Terry Fox Run

Grade 6 students were treated to a fun activity with Ms. Ymbang this morning. The purpose of this activity was for students to develop and realise the value of cooperative skills.

We discussed the Christmas concert after first recess. Students listened to songs that will match this year’s theme. They suggested other songs too. Once we were done listening to students’ suggestions, the class voted on the one they would like to perform. Some grade 6s have mentioned that they would like to perform a skit too. Students that suggested this are asked to find a skit that would match the theme, include all students (not necessarily all with speaking parts) and then to share their ideas, with me.

We met other classes in the gym, where we watched a show about Terry Fox. Students headed outside where they walked or ran until 2 pm. Some students did 27 laps. Awesome!

We ended the day with math. Students worked to complete the math review work. Students’ work was checked during this time. They received feedback on the quality of their work and suggestions on how to improve. Anyone who did not complete all review questions needs to complete this for homework.

Grade 6s attended Art and Gym class this morning.

Homework & Reminders

• Complete all math review questions if you did not get done in class. Study for the unit test tomorrow
• Tomorrow: Math unit test on Whole Numbers

Presentations

Our day started with language. We discussed paragraphs and how they are comprised of topic and detail sentences. Grade 6s practiced identifying the topic of a paragraph and the detail sentences.

After recess we met in the Multimedia Room, where students continued presenting their power generation projects. Presenters demonstrated their knowledge and the audience showed their curiosity by asking good questions.

At the end of the day we worked on math review. Students were challenged to complete Q. 6 – 15. Students who did not get done are bringing their review home to complete these questions. Please return review work tomorrow as we will be finishing up in class.

Grade 6s attended French and Gym class this morning.

Homework & Reminders

• Math: Complete review questions 6 – 15. Study for the unit test on Thursday
• Bring devices tomorrow if you have NOT yet presented your project
• Tomorrow Casual Day – wear something comfortable for the Terry Fox Run
• Thursday -  Math unit test on Whole Numbers

Interview Writing

We spent the first bit of in-class time by taking up Friday’s math homework. We then began working on report writing. Students were asked to reflect on their first attempt, the checklist we created, and our conference time before coming up with ideas for their final writing piece. Students had 1 hour of class time to complete the writing assignment when they returned from recess.

We had a short math period today due to the writing assessment. We have begun review work to prepare students for the unit test on Thursday. Grade 6s were challenged to complete and correct ¼ of the assessment before heading out for recess, They received feedback on how they could improve the quality of the answers they were giving. There are no practice problems assigned for today. Students should focus on any areas of weakness to be well prepared for the test.

We ended the day in the Multimedia Room. Students began presenting their projects on power generation. The class was an attentive audience and had the opportunity to ask questions of the presenters. We will continue with presentations tomorrow. Only students who have not yet presented should bring devices tomorrow.

Grade 6s attended Art and Gym class this morning.

Homework & Reminders

• Study for the unit test on Thursday
• Bring devices tomorrow if you have NOT yet presented your project
• Wednesday: Terry Fox Run
• Wednesday: Casual Day – wear something comfortable for the Terry Fox Run
• Thursday -  Math unit test on Whole Numbers

Practicing Presentations

As usual, we began our in-class time by taking up yesterday’s math homework. For today’s lesson on long division, students started practice work right away, as we had reviewed long division yesterday. Students were asked to only complete word problem questions. They had an hour of class time to do practice questions on p. 74 & 75 of the MMS textbook, but NOT Q 1, 2, 7,  & 8.  Please remember that students will be writing a unit test on Thursday. We will do review work on Monday and Tuesday to prepare for the test.

Writing conferences have been completed. Students will be writing an improved interview report on Monday.

Today was the last day for students to complete their project on power generation. As we have completed all writing conferences, students used this time to ensure that they have completed all parts of the project by using the checklist. We also repeated our salt water and fresh water electricity experiment as there was some water contamination the first time we did this. We took time to repeat our electricity fruit station experiment too, but we used a voltmeter instead of an LED this time. Ask your child what they observed with these experiment.

