Parent Information

Weekly Update - May 20, 2024

Hello Families,

I hope all the mothers celebrated a wonderful Mother's Day! 

We have been quite fortunate to have such beautiful weather arrive in May. I wanted to make you aware that the kids will sometimes be outside for phys. ed. classes (weather dependent), for recesses, and sometimes for outdoor learning opportunities as a class. You may want to have your child apply some sunscreen before leaving for school or place a sun covering hat in their backpack.

6A Learning Goals:

Writer's Workshop:  We are working on persuasive writing and the kids are enjoying debating topics with their peers. Don't be surprised if they start debating topics at home as well!

Reader's Workshop: We are currently part way through the read aloud novel, Iqbal. To keep the conversation going at home, our novel is set in Pakistan and the main characters are two children that work in a carpet factory. The kids are discussing their thoughts on child labour and other topics that have different rules in other parts of the world compared to Canada. This can lead to great discussions and learning opportunities with your child. 

Math: Our focus this week reviewing the patterns outcome and corrective instruction for order of operations and triangles. Next week we will be reviewing the previously taught outcomes and preparing for the grade six Elementary Math Assessment on June 5th and 6th. 

Other:

Crowan Writing - The kids have an opportunity to win some prize money. I have reviewed this with the kids last week and there are a number of talented writers that would benefit from this experience.

Thank you for your continued support!

Rachael 

Weekly Update - May 20, 2024

Hello Families,

I hope all the mothers celebrated a wonderful Mother's Day! 

We have been quite fortunate to have such beautiful weather arrive in May. I wanted to make you aware that the kids will sometimes be outside for phys. ed. classes (weather dependent), for recesses, and sometimes for outdoor learning opportunities as a class. You may want to have your child apply some sunscreen before leaving for school or place a sun covering hat in their backpack.

6A Learning Goals:

Writer's Workshop:  We are working on persuasive writing and the kids are enjoying debating topics with their peers. Don't be surprised if they start debating topics at home as well!

Reader's Workshop: We are currently part way through the read aloud novel, Iqbal. To keep the conversation going at home, our novel is set in Pakistan and the main characters are two children that work in a carpet factory. The kids are discussing their thoughts on child labour and other topics that have different rules in other parts of the world compared to Canada. This can lead to great discussions and learning opportunities with your child. 

Math: Our focus this week reviewing the patterns outcome and corrective instruction for order of operations and triangles. Next week we will be reviewing the previously taught outcomes and preparing for the grade six Elementary Math Assessment on June 5th and 6th. Please refer to the handout that was sent our by the Department of Education.

Other:

Crowan Writing - The kids have an opportunity to win some prize money. I have reviewed this with the kids last week and there are a number of talented writers that would benefit from this experience.

Thank you for your continued support!

Rachael 

Weekly Update - May 6, 2024

Hello Families,

I hope everyone is enjoying the beautiful sunshine and longer days!

On Friday, the buses will be leaving the school at 10:30 for Queen Charlotte and will return around 11:40. 

6A Learning Goals:

Writer's Workshop:  The kids are completing their animal trifolds and are due at the end of this week. They will have class time tomorrow and Friday to continue working on them.

Reader's Workshop: The kids continue to read books of choice and independent reading comprehension handouts.

Math: Our focus this week is triangles. The kids are learning how to draw them and distinguish the different types. 

Thank you for your continued support!

Rachael 

Weekly Update - April 29, 2024

Hello Families,

The kids a fabulous day together downtown. Her honour Antoinette Perry, PEI's lieutenant governer, welcome the kids at Fanningbank on Wednesday morning before they had their tour of the establishment. We then made our way through Victoria Park's woods to Deep Man's Pond and travelled on to come out at the play structures. Beaconsfield Historic House made for a beautiful backdrop for lunch, before making our way on a scenic historical walk through the city ending at the Confederation Centre Library. 

Good luck to Sophia this weekend, as she represents the school in the provincial badminton tournament this weekend! Good luck to Camden and Ason as they also represent the school at the provincial Heritage Fair competition this week! Go 6A!

6A Learning Goals:

Writer's Workshop:  The kids are making trifolds as a culmination of all their learning about their chosen animal.

Reader's Workshop: The kids continue to read books of choice.

Math: This week the Ms. Jory taught 'Order of Operations' and I focused on review of previously taught outcomes.

Homework: 

Some students are still working to complete their biography writing. Your child would have brought home two copies (one for them and one their parents) if they completed this task. If you have not have the opportunity to read your child's work, please enusure they complete it over the weeked. No more class time will be allotted to complete this writing piece.

Monday, April 29 - Biography Writing Due

Thursday, May 2 - Social Studies Handout for Charlottetown's Historical Places Due

Thursday, May 4 - Animal Writing - Trifold Due

Other:

• If your child is interested in participating in band and/or track and field your child should have brought home a form that needs to returned to the school.

Thank you for your continued support!

