Pretty as a Pumpkin

This week we worked on one of my most favourite art activities of the year!  We have been learning about pumpkins lately and after spending some time observing how pumpkins look, the students tried their hand at drawing a pumpkin, one segment at a time.  They then traced their pumpkin with oil pastels and painted it using watercolour paints.  They all had a lot of fun and the finished products are absolutely beautiful!

Ever wonder what the difference between a pumpkin grown for a jack-o-lantern and a pumpkin grown for a pie is?  We watched this movie in class to find out . . .

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2WOrSPxegiw&feature=related

Halloween Party

On Wednesday, October 31st we will be having our class Halloween Party.  The students are invited to come to school dressed in their Halloween costume (you may want to keep face masks and accessories, such as swords, wands, etc., at home because of safety issues and to ensure that nothing gets lost).  We will have a small costume parade around parts of the school and then enjoy a craft and some snack and treats in our classroom.

Reminder: 

• The following morning class students are signed up to bring in the special treats for the class's Halloween Party:  Carson (fruit tray), Gavin (veggies & dip), Colton (cheese & crackers), Dylan (cupcakes), Finn B. (cookies), and Alexander (juice & cups or drinking boxes).  Thank you so much!!
• The following afternoon class students are signed up to bring in the special treats for the class's Halloween Party: William (veggies & dip), Ethan (cupcakes), Ruby (cookies), and Sydney (juice & cups or drinking boxes).  We have no one in the afternoon signed up to bring in a fruit tray or cheese and crackers.  If you would like to send either of these items in please let me know.  Thank you so much!!

Numbers 1 to 10

I was so happy to see how many families came out to the Meet the Teacher event at school last week.  Unfortunately, due to the high volume of traffic I was unable to talk to everyone who attended.  If we didn't get a chance to speak and you have any questions or concerns please feel free to e-mail me at any time and I would be happy to set up a time to meet with you!

We have been very busy working with the numbers 1 to 10 at school lately.  Please practise the following at home to reinforce what is being taught at school:

1. Printing numbers 1 to 10 (this can be particularly tricky for some!).
2. Putting the numbers 1 to 10 in order.
3. Counting from 1 to 10 in French.
4. Recognizing numbers 1 to 10 (in French!) out of order.
5. Counting sets of up to 10 objects.

There's a chill in the air!

Now that the weather outside is turning cooler, please remember to send your child to school with warm clothing and remind them that they should keep it on until it warms up.  We play outside at the beginning and end of every day and the weather can be quite cool.  Now is also a good time to practise zipping zippers, fastening buttons and snaps and putting on all winter accessories independently.  Please be sure to label ALL clothing that is sent to school if you want to be sure it makes it back home.  You would be shocked to see how much clothing gets left behind and how hard it can be to find the owners!

Picture Day & Meet the Teacher

A couple of reminders . . .

• School Picture Day is this Wednesday, October 10th.  Please be sure that you returned your child's slip indicating which pose and background you would like.

• Parents are invited to attend our annual Meet the Teacher on Thursday, October 11th, from 5 to 6 pm.  This is a great opportunity to take another look around our classroom now that we've settled in, and to let your child show you how they spend their time at school.

Pretty Patterns

This week we are busy working on Thanksgiving Day activities.  One of the crafts we completed was a turkey with a beautiful, patterned tail.  Students practised making two and three coloured patterns using pattern blocks and then applied their knowledge to their turkeys.  The results were very cute!

Montre et raconte

This month we will be starting 'Montre et raconte' (Show and Tell).  Each month the students will have the opportunity to bring in an item to show the class.  Each montre et raconte item must begin with the letter of the week in French and be hidden out of sight in a bag.  Students should print the letter of the week on the bag and practice the following:

« Voici mon montre et raconte.  Ca commence avec la lettre __. » 

The other students in the class will then try to guess what is hiding in the bag.  It is very helpful at the beginning of the year if the object is one of our vocabulary words!

This is an excellent opportunity for students to share something from home and to begin to build their public speaking skills.  I urge parents to help their child carefully choose a Montre et raconte item from home that begins with the correct letter, and to help your child learn the name of the object in French (a French/English dictionary may come in handy here).  Your child’s assigned Montre et raconte day/letter can be found on the monthly calendar. 

Extra copies of the class calendar can be found in the blog under the 'calendars' tab.