Mr. Wideman (Room 104) - Sept 16 - Sept 20

This has been another exciting and busy week in Room 104, and I'd like to take this opportunity to thank our families for attending the Parent-Teacher Conferences to discuss the early stages of the school year, as well as plan for some targets and goals for our students' academic and social needs. It was a pleasure meeting the families of Room 104, and I thank you for your support of your child's learning. We're looking forward to a great school year!

On Tuesday, we took our first field trip of the school year. At the Bow Habitat Station, our grade 4/5 students had the opportunity to explore the natural environment during a nature walk, learn about wetlands and marine invertebrates through pond dipping, and work on sketching and journalling skills. We learned about the different types of wetlands and the variety of plants and organisms that make up this important ecosystem. Did you know that wetlands don't always contain water? This varies during the year according to weather and climate patterns, as well as flooding conditions. Our wetlands function as a giant sponge that absorbs excess rainwater, while providing protection from floods.

In Language Arts, we're continuing to explore elements of stories, with a focus on developing plot through rising action that leads to a climax within the storyline.  This week, the Pixar short film "Burn-E" provided us with the opportunity to explore plot development around a central problem. We're aiming to include greater detail and description in our stories, with an eye on using vocabulary that engages our reading audience. 

Our class novel, "Skeleton Creek", has been the basis for our investigation of first person narrative stories. The main character of the story, Ryan, retells the mysterious events in his small mountain town through his personal journal, while his best friend Sarah includes video footage that adds to the mystery and intrigue of the strange happenings around Skeleton Creek. Ask about how the mystery has unfolded so far! The history of the town of Skeleton Creek, and the events surrounding the Gold Rush in the region provide a connection to our work in Social Studies around ghost towns. Do you know about the history of the towns of Bankhead and Lake Minnewanka?

In Math, we're continuing to develop our computational skills and connect these to strategies for problem solving. Our work on the Sierpinski Triangle led us into an investigation of fractals, which are essentially patterns that never end! By exploring the stages of development as the pattern builds or shrinks, we're discovering the importance of different sets of numbers. For example, in the Sierpinski Triangle, we found that the number "3" is a key part of this pattern, as each stage of the fractal expanded by multiples of 3. We were able to predict further stages of the fractal by applying multiples of 3. Next week, we'll continue to work on developing computational skills through our Spending Project, and we'll explore different approaches to problem solving through our Number Talks and 3 Act Tasks. This week we explored a 3 Act Task involving the world record for a dog popping balloons! Check it out here.

On Friday September 27, we'll be participating in our Terry Fox Run. Students will need to ensure that they dress for the weather and bring a water bottle.  We'll begin the morning with a school assembly at 11:00am to reflect on the impact of Terry Fox, and our run will begin immediately after. All members of our school community are welcome to join us for this event. We're also looking for volunteers to help support our students throughout the running route. Please let us know if you're able to help out as a volunteer.

Thank you for your support. Enjoy your weekend!

-Mr. Wideman