WELL, WE MADE IT...I think! Still a few days left, but this is our last Friday blog.

What a year. I'm so proud of all our students. We accomplished a lot this year. I'm excited for their futures, and what they will accomplish with their lives as they grow. Thank you, parents, for entrusting your children to us.

This last week was a haze. Everyone is super excited for summer and wired, but we still managed to get some learning done!

Our spelling bee was a huge success. Our class winners in grades 3 and 4 all competed against the other grade 3-4 class winners. One of our students, Maham, managed to win both the grade 3 and then the grade 4 spelling bee! Congratulations Maham for some grate speling!

In math, we worked on probability, among other things. We looked at Pascal's triangle (below). Given about 3 of the first rows, the kids had to try and figure out the rest of the pattern. Link: Pascal's Triangle

Once accomplished, we looked for patterns within the patterns. We used this triangle as a launch pad into probability. We then looked at a quincunx, or Galton Board. I had the students guess how the balls would end up at the bottom. They all agreed it was random, and so there should be an equal distribution. It was probable all would be flat at the end. We then ran the machine and watched as it turned out the exact opposite. Try it yourself: Quincunx App. Play with the numbers and see what happens.

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Then we took 2 dice, broke into groups, and each group rolled their dice 100 times, recording the sums of the two dice. We then graphed the info. Like the quincunx, we ended up with, generally speaking, a pretty Normal Distribution pattern.

We then looked at why it turned out this way. The kids figured out pretty quickly there were way fewer chances of rolling a 2 (need a 1 and a 1), but more chances at an 8 (6 + 2, 2 + 6, 4 + 4, 4 + 4, 5 + 3, 3 + 5). We looked at a few games, like Plinko on The Price is Right, and discussed the chances of winning.


In literacy, we wrote a letter to next year's teacher. It was a chance for the kids to think back on what they've learned this year, what excited them, and what they want to challenge themselves with next year.

Two days to go and then a big party on Wednesday!

Hello.

REMINDER: We'll be having our classroom spelling bee on Wednesday. The winners from grades 3 and 4 will then participate in the finals with the other winners from the other grade 3 and 4 classes. If your child is participating, remind them to brush up and practice! :)

In math we began wrapping up the year by reviewing what we've been learning. One way we did this was with math games that asked up to think critically about mathematics. This pulled in our number sense as well as our capabilities with recalling basic facts.

We played a game called magic square. Each row of the square has to add up to the same number and only certain numbers are allowed. We used this as a launch pad to talk about balancing numbers, for example as in a budget.

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If your child did not get to do the problem below, why not try playing it with them this weekend?

We discussed how memorization of basic facts, though important, was not truly what math was about. We discussed how much of what we've learned needs to be applied to specific situations. We discussed how arithmetic is not all there is to mathematics. Computational competency is not the goal of math learning; rather, computational competency is a tool to use toward deeper math and problem solving. The calculation is actually the smallest and final step of a math problem, with most of the brain power going into the problem solving itself, deciding what calculation needs to be performed.

In science, we used the computers each day to research and write about an animal. Each group got to choose their own animal and then research it as we had been doing all year in our Field Guides. They are now working on a Google Slide presentation that discusses the description, life-cycle, and adaptations of their animal.

Did you know the pangolin is the most trafficked animal on earth and that its scales are actually made of keratin, the same material that makes up human hair and nails?



We also did some tidying up, cleaning bookshelves, and generally wrapping things up.

We also finished our final classroom read, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. We complimented each day's reading with a 5 minute viewing of the comparable scene from the three film versions (BBC's live action tv mini-series from the 80s, the animated film from the 80s, and the 2005 big budget blockbuster). We then discussed the similarities and differences between the book and films and why these differences existed, critically examining the differences between text and film.

Hello all. We're in the final stretch.

In math this week, we worked on a variety of tasks, including geometry. We examined different polygons, named them, and looked at lines of symmetry.

