Walking Field Trip Tomorrow!

Hello parents!

Just a reminder that we will be returning to Cardinal Creek Children's Garden tomorrow (Monday). We will be walking from the school to the park and back in the morning and returning just before lunch. Please ensure your child has returned their permission slip-I am missing 6 forms. It is important for your child to come to school with comfortable shoes, sunscreen, and a hat. If the weather is not cooperative, we will reschedule for Monday, June 19th. The students absolutely loved this experience in May. I can't wait to see how our seedlings have grown since then.

Plastic 2L bottles

Hello families!

As part of our habitat unit in science, we will be creating our very own habitat! Please send in any empty 2L plastic bottles you may have. The more, the merrier! We will be using these to create a habitat for our fish.

Mrs.Marchant

Trip to Children's Garden

Grade 4/5 had a great time at the children's garden! We planted different things and learned about trellises that vining plants grow on. We also learned about the different animals and their habitats at the garden. We played a pollen game and went to the park. It was tons of fun.

   - student entry Ella M.

Writing down our predictions...what do you think we will find in this habitat?

Our seedlings...

Working together...

Learning about how bees pollinate flowers...

Thank you so much to Mrs.Polcar for inviting us to the Children's garden for a wonderful day of exploring, hands-on learning, and developing our green thumbs. We loved every minute of it!

Cardinal Creek Children's Garden Field Trip

Tomorrow we will be walking to the Cardinal Creek Children's Garden. Since we will be walking on foot and the weather forecast predicts warm and sunny temperatures, please ensure your child comes to school with a hat, sunscreen, and water along with their bagged lunch. We have tons of cool activities planned including planting our little seedlings. 

Please make sure you sign both sides of the permission slip.

Grade 4 Religion Project Presentations

The grade 4s have been working hard on creating presentations on how to care for the world God created. Each student has a copy of the slide deck template in their Religion folder along with the checklist criteria. Students will have Tuesday, May 9th as their last work period. Presentations will begin on Thursday, May 11th.

Slide Deck Checklist

• Name
• Minimum of 5 sentences per slide
• Picture of each way you will help the environment
• Each slide with 2 columns needs a picture and description
• Make sure the picture matches the description
• Summary has at least 5 sentences with an introduction, 3 supporting details, and a conclusion sentence.

Presentation Checklist

• Eyes on audience
• Speaks clearly with enough volume
• Be prepared, answer questions with confidence
• Make sure you know your material and can answer questions about it
• Smile

Musical Instrument Project-4/5 Extended

Project description:

Students design and build a musical instrument. You can use any materials provided from class or materials from home. You do not need to purchase materials, things you have around the house or other recycled materials will work great.  You should be able to play a short song or at least some notes on your instrument.

Students will research home-made instruments, and decide on what type of instrument they would like to make.  You must have your instrument idea and list of materials approved by Mrs. Marchant before you begin construction.  All work on your instrument is to be done in class.

On Friday,May 5th, students will be receiving their last block to work on creating their musical instrument. All materials should be at school and ready to go. If you are looking for their material list, it is in their Google folder called "Music." 

Students will begin presenting their instruments on Monday, May 8th.

Education Week!

Monday - May 1

Reading Buddies afternoon

Tuesday - May 2

10:30 Easter Mass

Math/Science Stem Challenges for juniors 1 to 3:30 pm

Wednesday - May 3

Dance Showcase (Dance Team)

Zumbathon

1:30 - 2:10 - all Juniors

2:15 - 2:30 - all Kinders

2:40 - 3:00 - all Primaries and students from Dance

Thursday - May 4

8:30 am Community muffins from parents, Dance team to perform

9:20 - 10:15: Open House - Parents welcome to visit their child/ren's class/es

Grade 4,5, and 6 students preparing sandwiches for the Shepherds of Good Hope 

1:15 - 2:15pm: Juniors French presentation Louise Mercer (gym)

Math/Science Activites - Stem challenges Primary grades during open house

Friday - May 5

French Bingo last block

Ongoing

Education Week Prayer

Canada 150 Recycled cardboard art display

Tomatosphere Tomato Plants - Grade 3 and Mrs. Marchant class

School Wide Drop and Bop (May Fitness Moth - class tracking physical activity)

Shepherds of Good Hope-Sandwich Making

Dear Parents, Education Week, May 2017

“Sent to be the Good News”

Show Mercy

As part of our Education Week activities and Religion program, the junior students will be asked to help make sandwiches for the Shepherds of Good Hope Sandwich Program.  

“The Soup Kitchen operates 365 days of the year producing an astounding 350-400 hot and nutritious noon meals, together with 90 hot breakfasts, and 200 evening meals served in shelters every evening. Additionally, 860 sandwiches are distributed as ‘take-aways’ per day.”

In order to support this initiative, on Thursday, May 4, 2017, each student will be asked to bring to school 1 loaf of bread and enough cold meat and sliced cheese to make sandwiches with their loaf of bread ( ie. 20 slices of bread will make 10 sandwiches, 10 slices of meat, 10 slices of cheese). Shepherds of Good Hope recommends that each student bring in ham or bologna, and Kraft processed cheese slices. The teachers will bring in the mustard and margarine.

