Week #25: March 4th - 8th
Dear Families,
Hi! Another glorious week at Nottawa filled with smiles all around :-) Your child and I are so happy to be in class making the most of our academic, social, and emotional learning!
For me, coming to school each and every day is a blessing and like I've won the jackpot of students as I cherish my time with every child in the class.
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| Harlow quietly & lovingly created a birthday card for Kegan last month. She had the whole class sign it. It made his day! #beingkindallthetime #thatsHarlow |
This week, we enjoyed our time celebrating International Women's Day, having fun at the staff versus student volleyball game (I played), listening to Biography Presentations, taking part in The Big Crunch, and much more!
It's another thorough post (surprise, surprise, hehe), but one you'll definitely want to check out :-) So sit back, relax, and sip on a hot cup of coffee or tea everyone.
A friendly reminder that the clocks spring forward on Sunday!
INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY:
International Women's Day – celebrated annually on March 8th – is a day that commemorates the social, political and economic achievements of women and girls.
Women in different parts of the world use this day to come together to celebrate one another and rally for equal treatment and representation.
Please watch the video below to listen to the practical ways to #InspireInclusion2024. In it, you will see people of diverse backgrounds being asked what inclusion means to them.
You will soon see and hear that a lot of the responses shared in the video directly link to our classroom discussions, teachings and learning - amazing :)
Imagine a gender equal world? A world free of bias, stereotypes and discrimination.
A world that's diverse, equitable, and inclusive. A world where difference is valued and celebrated. Together, we can continue building upon women's equality :)
Collectively, we can all EmbraceEquity
Please consider celebrating women's achievement. Raising awareness against bias. Taking action for equality! #equityforall
GIRLS CAN HELP CHANGE THE WORLD:
In our class family, we are surrounded with strong, independent, and kind young girls who are consistently looking for and acting in ways to help make our classroom a better place for us all to learn and grow in!
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| Thank you girls for bringing in this special poster you made over the years and sharing your affirmations with us all. HOW INSPIRING! |
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| Check out all the affirmations by strong, independent and brave girls! |
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| Thank you to Margot for bringing in a special read aloud to share with the class about Greta Thunberg an environmental activist to honour young girls who have impacted our planet in a tremendous way! |
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| I enjoyed sharing and reading this story's message to the class. It's a CALL TO ACTION. |
Here is the digital version of the book for you to listen to :)
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| Stand up for what you BELIEVE IN. Say it loud. Say it PROUD. |
Thank you to all the children in our class family for striving to become CHANGE MAKERS! YOU ARE SEEN. YOU ARE HEARD. YOU ARE VALUED.
VIDEO MESSAGE FOR IWD2021:
I am both humbled and honoured to share that I was asked in 2021 to share a message for young girls in Simcoe County.
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| #IWD2021 Message |
To be part of this experience and represent Simcoe County District School Board is something I will always cherish. Please click on the link below to view my message of empowerment for young girls every where!
I believe in all young people and encourage YOU to advocate for yourself and others.
USE YOUR VOICE to challenge BIAS, STEREOTYPES, and DISCRIMINATION. By speaking up, WE can bring POSITIVE CHANGE.
To all the young girls and women in my life and beyond ...
"You are LOVED. You are WORTHY. You are ACCEPTED. You are ENOUGH. You have a VOICE." Keep using your VOICE to stand up for EQUALITY!
WRITING:
This week, I had my students complete an activity to help honour International Women's Day and empower young girls and women.
In doing so, we talked about an important woman in our lives - our Moms. How would you describe yours?
After our class discussion, students were asked to choose to write a message of gratitude for a female they admire to show their appreciation and love for them.
Please ask your child to share his or her message with you, it is on Google Classroom :) If they require more time to complete this task, encourage them to do so.
As I read through some of the completed entries, I was in awe of the heartfelt thoughts and words. It brought tears to my eyes.
Thank you to those students for following through on your commitments and taking the time to honour #IWD2024. I have every confidence the woman or young girl in your life will be so touched by your message of appreciation as well.
HONOURING MY MOTHER:
I would be remiss if I now didn't take a moment to honour and acknowledge my very own Mother for International Women's Day.