Students were asked to stay in and work on their project during recess if they felt they would not get done by the end of the day. When students returned from recess and lunch, they were asked to focus on the presentation component of their project. They had to decide on a script, who would say what, and correct pronunciation for technical terms.  Students will be presenting on Monday and Tuesday. Students are asked to please email me a copy of their presentation over the weekend.

Grade 6s attended Art and Gym class this morning.

Homework & Reminders

• MMS p. 74 & 75, Unit test on Thursday
• Bring devices for presentations on Monday & Tuesday
• Wednesday: Casual Day – wear something comfortable for the Terry Fox Run
• Thursday -  Math unit test on Whole Numbers

Division using Pictures

As usual, we began our in-class time by taking up yesterday’s math homework. Our new math lesson was about dividing whole numbers. We solved a problem involving the division of a 3-digit number by a 2-digit number using base-ten blocks and pictures. This was done with much groaning from all the 6s. It was a worthwhile exercise as it is clear to see that division is the process of equal sharing, which students sometimes forget.  The Grade 6 students begged to use long division instead. We reviewed the steps in long division. Students are free to use their preferred method of division in solving today’s practice problems. The class had an hour to complete the practice problems on p. 70 & 71 of the MMS textbook.  Students who did not get done in class are asked to complete questions for homework. We are doing parts a) & f) only for students numbered a) onwards. There is was lot of singing in homework club today. :-).

Writing conferences continued today.

Our UOI time looked pretty much the same as it did yesterday. Students worked on their projects or built series and parallel circuits. This is the final week to complete this project. Students will be presenting next week.

Grade 6s attended French and Gym class this morning.

Homework & Reminders

• MMS p. 70 & 71, Unit test on Thursday
• Bring devices all week
• October hot lunch forms due tomorrow
• Scholastic orders due are due tomorrow
• Karate and after-school forms are due tomorrow
• Wednesday: Casual Day – wear something comfortable for the Terry Fox Run
• Thursday -  Math unit test on Whole Numbers

Series and Parallel Circuits

As usual, we began our in-class time by taking up yesterday’s math homework. Our new math lesson was about multiplying whole numbers. Students shared their algorithm for solving multiplication problems that cannot be solved mentally. We reviewed how to multiply by place value. Students were encouraged to use their preferred method when solving problems.  The class had an hour to complete the practice problems on p. 66 & 67 of the MMS textbooks.  Students who did not get done in class are asked to complete questions (a, c, e) for homework. Recess is becoming homework club for some students :-).

I continued conferencing with students individually to assess their report writing against the rubric and checklist we have created. We are on track to complete all conferences by end of day Friday.

During our UOI time students finished up their work on the key features of electrical circuits that they began working on yesterday. We are about 2/3 of the way with completing the series & parallel circuits station. Grade 6s continued working on their power generation project. This is the final week to complete this project. Students will be presenting next week.

Grade 6s attended Art and Gym class this morning.

Homework & Reminders

• MMS p. 66 & 67
• Bring devices all week
• Friday: October hot lunch forms due
• Friday: Scholastic orders due
• Next week: Casual Day, Terry Fox Run, Math unit test

Circuit Diagrams

We began our in-class time by taking up yesterday’s math homework. Our new math lesson was about addition and subtraction. This was a pretty straight forward lesson and the Grade 6 class prefers using place value when adding and subtracting. The twist on the lesson was that students had to check the reasonableness of their sums using estimation (rounding to the nearest hundred) and inverse operations when checking differences. Ask your child to explain what is meant by the ‘inverse operation’.  Students again had a good chunk of class time to work on practice problems on p. 62 & 63 of the MMS textbooks.  Students who did not get done in class are asked to complete all questions for homework. Some students again chose to stay in during second recess to work on their math homework. Some students are even tutoring each other!  It is wonderful to see this and hear the conversations between students.

