This week, April 27th to May 1st

Information for Grade 5's Transitioning to Journey 2020-2021

JMS' Band is recruiting new members; here is some encouragement:

Maintaining Community this Week

This week, there will be a Google Meet up on Tuesday at 11 am and Thursday 1 pm to connect with each other. These meet ups are optional; if you can't make it, join us another time.

To reduce the number of emails that we send you, we won't email out a code. Instead, go to https://meet.google.com/. Click: Join a meeting. Then use the nickname: bridalpowers to join.

Also, students can join the meet up through the link and following directions that will be posted to the "Stream" in Google Classroom.

Continuing Learning this Week

Low Tech/No Tech Option
You can find a copy of this week's learning suggestions on this page. A copy of the word document has also been emailed out in the weekly email.

Google Classroom Option
Thank you for your feedback, it is helping us to tailor our program to your wants and needs. Students are not expected to do any more than an hour a day of "school work" and it is also understood that some days even an hour might not work. Do what you can.

Google Classroom Question and Answer Session Wednesdays at 1pm: Use the nickname: bridalpowers to join our 1 p.m .question and answer about all things Google Classroom. This is an optional offering and we expect to be peppered with "how do I..." and "is it okay if" questions. Of course, students can also fire us an email.

Math: Google Classroom does have some shortcomings. To cut down on on some of the visual clutter in "Classwork", we will be posting a Math - Number Talks every morning and deleting the activity at 4 pm each school day. The activities will target developing numeracy skills (an understanding of numbers and how to work with them). This means that there will always be a different Math activity there, but the work won't "pile up" and overwhelm kids.

Novel Studies: For students following along chapter by chapter, there is a new novel study starting this week. Students are encouraged to finish listening to or reading "A Wrinkle in Time", but if they want to switch because the book isn't to their taste, do!

Music: Don't forget to try Mme. Art's music activities in her classroom. They are fun.

Self-Design Option
We continue to add to and refine the Self-Design Resources. For example, this week we added to the Wonder Hour and Inquiry pages. Wonder hour guides students through the inquiry process to pursue topics of interest to them. Inquiry skills are a fundamental part of both the Social Studies and Science Curriculum. Not to mention, when kids are learning about things that truly interest them, they are truly engaged in learning.

or Mix & Match all three options to make it work for your family.

Ob la di Ob la da life goes on... a family in quarantine sings.

Your teachers, at a distance,

Ms Powers and Ms Bridal

This week, April 20th to 24th

Div 3 Families, this is your weekly group check in.

Continuing Learning this week:
No Tech/Low Tech Option:
You can find a copy of this week's learning suggestions on this page. A copy of the word document has also been emailed out.

Google Classroom:
We post new lessons every school day at 8 am. We are checking in and on line from 9 to 2 and we provide feedback on submitted assignments from 2 to 4 each school day.
Please note: we are not grading assignments, we are appreciating student work and connecting with their learning through praise and conversation. We value connection and health above academic rigor during this crisis.

Self-Design Option:
We continue to add to the self-design resources. For example, a financial literacy unit has been added under Math. Money math is a great family activity that can span across grade levels for our larger families and it addresses a number of key math skills (eg. number sense, operations, algebraic thinking, decimal fractions etc.).

Or Mix and Match to suit your family. We are here to support your choices and we love seeing what you are doing!

Maintaining Community this week:
We will be holding two, optional learning community google meets: Tuesday at 11 am and Thursday at 1 pm. The purpose of these meetings is to connect on a social level. Again, we don't want families to stress if they do not want/cannot make these meetings; health and well-being is paramount.

Here is a family learning in isolation and using music to lift their mood and ours:

Your virtual teachers really missing you,

Ms Powers and Ms Bridal

This week in Division 3, April 14th to 17th (Stay Home Editions)

We hope that you had a restful holiday with your family doing what you love, but close to home.

