November 28, 2011

November 28, 2011

Dear Parents,
Thank you to all the parents who stopped by during parent teacher interviews. It is wonderful to see so many supportive parents. If you didn’t get a chance, and have any concerns please feel free to contact me at the school and we can arrange a meeting. I am very pleased with how everyone is doing and I am enjoying all of my classes. It is a pleasure to teach all of the students. Around the school we had a very successful anti-bullying awareness week and a family event with Maria Hawkins. To promote awareness of Children’s Rights our Grade 7/8 leaders have organized a Vow of Silence to take place on Wednesday. More information can be accessed on the school blog. We are starting to get the holiday spirit beginning with the well attended Gift and Craft show on Saturday. It was great to see so many our our families out. Thanks again to our wonderful Parent Council for organizing this event and making it possible. On December 9 we will have a Spirit day, where students can dress as their favourite holiday character. On December 15 General Lake will be holding their Holiday concert at 2:00pm. The following week will be filled with various activities including singalongs, a slideshow and our combined November/December character assembly on Dec 21.

In the classes:

Kindergarten: Students are continuing to develop their sound symbol correspondence with the Jolly Phonics program using the letters s,a,t,I,,p,n,c/k,e,h. We have now completed work with the Hungry Caterpillar and I am sending home a book for the students to share at home. You can encourage reading of this book by drawing attention to the words by pointing. You can also try echo reading whereby, you read a line then your child repeats after you. More details about Echo reading are posted on the blog. We have also been working on the Days of the week and we sing a little rhyming song that goes like this to the tune of Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star:
Sunday, Monday, Tuesday too.Wednesday, Thursday just for you.Friday, Saturday that's the end .Now let's say those days again!Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday!
Days of the week (to the tune of "The Addams Family") Days of the week, (snap snap)Days of the week, (snap snap)Days of the week,Days of the week,Days of the week. (snap snap)
There's Sunday and there's Monday,There's Tuesday and there's Wednesday,There's Thursday and there's Friday,And then there's Saturday.


Grade 2: Students have been working on building a paragraph using a topic sentence, three supporting details and a closing sentence. Students have also been doing work applying capitalization and punctuation to their work. You will notice when I am marking their work I am using an apple.or heart to show what they did well, then a tree symbol to show what they can work on the improve (room to grow). This week we will be doing work around Children’s Rights. We will be watching a video produced by Unicef called ‘’Children First’ that talks about the Rights all children as established by the United Nations. We have begun our home reading program. Students should receive 2 books at their approximate reading level to practice for the 2 weeks. I have also sent home sight words for certain students who need to practice.
Grade 7/8: Students have been continuing their reading of Craig Keilberger’s Free the Children. I have been drawing their attention to the various literary elements used in the book including similes and metaphors. We will continue this work examining the symbolism, imagery, paradox, irony and foreshadowing that is used throughout the various chapters. The students are also excited to be leading the Vow of Silence, and they will soon have the results tallied and organized of the Climate survey they distributed on November 17.
Have a great week Ms. Legault

ANTI-BULLYING WEEK

November 14, 2011

Dear Parents,

An exciting event-filled week here at General Lake culminating in a special family performance with Maria Hawkins on Thursday Night at 6:00. Throughout the week the students will be involved in a number of activities designed to bring awareness to the problem of bullying. Among the activities students will make trace a hand to be displayed in the front foyer; participate in a student led presentation about bullying on Wed; and wear pink and be part of a group picture in the shape of a peace sign outside on Thursday.

Thanks to students for completing a card of the person they wished to honour. All cards are displayed prominently on the front bulletin board. At our Remembrance Day Service students breathed a quiet thank-you as they proceeded back to their classes.

Also a reminder that our Book Fair is taking place in the library from November 14 -18.

Finally any parents wishing to speak with me on Friday should return the bottom form to ensure a time. I will be available for most of the day in the office. I will post my schedule outside the office.