 I have begun conferencing with students individually to assess their report writing against the rubric and checklist we have created. As we meet, we are making a list of individual student strengths and areas for improvement. Our goal is to have all conferences completed by end of day Friday.

During our UOI time students explored the key features of electrical circuits. They learned that the components of circuits are represented with symbols in circuit diagrams. They spent time defining electrical components and drawing their symbols. Some students began working on our next electricity station where they are building series and parallel circuits. Devices will be needed all week for the power generation project. This is the final week to complete this project. Students will be presenting next week.

Grade 6s attended French and Gym class this morning.

Look out for a letter about the Terry Fox Run coming home today.

Homework & Reminders

• MMS p. 62 & 63
• Bring devices all week
• September 25: October hot lunch forms due
• September 25: Scholastic orders due
• Next week: Casual Day, Terry Fox Run, Math unit test

Order of Operations

We began our in-class time by taking up Friday’s math homework. Students who had corrections on last week’s quiz worked on these before heading out to recess. Our new math lesson was about order of operations. As a class we solved an expression containing addition, multiplication, and subtraction and discovered that depending on the order we did this in, we got a different solution. Grade 6s learned that they should

1. Solve brackets first
2. Do multiplication or division next in order from left to right
3. Do addition or subtraction last in order from left to right

Students had a good chunk of class time to work on practice problems on p. 56 - 57 of the MMS textbooks.  Students who did not get done in class are asked to complete all questions for homework. Some students are choosing to stay in during second recess and work with a buddy to complete their math homework. What dedication!

 We worked on report writing next. Students read a final sample of student writing. Most agreed that it deserved a level 4. Students identified many strengths in this piece. These have been added to our checklist on How to Write an Awesome Report: Interview.

During our UOI time we continued working on electricity stations while students use devices to research their topics and work on their PowerPoint or Prezi.  Devices will be needed all week. This is the final week to complete this project. Students will be presenting next week.

Grade 6s attended Art and Gym class this morning.

Homework & Reminders

• MMS p. 56 & 57
• Bring devices all week
• September 25: October hot lunch forms due
• September 25: Scholastic orders due

Mental Math

We began our in-class time by taking up yesterday’s math homework. Students wrote a quiz to show what they understand about the work we have been doing in class this week. Some students worked on correcting our first quiz. Our new math lesson was about mental math strategies. We reviewed that changing the order of numbers when multiplying or dividing will not change our answer. Bearing this in mind, students practiced changing the order of numbers in a problem in order to group compatible numbers. They also used breaking numbers apart when multiplying numbers that are not easy to compute. Ask your child to explain what compatible numbers are. Students then worked independently on practice problems on p. 51 - 52 of the MMS textbooks.  For questions 1, 2, 3 and 9, students are asked to only complete parts a, c, and e. Students who did not get done in class are asked to complete all questions for homework. A number of students asked to stay in during recess to work on their math homework. That shows dedication … or a desire for a homework-free weekend. J

 We worked on report writing next. Students read another sample of student writing. Most agreed that it deserved a level 3. Students identified many strengths in this piece. These have been added to our checklist on How to Write an Awesome Report: Interview.

During our UOI time, some students took up yesterday’s challenge to research ways to improve our electrical fruit station experiment. They were rewarded with house points for their effort. We hope to collect the additional materials and try the experiment again next week.

Some students requested changes to groups and topics for their power generating project as follows:

Cayden & Zain: Water Power

Ibrahim & Rohan: Hydroelectricity

Gurjas & Bhoovi: Nuclear Power

Rachel: Solar Power

Bhavya: Hydro Power

Dev: Hydro Power

Siheon & Calvin: Wind Power

Carter & Adam: Nuclear Power

Justin & Audrey: Wind Power

Abel & Titus: Thermal Power

Wave Power: Alika

We continued working on electricity stations while students use devices to research their topics and work on their PowerPoint or Prezi.  Devices will be needed for these times.

