Oniva!

Oniva is a "fantastique" show from Radio-Canada. There are lots of episodes to choose from based on many different interests! Be sure to click on the bottom to show the subtitles which can help you in your understanding. After you watch an episode you can check out some of the games too! Enjoy!

Click here to choose an episode to watch!

Quality of Life Around the World

Today, we will be talking about how for centuries, people around the world have moved or stayed where they are for many different reasons. As this has already been a big theme in Social Studies, today, we will focus more on the financial component and how different places in the world can view quality of life differently.



Let's take a closer look by building our knowledge about the differences in the Quality of Life around the world. You will be following along in the PowerPoint below and taking notes.

Quality of Life Around the World

Les trois petits cochons - à la 7ème année!

Bonjour! After many months of speaking, reading and writing, we are now "tellement excitée" to present to you our French paper slide films!



Adam and Damon

Hailey, Faith, Tallia, Shiyanna and Cheyenne
Les trois petits cochons from Mrs. Steinhoff on Vimeo.


Wahb and Troy
 
Untitled from Mrs. Steinhoff on Vimeo.

Holly
Untitled from Mrs. Steinhoff on Vimeo.

 
Les Trois Petits Cochons from Mrs. Steinhoff on Vimeo.

Les trois petits cochons from Mrs. Steinhoff on Vimeo.

petit cochon Alex Riley Theo Brayden from Mrs. Steinhoff on Vimeo.

Les trois petits cochons from Mrs. Steinhoff on Vimeo.

People on the Move

Don't Eat the Marshmallows Yet!

How much self control do you have?  Today we will watch a Ted Talk and ask ourselves, would you have the control to NOT eat the marshmallow?

Remembrance Day - Building Our Prior Knowledge

Today we will be doing a listening and viewing activity to help us prepare for our upcoming mini unit on Remembrance Day. We will spend some time this week and next writing poems to honour the people and places affected by war. Let's start by watching a video to get us thinking.


1. Who is giving the speech?
2. Where does the speech take place?
3. Approximately how many Canadians fought in WWII?
4. How many Canadians were killed in action?
5. How many soldiers were wounded?
6. What does the General get the audience to repeat?

Why do you think it is important that young people pay tribute and remember those who gave their lives for the freedom of others? Clearly explain your thinking (minimum 3-5 sentences).

Remembrance Day Poetry - I am Poems

In ELA, our next topic is focusing on elements of poetry.  We will be using Remembrance Day and it's significance for our inspiration. Remembrance Day takes place in Canada every year on November 11th. By writing poems from the perspective of soldiers, children, parents, poppies, crosses and other symbols of Remembrance Day, we will make connections to our country and the world around us.  Personification, similes and metaphors will also used in our poems to create a deeper connection for the audience.  Here is a quick definition of those terms . . . 

Personification: 

per·son·i·fi·ca·tion

pərˌsänəfəˈkāSH(ə)n/

noun

1. the attribution of a personal nature or human characteristics to something nonhuman, or the representation of an abstract quality in human form.

Example:

sim·i·le

ˈsiməlē/

noun

1. a figure of speech involving the comparison of one thing with another thing of a different kind, used to make a description more emphatic or vivid (e.g., as brave as a lion, crazy like a fox ).

Example:

met·a·phor

ˈmedəˌfôr,ˈmedəˌfər/

noun

1. a figure of speech in which a word or phrase is applied to an object or action to which it is not literally applicable.
2. 
   

Example:

Here is the template we will use for our poems.  You will be following the same format to write your own, but first we will write one together. 

Our Physical World - What does it look like?

Our Physical World - What does it look like?

What does our world really look like? How do we describe how vast and different planet Earth can be? Take a look at the PowerPoint presentation below and fill in the missing information on your corresponding handout. Once finished, we will discuss a bit more about the different types of climate, vegetation and landforms there are in the world and where you might best like to live or at least visit.

Geocaching Puzzles

Today we will be doing some puzzles to find the coordinates for our geocaching adventure! 4 of the puzzles will involve paper/pencil, but one will involve the computer.  Click on the link below to open up puzzle 5.  Be sure to record the coordinates!

Puzzle 5

Taking a Closer Look at Homeless

Today we watched a few videos in class that are part of the Siloam Film Festival happening this weekend.  Ten students from our class are attending the film festival and other students will be watching the videos here at school.

