Merry Christmas!

Hello,

I hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas with their families!

I also hope you enjoy these videos, made by some of the students, as a special Christmas gift for their parents!

Christmas Video - IJI

Christmas Video - ECE

Christmas Video - PCA

Christmas Video - Big Group

Merry Christmas!

Mr. Skinner

Hope it was a relaxing day

Hello,

I hope everyone who stayed home today had a relaxing day. Maybe you slept in, maybe you lounged in your pyjamas, but I definitely hope you practised the songs for the Christmas concert!

The stage is set up. I checked it out and practised with the students from our class who came to school today. We should be able to pull of a good performance, with three rows of students on the stage, with a bit of practise time in class in the morning.

Christmas Concert set up for Thursday

Please remember to wear red, white or green clothing. You will also need the lantern you made in Religion class, but I think everyone still has those at school.

Have a good night. See you in the morning.

Mr. Skinner

Good News, Bad News.

Hello,

In case you haven't heard yet, I just wanted to let everyone know that the bus service is cancelled for today, due to the inclement weather. The school is open today.

From our past discussions about Snow (or Ice) days, I'm sure some of you are celebrating right now.

The only bad news is that we won't get to practice choreography for the Christmas Concert this morning, or hold our full dress rehearsal in the afternoon.

So, we will have to practice during first block tomorrow, and finalize our staging arrangements.

If you are staying home today, please make sure to practise the two songs, to ensure that you have them memorized for tomorrow's performance.

If I don't see you at school today, have a great day.

For all the parents who will be on the road, I hope you all have a safe drive.

Mr. Skinner

Congrats!

Hello,

I am so proud of our class! Everyone did a great job presenting the Kiva persuasive poster boards. The Grade 4-6 students were very impressed and many told me that it was extremely difficult to choose just one person to vote for.

I will be making the loans tomorrow. Congratulations to Katie and Eden for receiving the most votes. Allison and Chris were right behind them in third and fourth place.

Today, our focus was Kiva, tomorrow, our focus shifts to the Christmas Concert. We will have our dress rehearsal in the afternoon. Please practise the songs tonight and bring your red, white and green clothing in for tomorrow.

Kiva Presentations

Presenting and Voting

Have a great night.

Mr. Skinner

Getting Ready for Tomorrow

Hello,

This morning, we continued to work on our Kiva Persuasive poster boards. The Grade 4 to Grade 6 students will be joining us in the Learning Commons, during second block. They will read our letters, look at our displays, ask questions and vote for the person they feel is most deserving of the loan. If you would like to join us, you are welcome to stop by the Learning Commons from 10 to 11 tomorrow. You will get to vote as well, if you stop by to visit.

Some students will be bringing home their poster boards tonight, if they still have some work to do, in order to make sure they are ready to present. Others, will be printing colour photos at home and posting them on the boards, when they arrive at school tomorrow.

We also continued to practise for the Christmas concert today. The students are doing a great job! They are encouraged to continue their efforts to memorize our two songs, so that we don't need any papers when we are on stage this Thursday. We also decided that we will all be wearing red, white and green for the performance. Santa hats and elf hats would be great accessories for the outfits as well.

I'm really looking forward to our Kiva presentation day!

Have a great night.

Mr. Skinner

A Busy Day

Hello,

I had a lot of fun coaching lacrosse yesterday and going to a technology workshop on Wednesday, but I definitely missed being in the classroom!

Thank goodness the students were hard at work while I was away. They sang our two songs for the Christmas Concert this morning and they did a fantastic job! Now, it's really important for everyone to do on Google Drive this weekend. We need to keep practising, so that we don't need to rely on our lyric sheets during the concert next Thursday.

Today, the students also put the finishing touches on their Food Train posters and commercials, which used a variety of advertising techniques that we discussed in class. We hope that everyone enjoys the videos, which were posted on the blog earlier today.

Next, the students began to work on their poster boards for their Kiva persuasive letter presentations on Tuesday morning. Most students have finished their editing process and are now designing their poster boards. We will continue to work on this task on Monday morning, but if students would like to have colour photos on their poster boards, they need to print pictures this weekend at home, and bring them in on Monday.

Finally, I had some good discussions with some groups today about the differences between a broken line graph and a scatterplot graph. We will be making some minor changes to the graphs we have been working on and finishing this task on Monday.

Have a great weekend and practise, practise, practise those songs for the concert!

Thanks,

Mr. Skinner

Food Train Commercials

Hello,

As promised to the students, here are the links to the wonderful commercials they produced about the Food Train.

http://youtu.be/0vEr54xnJog

http://youtu.be/Hq5HrhQzLP8

http://youtu.be/SuCwvnd8JA4

http://youtu.be/skKU7iuz7lo

http://youtu.be/xaz1TaV7Fvw

http://youtu.be/zPSDLbZWmp8

We hope you enjoy the videos!

Mr. Skinner

Practice the songs please

Hello,

Silent Night and our Shake it Off re-mix have been shared on Google Drive with all of the students. Their homework tonight is to practice both songs.

In Math, we corrected our work on broken line graphs and we have started to explore Scatterplots, which look at how two pieces of data could be related. Today, the students formed groups and decided on a question they would like to explore. Over the next few days, they will look for data, find relationships between data and plot the information on a Scatterplot graph.

In Language, we are making posters and commercials as part of an advertising campaign to publicize the food train and our Kiva persuasive letter presentations. Each group of four is making two posters and a commercial, using a variety of advertising techniques.

Finally, I have been reviewing the Kiva persuasive letters with the students, giving them suggestions for improvement, before they put their work on poster boards for next Tuesday's presentations. We will be working on the poster boards in class this week.

Have a great evening. I hope you enjoy the singing.

Mr. Skinner

Please Share Kiva Persuasives and Song Lyrics

Hello,

This is a reminder to all students to share their rough drafts of the Kiva Persuasive Letters and the re-written song lyrics.

We will be moving forward tomorrow and we need to have all of the rough drafts completed.

We will also be working on broken line graphs tomorrow as well. Students are welcome to work ahead tonight, as I am expecting the worksheets to be completed by Monday.

Have a good night. I'm off to cheer on Alfie!

