Soccer Week

Grades 4-6 will be sending a soccer team to represent our school in Whitefish Bay this Wednesday. Children who are participating are bringing home a permission form with a letter outlining what they need to bring and what time we will be leaving the school in the morning. Please fill in your child's permission form and send it back to school tomorrow. Permission forms must be returned in order for students to participate.

Students who are not participating in the soccer tournament will be joining students in grades 4-6 in the grade 6 classroom on Wednesday. They will be working on review of concepts that we have worked on over the past month.

Work packages were sent home last week. If your child was absent, they are bringing their package home today. Please have a look at the work enclosed. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me and we can sit down together.

Special Events This Week

We are having a wonderful start to our week. The students are hard at work building our science fair display board. They are painting and typing and cutting out letters. It is going to look great. We were disappointed with the results of our experiment, so we are working extra hard on our board.

You are all invited to share in the results by joining students from the whole school to the awards ceremony on Thursday at 1:15 in the school gym. After the awards, there will be time to walk around and enjoy the results of all the hard work students have put into their projects over the past two months.

We are also fortunate to have two guests coming in to do presentations for the students this week. Today the students will be learning about the stars through a guest speaker and mobile planetarium. They will be learning traditional anishinabe stories about the stars. Friday we will be visited by the Magnus Theatre travelling troupe. They will present to us a play about culture clashes and cultural assumptions.

This is a short week and so there will be no homework.

It looks to be a very fun week!

Spring is Getting Busy

On Wednesday the school will be filled with public health workers. They will be here to help the students learn about many aspects of healthy living. Our class will have guest presenters teaching us about relationships, personal hygiene, and nutrition. The students will also have a chance to view displays in the gym.

Science Fair season has begun. The class will be learning about the scientific method as we conduct an experiment that deepens our understanding of light energy. The students are studying light in science class, and will use that as a jumping off point for their project. Parents and family members are welcome to visit science fair displays in the gym on April 28.

Students have begun to work on multiplication in math classes. They are learning the basic concepts of multiplication over the next few weeks. Then they will be working towards mastering their facts. Homework assignments will reflect this.

Have a great week!

School Closed

Just a quick note to let you know that the elementary school staff are all in town tomorrow for a workshop. There will be no classes for grade JK-8. We are back at school on Friday. Our class will be responsible for the hotdog lunch on Friday. Enjoy your day tomorrow!

Winter Games Week

We are excited about the Winter Games this week. For the first time there are three fourth grade students on the school team. We are very proud of our classmates on the team (as well as the rest of the team) and are looking forward to cheering them on in each sport. The Games will be held on Wednesday and Thursday. Parents and community members are invited to come and cheer the students on as well. Please call the school for details on which sports are scheduled to be played each day.

We discovered today that there are only 13 weeks left in our fourth grade year. Wow, this year has flown by. We have lots of learning and working left to do before the students are ready for fifth grade. Please make sure that your child is at school every day so they can do their very best to be ready for fifth grade.

There are two tests scheduled for this Friday: a spelling test and a math test (money). Please call if you wish for more details about either test or need extra materials to help your child study.

March Break

The school is closed on Friday, March 11 and the week of March 14-18. Regular classes will resume on Monday, March 21. Have a wonderful, safe break. See you in a week!

Winter Games Postphoned

This is our last week before the March Break. Due to the death of a community elder, there are a few changes to the plans for the week.

The Winter Games that were scheduled to happen on Wednesday and Thursday have been rescheduled for the week after the break (March 23 & 24). There will be normal classes this week on Wednesday and Thursday, unless the funeral is scheduled for either of these days. Out of respect for the family, school will be closed on the day of the funeral.

Tomorrow the elementary classrooms are closed because teachers are participating in a workshop on bullying in town. Barbara Coloroso, well-known speaker on parenting and education, will be in Kenora. This is a wonderful opportunity for teachers to learn more about protecting students and supporting them in their relationships with one another. Ms. Coloroso is also having a parenting evening from 7-8 pm. Parents are welcome to attend.

If your child is struggling with bullies, or is being teased, I highly recommend attending. Ms. Coloroso has written several books that are fabulous advice for parents. I have one of her books in my own library at home. It has been a very practical source of advice in raising my kids.