   +      +       =

                                              approximately 10 sandwiches made per student

An employee from The Shepherds of Good Hope will be visiting the students to give a presentation on the services the Shepherds provide. The sandwiches will be taken downtown to be distributed to their clients throughout the day, on Thursday.

Your support in this initiative is much appreciated. Parents are welcome to come and help the students make sandwiches, after the school breakfast on Thursday. Thank you!

Grade 4, 5, 6 Team

Friday Reminders

Picture Day!

Friday is Spring Picture Day! Please come dressed your best if you would like your photos taken.

STEM Challenge

Friday the grade 4 class will be doing a bottle flipping #STEM challenge. If you have a water bottle at home, please bring it to school on Friday.

Google Doodle

This is the link to the Google Doodle for Canada Challenge. The theme for this year is "What I see for Canada's Future is..." We worked on creating Google Doodles to represent Canada's next 150 years during class today. If your child would like to submit their drawing, please click here to go to the Google Doodle Contest page.

https://doodles.google.ca/d4g/

A Parent’s Toolbox: Mental Health of School-Aged Children

A Parent’s Toolbox: Mental Health of School-Aged Children 
(Click on title to get to the advertisement)


Parents will learn:

 Signs and symptoms of potential mental health issues in primary

school-aged children.

 The role of schools in children’s mental health.

 How to promote resilience and wellness in your child.

 The importance of self-care as a parent and how this impacts

your child’s wellness and coping.


Dr. Ian Manion,

Clinical Psychologist Director of Youth Mental Health Research,

Institute of Mental Health Research at The Royal

Thursday April 6, 2017 7:00 - 8:00 pm


St. Clare Elementary School Gym

2133 Gardenway Drive, Orleans

(please use the child care entrance)

Please RSVP by April 3, 2017 to Stacey MacKay:

stacey275@hotmail.com

*Adults only please given sensitive topics

A 'Twist' on Annie

St.Clare Drama club is bringing another musical to stage! 

A 'Twist' on Annie is a musical that draws from the famous musicals "Oliver Twist" and "Annie". In St. Clare's unique production Annie escapes from her orphanage and Oliver escapes the doom of the workhouse and then runs off from the people that bought him. The two orphans meet while trying to steal the same potato! Lucky for them, the potato stand is managed by the church orphanage and Sister Mary Margaret takes it upon herself to help out Annie and Oliver. This delightful tale ends with a grand Easter celebration and egg hunt where all the children from the orphanages are treated to new clothes and a festive day.

DETAILS: 48 cast members from grades 4-6

10 Stage crew and several staff members doing many different jobs. 

Date: March 30th 9:30 a.m. and 7p.m. March 31st  7p.m.

Tickets at the door: $3 each or $10 family max

Board Games Day & Earth Hour Canada

Tomorrow (Friday, March 24th), students will be participating in playing board games for 1 block in order to help raise funds for our Lent Fundraisers. Please send a loonie or toonie with your child to participate. During this hour, we will not have the lights on in order to participate in Earth Hour Canada. We will be sure to keep the blinds open to allow all the natural light in.

Reconciliation

Students from grade 3 to 6 that have already received the Sacrament of Reconciliation will have the opportunity to go to confession on March 22nd beginning at 9:30 am.

In order to help the students prepare spiritually for the upcoming Easter season, our parish priests will be hearing the confessions of the Grade 3 to 6 students on Thursday, March 22nd, 2017.  Please take some time at home to help your child prepare for the confession.

Thank you

CHILDREN’S EXAMINATION OF CHRISTIAN LIVING

(Conscience)

Sample Questions:

1. Do I disobey on purpose?
2. Do I hurt others by: lying; making fun of them; stealing; fighting; inviting them to do wrong; spoiling our world?
3. Do I pray each day?
4. Do I refuse to help others?
5. Do I refuse to share with others?
6. Do I use God’s name in anger?
7. Do I give up too easily when the going gets tough?
8. Have I spoken about someone and ruined his or her reputation?
9. Do I make up after a quarrel?
10. Do I ask forgiveness of others I have hurt?
11. Do I make an effort to make progress in my schoolwork?
12. Do I thank God for all His gifts? For myself? For my parents?
13. Do I tell my parents the truth even when I might be punished?
14. When I displease my parents, do I ask them to forgive me?
15. Do I cheat in tests or games at school?
16. Do I refuse to help out at home?
17. Do I treat everyone kindly, even those who are different from me?
18. Do I use the gifts that God has given me for others?

Sacrament of Reconciliation

1. Father will welcome you.  Say “Good Morning/Afternoon Father.”

2. Make the Sign of the Cross.

3. Say: “Bless me Father, for I have sinned.”

“My last Confession was…..

These are my sins….”

