Weston Public Library-Don't miss these great events in October

Creepy Craft Day
Wed, Oct 19 - 4:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.

Energy Conservation at Home
Thu, Oct 20 - 7:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.

Spooktacular October Family Movie Feature!
Thu, Oct 27 - 4:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.

For more information go to:

http://www.torontopubliclibrary.ca/detail.jsp?R=LIB093

Our Theme This Month is Fall

We have been reading books about fall and talking about fall leaves changing colours.

Here is a sample of the wonderful leaves the students made using pastels,

In partner groups, the children are learning how to make numbers

Using using exploration the children are learning the meaning of numbers and to see that a quantity can be arranged in many different ways. They are also learning to work cooperatively with their classmates.

Chicka Chicka Boom Boom

We read Chicka Chicka Boom Boom written by Bill Martin Jr. and John Archambault. As our class project the students printed their own letters and made their own coconut trees.

We also learned the song. The students in the class really liked this version, have a listen
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DlBuNibrJHY

Get Talking to Start Reading

If your child is struggling with reading make sure you spend time listening to your child speak.

Ask your child lots of questions and listen. For example, ask your child to tell you about his/her day or ask your child about their friends at school. Pay attention to how your child is pronouncing words and expressing his/her thoughts.

Fluent oral language is a strong base for building strong reading skills.

For more details check out the following link:

http://www.edbydesign.com/learning/reading/re_start.html

Getting to know one another

Wow this week is going fast!

We have been working hard on learning each other's names. We have been playing games to get to know each other. Here is a picture of our "Here I am classroom board"

Physical Exercise is a Powerful Brain booster

Research shows that increased physical activity leads to increases in overall achievement.

Check out Mark Fenske's article in the Globe and Mail who says children do better at school when they exercise more, eat right and sleep well. This is also good advice for parents!

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/search/?q=mark+fenske&searchField=keywords&searchQuery=*%3A*

Teaching Kids News

Having a hard time explaining to your kids what is going on in the news? A husband and wife team of teachers from the TDSB have started a new website

www.teachkidsnews.com

to help children and families understand the complicated subject of global events.

Check it out.

Weston Public Library -Sept-Oct Events

Join the library for these FREE events

Sensational September Show, a movie for children 3 and up
Thu, Sep 15 - 4:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.

Fall Craft Fun, make fun crafts with your children
Wed, Sep 21 - 4:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.

Meet Author and Poet Joszann St. John, A Dominican author living in Canada
Thu, Sep 22 - 7:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.

It's never too early to start saving

Registered Education Saving Plans (RESP's) provide a way of putting money aside for your child's post-secondary education.

Did you know that if your family’s net income is $83,088 or lower, you might be eligible for additional RESP grants from the government?

Check out the Globe and Mail article about RESP's:

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-investor/personal-finance/household-finances/are-you-getting-the-most-out-of-your-resp/article2146861/

For more information also check out:
http://www.hrsdc.gc.ca/eng/learning/education_savings/public/resp.shtml

Getting Ready for Grade 1

Welcome to Ms Evans's Class

After a long summer holiday, check out these links to help your child get ready for school,

http://www.parentcentral.ca/parent/education/backtoschool/article/689901--helping-your-child-get-ready-for-grade-1

http://video.about.com/childparenting/Prepare-for-1st-Day-of-School.htm

School provides a wonderful opportunity for children to learn how to read and write, to socialize with children their own age, and to have fun!

Summertime and the reading is easy...

....at the end of grade 1.

In math we are learning how to estimate and measure things

For the literacy component of our unit we read Inch by Inch by Leo Leoni and wrote about our favourite part of the story. Following this, students had a choice to make a collage scene or a 3D inch worm, aren't they beautiful?!

We went to Warren Park Outdoor Education Centre

We explored the sights and sounds of the Humber River Valley. We saw squirrels, lots of birds, butterflies, and many little ground creatures hidden in logs and in the ground. We learned a lot about the habitat of the area.  We enjoyed a picnic lunch and in the afternoon we played fun collaborative games. It was a great day!

Our Visit to the Fire Hall

We learned about what firefighters do, about what they wear and how to prevent fires at home. As we were getting ready to go we also got to hear the firetruck leave in response to an emergency call, it was very loud!

We also made our own firefighter hats!

Look at our "Spider Web Boards"

We have been reading Charlotte's Web and we made our own "Spider Web Boards" to help us practice skip counting. I haven't met a child yet who doesn't like to hammer nails!

