWYK (show what you know) on Tuesday for Patterning and Algebra. Students are well practiced and continued practice at home is always a great idea! Don't forget-mastery of math facts will help improve the efficiency and accuracy of problem solving! Language: We have turned our focus toward the concept of freedom and human rights. We will begin to read about the life of Iqbal Massih and will be making connections to the UN Global Goals. Students are using tools such as the Ladder of Inference and the Causal Model to assist them in looking at global issues through a different lens. Perception and bias are important pieces during our inquiry. Science: We have constructed wind turbines and will consolidate our learning about electricity. The next inquiry (Space!) will begin this week. What's happening this week? Monday: School Council Meeting at 7pm Tuesday: Pizza Day Wednesday: Bully Awareness session with Matt Harding from WOCRC Thursday: Another great day in Grade 6! Friday: News Show at 2 pm.
It's hard to believe that we are nearing the end of November already! Many thanks to parents and families who were able to schedule an interview with me on Wed/Thurs evenings this past week. It's always wonderful learning more about your child. I truly appreciate the time that you take to keep the home-school communication lines open! If you were not able to book an appointment with me on either of the two evenings, I'll be touching base with you via email or phone this week. In both morning and afternoon classes, students will be wrapping up inquiries-from Electricity to digital citizenship and Remembrance and patterning. Asking your child daily about specific concepts and new learning will help to consolidate thoughts and ideas. Thank you for your support! Science: we have turned our thoughts toward renewable sources of energy and will create models to demonstrate our knowledge of sources of energy Phys Ed./Health: We continue to practice and hone our volleyball skills and will continue our discussion of bullying prevention with Matt Harding from WORC Math: Patterns in number will quickly lead to algebraic equations using a functions table. Students are struggling with this--extra practice at home is highly encouraged as we will be moving on this week to 2D Geometry. Language: We will begin to explore the concept of freedom using the story of Iqbal Massih to guide our inquiry. Students have explored integrative thinking tools such as the ladder of inference and will soon begin to use their critical thinking skills while working through the causal model. Mrs. King and Mme T. have been working with the Rotman Institute and will share their learning with you! Religion: The lantern is the symbol for Grade 6. We will be making our own lanterns but will require tin cans. Please keep your recyclable tin cans and bring them into school. What's happening this week? Monday-WE are SILENT (well, during nutrition breaks!) Students are asked to bring in a loonie or 2 to support our Free the Children campaign. Picture Retake Day-no forms to sign, simply let your child know that you would like retakes. Tuesday-Pizza Day and Office Duty Wednesday-All Saints Leadership class to visit in the am, Mystery Skype in pm Thursday-Another great day in Grade 6 Friday-Genius Hour/Learning Lab begins-am/pm Looking ahead? November 30-School Council Meeting at 7 pm December 3-News Show
What a whirlwind the past few weeks have been! What have we been up to in Grade 6? WE Day was a phenomenal event! This is the first year that ALL grade 6 students have been able to attend the event. We are blessed to have Mme Tibshirani who represented St. Gabriel as a special speaker on the stage during the event. We will be drawing upon the We Day speakers and have three more campaigns to tackle this year. We can make a difference! Ask your child what issues we are exploring in class. Science: students persevered through their Frankenbot creations using a motor, AA battery and a few other odds and ends. The criteria included movement, colouring, and direction. Four very unique bots were created and collaboration and communication skills were honed. Well done teams! Phys. Ed: We have moved indoors for the most part now (as we await beautiful snowy days!) and our focus turns to volleyball and intramural sports activities. Our Health focus of personal safety (in the gym, and online) will soon turn to healthy living (our food choices) and active living (how do we keep our bodies moving). Math: We will soon end our study of number patterns. Students will be reflect on their learning goals based on curriculum expectations. Continued practice of math facts and other challenging concepts (long division!!) are encouraged. Don't forget! Weekly math is posted on our classroom website and is due each Friday. Solving each question on paper is encouraged. Language: We have completed our Museum of Remembrance exhibits and worked on provided effective feedback to peers as well as on self reflection. We will soon turn our thoughts to global issues which will include reading the story of Iqbal Masih. Writer's workshop focus has moved from generating ideas to crafting clear, concise topic sentences and grammar/conventions. Students have a little under two weeks left to complete their Literature report based on a great mystery novel of their choice. All information can be found on our website. (Check under the HOMEWORK tab on the top!) I'm looking forward to hearing more! What's happening in the THINK TANK this week? Monday: Bully Prevention week begins Tuesday: Lockdown practice in the am; Pizza Day Wednesday: Wear PINK against bullying; Interviews after school (PM class please use the following link. Thursday: DOUBLE LUNCH DAY! Click here for more information! Interviews (AM class please book using the link provided by the school) Friday: PD DAY-no school for students; Math homework due Looking ahead? November 26-Mystery Report due for PM language class Have a great week-as always, please don't hesitate to contact me should you have questions or concerns!
Welcome to November! We are off to a busy start in Grade 6! The October News Show was a success with students doing a fantastic job as hosts. Did you know that Grade 6 students also volunteer to deliver pizza, milk and Lunch Lady lunches and help out in the office? We are making our school community a great place to be by practicing demonstrating leadership skills. Science: students completed their cardboard challenges using their knowledge of circuits to make the games more challenging and engaging. On Friday, we collaborated together to tackle the Frankenbot challenge-check out Twitter to see our progress! Phys. Ed: This week begins our link to All Saints. Ms. Black will be bringing her students to visit during first block on Monday. They will lead us in outdoor cooperative games and challenges. We are so thankful for their dedication to making the transition to All Saints even better! Math: We have begun our study of number patterns. Students will be establishing learning goals based on curriculum expectations. Continued practice of math facts and other challenging concepts (long division!!) are encouraged. Don't forget! Weekly math is posted on our classroom website. Language: Many students experienced a "thrill" as we investigated "Bone Deep"-a chilling mystery that required great critical thinking to solve the problem! Discussions were rich and everyone was involved in this great mystery! To continue-students have one month to complete their Literature report based on a great mystery novel of their choice. All information can be found on our website. (Check under the HOMEWORK tab on the top!) I'm looking forward to hearing more! What's happening in the THINK TANK this week? Monday: All Souls Day Ms. Black's class from All Saints visits (first block) Tuesday: Pizza Day Wednesday: Bus evacuation drill Thursday: Progress Reports go home Friday: Math homework due Looking ahead? November 10-WE DAY November 11-Remembrance Day service (still looking for military men and women to join us!) Have a great week-as always, please don't hesitate to contact me should you have questions or concerns!