Mr. Skinner

All Aboard the Food Train

Hello,

This morning, Ive, Katie and Christopher helped design and decorate our box for the Christmas Food Train. It is a beautiful sight! Now, we just have to fill it. A note is coming home today with suggested donations that will help members of our community that are in need. Thanks for your support. We hope to see many canned items arriving in the next few days.

We also worked on the white boards, calculating mean, median and mode for various sets of numbers. I started off with some easy numbers, but when I let the students pick their own numbers, they really challenged themselves. It was a great activity.

In Language, we continued to work on the netbooks, finishing up the rough drafts of our Kiva persuasive letters and our "Shake it Off" Christmas remix lyrics.

The students are expected to have last night's Math worksheets completed, so they can be corrected on Thursday.

They are also expected to have their persuasive letter and lyrics completed by the end of second block tomorrow. If they have a lot of work left on these two tasks, they should work on them tonight. Thanks.

Have a good night.

Mr. Skinner

Stem and Leaf Plots

Hello,

This morning we explored Stem and Leaf Plots in Math. We found out what each student's favourite number is and plotted it on a Stem and Leaf Plot. Then the students worked on a Stem and Leaf Plot activity sheet, which is to be completed for homework.

In Language, we worked in the Learning Commons on our persuasive Kiva letters and we continued to re-write the lyrics to "Shake it Off" with a Christmas theme. Our goal is to have both activities completed by the end of the week.

Finally, during last block, we made the new ambassador schedules. The students worked very well together to create the new schedules for December and January.

Have a great evening.

Mr. Skinner

Advent Liturgy

Hello,

This morning we had our Advent Liturgy with Father Pierre. Mrs. Rogan's class and Mrs. Little's class did a wonderful job and it was a great celebration.

Before the liturgy, the students completed their Senators scoring predictions and calculated mode, median and mean for their scoring figures. We also worked on a Double Bar graph review worksheet. The sheet is to be completed for homework.

After the liturgy, the students started to work on re-writing the lyrics to pop songs with a Christmas theme for our concert performance. We will continue to work on re-writing "Shake it Off" tomorrow, but the students are welcome to work on them tonight as well. Our goal will be to have the songs completed and selected by Thursday, so we can begin practising.

Have a great night.

Mr. Skinner

Math Tests Returned

Hello,

This morning, the Numeration Math tests were returned to the students. Please sign and return the tests. Overall, the students did very well. Any student who scored a Level 2+ or lower are welcome to conference with me next week, to show their understanding and raise their mark.

Next, we explored Mean, Median and Mode. The students worked with a partner on a Google slide, dealing with predictions and the Ottawa Senators. We will be finishing the task on Monday, but the students are welcome to work on the task with their partner this week. Ask your child to show you their work and see how accurate you think their scoring predictions will be.

Today, we also made our choice for the Christmas Concert. We will be re-writing pop songs with Christmas themes next week. It should be a lot of fun!

Next week, we will be writing our songs and continuing to work on our Kiva persuasive letters.

Have a great weekend.

Mr. Skinner

Lots of Ideas

Hello,

This morning, we went to the Learning Commons to exchange our books and to brainstorm ideas for our Christmas Concert performance. We will make a final decision tomorrow, but there will be no shortage of choices. We discussed everything from a "Frozen Medley" to original songs and re-written Christmas versions of current pop songs.

Next, we finished our Bar Graphs and Double-Bar Graphs with our partners. Each group was given feedback on their original graph and made improvements for their double-bar graph. Now, we will be exploring Mean, Median and Mode. Tonight, the students need to watch the following videos.

Mean, Median and Mode Toads.

Mean, Median and Mode Rap

Hey Diddle, Diddle - not the original

Hey Diddle, Diddle - text

Finally, we continued to work on our Kiva persuasive letters. I shared a document with each of the students on their Google Drive, reminding them of the person they selected. If you can't find your person on the site anymore, you will need to go with your second choice. Be sure to take down all of the information and link to the profile on a Google Doc, as shown in class.

There will be time to work on the letter in class tomorrow, but you can work on it tonight to get ahead.

As well, be sure to keep exploring Mathletics and Dream Box.

Have a good night.

Mr. Skinner

Double Bar Graphs and Christmas Concert Ideas

Hello,

This morning, we started to work on our persuasive letters for the Kiva presentations. Each student picked a Kiva participant that they would like to present, and we discussed the criteria for the letter. I shared some exemplars of persuasive letters with the students on their Google Drives, for their reference, if they want to work on this task at home. We will continue to work on the letters in class tomorrow. Our goal is to convince our audience that our chosen person deserves the donation for their project.

In Math, we finished our bar graphs, gave and received feedback for improvement, and began to use the survey data to create double bar graphs. We are now breaking down the student data into responses by boys and girls. We will finish our double bar graphs in class, with our partners, in the morning.

For homework, the students are asked to brainstorm possible ideas for the Christmas concert. We will be planning our performance on Thursday and Friday this week.

As well, the students should continue to use Mathletics and Dreambox as we will be debating which program we like better next week.

Have a great evening.

Mr. Skinner

Kiva and Bar Graphs

Hello,

This morning we began to look at bar graphs. We discussed the criteria for a quality bar graph and the students worked in pairs to create a question and a bar graph to reflect the class results. We will finish up this task on Wednesday morning.

In Language we explored the Kiva website, which facilitates loans to those in need, who would like to start a business. Each student is asked to select three possible candidates. Each student will write a persuasive letter, convincing others that their candidate is the most deserving of the loan. We will be writing the letters over the next few weeks and then we will present our work to the Junior students, who will help select the recipients of two $25 loans from Mr. Skinner. Please look at the website tonight, to ensure you have some quality options.

Don't forget your crazy hairstyles for tomorrow.

Have a good night.

Mr. Skinner

Exploring Mathletics

Hello,

This morning, while students who were absent on Thursday completed their Math tests, the rest of the students explored a new Math-themed website call Mathletics.

www.mathletics.ca

Later this week, the students will be asked for their opinions about this site, as well as Dreambox and we will be having a debate about which site we like better and why.

Our next unit, which we will start this week, will involve graphing.

In Language, we finished up our good copies of our sequels to "The Fourteenth Goldfish" and presented some of our Jonas Salk cards to the class.

