Co-operative structures

Today our class worked cooperatively to assemble a cup pyramid using only an elastic with strings. They then built more elaborate structures. 

Room 131

We are two days in and the class is working wonderfully together!  We are a 2/3 class with exactly half of each grade.  This year the school is operating on a Day 1-5 schedule.  This means that our gym, arts, computers, etc., will rotate the days they occur on.  Although it can be difficult to keep track of, it means that we never miss a computer, art or other class due to a holiday or PA day.

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September is just around the corner

After an amazing road trip to the east coast of Canada, and many relaxing days spent with family at the cottage, it is time to head back to the classroom.  I am anxious to meet a new group of smiling young faces!

Light experiments

Last week students investigated the properties of light including using fibre optic cable and lasers. 

SOLE Project

After watching a TED talk video by Sugata Mitra, I was inspired to try something new in our class. This week the class participated in a SOLE (Student Organized Learning Environment). Each group was given an iPad and a challenging question to respond to independently. The grade fours were asked "Were the Middle Ages really the Dark Ages?" and the grade threes were asked "How did physical geography and natural resources affect where the pioneers choose to settle in Canada?" The groups took different approaches and worked cooperatively. They were incredibly engaged. To follow are the posters they made to communicate their findings. I am hoping to be able show the videos we made of their presentations.

DSRO

Last week we had a performance from members of the Deep River Symphony Orchestra. The students were captivated.

Forces in Action

This week, Mr. Wills, our volunteer science consultant, arranged for Andrew Wilson to come to our school to demonstrate rockets and rocket launches.  On Tuesday, April 9th, Mrs. Thomas' class and ours attended this exciting display.

 

We set up the launch area in the playground and the students stayed well clear of the area.  There was also a table set up for a closer look before and after.  Andrew had a few rockets that the children could touch and a rail launcher for larger rockets, so that the children were able to get a sense of how larger ones could be launched and how a pad might look. 

Andrew started his presentation with a brief overview of how rockets work and what we could expect to see.  He discussed safety precautions, and afterwards, he had a short question and answer period.

The students greatly enjoyed watching forces in action!  There were amazed at the heights the rockets reached.