Grade 6s attended French and Gym class this morning.

Look out for a letter about Karate coming home today.

Homework & Reminders

·         MMS p. 51 & 52

·         Bring devices for the next week

·         September 25: October hot lunch forms due

Strategies

We began our in-class time by taking up yesterday’s math homework. Once students were back from recess we worked together as a class to solve two tricky word problems. Our strategy was “make a list”. Students used several tips to help them solve the problems, including reading the problem carefully at least 3 times, recording what is known and what is being asked, and creating lists in organized and systematic ways. Students then worked independently on practice problems on p. 49 of the MMS textbooks.  Many students completed the work in class. Students who did not get done in class are asked to complete all questions for homework.

We worked on report writing next. Students are going to create a checklist on How to Write an Awesome Report: Interview. We began this task by students reading samples of student writing, evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of the sample, and giving the writing a grade. They added the strengths to the checklist.

During our UOI time, we reviewed the two electricity stations students worked on the last couple of days. Students have been asked to research ways to make our fruit station work. Once we have ideas, students will improve this station and try the experiment again.  Student groups and topics for their power generating project were discussed and confirmed. We will be working on electricity stations over the next week and students will be rotating through these. Students who are not at stations will be using devices to research their topics and begin working on their PowerPoint or Prezi.  Devices will be needed for these times.

Grade 6s attended French and Gym class this morning.

Homework & Reminders

·         MMS p. 49

·         French homework due tomorrow

·         Remember your Visage book for tomorrow

·         Bring devices for the next week

·         September 25: October hot lunch forms due

Prime and Composite Numbers

We had another busy day. Our hard work has paid off and we are happy to announce that all reading assessments are DONE! We followed the same routine as yesterday in order to allow for students to complete their assessments.

During math class, we took up yesterday’s homework. We then had a lesson on prime and composite numbers. Students were challenged not to leave school until they are crystal clear on their understanding of multiples, factors, prime numbers, and composite numbers. We did many examples where students practiced listing the factors of a given number and then identifying the number as prime or composite.  Students then worked independently on practice problems on p. 46 - 47 of the MMS textbook. Students who did not get done in class are asked to complete all questions for homework.

During our UOI time, students were challenged to complete the two electricity stations we set up yesterday and to complete their reading about power generation in Ontario from an OPG publication.  Students recorded the topic they would like to focus on for their project and began working on their research. Students should bring their devices to school tomorrow in order to continue their research.

 

Grade 6s attended Art and Gym class this morning.

Homework & Reminders

·         MMS p. 46 - 47

·         Bring devices for Thursday

·         Welcome BBQ tomorrow from 4 – 7 pm

·         September 25: October hot lunch forms due

Reading Assessments

Today’s schedule was different to our usual one. We set out with the goal of having half the class complete their reading assessments. We accomplished more than we set out to do. Reading assessments are intensive, hard work, and take a long time. Students cannot work on them simultaneously, as they need to be listened to and timed before they work independently. The Grade 6s can be proud of how much we got done today. Our goal for tomorrow is to have the remainder of the class complete their reading assessments.

In order to complete the reading assessments, students were required to work independently for a large portion of the day if they weren’t being assessed. They did this after our math lesson on multiples where they were challenged to complete the practice problems on p. 44 of the MMS textbook. Students who did not get done in class are asked to complete all questions for homework. We managed to take up yesterday’s homework earlier in the day.

During our UOI time, students who were not being assessed visited two different electricity stations. At the first station, they conducted an experiment to determine if fruit can light up an LED. At the second station, they tested different materials to determine if they conductors or insulators. Students who completed all their work began reading about power generation in Ontario from an OPG publication. Students will be choosing a form of power generation to research and present to the class as an oral presentation accompanied by a slide show such as Power Point, Prezi, or a form of their choosing. Students should bring their devices to school tomorrow in order to begin their research.

