A Final Thank you...

As the final day of the school year draws to a close and the excited noise of the hallway gradually disappears, I sit amidst my classroom's various boxes and bins containing a year's worth of examples, assignments, and assessments; I can not help but smile and think of the fun I have this year working with my fantastic group of kids!  Regardless of what I threw at them in terms of curriculum they would rise to the challenge and give me their best effort - for the most part.  Sure we had a few bumps in the road as is to be expected on any ten month journey, but we travelled as a team and learned a lot from each other along the way and for that I say...

I would also like to say thank you to you, the parents, for all your efforts this year in support of your child.  Be it helping with homework, reminders for library books, chaperoning on field trips, baking goodies, watching the extra-curricular sports, or sending in party treats...your support of our school, our classroom, and especially your child was greatly appreciated by me and most importantly, your child.

Have a safe, and relaxing summer break with your families.  We will see you all again in September.  Below is a link for the upcoming 2017-2018 division school calendar: http://www.blackgold.ca/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/School-Year-2017-18-APPROVED-1.pdf

Week in Review: June 5 - 9

And with that the first week of June is in the books and it was most definitely a flurry of activity - and definitely a lot of fun!  This past week we had a field trip, a spirit day, an activity day, and of course all our classroom activities.  It was a packed week and one in which the pace of work began to increase as we start tying up the final pieces of the grade four curriculum.  We are down to 13 days of grade four and, as Mr. Cable stated at our weekly assembly, we are really focused on making those days count.


Curriculum wise this week...

In Math we worked with the last of the studied graph types and worked on plotting and graphing data using line graphs.  Everyone has been really good at picking up how data analysis works and are showing good confidence in being able to decipher information and answers based off of various types of charts and graphs. With that said everyone will be bringing home some extra practice materials to work with over the weekend in preparation for Monday's Unit Exam.

In Language Arts this week we continued to work with reading fluency and comprehension, and tackled several activities geared towards building everyone's ability to sound out unfamiliar words.  This week we jumped back in time and reviewed some of the spelling words from the beginning of the year - some words which had slipped from everyone's memories definitely allowed us to put our word attack skills to action.  Over the next couple weeks we will be going through all our year end Language Arts assessments in reading, writing, spelling, and comprehension.

Additionally you will have noticed a "Scavenger Hunt" booklet that came home today (for most) as homework.  This booklet as well a previous assignment are aimed at teaching Internet research skills and being able to locate and read websites for information gathering.  Come next year, and obviously in the years to follow, the ability to use the Internet as a school tool versus simply a place to watch YouTube or find gaming sites grows in importance.  With the homework this weekend students are asked to complete up to "E" in their booklets and then bring them back on Monday.

In Science we continued to look at the life cycles of plants.  This week was all about monitoring the growth of our plants and recognizing the changes that were taking place - and why?  Next week it's more plant journal writing and experiments focusing on flowers, roots, and photosynthesis.

In Social Studies we continued to study the growing influx of European settlers into Canada and looked at ways the Canadian Government provided incentives to new immigrants to move west and settle in what is now Alberta.

Year End Field Trip

On June 27th, the West Haven grade 4 students will be visiting Fort Edmonton Park as our final field trip of the year.  This field trip ties directly to our Social Studies curriculum and our study of Alberta: Past, Present, and Future.  With our visit we will be seeing first hand many of the things we have been studying in our Social Studies classes.

The field trip’s online permission form and fee payment information will be available for completion through the PowerSchool parent portal this week.  Please endeavour to complete the permission form and submit payment sooner rather than later, as waiting until the final deadline does little but create extra hassle for parents, teachers, and school secretaries who all must then scramble to get paperwork etc. in place moments before boarding the bus.

In terms of fees, the cost for this field trip was originally budgeted to be $19.50 per student. Fortunately this cost will be subsidized with funds collected during the grade four bake sale days.  These funds have allowed us to reduce the field trip fee to a fantastic $8.00 per student (entry and busing).   This fee can be paid online through PowerSchool or submitted directly to the school no later than MONDAY, JUNE 26th.  Any permission forms or fees submitted after this date will not be accepted and your child will not be allowed to participate in the field trip activities.

