November 29, 2016

I was away today at the second day of the RRST Reading Assessment training. In my absence, 1-2E students had a wonderful time with Mrs. Forchuk.  They had a big long Christmas concert practice and "Elfed Themselves".  You will have a chance to check out theses adorable elves, as they will be displayed on the wall at the Christmas Concert.  

November 28, 2016

Today students learned about mindful smelling.  They smelled the mystery jars and attempted to connect the smells to memories.  "It smells like my mom's cooking.", "Mom puts it in my spaghetti.", "I love eating it at Christmas.", etc.  

Whack-a-number is one of our favourite basic face practice games.  I encourage you to try this one out at home, it is a fun way to review +/-0, 1 and 2!  

The Grade 2s visited the Bay of Fundy and went whale watching on a large boat!  It was incredible! 

November 25, 2016

Congratulations to Brodie, who was the 1-2E Student of the Week!  

November 24, 2016

We love art day!  Today students created a watercolour winter tree scene.  Be sure to stop by our hallway to check out the fabulous student art! 

Reminder that tomorrow is Jersey Day.  Students are encouraged to wear a jersey or their RBES spirit wear. 

November 23, 2016

Today was a counting marathon!  We have been practicing our counting daily for the past month, but today we took it to a whole new level - backwards!  Grade 1s are required to count by 1, 2s, 5s, and 10s.  The Grade 2s are doing the same, but both forward and backward!  Students are bringing home their counting pattern books to keep at home for nightly review.  We played a dice/counting game that your child can teach you at home tonight.  

During MindUp today, we explored relaxation meditation.  We are enjoying our mindful education and encourage you to ask your child about the daily lessons.  The calming and mindfulness techniques are things that are beneficial for both children and adults alike. 

 

November 22, 2016

In Gym today, we practiced our dribbling/passing skills through the game Dribble, Dribble Pass.  We also played Card Shark and had a great time pairing up cards with our friends in 2B!

Tasty Tuesday was a success.  Thank you to Ms.Gould for providing the ingredients for this months tasty experience! 

November 21, 2016

Today during our MindUp lesson, students learned stuffie breathing.  Ask your child to show you this easy and fun self regulation technique tonight.

Reminders:  
- The photos posted to our blog are only a snapshot of all the photos taken in our classroom, you can view and download all photos from our Photo Gallery.
- Spelling City memberships were purchased for your child to use at home and school.  During the week, there are fun games that can be played to practice the weekly sort words.
- Library is on Tuesdays, please ensure your child brings back his/her books every Tuesday.
- November 25 is Jersey Day and hot lunch orders are due 

November 18, 2016

Congratulations to Titus, who was the 1-2E Student of the Week!

Over the next month, RBES has the Traveling Foundation For the Arts Travelling Exhibit, Margaret's Mountain, in the school.  Amazing pieces of art will move from classroom to classroom for students to enjoy.  Today we had the feature piece in our room, this piece will visit every classroom and while it is there, that class will add one sentence to a growing story.  Our students enjoyed creating their own story about this piece, prior to adding one sentence: "They watched as the pumpkins rolled to a stop at Lisa’s feet, then the most unexpected thing happened, the pumpkins began to talk to Lisa!" to the school story.  We can't wait to hear the entire finished story when it is read at assembly!  

November 17, 2016

Today we read the story, Even Steven and Odd Todd.  Then played a game with the same title using dominoes.  Identifying even and odd numbers is a tricky task, but we have been hard at work and are becoming stronger at this skill.  Continue to challenge your child at home ("There are 4 plates on our table, is that even or odd?" or "you can play xBox for 31 minutes, is that even or odd?"), the repetition aids in facilitating proficiency!  

The Grade 2s boarded the "bus" and traveled from Yarmouth to Meteghan.  We are excited to be exploring and learning about Meteghan for the next few weeks!! 

In Gym, Mr. Larson worked on dribbling and ball skills with our class.  

Students drew and began their Cardinal in the Snow paintings.  We are looking forward to them being dry tomorrow, so that we can add the snow.  

Reminder that the Fruit orders have arrived and are available for pick up this evening from 3-7.

