Last Day for Me

The students are gone.  Here are two images until September.  Enjoy:

 

Wednesday, June 29, 2011

Today was the last day of school for students.  Thanks to all of the people who checked the blog and were able to see some of the things we did in our classroom.
I plan on expanding on the capabilities of blogging next year.  Have a safe a wonderful summer.  Please relax, but plan on doing some reading to keep your mind fit along with some physical exercise to keep your mind and body in shape.
I will close with a series of photos taken over the last few days of school.  Enjoy.

The only Grade in school, from Room 52, was Michael.  The Grade 7s had a "bonus" period of Gym today and did not return to class until it was time to go.  Unfortunately, some of the goodbyes  felt a little rushed, but the students were very excited to be on their way.
Thanks to the parents and students who gave me a gift and many thanks to the parents and family members who supported the students in the class and the learning in Room 52.  Have a wonderful summer!

Friday, June 24, 2011

The highlight of today, other than cleaning up the class and doing some reading, the highlight of today was the Grade 8 lunch on College St. at the Bairrada Churrasqueira Grill.  Here are a couple of photos of the Grade 8s from our time out.

 On Monday, I should have some photos of the Grade 7s helping out with AMG and The Grove's Play Day.

Thursday, June 23, 2011

While the Grade 8s were out bowling, the Grade 7s tested the structures they created.

Today was the day we tested how the structures we built would withstand the weight of textbooks on them.  Here are the photos of the structures before we placed objects on them:

We did a measurement to see what structure was the tallest.  Here are the results of the measurements:

I filmed some film footage of the measurement of textbooks on the "buildings".  This is the first time I have added a film and not sure how they will look or sound like.  Here they are:

I hope you enjoy them!
There will be no homework tonight. 

Wednesday, June 22

With the passing of the first day of summer, the days are beginning to get shorter, much like the entries on the blog.  The students, will not be receiving any major homework assignments as reports (IEPs and Report Cards) are being completed.

The length of entries will slow down.  I do have a picture to share of Sophie, with chef Bonnie Stern.  Bonnie and my father once worked together at The Toronto Sun.  

I will try to upload this photo later.  There seems to be a technical glitch with the uploading mechanism.

 Ahhh, here is the photo!  Two great chefs planning a meal together!

Friday, June 17, 2011

The last of the presenters did their Show and Tell today.  Here are a few of the images:

The students are also embarking on their last mini unit in Math for the school year.  It concerns mean, median, and mode.  Sometimes they are collectively known under the word "average", but we are learning that each of the terms have different meanings.  Here is a photo from one of the hands-on review exercises we did before doing some work from the textbook.

The ability for the students to move the Post-it notes around allows them to see how the average for Lia's scores can remain the same even if she scores are high on one test and lower in another.  For the purposes of the class, I would like them to see that "average" simply refers to data being levelled out.

In this case, Lia's average score on all four tests is 6/10.

Wednesday, June 15, 2011

The year is close to over, but there is still so much work to do!
This morning, we had our Bixi bike comprehension quiz and it has not been marked.  I do have several items to return tomorrow and you may ask your son or daughter, sister or brother about them and how they did.

The Grade 8s continued to do some research in Science for a small project they are working on.  The Grade 7s will be exploring some structures and designing some buildings to withstand some tests of mass on them. 
Both the Grade 7s and 8s are participating in a " Show and Tell" exercise, meant to encourage speaking and presentation skills.  Here are some photos of the objects that were presented today:

The balance of the class will present either on Thursday or Friday.  I will be absent in the morning while I attend a workshop regarding a pilot project that Room 52 will be taking part in for the 2011-2012 school year on supporting resiliency in students with Learning Disabilities.
Homework:  Students who are presenting their Show and Tell needed to practice their presentation skills