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| Here's my message for my Ma. I sent her a screenshot of it and she loved it :) She said, "Oh Pareenie, you made me cry." |
When I think about my Ma, the words courageous, resilient, and empathetic come to mind. It is her and solely her who has raised me to face adversity with grace and turn it into lessons to further learn and grow in my mind, body, and spirit.
I am who I am today as a daughter, sister, friend, educator, and person because of Ma's teachings, mentorship, influence, and guidance.
I will spend the rest of my days ensuring that I make her proud of me as her daughter. She is my pillar of strength. The most genuine, gentle, and generous human I know.
Ma, you're ONE OF A BEAUTY KIND, I love you with all my heart.
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| My Ma connecting with Kaelynn at our Stone Soup Celebration |
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| Thank you Ma for not only supporting me in my teaching endeavours, but caring about my students just as much as I do :) |
To conclude my appreciation for my beloved Mother, I have posted a song for her. She doesn't know I'm sharing this, but I hope she checks this blog post ;)
"I give thanks to my Holy Mother to the one who holds me dear."
It's a beautiful tune and one that I think will resonate with you too :)
CANADIAN ACTIVIST BIOGRAPHY PRESENTATIONS:
I'm filled with sheer joy and excitement as I write about your child's Biography Report Presentation. It was greaaaat to see the passion and spirit that went into preparing for this special assignment. This particular topic is near and dear to my heart so I was beaming!
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| Ayden, Jonas, and Finn dressed up in Canadian gear to honour Andre DeGrasse |
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| Thank you Libby for researching and reporting on a young Indigenous activist who is making her mark to ensure clean and sustainable drinking water is provided for ALL CANADIANS |
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| Kieran, Kaleb, and Michael ready to show & share |
I loved seeing some students dress up in strategic attire to match their activist, bringing in props, making a water filter, creating unique entrances to begin their presentation, making a game show by having audience participation by creating friendly quizzes, etc ... IT WAS MAGNIFICANT!
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| Margot & Harlow, a dynamic & creative duo |
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| Lucy & Cara all set to present, great outfits girls! |
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| Libby created a water filter to accompany her presentation. Extraordinary! |
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| An Oilers fan now & always ;) |
I want to thank parents as well for your input and giving your child the opportunity to rehearse at home so they were well prepared and knew their speaking parts. Some even printed off their slides on paper to refer to :-)
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| Congrats to William for correctly answering the first quiz question for the girls presentation |
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| William, Kegan, and James - calm and confident |
I have every confidence this experience will serve students well as they move forward in their academic journey and having to do presentations at a higher level.
Below, you will find some more images of my proud students who presented their biography this week :) Way to go boys and girls!
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| Molly displaying confident body language and pride! |
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| August sharing his biography, great detail! |
SCIENCE:
We have started a new unit in science which focuses on Light & Sound. I have posted the slide deck on Google Classroom for students & families to refer to.
The slides are interactive so students can complete specific questions as I teach the unit at home and at school. Please encourage your child to do so when I assign these. It will be indicated in the agenda. Thank you.
MATH:
This week I provided students with a challenging culminating math problem to help consolidate their learning for division and multiplication.
Your child has come home with their completed sheet along with my example (below). Please discuss their solution and support them in edits if needed.
Over the March Break, I encourage students to please make some time to practice their math facts so they become more and more comfortable and confident with their 0x - 12x times tables.
FRENCH:
A message from Mme Power - a reminder to please vote for your favourite songs in Match #2 for "Manie Musicale." The voting polls are only open until Saturday March 9th at 9:00PM for this match.
All information for voting is posted on Google Classroom, but your child can also access it here: https://s.surveylegend.com/-Nr1KESjmpMBehb73RcN
THE BIG CRUNCH - WHAT IS IT?
On Thursday afternoon, students from grades K-8 took part in a school-wide initiative called The Big Crunch.
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| Thank you for the apples! |
It was a time dedicated to celebrating healthy food at school and highlighting the need for universal, health school food program for Canada. The Coalition for Healthy School Food has hosted the Great Big Crunch since 2020.
Thank you to everyone for actively participating and appreciating the value of healthy & active living! A big thank you to our school for providing nutritious and delicious apples to EVERY PERSON TO ENJOY! Check us out below as we took our BIG CRUNCH.