We played a few math games to build number sense and develop critical thinking abilities.

We also worked on another Mrs. Wickland challenge involving last week's field trip to Bowness Park (a useful real-world task estimating how many buses our school needed to hire to get the whole school and staff to Bowness).

In science, students found out we the astronauts we had designed our eco-columns for WAY back in September had made it to planet X-97a, only to discover there was problem. It seemed all the predators had adapted too well and had almost wiped out all the prey. The students were given a new task by NASA: help design new animals that could survive on planet X-97a. Using their knowledge of adaptations and plant and animal life-cycles, students began to plan.

We worked with our grade 1-2 buddies this week, planning healthy meals. We cut out pictures from flyers and glued them into our visual journals.

Hello all. A super busy week...so much so, we forgot to take many pictures or videos! On Monday, we had Jeff Stockton, a professional story teller, visit our classes. The students (and teachers) were enraptured by Jeff's enthusiastic and strong story telling. Accompanied by his harp, Jeff held us all engaged as he told us an indigenous aetiological legend about the origin of the mosquito.

In math, we worked on perimeter and area as well as Mrs. Wickland's challenge of measuring the distance from our door to the exit door we use. Students had to work in teams, determine the unit they wished to use and then perform the task. We discussed the differences in measurements, which ranged from 12m to 19m. How did we lose 7m? The students then problem-solved the issue, determining that they were not accurate in their counting or measuring.

In science/social, we are studying the Beluga sturgeon, a gigantic fish found in Ukraine. Students are learning about fish life-cycles, preservation and conservation (this type of sturgeon is endangered from over-fishing for its roe).



On Wednesday, the entire school went on a trip to Belvedere Parkway school. From there we walked to Bowness Park for a short picnic. Students had a fantastic time, and the weather was amazing (pre-smoke out!). We showed our school spirit, kindness, and generosity as we spent time with the students from other schools.

On Friday, we had a professor from the University of Calgary, as well as a PhD candidate, visit our class to observe us. We hope our learning provided them with useful data towards better understanding how people learn and the best practices for providing safe and welcoming learning environments.

Hello, once again. Please note, our Volunteer Tea will be Friday, June 7 from 10:30am-12:30pm. If you plan on attending, please RSVP me before June 1. 

We had Mr. Todos, our assistant principal and resident Ukrainian :), volunteer to lead our classes in making pysanky eggs and Ukrainian bread as part of our social studies exploration of Ukraine. 

We all had a fantastic time designing, decorating, dyeing, and waxing our eggs. A special thank you to the parent volunteers who helped out all day. We could not have done it without your help. 

Each child had to complete a design chart utilizing different symbols and colours that represented something important to them and to the person to whom they were giving their egg. We used traditional Ukrainian symbols, as well as our own invented symbols. 

Once completed, students transferred their designs to their egg and then undertook the process of dyeing and waxing their eggs. 

Enjoy some of the photos below.

This took the morning. After lunch, we moved on to baking bread. We prepared dough for the next class and baked our own buns and a traditional braided loaf. 

In math, we are continuing with perimeter and area, moving into geometry next week. 

Have a great weekend. 

In math, we've moved on to perimeter, area, units and measuring. We'll be engaging in a number of activities that will involve learning about these ideas with hands-on measuring. We began today with measuring our classroom. Students worked in different teams and attempted to measure the perimeter of our classroom. After they had finished measuring, I asked the teams to compare their measurements. They were astounded at how different they were, some off by more than 1 or 2m. We talked about why that was, and the importance of measuring accurately and how to do that.

We'll redo this activity next week and use our (accurate) measurements to create a scale drawing of our classroom, including the perimeter and area in sq. m. We'll have to decide on the proper units to use and how to scale our blueprint, as well. We'll discuss converting to different units (cm, m, mm, km, etc.).

We also had a visit this week from It's a Crime Not to Read. Calgary police officers visited and read to the students. If your child has any books from ICNTR, please have them return them to school on Tuesday. 