With our trip the bus will be leaving the school at 8:45AM, and we are aiming to back to West Haven Public no later than 2:55PM.  If you wish to come along on the field trip as a chaperone please let your child’s homeroom teacher know as soon as possible.  The cost for chaperones will be approximately $20.00 per person, which must be submitted directly to the school as this fee will not appear on your PowerSchool accounts.

Should you have any questions regarding this trip, please feel free to contactcme at the school via phone 780-986-5991 or by email.

Classroom Calendar of Events

Monday, June 12 - Math Unit Exam: Data Analysis
Wednesday, June 14 - Bake Sale 
Thursday, June 15 - In-class Agriculture Presentation (PM)
Friday, June 16 - Final Library class: please return all library books
Friday,, June 16 - WHPS Talent Show 2:00PM - 3:00PM
Tuesday, June 20 - Science Unit Exam: Plant Life Cycles
Wednesday, June 21 - Social Studies Unit Exam: Alberta
Monday, June 26 - Classroom clean up and pack up
Tuesday, June 27 - Fort Edmonton Field Trip (information being sent home on Monday)
Wednesday, June 28 - Class Year End Party/Moving Day
Wednesday, June 28 - Last Day of classes and Year End Report Cards

Week in Review: May 26 - June 2

Wow...and just like that, there goes May! Hard to believe there are only a mere 18 days remaining in the school year - seems like we had only just started out.  

In what was a busy week we continued to tackle new concepts and build understanding with data analysis, plant life cycles, artist studies, Alberta facts, reading strategies, novel studies, and some internet research.


Curriculum wise this week...

In Math it was all about data analysis and the graphs and being able to gather and/or record information.  This week we covered tally charts, bar graphs and pictographs.  Everyone had an opportunity to survey their classmates a couple times this week about topics of their choosing and then construct the associated graphs to visually display their data.  Come next week we will be looking at line graphs, pie charts and school-wide surveys to gather data from a larger group to work with.

In Language Arts it was all about reading strategies and continuing to build fluency and comprehension skills.  With our activities we worked with phonetics and being able to break unknown words into syllables so that they could be sounded out.  Initial sounds, final sounds and blends were all targeted and tied into this week's online activities.  In addition we wrapped up our Fantastic Mr. Fox novel study and worked through the final reading guide questions. Over the course of the novel we have had the opportunity to work on plot development, predictions, character analysis, setting development, vocabulary, and reading for information as well as entertainment.

In Science it was all about plants, specifically their life cycles and how they develop.  This week we began looking at the basic needs of plants and how their basic needs are very similar to those of people.  We began studying the specific parts of plants and identifying their purpose in the life of the plant.  This week we looked at the role of the seed  and had the opportunity to plant our own bean pants.  Over the course of the next few weeks we will be observing our plants and charting their development.

In Art this week we began tackling the topic of "pop art" and looking at some of the style's most influential artists.  This week we began a study of Andy Warhol, an American artist, director and producer who was a leading figure in the visual art movement known as pop art. His artwork explored the relationship between artistic expression, celebrity culture, and advertising that flourished in the 1960s, and spanned a variety of media, including painting, silk-screening, photography, film, and sculpture.  One of his best known works includes the silkscreen painting Campbell's Soup Cans (1962).  As an activity this week we took our shot at recreating some of his famous artwork - I think they turned our great!


Classroom Calendar of Upcoming Events
Monday, June 5 - Peter Puffin Presentation @ MacLab Theatre
Tuesday, June 6 - District Track and Field in Devon
Wednesday, June 7 - Western Day (dress as your best cowboy or cowgirl)
Wednesday, June 7 - Early Dismissal @ 2:30pm
Thursday, June 8 - WHPS Summer Activity Day
Monday, June 12 - Math Unit Exam Data Analysis
Wednesday, June 14 -Bake Sale (50 cents/item)
Tuesday, June 27 - Fort Edmonton Park field trip (more info to follow next week)

Week in Review: May 22 - 26

With this week's review it is straight to the highlights, fluff is nice but just the info this week. Here we go...the week was another busy one with lots of checks on the learner-to-do list. 

Curriculum wise this week...

