It's Cold Out There!

Wow, it was a cold one on Wednesday. We were inside for all the recesses due to the windchill. As we looked out our classroom window at a sunny blue sky, it was hard to convince everyone that it really was too cold to be outside. Some students managed to keep busy during indoor recess by using hexagons to create an interesting design on their table.

During science we, talked about our fingerprints, examined them with magnifying glasses, and used a stamp pad to make prints on a paper. Then we tried to think of details to add to our fingerprints to make creatures and pictures. . . great ideas Grade 1s.

Our book fair is open tonight from 4-7:30 p.m. and on Friday from 9:30-11:00 a.m. during Student Led Conferences. If you are interested pop by the library to see what is available for some good reading.

As usual at this time of year I manage to lose my voice. Nothing seems to help to get it back quickly. Since my remedies aren't working I decided to see what advice my students may have.

Here are their thoughts:
Hold your breath. -Hunter
Take some Tylenol. -Shelby
Drink water. -Kody
Get someone to scare you. -Andrew
Drink some tea. -Ashton
Take a little nap. -Rylee
Take deep breaths. -Diamond
Sit upside down. -Saydee
Take medicine. -Ezra
Have a bath with Epsom salt and hot water. -Reese
Do some exercise. -Brianna
Take a deep breath every day. -Kyla
Eat toast. -Kayden
Take a little walk. -Xoie
Have some alone time. -Ashley

Thanks for the tips everyone! I feel better already. I'll try not to have a little nap at school ;) Remember to dress warmly for the weather.
-Mrs. T :)

Art: Creating Lines

We have been learning about different kinds of lines in art. Lines can be wavy, zig zag, curly, straight and even dotted. We used oil pastels to make lines on our paper. We talked about thick, thin, vertical, horizontal and diagonal lines too. There was lots of great language shared as students described their lines. We think they look pretty neat so far.

Fort Whyte Alive

We went on  a field trip to Fort Whyte Alive. We learned about how plants and animals survive our cold winters. We sure used our five senses on this trip. We saw so many interesting animals and plants. If we listened carefully we could hear the birds and the prairie dogs. We could smell the fresh outdoors. We touched the animals gently and some needles on the evergreen trees. We could feel the wind in our faces and the cold, crisp air on our cheeks. We tasted delicious food at lunch time to give us nourishment. Even though it was a bit cold with the windchill, we were dressed for the weather and we were able to enjoy the outdoor activities.

Here are our thoughts:
I saw lots of animals. -Kingston
I touched so many furry animals. -Kyla
I liked seeing all the animals. -Rylee
I saw a big catfish. -Ashton
The catfish has long whiskers. -Xoie
I liked touching the animal furs. -Diamond
It was neat to see all the animals. -Reese
I touched a lot of animals there. -Andrew
I liked the fluffy lynx. -Shelby
I enjoyed sitting on the bench to listen and look for the birds that came to the feeders. -Mrs. T
The animals were neat to see. -Brayden
I liked when we got to look around after lunch. -Hunter
I liked feeling the animals. -Shelby
I liked touching the animals and seeing them close up. -Ezra
We got to look at fish. -Brianna
I liked touching the animals. -Kody

Thanks to the volunteers for coming on our trip to help things run smoothly. We appreciate Mrs. Friesen arranging this field trip for the Grade Ones. Thanks to Mr. Unrau for taking great pictures to share with us. What was your favourite Fort Whyte memory? We hope you enjoy the video of our trip.
-Mrs. T :)

Guest Author and Illustrator

What an amazing day! We were delighted to have an author and illustrator come to our classroom to share the book, Doors in the Air. David Weale (author) and Pierre Pratt (illustrator) were very special guests in our room. They talked about how we can use our imagination to take us to different places and to experience different things. Pierre drew a door and then created an illustration of what could be behind that door based on our ideas. It was so neat to see a picture develop right before our eyes. What a treat it was to hear David read the story he wrote.