JK/SK Students have been completing their retell of the Very Hungry Caterpillar and sharing with the class. Students are encouraged to use the words first, next, then and finally in their oral retells. Students also participated in a reading of 'Have You filled a Bucket Today?' by Carol Mc Cloud. The story talks about filling everyone's imaginary buckets by doing good deeds and positive actions everyday. More activities will follow particularly in December when the Habit of Mind is caring.

Grade 2 Students have participated in an echo reading of a hilarious story called Pigs APlenty, Pigs Galore. Students should have this text in their green folders and I encourage you to practise reading the text at home using the echo reading technique. Echo reading is basically where a skilled reader models small chunks of text and then the student echoes the model by reading the same line. It is designed to improve fluency and expression while eliminating the pressure and frustration of reading an entire passage. I will post more information shortly on this blog about this technique. Students also participated in a Read aloud of "Have You Filled a Bucket Today?" by Carol McCloud. The story talks of filling everyone's imaginary bucket by the things we say and do towards others. More activities to follow during December when our Habit of Mind is Caring.

Grade 7/8 Students are working on a short presentation designed to educate a younger class about bullying. Students identified the success criteria for their presentation, then they used the information from last weeks presentation from the Rec Plex, as well as the parent information brochure to develop their own presentation suitable for their audience. On Wednesday groups will present to their respective classes.

Here is the Interview Request Form for Friday November 18 in Ms Legault's office.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Interview Request Form: (Ms. Legault will confirm your time either via note or by phone)

Student Name: ________________________

Grade/Teacher: _______________________

Parent Name: _________________________

Phone Number: ________________________

I would like to attend an interview with Ms. Legault at the following time on Friday, November 18, 2011.

Time: ___________

November 1, 2011

November 1, 2011

Dear Parents/Guardians,
A number of things are happening school-wide. First we will be having our Remembrance Day assembly Friday, November 11 at 10:30. Parents are always welcome to attend our service. In preparation, students are encouraged to fill out an information card about someone in their family they would like to honour on this day because of their Military Service. More information should go home with your child or is available on the school blog at http://www.generallakenews.blogspot.com/.

The following week November 14-18 is our Anti-bullying week. Please mark off your calendars for the evening of November 17, as General Lake will host a Free Performance by our favourite Blues Lady Maria Hawkins. Maria visited our school last year and the students were so enthralled with the performance that we invited her back for our family event. Students should wear PINK on this day in support of anti-bullying.

Also during that week we have a Bookfair throughout the week, as well as Parent/Teacher Interviews on Thursday, November 17 from 4-6pm and Friday, November 18 during the P.A. Day.

Jk/SK: Students compared the book of Goodnight Moon, by Margaret Wise Brown and the Halloween parody Goodnight Goon by Michael Rex. This week students will be exploring The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle. Students continued to work on the Jolly Phonics activities as well as the review of sight words. Students practiced a Remembrance Day song entitled This Little Sign of Peace (to the tune of This Little Light of Mine).

Grade 2: Students completed their Pigs and photos were taken of the little stuffies. Students participated in reading the Story of the Three Little Pigs. You can practice reading these at home. In a couple of weeks students will complete written instructions about how to make a Pig, but we took a break from the Pig activities for Halloween. Students used a Venn Diagram to compare the book Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown and the Halloween parody Goodnight Goon by Michael Rex.

Grade 7/8: Students have continued their reading and discussions of Craig Keilburger's Free the Children. Interesting discussions have taken place around where our clothing has been manufactured and what the possible implications for the people if we choose to boycott the manufacturer. As part of the Anti-bullying week activities students in this class will explore the different types of bullying. They will be involved in educating other students about bullying and surveying the school to see its prevalence.