In social, we worked on designing Pysanky eggs, a Ukrainian tradition. On Wednesday, May 22 our class will use our designs to create their own eggs. As we'll be using dyes to color our eggs, please ensure your child comes to school prepared for this activity by supplying them with clothing they do not mind staining. These dyes will NOT come out of clothing. 

In literacy, we are working developing characters, plots, and settings towards a new short story writing project. We're looking at how professionals do it. Using my experience as an author, editor, and academic, we're examining the process of creating interesting writing, editing, and publishing. 

On May 30th our school will be going on a school-wide picnic to Bowness Park (weather permitting). We'll be bussing to a nearby school and then walking to the park. We are looking for volunteers, so if you have your up-to-date police check and are on our volunteer list, we'd love to have you help out. 

Have a great long weekend. Remember, no school Friday or Monday!

Hello.

In math we've split up a bit more than usual with 3s and 4s. Our 4s are now working on decimals, which is not part of the grade 3 Program of Studies. So, our threes have been working on developing their understanding of what fractions are, and have been relating fractions with similar denominators to each other (ordering 1/5, 3/5, 4/5, 2/5, etc.) using visual and manipulative strategies, as well as developing their mental math strategies.

Our 4s have been working on decimals, relating them to fractions, understanding place value to the right of the decimal point, as well as adding and subtracting numbers with decimals.



A few of our 4s wanted to push their limits, and have also been working on converting random fractions to decimals using division, representing that decimal as a new fraction (x/10, x/100, etc.), and then reducing it back to the original fraction they started with (see below).

For those students I gave a further of challenge of trying to do it with 1/3, and then we examined why it didn't really work very well (1/3 = .333333...) which led to a discussion of base-10, base-12 and some other ideas we discussed over the year).

If your student is struggling with the concept of place value with decimals, you can try using manipulatives (shown above) to help them visualize it. Here is a link to one way of doing it: decimals with base-10 blocks If you don't have these blocks (you probably don't!) you could use other objects such as lego. 

In science we are wrapping up our Rube Goldberg machines. We've had many challenges as well as successes in creating these. We'll have a bit of review on the Simple Machines unit and then a summative assessment (unit test) before we move on to some more plants and animals. Our room is a disaster area of cardboard, paper, and other items, so we'll all be glad to get this finished and cleaned up :).

You can see above some of our towers from our tower project. Next, as we move into collecting and graphing data in math, we'll create different graphs based around our towers (height, # of elevators, # of people they hold, etc.) to continue to tie in our math with our science.

In literacy, our grade threes have been working hard on mastering basic grammatical terms and concepts. Ask them about parsing sentences. We've been working on naming all the parts of our sentences, from prepositions and prepositional phrases, to subject, verb, noun, adjective, etc. These basic skills are foundational for good wri...sorry, I mean well writing ;).

We are also working on developing characters, plots, and settings as we work on creative writing. We also did some persuasive writing, with students selecting a superpower they would like to have and then arguing why they think it's the best one to have (on-going).

In social, we are in Ukraine now with Mrs. Wilson and are exploring the country through videos, images, and books.

Hello.

In math we are wrapping up fractions. Some students, however, still find the concept of fractions very complicated, so please continue to work with your child on noticing how fractions are used in everyday life and help get them used to them.

In our weekly Mrs. Wickland challenge, students worked on the following problem.




Several of our students, who had completed their other projects and had some time during our Catch-Up period, wanted to expand the challenge. They had been interested in the mosaics we had studied during our Tunisia unit and decided to create their own mosaic, as well as calculate its value given a triangle = 1. See some of their work below.

They then went even further! They're not quite finished yet, but through discussions with them, they have a solid plan to calculate all these shapes. We'll see if they can do it accurately! The rest of our students worked on the original project, so please ask them how they solved it. 