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| CRRRRUUUNCH! |
MALCOLM:
Congratulations to our very own Malcolm who confidently and calmly delivered his speech on Thursday evening.
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| The 2024 Junior & Intermediate Speech Competitors |
Malcolm was the very first speaker and WE ARE ALL sooo proud of his achievement!
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| Handsome & Humble |
These are some photos from this experience and I bet you too can feel the pride and joy that was felt. Malcolm, YOU ARE AN IMPACTFUL PUBLIC SPEAKER. I am honoured to continue to learn & grow with you this school year. Keep being wonderful YOU, kiddo!
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| I had the pleasure of being in attendance. Thank you Mrs. Bolton for capturing this moment. I adore your son for who he is #inspirational |
CHESS PARTICIPANTS:
Congratulations to our chess champs who represented our class family so lovingly and proudly on Monday at their final tournament.
I heard that each player participated with their personal best! Chess is one of those games which requires strategic thinking. The ability to think ahead and plan several moves in advance.
This is crucial in chess and these 4 students (along with the other Nottawa kids) certainly have this ability and should be commended for this skillset :) Way to go!
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| Check out their smiles, it says it all :) The kids had a blast Monday! Thank you to Hazel's Mom for sharing this sweet photo with me, I love it! |
COLQUHOUNS, KALEB, & MIELLE:
Thank you to Mielle, the Colquhoun girls, and Kaleb for contributing Tabs for Kids this week! It means so much to the cause we're supporting! The Tabs for Kids Fund works to raise money to purchase accessibility devices for children. Just one tab can contribute to this, wow!!
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| Harlow |
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| Kaleb |
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| Mielle |
I'm sooo excited to see how much of this 18L water jug we're going to fill by the end of June.
Looks like we're getting close to the 1/4 mark, yahoo! Keep the tabs coming boys and girls :)
JAMES:
Thank you to James for sharing an activity that he completed at Oxford Learning Centre. It's titled: Can You Swap Perfect for Progress? This links directly to what we've been focusing on all year :)
As you can see from the page (photo above), its focus is on developing a GROWTH MINDSET vs. PERFECTIONIST MINDSET.
To me, if we focus on the latter (perfection), it may cause worry, stress, anxiety, and depression in our child(ren) because we are always pressing on the goal (end result), not the journey or process to become better at something.
In a growth mindset your starting point is that you want to become a better person and learn something new.
In a perfectionist mindset your starting point is that you need to achieve everything right then and now or else without it "you are not good enough."
In class, we are consistently learning to groooooow in our thoughts, words, and actions to not only become better students, but more importantly, BETTER PEOPLE so that we can make an impact and help our world.
At the end of our discussion, James said to me, "Hey Ms. Gill, look at my hoodie, I think you'll like it."
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| Dear Person Behind Me: The world is a better place with you in it. Remember that. Love the person in front of you. |
Oh my goodness! Not only do I like it, I loooooove it! By simply wearing a message like this it can literally turn someone's day around from a negative to a positive one.
I have a similar sweater and the amount of compliments I've received is heart soaring because people have come up to me and said, "Thanks for this, I needed that more than you know."
Way to go James! I'm now going to have to go to Walmart and purchase a coloured hoodie like yours so we both can spread kindness and offer support to those around us :)
MINDFULNESS:
Please take a moment to check out TAIKO Studios which presents the story of Luna, a vibrant young Chinese American girl who dreams of becoming an astronaut.
From the day she witnesses a rocket launching into space on TV, Luna is driven to reach for the stars. In the big city, Luna lives with her loving father Chu, who supports her with a humble shoe repair business he runs out of his garage.
As Luna grows up, she enters college, facing adversity of all kinds in pursuit of her dreams.
To all the young girls (boys) at our school, NEVER GIVE UP ON YOUR HOPES & DREAMS!
GROWTH MINDSET:
Thank you to my dear family friend and inspirer Mrs. Roth for sharing this mindset message with me many years ago (2013 to be exact ;). I cherish it to this day and just had to extend it to my families.
Be like a TREE. We can weather any "storm" if we set our minds and hearts to it. #strongbravegracious
With my utmost appreciation & respect,
Ms. Gill
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