Dear Division 2 families,
Here's a brief update of our learning activities from last week:
Here's a brief update of our learning activities from last week:
Orange Shirt Day
I was absent this Wednesday for Orange Shirt Day but, with our substitute teacher Mariko, students learned and reflected about the history and Residential schools and the impact that they have had on Indigenous Peoples in Canada. We began discussing this topic on Tuesday and students were making interesting connections with cultural differences, racism, the Black Lives Matter movement, and other current events. We will continue to discuss these important questions in class this year.
Digital Citizenship
On Thursday, during our library time with Susan, we discussed a few books on the topic of digital citizenship. On Friday, Jesse Miller (Mediated Reality) gave us an interesting presentation on this topic. He made the point that we are telling a story when we share information about ourselves on social media. We learned the importance of sharing with care, and learned about of the potential consequences of sharing too much information about ourselves on social media. We were also reminded to always ask our parents for permission before sharing any personal information online. Jesse gave us some resources to explore as a class and with our families over the coming months, including:He will be back with more interesting presentations to help us become informed digital citizens in the months to come.
Health & Wellness, Food Studies and Gardening
One of our main topics this week was healthy eating habits. We discussed some basic principles to healthy eating, such as:
This Aha moment got us to learn how plants, through photosynthesis, transform light energy (from the sun) into chemical energy, and how this chemical energy is made available to animals and humans throughout the food chain.
- choosing food that is whole and fresh when possible, as opposed to highly processed food;
- eating a variety of nutrient-rich food (food containing vitamins, minerals, fibre, healthy fats, protein, etc).
This Aha moment got us to learn how plants, through photosynthesis, transform light energy (from the sun) into chemical energy, and how this chemical energy is made available to animals and humans throughout the food chain.
 Image source: https://plantcellbiology.masters.grkraj.org/html/ Plant_Cell_Biochemistry_And_Metabolism6-Plant_Cell_Energy_transductions2-Photosynthesis.htm |  Image source: http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/Biology/enercyc.html |
For a more hands-on approach to healthy eating, we spent some time harvesting and processing crops from the school garden, for eating and preserving purposes.
Students processed the garlic and onions that were harvested during the summer. They also harvested parsnips, prepared oven-baked parsnip fries and learned how to dehydrate onions to make onion powder. Some students helped harvest compost from the schools' vermicompost bins to amend the garden soil with rich organic matter. On Friday, many students helped harvest beans for storage (dried beans).
During our food preparation activities, we followed the Provincial COVID-19 Health & Safety guidelines for Food Studies (p.29 of document) and, as an extra precaution, students were required to wear a mask (mask were provided to students who didn't have their own.
Students processed the garlic and onions that were harvested during the summer. They also harvested parsnips, prepared oven-baked parsnip fries and learned how to dehydrate onions to make onion powder. Some students helped harvest compost from the schools' vermicompost bins to amend the garden soil with rich organic matter. On Friday, many students helped harvest beans for storage (dried beans).
During our food preparation activities, we followed the Provincial COVID-19 Health & Safety guidelines for Food Studies (p.29 of document) and, as an extra precaution, students were required to wear a mask (mask were provided to students who didn't have their own.
 Garlic crop |  Onions for storage |
Delicious oven-baked parsnip fries
 Students cut and dehydrated onions |  Dehydrated onions: we will turn them into onion powder next week! |
 Part of the bean harvest, hung to dry in the classroom. |  3 types of dried beans harvested. |
French, Positive Personal Identity, Diversity and Inclusion
Our next French song for this year, Cosmo (by Soprano) is all about celebrating diversity and being inclusive to all. The chorus "Montre-toi comme tu es, Ce soir est un jour de paix" invites the audience to show themselves as they are, everyone being welcome in the spirit of peace.
As we work with this song over the next couple of weeks, we will be exploring themes such as diversity, inclusion, positive personal identity and self-esteem.
On Friday, we started to think about the meaning of the lyrics "Montre-toi comme tu es" (Show yourself as you are) with an art activity: Inner/Outer-Self Portraits. Half the portrait shows how we look to others on the outside and the other half represents how we view ourselves/feel from the inside. Here are some examples of our work (many students are still working on this project):
On Friday, we started to think about the meaning of the lyrics "Montre-toi comme tu es" (Show yourself as you are) with an art activity: Inner/Outer-Self Portraits. Half the portrait shows how we look to others on the outside and the other half represents how we view ourselves/feel from the inside. Here are some examples of our work (many students are still working on this project):
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French Grammar
We are beginning to study French grammar by reviewing how to conjugate verbs in the present tense. We are learning to use a game called Verbathon, where students will work together in teams to sort verb cards as fast and as accurately as possible. Students will have homework to help them study and practice at home. We will soon begin to play the game as a way to learn verbs in a playful and cooperative way.
I hope these updates help you feel connected to what we are doing in class! Feel free to comment below or ask any questions!
Also, please don't hesitate to contact me at any point if you wish to discuss your child's learning.
Sincerely,
Nathalie
Also, please don't hesitate to contact me at any point if you wish to discuss your child's learning.
Sincerely,
Nathalie
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