October 17, 2011

October 17, 2011

Dear Parents,

Welcome to the third edition of the newsletter. Students are continuing to work hard and to get into the habit of bringing home their folders. Its a bit of a challenge with the Kindergartens as they are only here half time but I think we are starting to get into the routine. A couple things to note around the school we had a Ned presentation last Wed. Students were inspired with the message to Never give up, Encourage others, and Do the right thing. As part of the presentation students can purchase Yo-yo's. They will be on sale until next Wed. Proceeds go back to the Ned company. Grade 7/8 students are organizing a Food Drive called Halloween for Hunger for the local food bank. You can send along your canned foods anytime or on Halloween you can watch for the students as they trick or treat for canned goods. Finally, if you are not aware General Lake also has a blog designed to keep everyone up to date with the events happening around the school. You can access this at www.generallakenews.blogspot.com.

In the classes:

Kindergarten: Students are continuing to develop their sound symbol correspondence. We have now completed work with S,T, I, E. For the next couple of weeks we will work on P, N, C, and K. We have been working on identifying the sight words including the, I, am, as, it, you can. You can reinforce this at home during your read alouds, by drawing attention to these letters, as well as the sight words. Here's one of our favourite songs we refer to as 'serious business':

Arubisha, Arubisha, Arubisha, Sha Arubisha, Arubisha, Arubisha, Sha: Feet Together, Head up, Arubisha, Arubisha, Arubisha, Sha; Arubisha, Arubisha, Arubisha, Sha, Feet together, Head Up, Shoulders back,....It continues adding different actions each time. Ask your child about the last action. It will definitely put a smile on their face.

Grade 2: Student have continued their author study of Phoebe Gillman. We began making a sock pig which we will continue to work with throughout the week creating profiles as well as writing using the procedural writing format to describe how we made the pig. You can assist with this by asking your child to explain how they made their pig including list of materials and steps involved. We also will be doing mini-lessons involving syllabication and review of vowels and consonants. This will reinforce some of the work done in their Immersion class.

Grade 7/8: Students are pretty excited about the up and coming 'Halloween For Hunger'. Students are asked to collect canned food instead of trick or treating for candy this year as part of their 'WE day' promise to act locally. Students are also continuing to read Craig Keilburgers 'Free The Children' book sparking many interesting conversations, as well as written activities. You can reinforce the work in school by talking with your child about the issues we have been discussing including children's rights, child labour and poverty. Students in this class have been responsible for the morning announcements and will take a leading role in our up and coming Character Assembly on October 31st.

Thank you for your continued support. Hope to see everyone at the Parent Involvement Committee symposium on October 22 at Fellowes High School. More information and registration available at www.renfrew.edu.on.ca

Have a great week Ms. Legault

October 5, 2011

October 5, 2011

Dear Parents/Guardians,

The Kindergarten Core English program continues to focus on the Jolly Phonics program. We have now covered the first six sounds including s a t i p n. Students have also been exposed to the Pre-primer sight words of I, am, as, it, you, can, so which we will continue to practice through poems. One of our favourite songs is:

Hello neighbor

What do you say? (clap!)

It’s going to be a happy day!

Greet your neighbor

And boogie on down

Give ‘em a bump,

And turn around!

Students are also excited to be singing “This Little Sign of Peace’ which we hope to present at an assembly soon.

The Grade 2 Core English classes have been reading Jillian Jiggs text by Phoebe Gilman. Students have continued their work with retells and they are going to work on a comparison of two books using a Venn diagram. The students have expressed an interest in making a sock pig. I have included a copy of the instructions. Students may bring in the necessary items to make their own pigs or complete their pigs at home. I would love to have the students then explain how they made their pig as well as create profile details about their pig including name, birthday, favourite food, favourite activity etc...

I have completed most of the sight word testing for the Grade 2 class. Your child’s results is inside his/her folder. Once I complete all the reading assessments I will send home books for you to read together.

