Crazy Hair and Hat Day!

Today was our first day to earn Team Spirit Points. What better way than to have wacky hair and crazy hats!? 

Have a 'wacky' weekend! :) 

Fruit Smoothies

Yesterday we tried our first class Healthy Smoothie. It was delicious! 

Here is our ingredients that we used:

- Mixed Berries (blueberry, blackberry, strawberry, raspberry)

- Kale

- Banana 

- Orange Juice 

- Yogurt (except our Dairy-Free students)

Put all the ingredients in a blender for about a minute. 

That's it! You have yourself a delicious, healthy snack!  

Healthy Eating

Last week we started to discuss Nutrition in a lot more detail. The children continue to brag about their healthy snacks and lunches so please keep them coming!

(Pudding has changed to yogurt, kool-aid has changed to orange juice, and fruit medly has changed to real fruit! :) )

I know many of you have asked about juice boxes... No, they are not banned from our class but I do prefer the juice box to be a healthier option (ie: Orange juice is fine!) The BEST option is water, but I am not going to force anything on anyone. 

Today we had Ms. L come in from NSTEP to play a food sorting game. The children almost Aced the test-- Eggs are considered 'Meat & Alternatives', not 'Dairy'. 

We also read a great story called 'Sweet Tooth' by Margie Palatini. It is about an ordinary boy with a big sweet tooth-- his back molar. Every day Stewart's sweet tooth demands sugary foods and is very aggressive. Stewart eats a lot of sugar to satisfy the tooth, but then eats too much where he feels sick to his stomach. One day, Stewart couldn't handle it anymore. He stopped eating sugar and chomped on a crunchy carrot. Finally, the crunchy carrot got rid of the sweet tooth and the tooth fairy had to deal with him. 

Last but definitely not least, we made silly, happy Vegetables. We discussed the importance of eating as many vegetables as you can in a day. They are full of vitamins and minerals, which make them nutritious! 

Be sure to check out our classroom window tomorrow morning! 

Happy, healthy eating! 

-- Division 16 

'Bugs in my Hair!?'

This week we had a couple of class discussions about Head Lice to prepare us for the upcoming school-wide lice check. The children are (almost) experts in what to look for and how to treat it if it happens to them. The most important thing we discussed was relaxing and that  "These things happen." Even if you are someone who washes their hair with 'luxurious shampoo' every day and seems 'perfect' at everything, or someone who may be the school nurse, it happens! The shampoo treatment is easy to use and the nit-comb (sometimes) can feel like a massage to the scalp. 

Here are a couple of great children's books to read and educate both parents and children in an entertaining kind of matter: 

Here are some great facts about lice: 

* They are not dangerous and do not carry diseases 

* They only like human blood (not your dogs!) 

* More than one is called 'Lice', a single one is called a 'Louse' 

* Eggs are called 'nits' 

* Lice can not jump or fly, just crawl

As well, in the book 'Bugs in my Hair?!' By Catherine Stier, Ellie decided to rewrite the lice information papers to not make them look and sound as scary as they first may seem. Here is her version: 

Relax, 'These things happen'! :) 

Have an 'itch-free' evening! 

-- Division 16 

Peace

This week our theme was PEACE. We discussed what we think peace is and why it's important in life. 

Inspired by another Todd Parr book, 'The Peace Book', we decided to create our own version by writing and painting what we think Peace is. 

As well, we created a class crane by filling the space with Zentangle patterns. Why an origami crane? Our school chose the origami crane because it is an international symbol of peace. There is a wonderful (but sad) story about a Japanese girl named Sadako Sasaki. She got diagnosed with Leukemia (also known as 'the atom bomb' disease) and when she was in the hospital she was told an old Japanese legend: Anyone who folds a thousand paper cranes would be granted a wish. Before she died, she completed over a thousand cranes and wished for world peace. In memory of Sadako and the loss of children from 'the atom bomb', there is a statue of Sadako holding a golden crane in Hiroshima Peace Park that reads "This is our cry, This is our prayer, Peace in the world." 

On Friday we not only continued our discussions on Peace but we read the book, 'Why We Remember', by students in Grade 1 from Graysville School in Graysville, Manitoba. The story is sad but explains in a child-friendly way of why we remember on Remembrance Day. The children made many connections and our class discussion could've gone on all day. 

Please do not forget to take a moment to remember the people who fought for our country. 

In closing, here is our Remembrace Day class photo. 

HAPPY REMEMBRANCE DAY! 

Gone Fishing

Today we learned how to fish! On the hopes of catching a rainbow trout, we casted our lines, untangled our knots, and waited (some what) patiently. 

We made many connections today. One, as we started our Peace unit this week, many students mentioned that fishing is 'peaceful'. It sure is! As well, the narrow 

part of the fishes body to which the caudal or tail fin is attached is called the 'caudal peduncle'. Yes, PEDUNCLE! 

Thank-you again to the wonderful parent volunteers we had today! Without you, these field trips wouldn't be possible! 

'Movember' is the new November

Today we had a brief discussion about 'Movember'. What is all the big fuss and why are so many men growing moustaches this month!? 

November is the month of awareness of Men's Health. The Movember Foundation  wanted to put a fun twist on the awareness of such a serious issue. They came up with a fun idea of men growing moustaches for the month of November (for awareness) and those same men would collect donations that would go to men's health and cancer research. 

Since Movember started, more and more people are raising awareness and being educated about Men's Health. Although our class is still young for the deeper details, we were able to make connections such as, raising money for cancer research because of Terry Fox. 

Today, we decided to raise awareness in our very own classroom. We cut out our very own moustaches and taped them on for the full affect. 

Here is our class photo today! 

Good luck to all the men, (women, and children) that are 'growing' moustaches this month. Thank-you for raising awareness! 

Love,

Division 16