The Week of October 2 - October 5

Another wild week of learning here at Sagonaska!

Last Friday was Picture day, here is a sneak peak!

We started the week off by learning all about the Problem Solving Framework.  We will use this framework a lot this year.  It is something we came up with last year here at Sagonaska. It makes students slow down and think through problems they are faced with prior to doing the work.  It's amazing what happens when students slow down, think things through and break problems down into smaller parts.

I relate the Problem Solving Framework to using a ladder to get on a roof. If we wanted to get onto the roof to get the upper level windows clean, we need a ladder with rungs. The closer the rungs, the smaller the steps, the easier it is to get on the roof.  The Problem Solving Framework allows students to break problems down into smaller, more organized chunks.  This allows the students to take smaller steps which in turn will make attaining their goals, easier.

In language, we have been working on the intricacies of independent reading. We are currently creating a few different videos that will help us explain exactly how we read independently and the benefits of the different strategies we use to help us read. Stay tuned for those!

In math we are working through our first unit of number sense and numeration. More specifically we are investigating common factors and common multiples.  As always, we are helping students to understand these concepts through three different kinds of representations - concrete, pictorial and then symbolic.

In Science the kids are learning about the interdependence of abiotic (no living) and biotic (living) factors in the environment.  Specifically students are investigating water and the impact humans have on it.  We are doing all of this using the scientific method. Our culminating activity is going to be a blast! Stay tuned.

Some questions to ask the kids over the weekend...

1. Can you explain to me how you use concrete examples in math to help you learn new concepts?
2. Show me how you use the Sounding Out Strategy on the word "nests".
3. Explain to me what tools you need to use when you are reading independently.

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Have a great long weekend!

"Wonder" Full Week Two

Awesome First Week at Sagonaska!

We have had a phenomenal start to our school year!

We have all made an effort to make some new friends, learned a little bit about each other and we have gotten to know the campus too.

On Wednesday, we spent time with our teacher, Mr. Di Donato, and learned some of the many classroom routines that will help us be successful. For lunch, we all went over to the cafeteria for a "Sagonaska family" meal.  After lunch the entire school took part in a series of team building activities.  This is where we got to know more about other kids at Sagonaska.  On Thursday, we spent time in the morning doing some assessments, then after lunch got to take part in a scavenger hunt.  The scavenger hunt allowed us to go all over the campus and really get to know our new surroundings.  Friday, we finished Empower testing as well as our team building activities (Ultimate Frisbee, Yoga and Capture the Flag) outside.

The Empower Reading program testing is done for grade eight.  Next week, we will continue with some other diagnostic activities in order to help teachers create appropriate groupings.  We hope to be starting the Empower Reading program by the end of next week.

House Keeping:
- be sure to check backpacks and luggage for permission forms.  There is a residence outing coming up!
-  remember to send a reusable water bottle back.  It is important  to stay well hydrated for brain function.
- ask about the new Lexia account.  It's pretty cool!
- be sure to give your child lots of time to relax and decompress.  We spend a lot of time at Sagonaska working hard, its important for the students to have time to rest their brains.
- follow us on Social Media @mr_dzzzclass
- send indoor shoes

Have a fantastic weekend!

March 20 - 24, 2017

Students have done a great job settling back into routine, which has made it yet another great week in grade 5/6 at Sagonaksa!

In Language students are continuing work through the Empower reading program. It is important for students to be reviewing their strategies every day, even on the weekends! This review will help students to consolidate what they have learned during the school week.

Logan using his Empower Reading strategies while presenting his Friday Fluency.

In writing, students are beginning to create narratives.  Students were introduced to narratives through a book called "And Then it Happened" by M & L Wade.  Then as a shared piece, Ms. LeSage and students created a narrative together.  Now that the students have been through the process, we have let the student begin their own narratives.  The students got the creative juices flowing by sketching scenes of the plot of their story.  These sketches will serve as a plot summary for students to base their story on.

Mack's plot summary sketch for his narrative.  Can't wait for the final product!

In Mathematics, we have spent the week learning about fractions, improper fractions and mixed numbers.  Students have made excellent use of all the tools we have here at Sagonaska.  The kids have moved from comparing fractions concretely (with tools like fraction strips, cuisenaire rods, pattern blocks, multiplication charts and coloured tiles) to comparing fractions pictorially.  Now, students are starting to compare fractions symbolically (just using numbers and words).  Over the weekend, students need to answer the following question.  They are encouraged to illustrate their thinking using a pictorial representation.