The only homework for tonight is to continue to explore Mathletics and Dreambox .

Have a good evening.

Mr. Skinner

Review Activity Shared on Google Drive

Hello,

In Math this morning, we continued to review for Thursday's test, on the whiteboards. As promised, I have shared a Numeration review activity with each student on their Google Drive. You will be given time to work on this activity in class tomorrow, but you are welcome to check your Drive and start on it tonight, to help with your studying.

PLEASE MAKE SURE TO MAKE YOUR OWN COPY OF THE DOCUMENT, BEFORE ANSWERING ANY OF THE QUESTIONS. Thanks.

In Language, we viewed the Q & A session held with the author of "The Fourteenth Goldfish." We also continued to work on the rough draft of our sequels to the novel, on the Chromebooks. It is expected that all 1-3 page rough draft will be completed by the end of tomorrow morning.

Thanks again.

Have a great evening.

Mr. Skinner

Welcome to Winter!

Hello,

Winter made a strong appearance today, with quite the accumulation of snow! I know that some Grade 6 students don't like to wear snow pants, but it's at least a good idea to wear splash pants, or they are going to get soaked when they go out for recess in the snow.

In Language, the students made their outlines for their sequels to "The Fourteenth Goldfish." If this task was not completed in class, it is for homework tonight. Most students completed this task and started to work on their rough drafts, on Google Drive. We will continue to work on this draft tomorrow.

In Math, we reviewed place value and sorting numbers on the white boards. We are approaching the end of this unit of study, so the test will be on Thursday. The students should be reviewing their work from this unit to prepare for the test.

Have a great evening.

Mr. Skinner

Getting Ready to Debate

Hello,

This morning we continued to discuss and explore rounding, looking at the reasons for rounding and when and why it is used. All of the students should have the two double sided rounding sheets completed. If they are not done, they need to be finished for homework.

We also used the Chromebooks to tweet with other classes about "The Fourteenth Goldfish." It was very exciting this afternoon when the author of the novel retweeted one of our tweets, highlighting our point for all of her followers.

Jenni Holm Retweet

Finally, we began to prepare for our debate on Friday. We will be discussing whether or not we think Remembrance Day should be declared a National holiday. Each side posted ideas on their own padlet wall. Remember to follow the link that was shared to your Google Drive, if you want to post more ideas tonight. We will continue to brainstorm ideas tomorrow, and prepare for our discussion about this topic, which will take place on Friday.

Have a great night.

Mr. Skinner

Rounding and Finishing the Fourteenth Goldfish

Hello,

This morning, we discussed our introduction to rounding. The students have two double sided rounding worksheets, which are due on Wednesday. We will continue to explore rounding tomorrow as well.

In Language, we finished reading The Fourteenth Goldfish. The students made predictions on the padlet below.

Nov 10 Padlet

After reading the rest of the book, we reflected on the accuracy of our predictions and some of the big themes of the book. The students also started to brainstorm ideas for their own version of a sequel to the book.

Finally, many of our students have been working very hard to get ready for our Remembrace Day ceremonies. We hope that some of you will be able to join us for the ceremony. It begins at 10:15.

Have a great evening.

Mr. Skinner

Friday - Dreambox and Padlet

Good morning guys,

It was great to talk to so many of your parents last night! Don't worry I told them all how wonderful you are!

This morning, after you finish the decimals worksheet, you can work on Dreambox again.

Dreambox Login

During second block, you will post on the padlet wall, while The Fourteenth Goldfish is being read to you.

The Fourteenth Goldfish - Nov. 7 Padlet

Please post connections you can make, and questions or comments that you have. We will discuss them next week. Please make sure that everything you post is appropriate. Remember that it will be posted on my screen in real-time.

After reading, you will make predictions about what you think will happen next, on a Google Doc that you will share with me. Remember to explain your thinking.

Have a great morning.

Mr. Skinner

Interviews tonight

Hello,

A quick note about today, as I will be seeing many of you at the interviews tonight.

If you are unable to make it, but would like to talk about your child's progress, please send me a note in the agenda and I will give you a call for a phone interview.

Today, in Language, we exchanged our library books and continued to read from "The Fourteenth Goldfish." We also examined the cards and posters made in honour of Jonas Salk and will be giving peer feedback on Monday.

In Math, the students received their corrected and evaluated Factors and Multiples test. I am available over the next week to conference with anyone who would like to go over the material with me and have another opportunity to display their understanding. I would appreciate it if the tests could be signed and returned to me by Monday.

Finally, the students received their Dreambox login codes today, so they can get some fun Math practice in whenever they would like. Get them to click on the link below and show you around the site!

Dreambox login

Have a great night.

Mr. Skinner

Dreambox

Hello,

This morning we continued to explore place value and ordering numbers to the thousandths place. We worked in partners on an inquiry Math activity on Google Slides. Next, London introduced the class to the Grade 6 Math activities on the Dreambox website. Many students had used Dreambox in Grade 2 or 3 and they were interested to see the Grade 6 activities. The students will be receiving their passwords in the morning, so they can start working on the site tomorrow. It is a very fun way to get some extra practice.

In Language, we continued to work on making connections. We looked at the different connections we made on the Padlet walls yesterday and discussed how we could improve them, by providing more detail and explanations about our connections. While I continued to read from "The Fourteenth Goldfish," the students wrote improved versions of their connections on post-its and placed them on chart paper to display our text to self, text to text, and text to world connections in the class.

Finally, if you were unable to book an interview online, but you would like to meet tomorrow after school, or have a phone interview, please call the school and leave a message for me. I will get back to you tomorrow afternoon and we can have a phone interview or set up a meeting time.

Have a great evening.

Mr. Skinner

Making Different Types of Connections

Hello,

This morning, we worked on the white boards and examined the expanded form of whole numbers and decimal numbers.

Tonight, I would like the students to write out the following two numbers in expanded form, either on a google doc, or on paper.

A) 7 531 406

B) 9 032.186

Next, we used our padlet walls to post personal connections to the Fourteenth Goldfish. Each student is required to post a connection on each of the three walls - text to self, text to text and text to world. The students need to connect to themes and events in the story and it is important that they explain the thinking behind each connection.

