Our class started to talk about some plans for an end of 2017 celebration on Friday next week.  One of the plans that had a lot of interest was a “Secret Santa”.  The class negotiated a price limit of $10.00 for a gift exchange.  We did not settle our 2 ways of doing the gift exchange (1.  draw names and buy a gift for that classmate, or, #2. bring a gift that either a boy or girl would enjoy and don’t put a name on it…it’s a mystery gift exchange that we can arrange fairly).  We’ll figure it out on Monday.

One thing I did require for the “Secret Santa” is that it is optional.  If students don’t want to take part, we can have other fun activities going on at the same time in the classroom.  I’ll send along further info. on Monday about the secret Santa.  What I need to understand on Monday from home is if each student has permission.  If you do not want your child to take part in a gift exchange at school, please write me a note in the agenda or elsewhere.

One more thing:  I asked the students to discuss at home whether or not they would be able to bring a snack for sharing next Friday.  I’d like to get this kind of information on Monday as well, if possible.  Thanks!

Grade 4 only:  Please finish writing a report about your Plant Experiment.  Your report should describe your “Experiment Plan”, your “Observations” (during the week of the experiement) and your “Conclusion” about how you think things went for your garlic plant, what you could have improved, and your best ideas about why you had the results that were seen compared to the other group you were to compare results with.

I need all parts of your own report to me by Friday.

For our portraits, the “artist statement” done in Google Docs is now due.  Please finish it at home if possible and remember to use Arial font at 16 pt (point) size.  Send it to me at pamurphy@scdsb.on.ca through your Google Drive share button.

2 recent math sheets are due in grade 4 and 5.  (the new data management sheets from this week)

Good job to the three groups that presented their slides today!  If you are still not done your Human Body System presentation slides or poster etc, please work extra hard this week to catch up.  Do a little every night as homework and you’ll get caught up before you know it!

Grade 4:  Take a look at the photo of the classroom poster I just made (click photo below to enlarge).  We will begin our experiments on garlic plants starting tomorrow.  They’ll last for one week.

We are making a new award to be given out each week at Minesing.  The Green Team will award it based on eco-friendly habits that we see or hear about in classrooms.  Our award needs a suitable base (an old trophy base?) and some extra “personality” (huge green sunglasses?, a broom stick painted green to sit atop?)

If you have any ideas and or found items at home that could help complete it, please bring it in!  (Please don’t buy anything…we’re trying to make it entirely out of reused items…to be eco-friendly.  The globe was an old one to be thrown out, for example)

Here are two grade four and two grade five problems that I’ve chosen from the favourite problems as mentioned in my last post on the blog.  Each problem is an excellent problem, so congratulations math problem writers!  In each grade samples below, one of the choices is even a little more fitted for patterning solutions.  Can you tell which one in each of the grade samples?

Grade 4

Paulina had 11 dogs. One dog got stolen each Tuesday and Thursday. How many weeks until she has no more dogs?

Leon has $3,600. He got that in one year. How much does he get per month?

Grade 5

Mary makes very good pumpkin pie. She decided that she will sell each pie for $7. Mary sold 149 pies! How much money did she make in her sale? What kind of pattern can you use to show your answer?

Bob is putting pucks in a bucket. He put one puck in on the first day, five pucks in on the second day, 9 pucks in on the third day, and 13 pucks in on the fourth day. If this pattern continues, how many pucks will Bob have in on the 5th day?

Today, the class voted on their favourite patterninig problems (as written by other classmates) based on the following criteria:

• a problem that has either a gr.4 or gr. 5 “complexity” (challenge level) to it
• a problem that is understood and/or enjoyed by children of 8 – 12 years of age (audience)
• a problem which uses patterning as its most obvious solution.

Check out the “Paperwork” page up top on my blog.  I just put a link to a document I’ve used in class called “Instructional Words in Math”.  You will see these words (and others) used often in math texts, on math hand-outs and by math teachers and math peers.