Tuesday, 4 December

Here is a sample of an oil pastel portrait (self/peer) that is this week's action piece.

We had a small group today because the grade 7 girls had a volleyball tournament.  We started the day discussing ways to make our descriptive writing more memorable.  We talked about creating imagery that has an impact because it is unique.  For example, instead of "a warm, red, setting sun," we heard of "a glowing ruby grapefruit that slipped beyond the horizon."  We also reviewed sentence variety and the power of a short sentence in making a strong point.

Next we went for our third (and last) skating visit.  I was very pleased once again with everyone's conduct.  I will definitely participate in more out-of-school activities with you again.  I'd like to give a big shout out to all of the parents who took time out of their days to drive us these past three weeks: Jane, Ryan, Maria, Jenine, Michele, Aideen, Brad, Kathy, Joanna, Angela, and Pam - THANK YOU.

After lunch we worked on our art.  If you get the chance, please stop by the class and look at some of the wonderful pieces the students are creating; Joanna is doing a super job with our students continue to shine.  In an world where we're not sure what the future holds, I think it is important to nurture creativity because it is the ability to understand perspective and to develop unique ideas that is going to take us all forward.  In an educational climate where many are driving for more standardized test and an even stronger focus on "the academics," it is easy to brush aside the fine arts, especially dance and drama; but I think it's key to develop a holistic approach that nurtures all aspects of our kids and again, I'd like to thank Joanna for doing that it a way that is beyond my skill set.

Zoom: top of page 33

Page 33

Zoom: top of page 34 (the assignment)

Page 34

We ended the day by examining food chains/food webs.  We read pp. 33-34 in the text, and then completed the three-part activity at the top of page 34, for homework.

For example, I had stir-fry for lunch.  It included chicken, rice, noodles, and mixed vegetables.  It also had soy sauce and sweet and sour sauce.  In an examination of this dish, one food chain I created was: