Bill Mason - A Rainy and Fun Halloween

Did it rain? Yes. Did it stop us from exploring the forest, catching salamanders and frogs, feeding chickadees from our hands, classifying trees, or having a great time? NO! Check out the gallery in the right side bar!

Also, several students were obsessed with feeding chickadees but may not have had a chance. I was talking to a few of them about Stony Swamp trails and how there are hundreds of chickadees there that will eat from one's hand. The best trail (Trail 26) I have found is at parking lot 11, right off of West Hunt Club road. Some information as well as a map to this trail can be found HERE.

Progress Reports and Interviews

Today, all students received their progress report. Along with this report was a yellow paper with information about interviews. The interviews are being held next Thursday (November 8). A schedule has already been drafted which pairs the English and French teacher together for the interview. Please note that some students in the pm class have not been assigned interview times due to lack of space available; however, please contact me for a phone interview if you are so inclined. If you received an interview time and either a) can't make the time or b) choose not to attend the interviews, please indicate this on the form so that I can make your time slot available to others. Thanks very much!

Bill Mason - Tomorrow!

Tomorrow (Wednesday), the grade 6 students are headed to Bill Mason Centre to investigate biodiversity in the forest. It looks like it is going to be a rainy day tomorrow so students are strongly encouraged to dress appropriately. We will be putting our belongings in a covered area but will be trekking into the woods to complete our activities. Boots and rain gear should be worn (maybe a dry pair of socks too!). We will not let  Super Storm Sandy get in the way of our learning. :) A reminder to those who have not brought their permission form to bring a note stating parental permission that they can attend the trip. Thanks.

Mystery Morning (am)

This morning, the am students participated in the mystery "The Alien Attack of the Quarterback". Possum Valley's star quarterback was supposedly abducted by aliens. He was found wandering down the county road seemingly hypnotized. Students had to take on one of the characters and record clues that were revealed throughout the activity in order to solve the crime. The students did a fantastic job asking questions and trying to use their deductive reasoning skills to solve the crime. The solution will be revealed tomorrow in class.

Job Applications - DUE Wednesday

The second round of job contracts are coming up and students are asked to apply for jobs for the period of November and December. The job list and salaries have changed slightly since the beginning of the year. Check out the updated list HERE. Students are asked to fill in their job applications electronically in order to save paper. They are encouraged to type out their response in a word document first and ensure there are no grammatical or spelling errors and then paste it into the form. Job applications are due on Wednesday and the new jobs will be posted on Thursday, November 1.
Math Economics Information INFO 2012 UpdatedOnline Job Application

Chatting with Kansas (am)

Today, as part of our Global Read Aloud (GRA), we hooked up (via Skype) with a class from Kansas to discuss the book and differences between Canadians and Americans. We taught them all about poutine, maple syrup, and hockey.... oh, and snow! They talked about experiences with tornadoes, what Kansas City was like, and all about baseball. The student moderators, who were responsible for facilitating the questions and answers, were amazing! We will continue our connections next week through Edmodo, our KidBlogs, and through Skype chats with our friends in North Carolina. Ain't technology great?!

LEGO Scientists (pm)

Today, the grade 5s continued their exploration of energy by building solar-power cars. Students were to follow instructions to construct one of two car models. Then, they were to test their cars and make improvements (e.g. adding a second solar panel, changing the wheels or gears, reducing the weight, etc...) to make their car go faster. We will be continuing with testing variables on our cars next week.