Numeracy

For our current strand (Geometry), and our upcoming strand on Data Management students will have a reduced amount of at home practice for Numeracy. This is because much of the unit involves making decisions and solving problems together as a class as well as comparing, discussing and studying each other's opinions. As we continue through to the Christmas Break it is imperative that students begin studying their multiplication facts.
The Grade 4 curriculum states that students must multiply up to 9 X 9. Speed and automaticity....(formerly know as memorization )...with multiplication facts only increases a student's chance for success in many areas of  numeracy.  There are many websites and app's designed to improve skills in multiplication however, not all of these sites measure or monitor a student's success rate. It is always a good idea to practice multiplication facts out loud and with a partner.

Sound Assignment

For Science, we have been learning about the human ear and how we hear sound. Students read about it in their text books and we also watched a Bill Nye (the Science guy) video on Tuesday. For class everyone needs to prepare (and perform) a short 'Bill Nye' type report about how humans hear sounds. Presentations will begin next week. Simple costumes and props are encouraged as we will be recording some star perfromances.  Students know that memorization is not required but strong knowledge of content is encouraged. Many are co-writing a script however, each individual student needs to know the steps involved. Below is a condensed version of how we hear sound however, students know where to look in their science text books for a more detailed description.

How we hear sound...

• outer ear funnels sound towards our ear canal
• sound waves (vibrations) push against your ear drum
• vibrations continue through the 3 (tiny) bones of the middle ear
• vibrations reach the cochlea (inner ear) and move through liquid and tiny hairs
• nerve ending transmit the vibrations from the cochlea to the brain

Tales from The Tank - Student Edition #1

Here are a few summaries of how we ended up naming our 'baby' fish. For now, the blog entries are pre-read but not edited. As the student become comfortable with posting I will increase their expectations and develop a blog editing team.

Naming The Fish!
Today we named the baby fish.In order to do it we all battled in rock,paper,scissers.
Atomaticly Nicholas moved on to the finals,the last two who were versing was Owen vs Evan.
Evan moved on to Nicholas,and Nicholas won!!!!! So Nicholas chose the name Cho!

Naming The Fish!
There is four fish in our classroom tank Ben Liam and Cho.Nick won with the name Cho for the baby we did rock paper sicors games to see who won for the baby . Evan made it into the finals to.

Naming The Fish!

In mrs.plants grade 4 class there are 4 fish, we named them Noel,Liam,Ben and well the babys name we picked by putting our ideas of names on a piece of paper each,and we played rock,paper,scisors tp pick and it all came down to Justin Timberlake and Cho. It was Owen and Nick battling and....NICK WON!

The babys name is Cho!

Naming The Fish! 
We have a sheet we named our fish. We did a draw and rock, paper, scissors. Who ever won gos to 2 round. But there are 4 rounds and the fish is named Cho.

The Tank!

We have the opportunity to view and help manage a living habitat! Once the fish get acclimatized, we'll slowly add more 'living' components like plants and a moss ball. Stay tuned...

Quadrilateral Kingdom - Final Geometry Assignment

There will be no formal 'test' for our Geometry strand of Math. Rather, student are busy (over the next 3 days) creating castles fit for a King and Queen (King Square and Queen Rhombus). Below is a copy of their in class assignment. Although you cannot physically help them complete the assignment you CAN  help them consider options and strategies for success by reading over the assignment requirements together.

Quadrilateral Kingdom - Grade 4 Geometry Assignment

A very wealthy king, King Square, has asked you to design a new castle for him and his queen, Queen Rhombus.  He wants his castle to have very clean lines, specific angles, and certain shapes.  He has hired you because you have succeeded in Mrs. Plante’s math class.  Your castle design may be drawn from above (bird’s eye view)  or from the front.  The design of your castle can be any shape, but it must include the following specifications:

★ You must include a minimum of the following shapes: 2 trapezoids, 2 parallelograms, 4 rectangles, 4 squares, 2 rhombuses and 2 kites.
★ You must measure and label a minimum of 3 acute angles, 4 right angles, and 3 obtuse angles (colour coding the angles may be helpful)
★ You must include 3 sets of congruent shapes
★ You must label 5 pairs of parallel sides

Your castle can include other shapes besides what has been listed above, but must include all of what is listed.  Be sure to label everything.  To add to the design element of your castle. Colours can be used for outlining, and shading.

TumbleCloudJr - Database

The Windsor Public Library has made the TumbleBookCloud Junior (grades 3-6) database available for all valid cardholders. Below is a detailed description from their website. If you have a reluctant reader at home this 'digital' access may spark their interest. Check it out!

About TumbleBookCloud Junio

TumbleBookCloud Junior is an online collection of ebooks and read-along chapter books, non-fiction books, graphic novels, educational videos, and audio books! This database is a great option for adventurous young readers who wish to read beyond the picture book collection in the TumbleBookLibrary. It is designed specifically for kids in grades three to six.The reading experience on the TumbleBookCloud Junior is not only educationally sound but fun and customizable! TumbleBooks' one-of-a-kind Read-Along format combines the flexibility of an ebook with full-length professional narration and sentence-by-sentence highlighting so kids can follow along. Moreover, readers have the freedom to adjust the text size, line width and spacing, font style and colour, and the background colour on all of our ebooks. This level of customization adds an invaluable level of accessibility to our books. Plus, all of our books allow readers to highlight portions of a book and add notes, which makes for a great way to interact with the text!With over 500 titles, reading chapter books has never been easier. TumbleBookCloud Junior is simple to use! It can be used on any computer or mobile device thanks to Cloud Computing. Every account comes with its own direct link to simplify logging in, as well as a desktop icon. In addition, users can now set up their own secondary login with the MyCloud feature so they can save and retrieve their favourites anytime, anywhere.Also, don't forget to also check TumbleBookLibrary, our collection of animated, talking picture books for elementary age students.