In Math this week we wrapped up our unit on Measurement and have now transitioned nicely into Data Analysis.  With this unit we will be  collecting, organizing, and presenting data using a variety of graphs.  Come next week the class will be collecting data and creating their own tally charts; then transferring this data to pictographs and finally into vertical bar graphs. We'll continue to work on transferring data between graphs this coming week including plotting data within line graphs. 

In Language Arts this week we continued to develop reading strategies that can aid with comprehension.  Rereading text, chunking words into syllables, phonetically breaking down words, looking for familiar words that might offer context, or even using the book's illustrations are all strategies that can aid comprehension and ultimately fluency.  We continued to work through our second Roald Dahl novel study and have very nearly wrapped up our reading of Fantastic Mr. Fox.  Working with the novel we have been able to learn about character comparisons, types of characters, and how to summarize information.

In Science we began our investigation of Plant Life Cycles and discovered that the needs of plants are very similar to those of people.  Much like people, plants need water, nutrients, shelter and they tend to grow better when given some TLC.  This coming week we get to explore seeds and the bits and pieces inside them. 

In Social Studies we continued to examine early settlers and their impact on Alberta past and present and are now beginning our transition into the study of traditions and celebrations. With the study of how Alberta had changed culturally and socially over time students will gain a better understanding and appreciation of how much Alberta has changed over time.

Health - With next week we have our human sexuality classes on Monday and Thursday.  With the classes there has been a lot of nervousness among the class about what we are doing.  We the class sessions they are are gender separate - with myself instructing the boys and Mrs. Lavoie working with the girls.  With both classes we will be working through a series of activities all relating to puberty and the changes that can occur during this period of life.  It is NOT a "birds and bees" type lesson!

Permission forms and Field Trip fees
Over the next week or so it will seem like a lot of field trip and activity paperwork coming home.  As we near the end of the year we have several upcoming activities that require the submitting of permission forms and/or activities fees via PowerSchool.

In terms of current and upcoming fees/permission forms, please check to see if you have remembered to submit the needed fees/forms; here's what is currently on PowerSchool:

May 30 - Fathers day Projects - $10.00 fee (available on Powerschool now)  Deadline: May29

June 5 - Peter Puffin field trip @ MacLab theatre - $2.00 fee/permission form (available on PowerSchool now)  Deadline: June 4

June 6 - District Track meet @ Devon - $8.00 fee/permission form (available on PowerSchool now for participating students)  Deadline: May 29

** Not yet posted online will be the year end field trip to Fort Edmonton Park on June 28th.  Form and fee should be available online next week.

Please submit fees and permission forms online prior to the listed deadlines; unfortunately verbal consent is not enough.  With the trips and activities if either fees and/or permission forms are not received by the stated deadlines your child will unfortunately not be able to participate.

Classroom Calendar 
Monday, May 29 - Human Sexuality class 1
Monday, May 29 - Deadline for track and field fees ($8.00)
Monday, May 29 - Deadline to submit Fathers Day project fees ($10.00)
Thursday, June 1 - Human Sexuality class 2
Friday, June 2 - Library: Book Exchange
Sunday, June 4 - Deadline to submit permission form/fee ($2.00) for Peter Puffin field trip
Monday, June 5 - Peter Puffin field trip @ MacLab Theater, Leduc
Tuesday, June 6 - Elementary District Track and Field Meet @ Riverview Middle School, Devon
Wednesday, June 7 - Early dismissal @ 2:30pm
Friday, June 9 - Library: Book Exchange
Thursday, June 15 - Agriculture Alberta Presentation (in class)

Week in Review: May 1 - 5

Welcome to the month of May, wow April was a blur - most have been all the fantastic weather?!  It is hard to believe that there are only eight weeks of school left in the year! Luckily for us, this May there is more than enough time to pack in a novel study, a few unit tests, a family dance, some bake sales, and of course some Mothers Day fun.  

The last few weeks are busy and will certainly fly by so it's important that everyone is here and on time so that they do not miss out on any of the fun!

In terms of curriculum this week...

In Math we've kicked off our study of measuring liquids and using millilitres, litres, and kilolitres and shifted away from the measuring of distance.    With the lessons the kids will be learning about accurately measuring and converting units of liquid measurement.  Watch for a practice booklet on linear and capacity measurement to come home next week.