The Grade 7/8 Core English class is getting into their ‘Me to We’ work by planning their first initiative of Halloween for Hunger. Students are collecting non-perishable food items for the local food bank. Please send along any items you may have right away or on Halloween Night be prepared when the grade 7/8 students come by trick or treating for canned goods, instead of treats. Thanks in advance for your support. The students are also involved in a novel study of Craig Kielburgers book ‘Free The Children’. This non-fiction book was given to the students during their recent trip to Toronto and chronicles the story of the Free the Children initiative.

Thanks Ms. Legault

September 19, 2011

Dear Parents/Guardians,

Its been a great couple weeks in the Core English class and the programs are starting to get into full swing. The Kindergartens and the Grade 2's have been working on different retelling activities around the book 'The Kissing Hand' by Audrey Penn. The grade 7/8 class have been busy doing peace related activities including a comparison of the speeches The Gettysburg Address by Abraham Lincoln and "I have a Dream Speech" Martin Luther King" They have also been discussing and preparing for their class trip to Toronto coming up September 26th and September 27th for Free the Children "Weday". More information available at www.weday.com. They also did a fabulous job leading the school in our school wide cheer leading event on Friday September 16th. Since the programs are varied, I will be dividing the newsletter into sections Kindergarten. Grade 2, Grade 7/8, from now on, so its easier to read what is happening in your child's classroom. Homework will not be given until October. I look forward to meeting everyone for the Open House on Wednesday September 21.

This week in

Kindergarten: Jolly phonics sound/letter activities S, A, T

Sight words: am as my can you so Read Aloud Jillian Jiggs by Phoebe Gilman

Grade 2 : Author study Phoebe Gilman Jillian Jiggs Rhyming word activities Sight word review continued PM Benchmark evaluations

Grade 7/8 Free the Children awareness activities to prepare for Monday's trip. Permission forms to go home early in the week.

See everyone on Wednesday.

Thanks Ms. Legault

Here We Go Round the Letter Ss Kindergarten

Here We Go 'Round the Letter Ss
Tune: Mulberry Bush
written by Mrs. Jones


Here we go 'round the letter Ss,
Letter Ss, letter Ss,
Here we go 'round the letter Ss,
Ss-Ss Ss-Ss-Ss Ss Ss


Sun begins with letter Ss,
Letter Ss, letter Ss,
Sun begins with letter Ss,
Ss-Ss Ss-Ss-Ss Ss Ss


Soap begins with letter Ss,
Letter Ss, letter Ss,
Soap begins with letter Ss,
Ss-Ss Ss-Ss-Ss Ss Ss


Seahorse starts with letter Ss,
Letter Ss, letter Ss,
Seahorse starts with letter Ss,
Ss-Ss Ss-Ss-Ss Ss Ss


Seal starts with letter Ss,
Letter Ss, letter Ss,
Seal starts with letter Ss,
Ss-Ss Ss-Ss-Ss Ss Ss


Saxaphone starts with letter Ss,
Letter Ss, letter Ss,
Saxaphone starts with letter Ss,
Ss-Ss Ss-Ss-Ss Ss Ss


Sunflower starts with letter Ss,
Letter Ss, letter Ss,
Sunflower starts with letter Ss,
Ss-Ss Ss-Ss-Ss Ss Ss


Sombrero starts with letter Ss,
Letter Ss, letter Ss,
Sombrero starts with letter Ss,
Ss-Ss Ss-Ss-Ss Ss Ss

Welcome Back

Welcome Back! September 2011

Dear Parents,

It's school time again! My name is Ms. Debbie Legault and I will be your child’s English teacher for 2011 -2012 school year. I am very excited to be returning to General Lake and continuing some of the work I had begun last year. I believe that by all of us working together we can make this a very successful year. I consider it of prime importance that you be an active part of your child's education. You are invited to phone me any time that you have a question concerning your child's progress. I also welcome volunteers in my classes, if you have some time you would like to share. To keep you informed I will send home regular newsletters, as well as samples of your child’s work. My classroom blog is www.mslegaultsclassroom.blogspot.com where I post the newsletters as well as other information pertinent to my classes. I have four basic classroom rules or Agreements which are to demonstrate mutual respect; to show attentive listening; to have the right to participate and sometimes pass; and to show appreciation only to others/no putdowns allowed. For this first week we will be reviewing these Agreements during our class. I consider it a great privilege and responsibility to be your child’s teacher and I look forward to meeting you soon.

