Mr. Kallhood's Blog

Another busy week in our classroom!

 

This coming Monday, at 1:00 p.m., 5 of our students will participate in the school-wide Canspell Spelling Bee. I hope parents are able to come watch this event and cheer on the contestants.

 

Here is a brief overview of what took place this week:

 

L.A. : After receiving a letter in the school mail from a school in Winkler Manitoba, our students drafted a letter for a prospective pen pal as part of the Great Canadian Mail Race.  Students wrote a letter telling a little bit about themselves, and then picked the address of another canadian school out of a jar, and addressed their letter to that school’s grade 3 class. We are waiting to see who gets the first response. Students read a book about dinosaurs, and then helped their kindergarten buddies create a mini book about dinosaurs. Students continued to learn about synonyms and antonyms this week through several smartboard lessons, and worksheet activities. Students learned how to write the letters h, k, o and p in handwriting this week.

Science: Students continued working on their popsicle stick bridges. This week, students assembled the components made so far into the sides for their bridge. Students watched several dvd segments about difficult engineering feats around the world, as well as segments from the Building Big dvd about bridges and tunnels. During computer time, students completed worksheets on skyscrapers by looking for information on the Building Big website.

S.S.: this week students started working out of the Nelson Atlas series. Students completed  two activities about the  the different regions of Canada.

 

Math: The focus this week has been learning about the different denominations of  Canadian coins we use. students took part in several hands-on smartboard activities, worked in the Jump math books, and also spent one period using “play” money to show various amounts. We started working on making change, which will be a focus for next week.

Fine Arts: This week students learned a little about the artist Ted Harrison, looked at some of his artwork, and participated in a directed drawing activity to produce a painting in the style of Ted Harrison.

It looks like winter has finally arrived! This week has been unseasonably cold, which meant a number of “in days” for students.  Hopefully it will warm up next week so that students can get back outside during recess and lunch and get some fresh air and exercise.

Here is a quick rundown of what has been happening in our classroom over the past two weeks:

Language Arts: students completed their “My Favourite Place ” paragraph; students took part in a classroom spelling bee. The five finalists are: Zoe, Jarlath, Jessica, Pavan, and Sierra. Good luck to these students as they move onto the school-wide spelling bee, which takes place on Monday, January 30th at 1:00 p.m. in the gym. Parents are encouraged to attend this event and support their child. Students learned about antonyms through several differnt activities; students completed weekly journal entries; students completed a reading comprehension activity about structures and materials; students completed our term two whole class reading assessment.

Social Studies: Students completed, over several periods, a mapping activity called The Rivers of Canada. Students started working on afinal mapping activity called The Lakes of Canada.

 

Science: We have started a new Science unit about structures and materials. One of the main projects, which we started this week, will require students to build the strongest bridge they can using 100 popsicle sticks, and white glue as an adhesive. All students will build the same type of bridge, but will get to decide where the final 20 popsicle sticks will do the most good. We will build the bridge in stages, first constructing the components of the bridge, and then students will glue the components together, and add the final 20 sticks. I am in the process of organizing a field trip to TRU to have our bridges tested, and will let parents know what the date will be when I know, in case you would like to join us. This week we put together the top and bottom side rails, and 8 triangle pieces for the sides. Students read about, and completed, several activities on the Building Big website in the computer lab, and also watch two corresponding videos from the Building Big series of dvd’s. Today students observed a salmon dissection, hosted by Mrs. Nicklas. Although a few students were a bit squeamish, it was a great learning experience. This activity was well-timed, as it also marked the birth of our first alevin in our salmon tank. Taylor, who was the first to spot the alevin named it “Lucky” .

FineArts: Today, we recorded the Terry Fox Song, and worked on completing a poster for the 2012 poster contest for the Terry Fox Run. A few students didn’t quite finish their poster, and I am expecting them to complete them for homework by Tuesday, as I have to have them in the mail by Tuesday afternoon at the latest. Students took part in the second Y.P.C. concert last week. It was a Brass quartet that chronicled the evolution of music through the ages. It was well-rehearsed, informative and quite funny at times.