Some exciting news for Sagonaska!

The team behind one of our favourite websites just released a video that was filmed here at Sagonaska.  The video was created for students, teachers and parents and explains how important it is to use math tools when learning to internalize mathematical concepts.

Watch the video now!

March 6 - 10, 2017

March Break is almost here! The kids (and the staff) are excited for some time to decompress.  There are a few must do's over the break.

• First, take a few minutes with your child to review their progress.  Think back to September and talk about their strengths.  Ask them to come up with some next steps for themselves too. Looking back at progress will help your child's confidence grow! Creating next steps will help students take on even more responsibility for their own learning.

• Second, READ! Take at least 20 minutes a day to listen to your child read.  We will send them all home with lots of reading material at their level.  To take on more of an active role in the reading process ask your students to decode a few words per page using their "gameplan".  Prompt your child by saying "write this word on a separate piece of paper and show me how you would use your gameplan" .  You will be surprised at what you see!

• Next, make time for your student log into and get some Lexia or Core 5 done.  They are used to doing 25 - 30 minutes of it per day!

• Last, take some time to decompress.  Your child has been working harder than he or she has ever before for the last 6 months.  

Addressing Comprehension in the Classroom

Although we spend a lot of time teaching students to decode in reading, decoding is only a part of becoming a reader. Words are written to represent an idea. The whole point of reading is to understand those ideas and communicate our understanding about them to others. 

So... How can we facilitate that process for our students?

1. Students need to understand a text in their own head before they can communicate their ideas about it to others.

2. Deconstruct responses and generate "look fors" for level 1, 2, 3 and 4.

A of co constructed of responses categorized by level 

3. Once students understand what a level 1, 2, 3, 4 look like develop con constructed feedback on how to bump up the response. 

A co constructed table of "Look fors" and feed back based on strengths and next steps

4. Develop success criteria and the justification for why each component is necessary.

Co-Constructed Success Criteria

5. Then it comes down to practice, practice and more practice using formative feedback.

An independent response from a student after being guided through the above process.

Stay tuned for some strategies that we use to help students monitor their comprehension as they are reading a text.

The Week of January 23 - 27, 2017

We’ve had an incredibly exciting and productive week!

Monday started the week off with a bang, as we had many visitors to the school in honour of a Literacy Initiative happening in this area. Neil Ellis (our MP) has challenged students to read 150 Canadian texts (books, song lyrics, poems, etc) by the end of the year, in honour of Canada’s 150th birthday. MP Ellis, the Police Chief, the Fire Chief, Nick Foley (a motivational speaker) and various other guests to the school all read Canadian content to our students. We ended with a pizza lunch and a plan to track all of the Canadian texts we will be reading.

Tuesday and Wednesday we had double Empower lessons. A visitor from Sick Kids came to observe all the teachers as they go through various Empower lessons, to help us refine our skills and answer any questions about the program. As well, on those days, we had tours happening for families in the middle of the application process to Sagonaska. Your children were excellent ambassadors for Sag and went out of their way to make the families feel comfortable and excited.

In Math, we have moved into the unit of Data Management. Even more fun, Mr. Smit came in to observe the kids in action! We began the week talking about data – why it is collected and how it can be used. Students, with a partner, measured their height, arm span, hand span, forearm and foot length and then inputted the data to Google Sheets. From there, students were able to display the data in various graphs to help us analyze trends and relationships. Based on the data, students identified relationships and/or made conclusions like the taller someone is, the longer the arm span they will have.

This is what the 21st century math classroom looks like!  Good thing all the teachers at Sagonaska are Google Certified Educators!

All students in grade 5/6 should be able to explain the key words on this anchor chart.

Over the weekend, you could:

1.       Ask your child to decode the word REPEATING using their GAME PLAN. If they get stuck use the prompts…

- I choose the strategy ___________________ because I see…

- (Student will apply the strategy)

- If word part is left, the student will select another strategy and begin again with I CHOOSE

- Once word has been decoded, child will say I USED the strategies ____ & ____ to read the word __________

2. Read with your child and don’t let them guess on any word. Make sure they are applying their strategies. Ask them what they could be doing to help remember the main idea of each paragraph (kids have been sketching key points).

3. Have your child show you the anchor chart called Height VS Arm span. On it is key vocabulary from the unit. Talk about how the picture can help figure out the meaning of the word.  vocabulary.