2012-2013
We are an intermediate classroom in an elementary school in British Columbia, Canada. We use our blogs as a place to practise expressing our ideas in writing (and maybe even sound, pictures & video when we're ready). We try to leave thoughtful comments for classmates & other bloggers we visit. Comments help us critique our ideas and our writing. They also motivate us to do more thinking, writing, sharing & revising.
You can leave your thoughts on any particular article by clicking "comment" below it. Comments will be published after I have had a chance to read them.
Article posted May 5, 2013 at 06:05 AM GMT0 •
comment • Reads 15475
On May 1st, May Day, we went to the movies to watch Rob Stewart's film, Revolution. Mayday indeed! His TED Talk from TEDx WesternU retells his story. Where do leadership & political will come from?
Article posted May 5, 2013 at 06:05 AM GMT0 •
comment • Reads 15475
Article posted March 21, 2013 at 08:54 PM GMT0 •
comment • Reads 13534
Some folks have asked for help with leaving comments on our blogs. I thought I'd use the question to practise making a how-to screencast. I hope it is helpful.
Article posted March 21, 2013 at 08:54 PM GMT0 •
comment • Reads 13534
Article posted January 10, 2013 at 04:24 PM GMT0 •
comment (25) • Reads 31184
We are beginning Ben Mikaelsen's book, Touching Spirit Bear. In just the first few pages, the main character, Cole, makes quite an impression. Already having a history of run-ins with the law, he has brutally beaten another boy's head into the sidewalk causing severe injuries. He figures he wouldn't be facing a possible jail sentence now if the other boy, Peter, had known how to fight back. What should happen to a boy who does such a thing? What should happen to Cole? Please leave a comment with your reaction. (Students: don't forget to follow our online guidelines! Please also include a link to your blog.)
Article posted January 10, 2013 at 04:24 PM GMT0 •
comment (25) • Reads 31184
Article posted November 22, 2012 at 11:29 PM GMT0 •
comment • Reads 1910
We had a wonderful trip to Vancouver's ornate Orpheum Theatre to hear the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra give a program highlighting percussion. Some of us dressed up to make it a more formal (but still very fun) occasion.
When we returned, the kids named & described some of the interesting parts of the performance or a favourite instrument or anything else memorable. We put everything they shared into the word cloud above. I'll let the kids tell our readers more about the experience themselves on their own blogs.
Article posted September 26, 2012 at 04:44 PM GMT0 •
comment • Reads 13576
OK, we're probably not going to become billionaires, but we are working on applications for class jobs and will soon need to learn how to write cheques and manage our finances. That is one place where we apply some of our math skills about place value and describing numbers in different ways. The problems and riddles in this voicethread from a previous class give us a few more chances to practise (with larger numbers than we are likely to see in any of our own bank accounts).
Article posted September 26, 2012 at 04:44 PM GMT0 •
comment • Reads 13576
Article posted September 24, 2012 at 05:41 AM GMT0 •
comment • Reads 683
Our Terry Fox Run will take place on September 28th. While we are learning about his run across Canada, we're wondering what it would feel like to do that much running and put it in terms of running we are used to doing - running around our school grounds.
Article posted September 24, 2012 at 05:41 AM GMT0 •
comment • Reads 683
Article posted May 30, 2012 at 07:47 PM GMT0 •
comment (11) • Reads 22093
A recent edition of the Vancouver paper, The Georgia Straight, contianed an article about a sushi chef and the attitudes toward women she had to overcome to follow her chosen career. I brought the article to class because I thought it provided a great example showing the relevance and importance of the work we have been doing in health and career education classes: goal setting, appreciating difference, even very specific issues in growth and development.
I've asked my students to comment on their reactions to the article (and its connection to our studies). Comments from others are also welcome, of course. If you'd like to read the article, this link "Vancouver’s Bistro Sakana aims for an all-female sushi bar" will take you to the Georgia Straight Web site.
Article posted May 30, 2012 at 07:47 PM GMT0 •
comment (11) • Reads 22093
Article posted May 9, 2012 at 08:37 PM GMT0 •
comment (15) • Reads 7540
(image from michaelsbooks.com)
It made me sad to hear that Maurice Sendak passed away yesterday. It's not that there is one particularly profound memory I have of a time I read one of his books or of its impact on me. I guess its just the realisation that his stories and illustrations have been a fixture of my childhood and a part of my life; they just seem to have always been there.
We read Where the Wild Things Are in class today. It was lovely to see and hear my students' reactions. It was as if we were visiting old friends again. I wonder at all the imagining, building, and creating going on in my students' minds and hope that they are getting enough chances to be wild.
Although it is sad to know that the man who created this story has died, I am heartened by his reminder that all of us can be bad sometimes and even at our scariest, we sill all want (and need) a place where we are loved best of all. (And hopefully the soup will still be hot!)
Article posted May 9, 2012 at 08:37 PM GMT0 •
comment (15) • Reads 7540
Article posted April 26, 2012 at 06:22 AM GMT0 •
comment (16) • Reads 2888
I stumbled on this infographic via Twitter. It is posted on Huzzah!, a blog by a grade 6-7 class from Comox, BC. Thank you Ms. Smith, Mrs. Bombini, and all the learners at Huzzah! for celebrating good writing and helping writers avoid looking silly. (These efforts may also help spare some readers unpleasant experiences, not unlike fingernails on a chalkboard, that may accompany grammar goofs like those that follow.) Like this infographic? Get more copywriting tips from Copyblogger.
Article posted April 26, 2012 at 06:22 AM GMT0 •
comment (16) • Reads 2888
! Please also include a link to your blog.)