Career and Health: Over the past 2 weeks we have been learning about the four main food groups. We also have been learning about the nutritional value of certain foods, and how to read the labels on the side of food and beverage packages to determine which foods are a better choices than others.

Math: We have been working on a variety of math skills to help students become proficient with multiplication and the times tables. Students also learned strategies based around learning to break up large numbers in their head so that they can make mental calculations in their head, and then add the two numbers together to get the answer. I have started sending home practice sheets for the times tables, and will continue to do this for the next few weeks. I have told students that they must do equations up to 6 x6, and to look at the rest as challenge questions. I check their work every morning when I look at agendas. Students took part in two sessions of  Math Games in the gym last week. This activity was sponsored by Mrs. Telford’s class.

 

 

Happy New Year To All!

 

I hope everyone had a great Holiday Break. We have now completed our first week back after the break, and students are once again settled into our daily routines. Here is a Quick breakdown of the activities/skills covered:

L.A. – Students completed a poster that showed some of the things they did over the break; students started a Write Traits activity titled ” Don’t Wander – Stay on the Track” which is meant to help students learn to stay on topic when writing a paragraph; students started learning handwriting skills. This week we learned the letters i, t. e and l; students started practicing for the upcoming Canspell Spelling Bee. Students have been given a brochure that contains the words they need to work on. Our class will hold its own Bee next week, and the top three or four students will move onto the school-wide Bee which will take place in mid February; students completed a weekly journal activity.

S.S. – Students completed an activity based on the Capital Cities of the provinces and territories of Canada.

Science – Students started a unit on Structures and Materials. We worked out of the Nelson Literacy text, and completed an activity about forces on the Building Big website during computer time.

Health and Career – We started a unit on nutrition this week. We looked at the Canada Food guide and discussed what the different groups are. We also looked at breakfast cereals, and compared the fat, sugar and sodium levels of some of the favourites in our class by using the nutrition guide on the side of the package. The focus was to try to get students to realize that there are choices to make when buying food, and that these choices, over time can have long  term impacts on one’s health and well-being.

Fine Arts – This week we recorded the song I Am a Coho, and students created artwork to go with the new Youtube video which is now up and running. You can view it at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6LvMPsbbZCU&context=C3be0ac2ADOEgsToPDskIJVK0DkamGzaJ5sr5wkoyv. If this doesn’t work, simply go to You tube, and type in Dkall56 in the search bar.

 

Finally, I have had a number of parents ask me what happened to our Youtube video of Santa You’re A Hippy which I posted before the break. Shortly after I posted the video, someone posted a comment asking where the song came from. I mistakenly stated that I had adapted the song from a poem I read many years ago. Shortly after this, I received a message from a fellow saying that in fact he had written the song in the early seventies.  When I realized that I had had a memory lapse, and I had lumped this song together with a handful of songs I wrote about twenty years ago during the time I was doing my teaching practicum, I thought it best to pull the song until I was able to give proper credit. As it turns out, the song was released in the 1970s featuring “Gus Schwartz and the Christmas Kids”, a pseudonym for Denis Thievin in accompaniment with three or four kids from Uplands Elementary in Penticton.  Denis  played keyboards as well, and still remember the sidemen, two of whom are his brothers.  As Denis told me in a recent e-mail, “As gross as that old recording is, it’s apparently still playlisted seasonally by some radio stations since I continue getting small royalties more than 30 years later.  We’ve never posted it to YouTube for no reason other than laziness, but now that you know the history, you’re always welcome to do so.”  I thank Denis for filling me in on the background on this song, as it is a christmas favourite in my classroom.

