Mr. Clarke’s Classroom News – Nov 17, 2023
The days are getting shorter and time continues to fly by. Students are immersed in learning a variety of different things across the curriculum. Students are incredibly busy and are looking forward to discussing their progress at our upcoming Parent Teacher Conferences this week. If you haven't had the chance to do so, please sign up early this week so you don't miss out.
Please see the important dates below.
Have a wonderful week!
Important Dates:
- 3rd Coding Session – Nov 21st beginning at 9:00am
- Parent Teacher Conferences – Nov 23rd & 24th (no school on the Friday)
- PD Day – Dec 8th (no school for students)
- Winter Solstice Celebration - Dec 21st from 6:00-8:00pm
Contact Information
If you need to contact me, please use the information below:
Woodbine School 403.777.8630
Simon Clarke – sjclarke@cbe.ab.ca
Mr. Clarke’s Classroom News – Nov 9, 2023
It is hard to believe we have reached the new Fall Break already. The past two and a half months have been a whirlwind filled with fun and lots of learning.
I hope all of you are able to take advantage of the next few days to enjoy some well-deserved family time. I have included some important dates below for you so you can see what is coming up over the next couple of weeks.
Before we know it, the Winter Break will be here and a New Year will be upon us. Time flies! Hang on to your little one and enjoy your time with them as much as you can. Having two grown boys who are very close to leaving the nest, I can tell you it goes by in the blink of an eye!
Enjoy the break everyone and we will see you when we return to school on November 15th!
Important Dates:
- Fall Break – Nov 9th-14th (back to school on 15th)
- 2nd Coding Session – Nov 15th beginning at 9:00am
- Parent Teacher Conferences – Nov 23rd & 24th (no school on the Friday)
- PD Day – Dec 8th (no school for students)
Contact Information
If you need to contact me, please use the information below:
Woodbine School 403.777.8630
Simon Clarke – sjclarke@cbe.ab.ca
Mr. Clarke’s Classroom News – Nov 3, 2023
What a fun week it has been in Room 14! Hallowe’en arrived with all of its excitement and sugar rushes. Students dressed up and enjoyed games, movies and snacks in the afternoon before heading home to get ready for Trick or Treating. Candy wrappers and lots of smiles, as well as a little bit of extra energy have been the result.
All of our Grade Four students have been working on reciting the poem In Flanders Fields for our upcoming Remembrance Day Assembly. On Friday, they recorded it in one take and now it will be put together in a video to be shared with the rest of the school. All students did a great job focusing on the importance of the poem and the day.
Despite the ups and downs we have seen this week, snow and colder temperatures have definitely arrived. Please make sure your child is coming to school dressed for the weather and that they have all the necessary clothing to keep them warm and dry.
Looking Forward:
- In Math, we have finished a quick look at estimating and rounding and will be moving on to Geometry where we will focus on naming, measuring and drawing angles.
- In Science, we continue to explore Light and Shadow as we develop our understanding of how light interacts with different materials. This coming week, students will take part in a number of activities to highlight and solidify their understanding of the concepts we have covered to this point.
- Students have been working hard on their study of Alberta’s six different regions. They will continue putting their Travel Brochures and presentations together before we hold our Alberta Travel Show in a couple of weeks.
- We will continue our first Book Club this coming week as we dig more deeply into the intricacies of the book Restart using our Book Club Roles. Please note, a PDF copy of the book as well as the audiobook and a description of the roles can be found in our Google Classroom. This will be helpful if students cannot be at school, but are able to do some work.
- Picture Retakes will take place on Monday (Nov 6th)
- Our Remembrance Day Assembly will be held on Wednesday.
- We are considering going to Fish Creek on Wednesday afternoon, depending on the weather.
- Thursday and Friday of the coming week along with Monday and Tuesday of the following week are days off as we move into the first ever Fall Break.
Important Dates:
- Picture Retakes – Nov 6th
- Remembrance Day Assembly – Nov 8th
- Fall Break – Nov 9th-14th (back to school on 15th)
- 2nd Coding Session – Nov 15th
- Parent Teacher Conferences – Nov 23rd & 24th
Contact Information
If you need to contact me, please use the information below:
Woodbine School 403.777.8630
Simon Clarke – sjclarke@cbe.ab.ca
Mr. Clarke’s Classroom News – Oct 27, 2023
I hope you all had a wonderful week despite the less than perfect weather and driving conditions. The end of October is just around the corner and we are speeding towards the new Fall and Winter breaks. Both will be upon us before you know it.
Hallowe’en arrives this week. If they choose, students are welcome to dress up for the whole day in their costumes. Please keep in mind, we are still working, so they will need to be able to sit and remove any masks. Also, students are not allowed to bring any kinds of weapons to school even if they are part of their costumes. Please make sure they do not accidentally bring them with them.