Here are our thoughts:

I liked the book. The pictures and the words looked really nice. -Shelby
The best part was when they read the book to us and when we got the book. -Kyla
You can think of anything in your imagination. -Ezra
I loved watching Pierre draw and listening to David read the story. Open a door to your imagination and take an amazing journey! -Mrs. T
I liked when they read the story. -Brianna
I liked the pictures in the book. -Ashley
My favourite picture is the one with all the doors because the story is called, "Doors in the Air". -Ashton
I liked the doors book because doors can bring you anywhere. -Xoie
I liked the page where he found a new land and he floated off. -Andrew
Pierre is a really good drawer. -Reese
My favourite part was the doors page because he was checking every door.-Kody
I liked the flower page because the flowers were well drawn. -Hunter
I liked the book because I liked how they made the words rhyme. -Rylee
I liked the book. My favourite page was when he bent down to get the flower. The flower looks beautiful. -Diamond



Our favourite illustrations.

I liked when the author retold the story. He was very exciting. -Kingston
I loved everything. The best part was how they got the students to create their own story using their imagination. -Ms Claydon
I liked listening to the book. -Brayden
I'm glad we got our own book to keep. -Kayden

We would like to thank the Children's Book Centre and TD Bank Group for giving each Grade One student a copy of this awesome Canadian picture book. What a fabulous way to support children's literacy! It was wonderful to be a selected school for the Doors in the Air Author and Illustrator Tour. Special thanks to Gail Hamilton, a former teacher librarian at BHS, for suggesting our school for this unique event.

What could be behind this door?

Sesame, sesame, snap!



Thanks for signing our class copy!

Who wants their very own book? Yes please!!

We hope you enjoy reading Doors in the Air at home with your family and friends! The book is also available in our school library.

-Mrs. T :)

What Does Peace Mean?

We read the book, What Does Peace Feel Like? by Vladimir Radunsky. Students wrote and drew about what peace meant to them while thinking about their 5 senses.

We hope you take time today to remember how lucky we are to live in peace. We are grateful to all those who gave their lives for our country. Enjoy this time of remembrance.

-Mrs. T :)

Good bye Friend!

One of our classmates is moving and is leaving our learning community.

We wish you all the best, Graysen! Thank you for being a special part of Room 2. We will always remember you.

Here are our thoughts:
I will miss playing pattern blocks with you. –Ashton
I will miss playing go fish with you after calendar. –Saydee
I miss that I might not see you again. I hope you will be safe and good. –Shelby
I hope that your teacher is good at your new school. –Xoie
You are really nice. You are my friend. – Andrew
I will miss you because you are my friend. –Brianna
I will miss you, Graysen because you are kind to me. –Diamond
I have been with you for lots of years. I will miss you. –Ashley
I hope you have an awesome new house. –Kyla
I hope you have a good time at the other school. –Ezra
I hope you get lots of new friends. –Rylee
We are sad to see you leave, Graysen. I know you will be a great addition to your new school. –Mrs. T
Have a nice time. I will miss you. –Kayden
I will miss reading with you. -Kody
I hope you have a good time at your new school. Good luck.  –Hunter
I hope you make new friends. –Reese
Good luck in your new home. –Kingston
I will miss you forever. -Brayden

The Cenotaph

The Grade 1s walked to the Cenotaph by our school. We formed a circle around the flag and sang a beautiful rendition of O'Canada. Ms Knoll read the names of the men who died fighting for our freedom. Many of those names were familiar because there are streets in our area named after these men. We remembered and thanked the men of the area for giving their lives for us to live freely in Canada.

Here are our thoughts:
The soldiers died for us. -Kayden
People were in the war. -Rylee
Ms Knoll read the names and we said, "We remember." -Brianna
We celebrated peoples' lives. -Shelby
We went for people who died in the war to remember them. -Graysen
We learned about the soldiers who died. -Kyla
We read the names of the people who died in the war. -Ashton
We went there for Remembrance Day.-Hunter
Soldiers die every day. -Ezra
We stood around the flag. -Brayden
We sang O'Canada. -Saydee
We learned the names of the soldiers who died. -Diamond
We looked at the flag. - Kingston
The soldiers who died wanted to save our world so nobody would get hurt. -Andrew
Soldiers died in the war. -Kody
The names of the soldiers who fought in the war were on the Cenotaph. -Reese
I learned the people who died. -Ashley
The Cenotaph had the names of the people who died. -Xoie

"Lest We Forget"