Please follow the link below to access the database. You will need a valid WPL card and password to access the information. 

TumbleBookCloud Junior - (Grades 3-6)

St. Gabriel Catholic Elementary School News and Events: RBC Sports Day in Canada Kick-off at St Gabriel WO...

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St. Gabriel Catholic Elementary School News and Events: Fill the Cupboard Cereal Drive: As we begin our Advent journey, please consider to support the St Gabriel 'Cereal Drive' to fill some needy cupboards.  Often we are...

Friends For Life

For several weeks now our class has been working through the Friends For Life program. Miss Huyge visits us each week and together we discuss how our thoughts influence our actions. We also talk about how that connection can help us deal with our anxieties. Below are some pictures of our class practicing some common relaxation stretches.

Windsor Public Library Books Due Back!

Any books that were checked out on are class visit to the Windsor Public Library are due back on November 20th. Please note that late fees will be in effect after that date. I will be going to the Budimir Library on Tuesday November 19th. If you child wishes to return their book through me then it needs to be at school by Tuesday.

Tales from the Tank!

Our classroom fish tank is up and running! From this point on...students will be in charge of writing any blog posts about our fish tank. They will always be titled "Tales from the Tank". Our building is now WIRELESS so we have the opportunity to write, edit and post blogs directly from our classroom using our school Chrome Books and Ipad's. Our classroom blog will be a great way to introduce students to responsible use of 'social media'.

Geometry

By the end of grade 4 in Geometry students will:

• identify quadrilaterals and three-dimensional figures and classify them by their geometric properties.
• compare the angles found in quadrilaterals to benchmark angles (right, acute, obtuse)
• construct 3 dimensional figures using 2 dimensional shapes (example using squares to construct a cube)

Right now we are using Venn Diagrams to classify and sort a variety of quadrilaterals. Students need to be able to identify all of them and must know their distinguishing features to sort successfully. 

When comparing and sorting these quadrilaterals we are focusing on their side lengths, types of angles, pairs of parallel lines, and diagonal lengths. Students are also encourage to look at 'opposites' when considering attributes.  For example, some quadrilaterals will have 'opposite' side lengths equal, or 'opposite' angles that are the same.

We are working in partners today to sort quadrilaterals. Please check back for picture posts soon.

Book Fair and Cookie Dough Orders

We have been scheduled to visit our Scholastic Book Fair tomorrow morning. Students who are considering making a purchase can bring their money tomorrow. There will be other opportunities to visit the Book Fair in the next few days aswell.

Cookie Dough orders will arrive tomorrow. Please make arrangements to pick-up them up!

Tales from the Tank

A special thanks goes out to PetSmart for their "pets in the classroom grant". We were successful candidates and as a result have acquired a 10 gallon tank. Once the tank is fully functioning, it will be an excellent example of a living habitat (Science). We are currently waiting for the water in our tank to stabilize. I found out last night that our Ph level is too high :( So we'll try a water change today and see how things are the following day. Hopefully we'll have fish by Friday.  

Wild Times in 4P

We had a very busy Tuesday filled with some pretty fantastic real-world experiences.

In the morning we sat and listened to two young men who shared their stories about life in the Canadian Military. Ask your child why soldiers need to keep their heads and faces shaved. If they can give you the 'traditional' reason and the 'modern day' reason then they were REALLY paying attention!

In the afternoon we were visited by Mr. Bottos a well known local teacher and entomologist. They say a picture is worth 1000 words: 

The 'Bug Man' shared a large variety of preserved insects from around the world. We also had a chance to interact with some live specimens including a beetle, tarantula and a boa constrictor! Yikes.

Measuring Angles

By the end of grade 4 students need to successfully identify and measure angles.
They need to be able to identify an angle as being acute, right, or obtuse. Further they also need to measure different angles using a protractor.  Using a protractor correctly requires precision and patience. Some are experiencing difficulty and need extra practice.

Here is a link that offers practice with a protractor.
http://www.mathplayground.com/measuringangles.html

For some more challenging practice...
http://www.mathplayground.com/alienangles.html

Some cues and tips we use during class are:
1. Make sure you are using a flat surface.
2. Line up the baseline of your protractor with the baseline of your angle.
3. Use your eyes to determine what type of angle you are looking at (acute, right, obtuse)
4. Then use your protractor to measure the angle in degrees.

Remember:
Right angles will always be 90 degrees.
Acute angles will always be between 1 and 89 degrees
Obtuse angles will always be between 91 and 179 degrees

Remembrance Day Ceremony

Our class along with Mr. Cowan's 4/5 students are responsible for the school's Remembrance Day ceremony.  Our ceremony will be on Monday November 11th at approximately 10:30am in the gym. Please join us if your schedule permits.

Agenda reminder

Just a reminder that I usually check student agenda's each Friday. For communication during the week it is each child's responsibility to bring me their agenda if there is a note or appointment notice. I generally ask each morning just after the bell if there are any 'agenda notes'.