In social studies, Mrs. Wilson had us all fly to Ukraine to begin our final country investigation. Students had their passports stamped and approved, and we landed in Kiev. We'll finish our journey here, learning about the flora, fauna, people and cultures, geography and climate of Ukraine. 

In science, students are ironing out their blueprints, and some groups have started building their machines. We'll have a busy and messy week upcoming as our machines start to take shape. Ask your students about their part in the building process, as each student must work on a specific part of the machine themselves to ensure all the group participates. Is your student working on the wheel/axle? Maybe a lever? If so, do they know what class of lever? 

Relatedly, we'll be having a science unit test soon on our Simple Machines unit. We'll create the test together to ensure we're all in agreement about what learning intentions are fair to examine and how best to show our learning. A study guide will be created collectively, and students will be given ample time to prepare. More on this as it gets closer. 

Hello. Wow, only 2 months left! So much left to do!


Our weekly math challenge from Mrs. Wickland is below. Ask your child how they solved it!



In math, we are now on fractions. We started with a very simple definition: a part of a whole. We are looking at the idea of similar fractions (1/4, for example) representing different amounts. In other words, the idea that 1/4 of a chocolate bar is a different amount than 1/4 of a whale.

We talked about how each part is the same size in fractions (when you divide something into 4 equal parts, those parts are equal or the same size), and we looked at ways to compare different fractions, such as by visualizing them either in drawings or with manipulatives, working both with common denominators and looking at how we could compare fractions with different denominators using drawings.



Fractions are pretty tricky for many children. You can work with your child by showing them, and asking them, about fractions in everyday life. One obvious example could be money. Why is a quarter called a quarter? Talk about pizza, pies. Show them measuring cups for baking. Show them how we use fractions all the time, as well as in estimating (have them estimate half a slice of bread, a quarter glass of milk, etc.)

In literacy, we finished up and handed in our poems about Spring, using metaphors and similes. I'll have these marked this weekend and returned to students on Monday. Students made some very good comparisons, and demonstrated their understanding of what similes and metaphors are and how to use them properly.

In science, we are taking our learning about simple machines and applying it to a large project: building a Rube Goldberg machine. Students chose teams to work with, approved their teams with me, and then began working on their designs.

The project has several parts. First, students must complete a detailed blueprint of their project and have it approved by me. Their blueprint should be neat, labelled clearly, as much to scale as possible, and show the purpose of their machine (feed a treat to a pet, fill a cup with water, help someone sick or injured reach something needed). Once their blueprint is ready, they then need to create a Materials Checklist and use what is on that checklist.

We are treating this like real scientists and engineers, planning, revising, testing, and putting in some hard work. Below are some of the preliminary efforts at creating the blueprints. Once completed, we'll hang these machines on the classroom or hallway walls, or even possibly put them in our Learning Commons for all students to examine and interact with.

Help your child find some useful materials to help them make their machine. Ask them what they are trying to build and what its purpose is. Watch some videos with them on Youtube (there are a lot of them!)

In music, students who ordered them received their recorders today from Mr. Avery. Enjoy! :)

In Phys. Ed., the weather has allowed us back outside, so Mr. Ellice has been having us do a lot of running and playing on the soccer fields.

Hello again.

A short week this week.

We continue to work on our tower project, multiplication, and division. On Monday we'll be starting fractions and decimals.

In science we worked on building a car that used potential energy to move. Students used elastic bands, balloons, and other materials to move their vehicle.

Our challenge with the other grade 3/4 classes using these vehicles to move at least 2m will occur Monday. If your child did not bring any materials to build their vehicle, try to work with them this weekend to build one. They must do the work, however, and re-build their creation at school to demonstrate their understanding of what they did. I sent a handout home earlier this week. So far, we have about 3 or 4 cars.

In literacy, we started a poetry unit, focusing on using simile, metaphor, and other literary devices to write a poem about spring. We discussed what made a simile or metaphor a good one, examined some bad ones, and will now write our own.

We also continued to work on researching and writing about tigers and elephants for our Field Guide.