Week #34: May 13th - 17th

Dear Families,

Wishing you a safe and wonderful Victoria long weekend with your family and friends!  I've heard some students buzzing about going away camping and to their cottage.  Here's to sunshine and blue skies!  Have an absolute blast, but please continue to be safe :)    

What will I be up to?  Well, I'll be spending quality time the cottage in Baysville, and also hopefully in my perennial and vegetable garden to get them ready for the summer months.  

Have I shared that I also love gardening?  Yes indeedy, I do!  My family used to own a garden center at our motel which blossomed my passion for plants.

I've asked the class and was delighted to see that the majority of my students have vegetable gardens on their property.  This is amazing!!  So perhaps you will be getting your hands and knees dirty too as part of your weekend plans ;)  If you do, enjoy being outdoors and one with nature!

WORLD MEDITATION DAY:

World Meditation Day is coming up on Tuesday May 21st and our class will take part in the 10,000 student challenge with Dreamwalkers Meditations - 10,000 students meditating in schools all over the globe for World Meditation Day!

Meditation is a powerful tool for addressing children's mental and emotional wellbeing, as well as academic success.   Meditation and mindfulness techniques are proven to enhance concentration, self-regulation, emotional control, empathy, and learning skills.  

I've seen, heard, and felt this in our very own classroom filled with 30 children!  Honestly, I could not imagine NOT incorporating mindfulness techniques each and every day.  It's the game changing factor in why we have a CALM CLASSROOM.

These benefits not only contribute to a more conducive learning environment, but also empower your child(ren) with essential skills to navigate life's challenges.  

May also happens to be Mental Health Awareness Month, so by participating on May 21st, it will give us a well-aligned opportunity to be kind to our mind!

World Meditation Day's experience is a unique application of the health curriculum's expectations to explore a variety of techniques for emotional regulation, stress management, and mental wellness.

PARENTS - please don't forget to take time to be kind to YOUR mind as well ;)

TRACK & FIELD:

The students in grades 4-8 have had some track practices the past while and this is also our focus in gym class.  

Please note, having proper track attire and outdoor running shoes is highly recommended to help set up your child for success.

The events that we've been learning and training for are:

• Standing Long Jump
• Triple Jump
• Long Jump
• Relay
• 100m 
• 200m 
• 400m 
• 800m
• Ball Throw

It is very important that your child actively participates and does his or her personal best during these events.  I wholeheartedly understand that there may be exceptions and I will always encourage the children to 'listen to their body' as that's of utmost importance.  

Not participating because 'you don't want to' is strongly discouraged.  You never know what you can achieve if you don't try.  Remember - COMMIT, DO NOT QUIT ;)  Always believe in yourself!

BLUE MOUNTAIN FIELD TRIP:

Jot this down please, on Friday May 31st, our class will be going to Blue Mountain for our day of FUN at Blue!

If you haven't already done so, you must complete the following steps (see below) in order for your child to participate in the activities provided.  Everything you need to do is on School Cash Online.  

Any questions, please direct them to the office with the secretary :)

1.  Complete the permission form

2.  Please pay the trip fee of $45.00

3.  Sign the Blue Mountain waiver 

Thank you in advance for your diligence and efforts in completing these steps.  

I would also like to thank our parent volunteers who will be joining us Anna's dad, Molly's dad, Margot's mom, and Lucy's mom.  I will be placing the children with an adult to form 5 groups of 6 :) 

Hopefully the weather will be cooperating and it'll be a bright and shining day for US!  However, what ever the weather brings, I know we're going to be appreciative of this opportunity and have a blast!  

Please ensure your child is prepared by dressing for the temperature, pack lots of water, and snacks.  I also encourage talking with your child about responsible and respectful behaviour during a trip of this nature.  

It is very important that we stop, look, and listen when we are asked to do so to ensure everyone is SAFE and CARED FOR :)

MATH:

This week, students had the opportunity to select an item and do a product review.  Please ask your child what his or her item was that they chose and what sorts of reasons they gave to recommend it :)

It is important to learn about wants vs. needs.  I taught the children about being aware of what we really NEED versus what we WANT.

You should always ask yourself:  “Do I really NEED this or just WANT it?”

The following photos explain the steps to knowing when to spend.

DRAMA:

Here is an exciting opportunity to integrate The Arts and Drama!  We're now ready to begin our very own mini performance.  

Learning Goal:

In drama, we are learning the elements of drama and applying them.

Success Criteria:

• I use movement, actions and gestures to help portray my character
• I face the audience
• My voice is loud enough to be heard by everyone in the audience
• I have memorized my lines
• I use vocal effects (tone, pace, pitch, and volume)
• I reflect on my performance

Students will be creating a puppet, writing a script, making a mini-stage, and performing a video monologue to present.

Please have your child access Google Classroom over the weekend to ensure they continue working on their Drama & other assignments.  All expectations and due dates are laid out clearly :) 

Please note, some class time will be provided, however, it is imperative that students spend some quality time at home working through these tasks as well.  This helps build their responsibility, independent work, and initiative skills :)

Students are asked to stay in character with their puppet and have FUN!  Many thanks in advance for your support!  

LANGUAGE:

Throughout the school year, there has been an ongoing emphasis on developing and maintaining a growth mindset.

Over the next several weeks, I will be providing students with reading passages that include real and fictional stories about people who have faced challenges with a growth mindset.