Sincerely yours,

Debbie Legault

Have a Great Summer

June 29, 2011

Dear Parent/Guardians,
Just one last post before the holidays officially begin. I apologize, as I had hoped to get out one final hard copy of the newsletter. It has been a wonderful year and I want to thank all the parents and students for their continued support. I am looking ahead to the future and I am excited to be coming back and continuing some of the work we have started. Have a wonderful holiday and I will see everyone in the Fall.

Enjoy the summer
Ms. Legault
(and Chippy)

I'm back at General Lake

It's official. I have been pulled back to General Lake for the 2011-2012 school year. Looking forward to continuing all the wonderful work with all the wonderful students, parents, and staff.

General Lake's Got Talent

Dear Parents,

Thanks to everyone who helped make this years talent show a resounding success. First of all to Vanessa, who came to me in the Spring with the idea. Thanks to Mme Bell's and Mme Malette's class for the wonderful posters advertising our event throughout the school. Thanks to the Grade 7/8 Committee: Vanessa, Sarah, Fiyin, Melora, Ocean, Jayde, Jeris, and Kim who met with me regularly giving up their recesses to plan the event, help with the auditions, as well as curtains, lights and music. Thanks to Fiyin and Jeris for putting together the program and a wonderful momento of the event. Thanks to the MC'S, Mylora and Sarah, who put it all together in a day and did an extremely awesome job. Thanks to the Grade 5/6 class for announcing the event over the PA daily with their creative announcements and making the gorgeous banners in the gym (with Emma C also). Thanks to Shirley the Secretary for helping with numerous requests throughout the hectic day. Thanks to all the teachers who pitched in and supported the students through auditions, as well as on Show day pitching in as needed to help everything run smoothly. Thanks to Administration for supporting this initiative. Thanks to the audience for being supportive with such enthusiastic appreciative applause. Thanks to Connie, the Custodian, for making sure the gym was set up with chairs and cleaning up at the end. Thanks to all the students who demonstrated courage and initiative by auditioning for the show. Thanks to Mme. Major for being the General Lake official photographer documenting the event. Thanks to our parents for supporting the kids in their talents. Thanks to the selected performers for putting their best effort into making the show a wonderful success. I am extremely pleased with our work and would like to congratulate everyone on their team effort.