In Language Arts this week we continue to develop our reading comprehension skills and the ability to locate and identify features of good stories.  Our current novel study, Fantastic Mr. Fox is moving along nicely and the students are consistently generating chapter summaries and completing chapter assignments which always them to synthesize their information and highlight the main features that they deem to be most important to understanding the individual chapters.  

With our novel study we are hoping to wrap up this novel before the May long weekend and celebrate our reading with a text-movie comparison using the stop-motion movie version of Fantastic Mr. Fox.

Congratulations goes out to Kaleb on winning the free entry passes as the Laser City Home Reading winner for the month of April.  Keep going with the home reading, for every page completed in your reading log you get an entry into the draw.  Remember the goal is to try and read at least 15 minutes each night.

In Science this week we continued our study of light and shadows, and worked through a couple more experiments.  We are hoping to have our final unit test just before the May long weekend, after which we will begin our study of Plant Life Cycles.  As an initial unit activity we will work through several activities designed to help us identify what our current knowledge of plants is and also identify some of the things we are hoping to gain an understanding of. 

Health & Human Sexuality
With our health classes next week everyone will be receiving individual consent forms for their child's participation in the grade four health classes focusing on personal health and human sexuality scheduled for later in May.  These scheduled classes will be gender separate and focus specifically on the physical, emotional and social changes that occur during puberty; e.g., menstruation, secondary sexual characteristics, changing identity and moods (Alberta Education, Health and Life Skills curriculum, 2002).  Participation in these classes is at the discretion of parents and consent forms need to be returned in a timely fashion prior to the class dates as noted on the form.

This last week was Mental Health Awareness Week and to say the school was a hub of activity would be an understatement.  Between the theme days, bake sales, and student activities everyone was up and active and focused on raising awareness of mental health and wellness.  This topic will continue to be a topic of discussion for the remainder of the year.  

Social Studies
This last week in Social Studies we were able to take a closer look at some of the natural resources available in Alberta and see first hand their personal benefits and how they are produced in our province.  Everyone had a fabulous time at the Amazing Agriculture event that was hosted at the Expo Centre in Edmonton.  With the event our group was able to visit 12 different "booths' with each booth offering different insight in a specific part of Alberta's agriculture.  Some highlights included our own hand-made hummus, milking a mechanical cow, planting our own sunflowers, reading to a horse, petting a variety of animals, discovering purple french fries, and experiencing the excitement and confusion of a "farm auction"!

Here are a few pictures from the day...

Calendar of Upcoming Events

Wednesday, May 10 - Library Book Exchange

Friday, May 12 - WHPS "Rockin Retro" Family Dance

Monday, May 15 - Science Unit Exam - Light and Shadows

Wednesday, May 17 - Bake Sale: 50 cents per item

Friday, May 19 - PD Day: No School

Monday, May 22 - Victoria Day: No School

Week in Review: April 24 - 28

A quick update on the latest and greatest classroom events.  The pace of learning continues to roll along and there was plenty of fantastic learning happening in class.  This last week I put the class on notice that over the remaining few weeks the completion of homework assignments and/or at-home projects will be closely monitored.  Building greater self responsibility in terms of completing school work outside the classroom helps set the stage for next year's move into grade five. This homework change may undoubtedly be a bigger challenge for some than others and thus create a new source of anxiety or stress; as parents you can definitely assist your child.  With West Haven we do provide after school learning labs Monday through Thursday which allow students the opportunity to work on incomplete assignments after school with teacher supervision on any of their incomplete assignments.

In working with kids and homework there are undoubtedly challenges, however having a plan of attack can alleviate a lot of "hair pulling" and stress, and instead create set routines that can allow children to thrive.  There are many ways of creating structures at home that support children's learning.  Specific decisions about structuring depend in part on your child's learning needs and on your (parent's) ideas about specific involvement that will "fit" both your child and your family context, for example, what the home is like and what other demands require your time - ie. siblings, work etc..

