Merry Christmas wishes to you all!

Thank you to our snack parents for the amazing Christmas Brunch!

Excitement filled the air as students read their letters from Santa!

A little game of Go Fish!

Cubes, Snakes and Ladders and Lego was enjoyed by many!

A cuddle for someone feeling under the weather!

I Spy with friends.

Have a very Merry Christmas and a safe and wonderful holiday!

Thank you, Mrs. Manz, for supplying the ingredients for our Tasty Tuesday treat... Snowmen on A Stick!

Students were introduced to the concept of Mindful Tasting today.  We talked about the importance of taking the time to slowly taste and enjoy our foods.  Ask your child about their mindful Smartie tasting experience today.  

In Social Studies, we are wrapping up our adventure in Meteghan. We have learned about their Natural Resources, jobs and goods that are produced there.

In Gym, students had a fun time working through throwing, catching and locomotor stations with their friends in 2B. 


In Math, we enriched our learning of Numbers to 100, by playing fun board games!

Friday is PJ and a Stuffie day.  Thank you in advance to our snack parents  who will be providing a morning buffet for our class to enjoy.  In the afternoon, students will be watching a movie in the Gym with Mrs. K and Mr. Larson. 

Library Tomorrow!

Today, students were excited to write their letters to Santa. We will be anxiously awaiting his reply!

We survived our first cold SNAP!

In Math this week, we continued our focus on Numbers to 100. Working with manipulatives and Tens Frames, students estimated, counted, compared and ordered 2 digit numbers. 

Thank you to all of the parents, friends and grandparents who came to watch our fabulous performances of Santa Claus is Coming to Town and The Reindeer Pokie!

 

Grade 1 & 2 Christmas Concert tomorrow night!

Students enjoyed crafting a special gift to tuck under the tree for Christmas Morning!

In Math, students made wallets, understanding the value of a penny, nickel and dime. Today they went 'shopping' and purchased items using the coins in their wallets.

We have been working hard practicing for our Christmas concert performances tomorrow afternoon and evening .  2C will be standing on the stage, right in the middle!

Reminder:  The Grade 3s are collecting donations for the Christmas Elves. Donations of food and toys can be made at the school or during the concert. 

No School Tomorrow

Our adventures in Meteghan continue! Over the past couple of days, we spent time on a Lobster Fishing boat and were able to trap a couple of  lobsters. We can't wait to enjoy the flavors of the sea!

A few reminders....

• A copy of our Christmas Concert songs was sent home today. Please practice with your child.
• Words Their Way Spelling Test tomorrow
• Return Home Reading
• The December Newsletter has been posted
• No School on Friday - Professional Development Day 

Today during our MindUp lesson, students learned stuffie breathing.  Ask your child to show you this easy and fun self regulation technique tonight.

Scholastic Book and Hot Lunch orders due TOMORROW!

Today we read the story, Even Steven and Odd Todd.  Then played a game with the same title using dominoes.  Identifying even and odd numbers is a tricky task, but we have been hard at work and are becoming stronger at this skill.  Continue to challenge your child at home ("There are 4 plates on our table, is that even or odd?" or "you can play xBox for 31 minutes, is that even or odd?"), the repetition aids in facilitating proficiency!  

Jersey Day .....Wear your favorite sport jersey or Raptors wear tomorrow!

Tasty Tuesday was a success.  Thank you to Aiden's mom for providing the ingredients for this month's tasty experience! 

In our MindUp lesson today, we listened to the story, Mindful Monkey and Happy Panda. 

“Oh, I get it!” said Monkey. “Mind-full, like your mind is full of the present, full of right now. That’s definitely how I want to be!”

Library Tomorrow!

Today during our MindUp lesson, students reviewed the 3 parts of the brain and listened to the story, When Sophie Gets Angry - Really, Really Angry by Molly Bang. After reading the book, we discussed how reflecting rather than reacting can have a positive effect on our behavior.

Wise Owl - Prefontal Cortex

Guard Dog - Amygdala

Happy Hippo - Hioppocampus

Reminders:

• Friday, November 25th is Jersey Day!

We are boarded and ready for take off!

Air Canada Flight 018

Bus Selfie! Here we come, Meteghan!

We are excited to be exploring and learning about Meteghan for the next few weeks!! 

A whole bunch of catching up....

This week, we launched the first of 15 MindUp lessons.  MindUp is a research based mindfulness curriculum.  Over the next 8 weeks, students will learn about attention, self-regulation, building resilience towards stress and maintaining a growth mindset.  The program has been the focus of the Black Gold CAP team for the past two years, and we are excited to be using it, alongside Zones of Regulation, again this year.  