Grade 6s attended French and Gym class this morning.

Look out for October lunch forms coming home today. Forms are due Friday. Also look out for a letter about after-school programs coming home today.

Homework & Reminders

·         MMS p. 44

·         Bring devices for Wednesday

·         Thursday: Welcome BBQ,  4 – 7 pm

·         September 25: October hot lunch forms due

Galvani and Volta

We welcomed Ms. Ymbang to our class today. She will be in our class to support student learning for the next few months.
Grade 6s worked very hard to today.
They began the day with Art and Gym. Once in class, they practised combining sentences. They then wrote a math quiz to show their understanding of the large numbers we learned about in Friday’s math lesson.

During UOI time, students used their devices to research the work and contributions to electricity made by Luigi Galvani and Allessandro Volta. Ask your child to share what they learned about these two men with you. Students shared their findings with the class, allowing students the opportunity to improve their notes. For today’s writing activity, students wrote a journal entry describing what their day would be like if there was no electricity.

We ended the day with math. We took up Friday’s homework before continuing onto the next lesson on comparing and ordering numbers. Students practiced comparing numbers by using <, >, = symbols, using place-value charts, and ordering numbers from greatest to least or vice versa. Students used the remainder of class time to work on practice questions on p. 41 - 42 of the MMS textbook in class. Students who did not get done in class are asked to complete all questions for homework.

Look out for Scholastic orders coming home today.

Homework & Reminders

·         MMS p. 41 - 42

·         Welcome BBQ forms are due tomorrow

·         Welcome BBQ, September 17, 4 – 7 pm

Millions, Billions, and Trillions

We had another great day in Grade 6. Students are enthusiastic about school and learning. In addition they were very colourful for Spirit Day. We celebrated the culmination of Neophyte Week with a house game in this morning’s assembly. Students and teachers from each house competed against each other in a game of musical chairs. Well done to Kappa for their victory this morning.

Grade 6s attended Art and Gym class in the morning.

In our language period, students reviewed kinds of sentences and combining sentences.

During our UOI time, students independently composed questions they have about electricity. They discussed their wonderings in their group and selected questions to add to our KWL chart. Students then worked in small groups to list many ways that electricity is used. Students were challenged to create categories for their list. These were shared with the class. Groups then improved their categories. Students took time to reflect on how a fridge uses electricity to keep things cold for us and how this was not available to people 200 years ago. Groups brainstormed other examples of how we use electricity today, and what people did in the past. The class was then invited to use their devices to research the work and contributions of Luigi Galvani to electricity. They could choose to work independently or in groups. As we did not get done with our research, students are asked to bring their devices on Monday to complete this work.

 

Our Essential Agreement is completed and all students have signed it.

We ended the day with math. We took up yesterday’s homework before continuing onto the next lesson on understanding large numbers. Students practiced writing numbers in the millions in standard, word, number-word, and place- value chart form. They even wrote numbers in the trillions. Students used the remainder of class time to work on practice questions on p. 37 - 38 of the MMS textbook in class. Students who did not get done in class are asked to complete all questions for homework.

Look out for a letter about the Welcome BBQ coming home today.

Have a wonderful weekend.

Homework & Reminders

·         MMS p. 37-38

·         Bring your device on Monday

·         Hot Lunch orders are due tomorrow

·         Welcome BBQ, September 17, 4 – 7 pm. Forms are due Tuesday.

How Shocking!

We had an excellent day in Grade 6. Students had their first French lesson with Mme. Villeneuve followed by gym class.

We worked on our essential agreement before first recess, where students were challenged to come up with concise positive statements to create an awesome classroom environment for us to learn in. Students had to do this collaboratively in groups and then as a class. The agreement is almost done.

 

After first recess/lunch, students were given an hour to complete their writing preassessment. They wrote an interview report. Early finishers used time to read. Students needing extra time used recess to complete their writing.