As parents, establishing homework routines (e.g., students decide the order in which the work will be done, while parents track time and remind students of remaining tasks) and offering suggestions for organizing homework space (e.g., clear off the table or desk before starting homework) are important to ensuring learning success and the completion of tasks. It is important to create a comfortable, quiet environment and maintain consistent rules for homework completion (e.g., who can work together; when it's okay to ask for help).

Some strategies that students can use to avoid becoming distracted during homework include telling themselves not to get up until a specific part is finished, or doing easier parts of the assignment first. It is also a good idea to remove or limit external distractions (TV, electronics, phone) be turned off until homework is done.  Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, offer positive reinforcement (e.g., free time, small rewards) to motivate efficient completion of homework.  In all, it is very important that parents let students know that they value and expect effort and learning in the homework process.

Curriculum wise here is what we have been doing in class...

In Math we have continued to work through our measurement unit and did plenty of work converting units and determining appropriate units for measuring various objects.  Next week we will be moving on from the calculation of area and perimeter and it the measuring of liquids involving millilitres, litres, and kilolitres.

In Language Arts we continue to work on reading fluency and comprehension.  We have been working with comprehension strategies that help to reinforce understanding of literature.  In being able to retell story events, generate predictions, infer character emotions and ultimately locate specific story information to support their inferences, students are able to better integrate their learning and make personal connections to story information which allows for detailed recall.

In Science we continued our study of light and shadows and began investigating the principle of light ray refraction.  Refraction is the bending of light (it also happens with sound, water and other waves) as it passes from one transparent substance into another.

This bending by refraction makes it possible for us to have lenses, magnifying glasses, prisms and rainbows. Even our eyes depend upon this bending of light. Without refraction, we wouldn’t be able to focus light onto our retina.

Mental Health Awareness Week
Mental Health Awareness Week kicks off next week on Monday, May 1st, and will most definitely be an exciting time for everyone involved.  The staff and students of West Haven public will definitely be showing their support through participation in a multitude of different events!

Here is a summary of the activities planned to celebrate Mental Health Awareness Week at WHPS.  Parents and families are welcome to attend any or all of the events:

Monday (1) 
- Motivational messages
- Joke of the Day
- Classroom door decorating contest begins

Tuesday (2)
- Motivational messages
- Joke of the day
- Mental Health Activity Day - parent volunteers welcome to come and participate with their children.  Ten different activities to attend throughout the day including yoga, physical literacy, nutrition, cooperative games, mindful colouring, an escape room, floor hockey, frisbee golf, music exploration, and finally a poetry writing station.

Wednesday (3)
- Motivational messages
- Joke of the day
- School spirit day: "National Hats on for Mental Health" Day - everyone wears their favourite hat, ie. cowboy hat, sombrero, baseball cap, hard hat etc.

Thursday (4)
- Motivational messages
- Joke of the day
- SWAT team Bake Sale in support of the Canadian Mental Health Foundation.  All items are 50 cents and all funds raised will be donated to the CMHF.

Friday (5)
- Motivational messages
- Joke of the day
- Classroom door decorating judging
- Student "Art Gallery" in small auxiliary gym.  All classes will have artwork related to mental health on display for everyone to come and check out.
- Family movie night in support of the Canadian Mental Health Foundation.  Families are invited to come and watch a movie, Robin Williams in Mrs. Doubtfire,  in the large gym beginning at 6:30pm.  Entry to the event is by donation, with all donations being given to the Canadian Mental Health Foundation.  

Lastly CONGRATULATIONS goes out to Kaleb, Kylan, Nate, Sarah, Jenna, Savanna, and Mackenzie on their hard work and effort at this weekend's St. Benedict's Bears Floor Hockey tournament.  It was a great showing for both our school's teams as our boys finished in fourth while our 3/4 girls team managed to win West Haven's first ever floor hockey medal as they captured the silver at the tournament, just narrowly missing the great comeback in the gold final.  Super proud of everyone's attitude, effort and team work during this year's season!