Padlet - text to self connections

Text to text connections

Text to world connections

Finally, we will be presenting our cards and posters on Jonas Salk tomorrow, so students need to complete their work tonight, as we will all be sharing our information.

Don't forget to follow the link below and sign up for the Parent-Teacher interviews on Thursday.

Mr. Skinner and Mme. Helbecque - French Immersion student interviews

Mr. Skinner - Extended French Student interviews

Have a good night.

Mr. Skinner

Comparing and Ordering Numbers

Hello.

This morning we worked in partners to discuss our work on representing numbers and place value. Next, we used the white boards to introduce the concept of comparing and ordering numbers. Tonight, the students are asked to complete Numbers 1-4 on the worksheet that was handed out today, which looks at these concepts.

In Language, we examined our character trait group work. We looked at each group's work and discussed how the groups could improve their responses by providing more specific examples to illustrate the character traits they chose for their character. The students also had time to finish their work on Jonas Salk. We will be sharing and presenting the cards and posters tomorrow morning.

Please don't forget to sign up for interviews. Follow the link provided in the previous blog post.

Have a great night.

Mr. Skinner

Pumpkin Cup Winners!

Hello,

Some lucky students will be bringing home the jack-o-lanterns we carved yesterday, after completing a quiz activity on place value.

I asked a variety of questions, which the students answered on the white boards. The students were rewarded for getting the most correct answers. Some were also rewarded for their enthusiastic and creative participation in the activity. It was definitely a lot of fun.

Earlier in the morning, the students continued to work on their Jonas Salk posters and traded cards. I'm sure Mr. Salk would have been impressed by your efforts. The finished products will be due by the end of the day Monday. There is no homework this weekend, except to have fun and be safe tonight. Please don't make yourself sick by eating all of your candy in one night.

Thanks to everyone who brought in Halloween treats for the class today.

Please remember to book your interview times with me, by using the link below:

Mr. Skinner - Interview Times

Click on Mr. Skinner, or Mme Helbecque and Mr. Skinner, depending on whether your child is in the Extended French program or the Immersion French program in the afternoon. Then, you can select from the available times.

Have a Happy Halloween.

Mr. Skinner

See You Tonight!

Hello,

I hope to see everyone at the Halloween Family Fun Night, tonight from 6-8 PM.

You will be able to see the amazing Jack-o-lanterns that the Grade 6 students created today.

There will be dancing, crafts and costumes. It should be a lot of fun!

See you there!

Mr. Skinner

A Nice Note

Hello,

It's so nice to return to school after a workshop and read such a nice note from the supply teacher, saying that everyone was very productive and worked well on their assigned tasks.

I look forward to seeing your tributes to Jonas Salk tomorrow and Friday, when we work on them again.

Bring your creative ideas tomorrow, and don't wear any new clothes. We will be carving the pumpkins and I don't want you to get pumpkin guts on any new shirts or pants.

See you tomorrow. Thanks again for showing others what a great group you are, it's wonderful to get the chance to work with you guys each day!

Mr. Skinner

Exciting Days Ahead!

Hello,

First, let me say that I was very proud of the effort given by the students during their Math test today. They worked very hard and I look forward to examining their progress over the next few days. A few students were absent today, and I will not be at school tomorrow, as I will be attending a workshop at the Board Office, so everyone should have the test completed by the end of the week. My goal is to have them marked and returned to the students by early next week.

Those students who finished the test early, had the chance to start researching for a special task the students will be working on tomorrow.

As noted on the Google search page, today would have been Dr. Jonas Salk's 100th birthday. He has been mentioned in The Fourteenth Goldfish for his incredible scientific discoveries. Tomorrow, we will celebrate him by doing research on the Chromebooks, then creating our choice of posters, birthday cards, or trading cards, which trumpet his accomplishments. The cards and posters can be created on the chromebooks or with paper, markers and pencils.

Then, on Thursday morning, we will be carving pumpkins for the Halloween Family Fun Night!

It should be a very interesting week!

Have a good night.

Mr. Skinner

Study, study, study

Hello,

First, a reminder for everyone to study for Tuesday's Math test. We completed our Google slides Math group task today, getting ready for the test though discussions and calculations. Remember that each pair is required to have completed two out of the three questions, in class or for homework.

In Language, we finished our character trait activity, where groups of three brainstormed a list of traits about their chosen character from "The Fourteenth Goldfish" and included examples from the novel to illustrate these traits. The students will be presenting these lists to the class, later this week. We also continued to read the novel, stopping throughout the two chapters to discuss the events that were occurring and to make predictions about what we thought would happen next.

Finally, a reminder to bring in your popcorn order forms. I am sorry that I was late handing them out, but if you bring them in on Tuesday or Wednesday, the order forms will still be accepted.

Have a wonderful evening.

Mr. Skinner

Exploring Twitter

Hello,

This morning we were using the Chromebooks to explore Twitter. We searched #GRAgoldfish and found a variety of questions and comments about the book, from classes across North America. The students tweeted questions and comments, using my school account, and they were very excited to have the chance to connect with many different classes. We look forward to receiving some responses. My Twitter account is @MrSkinnerocsb

In Math, we continued to work on problem solving questions involving factors and multiples, while using the white boards. There is no new homework tonight, so it would be a good idea for the students to read a book of their choice, and to begin reviewing for next week's Math test. They will need to review prime and composite numbers, factors (GCF), multiples (LCM), differences and sums, three digit by one digit multiplication, and two digit by two digit multiplication.

Have a good evening.

Mr. Skinner

Sending Questions to the Author

Hello,

This morning, we did some work with multiples and factors on the white boards, to ensure that everyone has a solid understanding of the concepts. We are nearing the end of the unit and we will be doing an evaluation task next week.

In Language, we submitted our entries for the Meaning of Home contest. Each explanatory piece that was entered, raised five dollars for Habitat for Humanity and will help to build a house for someone in need.

Then, we posted our questions for the author and a character of our choice, from the Fourteenth Goldfish. We looked at the questions on our padlet wall and selected some of our favourite questions to send to the author, Ms. Holm, via twitter. I will send them tonight and hopefully she will answer us.

Keep bringing your litterless lunches, and don't forget that picture re-take day is this Friday.

