Reflection

It was wonderful seeing all you parents, my students and some siblings at the conferences. We had some great discussions. This is just my second year at Ken Taylor and already I feel the connections to your wonderful community growing. I am so incredibly lucky to be a part of your life.

You heard lots of what we have been doing recently and had a chance to see writing that was hot off the press. Here is some additional information about some of the learning that has been going on in our class.

We looked at our map of Evanston and the surrounding area through the eyes of a cartographer. We soon realized that we were missing some information. For example, a pilot wanting to land a plan might mistakenly think that he could land on Nosehill (assuming the name did not give it away!). We looked at real maps and how they show relief. It is a very difficult concept, but quite a few students were able to look at a simple mountain range and draw a corresponding picture that a cartographer would draw. This diagram shows a contour map but is more complicated than the one we used!

We also practiced using more complicated compass directions, such as go SW or go NE to move around our map. We will consolidate these skills later this week in a fun Hallowe'en learning activity!

In science we conducted an investigation to see if an arch or a flat (beam) bridge would be strongest. We thought carefully about how to make our test fair by keeping everything the same (eg. type and size of paper). We also decided that color of paper was not an important variable. Most of us thought the beam bridge would be the strongest and were surprised when we found out the arch bridge held the most weight. We next need to consider why this is so we can fill out our conclusion. This gives us a nice focus for research on our computers next week. Maybe you can help your student find out some information about beam bridges and arch bridges at home!

Sorry for the lack of pictures, I was enjoying the fun and forgot to take any!

In math we have been deepening our understanding of the properties of shapes by taking a group of shapes and sorting them into two piles by following a rule. This gets us thinking deeply about concepts such a parallel lines, perpendicular lines and number of sides. It also gets us thinking about mathematical questions, such as what exactly is the definition of a polygon or if a shape has 6 sides but is oddly shaped, is it still called a hexagon? (yes, but is technically an irregular hexagon). Thinking deeply helps us learn deeply. You can easily make a bunch of shapes at home and have your child sort shapes and you have to decide the sort rule or you sort and your child has to work out the sort rule. Sorting activities have been shown to strengthen and deepen understanding.

Upcoming:
Your child may choose to dress up for Halloween on Wednesday  There is also the opportunity to bring in a carved pumpkin. Please look at the letter sent out by the school for guidelines, but basically no scary costumes.  This is especially vital for us as our neighbors are the Kinders. We will be doing work all day but there may well be a  nod to Halloween;) All of my students have indicated that they are happy and their family is happy if they participate. I would hate to offend so please let me know if your child is not allowed. (Know that our Halloween activities are along the lines of doing observational drawings of pumpkins;) )