February Grade 4/5 Newsletter
It is hard to believe that the school year is nearly half over! Students are ready to present their speeches. Time has been allotted for 4 to 5 classroom presentations over the next two weeks. Two finalists will represent our class at the school level competition February 18th. Please join us on that date if your schedule permits. The time of the finals will be in student agendas.
Grade 5 News:
Our Grade 5 Outdoor Ed. trip on Wednesday is mostly an outdoor event, The weather forecast is predicting low temperatures for that day. Please ensure that your child is dressed appropriately for the weather. Lunch packaging will return home with students as there are no disposal facilities on-site.
Over the next two weeks, Grade 5 students will prepare clay figures and story boards in anticipation of the claymation workshop on Wednesday, February 25th. A registration form is attached to this newsletter.
Grade 4 News:
A trip is in the planning stages for our Grade 4 students to attend Hamilton Place for a performance on Hansel & Gretel by the Canadian Youth Ballet Ensemble and the National Ballet Company of Cuba. Details to follow.
Our appreciation is extended to Home and School for underwriting the cost of the MaxTell School presentation today. Grade 5 students attended the performance, while Grade 4 students attended the workshop as well as the performance.
Curriculum Notes:
We are finishing our study of 2D geometry this week (quiz planned for Wednesday) and we will begin a study of multiplication and division. Grade 4 students will complete sound activities this week (quiz to follow). A study of Matter and Materials will follow building on our study of Light/Sound.
Grade 5 students have started a study of ancient civilizations in Social Studies. We will be comparing Egyptian and Greek civilizations. On Friday students will be embalming their own mummy! (A "Mummy" volunteer or two would be very welcome as this is a messy, labour intensive activity.) If you are available, please let me know via the agenda and I'll be in touch.
Kudos:
Thank you to Jenna and Natalya for taking the initiative with "Sleeping Children Around the World".
Congratulations to Alex for winning the initial stage of the CanWest-Global Spelling Bee.
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Grade 4/5 Newsletter
I hope your Christmas holiday was safe, enjoyable and provided an opportunity to connect with family and friends. Thank you again for your cards and gifts - they were much appreciated!
It was nice to come back and see our school featured in the Hamilton Spectator. Many students submitted art, poetry and opinion pieces but due to space limitations, only nine submissions were chosen.
Trips:
Our school skating trip is planned for Thursday, January 15th. Please return trip permission and pizza forms a.s.a.p. Please join us if you can. Our class will be on the first bus leaving after morning announcements and returning intime for 1st nutrition break. Helmets are a must!
Last term our class followed The Spectator serial story Winner's Circle. A tour of The Spectator (no charge) is being planned for January or early February (date to be announced).
Attached to this newsletter is a trip form and information on a claymation workshop that applies to our Grade 5 students.
Both the outdoor education program, and the claymation workshop are full day events. Grade 4 students will join Mrs. Reeves class on those days. As with any trip, students who, for one reason or another, are not attending; arrangements can be made to have that student supervised in another classroom.
Can-West Global Spelling Bee:
Our school competition will be this Friday, January 16th. Given the limited number of participants, the spelling bee will be in class. The winner will complete a written qualifier. If he/she scores high enough, that student will be invited to participate in the city-wide spelling bee. Congratulations to our students who have registered to participate and good luck on Friday!
Curriculum Notes:
Grade 4: Light/Sound. Students will construct a pinhole camera in the next two weeks following in class experiments with light. The focus will then shift to the properties of sound.
Grade 5: Human Body/Organ Systems. A series of quizzes on each system is currently underway. Small groups of students have mapped the body systems, each group taking responsibility for one system. After this unit, the focus will shift to Social Studies - Ancient Civilizations.
Currently both Gr. 4 and Gr. 5 students are working on 2D geometry.
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Grade 4/5 Newsletter
December seems to have ushered itself in with a taste of winter weather. Recesses are active times and invariably snow ends up inside winter footwear. You may wish to pack an extra pair of socks in your childs backpack to keep feet dry throughout the day.
Newspapers in Education:
As you are probably aware, our class has been receiving the Hamilton Spectator Mondays and Wednesdays and collecting chapters of The Winner's Circle.
On January 9th, our Grade 4 and 5 students will have their work showcased on The Spectator's Pulse page. Our students have been busy with poetry, creative writing and visual art projects. Our submissions go in December 9th. A month later we'll see what work was selected as the spotlight shines on Greensville!
Term 1 Interviews:
With term reports come parent-teacher interviews. I look forward to meeting with you this week. To accommodate everyone, interviews are scheduled for 15 minutes in length. Please try to be prompt and come prepared with any questions you may have. It's a trek to the portable through the ice and snow. I've placed some chairs at the back for those who arrive a little early.
Christmas Concert:
Our class has been busily preparing for the upcoming Christmas Concert December 11th and 12th. A special thank you to Arden Goldrick, Meghan L'Homme, Jorna Hils and Jenna Ryenga for their initiative in putting this production together.
A reminder to send in your ticket number requests a.s.a.p. to ensure those requests can be met.
The Christmas break will soon be here. My sincere wishes for a safe and happy holiday.
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NEWSLETTER November 12
Dear Parents:
Out unpredictable weather is a sure sign it's November. For some reason outdoor duty seems especially long as the temperature drops. Three layers of clothing is the expectation when the mercury drops. Students can remove or add layers as the weather dictates. It is likely, now that our recent spell of mild weather has passed, that we'll be looking at "three layer days" from here on in.
