Friday, March 26th, 2021

Hi Families, 

This week, we concluded our exploration of 2D shapes and 3D objects by participating in a community walk to look at basic and composite shapes in homes, as well as examining the art of Mary Blair in order to create our own:

Mary Blair was a Disney a concept artist. 
Her art not only connected to our study of shapes, but also to perseverance. 

Our art based on Mary Blair's concept art for It's a Small World. 

Using single shape materials to construct a scene,
based on the book "The Shape of Things". 
Ask your child about theirs. 

We also continued developing our automaticity of basic facts, by exploring visual tools for helping us with our doubles facts. Each fact has a picture clue associated with it to help us remember the sum. Ask you child if they can recall the picture clues for each fact. 

We also learned a new game to help practice our doubles facts called Doubles in a Row. You can find this game in Google Classroom --> Math --> Math Games --> Doubles in a Row. 

Subtraction with doubles is easy, no matter the number. We know that when you have a number, and you take it ALL away, it always equals zero. 

We also did a mini art/science study based on one of our schoolyard residents:

One of our resident Snowshoe Hares that consistently rests under the trees by the parking lot.
March 17 - note the changing fur. 

Our Spring Snowshoe Hare art:
Step by step drawing, finished with washable marker watercolour!

Same tree, hopefully same Snowshoe Hare. 
March 24.

A beautiful picture book making connections between
seasonal changes, adaptations and predators.

To end the week, we dyed eggs using dyes made from a variety of plants with our buddies. Students made connections to our recent examination of contributions from First Nation groups, but also were quick to identify that our plant dyes would not have been created using local plants. 

Many students expressed interest in trying to dye eggs at home using plants. This is the website we used as a jumping off point to create our dyes, however there are many, many other websites out there that can offer advice: https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/holidays/easter-ideas/how-to/a31737/natural-easter-egg-dyes/

From top left: black bean, avocado, blueberry, tumeric, beets, lemon, cabbage, tea. 

Cabbage is a fun one to try, as it will change colour if you use different mordants (vinegar vs. baking soda).

Have a wonderful Spring Break everyone! I look forward to seeing students back on TUESDAY, April 6th. Please see the additional blog note on our Easter Egg Hunt scheduled for that day. 

Ms. Thomas

Walking Field Trip - Easter Egg Hunt - Tuesday, April 6th, 2021

Hi Families, 

The grade 1/2 team is planning an Easter Egg Hunt on Tuesday, April 6th, the first day we return from Spring Break!

Students will be using a map to find laminated "eggs" that will be located at different locations at the green space located north on the school, as well as on school grounds. The activity makes connections to the social studies curriculum: 

- using familiar landmarks and places in the community to understand a map and locate items of interest
- using critical thinking to solve problems
- using social skills including cooperation, conflict resolution and consensus building
- demonstrate skills of oral, written and visual literacy

We are excited to make connection to the land and our community in this fun event! 

Please make sure your child has appropriate outdoor clothing for the day, as this activity will taken about 1 hour to complete. 

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me. 

Thank you!
Ms. Thomas

Walking Field Trip - Wednesday Afternoon

On Wednesday, March 24^th in the afternoon, Ms. Nodwell and I will be taking our class on a community walk looking at basic and composite 2D shapes and 3D objects. 

Looking at the forecast this week, it may be cooler and drizzly on Wednesday. Please ensure your child is dressed to be comfortable if this is the case. 

Our route would be:

Thank you!
Ms. Thomas

Flowers for Mother’s Day - School Council Fundraising

Flowers for Mother’s Day - School Council Fundraising 

The Lake Bonavista School Improvement Society is preparing for our upcoming Mother’s Day Flower Fundraiser.  This season’s fundraiser will combine flowers and herbs for the garden and celebrate our Mothers as role models.  The fundraiser will begin on April 2, 2021 and be open for ordering until April 23, 2021.  The flowers will be available for pick up at LBS in the teachers’ parking lot from noon – 3:00 p.m. on Friday, May 7, 2021. 

https://lakebonavistaschool.growingsmilesfundraising.com/home 

Are you moving or not returning to LBS in September 2021?

 Are you moving or not returning to LBS in September 2021?   

If your children are in Kindergarten or Grades 1 to 5 and moving to a new school or not returning to LBS, please complete the Google Form as soon as possible.  Our school is nearly filled to capacity and we have students on the waiting list for the Montessori Program.  Also, as we prepare for the next year, we will know how to balance class sizes as accurately as possible. 

https://forms.gle/uwjpHCC3afCUXzfJ9 

Student-Led Conference Supporting Documents

Hi Families, 

Now available in Google Classroom:

- Conference Guide: What you need to know, and what to expect from VIRTUAL Student-Led Conferences
- Guiding Questions: Questions you can ask your child regarding their artifacts of learning

Coming Soon:

- Artifacts of Learning: To be reviewed ahead of time, and referenced during, your Student-Led Conference time

Thank you!
Ms. Thomas

Friday, March 4th, 2021

Hello Families, 

Please see the additional blog post regarding upcoming Student-Led conferences. 

This week, we've been primarily focused on wrapping up artifacts for our assembly and upcoming conferences, all of which will be available to view early next week in Google Classroom. 

In our Sound Study, we have started looking at r-controlled vowels: -ar and -or. Information about the characters, stories and actions associated with these sounds are found in Google Classroom --> Literacy    --> Animated Literacy. When students are generating word lists for these sounds, it's always interesting to find "non-examples". English is so tricky! 

We continue with our weekly Poetry Study, which can be found in Google Classroom --> Literacy --> Poetry Study, and is a great way to practice familiar texts at home. This week, with all the loose teeth in our classroom, we read the poem "And Then". 

In Math, we are using the 10 frames as a visual for representing 10 facts (addition facts with sums to 10, and their corresponding subtraction facts). Understanding number bonds for 10 support further complex mental math strategies and flexibility of number. 

This month, Ms. Nodwell is leading the students in Dance for Phys.Ed. So far, they have practiced a basic routine that involves 3 basic dance steps, and then allows for them to add a freestyle move at the end, as well as learning the Hokey Pokey and Macarena. In the upcoming week, students will explore some Line Dancing!

Finally, please enjoy this short video from Ms. Nodwell, capturing the watercolour exploration art she did with the students. Ask your child about the different techniques they learned, and which was most surprising.  

Have a wonderful weekend everyone!
Ms. Thomas

Student-Led Conferences: March 11th and 12th

Hi Families, 

A reminder that Student-Led Conferences are coming up this Thursday, March 11th and Friday, March 12th. These conferences are VIRTUAL through Microsoft Teams. 

If you have not already done so, please book a conference through your MyCBE Account. If you are having trouble booking a conference or accessing your account, please contact the office: 403-777-6871.

On Monday, a conference guide will be uploaded to Google Classroom. Please take some time to review it ahead of artifacts of learning being uploaded Tuesday and Wednesday. 

Artifacts of learning specific to these conferences will again be uploaded to our Google Classroom, and found under Students Artifacts of Learning --> Your Child's Name. All relevant files will be labeled with March/Mar to differentiate between the ones from November. 

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out. 

Thank you!
Ms. Thomas

Rubberboots and Socks

With the recent beautiful weather, our school grounds are turning into one giant slush puddle! 

It is officially "rubber boots and an extra pair of dry socks in your backpack (please)" season !