Rachael 

Weekly Update - April 22, 2024

Hello Families,

A huge shout out to the school community for raising a grand total of $2715.40 to support the Easter Seals campaing. The students have had a blast with all the events, and the highlight was certainly the Pie in the Face on Friday afternoon.  

I'm so proud of your children on the presentation of their Heritage Fair projects. Everyone did a wonderful job presenting their information, along with giving and accepting feedback from their classmates during this process. Congratulations to Ason and Camden for moving on to the Provincial Heritage Fair, and to Rehina and Haley for receiving an Honorable Mention!

We had a number students from our class representing our school at the badminton zone finals this week. Congratulations to Sophia, Sunny, Warren, Oliver, and Luke! 

We are excited to welcome Ms. Jory Donovan to 6A. She will be spending part of her day with us due to the large number of students in our room.

6A Learning Goals:

Writer's Workshop:  The kids are making trifolds as a culmination of all their learning about their chosen animal.

Reader's Workshop: The kids continue to read books of choice.

Math: We continue to work through the grade six outcomes for patterns and relations. The kids have learned how to find pattern rules with two operations and graph the information from tables onto a Cartesian plane, and are now turning the rules into expressions. They will then pull all this learning together to answer word problems. 

Homework: Please send in a cheap pair of headphones if your child does not have a pair at school. A number of students have found audio books to listen along with their novel, but keep forgeting to bring in headphones. Please ask your child if they need headphones.

Other:

• There are a number of students that still need to return their permission slip or send in money for the class trip on Wednesday. I have sent home new forms with everyone that needed one in case they have been misplaced. Please try to have everything passed in by Monday.

Thank you for your continued support!

Rachael 

Weekly Update - April 8, 2024

Hello Families,

I hope you all enjoyed the Solar Eclipse on Monday. It was a memorable moment in time for the kids, they enjoyed sharing their experiences when they returned on Tuesday.

6A Learning Goals:

Writer's Workshop:  We continue learning about animal adaptations and behaviours and to work through the nonfiction text structures.

Reader's Workshop: The kids are reading books of choice and many of them have found audiobooks online and are reading along with a novel. 

Math: We continue to work through the grade six outcomes for patterns and relations, finding pattern rules with two operations and graphing the information from tables onto a Cartesian plane. This outcome has been one of the most challenging for students in the past. We will be taking our time as we work through each task of this outcome.

Homework: The kids are doing a wonderful job presenting their projects and are receiving feedback from their peers on how to enhance their presentation skills for the judges. 

Other:

• If your child would like to take their backboard home after presenting to their peers, please ensure their poster is brought back to the school for Monday, April 15th. The kids will set up their projects in the gymnasium on Monday, April 15th before the end of the day. Some students are making q-cards for next Tuesday's presentation.

• Please return your child's permission slip for the class trip downtown.

Thank you for your continued support!

Rachael 

Weekly Update - April 2, 2024

Hello Families,

I hope you all enjoyed the March break and Easter holiday with family and friends. We have a short week this week. The students should be taking their Heritage Fair projects to their classrooms on Wednesday or Thursday to present to their classmates on Thursday, April 4th and Friday, April 5th.

6A Learning Goals:

Writer's Workshop: The kids continue to learn about animal adaptations and behaviours. We continue to work through the nonfiction text structures, along with completing research and collecting jot notes at the same time. 

Reader's Workshop: The kids are reading books of choice and many of them have found audiobooks online and are reading along with a novel. 

Math: This week we are working on the grade six outcomes for patterns and relations. 

Homework: Bringing your Heritage Fair project to school to present this week. 

Other:

• Each child will be receiving a pair of solar eclipse glasses on Wednesday. I have asked them to be careful with them and keep them in their homework bag or a duotang until they give them to a parent. 

• A reminder that school will be dismissing two hours early on Monday, April 8th (at 12:35 pm). This is for your child 's safety, to ensure the kids are with their family during the solar eclipse. 

• If your child would like to take their project back home after presenting to their peers, please ensure their poster is brought back to the school for Friday, April 12th. The kids will set up their projects in the gymnasium on Monday, April 15th before the end of the day.

• We are excited to welcome two new students, Hooyar and Kimmoy! Sadly, we will be saying goodbye to Kevin on Friday, and we wish hime well as he moves to his new school. 

Thank you for your continued support!

Rachael 

Weekly Update - March 11, 2024

Hello Families,

It was lovely to see many of you again and share your child's successes. I look forward to meeting with those families this week that were unable to attend on Thursday everning, along with the EAL interviews!

6A Learning Goals:

Writer's Workshop: We will be printing the good copies of our biographies and your child will each take home a copy this week. The kids have chosen an animal to research for our Living Things unit of study and will be using what they learn for their next unit of writing.

Reader's Workshop: The class will be reading nonfiction material on their animal of choice leading up to March Break.

Math: We have been practicing the formulas for perimeter and area, and will be introducing patterns and how to read numbers in from tables.

Homework: This week's math homework will be using their formula of choice for perimeter and the area formula to complete the assigned work.

If your child needs support with this week's homework please click here: Perimeter and Area

Other:

Your child will be taking home a letter from the school to inform you about the upcoming health lessons. Please sign and return the form before the end of the week.