Students were excited to begin work on our first inquiry unit, How Shocking! This unit on electricity falls under the transdisciplinary theme How the World Works. We discussed the theme, central idea, concepts, and lines of inquiry that define this unit. Students then worked independently to record what they already know about electricity. They shared their knowledge with their groups. Groups then chose 2 facts to share with the class. We have generated a class KWL chart that looks like this:

We will be researching a person who has made important contributions in the field of electricity in class tomorrow. Students are asked to bring a device to school.

We began working on our first math unit at the end of the day – Whole Numbers. We took time to review Grade 5 concepts before beginning our first lesson – Exploring One Million. Students related 10s, 100s, 1000s, 10 000s, and 100 000s to one million. Students began working on practice questions on p. 34 of the MMS textbook in class. We did not get done. Students are asked to complete all questions for homework. They are reminded to bring their MMS textbooks and workbooks to school each day.

Parents, please look out for the student handbook that I being emailed to you. Please review the handbook with your child, then print, sign, and return p. 30. Thank you.

Homework & Reminders

·         MMS p. 34

·         Bring your device tomorrow

·         Hot Lunch orders are due tomorrow

·         Pizza slices are being sold tomorrow  for $2/slice

·         Tomorrow is Spirit Day. Come to school dressed in house colours

·         Welcome BBQ, September 17, 4 – 7 pm

First Day of School

Our first day back at school was a productive one. Grade 6s started the new school year with a new teacher, Ms. Kerr, with whom they had an art class. They then attended gym class with Ms. Lovan, who reminded them that they need to change for gym each day.

Grade 6s then came to their homeroom class, where we discussed daily and weekly schedules. We had a quick tour of the school before students headed out for recess and then enjoyed lunch in the cafeteria.

Back in class we took time to get to know each other. Students produced a work that tells a bit about themselves. They shared their work with students sitting in their group. These are displayed outside our classroom. Be sure to check them out when you are next in the building.

Grade 6s then worked on their reading surveys. We discussed the writing assessment that will be done tomorrow – we ran out of time today. Students were introduced to the text form and topic for their writing. We went over the rubric that will be used to evaluate student work. It was then time for second recess and lunch.

We ended the day with students working on the preassessment for the Whole Numbers math unit. Students were allowed a maximum of 1 hour for this assessment. Early finishers selected a book to read and started their reading log for the 2015/2016 school year.

Hot Lunch order forms are coming home with students today.

Homework & Reminders

·         Bring gym clothes to school daily, or leave them at school daily till Friday each week

·         Hot Lunch orders are due Friday

·         Pizza slices are being sold tomorrow and Friday for $2/slice

·         Friday is Spirit Day, come to school dressed in house colours

·         Welcome BBQ, September 17, 4 – 7 pm

Welcome to Grade 6, 2015-2016

Dear Grade 6 SJA Students and Families,

                I am happy to inform you that I will be teaching the Grade 6 class for the 2015/2016 academic year at St. Jude's. I know most of you and most of you already know me well too. For those families that are new to our school, I wish you a warm welcome.

                Grade 6 is the culminating year of the IB (International Baccalaureate) PYP (Primary Years Programme). This year provides students the opportunity to showcase their learning, skills, and actions from JK to this year through a big group project called "The Exhibition". The Exhibition takes place on Friday, May 6, 2016. Be sure to mark your calendars for this exciting event. Many of the tasks students do in our inquiry units will be geared towards equipping them with the skills needed to do well in The Exhibition.