General Lake Talent Show Program

General Lake Got Talent

1. Piano Fiona Pink Panther

2. Jada , Brianna and Zoey Dance Routine

3. Piano Sydney “Scarborough Fair”

4. Kim Song “Bubbly”

5. David and Connor Stacking Cup Routine

6. Dance Ava , Taylor and Lauren “Feel Good Time”

7. Song Jeris and Fiyin

8. Song Chloe “Skunk In Your Trunk”

9. Piano Bethany with Special Guest Mrs Marquardt “Hickory Dickory Dock”

10. Piano Skye “My Heart Will Go On”

11. Dance Sarah “Footloose”

12. Song Leslie “Ours”

13. Dance Vanessa “California King Bed”

14. Emily and Sarah Piano and recorder

15. Mika and Marissa Dance “Hi, Ho, The Dario”

16. Song Simon “Bakugan”

17. Song Alexis “Loser Like Me”

18. Dance Mikayla “Wild Horses”

19. Song Sarah and Danielle “Land of The Silver Birch”

20. Violin Bobbi “Perpetual Motion”

21. Miranda Step Dance

22. Song MacKenzie “Highway of Heroes”

23. Dominic Liam and MacKenzie “Big Mac Rap”

24. Guitar Case “Star Spangled Banner’

25. Guitar Jarod “Auld Lang Sang”

26. Song Aaron “Soul Man”

27. Guitar and song Melora “Our Song”

28. Remi , Emma , Bobbi and Julie with a Tap Dance “Alice”, by Avril Lavigne

29. Piano Emily “Persian Market”

30. Violin Julie “Floppy Earred Mule”

31. Jarod and Ryan Karate Kata

32. Song Ms. Melanson Grade 7/8 “Airplane”

June 14, 2011

Dear Parents/Guardians,

Thanks to all parents who requested books for summer reading. Anyone else wishing books, please let me know, as it will take some time to organize the packages. I will get that out to everyone next week.

As of Wednesday, I have assessed all the grade 1 and 2 students, so everyone should've received a sheet indicating the students reading levels and highlighted sight words. If you did not receive one, please let me know.

Again this week, I am not assigning homework again as I am trying to gather all resources and assemble homework packages. Please return any books you are not using.

Talent show auditions are underway this week. We are extremely impressed with all the students who have tried out. It's going to be a difficult task to narrow it down to only 24 acts. General Lake definitely 'Got Talent'.

Thanks again for all your support

See everyone at the Spring Fling on Wednesday!

June 7, 2011

June 7, 2011


Dear Parents,

Grade 1 and 2 only

I am still working on sending out the assessments for the grade 1 and 2 students. If your child is below the expectations for his/her grade level, I would like to offer a package of reading books and sight words to help you during the summer holidays. If you are interested in receiving a package just send along the enclosed form and I will prepare some books for your child to read during the summer break.


I will not be assigning any more homework, as we are wrapping up the school year. If you would like some books, please do not hesitate to ask and I will assist your child in choosing some at their appropriate level.

Grade 6 students will begin their EQAO assessment today. I will not be seeing them for the next three days, as classes have been rearranged to accomodate the testing.

Students are now working on reading their own novel in grades 3 to 6. Students then have a choice of how they wish to share their book. Among some of the suggestions are making a speech, creating a play; creating a poster; making a commercial, designing a new book cover, creating a picture book, writing a journal. Students in grade 1 and 2 are also joining in the reading fun. Grade 1's are reading Alexander and the Horrible No Good Day and the grade 2' are reading Dr. Seuss' books. Grade 1's and 2's will also have some choices around how they would like to share about their book which may include drawing a poster; orally retelling the story or favourite part of the story; acting out their favourite part; or writing a diary entry.

Have a great week.
Ms. Legault

May 31, 2011

May 31, 2011

Dear Parents and Guardians,

Another great week at General Lake, ending with one of the most popular of the spirit days... Pyjama Day. Students in most Core English classes cozied up for a read aloud by Dr. Seuss called "Hooray For Diffendoofer Day". I chose this book in honour of our Grade 3's who began their EQAO testing on Monday. All students have been reminded to be on their best behaviour keeping the noise down for the week showing respect to our grade 3's who will be working hard at completing the assessment. Grade 6's will begin their testing next Tuesday.

Many students have signed up for the Talent show. Wednesday will be the last day to sign up and a note will go home with all students who have signed up informing them about the dates of the audition, as well as the criteria the panel of judges will use to select the successful candidates. Unfortunately we will not be able to take all acts because of time constraints, but we do hope to get a good variety of acts included. I do hope to videotape all the auditions, so even if your child is not selected for the show, we can show a short part of their peformance during another assembly.

Finally the following links were forwarded to me from a colleague about how families can deal with the stress of military life.
http://www.circleofmoms.com/blogger/tips-military-families
http://blog.whileyouwereaway.org/. I thought I would pass them along as they seem quite useful and informative.