A heads up that the book fair will begin on Monday and due to the storm day on Thursday, our class will be attending on Monday. The kids are not aware that our class will now be going to the fair on Monday afternoon, instead of Tuesday. 

Thank you for your continued support!

Rachael 

Weekly Update - March 4, 2024

Hello Families,

Jay Scotland began our week teaching the class about weather instruments used today and in the past. He had an engaging session about the tools he uses in his daily work and what he does throughout his day. The indoor days made for a long week for the kids, they were pretty disappointed to see the snow disappear,  followed by the colder temperture on Friday. I hope everyone has a chance to get outdoors and enjoy the weekend! 

If you were unable to sign-up for an interview and would like to come in for a meeting or chat over the phone regarding your child's progress please email: rjmcneill@edu.pe.ca. I'm looking to seeing everyone this week!

6A Learning Goals:

Writer's Workshop: The writen portion of their biography should be close to being complete, if not complete. On Friday, everyone set up a two page (8 1/2 by 11) biography handout in Google Slides and worked on the layout of their pages.

Reader's Workshop: The class will be reading nonfiction material on different living organisms over the next few weeks leading up to March Break.

Math: The kids have reviewed the grade 5 outcome for perimeter and area, and are working to create formulas for each of these to complete these tasks more efficiently.

Homework: This week's math homework will be using their formula of choice for perimeter and the area formula to complete the assigned work.

Other:

Blaze Pizza Fundraiser - ENJOY A FAST-FIRED PIZZA AND SUPPORT OUR CAUSEWEST ROYALTY ELEMENTARY SCHOOL AT A SPECIAL FUNDRAISING EVENT FOR on March 5, 2024 from 4pm to 8pm at Blaze Pizza Charlottetown-Restaurant: Bring in a flyer which you can get in the office or show it on your phone before paying. Online Orders: Orders must be placed online via the Blaze Pizza App or blazepizza.com. Enter code 1403A into the 'Promo Code' field at checkout to have the transaction count toward the fundraiser. If entered correctly, you'll see a $0.01 discount applied to your check which confirms that 20% of your transaction will be counted into the total donation.

Thank you for your continued support!

Rachael 

Weekly Update - February 25, 2024

Hello Families,

I hope everyone had a great weekend and that the kids had an opportunity to play outside in the fresh snow. We had a really interesting talk about staying safe with technology from someone on the Student Well-Being Team. This might be a good chance to talk more with your child about what they learned. On Friday afternoon, the kids worked together and had a lot of fun making Space Rover projects. All of the projects turned out really well, and two teams even won top bragging rights for their hard work.

6A Learning Goals:

Writer's Workshop: The students are working on the conclusion for their biographies.

Reader's Workshop: We will continue to review text structures with four different types of living organism readings. This will lead into our next unit on Living Things for science. 

Math: The students will complete a test on angles, with the addition of previously taught outcomes that have been reviewed in the homework for the past two months. 

Homework: This week's math homework will be a review of grade five's perimeter and area outcome. 

Other:

If your child would like to purchase a backbaord for their Heritage Fair project, they can purchase one at school for $10.

Thank you for your continued support!

Rachael 

Weekly Update - February 12, 2024

Hello Families,

I hope everyone celebrating the New Year this weekend had a fabulous time with family and friends! Some of us that stayed up to partake in the Super Bowl were a little on the tired side today! We have a fun filled week with Valentine's Day on Wednesday, followed by Winter Wellness on Friday, and for anyone interested, there is a new date of Thursday, February 15th for a telescope public viewing. If you plan on going, please click on the link above to ensure that the sky is clear enough for this to proceed.

6A Learning Goals:

Writer's Workshop: The students continue working on their biographies.

Reader's Workshop: We are introducing the 5 different nonfiction text structures (description, sequence, problem and solution, cause and effect, compare and contrast). Text structure refers to the way authors organize information in text. The ability to recognize these structures can help the kids by focussing attention on key concepts and relationships, anticipating what is to come next, and monitor for their understanding as they read. During independent reading times the class continue to read biographies and take jot notes for their biographies.

Math: The students will finish their decimal test tomorrow. We have been learning how to use a prorator to measure and draw angles. 

Homework: This week's math homework is dated last week due to the storm. It is a review of integers, factors and multiples, and decimals, and is due Friday.

Other:

If your child would like to purchase a backbaord for their Heritage Fair project, they can purchase one at school for $10.

Thank you for your continued support!

Rachael 

Weekly Update - February 5, 2024

Hello Families,

I hope you all had an opportunity to clear yourselves out from under the storm, and the kids had fun creating snow forts and sculptures! This week's learning goals may remain quite similar into next week. Valentine's Day is next Wednesday and the kids will be sharing Valentine's Day cards with their classmates. I have posted a class list of names below or you may go to the Table of Contents at the top of this page and click on Valentine's Day. Now that the snow has arrived, we will be getting out to enjoy it!

