Hello families of room 205s. I hope everyone had a a great week! It was nice to have a full class this week and have all of our students back with us, feeling healthy and strong. Below is a picture of the t-shirt PJ was wearing this week which I thought was very cute and worth posting!
A true friend never gets in your way unless you happen to be going down.
Quote of the week - The students reflected on the meaning of this quote in their BFYB journals this week. As a class, we discussed the meaning of a true friend and the students described qualities they feel make a true friend. They gave examples of friends that stood by them when they were down or when they needed someone to talk to. They also gave examples of friends that broke their trust and betrayed them. As a class. we agreed that trust was one of the most important qualities that makes a friendship strong and meaningful.
Hana's Suitcase - This week, we watched an interactive video produced by the CBC called, Inside Hana's Suitcase. It is extremely engaging and the students really enjoyed watching it. The characters, George Brady and Fumiko, were interviewed throughout the video and shared their stories. Many artifacts and information from the book were explained in further detail in this video. If you are interested in watching this with your child or family, I have included the link to the website below.
Letter Writing Assignment - As a follow up to the novel, students are asked to use the formal letter writing process introduced in class to write a one page letter to a character in the novel. They are asked to chose a character that had an impact on them emotionally or a character that they connected with while reading the story. This assignment will require the students to write a first draft of their letter, have it edited by an adult and then write or type a final copy of the letter. They are asked to include a photograph of themselves along with the letter as well. I will collect all the letters and have them bound in a book that will eventually be sent home for each family to read. The final copy of this letter is due on Thursday January 23, 2014.
Visual Art - This week, while studying line and colour in visual art, the students created beautiful "Warm and Cool Line Designs." They are displayed in the showcase outside our classroom. The learning goals for this assignment are posted clearly in the showcase as well. Please enjoy the pictures of the students outstanding line designs and geometric shapes coloured in warm and cold colours. The challenge for this assignment was to create a design with only ONE line that starts and ends at the exact same place!
Special presentation - Today, Max's grandfather, Otto Friedman, came in to speak with the class about his experiences in the Holocaust. Otto is a Holocaust survivor. He was born in Budapest, Hungary in 1934. Otto's father was taken by the Nazi's and forced into a labour camp where he was killed at 40 years old. In 1945, Otto, his mother, and the rest of his family lived in a ghetto for two months. He said his experiences there were horrible. They all managed to escape being sent to a concentration camp and were saved by the famous, Raoul Wallenberg. Wallenberg saved over 100,00 Hungarian Jews and spared them from their death. The students asked Otto some excellent and thought provoking questions which he answered very honestly.
Thank you very much Otto for coming in to speak with us and thank you to Elyse Friedman (Max's mom) for setting up this presentation for our class.
Reminders:
- Friday Reports are due on Monday January 20, 2014
- PA Day - Friday January 24, 2014
- Final copy of letter to a character from Hana's Suitcase due Thursday January 23, 2014
- Grade 5 - Human Body project and presentation due Wednesday January 29, 2014
- Grade 4's - Please help your child learn their multiplication facts. There will be a quiz on Tuesday January 21, 2014 on 4-7 times tables. Thank you for your assistance!
HAVE A WONDERFUL WEEKEND. THANK YOU FOR ALL YOUR SUPPORT.
Mrs. Mendelson
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