Coming Events
June 3 Character assembly: Mme Bernardin's class cheer

June 6 PA Day

May 30 -June 10 EQAO Primary and Junior Assessment
June 15 Spring Fling
June 13,14,15 Auditions for talent show
June 21 Talent Show: 12:00 -2:00
June 24 Grade 8 Graduation

Homework

Grade 1 Reading
Grade 2 Reading
Grade 3 No homework
Grade 4 Bell No homework

Grade 4 Independent Reading
Grade 5 Independent Reading
Grade 6 Independent Reading

May 24, 2011

May 24, 2011
Dear Parents,
It was a great end to the week with an anti-bullying show presented by the Blues Lady Maria Hawkins, as well as our school-wide Hawaiian Day. Students in Core English learned an Hawaiian song called The Hukilau. I have enclosed the words for the younger students to practice at home.

In the Core English classes students have been participating in lessons on parts of speech including several lessons from the Ontario Resource Bank. You can access these video lessons at http://resources.elearningontario.ca/.

I am still working on assessing all reading levels and sight word recognition for the Grade 1's and 2's. As soon as I assess your child I will send home some feedback for you to see how your child is doing.

Finally the Parent Council would like to invite you on May 30 from 4:45 pm to 6:00 pm for an introduction to the School Food and Beverage Policy that will be in force September 1, 2011 in all Public School in Ontario. The purpose of this meeting is to inform you on how this School Food and Beverage Policy will affect our hot lunches as well as our fund raising activities and more. Ms Carolyn Froats-Emond, community dietitian from the Renfrew County District Health unit, will be our guest speaker for this hour. She will provide valuable information and will be happy to answer all of your questions or concerns regarding this new Policy. The regular Parent Council meeting will follow from 6:00 until 7:00.

Up and Coming Events:

May 30 Parent Council Meeting with special guest speaker on new Food and Beverage Policy (5:00 -6:00 )
May 27 Pyjama Day
End of the month Character assembly: Mme Bernardin's class cheer
May 30-June 10 EQAO Primary and Junior Assessment
June 15 Spring Fling
June 13,14,15 Auditions for talent show
June 21 Talent Show: 12:00 -2:00
June 24 Grade 8 Graduation

Homework:
Grade 1 and 2 Reading Printing worksheet
Grade 3, 4, 5, 6 EQAO assessment prep
Ms. Legault

Hawaiian song

Hukilau - by Jack Owens

Oh we're going to a hukilau
A huki huki huki huki hukilau
Everybody loves the hukilau
Where the laulau is the kaukau at the luau
We throw our nets out into the sea
And all the amaama come a swimming to me
Oh, we're going to a hukilau
A huki huki huki hukilau

A huki huki huki huki hukilau
Everybody loves the hukilau
Where the laulau is the kaukau at the luau
We throw our nets out into the sea
And all the amaama come a swimming to me
Oh, we're going to a hukilau
A huki huki huki hukilau

May 17, 2011

May 17, 2011

Dear Parents,

Lots of Superstars showed up for Core English on Friday. Among the celebrities we had Hannah Montana, Miley Cyrus, Taylor Swift, Princess Kate, Michael Cammalleri, Justin Beiber, Corey Hart and Laura Ingalls Wilder. Even Michael Jackson made an appearance. It was a pretty exciting day which ended a pretty busy week. Don't forget Hawaiian Day on Friday.

We have been continuing our work with the EQAO type assessments, preparing the grade threes and sixes for their assessment at the end of May. The other grades (2, 4 and 5) have benefited by learning what will come. I have marked many of the assessments and I was quite pleased how well all the students are doing. Even the students who are not participating in the assessment this year are achieving level 3's and 4's. Thanks to all students for working so hard. Don't forget to return all EQAO prep duotangs.

I am currently working on assessing all reading levels and sight word recognition for the Grade 1's and 2's. As soon as I assess your child I will send home some feedback for you to see how your child is doing.