6A Learning Goals:

Writer's Workshop: The kids have chosen their person to research and have starting taking taking jot notes. This week the kids will write the three main paragraphs of the body (childhood, adulthood, and accomplishments). This work will benefit the students since can apply the research strategies to their Heritage Fair projects 

Reader's Workshop: We continue to read biographies in guided reading. The kids are answering literal (answers found in the text) and inferential (answers not found in the text that they must think about using information from the text) questions. Please encourage your child to read each evening for 25-30 minutes. 

Math: We are finishing up decimal this week and have been reaching back to previous outcomes. Some students required extra teaching around long division. Friday we will have a review to see how who has mastered the multiplication and division of decimal outcomes. 

Homework: This week's math homework is review of integers, factors and multiples, and decimals.

Other:

I have posted the suggested timeline below for the Heritage Fair for your reference. Keep in mind if your child needs a backboard they can purchase one at school for $10.

Thank you for your continued support!

Rachael 

Weekly Update - January 22, 2024

Hello Families,

The children are settling back into their daily routine. Here is what is happening in 6A this week!

6A Learning Goals:

Reading & Writing: The class continue to read biographies and autobiographies. They will be choosing a person to research further at the end of the week. 

Math: We are finishing up working on division of decimals (outcome N8). This week's math homework review is on finding factors  (Outcome N3), and estimating decimals.

Sciece: We continue to learn about space. This week, we are learning about the phases of the moon, how the moon affects our tides, and the different kids of eclipses. Your child will be an expert for our eclipse coming up on April 8th! 

Homework: Math homework is supposed to be a quick review. They will be completing a handout and may need to reference their math notebook to ensure they have a model to follow or they can look it up on our website. If your child is spending more than 10-15 minutes on math homework each night (Monday- Thursday) to complete the handouts for Friday, please contact me to discuss further. 

Other: 

1. Home and School is looking for information from parents regarding your child's dietary needs for healthy snacks. Please email me if your child requires: gluten free, lactose free, vegan/vegetarian, is allergic to specific foods, etc. 

2. Heritage Fair: If your child requires a backboard to complete their project, Mrs. Deighan will be selling poster boards in her classroom for $10.

3. Habitat for Humanity Meaning of Home Contest - This contest invites students in grades 4, 5, and 6 to submit a poem or essay explaining what home means to them. The contest, in support of Habitat for Humanity, is a great opportunity for students to learn about giving back to their community and the importance of having a safe home while improving their creative writing skills and raising money for their local Habitat organization. It will challenge students to think creatively about a topic that directly impacts their lives - the meaning of home - and ultimately improve their writing skills. 

Each submission provides our local Habitat with a $10 donation. There are also other grand prizes and runner-up prizes to be won nationally. The Department of Education and Lifelong Learning has also generously donated a laptop for 1 lucky winner in Prince Edward Island so that we can recognize these kids on a local level. If your child wishes to participate, entries can be submitted online at meaningofhome.ca or by mail. This week we will be reviewing the 2023 grand prize winners and runner-ups.

4. Science Fair: There are a number of students that have shown interest in participating in the Science Fair this year. Please keep in mind that the Heritage Fair is mandatory for all grade 5 and 6 students and the Science Fair would be another home project for your child to complete. I think it is a wonderful opportunity for all those wishing to participate in both, please be mindful of the time commitment for your family if your child is to participate in both fairs. 

Thanks for reading and enjoy the rest of your week! 

Rachael

Weekly Update - January 15, 2024

Hello Families,

Happy New Year!!🎉🎉🎉 I hope everyone shared a wonderful holiday with family and friends. Well, the temperature is starting to feel a bit more like winter! Just a reminder to pack sweaters and extra hats, gloves, and socks in backpacks as we start to get into more wintery weather. ❄❄⛄ 

6A Learning Goals:

Reading & Writing: During independent reading the students are rotating between reading mystery novels in book clubs or independently, reading a biography (Who was... OR Who is...) novel independently, guided reading, and word work. We are exploring non-fiction (all types) and will be reviewing the non-fiction text features and text structures. Our first piece of writing this year will be a short biography piece.

Math: We have introduce multiplication and division of dicimals (outcome N8). This week's math review is for long multiplication and division, and a review of finding factors (Multiples and Factors).

Sciece: We continue to learn about the space outcomes. We are learning about the myths attached to the constellations and today the kids created string displays of the zodiac constelations on bristle boards. They turned out great! 

Homework: Math homework is supposed to be a quick review of topics previously covered that your child should be able to retrieve from memory. They were to bring home their math notebook to reference, to ensure they have a model to follow. If your child is spending more than 10-15 minutes on math homework each night (Monday- Thursday) to complete the handouts for Friday, please contact me to discuss further. 

Other: 

1. There will be a Grade 5 and 6 Heritage Fair this year. Students in grades 5 and 6 are expected to complete a Heritage Fair project at home that will be judged at the Heritage School Fair. There will be more information coming home (schedule of dates) with your child at the end of this week or the beginning of next. Mrs. Deighan has reviewed a slideshow presentation of the expectations with all of the participating classes before the break and we will be brainstorming ideas for topic during class. Students are expected to have a topic chosen by the beginning of the following week and passed in to their teacher.

