Friday Challenge Day 2: docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdtkj-8JzWWPskGUo_11edTOdOqLL08GLVrO04xlEd3PGPfjg/viewform Weekly spelling list: Social Studies and Science vocabulary: test: Mon. April 30, 2018 Field trip to the landfill and composting facility: Students of 4E and 4F had the opportunity this week to visit Shepard landfill and composting facility on Thursday. We saw the 'throw 'n go' where citizens bring old appliances, old furniture, old mattresses and building materials. These things are placed in the landfill. Bulldozers spread and compact these waste materials. Drywall, shingles, metal from old refrigerators, old bicycles and freon are all reused or recycled. Private citizens may bring fluids like used oil from doing an oil change to the dump where they can be treated or recycled. Old paint is made into new paint and metal is melted down and reused to make new items. A landfill is layered. There is a layer of clay. It is difficult for leachate (waste liquid) to penetrate through a layer of clay to contaminate ground water. There is also a plastic liner deep beneath the garbage. Each layer of garbage is covered with soil and a landfill is built on an angle to allow for drainage. Students were shown yellow pipes that protrude from the landfill. These pipes are there to collect leachate (i.e. garbage juice). The leachate is pumped into trucks and is taken to a waste water treatment facility. Calgary is a leader in taking organic waste and making it into usable compost which is re-sold to farmers and city dwellers. All the food waste, lawn clippings, branches, bones, shells and peelings can be placed in green bins. These bins are brought to the Shepard composting facility where their contents are treated and made into compost. In the following pictures we can see how our guide explained this process to 4E and 4F students: Through our weekly word work using spelling words and while reading the novel Stone Fox we learned to tune into interesting new words and use new vocabulary when speaking, drawing and writing. We learned that when students have at least six multiple exposures to new words in a variety of contexts they develop better levels of comprehension. In the novel Stone Fox students heard words like: errands, twilight and city slickers. Some students knew the expression 'to run an errand' and many could imagine what city slickers might mean based on the passages from our novel. Students defined new words from the spelling list by writing definitions, drawing pictures, and alphabetizing them. They also wrote sentences using these words. Mr. Brewer showed a powerpoint presentation that illustrated all the words. Luckily, we now all have our own copies of Stone Fox courtesy of Ms. Bennet in the Learning Commons: This week 4E students decorated our door with recycling materials. Our decorated door hanging was chosen from among many and is now on display in the main foyer of N.C.S. Grade 4E & 4F students, you did great work on this!!! It has been an exciting week at school. Over the weekend please study the spelling words from this week. They are challenging to use in sentences. Many of the words are new ones that are being used in both social studies and science.
Next week we begin Swim lessons: April 30 ~ May 4. An e-mail reminder and telephone message were sent out on Friday April 27.
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In Alberta, agriculture and the establishment of communities are interconnected. In lessons this week we learned that most farms in Alberta have crops or livestock or both. To grow crops, farmers need open, level fields, water, soil and sunshine. In some cold places crops still grow during the summer. This is the case in the Peace River country of northern Alberta. It is far north at 55 degrees N. latitude, but is still an important major agricultural area in our province. The average temperature, landforms, precipitation and number of frost free days relate to the types of farming that can take place around different cities and towns in Alberta. These factors have contributed to the growth of settlements. In the far northern region of Alberta around Fort McMurray or Fort Chipewyan there are few or no farms because of the soil, climate and lack of frost free days. Where crops don't grow well, farmers may raise livestock instead. This is largely the case in the Foothills region of Alberta where ranching is common. We began a new novel study this week. Stone Fox is a novel that takes place in Wyoming in the United States. Students learned that the climate, vegetation and soil in this part of the United States is very similar to Alberta. In the story the main character Little Willy, his grandfather and dog Searchlight live on a potato farm. It is notable that potatoes are grown in Alberta too. Alberta’s potato-growing areas are mainly in southern Alberta around Taber and are among the very best in the world. The cold weather we experience in Alberta much of the year defeats a lot of the insect pests that are common in other places where potatoes are grown commercially. This week we re-visited one of the reading comprehension strategies we studied when reading Superfudge. When students listen to or read a text, they can create pictures in their mind or make a mind movie. When readers visualize what is happening in a story they can remember more of what they read or hear. This week in class students listened to chapter one of the story and were asked to imagine in their mind what it looked like. In their visual journals they drew pictures of the story: Next week we will visit the Shepard Landfill. Parents/guardians are reminded that swimming will commence in May! We will walk to and from Vivo.
Weekly spelling list: In Humanities this week, some students completed their legendary stories. Others continue to work on them. All students are using Google docs to write these stories and have learned how to submit their stories to Mr. Brewer using this program. When stories are completed, Mr. Brewer will read through them and offer feedback on how they may be improved. This is the revising part of the writing process where we rework the organization and details of the stories. In class, students learned a variety of means of improving stories such as describing the setting, using red flag words and phrases to build tension, using word referents and having a definite story problem which is solved by the character(s). Typically stories build up a level of anticipation or tension until there is a climax to the story. The resolution of this tension constitutes the conclusion of the story. Mr. Brewer will read through student work in order to identify characters, plot and story problem. These are integral parts of a good story. Typically, if a story does not have these story elements, students will need to re-work the details to improve the narrative. This week's spelling list focuses on agriculture. Agriculture is an important natural resource in Alberta. Students have completed a map of Alberta's natural regions and resources. They are developing an understanding that the location of agriculture within the province is affected by geography and climate. Ranching and beef production are common in the Foothills natural region while the Grassland and Parkland regions are where many cereals are grown. In the Boreal Forest and Canadian Shield regions viable commercial agriculture is generally not possible due to the cold and terrain. Students completed their First Nations research and presentation this week. Then, Mr. Brewer introduced the topic of Alberta's French and British history. This represents a new chapter is the story of Alberta's history. We learned that by the 17th century, Europeans were beginning to come to the area now known as Alberta in increasing numbers seeking furs. In Friday's lesson 4E and 4F viewed the following movie by the NFB: www.nfb.ca/film/voyageurs/ While this film was made in 1964, it does give a reasonable impression of what daily life was like for voyageurs. In addition, 4F practice the song Alouette in class with Mr. Brewer. This was one of many songs that the voyageurs sang to keep pace as they paddled across Canada. Presently, Mr. Brewer is reading a book about the travels of Alexander Mackenzie. Alexander Mackenzie was a Scottish born explorer working for the Northwest Company. Here is some additional information about him: www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/sir-alexander-mackenzie-explorer/ Our weekend homework assignment is all about the importance of the voyageurs to Canada's (and by extension Alberta's) history. While we tend to think of Alberta as a predominantly English speaking province, many of the earliest settlers, traders and missionaries who came here were Francophone and Métis. Spelling quiz: Mon. April 16. Please study the words in the list above this weekend. Homework assigned Fri. April 13. Due Mon. April 16.
This week, most students did their First Nations oral presentations in front of the class. Oral language is the foundation of literacy. Through listening and speaking, students communicate thoughts, feelings, experiences, information and opinions, and learn to understand themselves and others. When students introduced their First Nations group to the class the audience listened and at the end of the presentation they were encouraged to ask questions. Both listening and speaking enable students to explore ideas and concepts, as well as to understand and organize their experiences and knowledge. They use oral language to learn, solve problems and reach goals. To become reflective, lifelong learners, students need to develop fluency and confidence in their oral language abilities. While many students were nervous about doing a presentation for their peers, the experience was invaluable. Reading homework: The Fur Trade - Assigned Fri. April 6. Due Mon. April 9:
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