We took part in the first of three sessions with Kids Code Jeunese to learn some of the basics of coding. It was a blast. Ask your child about it!
Snow and colder temperatures have arrived. Please make sure your child is coming to school dressed for the weather and that they have all the necessary clothing to keep them warm and dry.
Looking Forward:
- We will wrap up our look at addition and subtraction with regrouping on Monday with our Unit Test. We will then be moving on to Geometry where we will focus on naming, measuring and drawing angles.
- In Science, we continue to explore Light and Shadow as we develop our understanding of how light interacts with different materials. This week we started making kaleidoscopes. We will finish them this coming week and explore the world of colour.
- Students have been working hard on thier study of Alberta’s six different regions. They have almost finished collecting their information. From there, they will be put into groups and will make Travel Brochures and a presentation to attract tourists to the region they have been studying.
- We will continue our focus on writing and will also start our first Book Club this coming week.
Important Dates:
- Hallowe’en – Oct 31st
- Picture Retakes – Nov 6th
- Remembrance Day Assembly – Nov 8th
- Fall Break – Nov 9th-14th (back to school on 15th)
- 2nd Coding Session – Nov 15th
- Parent Teacher Conferences – Nov 23rd & 24th
Contact Information
- If you need to contact me, please use the information below:
Woodbine School 403.777.8630
Simon Clarke – sjclarke@cbe.ab.ca
Mr. Clarke’s Classroom News – Oct 13, 2023
I hope you all had a wonderful long weekend and were able to enjoy the beautiful weather and some Thanksgiving festivities with family and friends. It is hard to believe we have already reached the middle of October.
Hallowe’en is fast approaching and will be here in no time. And, we all know what that means. Snow and colder temperatures are just around the corner. As we get closer to the change in season, please make sure your child is coming to school dressed for the weather and that they have all the necessary clothing to keep them warm and dry.
Our first field trip of the year is taking place this coming week! We are very excited to be heading to Telus Spark on Tuesday to take part in a program focusing on Light & Shadows. It will no doubt be a great day filled with learning and fun!
If you haven’t had the opportunity, please make sure to jump onto your MyCBE app and pay for your child to attend. The cost is $20.00. We would ask that you do this prior to the trip.
Looking Forward:
- Over the next couple of weeks in Math, we will be focusing on addition and subtraction with regrouping and solidify students’ abilities in this area. We will then be moving on to Geometry where we will focus on naming, measuring and drawing angles.
- In Science, we have started work on our Light & Shadows unit. We will continue this exploration as we develop our understanding of how light interacts with different materials.
- Students began a study of Alberta’s six different regions last week. We will continue working on this as they learn more about the region they have been assigned and collect information to use at a later date.
- We continue to focus on the basics of writing in Language Arts with students learning how to add detail to take their writing to the next level. They are also learning how to respond and dig into the books they are reading during our daily silent reading time as we prepare to our upcoming Book Clubs.
- Our first Literacy Group rotation is well underway. Students have been broken into groups and are focusing on developing their reading and reading comprehension skills.
Important Dates:
- Telus Spark Field Trip – Oct 17th
- Non-Instructional Day – Oct 20th (No school for students)
Picture of the Week:
Self-Portraits in the style of Tim Burton. Fun times!!!
Contact Information
If you need to contact me, please use the information below:
Woodbine School 403.777.8630
Simon Clarke – sjclarke@cbe.ab.ca
Quick Update
Please no dogs on school property:
A dog is a person's best friend, however, we need you to know that they are not allowed on school property, even if you have them on a leash. A number of children are uncomfortable with dogs and not all dogs are as well behaved as yours.
We thank you for your support.
Mr. Clarke’s Classroom News - Sept 28, 2023
Another week has come and gone. This week we have spent time discussing Truth & Reconciliation and what part we play in it. It was fabulous to see so many kids wearing orange shirts on Thursday. While it is only one day, it brings us one step closer to reconciliation.
Our first field trip of the year is booked. On October 17th, we will be heading to Telus Spark to take part in a program focusing on Light & Shadows for Science. In order to go, each class needs four parent volunteers to join us on this trip. If you have your Volunteer Clearance in place and if you are available and would like to join us, please email me with your details (name and phone number). I will sign up the first four people to email me. Please note, there will be other opportunities later in the year if you can’t make it this time.
Looking Forward:
- In Math, we will be finishing our look at Place Value before moving on to a review of Addition & Subtraction. We will continue to work on our basic facts. These are things you can work on at home. Knowing their basic facts up to 12 x 12 by the end of the year will make their future work in math so much easier.
- In Science, we will continue working on our mini-project on Plants. We are hoping to finish our research by the end of the week, just in time for our first real trip down to Fish Creek where we will be looking at some of the different trees and plants.