2. Habitat for Humanity Meaning of Home Contest - This contest invites students in grades 4, 5, and 6 to submit a poem or essay explaining what home means to them. The contest, in support of Habitat for Humanity, is a great opportunity for students to learn about giving back to their community and the importance of having a safe home while improving their creative writing skills and raising money for their local Habitat organization. It will challenge students to think creatively about a topic that directly impacts their lives - the meaning of home - and ultimately improve their writing skills. 

Each submission provides our local Habitat with a $10 donation. There are also other grand prizes and runner-up prizes to be won nationally. The Department of Education and Lifelong Learning has also generously donated a laptop for 1 lucky winner in Prince Edward Island so that we can recognize these kids on a local level. If your child wishes to participate, entries can be submitted online at meaningofhome.ca or by mail. This week we will be reviewing the 2023 grand prize winners and runner-ups.

Thanks for reading and enjoy the rest of your week! 

Rachael

Weekly Update - December 11, 2023

Hello Families,

We have two full weeks left and the kids are beyond excited! We have been incorporating different holiday learning activities to add to the fun!

Reading & Writing

We will enjoy a Memoir Reading Cafe this Friday to celebrate everyone's memoirs. The kids will share their stories in small groups and anyone who wishes to read to the whole class will have the opportunity. 

Math

We are finding the greatest common multiple and least common factor and will be using these strategies to solve real world word problems by the middle of the week. We will have a review of this topic by the end of the week. We will also be reaching back to previously taught outcomes with different holiday activities. If your child needs extra support with this topic, please click on the words:

Multiples and Factors

Humanities - Social Studies & Science

We began a our space unit today by learning about the different inner and outer planets. As noted above, there is a possibility for a public viewing of the night sky coming up right before the holiday break! It would be a wonderful up close opportunity to see what they have been learning in the classroom.

Homework

I will meet, before the break, with the students that continue to work on the multiplication facts to reach automacity. It is wonderful to see the strides that are beeing made by some of your children and how much their confidence in math has increased since reviewing their facts on a regular basis. There will be no more homework until January as many families are enjoying family traditions leading up to the holiday.

• Dental Forms - Please return the yellow dental forms. Even if your child is not receiving the dental services, please the the NO box and have them  return their form to the clinic.

• The students will each need a glass jar (pasta, jam, etc.) for a holiday art project. If you have extra, they would be appreciated as there are still a number to come in.

• The kids have come up with several activities to celebrate the Christmas spirit!

Thanks for reading and enjoy the rest of your week! 

Rachael

 Weekly Update - December 4, 2022

Hello Families,

We have turned the calendar to December and the spirit of Christmas is running through the building, especially 6A! It was lovely to finally meet many of you over the last two weeks. I was glad to have the opportunity to connect with most of you in person and chat about your fantastic kids! If anyone did not have an opportunity to speak about their child's progress and would like to, please let me know and we can still set something up. 

Reading & Writing

Students are finishing up working through figurative language slideshows and have covered many examples: similies, metaphors, onomatopoeia, idioms, hyperbole, personification, alliteration. They have added some of these examples in their memoir writing. Hazel and Isabelle taught the class how to use dictionaries to look up proper spellings. They also reviewed synonyms and antonyms, and will introduce thesauruses. The kids will use these to add engaging terms in their writing and this will be our concluding lesson for our memoir writing unit of study. A Memoir Writing Celebration will take place next  week!

Math

We began learning about factors and multiples, and leading up to the break we will continue to review the previous outcomes covered since the beginning of the year. I encourage you to continue to support your child in mastering their quick math facts.

Humanities - Social Studies & Science

We will complete our Island unit study this week and will be introducing a unit on space.

Homework

The kids are all working on different activities at home. If your child still has to master their multiplication facts to 12 please keep this as an evening priority. Students will have different math review handouts coming home next week depending on your child's learning needs. Reading still continues to be something that everyone should be working on each week and writing down what they are reading on their Ideas About Reading handout.

• Thank you to the many families that have supported Christmas Families. There are poinsettia tickets still available in the office.

• Keep in mind that tempuratures continue to drop and are unpredictable throughout the day. It would be great to have your child pack some extra clothes in their backpack as many are coming in with wet socks, pants, and mitts. 

• The students will each need a glass jar (pasta, jam, etc.) for a holiday art project. Please let me know if you can't send one in by next Tuesday. If you have extra, I would appreciate it if you could send any in for other students.

• We welcomed a new student, Angela! The class has been very welcoming to her. 

• The kids have come up with several activities to share in and celebrate the Christmas spirit!

Thanks for reading and enjoy the rest of your week! 

Rachael

 Weekly Update - November 14, 2023

I hope everyone enjoyed the their weekend! It seems as though many families were enjoying time together, whether it was attending a Remembrance Day ceremony, visiting with extended family or friends, or getting into the festive spirit! Time is certainly flying by and we have been having so much fun learning together in 6A! I will post some updated photos this weekend!