Today we did an activity that required students to come up with 3 New Year’s Resolutions. I have chosen one from each students list, and compiled it below for your reading pleasure. I told my students that their parents may hold them to their promises!

Liam: I will help my mom do chores

Zoe: I’ll be the best Little sister my big brother ever had!

Trista: I will stop watching TV for a while.

Jessica: I will spend less time on the computer.

Matt: I will read 20 books.

Sierra: I’ll make a goal to exercise 60 minutes a day.

Mitch: I will stop playing video games.

Harleen: I always eat junk food, so I am going to stop.

Joel: This year I am going to play outside more.

Taylor: I will listen to my mom.

Pavan: I will stop playing my playstation2 for 4 hours a day.

Amber: I will stop watching TV all the time.

Ethan: I will stop playing video games.

Lena: I will try to get my work done on time.

Jason: I will exercise more.

Well, it was a busy week, and although a considerable amount of time was dedicated to rehearsing for the Christmas Play, we did manage to do some school work as well. I felt that our class, along with Mr. Sofiak’s class showed a lot of enthusiasm and Christmas spirit when performing our song the Snowman Stomp. Thanks to all family members and friends who attended this event. One more week, and we can all take a well deserved break!

 

Here is a rundown of what took place in our classroom this past week:

L.A.: Students chose  a different Christmas story every day, read the story and then wrote a paragraph and drew a picture about the story. Students were expected to include details about the plot, the setting, and the characters, as well as give it a rating from 1 to 5 based on how much they enjoyed it.

S.S.: Students completed a mapping activity called Canada and The World. Students compared the sizes of the continents and coloured in the corresponding map.

Computers: Students completed a webquest activity in which they clicked on certain links on a provided website to learn about different Christmas traditions around the world.

Fine Arts: Students rehearsed their song for the Christmas play. Students sand Christmas songs daily, and with their Kindergarten buddies on Friday. Students constructed their own Christmas stocking, which students were told might be filled with some goodies from Santa if he has heard they have been good   Students also worked together to create a large Christmas tree with ornaments which  now hangs in the hallway outside our classroom.

Health and Career: Students continued with Listening Skills activities. Students did a couple more drawings that were to describe a scene read to them by me. On Friday, students completed their first activity in which they listened to me read a short article to them ( This one was about astronauts) and then had to answer a number of questions to show their comprehension. Many students had difficulty showing a strong  understanding of the article, and I will be giving them tips in the week to come to help them improve their listening skills.

Math: Students completed the following skills in their Jump Math books this week: counting by 2′s, 3′s, and 5′s; counting backwards by 2′s and 5′s; counting by 10′s; counting by 2′s,3′s,5′s and 10′s; counting by 100′s; regrouping, and advanced regrouping.

 

I’d like to thank all of the parents that made the time to meet with me and discuss their child’s progress on Friday.  If you wish to meet me but were unable to do so on Friday, please email me at dkallhood@zimbra@sd73.bc.ca to set up an appointment.

Here is a quick rundown of what took place in our classroom last week:

L.A.: Students wrote a letter to Santa using a word processor in the computer lab, and addressed an envelope. The focus was on using the proper conventions when writing a letter, and labelling an envelope. Students took part in another Write Traits lesson called May I take your order. Students first analyzed several pieces of writing with me to look at whether or not the information was organized in a logical way, and then were given a mixed up paragraph that they had to put back together in a way that made sense. Students also started on a short story writing activity, in which they placed stars randomly on a piece of paper, and then were asked to look for a picture (constellation) in it, and write a story that explained the constellation. Students completed a journal activity on Friday.

Science: Students completed the skywheel activity started last week, and we went over the answers together. We spent time reviewing how to use a skywheel.

Social Studies: Students continued to learn new mapping skills. This week students completed activities on landforms and on borders and boundaries.

Math: Students worked out of their Jump Math books and completed the following lessons:  Comparing Numbers; Comparing and Ordering Numbers; Differences of 10 and 100; Comparing numbers (advanced); Counting by 2′s; Counting by 5′s and 25′s.