I hope everyone is home safe and sound tonight and is able to give their children extra big hugs tonight.

Have a great evening.

Mr. Skinner

Math Inquiry

Hello,

This morning, the students worked in partners on a math inquiry problem about spinners and whether they were fair. If any students pull out a spinner to settle an argument with one of their siblings, beware, the results might be rigged in their favour. Then we corrected the Math inquiry work we did yesterday on the Chrome Books. The students completed a variety of questions, involving factors and multiples, on a Google presentation. There were a few small issues, as a slide or two was deleted and then recovered, but it was a rewarding process and we will be doing it again, later this week.

In Language, we are continuing to work on our Meaning of Home explanatory. At this point, the rough draft should be completed, edited and shared with me. We will be making our final revisions tomorrow.

We are also continuing to read our novel, "The Fourteenth Goldfish". It is a very interesting novel, with many twists and turns. Tonight the students are asked to submit four questions to me in a Google Doc (if that is not possible, write the questions in your black Language duo-tang). Each student needs to think of two questions for the author and two questions for a character in the book, and explain their reasoning for wanting to ask these questions.

Remember to keep bringing in litter-free lunches.

Have a great night.

Mr. Skinner

Congrats!

Hello,

The students didn't let a little rain get them down. They raised a lot of money and showed great spirit during the Walk-a-thon, so much spirit, in fact, that they won a pizza party for later in the year!

The Walk-a-thon dominated our morning activities, but we did have some time to go over two digit by two digit multiplication. The students are reminded that they are expected to complete both sides of the worksheet for two digit by two digit multiplication.

As well, please make sure to have your home explanatory outline completed, so that we can work on the rough draft in the morning.

Have a great evening. Go Sens Go!

Mr. Skinner

Meaning of Home Outline and Walk-a-Thon

Hello,

This morning we used the netbooks to begin our outlines for our Meaning of Home explanatory writing pieces. Please make sure to have the outline completed for Friday, so we can begin to work on our rough drafts.

Please refer to the sample outline that we worked on in class and complete your own outline for Friday. I will be available at lunch recess on Thursday, if anyone wants some help with this task.

Home explanatory outline sample

In Math, we continued to discuss multiples and two digit and three digit numbers multiplied by one digit numbers.

Tomorrow, we will discuss the process of multiplying two digit numbers by two digit numbers and there will be some questions assigned for homework. If you want to get ahead, you can work on these questions tonight as well.

The big task for tomorrow is getting everything prepared for the Walk-a-thon. Please make sure to bring in any funds you have raised, your 70's rocker or disco costumes, and make sure to practice, and hopefully memorize our class song tonight.

To the tune of Stayin' Alive, here are parts from Conrad's version, and Claire's version, as voted by you. I will also share the song in the students' google drives.

WALK-A-THON

Well, you can tell by the way we use our walk,
We're going to a Walk-a-thon.
We are loud and dressed up warm,
We've been doing this since we were born.

And now it's all good, it's OK,
Skinner's class looks cool, you say.
You can try to understand,
The Redeemer effect on man.

Whether you like disco or whether you're a rocker,
You're in a Walk-a-thon, walk-a-thon.

Feel the school spirit and everybody's dancing,
It's a Walk-a-thon, walk-a-thon.

Wa-wa-wa-wa-Walk-a-thon, Walk-a-thon.
Wa-wa-wa-wa-Walk-a-thon. Walk-a-thon.

Redeemer Rockets,
We're going to blast off,
Back to the 70s yeah!

Have fun practicing the song!

Mr. Skinner

Writing our Songs and Cheers!

Hello,

This morning we worked on our multiplication skills and our cheers and songs for the Walk-a-thon on Thursday morning.

First, we worked on two digit by one digit multiplication, then three digit by one digit multiplication. The students were given two double sided worksheets and they are expected to have both sides of first sheet completed for homework. Most students completed the first side in class and are well on their way to finishing the second side of the first worksheet.

Next, we discussed our costumes for the Walk-a-thon. Hopefully everyone can find clothes that will transform them into a 70's rock star, or a 70's disco dancer.

Finally, we began to work on our cheers and songs for our theme. Each student is asked to write new lyrics to a 70's song that relate to the Walk-a-thon and our school. Remember, your version should be at least 10 lines and 30 seconds long. We will share the songs in the morning and vote on our favourite versions, which we will use on Thursday morning.

The songs we decided to re-write are:

Stayin Alive by the Bee Gees

Dancing Queen by Abba

Cat's in the Cradle

You can also use another 70's song of your choice for our chants. Be creative and have fun with it!

Also, don't forget to bring in your donations for the Walk-a-thon, so you can be included in tomorrow's prize draw. You can join Ive as a lucky winner!

Have a great night! I can't wait to hear your new versions of the songs.

Mr. Skinner

Happy Thanksgiving!

Hello,

I hope everyone is having a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday weekend!

I just wanted to send a quick reminder about a few things.

Please remember to look for any 70s style clothing for our Walk-a-thon theme. We need to know how much clothing we have, on Tuesday, to ensure that we have enough for everyone.

Also, please remember to have the Peacocks and Band-Aids questions completed and ready to hand in on Tuesday.

Finally, don't forget to give thanks for everything we have, and to think about what home means to you, as we will begin our explanatory writing pieces about home, next week for the "Meaning of Home" contest.

Meaning of Home Contest

Have a great weekend!

Mr. Skinner

Peacocks and Band-Aids

Hello,

This morning we re-read and discussed the story that the students read independently on Friday, "Peacocks and Band-Aids". Some of the students were confused by the story, but I think we cleared up any misconceptions during our discussion.

The students are asked to complete the questions that were assigned on Friday, for homework tonight. If you're eating dinner together tonight, ask your child to summarize the story, to help check for understanding.

Next, we read another chapter from "The Fourteenth Goldfish" and discussed our posts, and the reasoning behind them, on the padlet wall.

Finally, we discussed any issues the students were having with their "multiples" work. Tomorrow, we will be working with partners to create multiple and factors questions that will challenge and engage other teams of two. It should be a fun block of Math problems.

Have a great evening.

