Ms Elder's Grade 4/5 Class

Grade 5 Math: I can use probability vocabulary to describe the likelihood of events; I can design an experiment to match a given probability We've had fun over the past couple of weeks playing games and discussing probability in Math. We've learned how to use the words: certain, likely, possible, unlikely, and impossible as a mathematician would. We've also designed spinners and marble experiments.  Next week, Grade 5 students only will have a short quiz to assess their understanding. There are games posted on the Google Classroom that students can play if they feel they need to prepare at home.

PE: I can explore a variety of movement and equipment; I can cooperate to demonstrate fair play and teamwork  This week we were introduced to a new piece of gym equipment: the Big Ball!  This 8 foot beach ball was tougher to control than we expected. We've tried two games so far: one cooperative class game where we tried to keep it off the floor and one team game where we had to get it around the gym quickly without knocking over any pylons. We'll explore more with it next week.

We started our Puberty classes today and have started discussing the Body , Relationship , and Thought changes that occur during puberty.  We will be doing the Grade 4 content as a whole class, then I will work with the small group of Grade 5 students in June to do their program while the Grade 4's work on a health project.  Grade 4's took home a homework assignment today called Ask An Adult . It is due Wednesday, June 1 .  If you have any questions, please let me know.  Parents, lessons are available for preview at:  https://teachingsexualhealth.ca/.   Students, a great website to check out if you have questions is:  https://kidshealth.org/en/kids/puberty.html . Or, you can ask questions in class or to your trusted adult. 

LA: I can describe story elements; I can produce fiction texts; I can use feedback to revise and edit work; I can use what I know about words to spell new words The Very Cranky Bear outline For the past few weeks, we have been working on writing short stories. We first discussed the elements of a story (Setting, Characters, Problem, Solution, Theme, Climax, and Resolution). We then related this back to the chapter books we've read this year and other short picture books Ms Elder has read to us. We even watched a Brainpop video that talked about this "pyramid" structure, called " Freytag's Pyramid ." It's the same structure ancient Greeks used to use. Ms Elder showed us a simple format to follow where the main character(s) try to solve the problems three times, unsuccessfully, before they finally solve it. We noticed that many simple picture books, like The Very Cranky Bear and Little Blue Truck follow that same model. We practiced as a class and in p

Students, this is a friendly reminder that you will have a Geometry Quiz on Tuesday, May 24 .  Grade 4's , you need to be prepared to: Identify similar and congruent shapes Identify lines of symmetry Draw lines of symmetry Complete the other half of symmetrical shapes Grade 5's , you need to be prepared to:  Draw and/or label sets of parallel, perpendicular, and intersecting lines Draw and/or label vertical and horizontal lines Name and/or sort the shapes we have practiced in class according to attributes (ex: square, rectangle, triangle, rhombus, parallelogram, trapezoid) If you are looking for ways to practice, try the activities on Mathletics, or practice creating Venn diagrams at home (l ike we did in class - click here to view our blog entry ). Here's Hazel's game she suggested in class, Grade 4's:  https://www.abcya.com/games/symmetree-symmetry

  We had a fabulous day yesterday at Ralph Klein Park. The weather was outstanding and the surroundings were beautiful. We had top-notch programming led by Chelsea from the City of Calgary. Here are some highlights of our learning and photos of the day. In the morning, Chelsea asked us to tell her what a wetland is, what the parts of a wetland are (there are submerged plants, emerged plants and floating plants), and which different wetlands are found in Alberta (marsh, swamp, fen, bog). Some of this was review of what we learned in the fall and some was new information. Then, we played a game where we had wetland creatures taped to our backs and we had to ask Yes-No questions to figure out who we were.  That led us to talking about specific wetland invertebrates and their interesting adaptations. We played a simile game where we had items in a bag that were like a creature. We had to figure out what each item represented and share that with the class.  A box of wood chips and leaves i

Sorting figures based on their attributes Math: I can identify lines of symmetry (Gr 4); I can identify shapes that are similar and congruent (Gr 4); I can identify sets of parallel and perpendicular lines (Gr 5); I can sort 2D and 3D shapes and figures according to attributes (Gr 5) Last week, we started learning about shapes and figures. Shapes are 2-Dimensional. They have an x and y axis. Figures are 3-Dimensional. They have an x, y, and z axis.  We've been identifying lots of Math vocabulary words to help us describe shapes, such as:  Parallel Lines  Perpendicular Lines Intersecting Lines Lines of Symmetry Similar vs Congruent Regular vs Irregular Polygons Shapes vs Figures Yesterday, we practiced sorting shapes and figures using Venn diagrams (see the photo above). Now, we're creating a piece of Geometry Art to show what we've learned. Here are some examples of our work so far: 

LA: I can compare different forms of media. This week, we finished watching the movie, Hugo , based on the book, The Invention of Hugo Cabret . We used a different organizer to compare the book and movie from last time. Instead of documenting their differences, we focused on things that each medium did well. Students used their persuasive writing skills, which we have been practicing this year, to create a paragraph stating their opinion of the book or movie. Here are some work samples:  "I believe that the Hugo Cabret movie is educational because you get to learn how Hugo works the clocks around the station and watch him build the automaton, which relates to Simple Machines. We also got to learn about Georges Méliès, who was an actual real person, which gave us some French history. I believe this movie is educational because it helped us learn how to compare two media. Students must watch this movie to be able to compare two forms of story-telling."

"I liked when we did the tug-of-war because it was with an actual rope, not a skipping rope, and it was fun because we weren't doing it on concrete so if we fell it didn't hurt." ~ Callie Lost Letters game "Kamp Kiwanis was fun because they literally let us run around in the woods. The Energy Game was really fun. We had 3 lives." ~ Lillian "I liked archery because it was super fun being able to express your emotions trying to shoot the targets. It was super fun being able to do that." ~ Seb K "I liked archery a lot because we got the freedom of shooting things at target. It wasn't at all like the idea I had in my mind where we all got our own $200 bows. It was a lot of fun but I wished we got more turns." ~ Lawrence "I thought the Energy Game was really fun because you got to go out into the wild and experience being an animal or a plant or a hurricane." ~ Hazel "I thought the Energy Game was really fun because at first

Math: I can represent Division in a variety of ways. This week, we finished up our unit on Division. We worked on representing Division word problems using pictures. We discussed the different things that happen with a remainder. The chart above shows four different ways we manage a remainder in a word problem, depending on the context. As a class, we brainstormed different examples for each of these situations. This leads nicely into fractions. We can split remainders into equal parts if it is food or money. To support your child's math learning at home, I encourage you to do some "real life" math with your child, such as baking (you can explore fractions using measuring cups and spoons), or spending money at a store. The kids are excited that I've assigned baking cookies as optional "homework."