                There are many changes to look forward to this year. The first and biggest is the new building. I encourage families to attend the Orientation Night, on Tuesday, September 8, at 7 pm. Here you will:

-hear about changes to policies and procedures such as the dropping off and picking up of students

-tour the new school facilities

-meet teachers and ask any questions you may have

           We have some new teachers to SJA that will be teaching the Grade 6 class. Jose Villeneuve will teaching the Grade 6 class French and Rachelle Kerr will be teaching Art. Students are already familiar with Ms. Lovan, who is returning as Gym teacher. I will be responsible for teaching your child their core subjects of English Language, Math, and inquiry units (UOI). The inquiry units are usually structured around social studies and science topics. In this year's inquiry units we will be learning about the Canada’s trade links with the world, ancient civilizations, art and shapes, electricity, and personal safety (physical, social, health).
Our daily schedule, for now, is as follows:

Time	Subject
8:45 - 9:00	Assembly in Gym
9:00 – 10:00	Art/French on alternating days
10:00 – 10:40	Gym
10:40- 11:00	Language
11:00- 12:00	Recess A & Lunch A
12:00- 1:30	UOI
1:30 – 2:30	Recess B & Lunch B
2:30 – 3:30	Math
3:30 – 3:40	Pack Up & Dismissal

 

This is the first year that students will not be purchasing their own school supplies. There are a few things that SJA will not provide but will greatly help your child this year.

1.       A device such as a laptop, tablet, or smart phone for research purposes. We do have computers at SJA, however the Grade 6 class will be using computers more intensively. Therefore the devices mentioned are not compulsory but will definitely make things easier for your child. Students and parents will be notified through agendas and the blog about when we will need devices in the classroom.

2.       A gmail account. Parents, please help your child set up an account, and watch your child practice signing in and out of the account to ensure they can do this successfully. We will be using Google docs in class to work on assignments (spreadsheets, word processors, slideshows, etc.) and to share and collaborate on tasks.

3.       A USB

4.       A Prezi account (https://prezi.com/)

As an IB school, we value character development, an attitude of being a life-long learner, and showing action as a result of learning. The IB Learner Profile Attributes represent some of the traits we value at SJA. We strive to provoke our students to ask Big Questions - the kind you cannot Google the answer to. We encourage students and families to share stories of action with us. Action may be tiny or huge.

        The class blog is a great communication tool between home and school. My class blog can be found at http://haagsja.blogspot.ca/. I ask that each family sign up as a follower of my blog. This can be done on the blog site. Once this is done, you will receive the blog as an email each day. The blog is updated daily, and it is where you will find information on:  

• Homework 
• Videos to support learning 
• News and Events 
• Important Dates 
• IB Learner Profiles 
• Units of Inquiry 
• Pictures

The first week of school is Neophyte Week. We will take some time to get organised in our new rooms, become familiar with the layout of the new building, boundaries during recess, the new schedule, play some house games, and end the week with Spirit Day where students come to school dressed in house colours.

We will also get working right away, because the year will fly by as it always does. Students should expect to have math homework every day. They will be assigned a Math Make Sense Textbook and workbook. These must be returned to school each day. It is my goal that all other work be completed in class. Students who do not complete work during class time will be asked to use their recess time to get caught up. If the work is still incomplete, students will need to complete it as homework.

SJA will not be offering our traditional HOT LUNCH program during the first week of school (September 9-11). Pizza slices may be purchased at $2.00 a slice daily in the first week only. September Hot Lunch forms will be sent home the first day of school with many new items being offered. Please look for the new menus in your child’s agenda. All forms are due Friday, September 11^th (no exceptions).

Mark September 17^th, from 4-7pm, on your calendars. SJA will be holding a Welcome BBQ for all families to attend. Pre-order forms for food will be provided on Friday, September 11^th.

Grade 6s will come to school in uniform each day. They will change into their black dress shoes in the building. They will change into gym clothes for gym class, and then back into their uniform for the remainder of the academic day. Students may wear their polo shirts up until Thanksgiving. After Thanksgiving, students are required to wear their Oxford shirts, ties, jersey and blazer.

I look forward to seeing you at the Orientation Night (Tuesday) and at the first day of school, Wednesday, September 9. Enjoy the last few days of summer until then.

Sincerely,

Mrs. Haag