This is an engaging way to involve the children in thoughtful and critical discussions about the importance of having a growth mindset.

This week, we completed the reading passage titled - COMMIT AND DO NOT QUIT.

This piece talked about Michael Jordan's road to success as well as a fictional character named Kimber who learned to put one foot in front of the other to achieve her goal.

Students entry's were a joy to read! I have sent this reading passage home for you to admire and I am confident you will seize your child's heartfelt thoughts and words too :)

Next week, we will take a look at another reading passage called "Instead of Fear, PERSEVERE!"

CELL PHONES:

A message from the office - there are no cell phones to be used unless it's for instructional purposes. For this age group and my class, your child does not need one. We have plenty of tech in our class for research purposes.

This week, we have had students bring their cell phones outside when they are to remain in their backpacks so children can enjoy the outdoors to run, jump, and play at recess.

Please remind your child of these rules set out by our school. Thank you.

TECHNOLOGY:

Here at Nottawa, we are blessed to have a class set of Chromebooks. In my 20+ teaching career I have never had this so I feel very lucky to have the technology readily available in our portable each and every day.

We have been using them for our digital workbooks, Google Classroom assignments, and research purposes.

Below, you will see Jonas and Mielle diligently working on their novel study making the most of their class time, way to go you two!

Recently I have had to speak about the proper use of technology at school. Students are reminded to use the Chromebooks at school ONLY for educational purposes.

During work periods, I give the children time to work through unfinished tasks and trust that they're utilizing class time wisely. We often talk about the importance of being attentive and accountable at all times.

There are 29 children to monitor so it can be challenging for me to be watchful of every student's tabs on their screens as I support other children at my guided table (small group instruction).

It would mean a lot to me if you could please speak to your child about the importance of integrity and to use technology provided for their academics and not "games or chats" etc ...

Thank you in advance for your support and understanding in this endeavour.

JONAS & JR. BOYS VOLLEYBALL TEAM:

Thank you Jonas for initiating and organizing a gift of gratitude for coach Wallace and I.  This speaks volumes to your 'attitude of gratitude.'  

As you know, coaching is a passion of mine and I'm grateful to have the opportunity to be with the children outside of the classroom too to play a sport.

I was very touched by the thoughts and words written in the letter and having each team member also write a message on the back.  I will cherish this forever!  Thank you, thank you!  

Thank you Finn, Malcolm, Ayden, and Jonas for your gratitude & love :)

MARGOT:

Thank you to Margot and family for continually providing tabs for kids.  Your contributions have been helping us to try and reach our goal of collecting enough tabs to fill the 5 gallon water jug, yay!

TedTALK:

I get so excited with inspiring messages and videos!  This week, I came across this awe-inspiring TedTalk and it literally left me jumping for joy because the content of its message is exactly what's been the focus for the 'climate & culture' of our classroom.  

Key words such a GRIT, RESILIENCE, F.A.I.L., and GROWTH MINDSET are all concepts your child is familiar with as we've discussed the importance of them.  YahooOooOOoOo!

The strongest predictor for success is "We have to be willing to F.A.I.L., to be WRONG, to START OVER AGAIN with lessons learned."    

As your child's teacher, I promise to continue instilling a growth mindset, utilizing their challenges as opportunities to progress, and encouraging a never give up attitude until goals are achieved! 

That's right, we got this boys and girls!! 

Now please enjoy listening, watching, and feeling the heartfelt talk by Mrs. Angela Duckworth :)  

MINDFULNESS:

The video below takes you through what being in the moment means. #Mindfulness is all about living in the PRESENT MOMENT, that is why it is a gift.

We live in an age of distraction and many of us spend the better part of our lives planning over the future or ruminating over the past.

There are so many times I hear others speaking about some space in the future, making stories, building plans. Yet, one of life's sharpest paradoxes is that our "future" hinges on our ability to live in this very moment.

"We're living in a world that contributes in a major way to mental fragmentation, disintegration, distraction, decoherence," says Buddhist scholar B. Alan Wallace.

Life unfolds in the present and yet we let the present slip away like quick sand: unseized, unrelished and totally squandered in our worries about the future or in our quest to understand the past.

John Kabat Zinn says, "Ordinary thoughts course through our minds like a deafening waterfall". And deafened we are: to the sound of the bird, to the falling rain, to the laughter of our child, to the thunder of the cloud, to the hello of a friend."

"We course through life blinded by a future and yes, blind we are: to the beauty of the spring, to the flight of a bird, to the yellow in the flower, to the hopes in our child, you the mischief in that laughter."

This moment is very powerful! This video's quest is to bring the wonderous "moment" to you so that you and your child can cultivate a sense of awareness in you.

This MOMENT just needs to be still and you can feel the SILENCE WITHIN. All you need to do is "breathe"...

Now please listen to the video and discuss some of the ways YOU CAN BE MORE PRESENT in your thoughts, words, and actions today and EVERYDAY!  

I encourage you to try some of the suggested mindful strategies and enjoy living your best life not only this long weekend, but for your whole life!

GROWTH MINDSET:

Thank you Libby for this week's mindset message!

"Don't let anyone get between you and your dreams." - Libby

The moral behind the story is that you should never let anyone stop you from following and pursuing your hopes and dreams in life. 

You know yourself best, keep a positive mindset especially in the face of adversity.  #yougotthis  

Respectfully,

Ms. Gill