I am so proud of your children! All of the groups did an amazing job reading the poem "In Flanders Fields" by John McCrae today! Hopefully this will be something they remember for years to come! 

Reading & Writing

Some groups are finishing up their historical fiction book club novels and are conferencing to dig a little deeper and review the fiction text structures together. The kids are typing up what they have completed of their revised drafts so far for their memoirs and will continue to revise and edit their documents on-line. They have incorporating many writing strategies over the last couple of weeks and their next step will be to highlight each of the strategies in their online document.

Math

We are working on mixed numbers and improper fractions. The students have learned how to change back and forth between both kinds of fractions and continue to learn how to place them on a number line. This poriton of the outcome is one of the most challenging sixth-grade tasks for students. We will continue to spend the first part of next week on this outcome. 

The students each received a quick multiplication fact bag containing flash cards up to 12x12 last week. The cards were distributed by the school's math coach and your child received the same ones in fifth-grade. They were passed out since more students post-Covid needed extra support to reach automaticity than pre-Covid. These are to support your child in learning the facts to automaticity. The end-of-the-year expectation is that your child can recall each fact in less than three seconds. These will be part of our math workshop rotation, and you may see them go home in December. If your child has already mastered their flashcards to automaticity, I have collected them, and they will be working on a different skill during that rotation block. 

Social Studies

Everyone did a wonderful job presenting their parts on the history of transportation on Prince Edward Island. If you ask your child, they may share their group slideshow with you, and you may just learn something new! :)

Homework

This is a very short week. I already mentioned this to the kids, if they need more time after Wednesday afternoon to complete typing their memoirs, they would have to take it home over the four days and to try and have it complete for Monday's lesson. Some of the students figured out the advantage of using the tool Voice-to-Text to have their document typed for them while they read it to their Chromebooks. They can also have it read back to them to ensure it sounds the way they expect by using the tool, Co-Writer (login and password: West6A)

Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or concerns.

Thanks for reading, 

Rachael

Weekly Update - October 23, 2023

I hope everyone was able to stay dry this weekend!

Reading & Writing

Students are starting their first rough draft of their memoir writing. We will be incorporating many of the strategies we've been learning about over the last couple of weeks. During independent reading the kids are working on building their stamina. They will each be completing a book review on one of their favourite books to present to the class, including any text that your child has ever read. Please support them by discussing which book they may like to share! 

Math

Students will have a review at the end of the week on the outcomes covered so far:

• Place value for large and small numbers 

• Integers

• Process for addition, subtraction, multiplication

Social Studies

We continue to learn more about the history of Prince Edward Island. The class is creating shared slideshows to present. Each group is going to share a certain piece of Island history with their peers.

Homework

The students will fill out their reading sheet from Monday - Wednesday. They also have a antonym handout to complete for Thursday. 

A note regard Holloween:

Students will be able to dress-up in costume on the evening of the Halloween Dance. Students will be able to dress in orange and black at school for the day of Halloween. 

Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or concerns.

Thanks for reading, 

Rachael

Weekly Update - October 16, 2023

It is hard to believe that we are half way through October! We had a wonderful visit from Julie Pelletier Lush and Sean Lush. The kids enjoyed Julie's songs and story telling and Sean's musical talents. Congratulations to all the students from 6A that participated in the Cross Country meet at Eliot River, they certainly portray a growth mindset! Our class was well reprensented, and I was excited to see the kids challenge themselves over the last month by sticking with their running commitment. A shout out to Camden (placed fourth), Oliver (placed tenth), Keeva (placed  fifteenth), Landon, Liam, and Ason! 

We are going to try a new communication tool, Bloomz, with the class. Please be patient as the learn the ropes and start to get students online and adding classwork to their profiles. The link below will allow you to watch a video to learn how to get logged in and connected to your child's profile.

https://bloomz.freshdesk.com/support/solutions/articles/62000077112-creating-a-parent-account-invitation-code-access-code

Our Bloomz access code is: ZSB9R

Reading & Writing

Students will be choosing an idea to use to get started on a first draft on Monday. Please chat with your child over the weekend to see what they are thinking about writing about. It always helps when they have an opportunity to talk through their ideas, especially with someone who knows them best and may have shared in it with them. 

Math

We will be starting fractions with a review from previous grade levels and moving towards changing a mixed number into an improper fraction. If you happen to be baking this weekend, maybe your child could help out by measuring the ingredients to visibly see how many 1/4 cups, 1/3 cups, or 1/2 cups are needed to make the recipe. 

Homework

The students will fill out their reading sheet from Monday - Thursday. They also have a synonym handout to complete for Friday. 

There are still a couple of children that need to bring in a pair of headphones labelled with your child's name to allow them to use during Chromebook times.

Thank you to those of you that have sent in magazines, batteries, and donations to the Community Fridge!

We will still gladly accept magazines throughout the year!

