Minor Details - February 22

February 22 - 25, 2022

Pink Shirt Day

It is profoundly sad to think that we often need reminders to be kind.

This week we took some time to think deeply and honestly about what kindness means. Do we choose to be kind? Or do we simply want others to be kind to us?

We started by discussing that kindness means acting out of consideration of others, not just in your own self-interest. In fact, empathy and the capacity to treat others with kindness and compassion are what makes us truly human.

We wrote down our thoughts about what it would feel like to put ourselves in the shoes of another person experiencing difficulty (e.g., losing a job, being insulted for how they look, etc.)

Finally, we discussed how we all benefit when we choose to be kind and what our classroom would feel like if we were surrounded by kindness.

The big question now is whether each of us will decide to choose the path of kindness, especially when no one is watching.

Measuring Volume

We are investigating volume. Today, students made a prediction about whether the volume of a cylinder would stay the same if you wrapped an 11"x17" piece of paper two different ways (e.g., portrait-wise or landscape-wise).

What we discovered surprised at least 50% of the class! Some students recalled the investigation we did comparing the perimeter of a shape to its area and made a connection that even though the perimeter stayed the same, the area changed. They wondered if this was a similar phenomenon.

Our next task is to explain why the volume changed so substantially. In order to do that, we will learn how to calculate the volume of a variety of 3D prisms, including cylinders.

Black History Month "Quilts"

Here are pictures of Bannon, William and Sheyanne's completed "quilts" highlighting the achievements and contributions of 20 Black Canadians.

This was a great project because we all learned about people we'd never heard about before.

The due date for this project was February 24.

The Big Project - Schoolyard Proposal

This week we are completing our scale drawing proposals for the schoolyard revitalization project that we're calling "The Big Project".

In this picture, you can see that William has put a great deal of effort into his scale drawing showing the location of all features of our schoolyard as well as his proposal for the location of a greenhouse, flower garden, buddy bench and outdoor classroom.

Students know that their scale drawings are due on Thursday February 24.

Our next step will be to review each student's proposal to determine the most appealing and practical final placement of each of the features.

TWOsday 22-02-2022

Today's date is a palindrome and an anagram which means it can be read the same way forwards, backwards and upside down! Add the fact that it's Tuesday and it makes a nice play on the word "two".

In fact, each date this week is also a palindrome. Check it out for yourself!

10 February 2001 (10-02-2001) and October 2, 2001 (10-02-2001) were both palindrome days this century. What other days this century would be palindromes?

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