Upcoming Events:
November 13 - multicultural meal
November 17 - Early Dismissal
December 2 - Report cards go home, Boris Brott Concert, Hamilton Place
December 5 - P.D. Day (Interviews)
December 11/12 - Christmas concert
December 19 - Last day before Christmas break
Multicultural Meal:
Thank you for your response to our Multicultural Meal initiative. It should be quite the event for our Grade 5 students. We are asking students to bring their own cutlery, which they can rinse and bring home at the end of the day. It is more environmentally friendly instead of using plastic cutlery. Parents are welcome to join us (2nd Nutrition Break). The plan is to serve the food in Mrs. Kosempel's room, buffet style, and eat it in my classroom. It should be cozy or as the restaurant industry describes it - "Intimate Surroundings".
Evaluation:
I have attached the general purpose rubrics to the newsletter (writing, oral presentations) that will be used throughout the year. The emphasis in Oral Communication is delivery (voice projection and eye contact) as well as content. The Writing rubric emphasizes construction and editing. A similar rubric for Visual Art will be sent home shortly.
Curriculum Notes:
Math:
Gr. 4 and Gr. 5 students are about to complete our study of Measurement, Length/Time. A quiz is scheduled for Friday, November 14th involving perimeter, conversion of metric units and elapsed time. Data management
Social Studies:
Gr. 4 students are mid-way through the unit Medieval Times. The brass rubbing activity is scheduled for Friday, November 14th. Castle projects are due Monday, November 24th.
Gr. 5 students are continuing with their study of Government. A quiz is scheduled for Tuesday, November 18th, focusing on immigration and citizenship, the electoral process and different systems of government.
Literacy:
In Gr. 4/5 our focus turns from Biography to Poetry. It is hoped that students will publish their own poems using a variety of styles (i.e. diamante, cinquain, haiku) as a culminating activity. Many students need to renew their commitment to Reading Logs. They are due each Friday and should reflect a daily reading.
Science:
Our next unit is Human Organ Systems and will commence in December.
I look forward to meeting with you on December 5th, and discussing your child's progress. In addition to reviewing the report card, we can look at the recent D.R.H. (reading assessment) scores.
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NEWSLETTER - October 6
Dear Parents:
It was a pleasure to meet with many of you at the recent "Meet the Teacher" night. If we haven't met yet and you happen to be at the school, please feel free to drop by before or after school.
Timetable Changes:
A revised timetable went home Friday. The revisions are a Math and French period have flipped on Wednesdays and a Team Teaching period in Monday's Literacy block.
On Mondays Mrs. Reeves, Mr. Carle and myself will divide the Gr. 4's and my Grade 5's into three smaller groups and rotate these groups, every two weeks, through centres related to the writing process. Our current focus is developing effective written paragraphs with a balance of fact and opinion.
October Dates:
October 9th Learning Community Day - early dismissal
October 14th Art Gallery Hamilton trip (Grade 5)
October 15th Art Gallery Hamilton trip (Grade 4)
October 24th P.A. Day
Homework:
Homework usually consists of individual work not completed that day or, in some cases, a reinforcement activity related to a new theme or concept. Homework should usually take no longer than 15-20 minutes to complete. I am aware that students have extra-curricular activities and they occur on different nights for different students.
Unfinished work or an assigned worksheet needs to be completed in order to take it up together as a class. To ensure its completion students are asked, if necessary, to complete during one of the two nutrition breaks.
Daily reading at home is also an expectation. To improve recall of number facts, students are encouraged to commit to memory basic addition, subtraction, and multiplication facts. This will enable students to problem solve with confidence and accuracy.
Curriculum Notes:
As we finish place value in Math, the next focus will be Data Management. Students in Grade 5 will complete a board wide math assessment in November.
In Social Studies we will be looking at Canadian Government (Gr. 4 and 5) with participation in a school wide election later in the month. Students (Gr. 4 and 5) are asked to select and read a biography in anticipation of a book report at the end of the month.
Any questions or concerns don't hesitate to contact me at david.harper@hwdsb.on.ca . I check my e-mail at least once a month.
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NEWS FROM 5H
Dear Parents:
Welcome to Grade 5! I wanted to get a note out before the annual September paper blizzard that comes home in those backpacks.
I'm looking forward to this year. It's good to be teaching Grade 5 again. The best seven years of my teaching career were spent teaching Grade 5. At Greensville, Grade 5 means getting ready to leave at year's end and being prepared for Middle School.
I was glad to see a classroom of familiar faces today. They should make a good fit in a very short period of time. Two new students - Alex and Nathan - will make a nice addition to the mix.
A few thoughts:
Reading Logs:
The expectation is that students will make daily entries and submit to me on Friday's.
Phys Ed:
Please use the timetable that went home yesterday. On Phys. Ed. days students are expected to change into shorts, t-shirt and running shoes. If not in proper attire, students will not be able to participate in classes. Proper shoes are the #1 priority - flipflops, clogs and sandals will not be allowed.
Water Bottles:
Students are encouraged to bring a water bottle to class in order to minimize trips in and out of the portable.
Literacy:
Students are expected to have a book at home for individual reading as well as one 'on the go' at school. Each month will end with a book report due. Our libraries school and classroom have a good inventory to choose from.
Scholastic:
I don't solicit Scholastic orders. I'll make the order forms available. When they go home, it's a matter of choice if you want to send it back in.
Feel free to drop by before or after school and say hello. If we don't meet beforehand, I'll look forward to seeing you at the annual 'Meet the Teacher' night on September 18.
p.s. I'll send home another note once the 'paper blizzard' dies down.
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