Continuing learning this week:
No Tech/Low Tech Option: Please find this week's suggested learning plan attached to the weekly email. This plan can also be found on the "Self-Design Resources" link to the right of this blog.

Google Classroom Option: New lessons will be posted at 8 am each morning and can be found under "Classwork". We will be working together to check in with students from 9 until 2 using the "Stream" across the week. Also, we will review and return submitted work between 2 and 4 each day. Our goal is to offer constructive feedback and guidance. Please note, that we do not want to pressure families to extend themselves beyond what is possible within the scope of their day; do what you can, when you can.

Self Design Option: Please feel free to browse our self design resources. These resources target learners in Grades 4/5 and follow the BC Ministry of Education's curriculum.

Or mix and match all of these options to make it work for you!

Maintaining Community this week:
We will be meeting through Google Meets on Wednesday, April 15th at 1pm. You will be sent an email link to "join" this meeting. You don't have to be enrolled in Google classroom or have a google acct to be a part of this meet up.


Your virtual teachers really missing you,
Ms Powers and Ms Bridal

Happy Easter!

Google Meet Ups to Connect

This is the icon for Google Meets, an add on available through both Google and Google Classroom.
This is a secure and approved place to meet in a virtual way for our students.

At 10 am tomorrow, you will be emailed a link and we will post a link on Google Classroom to a Google Meets conference.

This meeting is completely optional. It is an opportunity to connect with you before the holiday on Friday. There will be more planned.

Now more than ever, we are learning what it is to be a good digital citizen. So, some etiquette reminders for our on-line meetings:

1. Be as kind and as polite as you are in reality.
2. Do not record meetings. It is not lawful to record meetings without everyone's permission. You do not have that permission.
3. Take turns speaking. This will be hard at first especially as we will all be excited to hear from each other.
4. Be patient. We are learning the ins and outs of this technology. Our first meeting will show that; we are emerging in our skills.
4. When the meeting ends, all students must leave the meeting. We want to supervise the meeting to help you to be the best digital citizen that you can.

So wait for that invite at 10 am tomorrow.

Ms Powers and Ms Bridal, your virtual teachers who REALLY miss you.

This week in Division 3, April 6th to 9th.

Dear Div 3 Students and Families,

We have families doing Google Classroom, Low Tech/No Tech, Self Design and a mix of the three to continue learning from home.

The recommendation from the Ministry of Education is an hour per school day dedicated to continued literacy and numeracy skills to keep skills fluent. You are welcome to do more or less, of course.

If your child has enrolled in Google Classroom, we will be posting lessons starting on Monday. Copies of assignments can be submitted for review and feedback. If you are having troubles registering, we can assist.

If your child is doing low tech/no tech or self design, we have attached a one page list of suggestions for the week to the weekly email.

Telus is offering a reduced WIFI package for the duration of the closure. Please contact us for details.

We really miss being with you and are imagining our reunion. Thank you for your patience as we shift into an online/distributed home learning model. Your ideas and feedback are welcome to help us get better at this very new reality.

Your virtual teacher,
Ms Powers and Ms Bridal

The Week's End, Division 3

Div 3 Families and Students,

Thank you so much to everyone for getting back to us about your learning set ups and preferences.

We hope that by now most of you have had an opportunity to review our 4 choices for continued learning (scroll down for an earlier post). 

If you haven't, that's okay. These are exceptional times.

We respect your choices because we respect your different situations at home. We are here to support.

We are hoping to organize a class meet up through Zoom because there has been an interest in that, but we are waiting for the District license. Zoom is a great platform, but as I am sure you have heard through the media, there are some concerns around data harvesting and inappropriate video bombing. So, stay tuned.

And now for the weekend, which will be even more important to define as a time for rest and play now that home is serving so many purposes.

We will be online and accessible starting at 9 am on Monday. Until then, we wish our families well.

Your virtual teachers, who miss being with you!

Ms Powers and Ms Bridal