SPLASH-Summer Reading Program at the Weston Public Library

Splash of Colour Mondays

2:00 p.m. - 2:45 p.m. on recurring dates listed below

45 mins

Weston Community Room

Create captivating crafts each week and listen to sensational stories, jokes, riddles and more! Ages 6-12. For more information please call 416-394-1016.

Series:

TD Summer Reading Club

Categories:

All Children, School-Age Children
Hobbies Crafts & Games, Reading Programs & Storytimes

Upcoming Dates:

Mon Jul 04
Mon Jul 11
Mon Jul 18
Mon Jul 25
Mon Aug 08
Mon Aug 15


http://www.torontopubliclibrary.ca/detail.jsp?Entt=RDM6460&R=6460


Keep reading fun through the whole summer!

Math Websites-recommended by kids!

These are some great websites to help your children practice the math they have been learning at school:

1. Lemonade Stand interactive site where students run their own store www.coolmath-games.com/lemonade

2. http://www.mathletics.com/

3. Softschools also has some great games
http://www.softschools.com/games/

Try the them out with your child and enjoy playing math games together!

Helping your Child Read

The ministry of Education has a guide to help parents help their children read, check out

http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/literacynumeracy/PrintMultiMediaResources.pdf

and look for the tips and tools for parents-videos and podcasts

http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/abc123/

this guide is available in several languages and it is a great resource.

Sponsorship issues

Learn about the new family sponsorship regulations at the Weston Public Library, June 10th

check out the details at:

http://www.torontopubliclibrary.ca/detail.jsp?Entt=RDM82913&R=82913

Subsidies for Summer Camps for Children

Did you know that the City of Toronto has a fee subsidy program that offers families living below the Low Income Cut-off (LICO) access to the recreation programs offered by the city?

Check out the link below for details:

http://www.toronto.ca/parks/torontofun/welcome_policy.htm

Summer courses for Adults offered by the TDSB

If you are interested in taking a course this summer check out the following TDSB link

www.learn4life.ca

They are offering courses in art, business, computers, crafts, dance, fitness, food, languages, music, sewing and sports.  Classes fill up quickly so if you are planning on registering for the summer program, register early.  Classes begin the first week of July.


It's a great way to have fun and meet new people. 

Our Community

We have been learning about our community. As a class, we made this wonderful map of our community.  We included the houses and building where we live as well as all the things that make our community special such as parks, trees, playgrounds, stores, and much more.

We wrote our very own monster stories

We read the book "Where do Monsters live?" and wrote our own monster stories. Our monsters live in the closet, take a look at the picture below. They turned out really great.

Jazz in the Schools Performed at our School!

Students from the Humber College Music Program came and performed for the whole school, it was really great to hear some very upcomming and talented musicians. Thank you!

We have a new class pet

Yes, that is correct. The children have even named our new pet Sanfred. We couldn't choose between Sandy or Freddy so we combined to make Sanfred, clever, eh?
Sanfred has dirt, leaves and water, we just need to get it some new friends.

We had a Party! We have read over 300 Books and Counting

Since January, our class has read over 300 books as part of the home reading program. We celebrated by making bookmarks, getting awards and celebrating our MVP Readers. The challenge is to see how many books we can read by the end of June.

Jesse came to visit us in our classrooom!

Jesse from the Kindness Program, a part of the Beatrice Watson-Acheson Foundation, came to visit us in our classroom. We learned about where to get a pet, what their needs are and how to take care of it. Everyone was excited to have such a cute furry visitor!

http://www.thekindnessprogram.org

We went to the theatre!

We went to the theatre this week. We saw Goldilocks and the Three Canadian Bears. It was so funny when Goldilocks got the story all wrong! Everyone really enjoyed the performance.

The Toronto ZOO Came to our School!

Just in time for Earth day, the Toronto Zoo came to give us a presentation on the Great Lakes. We learned about the importance of taking care of the aquatic life in the Great Lakes. The presentation was terrific and the kids had lots of questions.

Look at our Spring Scenes, we used Plasticene!

We read

The New Baby Calf

by Edith N. Chase and Barbara Reid

and we made our own spring scenes using plasticene.

International Pink Day-April 13th

In our classroom, we are committed to stand up against bullying!

Check out the April Events at the Weston Library

April 14th Film fun for kids

April 16th Free income tax preparation

http://www.torontopubliclibrary.ca/detail.jsp?R=LIB093

Tree Planting on April 30th

Join others in your community in this Tree Planting activity

http://www.toronto.ca/parks/pdf/engagement/tat/Colonel_Sam_Smith_map.pdf

In our classroom we say: Earth Day should be EVERY Day!