- In Social, we will wrap u our look at mapping and begin a project focused on learning about the six different regions found in Alberta. This will include a look at the location, landforms, natural resources, animals, vegetation, climate, Indigenous Communities and recreational activities found in each region.
- In Language Arts, we will continue focusing on developing our writing skills with a focus on adding detail and triple-scoop words to our descriptions. Not sure what a triple-scoop word is – ask your son or daughter.
- We will also be starting our first Literacy Group rotation. Students will be broken into groups and will begin focusing on different aspects of reading.
Important Dates:
- Truth & Reconciliation Day – Sept 29th (No school for students)
- Seed Survivor Program – Oct 3rd
- Thanksgiving – Oct 9th (No school for students)
- Picture Day – Oct 10th
- Telus Spark Field Trip – Oct 17th
- Non-Instructional Day – Oct 20th (No school for students)
Picture of the Week:
Contact Information
If you need to contact me, please use the information below:
Woodbine School 403.777.8630
Simon Clarke – sjclarke@cbe.ab.ca
Mr. Clarke’s Classroom News - Sept 15, 2023
It has been a crazy week in Room 14. And our first full week of the year to boot. We continue to work on developing routines and getting some of our baseline testing done. This work will continue through the next week as we aim to be getting up to full speed in the next couple of weeks.
As a team, we have been looking at field trips for the year and are in the process of getting things booked. Keep an eye on your email in early October for information about our first field trip of the year.
We are also in the process of booking some on-site activities and experiences for the grade fours. It is going to be a year full of fun and learning!
Looking Forward:
- In Math, we will continue our work on Place Value as we work to strengthen the students understanding of number. We will also continue to work on our basic facts. These are things you can work on at home. Knowing their basic facts up to 12 x 12 by the end of the year will make their future work in math so much easier.
- In Science, we will continue our look at Plants and how they impact the word around us.
- In Social, we have been working on our mapping skills. This will continue for the next week before we jump into a look at the different regions of Alberta.
- In Language Arts, we have spent some time working some different pieces of writing in order to get our baseline for the year. We will begin focusing more on story writing in the coming days.
- Our annual Terry Fox Run/Walk is this coming Wednesday. There will be an assembly before we head down to Fish Creek and walking one of the longer routes with all the grade four classes.
- We will be holding an Open House this coming Thursday (Sept 21st) to give you the chance to stop by and see the class and meet me in a more relaxed manner. Friday will be used to meet with some of you who are needing to talk about specific concerns you may have.
- As part of our work in Science this Fall, we will be building Kaleidoscopes. To accomplish this, we would ask that each student bring an empty, regular-sized Pringles can with lid to school. Please avoid the larger or snack-sized ones.
Important Dates:
- Terry Fox Run/Walk – Sept 20th
- Open House 4:30-8:00pm – Sept 21st
- Parent Teacher Conferences 8:00-1:00pm – Sept 22nd (No school for students)
- Truth & Reconciliation Day – Sept 29th (No school for students)
Picture of the Week:
Contact Information
- If you need to contact me, please use the information below:
Woodbine School 403.777.8630
Simon Clarke – sjclarke@cbe.ab.ca
Mr. Clarke’s Classroom News
Aug 31 – Sept 1, 2023
Looking Back
- Welcome to the 2023/2024 School Year!!!
- It is so wonderful to have students back in the building after the summer. Their energy and enthusiasm fill the school and our classroom!
- This week, we spent time reviewing expectations and discussing how our classroom works.
- We have begun some work on a mini-project where they draw pictures of things that reflect who they are.
- We did a little bit of testing to see what they remember from grade three as we get ready to jump into our work next week.
- Thank you to everyone for making sure your children are coming to school prepared to learn. They have adjusted well to their new learning environment.
We are looking forward to a great year!
Looking Forward
- We will continue some baseline testing to get an idea of where everyone is and where we need to go from here.
- We will be jumping into the curriculum in earnest this week.
- We will continue working on our art projects focused on the things that reflect who they are.
- If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me using the information below.
- Please check Google Classroom regularly with your child. Updates will be added to the stream on a regular basis to keep you informed regarding things happening in the classroom during the day.
- A Class Update will also come out weekly via our class blog which can be found using the following link:
https://school.cbe.ab.ca/school/Woodbine/teaching-learning/classes-departments/teacher-pages-blogs/Pages/simon-clarke.aspx
Important Dates
- Labour Day Monday – No School
- Meet the Teacher – Sept 21st & 22nd
- Truth & Reconciliation Day Sept 29th – No School
Picture of the Week
Contact Information
If you need to contact me, please use the information below:
Woodbine School 403.777.8630
Simon Clarke – sjclarke@cbe.ab.ca
Mr. Clarke's Classroom News - August 2023
Welcome to Grade Four Everyone! I am looking forward to meeting all of you.
Update - August 30, 2023
Please see my Welcome Letter on the right. See you all tomorrow!