Fine Arts: Students continued working on their performance for the upcoming Christmas Play. Students completed a directed drawing activity using pencil, sharpie and pastels, called Winter Cardinal.

This week was another busy one in our classroom. It’s hard to believe that it is almost December. Here is a quick rundown of the skills and activities covered this week.

L.A.:  We continued working with the Write Traits program. Lesson 4, titled “Cut It Down To Clear It Up”  focused on teaching students how to “write small” to make their writing easier to handle. Students examined a paragraph that showed how to focus on a topic, then  worked on editing a paragraph that failed to stay on topic. Lesson 5, titled “Follow the Leader,” focused on the importance of writing a good lead when starting a writing project. Students looked at a number of examples of good and poor leads, and were very successful in identifying the poor examples. Students then chose a topic from a list provided, and worked at first writing a boring lead, then attempted to write one that was more interesting. Quite a few students struggled with this, but it is a topic that we will revisit throughout the year, with a focus on getting better at engaging the reader.

As always, students completed a journal entry on Friday afternoon. When writing a journal entry, students are expected to print a minimum of five sentences. The main purpose is to give students an opportunity to write about what is happening in his/her life outside of school, but students are also expected to explain at least one thing he/she learned that week. Although students are expected to show competence in the conventions of writing taught to them so far in school, I do not put an emphasis on spelling; this is so that students can simply write down what is important without worrying about using a word that might be difficult to spell, but also, of equal importance, to show growth over time. My expectation is that by comparing a beginning of the year entry to one near the end of the school year, one will see marked improvement.

Students completed one or two Reading Power activities this week.

Science: This week, we focused on constellations. We discussed what they are, and why some stars appear brighter than others. Students also learned why we see different constellations here in the Northern hemisphere than people in the Southern Hemisphere see where they live. Students constructed a skywheel, which shows the main constellations of the Northern Hemsphere, and when they can be seen in the night sky. Students will be bringing their skywheel home next week, and expected to try and identify some constellations using this tool. Hopefully you can make a bit of time to help your child with this. In the computer lab, students worked at finding out information about the constellation Orion on a website provided for them.

Social Studies:  Students continued to work on mapping skills. This week, students learned about scale, and completed an activity to show their understanding. Students also started labelling and colouring a map of Canada.

Health and Career:  This week we started a unit on listening skills. Listening attentively is a skill that many students need to improve at; I can recall countless times when I have had to re-explain a concept or set of instructions because a student was not paying attention. To begin with, students listened to a descriptive paragraph read  twice, and then had to create an illustration that showed the main elements read to them. We will continue with this activity for a week or two, and then we will progress to having students listen to a short story or article, and then answer a number of comprehension questions to show that they were paying attention.

Math:  This week students reviewed the concept of place value, worked on writing and reading number words, writing numbers and representing numbers with base ten materials (manipulatives). Students also drew base ten models for numbers given to them.

Fine Arts: Students completed their 3-D coho salmon this week. Last week students worked with their Kindergarten buddy to paint both halves. This week, they put the finishing details (fins, gills etc) on them, cut out both sides, glued the halves together, and stuffed the insides with small rolled-up balls of newspaper. Students left a small opening for the stuffing, so the final step was stapling the hole closed.  This week we also started learning the song we will perform as part of this year’s Christmas play – The Snowman Stomp. This year’s performance is a spin-off of the popular tv show “So You Think You’re Smarter Than a Fifth Grader” and promised to be entertaining. As stated previously, there will not be an evening performance this year, so hopefully you can adjust  your schedule so that you can attend. There will be performances on December 8th and 9th at 1:10 p.m.

 

Just a reminder that Friday Dec.2nd is an early closure day (12:30 p.m.) and that Monday Dec. 5th is a non-instructional day.

