Friday, September 27 Update

Class Update - