We were very lucky to be one of the few classes able to take advantage of the snowshoes last week! They arrived at St. Clare around 10:00 a.m., we had our turn on them from 10:45-11:45, two other classes had a chance to use them, and then the weather turned awful! Tuesday was freezing rain, so nobody could go outside. Wed was very cold and the rest of the week was very icy. Now the snowshoes have moved on to the next school - I hope they have better luck with the weather! The schoolyard and the snowhill are both very icy at present. We will NOT be going sliding on the hill between St. Clare and Arc-en-Ciel until we have had a significant amount of fresh snow to cover the hard ice. It would not be safe to take them sliding, even with helmets.
On Thursday, we had a very interesting and informative presentation from the Public Health Nurse, Shanna Osborne, about the dangers of tobacco use and smoking. During the presentation, she inflated pig lungs that were healthy, and pig lungs that had been exposed to the same chemicals found in tobacco. While most students found this interesting, and asked many relevant questions, some students did find it somewhat upsetting. They may want to talk to you about how to keep their lungs healthy, and if you are a smoker, they may want to talk to you about quitting. There are many resources available from Ottawa Health, and from your family doctor, should you wish further information.
With the bus cancellation day on Tuesday, and a PD Day on Friday, we didn't have a lot of instructional time last week! We will have to work extra hard this week to make up for it. Here's what we have planned:
Science: we will be wrapping up our sound unit with a few final experiments, then will plan our culminating task for assessment. Ask your child where the noisiest part of our school is, and how many decibels they measured it at. Ask them where the quietest area of the school is, and what it measured at. See if they know what noise pollution and light pollution are, and what we can do about them.
Math - we are learning about time and elapsed time. While most students are able to tell time using a digital clock, using an analogue clock is a challenge. Take a few opportunities throughout the day to ask them what time it is, using an analogue clock. Ask them how long until dinner time? If we plan to arrive at the hockey rink at 6:10 p.m., how long of a drive is it? If we need to arrive at church before 11:00 a.m., and the drive takes 25 minutes, what time should we leave? Making time a part of everyday life gives it a meaningful connection to them.
Language Arts - we are finishing up our procedural writing unit.
Phys Ed - we are still learning badminton skills, it's a lot of fun but very challenging!
Health - we will be reviewing the information from the public health nurse on keeping our lungs healthy
Arts - we will have a presentation from a facilitator from the National Gallery program called "Looking at Pictures" on Wednesday. The students will have the opportunity to delve into various works of art from the gallery, and explore the techniques the artist used, the meaning behind the painting, the use of colour and shadow, etc. It is usually a very interesting and educational hour!
Upcoming events:
Don't forget - next Monday, Feb. 5, all grades 1-6 students will be going to the Museum of History in Hull. I have permission slips from all but one student, and the students who have not yet paid for the trip have been reminded to do so. We have 2 parent volunteers coming with us - thank you Mr. Q and Mrs. F! - any other parents who wish to accompany us will need to drive themselves to the museum (or carpool with another parent) and pay their own admission as only 2 parents are covered per class and the busses are full. It should be a very busy, fun-filled, educational day!
Parent Council has organized a Winter Dance on Friday, Feb. 2 from 6-8:30 p.m. at St. Peter's High School gym. Come on out and bring your dancing shoes!
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