April 27th

Did You Know…? The word for not having any teeth is edentulous.

Good evening,

The Grade 4 students and I continued to explore division today. We began looking at division with remainders. Consider the example below:

When solving (20 ÷ 3 =) you can draw a picture or use a multiplication fact to help you. When drawing a picture, think “20 divided into groups of 3.” Draw groups of 3 until you reach 20. Unfortunately you can only make 6 groups and will have 2 remaining to make 21. So, 20 ÷ 3 = 6R2. When using multiplication, you already know that 18 ÷ 3 = 6. You need to consider that 20 – 18 = 2. You would need 2 more to get to the total of 20. So, 20 ÷ 3 = 6R2.

When solving (17 ÷ 4 =) you can draw a picture or use a multiplication fact to help you. When drawing a picture, think “17 divided into groups of 4.” Draw groups of 4 until you reach 17. Unfortunately you can only make 4 groups and will have 1 remaining to make 17. So, 17 ÷ 4 = 4R1. When using multiplication, you already know that 16 ÷ 4 = 4. You need to consider that 17 – 16 = 1. You would need 1 more to get to the total of 17. So, 17 ÷ 4 = 4R1. We will continue to explore division with remainders tomorrow.

In Social Studies today, we worked on two separate activities. The first, as a class we continued to explore Path of the Elders. Today we played the Trapping Game. In this game, students must tend to family trap lines, sell pelts, and buy food for the Band to survive the winter. The students need to learn bargaining skills and how to negotiate with the Hudson’s Bay Company. It also teaches students the concept of reciprocity. Similar to our previous game, students also need to seek advice from Elders throughout the game. In order to be successful, students must show a respect for the animals and a thorough understanding of the land. It can be tough to survive out on the trap line if you aren’t careful and respectful! We will continue to use this resource to continue our study of the Fur Trade and First Nations culture and perspectives, in upcoming classes.

Secondly, the Grade 5 students continued to look at different groups of homesteaders that helped to settle Western Canada. In our projects, students were either Eastern European or British. Today, we further discussed some of the difficulties and hardships faced by early homesteaders. Students began to examine other groups of homesteaders: British, Eastern European, Francophone, Hutterite and Mennonite, and Indian. Students were asked to consider: “Why did these people come to Canada?” “What was life like for them when they arrived in Canada?” and “Were they initially accepted and welcomed?” I think it was interesting for many students to discover that for many, who did not look or act culturally British, not being accepted was an added hardship that many immigrants had to face. For example, many of the first Indian immigrants were not allowed to disembark from the ship and land in Canada until they had dressed “like everyone one.” For many of us, it can be difficult to read about and to understand a Canada that is not multicultural and inclusive, which makes it that much more important that we read and learn about our past errors, so that we understand the importance of promoting acceptance and inclusion today.

The Grade 4 students continued to research agricultural practices in Canada. Students who completed their research began their own homesteaders project. Students were asked to create a character. The character had to be either a farmer or a rancher. Then students were asked to consider “What resources does your character need?” “What resources does your character produce?” “What is life on the farm or ranch like?” “Why is your farm or ranch important to Alberta?” I’m excited to read about everyone’s characters!

Agenda:

Read 20 minutes

Language Arts: