Dear Families,
We experienced quite the mix of weather this week didn't we!?  First, a warm Monday.  Then, a blast of cold Tuesday, and snowy conditions Thursday!  Please stay safe on the roads everyone and enjoy your weekend with your loved ones :)

Thank you yet again to all families for their on-going support as we were away from school on Wednesday and Thursday.  I hope students were able to utilize these days to prepare for the data management quiz and word test today.

I will continue to provide academic supports if these days continue to ensure learning continues in some capacity.  Your patience, understanding, and compassion are appreciated.

Character Recognition:
On Monday, I took some time to personally recognize the recipients of January’s Character Trait of Honesty -  Congratulations to Joella and Orin for being recognized for displaying this trait.

Please continue being your truthful self in and out of the classroom! Your actions are making a difference in our school.  I know that your peers admire this quality about you!

Speech Feedback:

Students were excited to read and receive their peers' feedback from their speech presentation.  Please take some time over the weekend to look through these.  There may be some spelling or grammatical errors in these notes, but I hope your child will be able to recognize what they did well and areas to improve upon.

Science:
Did your child come home after school on Monday very enthusiastic to share all his or her experiences with "Moose" our Wye Marsh instructor!?  Something tells me - YES!! 

We learned all about Habitats & Communities as well as animal adaptations.  Moose even brought in some friendly animals for us to see and enjoy!  The pictures speak for themselves below as to how engaging, exciting, and enthusiastic we all were!

To check for understanding, please ask your child the following questions and go through the answers provided!

Hibernation:  

What is it?

• an inactive state through the winter months to preserve energy when food sources are scarce

How do they do it?

• they eat large amounts of food during the active months (spring, summer, fall) to create large energy stores in fat deposits

What are some examples?

• groundhog
• ground squirrels
• bats

Migration:

What is it?

• seasonal movement of animals from one region to another

How do they do it?

• fly
• walk
• typically in spring (migrate north) and fall (migrate south)

What are some examples?

• monarch butterflies migrate to Mexico and southern California for the winter where the climate is warm
• Canada geese migrate south to areas with open water and grass to eat
• snowy owls migrate south from the Arctic circle to southern Canada and northern U.S.A.

Torpor:

What is it?

• a short-term reduction of body temperature and metabolism during the winter months

How do they do it?

• to go into torpor, the body temperature and metabolism is actively reduced
• to emerge from torpor, the individual violently shivers to produce muscle contractions to slowly warm up

What are some examples:

• mice
• bears
• skunks
• birds (e.g., chickadees)

After this informative mini-lesson, students thoroughly enjoyed playing a charades inspired game, ask them about this!!!

Our next in-class session will take place on Monday during periods 3/4.  We're really looking forward to this experience again as we had a purposeful blast earlier this week!!  I wonder what else Moose has in store for us.  We'll soon find out!

Language:
Every February, Canadians are invited to participate in Black History Month festivities and events that honour the legacy of Black Canadians, past and present.  This is exactly what we're doing throughout our language lessons for this month!

The 2020 theme for Black History Month is: "Canadians of African Descent: Going forward, guided by the past."

The symbol used in the poster below has great significance:  the feet forward, head turned backward, the Sankofa bird reflects on the past to build a successful future!!  Amazing :-)

This week, we learned all about Frederick Douglass!  Before you see the video below with your child, check if he or she can give you some background knowledge of this important civil rights activist in their own words.

I think you will be delighted by how much they've learned about Mr. Douglass :)

Math:
Thank you boys and girls for working so hard in this graphing unit!  It was apparent from all the completed sheets that came in today!  I look forward to assessing your progress and celebrating your achievements!

Have your child answer this question (see below) with you at home.  We discussed it in small groups and it was interesting to learn how students got their answers!

Our next math unit will be investigating MULTIPLICATION and DIVISION!  

Read the expectations to help reinforce these concepts at home too:

– relate multiplication of one-digit numbers and division by one-digit divisors to real-life situations, using a variety of tools and strategies (e.g., place objects in equal groups, use arrays, write repeated addition or subtraction sentences) 

– multiply to 7 x 7 and divide to 49 ÷ 7, using a variety of mental strategies (e.g., doubles, doubles plus another set, skip counting)

– identify, through investigation, the properties of zero and one in multiplication (i.e., any number multiplied by zero equals zero; any number multiplied by 1 equals the original number) (This is an expectation from the Patterning and Algebra strand).

Art:
Earlier this week in art, the students learned about Andy Warhol.  Ms. West is requesting that each student bring in an empty soup can next week (Wednesday) as they will be doing an art activity  with it in the coming weeks.

  

Kaitlyn Morin Supporting Home Horizon:
It's not too late to donate!  I have put the direct link to Kaitlyn's page for your convenience.  Please consider donating to this meaningful cause.  Her goal is to reach $500.00 and she has already raised 94% of it ($470.00), amazing!!  #nighthawkpride

https://secure.e2rm.com/registrant/FundraisingPage.aspx?registrationID=4643026&langPref=en-CA

Yard Behaviour:

Mr. Perry wrote an important announcement this week about abiding by our policy of HANDS OFF. Please speak to your child about the importance of this rule, and if they are not involved in this sort of behaviour which many aren’t J, have them encourage their peers to make good choices.  I have many wonderful leaders in this class who can help others make positive choices and BE THE BEST THEY CAN BE - EVEN WHEN NO ONE IS WATCHING!!

At Nottawa, it is our goal to ensure ALL children feel safe at all times.  If your child is involved in an issue which involves hands on or put downs, please don’t hesitate to let me know via email, a note in the agenda, or a phone call as I don’t always see, hear, or know what happens during unstructured times such as recesses.

I will always do my best to follow up to help my students.  Thank you so much for your understanding and support in this matter.

Change in Food Programs Week of Feb. 10 - 14th:
We apologize if this causes any disruption to your lunch planning, but we will be switching up the dates for when your child will receive his or her chicken nuggets and pizza next week.

Chicken nuggets:  Mon. Feb. 10th 

Pizza:  Fri. Feb. 14th

Thank you for your continued support and understanding in this change in schedule!

Valentines Day:
Thank you to Mme Wylie and her intermediate leadership team for organizing and hosting a Valentine's Day Dance next Friday!  Students are encouraged to wear WHITE, PINK, and RED!

Lou:
Here is a moment that makes my time as an educator oh so rewarding and memorable.  It IS these experiences that make my heart soar with JOY!!

In class, I do my best to offer my students with leadership opportunities to help hone their skills to collaborate, cooperate, and communicate with their peers.

Lou has time and time again taken it upon herself to seek these opportunities because she cares about the well-being of her peers and wants to ensure everyone feels valued and reaches their potential.  WOW!!  Thank you LOU for being our teacher and guiding light!  You are awe-inspiring :-)   

Liam:
Here is another display of a very keen student demonstrating initiative, innovative skills, and pride to share new found learning!  Liam was inspired by our in-class social studies inquiry project using google slides that he decided to research a country that interested him. 

Liam researched and created his very own presentation about Brazil!  He effectively used our success criteria for public speaking from our speech assignment to present his findings in a meaningful and engaging manner.  His peers and I really enjoyed it!!  Your dedication to your academics is cherished!  Way to go, Liam!!  Enjoy your trip this weekend to the cabin up north with your Dad!

Mindfulness:
Why are the players in the NBA wearing special shirts during the month of February?  What are some of the powerful words written on the t-shirts?  What does EQUALITY mean to you?

Take a moment to think and reflect on this with your family :)

Growth Mindset:

Students have been eager to share their own growth mindsets with me which is fantastic and warms my heart!  We have been doing this since the beginning of the school year.  

Just a friendly reminder, if your child has a quote that he or she would like to share, don't hesitate to have them write it down, bring it back to school, and we can then post it in our classroom for everyone to benefit from!  

I think you can all sense by now, I'm a huge fan of inspirational sayings ...yes, they are words, but if we can put these positive thoughts into our daily actions, we can surely make this planet even better than it already is!  

"Kindness is like a boomerang!  If you spread it, you receive it back!" - Thomas

Namaste,
Ms. Gill