4. Tell Father your sins.  When you are finished say, “That’s all Father.”

5. Listen to Father.  He will tell you what to do for your Penance.  Remember      what he tells you!

6. Say your Act of Contrition.

     An Act of Contrition

My God,

I am sorry for my sins

with all my heart.

In choosing to do wrong

and failing to do good,

I have sinned against You

whom I should love above all things.

I firmly intend, with your help,

to do penance,

to sin no more,

and to avoid whatever leads me to sin.

7. Say “Thank you Father.”

Click here for the link to the school letter..

Lent

Last Wednesday, our class attended the Ash Wednesday liturgy and your child was invited to participate in St Clare's Two Lenten Projects at our school liturgy to mark the beginning of Lent.

The international project we are supporting is Hope Child Development Program in Kenya, whose mission is to provide support and care for Orphans and Vulnerable Children, with a view of developing their full potential.  Funds collected will go towards safe housing, nourishing food, health care and school fees.  Volunteers from this project spoke to the children at our Ash Wednesday Liturgy today.

In addition, the funds collected on Crazy Hair and Hat Day will be donated locally to Hair Donation Ottawa whose mandate is to raise funds for child and adult cancer research and to support kids with hair loss by providing them with good quality wigs free of charge.  A presentation by this organization is planned for next Monday for the students.

The children will have jars in the classroom for collection and they are invited to bring in coins any time during Lent.  To help encourage the children we will have a few special events planned for Fridays.

On our event days, a loonie or toonie would be greatly appreciated.

On March 3th, we had Crazy Hair and Hat Day

On March 10th, we will have a movie afternoon.

On March 24th, the children will have a board games block (no electronics!).

On March 31th Twin Day

On  April 7th  Stuffed Animal Day

Fully Alive, Unit 3 (Grade 4s)

We have covered the first 2 units of the Fully Alive program, and are ready to teach Unit 3. Fully Alive is a Family Life education program sponsored by the Assembly of Catholic Bishops in Ontario. In Theme 3: Created Sexual, Male and Female, the students learn that each person is precious, we are all made in the image and likeness of God, and created in a loving relationship. Each year builds on information from previous years, and is given at an age appropriate level. The terms used and topics covered can be found here, in each grade's letter from the ACBO:

Grade 4 Parent Letter

Please read the letter and discuss the topics with your child, so that they can be prepared. We will begin on February 13th. Don't hesitate to contact me if there are any questions or concerns.

January Update!

It has been a busy month! The weather has been fairly nice, so we have been able to go sliding during Phys. Ed. and enjoy being outside. Students have been working hard finishing up projects and completing our Science units. We were lucky enough to have "PGL on the Road" visit us last Friday to do a #STEM Challenge with us. Students had a great opportunity to practice the 6 C's (collaboration, critical thinking, creativity, communication, and character). The grade 4s are just about to wrap up our measurement unit with our Quiz on Wednesday. There has been a lot of learning going on this month and here's a few pictures to show you what we've been up to!

Upcoming dates:
Tuesday, January 31st and Thursday, February 2nd we will be going snowshoeing during Phys. Ed., so be sure to dress extra warm on those days.

Wednesday, February 1st is the measurement quiz for the grade 4s. Be sure to practice both area and perimeter! We will be reviewing in class on Tuesday.

Thursday, February 2nd is not only Groundhog Day, but it is also Sweater Day! Our Eco Team will be turning the heat down by 2 degrees to conserve energy, so be sure to wear your sweater!

Friday, February 3rd -Winter "Glow Party" Family Dance at St.Peter's High School 6:30-8:30pm

Grade 4 Math Quiz - Wednesday, February 1st

This is a small quiz. Students will need to be able to demonstrate the following skills:
-finding the perimeter of a polygon
-finding the area of a square or triangle
-finding the perimeter of a polygon with a missing side
-simple conversions between millimeters, centimeters, and m
-linear measurement of an object (mm, cm, m)
-identify an appropriate unit to measure (Ex. you wouldn't use mm to measure the width of the classroom)
-understanding of volume and capacity (ml, L)

Genius Hour- Grade 4/5 Science

This week we have started our individual research projects during "Genius Hour." During this time, students (sometimes with some teacher guidance) come up with a big question that they would like to explore. The question needs to be open-ended and can't be answered with a simple google search. The purpose of this project is to encourage student-led inquiries and see where their curiosity takes them. Students will be given approximately 1 block per week to work on this project.

Students will be responsible for gathering information and presenting it to the class. They can choose the method in which they present (Slide deck, movie trailer, etc). This is a passion project, so the students have more choice. I can't wait to see what questions they come up with!

Sliding Tomorrow! (Thursday, January 26th)

Please ensure your child is dressed for the winter weather and bring your helmet (if required). Hopefully, mother nature will be cooperative!

Sliding Tomorrow! (Tuesday, January 17th)

Just a quick reminder that we will be going sliding tomorrow morning, so please dress for the winter weather and helmet (if needed). Hopefully, the weather will be cooperative!

Mrs.Marchant