A notice about the Halloween Dance went home with your child, please check their backpack. The tickets for the dance must be purchased in advanced. There will be no ticket sales at the door the night of the event. Keep in mind that an adult must be accompany your child, for your child to attend the event.

Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or concerns.

Thanks for reading, 

Rachael

Weekly Update - October 9, 2023

I hope you all enjoy a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend!

Reading & Writing

Students are working on generating ideas for their memoirs. You could help them out by sharing some of your favourite memories of them. If anyone happens to have any old maganizes, they would be greatly appreciated to help the kids complete their Writer's Notebooks/Gratitude Journal covers!

Word Study

Word study rotations have begun. The kids will be rotating through stations during class time to support learning the strategies for their words. Some students will complete their word tests on a weekly basis and others will complete their word test on a bi-weekly basis. Keep in mind that for the majority of the class, the word tests will be given by a peer. These tests are not for the students to memorize the words, but for them to individually monitor their understanding of the rules around how the patterns are spelled. The students may choose to take their words home to review, again they are working with these words to complete different activities and are getting having in-class practice. The quizes will on take place on different days of the week, depeding on which day of the cycle they have received their new words. 

Math

We will continue our work with integers during station rotations, and next week the students will be reviewing fraction outcomes from previous grade levels. 

Homework

The students will fill out their reading sheet for homework from Monday - Thursday. They also have a homographs handout to complete for Friday. Please send in a pair of headphones labelled with your child's name to allow them to use during Chromebook times.

Community Notices:

1. PEI IT Alliance Cybersecurity Team Competition – Deadline fast approaching!

Do your child love working with computers? PEI IT Alliance is looking for passionate students to join PEI's cybersecurity team (no cybersecurity experience needed)! Learn how to join the PEI CyberTitan League here: https://peiitalliance.com/cyber-patriot. This competition is open to students from grades 6 – 12 and provides students with a unique opportunity to explore and/or develop career pathway skills in the cybersecurity sector.

2. STEAM PEI

STEAM PEI's Girls GET Math after-school math program was developed for students identifying as female in grades 5 and 6, to focus on developing confidence and growth mindsets around math, seeing the real life connections with math, and being involved in fun, creative math activities. The program is composed of 90 minute sessions once a week after school for eight weeks and will be free of charge thanks to funding from the PEI Interministerial Women’s Secretariat.

In the program, the students will get the opportunity to increase their math skills and confidence through engaging math activities including making smoothies and (nut-free) trail mix to practice fractions, creating art using geometry and probability, playing multiplication dodgeball games, and other similar activities. Digital skills and basic coding will also be incorporated into a couple of the sessions. The program will also include role visits from women in mathematics careers and post-secondary programs. Regular communication with parents throughout the program aims to support them in continuing the positive math messaging and growth mindset communication at home.

The program is targeted at grade 5/6 girls because although PEI girls and boys perform equally well on math assessments, girls’ perceptions of their math abilities are lower. The Grade 5/6 age group is where the positive impact of growth mindset on math abilities has been demonstrated. It is also the age where girls can reach a “give-up” point, deciding they will never be good at math and might as well not bother pursuing it any further.

STEAM PEI is a non-profit organization whose mission is to inspire young Islanders to pursue learning and careers in STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and math) fields by fostering their curiosity and confidence through engaging, experiential learning opportunities. Equity, diversity, and inclusion are key components of STEAM PEI’s mission. STEAM PEI strives to reach all PEI students, especially girls, Indigenous students, and students from low socio-economic backgrounds who are traditionally under-represented in STEM fields.

STEAM PEI website: https://steampei.com/

3. October 27 PD Day - KidproofPEI

There is no school on October 27th, but join us for a fun fantastic day of learning to become a great babysitter with KidproofPEI!

When? 9am-4pm Where? 582 North River Rd.Charlottetown How? Register by visiting www.kidproofpei.com

Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or concerns.

Thanks for reading, 

Rachael

Weekly Update - October 2, 2023

It is hard to believe that we changed the calendar to October this week! Even though it was a short week, you can see from the pictures that it was a fun one! 

Reading & Writing

We completed reading Fatty Legs today and will be using the novel to learn about character development and setting. The students will continue to generate ideas for memoir writing. Over the weekend your child may ask for some photos to decorate the front of their Writer's Notebooks/Gratitude Journal to make it unique!

Word Study

We will be reviewing how to spell numbers properly and completing the outcome for writing large numbers in word form.

Math

We have started and will continue, our work with integers (students are expected to know the following points). 

1. Integers are positive (+) and negative (-) numbers. They should not use the term ‘minus’ with negative integers unless they are referring to temperature. 

2. Opposite integers are of equal distance from zero on a number line (+3 and -3 are both three steps away from zero on a number line).

3. Zero is not positive, nor is it negative. Students are expected to know each of these points 

Homework

The students will fill out their reading sheet for homework on Wednesday and Thursday of this week. They will also have a homophone handout to complete for Friday.

• Please send in a pair of headphones labelled with your child's name to allow them to use during Chromebook times. 

Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or concerns. 