Homelessness is an issue that affects people of all ages and all walks of life.  If you are interested to learn more, take a look at these documentaries and read up on an article about homeless youth here in Winnipeg.  There is also a video about Siloam Mission and the work they do to help others.

Soup

Rooming House to Room House

Winnipeg Free Press Article

Walk With Us

What can we do to help the homeless? Is giving socks to the less fortunate enough?

Never trust a map??

Now that we have taken some time to learn about maps, let's see it visually.

 

 Next, we will see it first hand why maps are never completely accurate by using an orange. Yes, an orange. Enjoy some extra vitamin C.

#Socktober

Socktober October 5th - 31st 

Have you heard of Socktober? It’s a fantastic annual initiative during the month of October with the goal of helping less fortunate people.  You can participate here by donating a brand new pair of socks so everyone can be sure to keep their toes warm through the cold winter months. Once collected, we will be donating the socks to our local homeless shelter.  The leadership students and the students of 7DEF will be helping us out as well. Students will come by your homeroom daily to pick up any donations and will then place pairs in the big "Socktober” box in the office.  Please help us help others from October 5^th to October 31^st . Let’s work to reach our goal of 500 donated pairs!   

P.S.There’s also House Points up for grabs! 

Here's another great video to inspire us even more!!! You remember Grover - don't you!





Let's take a look of some people who have used Siloam Mission in the past. Their stories may surprise you.

Des questions en français

Tips for Leaving a Good Comment

If you'd like to leave a comment on our blog, please check out some of the tips my students and I learned about last year regarding helpful and useful comments.  Thank you to Mrs. Yollis' Class (all the way from California!) who made an amazing video with her students to explain just how to do so.  Here it is summarized.

1) Start by complementing the writer

• mention something that you like about what the writer talks about or how they wrote it

2) Add new information

• make sure it is related to the topic
• if you know a new fact, respond with the new information

3) Ask a question

• make sure it is related to the comment above and/or the original comment
• make sure it isn't a repeat of previous comments, but rather be sure it adds new information

4) Proofread your comment!

• if you like, copy and paste it into Word just to be sure
• make sure you read it over carefully - sometimes you might spell all of your words correctly, but they may be mixed up or used incorrectly

Can we think of any other things necessary to make a good comment? Let me know! Happy commenting!

What is Geocaching?

What is Geocaching? It's a great way to get active in your community and beyond! AS they say, "there is an adventure happening all the time, all around you!" and you wouldn't even necessarily know it's right before your very eyes! Let's take a closer look in anticipation for when we do some geocaching activities later this month. Have you ever geocached? What was your best find? Are you looking forward to trying it out? Let everyone know by leaving a thoughtful comment below.

 

Orange Shirt Day

What is Orange Shirt Day? Take a look at this video or check out the article from Huffington Post. Then leave a comment explaining the significance of Orange Shirt Day and why it has now become an annual event.


 

How Do Humans Change the Landscape and Environment?

In both Social Studies and ELA we have been talking about ways humans are affected by the world's geography and natural environment as well as how we as humans affect the world's geography and the natural environment. Today we will take a look at an issue that is relatively close to us - the use of luxury cruiseliners through previously uncharted waters in the Northwest Passage.

We'll start by watching a few videos to get us thinking.
Next, we'll read to learn more specific details.
Finally we will discuss and answer some questions together to make further connections to our learning about the people and places of the world.

Let's get started!



Looks like fun? But at what cost?



After today's lesson, think about the changes that humans make to the world around them.  Are some of these changes for the better? Are some for the worse? Let me know what you think by leaving a comment below.

Want to learn more - check out this feature on CBC.

What A Waste!

Last week we started talking about how there are many issues going on the in the world that can help to make better. One issue that came up was Food Waste. I was supervising the students at lunch and notice there was a good amount of food that was going uneaten, and a lot of that was ending up in the garbage. I know in my home, every week before we grocery shop, we often "clear out the fridge" from all the "old food" but sometimes to be honest, many of the items are still ok, but we need to make room for the new. We read an article about food waste, discussed some of the places and times we have seen food waste, then watched the following video.

 Today, we will review our discussion and look at ways people in the world are making a difference to reduce the amount of food we waste.

 

 What are ways you, your friends or your family can reduce food waste?