Just a note to let parents know that this year’s Christmas Concert will take place on December 8th and 9th from 1:10 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. There will not be an evening performance this year. I hope this information helps if you need to adjust your work schedule.

Here is a brief rundown of the lessons and activities that took place in our classroom last week: Nov.14 – 18

L.A. :

- Students each made a thank-you page for a book we put together for Mrs. Alm

- Write Traits; paragraph writing about their favourite restaurant

- Write Traits; Trash or Treasure – learning how to keep what is good and how to throw out what is not needed in your writing

- Students completed several Reading Power activities.

- S.S:

- students completed a mapping activity on landforms

Science:

- Students completed one or two more planet activity sheets

- Students watched a dvd on the Earth’s rotation and revolution

Fine Arts:

- Students finished painting their paper mache planets

- Students created snowflakes by cutting out designs in folded paper

- Students learned the Coho Song

Health and Career:

- Students Listened to the story “Have You Filled a Bucket Today” and completed a related activity; things that fill/empty my bucket

Math:

- Students worked out of their Jump math books and in their grid books. Most of the week was spent learning about T tables, how to interpret them, how to make and use one, and how to solve simple problems using a T table

Computers:

Students created a file using Open Office, wrote 5 things they learned about salmon, created a new folder titled Salmon, and saved their document in this folder.

- Students took place in an online survey. This was administered by Mr. Johnson

 

Students also took part in a workshop called Rocks and Rings, which taught the basic concept of curling, and allowed students to try out a simplified version of the game in the gym.

 

After a lengthy absence to recuperate from surgery, I am back in the classroom. I would like to thank Mrs. Alm for all of her efforts in our classroom while I was away. She will be missed by everyone.

 

As I’m sure you are all aware, because of the current job action there will not be a formal report card issued this term. I, and Mrs. Alm, have tried to keep you informed about what is going on in our classroom through this blog, and through notes and comments in your child’s agenda. Unless I contact you with concerns about your child’s progress in a particular area, you can assume that he/she is showing at least satisfactory progress in class. If you have any concerns, or require additional information please do not hesitate to contact me either by phone at the school (250-376-6224) or via e-mail at dkallhood@sd73.bc.ca

If I have concerns about your child’s progress in a particular area, I will put a note in his/her agenda later this week to see if we can arrange a time to discuss a plan to help him/her become successful.

 

Although the  information is below is contained in my blog entries, here is a brief recap of the concepts and skills covered this term:

L.A.:

- Printing skills (review of lower case letters)

- Sentence structure

- Paragraph writing skills

- Nouns and Verbs

- Daily silent reading/home reading

- Written and Oral Comprehension skills

- Buddy reading

- Reading Power activities

- Weekly Journal Entries

- Daily written language activities (Fix The Errors)

SCIENCE:

-Solar System unit – basic knowledge of our solar system through text materials, dvds, computer programs and websites. Students worked independently and with a partner to look for specific information about the planets.

SOCIAL STUDIES:

- Students completed a unit on Terry Fox

- Students started a unit on basic mapping skills: cardinal directions; using a grid; parts of a map; map scale; interpreting maps.

- Students learned about the importance of Remembrance Day, and created a large classroom mural called “Hands of Peace”.

MATH:

- Students have been working with the Jump Math Program. Students completed units on: fractions; number sense; patterns; T tables; problem solving.

- Students completed morning math practice activities which reinforced concepts already covered.

HEALTH AND CAREER:

- Students reviewed our schools C.A.R.E. Matrix, and took part in activities to help reinforce the key concepts

-Students learned about “admirable qualities” and interviewed a person they admired. Students also created a poster about this person.

 

FINE ARTS:

- Students created a picture of the solar system using a pastel resist technique.

- Students created a planet using paper mache.

- Students completed a “curled paper pumpkin” project.

- Students learned and sang a number of theme-related songs.

- Students helped their kindergarten buddies complete a number of art projects.