Students learned three parts of their brains and a character that they can relate to each: amygdala (guard dog), hippocampus (happy hippo), and the prefrontal cortex (wise owl).

This afternoon, the Grade 2s researched the weather in Meteghan in preparation for our big "flight" tomorrow.  We learned that the weather today was 10C and students created puppets that wore weather appropriate clothing to take with us tomorrow. Students had their passport photos taken this afternoon, hoping they arrive in time for our "flight" tomorrow.

In Math this week, students completed 24 Number Scoots, where they had to identify the number that is missing on a number line.  They also recorded numbers that were hidden by snakes, on a hundreds chart.

Happy Halloween!

Thank you to our parents for the very creative snacks! Have a safe and Happy Halloween!

Pumpkin Carving in 2C...thank you for the donations!

Check out our Pumpkin Patch!

Today in Art, students created pumpkins.  Pop by our classroom to view our adorable little pumpkin patch! 

Details for Monday:

• Students should come dressed in their costumes.  Please remember that all costumes must be appropriate for a K-4 environment.
• The school Halloween Parade will be taking place in the morning (8:30). We welcome all families to join us for this fun school wide event! 
• We will have class as normal for the rest of the morning.
• In the afternoon, we will be participating in Halloween themed Science, Math and Writing centers.
• Thank you to our snack parents/students: Adyn, Aiden, Ayla, Elizabeth & Nate 

Our final Science lesson of our Exploring Units was about Who Needs Water; students discovered that all living things require water to survive, that humans are made up of 60-70% water and we also discussed the importance of conserving water.  

We have been counting by 1s to 100 and this week we began skip counting by 2s. Skip counting is an important concept to master, as is it the foundation for much of the Math curriculum. To reinforce the concepts taught in class and help your child with mastery, please review counting by 1s and 2s to 100 nightly. 

Thank you to the wonderful parents who came in over the past two evenings for Parent/Teacher meetings!  It was wonderful to touch base with all of you!

Beef Jerky orders (In my opinion, the best Beef Jerky on the planet) are due on Friday!

Browsing the Book Fair during Library tomorrow!

Reminders:

• Monday, October 24 - Wednesday October 26 - Book Fair - Open until 5:30 on Tuesday and 7:00pm on Wednesday  
• Tuesday, October 25 - Photo Retakes - 9:00 AM - Please notify me in your child's agenda or by email if they require retakes.
• Tuesday, October 25 & Wednesday, October 26 - Parent /Teacher Meetings 
• Friday, October 28 - Wilhauk Beef Jerky Fundraiser due
• Monday, October 31 - Halloween Costume Parade and Classroom Halloween Senses Celebration (snack parents: Elizabeth, Aiden, Nate, Ayla & Adyn)
• Monday, October 31 - Last day for Socktober
• Monday, October 31 - Scholastic Book Orders due
• Tuesday, November 1 - PD Day No School
• Wednesday, November 2 - Early Dismissal 

Let it Rain!

Students were introduced to the terms: evaporation, condensation and precipitation as we observed the WATER CYCLE.... right in our classroom! By heating water , we changed the liquid into a gas. As we cooled the water vapour, it condensed into a liquid. As the tiny water droplets collected , it began to rain!

• return Home Reading
• Spelling Test tomorrow...don't forget to review your WWWs

Spider Pudding Pie

Thank you to Nate's family for supplying this month's Tasty Tuesday ingredients! The Spider Pudding Pie was spooktacular!

Library Tomorrow!

Today was the first day of WORD WALL WORDS, each week's words will be printed in the agenda! Your child should be reviewing these words daily, their goal is to be able to read these words without sounding them out. Through repeated exposure and practice of the words, your child should be able to say each word as soon as he/she sees it, without hesitation.  The repetition of these words will increase reading fluency and accelerate reading levels. You will be amazed at the difference it will make in your child’s reading!

In Gym today, students had a blast playing Chicken Checkers with Mr. Larson.  

If you have not yet done so, please log in and book your Parent/Teacher meeting.  Details can be found HERE.  Meeting times are available on both October 25 & October 26.  I look forward to seeing everyone!  

In Art this afternoon, students worked hard to create their own Frankenstein Portraits using 3 different mediums: sharpie, crayon and watercolor paints.

Today in gym, students worked through locomotion and rolling stations.  Students enjoyed moving and exploring!

Pretzels and Popcorn are now on sale for $1.  They will be delivered on Friday. 