Mr. Skinner

The Fourteenth Goldfish Padlet

Hello,

This morning, we completed our Math conferencing for any students who wanted to display a greater level of understanding of patterning.

While I conducted conferences, the rest of the students worked on the "Multiples" worksheet that was handed out on Friday. This task is for homework tonight.

Next, the students started to work on padlet, by posting their responses to the three Math questions I posted on the blog last week.

Then, while I continued to read our novel, "The Fourteenth Goldfish" to the students, they were asked to post their thoughts, questions and comments about our novel, using padlet. Some of the students even posted photos that connected to what we were reading in the novel.

Tonight, the students are asked to revisit their posted padlet work and reflect on it in their black language duotang. The students are asked to write one to two paragraphs explaining the reasons behind their posts, such as what made them think about the questions, photos and comments they posted.

http://padlet.com/craig_skinner/c1y86w3rp8e8

Thanks. Have a great evening.

Mr. Skinner

Math Tests Returned

Hello,

This morning I returned the Math tests to the students. I talked to each student about their performance and indicated if there were any questions I would like to go over in a student-led conference. Please sign and return these tests. There are six students who will receive their evaluated tests tomorrow. I ran out of time during the block to go over the tests with these students and I didn't have an opportunity to give them feedback this afternoon, as I was dealing with various issues in the school in my role as Principal Designate. Sorry for any inconvenience.

In Math, we finished our corrections and discussions of factors and prime and composite numbers, by correcting the worksheets and the three questions that were posted on the blog tonight.

For homework, the students should make sure they have the mental math worksheet completed. They should also answer the following questions:

1. Training for a cross country race, Austin runs every 3 days, Emma runs every 5 days and Gina runs every six days. Today they all run together. How many days later will they run together again?

2. How many prime numbers are there between 1 and 100?

3. What number(s) between 1 and 100 has/have exactly seven factors? What are the factors for the number(s)? 

In Language, the students finished their reading responses for the "Smallmouth on the Fly" story. The multiple choice and short answer questions should be completed for homework, if they were not completed in class.

Have a great evening.

Mr. Skinner

Babysitter Connections

Hello,

This morning we read several chapters of our Global Read Aloud Novel, "The Fourteenth Goldfish." We learned more about the grandfather and that he would be the new babysitter.

The students were asked to write a half page about whether they think he will make a good babysitter, while making personal connections to explain their choice. Most students completed this work in class, but it was assigned for homework.

Next, each group presented their "Three Monks, No Water" summaries. They were given feedback on eye contact, voice projection, style and content.

In Math, we continued to examine prime and composite numbers, as well as factors. We had some great discussion in class about our strategies and understanding of the concepts.

Tonight, the students are asked to complete the following questions:

1. What are the factors of 100? Which of the factors of 100 are multiples of 5?

2. Find the DIFFERENCE between the first two multiples of 12.

3. Find the SUM of the first four multiples of 9.

Have a good night.

Mr. Skinner

Test Corrections

Hello,

This morning we went through the Math Patterning test as a class. We reviewed and corrected each question. Then the students self-evaluated their work and assigned scores to each question. I will review their evaluations tonight and return the tests in the morning, so they can be brought home and signed.

The correcting was a great learning experience, but it took a little longer than expected, so we will be going over last night's homework sheets on Wednesday morning. If they didn't have the work done, the students have one more night to finish. Kudos to those who chose to stay in to work with me at recess to ensure their understanding of the concepts. I am available to help during any recess.

After completing the Math test corrections, the students worked together in groups of four, to present their summaries of "Three Monks, No Water." We will continue with peer and teacher feedback for the presentations in the morning. Don't forget to make eye contact and to project your voice.

Have a great day.

Mr. Skinner

Multiples and Factors

Hello,

On Friday, the students looked great for their class and individual photos. They also had a lot of fun working with Mr. Ullrich for a portion of the Grade Six slideshow at the end of the year.

This morning, the students continued to explore prime and composite numbers, as well as factors. Two double-sided sheets were distributed on Friday. The students are expected to have this work completed for Tuesday.

As well, the students worked in partners to summarize the main events and messages of a story called, "Three Monks, No Water." They will present their summaries to the class tomorrow.

Have a good evening.

Mr. Skinner

Introduction to Multiples

Hello,

This morning the students participated in a multiplication challenge. The students were asked to complete 60 questions, as quickly as possible. The first person to achieve a perfect score was the winner. Congratulations to Eden on her victory!

Next, we answered some questions that introduced the students to multiples and the concept of Lowest Common Multiple.

Finally, we had group discussions about our written responses for the Boastful Tortoise. We discussed our graphic organizer summaries, specifically the problem, the main events and the solution. We talked about why it was important to say that the tortoise fell because of his boastfulness, in order to tell the entire story.

There is no homework tonight, other than to make sure you look your best for picture day tomorrow. Don't forget to bring in your forms. We will be having our pictures taken early in the morning.

Also, the students are encouraged to read a book of their choice for at least 20 minutes tonight, and check out this site, for more work with Lowest Common Multiples.

Fruit Shoot - LCM

Have a good evening.

Mr. Skinner

Retreat and a Buddy Day!

Hello,

Yesterday was a wonderful day as we participated in collaborative games, listened to speakers and learned more about Holy Redeemer Parish during our church retreat. It was a lot of fun and I was very pleased to see how well all of the students were working together.

Today, the remaining Math tests were completed. My goal is to have them marked and returned before the end of the week. I have marked all of the multiple choice questions and given students individual feedback about their work. Overall, the students did a great job on that section of the test.

This morning, the students also completed their summaries and written responses about "The Boastful Tortoise." If this work was not completed in class, it is expected to be finished for homework.

Once this task was completed, students wrote journal entries describing their favourite parts of the church retreat.

Later, the students listened to a guest speaker in the gym, Cathy Koss, who spoke about our monthly theme for September. Ask you children if they remember the theme. I will post the answer tomorrow.

Next, the students had an opportunity to do some reading with Grade 3 students from Mr. Caron's class.

Finally, after eating lunch, a small group of Grade 6 students participated in basketball activities in the gym, during recess. They had some fun games of "bump" and some 3-on-3 to wrap things up.

Have a good night.

