Homework for tonight

Mental Math Lesson 2 is due tomorrow.
Students also need to be done their Words Their Way sentences: They will write a sentence for each word. For example if their word is "school," they could write: "I go to Sunway International School in Johor Bahru."
If they forgot their Daily 5 at school, the words can be found on the Spelling City link to the right, the group they are in was sent to your Class Dojo app :)

We didn't have time to talk about the flashcards, so I will talk about them tomorow. Sorry in advance for any confusion.

The Legend of Nian

The legend of Nian: http://www.ebeijing.gov.cn/feature_2/Traditional_Fesitival/Spring_Festival/Legend_SP/t1020695.htm
What is a legend? Is it true? Where do legends come from?

Nikola Tesla Part II

Alright.. here is a nice video summing up what we read in our book last night, you are welcome to watch it on your own.. it is from Brain Pop! Below.. read the answer to find out why he didn't electrocute himself when he had all that power flowing through him!

How did Nikola Tesla Survive 250 000 volts of electricity?

The alternating current flowing through the wire to Tesla was changing directions at a very high frequency (millions of times a second!). Very high frequency currents have a quirk that kept Nikola safe: High frequency currents travel along the outside of objects instead of penentrating through them. So instead of spreading through Nikola's body, the high-frequency current traveled along the surface of his skin. That protected his heart, which can seize up from even small amounts of current! But don't try any of this yourself...

Math Flashcards

Alright ladies and gentlemen... You've been doing amazing at your multiplication Ninja Minutes! You are blowing me away with how fast you are catching on! You are all going to have stacks of belts by the end of the year. However, things are going to get tougher as we go, just like getting a real black belt! So, your homework before we get back from Chinese New Year, is to construct yourself a set of flashcards you can use to practice your multiplication tables! (We will get to division later). You can make them however you like, but I've included some examples. I think a great idea is to include the numbers in Mandarin too so you can practice that! Remember what I showed you on the board for an example? Here are a couple others as well. Decorate, color, do whatever you wish.. these are your set to practice with! Because practice makes (almost) perfect!

Homework - Something to think about

After we read about Nikola Tesla the question came up.. How did he not get electrocuted when he was demonstrating with the wires and holding them in both hands? See if you can find the answer!

PS. Mrs. Jessie made a mistake when she said Nikola Tesla was still alive, he died in 1943, you can research him more if you like. She was thinking of Elon Musk, who is still alive and well 😉😊. See, teacher's can make mistakes too! We just need to remember, mistakes are how we learn!

Our Chinese New Year's Art

If you haven't finished yet, here is a link (click here) to the website that shows us how to do this:

How did yours turn out? It is okay if it looks a bit different, that is the whole idea! We each have a different interpretation of the way the dragon looks and what colours it should be. Just like we are all different, our pictures are all different too!

Electrical Wizard

Nikola Tesla got his start at an early age, being interested in science and electricity. What are you interested in? What do you like to do in your spare time? What can we learn about Nikola that shows us good character and perseverence?

Base Ten Blocks

Base Ten Blocks online, for when you don't have your own set ;) (Click on the link beside the picture)

Base 10 Blocks

Ninja Fact Masters

Woohoo! Some of us got our first belt in multiplication today! Master of 0! Maybe tomorrow we will also have a few "Master's of 1!" Keep practicing those multiplication facts to progress through your levels :)

Mental Math Lesson 1

Most students are already complete.. however, if they are not, here is the link to the PDF copy of Lesson 1, which is due tomorrow Tuesday January 29th.

Math Word Problem of the Week

Problem of the Week January 28th

The family studies class baked two dozen muffins. The class plans to share one third of the muffins with the school office staff, and one quarter of the muffins with Mr. Ahmed’s chess club.
A) Which group will receive more muffins? Justify your answer.
B) How many muffins will be left over after they give the office staff and chess club their shares?

Due Friday! Remember to show all of your work and answer in complete sentences!

Bill Nye - Lights Introduction

Chinese New Year

What sign are you? We are ramping up to celebrate Chinese New Year, and the New Year of the Pig! Mrs. Jessie is the year of the rat.. my mom used to bring that up regularly because I was always a bit of a pack-rat!

Celebrating Chinese New Year also brings us to our first big unit in social studies.. Ancient China! After we finish learning all about ourselves, we will start learning about Ancient Civilizations. Up first.. Ancient China!
Learn more here: https://www.travelchinaguide.com/essential/holidays/new-year/facts.htm

Group Work

Today your student will be learning how to work in collaboration with peers. We will be discussing the importance of getting along with each other and working towards a common goal. Students will be working in many different types of groups and stations this year, so we will practice over the upcoming days in both math and language with our daily 5. Stay tuned!

Words Their Way

Today (January 17th) we are completing our WTW (Words Their Way) initial assessment to place students in the appropriate groups to have them work on a spelling/vocabulary/phonics program that caters to their needs. Most of the students are familiar with the word sorts as both Mr. Dan and Mrs. Taylor used the program in some context last year. It is a program that has a wide array of research behind it for improving spelling, reading, and writing.

In class, students will be completing glue and sorts, speed sorts, putting into alphabetic order, blind sorts, learning the meaning of the words and putting into sentences, and doing partner work. Each week I will also post the different groups and their words so that they can print off and practice at home. To save trees, I will only be printing off the sets used in class. If you would like to print off a third set, you can print from the menu. Students will know which sort they are on as well as which colour.

The best way to practice at home is to complete the sorts again, explain what the word means, and do partner work. Your student can also use the links on the right to head over to Spelling City. They can play games with their words and practice the spelling as long as they remember which group they are in.

We will be going through a set of words every two to three weeks. For more information on Words Their Way please click here.

Go Noodle

Part of the Canadian curriculum has us completing DPA (Directed Physical Activity) every day. Some will be swimming and PE time, but some will also be using Go Noodle! Chances are, your student has probably mentioned it, and you can take part at home too by clicking the following link for instructions and to get the whole family moving: Go Noodle

Wonder

Our first novel study/read aloud will be... Wonder by RJ Palacio! Stay tuned as we will be working on science, social studies and language, as well as some health and friendship building activities through our exploration of the novel Wonder! :)