Geography Games to Help Us Practice

There are lots of online games and activities you can check out to help you with geography.  Today you will check out a few games to either freshen up your world knowledge or ideally learn something new! For this period you play 3 different games to play.

First let's review longitude and latitude.

https://www.brainpop.com/socialstudies/geography/latitudeandlongitude/

Here are the links!

http://www.abcya.com/latitude_and_longitude_practice.htm

In this game you will look for treasure using latitude and longitude.

 http://lizardpoint.com/geography/world-quiz.php

In this game you will review the continents and oceans of the world.

http://www.sheppardsoftware.com/World_Continents.htm

In this game you will learn about 2 other oceans not always commonly labelled.

After the games on the computer, you will be playing Longitude and Latitude Battleship with a partner.

What Does It Mean To Show Courage?

Les trois petits chochons - les personnages

How to Change the World

Every year, I enjoy doing projects with students that are purposeful in as many ways as possible. Whether it be checking our school for leaky faucets during Fix a Leak Week, making bannock for over 250 people by integrating math and AAA initiatives, or selling popsicles to help raise money for the Canadian Cancer Society, I love doing projects that engage students to help others.  This year in our Social Studies/ELA section we will be looking to do similar projects that can help others in our community and around the world.  What social causes are close to your heart? If you could do something to help others, what might you do? Do you know any other students your age who have made a difference, big or small in our community? Comment below to share your ideas!

In the meantime, here is some inspiration!

Need to Brush Up On Your Canadian Geography Skills?

Need to brush up on your Canadian Geography skills? Check out this site to test your skills!

A Great Place to Learn From

Hey Everyone! As I begin building my Middle Years Learning Lounge, I am looking to other great teachers who have some pretty incredible blogs and websites that give us excellent examples of French Language Classrooms.  Today I stumbled upon this one and I can't wait to check out some of the resources and use them in my classroom. See anything you'd like to try? Take a peek here and let me know what looks fun to you!

Check Out Our Classroom Library

Having a great book to read with you at all times is a great idea.  You never know when you can fit in a few minutes to catch up with you favourite characters and see what they are up to.  Taking a break from social media and spending your time with a book where you can make your own predictions, and observations is time well spent.  Once school starts we will be organizing our library based on categories of interest but in the meantime, check out some of the titles we have.  Like what you see? Leave a comment and let me know which books you think we should include in our library!

Over the summer I worked hard to build our library! I'm looking forward to seeing the categories students will choose to organize the books!

I'm very excited to fill these display shelves with new books!

A cozy area to read! A must in every room!

Some of our titles! We will be reading Stargirl this year!

Welcome to Room 28

Amazing Videos from French Language Students

Learning a new language is not easy.  When I was living in Quebec and all I wanted to buy was Kraft Dinner to easy my feelings of being homesick, the man working at the store had absolutely no clue what I was asking for! It was a crazy, eye opening experience not being able to communicate with someone. I was determined that day to build my skills, not just to learn French but to problem solve better by using the written clues all around me to help when I was unsure.  Surrounding yourself with the language, speaking ONLY French in class, and taking risks by trying new words and expressions will only help you get better. Want to be inspired? Click here to see even more videos created by students in Ontario! They are really incredible and we will often start and end classes with them. Which one is your favourite? Here is one of mine!

Voici une vidéo!

Writing Without Roadblocks

Last year I had the wonderful opportunity of having Nancy McLean, a teacher who works alongside Regie Routman for a week long residency in my classroom. It was a wonderful experience where when know looking back, I can say I learned just as much as the students did that week, if not more! We focussed on writing stories about Kindness and had them published in a beautiful book. This year I am very lucky to continue talking with Nancy as I transition into middle years. She has already been a wonderful help, directing me to some excellent articles written by Regie herself.  Here is one about how to help your students avoid writing roadblocks. I definitely plan on spending time diving into Middleweb - looks like there are tons of wonderful resources. What strategies do you use for writing with your middle years students?

Places You Might Find Me

Hi Grade 6's!

Today you are going to copy and paste your poem into a shared document so we can publish our writing! You will need to do the following steps:

1) Open your word document with your poem

2) Copy your poem (right click, copy)

3) Paste your poem next to your name in the shared document (link below)

Ms. Mooney and Ms. Baluk will demonstrate this.  Good luck and have fun! We can't wait to see your published writing!

Click here to paste your poem

Voici une vidéo!