Municipal Child Care space or Child Care subsidies

Check out : toronto.ca/children

or call 311 the lines are open 24 hours, 7 days a week and can provide service in 180 languages!

Register NOW for Summer Camps!!

Don't delay!

Register online, by touch tone registration (416-338-0000), or call 311 or visit your nearest community centre

www.toronto.ca/parks/camps

Community Clean up Day -Saturday, April 16th

Get together with family, friends and neighbours and clean up an area that is important to you such as a park, local street or ravine.

Get Free gloves and Glad bags at Toronto Community/civic centres

check out toronto.ca/litter

Let's spring clean our neighbourhood together!

FREE Swim to Survive Summer Program @ Keele and Bloor

Free Swimming lessons for children at Keele PS

Look for the registration form in your child's backpack!

Contact nancy.campbell@cupe4400.org

FRESH FRUIT FRIDAYS has been a success!

Students have been bringing lots of fresh fruit and even some very appetizing fruit salads.
Thank you for supporting Fresh Fruit Fridays, it's been great!

Earth Day SHOULD be Every Day!

We have been collecting garbage in our school yard. Look at all this garbage!

Professional Actor Mary Ellen MacLean came to our Class!!

Here is Mary Ellen teaching in our classroom!

Mary Ellen MacLean is a performer, creator, teacher, director and producer who works in theatres across the country. She currently is an Artist in Residence at the Lorraine Kimsa Theatre for Young People in Toronto. We are so lucky she came to our class to teach physical theatre!
It was sooo much fun!

We have been learning about how our bodies work

We read books about how our organs work and in partners we traced our bodies and placed our organs in the correct spot.

We made our own Friendship bracelets!

We learned how to make braids using positional words: crossing over and under.

Families building better readers

Check out this site for great ideas to help your child learn to read.

http://www.paec.org/FBBR/Elementary/PAEC_FBBR_Final.pdf

This site also has some fun game ideas. Check them out!

Hockey players who are inspired to read!

This story appeared in the Globe and Mail on Saturday, March 15th. It is about a hockey coach who inspires his players to read after every game. The players show up to the games with their books in zip lock bags and have book discussions in the dressing room!

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/atlantic/young-hockey-players-hit-the-ice-then-the-books/article1939486/

Our students have read 248 books at home since January!!!!

We will be celebrate with a party when we get to 300! (A literacy party, of course!)

Make adding and subtracting real at home

You can help your child by doing things such as:

• Sorting objects (buttons, straws) into groups of five and ten

• Ask your child to think of something at home that comes in doubles (for example, pairs of socks, pairs of shoes)

• Share addition and subtraction story problems using things you see in your home. For example, “There are 9 juice boxes on the shelf. There are 3 juice boxes on the counter. How many juice boxes are there in all?

• Share addition and subtraction story problems using things you see in your neighbourhood. For example, “14 cars are parked on the street. 3 cards are red. How many cars are not red?”

We are learning how to add and subtract using an Arithmetic rack

We have been using an Arithmetic Rack, that simulates the two decks of a double-decker bus, to help us learn how to add and subtract. Students are working on showing the different combination of passengers we could have on a double decker bus.

Have a Wonderful Spring Break!

From All Of Us in the Class!

FRESH FRUIT FRIDAYS To Celebrate March - Nutrition Month

Help us by packing healthy fruits and vegetables on Fridays!!

Look at our Paper Weaving!

We read The Roses in My Carpets by Rukhsana Khan about a boy in Afghanistan who is learning how to weave carpets to help his family.

We have also been learning how to weave using paper:

You can "see" us thinking

This activity integrated Literacy, Math (patterning, skip counting, positional words-over/under), and Art expectations.

We Wrote Our Own Fiction Stories!

First, we had to think about who was going to be in our story, where would it take place, when would it take place, what happens in the story and why it happens. We filled out a 5 w's sheet to organize our ideas.

Then we worked on our storylines and filled out a First, Then and Finally organizer to help us organize our ideas and sequencing.

Next, we had to EDIT our work. First, we circled our word wall words to make sure they were correctly spelled. Then, we had to colour our capitals at the beginning of our sentences and periods at the end. After that, we re-read our stories to make sure our sentences made sense. Finally, we were ready to work on our "good" copies. When we were done we made character puppets.

Finally, we invited the next door Kindergarten class to watch our puppet show where we each had a chance to present our very own original fiction stories.

It was sooooo much fun!!!!

We Celebrated 100th Day

We made great hats and necklaces to celebrate 100 days in school. You may have not seen our necklaces because they were made out of Fruit Loops. The students had to make them with 100 Fruit Loops! They had to separate each group of 10 with coloured pasta.