We in Grade 4/5 are all look- ing forward to spring finally arriving, and hope that you are enjoying the weather as it slowly warms up. We defi- nitely are! The Grade 4/5 class have begun studying a few new topics this month. We are learning about the three levels of Canadian government in Social Studies. In ELA, we continue to practice our language skills and we are exploring poetry. We have also started our novel study of Coraline. In Science we are exploring the exciting world of SOUND! So far we have made homemade kazoos to learn about sound waves and learned about pitch using the strings of a violin, and there are many more exciting activities ahead! We are also learning about eating well in Health. The Grade 4s are doing very well on their Fractions & Decimals unit so far. I continue to be blown away by the great ideas and unending creativity of these students! Finally, we would like to CONGRATULATION Mrs. Pozniak, on the safe and happy arrival of her baby boy, Kade! We can’t wait to see more pictures.

Wow, only two months of school left! Time has sure been flying by! In ELA, we will soon be wrapping up our poetry unit. The students have done a wonderful job with their writing! So far, we have written and published haiku, triplet, diamante, alphabet, and acrostic poems. We will be learning about one or two more poems, and then constructing our poetry anthology. As mentioned in last month’s letter, if there are any pictures to decorate the student’s acrostic poem about themselves, please send them in the next week. Just remember to send something that can be cut out and glued onto their poem.

We are also starting guided reading centers in ELA that we will continue to work on until the end of the year. In math, the grade two’s are just beginning a unit on geometry, while the grade three students are learning about data management with Mr. Woods-Fehr. In science, we will soon finish our habitat research project. The students have researched their individual habitats and are now writing their reports which they will share with the class in the next couple of weeks. We also talked about creating a small representation of their habitat to share with the class as well. Please help your child create this at home and send it to school for May 6, when we will start presenting our projects. A small box, such as a shoebox would work for creating this representation. I also have a few cheesecake boxes if you do not have something at home that would work. Students can paint, build their habitat out of clay, or use toy models as some examples for their project. Please don’t spend a lot of money, but be creative with what you have at home if possible. Please include what the habitat looks like, as well as maybe some animals and plants that you may find there. Thank you for your help with this fun project!

February brings yet another change for the Grade 2/3 class. My last day will be February 15, then Mrs. Romanchuk returns after the break. In the last few days before the break, we’ll be wrapping up our Owls in the Family novel study, working on our measurement units in Math and continuing our Health classes along with Mr. Cory. I’ve had a wonderful time teaching the 2/3s. I’ve been so impressed by their growth and creativity. I’m making sure to fit some cool Art and Language Arts projects into our last couple of weeks to tap into that creative spirit. There are a few other fun events happening this month too. Keagan & Brody earned Saber awards for their great attitudes, bright outlooks and hard work! We also had our Bunch of Munsch puppet show day with the Dundurn students, and of course Valentine’s Day brings celebration and sweet treats to our room! I will miss this class and being part of the Hanley staff. I hope I’ll be able to stop in to see how everyone is doing throughout the rest of the year. Good Luck 2/3! Miss Stefanson

The grade 4/5 students have been enjoying all the snow at breaks and playing on the hill. Writer’s workshop has been a big focus for their work in ELA and the parts of the Human body including the various systems has been the focus the last few weeks in Science. In Grade 5 math, multiplication and division are the current topics and in Grade 4 Area is the topic we’re finishing up with our test today. We continue to learn about the pioneers in Social Studies. To raise money for our  coming field trip next month, we’re holding a Dirt and Worms sale (chocolate pudding and gummy worms) at noon on March 1st. Mmmm, sounds yummy!

busy. In ELA, we have started a novel called “A Long Way Gone” by Ishmael Beah. It’s about child soldiers in the civil war in Sierra Leone. In Social Studies we have looked at the United Nations Millenium Development Goals and we are working on some research, awareness and expression projects. In Health class, we are looking at some of the issues that are affecting teenagers in 2013 and comparing them to the issues of teenagers in dec