Up and Coming Events:

May 20 Hawaiian Day and Maria Hawkins Performance (Anti-bullying theme)
May 23 Victoria day Holiday
May 27 Pyjama Day
End of the month Character assembly 'Compassion' (date to be announced): Several students in Mme Bernardin's class have been working on a cheer to present to the school during the assembly.
May 30-June 10 EQAO Primary and Junior Assessment
June 15 Spring Fling: More information to follow. But mark this date on your calendar. It's sure to be a fun filled event for the whole family.

June 13,14,15 Auditions for talent show to be held in the gym during first nutrition break. We will have a sign-up sheet. We hope to accept about 20 acts represented by a range of grades and varying talents.
June 21 Talent Show: Time to be announced
June 24 Grade 8 Graduation

Homework:

Grade 1 Reading Printing worksheet

Grade 2 Reading Printing worksheet

Grade 3 EQAO assessment prep

Grade 4 EQAO assessment prep

Grade 5 EQAO assessment prep

Grade 6 EQAO assessment prep

Enjoy the long weekend!

Ms. Legault

Spring Fling

UPDATE: Spring Fling is being held June 15, 2011. Mark your calendars with this date. Sorry for any confusion with dates ( I had posted the incorrect date previously on this blog. Luckily the mistake was caught and the hard copy of the newsletter is correct). It's sure to be a fun-filled family event at General Lake. Thanks to the Parent Council for all their hard work putting this amazing event together.

May 9, 2011

May 9, 2011

Dear Parents/Guardians
I am away May 10, so the homework packages and the hard copy of newsletter will be delayed one day.

Thanks to everyone for supporting our Fundraiser for Technology. The final numbers are not in yet, but we estimate we raised about $700.00. Special thanks to Claudia and Erin for volunteering to process the orders and count the money. If anyone has any ideas for fundraising we would love to hear from you. The next Parent Council Meeting is at the end of the month.

Another great week in Core English as the students are working hard preparing for the EQAO. Students in all grades are being introduced to sample questions. For the next couple of weeks we will be working on both persuasive and descriptive writing. Primary students have been working on Persuasive Writing (Writing designed to persuade or convince) I introduced the lesson by having the kids decide whether Chippy (the Rat) would make a good Yard Patrol(Peer Mediator) and then they developed their argument either for or against. Lots of creative ideas were put forward and we enjoyed a laugh or two as we worked. Junior students have been working on descriptive writing by describing their favourite memory from this year. We spent a couple of days substituting some 'SALSA' words to enhance our writing. Instead of 'laughed' we discovered 'heehawed' and instead of 'funny' we added 'jocularity'. Again lots of fun was had with the new super vocabulary.

This week the Primary will be working on descriptive words (adjectives). Here's a copy of the funny old camp song we sang together with descriptive adjectives:
Great green gobs of greasy grimey gopher guts
Mutilated monkey meat
Little birdies dirty feet
Great green gobs of greasy grimey gopher guts
Shucks I forgot my spoon

Up and Coming events
May 3 New 'Yard Patrol' schedule has been established. Students should check outside Mme Legault's room or listen for announcements for their duties.
May 13 Dress like your favourite Superstar
May 20 Hawaiian Day and Maria Hawkins Performance (Anti-bullying theme)
May 23 Victoria day Holiday
May 27 Pyjama Day
End of the month Character assembly 'Compassion' (date to be announced): Several students in Mme Bernardin's class have been working on a cheer to present to the school during the assembly.
May 30-June 10 EQAO Primary and Junior Assessment
June 15 Spring Fling: More information to follow. But mark this date on your calendar. It's sure to be a fun filled event for the whole family.
June 21 Talent Show: More details to follow. I will probably hold auditions the week before.
June 24 Grade 8 Graduation

Homework
Grade 1 Reading/ Sight Word Worksheet
Grade 2 Reading/ Spelling Word Worksheet
Grade 3 EQAO Package/Reading Incentive Program
Grade 4 EQAO Package/Reading Incentive Program
Grade 5 EQAO Package/Reading Incentive Program
Grade 6 EQAO Package/Reading Incentive Program

Thanks for your continued support
Ms Legault