November 16, 2016

The new basic fact focus is + and - 2; this is the third strategy of 6 that students will use this year.  Repeated practice of basic facts, along with intentional daily instruction of the strategies have demonstrated to be an effective method of basic fact retention.  Details about Basic Fact Games and Basic Fact Strategies can be found on our website.

Students are focusing on Odd and Even numbers this week.  Numbers which end in 0, 2, 4, 6, 8 are all even.  Challenge your child at home to identify if a number is even or odd.

The Grade 2s had their passport photos taken this morning, and thankfully, everyone's passports and plane tickets arrived just in the nick of time.  Thanks to Air Canada for getting us all safely to Yarmouth airport, we look forward to driving to Meteghan tomorrow.  

November 15, 2016

This morning, the Grade 2s researched the weather in Meteghan in preparation for our big "flight" tomorrow.  We learned that the weather today was 12C and students created puppets that wore weather appropriate clothing to take with us tomorrow.   

In the afternoon, students had Daily 5 and gym with Mrs. Forchuk.  They also worked on Mathletics, the curriculum based program memberships were purchased by the Parent Council and student accounts are accessible both at home and school.  Passwords were sent home last week, but if you require a second copy, please contact me via email.

Reminder: 
Fruit order pick up is Thursday from 3-7pm.

November 14, 2016

I hope you all had a restful and memorable extra long weekend.  

Today we jumped back into learning with a busy day in 1-2E.  In Math, students completed 24 Number Scoots, where they had to identify the number that is missing on a number line.  

We ended our day by launching the first of 15 MindUp lessons.  MindUp is a research based mindfulness curriculum.  Over the next 8 weeks, students will learn about attention, self-regulation, building resilience towards stress and maintaining a growth mindset.  The program has been the focus of the Black Gold CAP team for the past two years, and we are excited to be using it, alongside Zones of Regulation, again this year.  

Today, students learned three parts of their brains and a character that they can relate to each: amygdala (guard dog), hippocampus (happy hippo), and the prefrontal cortex (wise owl).

November 9, 2016

Today we attended the RBES Remembrance Day Ceremony and proudly donned our poppies in honour of those we've lost and those who continue to serve.  

In Flanders Fields

In Flanders fields the poppies blow

Between the crosses, row on row,

That mark our place; and in the sky

The larks, still bravely singing, fly

Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago

We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,

Loved, and were loved, and now we lie

In Flanders Fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:

To you from failing hands we throw

The torch; be yours to hold it high.

If ye break faith with us who die

We shall not sleep, though poppies grow

In Flanders Fields.

- John McCrae

November 8, 2016

It is great to be back at school, after a great day of professional development with the Grade One teachers. With our focus on reading assessment, strategies and specialized instruction, we are working towards strengthening our knowledge of a variety of reading assessments and by month's end will be trained in both the RST and Dibels. 

As part of the Postcards for Peace project, 1-2E students each designed and wrote a postcard to a veteran.  These postcards will be mailed to a several Veteran's Long Term Care Facilities across the province. 

In Art, students completed the project that they began yesterday.  Their poppies are positively beautiful and are on display for everyone to enjoy outside of our classroom.  

In Gym, students enjoyed their second day of catching & throwing stations, with a focus on accuracy.  I would say that the most popular station appeared to be the chicken catch!   

Reminders:
- Remembrance Day ceremony is at 10:45 tomorrow.  Students are encouraged to dress up for the assembly.  Each student will receive a poppy and are encouraged to bring a silver donation.
- There will be a Word Sort test tomorrow.
- Home reading can be kept at home for the extra long weekend.  Please return it on Monday.  
- There is no school on Thursday or Friday.

November 3, 2016

Today we launched our new Math unit on Numbers to 100!  Students used their magic wands to locate "before" and "after" on their magic number lines.  This fun activity can be done at home using a ruler, tape measure or meter stick.  

We also had a blast playing "Toss it Golf" in gym with Mr. Larson! 

The Grade Twos are excited to begin our Social Studies unit on the community of Meteghan.  Over the next month we will take daily adventures to this wonderful Atlantic community!  Our "flight" takes off tomorrow at 1pm and we can't wait!! 

November 2, 2016

The November newsletter is available online.