Mr. Skinner

Math Test Done, Now on to the Retreat

Hello,

The students worked very hard on their Math tests today. Looking over the tests quickly, it definitely looks like most students have a strong understanding of patterning.

Two students were not at school today, so they will write their tests on Wednesday. My goal is to have all of the tests returned to the students by the end of the week.

When the students completed the test, they were asked to read a story called "The Boastful Tortoise" and answer a series of questions in their Language duotangs. We will continue to work on these questions on Wednesday. They are not for homework tonight.

Tomorrow should be a great day, as we are participating in our Church retreat. The students are reminded to bring their indoor shoes and some snacks. A pizza lunch will be provided. Please make sure to be at school on time tomorrow, as we will be leaving on the bus at approximately 8:45 AM.

So, with no homework tonight, this is a great opportunity to do some reading. You can also check out this website for working with variable (it is challenging) - Working With Variables.

Or you can try this one - Solving Equations

Have a good night.

Mr. Skinner

Fire Drill!

Hello,

This morning we had a fire drill and the students did a wonderful job. They exited the building quickly and quietly, setting a great example for the younger students.

Before the drill, we did some silent reading and discussed the homework questions from last night. We had a great talk about how the pizza question asked how many pizzas I could make with 80 pepperoni pieces, rather than how many pizzas would I have to make to have a single pizza with 80 pepperoni pieces. Ask your kids to explain the difference and how the problem is solved, at the dinner table tonight. Hopefully it will start an interesting discussion.

Today, we also explored patterns and graphing. The students are asked to complete the two sequences from class, with t-tables, graphs, equations and words. Finally, they will find the 200th term for both of the sequences using the general pattern rule.

Tomorrow, we will look at some responses students gave to questions from the Digging for Gold text they read last week. Our goal is to make sure we are always explaining our thinking and including examples from the text to prove our points. I look forward to a great discussion tomorrow, which will lead to greater understanding and detail in their responses.

One last challenge. Please answer this patterning question:

If Mr. Skinner had 70 trick or treaters at his house in 2008, 80 trick or treaters in 2009 and 90 trick or treaters in 2010, how many trick or treaters will he have at his house this year?

Have a great evening.

Mr. Skinner

Three Math Questions

Hello,

We just finished a great lunch hour of Grade 6 basketball and I promised the students I would have three Math questions on the blog by 4 PM, for them to solve, so I decided to post a little bit early today.

Hopefully everyone received my message about the church retreat being re-scheduled from Friday to next Tuesday. There is no need to fill out a new permission slip. As long as you have sent in a signed form, your child is covered for next week.

This morning, we completed our feedback sessions, discussions and revisions for our Fighting for Fairness Biography group work. The students made some great changes, and included more detail and examples in their written work.

Next, we worked on a variety of Math patterning problems to help the students prepare for next Monday's test. The students asked some quality questions to help clear up misconceptions, and worked very hard to complete the problems.

The homework for tonight is to complete the following three questions in their Math notebooks:

1. What is the 100th term in the following sequence? 1, 5, 9, 13 ...

2. Craig is making pizzas. He puts 5 pepperoni pieces on the first pizza, 7 pepperoni pieces on the second pizza and 9 pepperoni pieces on the third pizza. If Craig continues to follow this pattern, how many pizzas can he make, if he started with 80 pieces of pepperoni?

3. If 6 x n + 14 = 62, then n = ?

Good luck. Have a good night.

Mr. Skinner

Church Retreat re-scheduled to Next Week

Hello,

Unfortunately, due to circumstances beyond our control, the church retreat has been re-scheduled to next Tuesday. If you have already signed the permission form, it will still apply to the new date for our field trip.

This morning, we continued to explore input and output patterns. We also discussed the topics we will cover throughout the rest of the unit. We also set a test date for next Tuesday, however, with the retreat being re-scheduled to that same day, we will need to decide on a new date tomorrow.

In Language, we finished our group work on the fighting for fairness biographies, then the students used post-it notes to give feedback on the quality of responses provided by the group. We will be discussing this feedback in the morning, and working on improving our responses, by providing more detail and examples in our responses.

Finally, the Grade 5 and Grade 6 students gathered in the gym today to complete their ambassador schedules. The lunch monitor jobs and the phones and announcement schedules will begin tomorrow.

There is no homework assigned tonight, so it would be a good idea for the students to review their Math work for the patterning unit. They are also encouraged to read for at least 20 minutes today.

Also, if you're looking for a fun game, where you can compete and improve your multiplication skills, check out this website:

Grand Prix Racing

Have a good evening.

Mr. Skinner

A Post From the Board Office

Hello,

Today will be a short post, as I am attending a leadership meeting at the Board Office.

We had a great discussion this morning about fairness, and how to deal with various issues that occur within a family in a fair manner (bed time, chores, etc.)

Then we formed groups of four to five people to discuss the fairness biographies we read on Friday. The groups were asked to discuss and write down their choice for their favourite biography and any personal connections they could make to that person's fight for fairness. We will continue this task tomorrow.

Also, in Math, we continued to discuss gaps and the relationship between input and output. The students were asked to complete the three pages for finding rules for T-tables. Time was given in class to work on this task, so most students only have one page for homework. Don't worry if you find the last three questions on p. 31 difficult, we will discuss and solve them together in the morning.

Please make sure to bring in your permission forms for Friday's Church retreat and your pizza order forms. Tomorrow is the last day for placing your orders!

Have a good night.

Mr. Skinner

Fighting for Fairness

Hello,

I hope everyone has had a wonderful weekend.

Tomorrow morning we will continue our work in the Literacy in Action readers. In pairs, the students read three biographies of people who fought for fairness in various ways. The students were asked to discuss the readings with their partners and pick a favourite selection for an activity we will be doing on Monday.

In Math, we corrected our work on extending patterns and predicting positions and we worked on predicting the gap between terms in a pattern. The predicting the gap sheet was assigned for homework this weekend.

If any students says they are bored tonight and have nothing to do, they could always read a book, or try out this fun patterning game.

Patterning Game

Have a good night.

Mr. Skinner

You Found My Blog!

If you're looking at this post on my computer, in the classroom, you have completed the task and found my blog!

Thanks for coming to Parent Info Night! Enjoy the evening and please let me know if you have any questions.