Thanks for reading, 

Rachael

Weekly Update - September 25, 2023

I hope everyone was able to get out and enjoy the beautufil weather! A reminder for everyone as we head into October that this week and next are four day school weeks. On Wednesday afternoon the whole school will be outside participating in West Royalty's Terry Fox Run. Please support the cause by sending in a toonie or loonie with your child. The school has already raised over half of the donation goal of $1000! We will be having a whole school Truth and Reconciliation assembly on Thursday afternnon in the gym. If your child does not have anything orange to wear, no worries, 6A has mini orange felt t-shirts to pin on. Your child has been learning about reconciliation and the history of residential schools. I have also been reading the novel Fatty Legs aloud while the kids have been following along with their individual electronic copy on Epic Books. We have been speaking about courage and symbolism, and these topics will continue to weaved into their learning throughout the year. Please ask your child questions and encourage them to share about what we have been reading about in class. 

Reading & Writing

The students worked on Truth & Reconciliation topics while I was out last week and we will be picking up where I left off with their writing. 

Word Study

This week we will be reviewing homophones, words that sound the same but have different meanings and spellings (i.e. way and weigh). 

Math

We are continuing this week with: 

• math facts (this will continue to be ongoing)

• place value (last week' focus was on writing large numbers in standard form and expanded form, place value, value, number in number-word format)

• place value (this week's focus is on comparing and ordering large numbers in ascending and descending orders, using technology to see where large numbers are used in society, and writing large numbers in word format)

• the students have also been practicing their addition and subtraction of 3 digits computations and multiplication strategies of 1-digit by 3-digit computations and next week we will review 2-digit by 2-digit computations (three different strategies are being used by the class and  as long as the strategy is accurate and efficient for your child, they may use the strategy of preference)

Homework

Your child had an opportunity to go to the library to sign out a book at the end of the day today. We will fill out our reading sheet in school tomorrow and the kids will have reading homework on Tuesday and Wednesday of this week.

Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or concerns. 

Thanks for reading, 

Rachael

Weekly Update - September 19, 2022

Stay safe this weekend as Lee tracks north! We have completed our first full week of the school year, and the students of 6A are settling into our classroom routines. The students are exemplars for the other classes during fire drills and while moving through the hallways.

Reading & Writing

Students will gather ideas in their writer’s scribblers as they prepare to write memoirs. The purpose of a memoir is to capture and share a defining personal memory. The writer’s scribbler activities will help students develop a list of possible topics.

Word Study

The focus will be on contractions and the exercises are due on Friday. 

Math

We are continuing this week with a review of: 

• math facts 

• place value (this should be really easy, building up to billions place next week)

Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or concerns. Last week, classroom review and practice were focussed on all of the above skills.

Thanks for reading, 

Rachael

6A Weekly Update - September 8, 2023

Welcome to the 2023-2024 school year. I am thrilled to be back from summer vacation and have spent the first few days getting to know the students in 6A. We have a wonderful group of 24 students, and I look forward to working with each of them this year.

Grade 6 is a big year as students are preparing for the transition to junior high school. We will place an emphasis on organization and on time management to help make this transition as smooth as possible. Completion of classwork and homework will also help prepare students for the academic challenges of junior high school. 

Reading & Writing

Students are going to start out reading for 20 minutes each evening until they build up their stamina to 30 minutes. Books and pages read will be documented in the student agenda. This week we are working on writing and art activities connected to their names. The purpose of the writing activity is to share something entertaining or interesting about your name. 

Word Study

It will be the whole class for a few weeks to allow us to focus on the basic word patterns and concepts required for grade 6. This week we will focus on abbreviations. Following a spelling inventory and observations, students will be grouped according to their needs for word work.

Math

We are starting with a review of material that should be both familiar and manageable, from grade 5. This work is called “The Grade 6 Boot Camp” and was created by the department, and it is designed to give the students a chance to get back into the routine with concepts and skills that are familiar. In addition, it also gives me an opportunity to monitor if things have been forgotten (if re-teaching is necessary), or if students are missing some concepts (support offered with small group teaching).

We are starting this week with a review of: 

• three digit addition and subtraction 

• place value reading and writing numbers 

In the next few weeks, we will review place value to 1 million, several ways to record numbers, adding and subtracting large numbers, multiplication facts, procedures, and accuracy in multiplying and dividing, decimals, and fractions. 

Please expect reading, math, and word work homework weekly, at a minimum. This will be assigned on the first day of the week and will be expected to be passed in on Friday. Students have a homework duotang/agenda that will be brought home nightly. 

Homework for this week will be looking for a good book and finding a quiet spot to enjoy their nightly reading, supporting your child with collecting notes on the story of their name, and Word Study. Math with be added during the second full week of school.

Students in grade 6 have many opportunities to become involved in a variety of activities at West Royalty. They are the leaders in the school and will be called upon to set a positive example for our younger students. Our class has the opportunity to start working with the kindergarten and grade 1 classes at both recess times.

I look forward to meeting many of you on Tuesday evening at our West Royalty Meet-the-Staff night!

Rachael McNeill