Monday, May 26, 2014

Week of May 26 - 30, 2014

Thursday HW
1.  Social Studies project is due on Wednesday June 4.  Students should have at least one of the two organizers complete for tomorrow.  The second one should be finished by Monday.  Good copy work starts on Monday.

Wednesday HW
1.  Patterning Unit 10 test tomorrow.
2.  Probability Unit 11, Lesson 1.  We had ample time to complete this in class both yesterday and today, so this shouldn't interfere with any test preparation.
3.  Social Studies project is due next Wednesday.  We are working on it everyday in class, and have been doing so with the exception of yesterday and today.


Tomorrow we leave for the Stratford trip at 11:20 AM.  We are expected back at 7:00 PM.  Please ensure there is an adult over age 18 present to collect your child when we return.  Students will not be permitted to leave the school unaccompanied at that hour, regardless of the daylight prevailing.  Thank you for your cooperation.

Students are eating their lunches in class from 10:35 to 11:20 tomorrow morning.  They should have a healthy snack and water or a juice box for the ride home, given the lateness of the return trip.  There is no refrigeration, so students should bring items that will not spoil (crackers, fruit, carrots, celery, cucumber, etc.).  Food like chips, popcorn, bags of cookies or other shared treats should not be taken on the trip.  Milk (mostly on the bus) and gum are prohibited on the trip as well.

I am permitting students to bring electronics at their own risk.  No photos of other students should be taken using these devices, nor should texting take place on the bus.  As well, students can bring a small amount of money for the gift shop, pending the approval of their parent group leaders.  Students shouldn't regard a gift shop visit as a "human right".  If the shop is busy, overcrowded or other factors enter the decision, they may not get to visit it.  I have prepared students for this possibility in class today. The primary purpose of the visit is a trip to a world-class theatre event.

Monday HW
1.  MMS Lesson 6, Unit 10
2.  There will be a Unit 10 Patterning test on Thursday May 29 this week.
3.  We have had many class periods to conduct research with books I have gathered and internet resources with our school laptops.  I've made a special effort to ensure that students with IEPs have plenty of computer option access.  We've also conferenced together with each grouping to discuss how to use the organizers I handed out.  The topic is laid out with detail in the Social Studies booklet on page 31.
The project is due in class, on a bristol board sheet I provided, next Wednesday June 4.
No extensions are possible.  Students should ensure that their materials are at school every day this week to best use the clas time provided.

Thursday, May 15, 2014

Week of May 12 - 16, 2014

Thursday HW
1.  MMS Unit 10, lesson 4.
2.  Poetry Log good copy due tomorrow.  We have worked on this in class for four periods.
3.  Science experiment report due tomorrow in the Changes booklet.  We performed five change station experiments in pairs on Wednesday and revisited them today.
4.  Home Letter:  "Social Media Fitness"
There will be a presentation for parents and students on May 28 at &PM at Runnymede Junior and Senior PS by Chris Vollum (he has a personal website you can Google).  The topic is awareness of and safe online use of popular social media platforms (facebook, snapchat, instagram, tumblr., vine, etc) with a focus on digital citizenship, privacy online, risk management, and effective positive use of these media applications.

Monday, May 5, 2014

Week of May 5 - 9, 2014

Monday HW
1.  Book report is due on Thursday May 8.
2.  Social Studies topics and partners were chosen Friday.  Research for this project should be on-going.  The textbook has some useful starting points.
3.  All Library books are due back at school on Monday, May 12.

Due to the Seussical and this book report I will not be assigning any formal homework this week.  There are, however, in-class assignments that students should be finishing during the time provided in the day.  I would consider these to be testable materials.  I try to be generous in allotting in-class time to work on these tasks.