Please make sure to access this blog for updates on our daily activities, upcoming events and homework.

If you're not at Parent Info Night, don't worry, if you have any questions I will be happy to answer them. Just write them in your child's agenda and I will be happy to answer them!

Have a great evening.

Mr. Skinner

See You Tomorrow Night!

Hello,

This morning we finished, printed and posted the good copies of our recounts in the hall. The students look forward to you reading their work tomorrow night!

The students also continued to work on their 3-6 frame bitstrips, which will accompany their recounts in the hall. Anyone who did not finish their bitstrips in class need to complete them and share them with me tonight.

In Math, we continued to correct our t-table work. We had a good discussion about the baby weight problem and how to effectively approach problem solving questions. I also gave the students a double sided sheet dealing with extending and predicting patterns. This sheet needs to be completed by Friday.

Finally, I look forward to meeting any parents that can attend our info night on Thursday. We will begin at 6:15 in the gym. Then I will be in the classroom from 6:30-7:30. The students are welcome to attend, as they will serve as a guide for you in the classroom.

Have a great night.

Mr. Skinner 

Making Bitstrips

Hello,

Today we used the netbooks to finish up our good copies of our Summer recounts. We also registered on http://www.bitstripsforschools.com/ so that the students could work on a 3-6 frame comic strip that would accompany their recount. If you want to work on the comic strip at home, the class code is hred14.

The good copy of the recount and the comic strip should be completed by the end of lunch recess tomorrow. You can also work on either task at home tonight, provided that you have access to a computer.

We also began to correct some of the problem solving questions that involved t-tables. The students need to complete the second side of the white patterns sheet tonight. We will be correcting both sides of the sheet on Wednesday.

Have a great night.

Mr. Skinner

Thanks for your efforts!

Hello,

Today, the students gave a great effort to ensure the September liturgy was a success. The readers did a wonderful job and the other students assisted me greatly with the set-up and organization of the gym. I was very proud of the example the class set for all of the younger students.

Before the liturgy, we corrected the questions involving the introduction of t-tables.

Tonight, the students need to complete the page of t-table problem solving questions and to continue to work on their good copies of their Summer recounts. Several students took the opportunity to stay in at lunch recess to type their good copies on the netbooks, under my supervision. I was very impressed with their dedicated efforts to ensure they had their recount completed on time.

We are off to an amazing start! Keep up the great work!

Have a good night.

Mr. Skinner

For the Liturgy Readers

Hello,

I hope everyone is having a wonderful weekend.

Here is a copy of the liturgy that will be taking place at the school on Monday at 10:15. I am posting this, just in case any of the students who volunteered to read a section, misplaced their copy of their reading over the weekend.

See you Monday.

Mr. Skinner

September Liturgy

Opening Song – Children of God

Greeting

Deacon: The Lord be with you.

Response: And with your spirit.

Penitential Act

I confess to almighty God and to you, my brothers and sisters, that I have greatly sinned, in my thoughts and in my words, in what I have done and in what I have failed to do, through my fault, through my fault, through my grievous fault; therefore I ask Blessed Mary ever-Virgin, all the angels and saints, and you, my brothers and sisters, to pray for me to the Lord our God.

Gloria

Glory to God in the highest.

And on earth peace to people of good will .

We praise you,

we glorify you,

we give you thanks for your great glory.

Lord God, heavenly King,

O God, almighty father.

Lord Jesus Christ, only begotten Son.

Lord God, Lamb of God, Son of the Father,

you take away the sins of the world,

receive our prayer,

you are seated at the right hand of the father,

have mercy on us.

For you alone are the Holy One,

you alone are the Lord,

you alone are the Most High,

Jesus Christ,

with the Holy Spirit,

in the glory of God the Father. Amen

Responsorial Psalm: 13

Bryah: The response is:

R. With delight I rejoice in the Lord.

I trusted in your steadfast love;

my heart shall rejoice in your salvation. R.

Jayden: I will sing to the Lord,

because He has dealt bountifully with me. R

First Reading: (Katie)

A reading from the book of Romans:

We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to His purpose.

For those whom He foreknew He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, in order that He might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. And those whom He predestined He also called; and those whom He called He also justified; and those whom He justified, He also glorified.

The word of the Lord.

Amen

Gospel Acclamation: “If we love one another, God will live in us in perfect love"

At the Gospel

Deacon: The Lord be with you.

Response: And with your spirit.

Deacon: A reading from the Holy Gospel according to Matthew.

Response: Glory to you, O Lord.

Gospel: Matthew 1.18-23

Now the birth of Jesus the Messiah took place in this way.

When His mother Mary had been engaged to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit.

Her husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to dismiss her quietly. But just when he had resolved to do this,

an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.

She will bear a son, and you are to name Him Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.  All this took place to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet:

"Look, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall name Him Emmanuel," which means, "God is with us."

Homily  Deacon Paul

Apostles' Creed

I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried; he descended into hell; on the third day
he rose again from the dead; he ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty; from there he will come to judge the living and the dead.  I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the
resurrection of the body, and life everlasting. Amen

Prayers of the Faithful -

Ive: Our response to each prayer is: Lord, hear our prayer

 As we begin this new school year of learning, be with us God, we pray; R

London: As we begin this new year, help us make new friends, we pray; R

Renee: As we begin this new year, may our families have peace, we pray; R

Connor: As we begin this new year, encourage us to enjoy our extracurricular activities, we pray; R

Chris: As we begin this new year, may our relationship with You, God, grow stronger, we pray; R

OUR FATHER

Our Father, who art in heaven,

hallowed be thy name.

Thy Kingdom come, 

thy will be done, 

on earth as it is in heaven

Give us today our daily bread.

Forgive us our sins,

as we forgive those who trespass against us. 

Lead us not into temptation, 

but deliver us from evil. 

For the kingdom, 

the power and the glory are yours. 

Now and for ever.

Amen.

Concluding Rites

Deacon: The Lord be with you.

Response: And with your spirit.

Deacon: May almighty God bless you, the Father, and the Son, and the
Holy Spirit.

Response: Amen

Deacon: Go in peace.

Response: Thanks be to God.

Closing Song - Lord I Lift Your Name on High