Upcoming Calendar of Events
Monday, May 1- Friday, May 5 - Mental Health Awareness Events (see above)
Tuesday, May 2 - Mental Health Activity Day - dress for the weather as students will be inside and outside throughout the day
Wednesday, May 3 - "Hats on for Mental Health" spirit day - wear your favourite hat in support of mental health initiatives
Wednesday, May 3 - 6H Bake Sale. All items are 50 cents.
Wednesday, May 3 - Early dismissal at 2:30pm
Wednesday, May 3 - Library Book Exchange
Thursday, May 4 - Amazing Agriculture field trip to Edmonton Expo Centre - remember to pack a lunch and arrive at school on time.  We will be leaving by 8:40 and unfortunately won't be able to wait for stragglers due to our tight arrival schedule.
Friday, May 5 - Student Art Gallery.  All parents are welcome to come and visit the West Haven Museum between 8:45AM and 7:00PM.
Friday, May 5 - Family Movie Night "Mrs. Doubtfire".  Entry by donation to the Canadian Mental Health Foundation.  Popcorn concession available.

Week in Review: April 10 - 13

This week, although only four days, was another good one with plenty of learning going on. Throughout the week the class continued becoming poetry masters, worked with metric measurement conversions, continued their study of Piet Mondrian, and experimented with a variety of different materials and light rays. Throw in the fun of "Oilers Team Spirit" day, our Easter party, and of course the excitement of the Easter break and the Stanley Cup Playoffs beginning and it was a great week all around.

In terms of curriculum this week...

In Math we continued our study of linear measurement and began comparing units of measurement.  Working with the metric system we examined, for example, how many units you would get when converting say five meters into millimeters, or 30000cm into kilometers.  We also looked at being able to recognize appropriate units of measurement for tasks, such as using millimeters to measure short distances/objects versus larger/longer distances perhaps using decimeters or kilometers.  After the Easter break we will begin looking at weight and capacity.

This week we also kicked off our participation in the Canada 150 event using the Mathletics online Math program.  Using the program students are able to practice their Math skills both in class as well as home.  An information sheet was sent home containing information about the program as well as a small card containing everyone's usernames and passwords. Everyone is really excited about using the program so it's a great opportunity for everyone to take advantage of that excitement and get some extra practice in at home!

In Language Arts this week we continued working with reading comprehension and getting everyone using with their word attack strategies to decipher unknown words, so as to improve fluency and understanding.  This week's work looked at determining whether writing samples were fact or opinion, and better able to recognize features that would allow them to tell the difference.  In writing, we continued our poetry unit and this week focused on composing "cinquain poems".  With the poems they have a set structure with a relatively easy form to follow, which allowed the style to be quickly understood.  This lead to the publishing of some very creative, and funny poems with a wide variety of topics.

In Science the study of light and shadows continued with everyone experimenting with the creation of shadows in class using a variety of different materials.  The assorted materials we used were a mix with transparent, translucent and opaque characteristics.  This allowed everyone the opportunity to see first hand how these materials interacted with the light rays from their flashlights - some allowed the rays to pass through entirely, some blocked the rays completely, while others allowed the rays to pass through but altered them in some way - dimmer, colour change, direction of the beams etc.

In Art this week we began our artist study of Dutch artist Piet Mondrian.  Piet Mondrian was originally a well known landscape painter but eventually became more famous for his abstract geometric paintings.  This type of artwork was what we focused on this week in class and  used as our inspiration in class.  This week everyone took a shot at recreating one of Piet Mondrian's more famous pieces called "Composition II in red, blue, and yellow".  This artwork was the inspiration for several clothing lines, and even an entire museum!




Bake Sale - Wednesday, April 19

Just a quick reminder about next week's classroom bake sale on Wednesday, April 19th.  Please be sure to send your 3 dozen individually wrapped baked goods to school first thing in the morning.  If the baked good you are sending contains nuts please marked this on the wrapper as they will be set up and sold on a separate table.  All money collected from the sale goes directly to the classroom.

Go Oilers Go

Here's a great shot of the school showing their team spirit during Wednesday's  Oilers Team Spirit Day...

Upcoming Calendar of Events
Friday, April 14 - No School
Saturday, April 15 - Deadline to order hot lunch for May
Monday, April 17 - No School
Tuesday, April 18 - PD Day: No School
Wednesday, April 19 - Library Book Exchange - please return library books
Wednesday, April 19 - 4H Bake Sale (please send 3 dozen items first thing in the morning)
Thursday, April 20 - East Elementary Invitational Girls Floor Hockey Tournament