To complete the Dissolving Solids experiment, students enjoyed a tasty Raspberry/Lemon Jell-O treat that we made yesterday. We discussed how cooling the Jell-O and water, changed it into a jiggly solid.

Scholastic Book Orders went home today, they are due on October 31, 2016. Orders can be paid for by cheque or online. You will also find an attached Highlights magazine order form. Our class can qualify for a free gift with any returned vouchers, whether you subscribe or not.

Word Sorts begin today!  They should be practiced nightly, along with your child's home reading.Details are available in the Words Their Way note that is coming home tonight!

Important reminders:
- Oct. 14 - Popcorn and Pretzel sale $1 each.
- Oct. 14 - Words Their Way assessment.
- Oct. 14 - Return home reading.
- Oct. 21 - Grade 4 Fruit & Cookie Dough Fundraiser orders are due.
- Oct. 26 - Parent/Teacher Meetings in the evening.  Details to follow.
- Oct. 31 - This year our SWAT Team will be doing a SockDrive for all of October! Socks are the #1 need in shelters for the homeless. Our school will be collecting new socks to donate to Y.E.S.S. (Youth Empowerment Support Services). You can drop sock donations off in the office. Our last day to collect socks is October 31st. If you would like to see what other items are in need please visit http://yess.org/donate/in-kind-donation/ and check what other "in kind" donations there are.

In science today, students learned the term dissolving when we made Jello! Some solids dissolve when mixed with water(Jello) and some solids do not (coffee grounds).

Early dismissal at 2:21 pm tomorrow!

The great Drag Race! Molasses, the liquid with the highest viscosity, came in dead last.... By a mile!

Library Tomorrow!

Today is the first day of home reading!  Each Monday 4 books that are suitable to your child’s reading level will come home in their canvas reading bag.  It will be accompanied by a reading log.  Students are to keep the books at home for the entire week and return them on Friday.  Please read/re-read and record their books (parents, please initial).  The book, canvas bag and reading log are to be returned to the school every Friday.  Reading over the weekend is encouraged, please feel free to read any books that you have at home or that you have taken from the library and record them in the reading log when it comes back home on Monday.  Students will work towards reading 2500 minutes over the course of the year (roughly 15 minutes per day).  Student’s achievement will be acknowledged along the way with rewards at 100, 750, 1500 & 2500 minutes.

Picture Forms went home today. Ordering Information can be found on the back. Orders are due by October 11, 2016. 

Congratulations to all 10 of our 2C athletes who participated in the Cross Country race this morning!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Thank you to all of the 2C parents who joined RBES students on the Terry Fox route this afternoon! What a beautiful, fall afternoon for a walk.

 Penny Magic! In science today, students discovered another important property of water....SURFACE TENSION! 

Terry Fox Run tomorrow....Wear your RBES Spirit Wear if you have some!

In Math today, we learned the term growing pattern and created growing patterns.  Ask your child to create a growing pattern this evening and to tell you the pattern rule (i.e.: add 1, add 3, etc).

Students are super excited to begin our first Grade Two Science Unit....Exploring Liquids. Our first lab was spent discovering water. This activity gave the students a hands on opportunity to explore the characteristics and properties of water.

Can you hang a water droplet from your finger?

Can water be poured? Does it make a sound?

Reminders:

- T-Shirt payment is due.
- Terry Fox permission must be completed through Powerschool.
- Seeking Terry Fox volunteers, if you wish to join us on this beautiful walk, please email. 

School Pictures tomorrow!

In Math facts today, students practised +\- Zero & One playing "Head Bands". This game is easy to play at home, all you need is a deck of cards. Ask your child how to play. 

Today, in Daily 5 we launched Buddy Read.

Buddy Read

Of all the choices children participate in, Buddy Read is often their favorite.  Reading with someone helps readers, especially developing readers, increase areas of comprehension, accuracy, fluency and prosidy.  It also increases reading involvement, attention and collaboration. What's more, children love partner reading and readily participate with books of their choosing. 

In Daily Math today, students played 'Horserace' to practise  plus one math facts.

Upcoming Field Trips

Sept. 30 1pm - Terry Fox Walk - We will meet in the gym for a short presentation and then head outside to begin our walk.  We will have all students walk this year with their class.  Upon returning to the school, each student will get a hot dog, apple, and granola bar. We encourage students to bring their own reusable water bottle.  I am currently seeking volunteers to join us on this event, please email me if you are interested.  

Scholastic
Thank you to Mrs. Mercier, who has volunteered to take care of our Scholastic ordering this year!  The first Scholastic order of the year will be coming home shortly, and is due back on the 30th.  Please note that we accept cheque or online payment for your orders.