Tuesday, 2 Oct

Today we began with more printing practice.  We then did a few more notes on some punctuation rules.  Next class we are going to start with some descriptive writing on the laptops.  After recess we continued with our basic math review.  If anyone is still feeling troubled with addition or subtraction, they should seek help from me outside of class. Tomorrow we're going to move on to multiplication and division.

We had our first art class after lunch.  What a wonderful experience it was.  I hope the students were as fascinated as I was.  Joanna was trained in Montreal at McGill where I was trained to teach.  Her instructor was Gerry Tondino, who was instructed by Arthur Lismer, one of the Group of Seven - a very cool connection to out nation's cultural past.  I've include "Bright Land," one of Lismer's paintings, so students can see the style that is so recognizable.  Joanna is treating our lessons like a real art school and we're very lucky to have her.  We started with making a portfolio, then did some thinking about our goals for art and then did some hand and eye exercises.  The creation of a portfolio is important if a student wishes to apply to art school or university down the road.   It was neat to see how Joanna's set up made the whole process seem so professional.  Soon we were doing one-minute form drawings of apples, vases and the like.  By the fifth drawing one could hear a pin drop as each artist rushed to get the views that would help him or her capture the form of the object at the centre of the room.  We will have to adjust our medium for next week because the charcoal found a way to migrate itself everywhere.  Joanna wants art to be fun, and so do I, but I thought a few students took things outside the realm of reasonable with their misuse of the charcoal.  Thanks to Cody who stayed after school to do some extra vacuuming while I mopped the floor.  Of course a big thank you to Joanna for all of her effort.  For homework, students have been asked to bring in a piece of art that has a form that inspires or interests them, to be put up on the Inspiration Board.  In addition, by next Tuesday, all students are to have a still life done of 1-3 objects (or more) artfully arranged at the back of the room.  I'll check with Joanna to confirm the details/instructions.

We ended the day with a short talking circle.

Please remember to read your novels.

Any parent/guardian who wishes to have his or her e-mail added to the class list, should contact Aideen Clery via  aideen1433@gmail.com
 (Aideen posted a comment on September 27th's post).


Have a good day.