December has begun...

Well, it is officially December!

First of all, this message is a bit over due, but I would like to take a moment and welcome Ruhi and her family to our 4B class. She joined us a few weeks ago and has been fitting in quite nicely to our MKIS family. We are happy to have her here with us!

A big thank you goes out to Tanya for organizing the donations to the Myanmar Refugees, and also thank you to all of you who sent in donations. I know that these school supplies will make many children very happy!

Over the past few weeks, we have been quite busy in several areas. We have been familiarizing ourselves with our Google Drive, using shared Docs. and creating folders to organize our work.  We have also created a Google Map as a class. In the library, Mrs. Hritzuk showed us how to use the Ipads with to watch book trailers, by scanning QR codes. We have also been busy practicing for our upcoming Music concert!

Language Arts:
We have been reading the book, "The Tiger Rising," by Kate DiCamillo. We have been working on our inferencing skills while we read. Student have been developing their ability to "read between the lines." The next step is to ensure that they are doing this while students read their own books each evening or in class. Students have also been working on developing their word choice. We have been working in groups to improve our descriptions of characters and their actions as we read through the book "Crickwing" by Janell Cannon. 4B students have proven to quite creative, and have enjoyed using Google Docs. to collaborate and get their ideas down in writing. Take a look to see their creative writing... Group1   Group2   Group3   Group4

Students are reminded to be using post-it notes to jot down their thoughts as they read each night. Getting their ideas in writing will help them with developing their reflections each week. Students now have the option of writing their reflections online, using the template shared with them in their Google Drive.

Math: 
Along with continuing to work on their multiplication and division facts, students have been introduced to algebra. This has proven to be a challenging concept, but as long as students remember to follow the "Order of Operations," or BEDMAS, they have proven to be quite successful. Leading up to the holiday, we will continue to work on multiplication, (one-digit and two-digit problems) and also long division, which can be rather difficult. It is essential that students are trying their nightly homework, and reinforcing their understanding of these skills with IXL each night, as the concepts will only continue to get more and more difficult.

Science:
We have been doing research about various volcanoes around the world. Students compiled their research on a shared document in their drive. Once they had gathered the information on their chosen volcano, they transferred that information to a Google Map, which can be see by clicking on the following link. Please encourage your child to explain the process they had to follow to complete this assignment and to describe their volcano, as well as those that have been shared by their classmates. Some students even went one step further and added information about significant earthquakes. They should be very proud of their work on this assignment, and their steadily improving use and understanding of technology.


Other details:
Recently, I have noticed that many students have been lugging old papers back and forth in their homework folders. Please take a moment and help your child rid their homework folder of irrelevant papers. This should be done on a regular basis so that parents do not miss out on important papers that go home!

Also, I have added an "Important Dates" page to our blog. If you are unsure about what is coming up in the next few weeks or months, please take a look. Also, if you notice that I am missing something important, please let me know and I will add it to our blog so that everyone can be reminded!

**As an additional fundraiser for the MCF, a Festive Season lunch will be held on Friday Dec. 13th from 11am-2pm in the MPR at MKIS (near the pool). Food will be provided and carols will be performed by the Grade 4 and 5 students. Tickets are 55RM, and will be sold Dec. 6th, 9th and 10th in the breezeway before and after school.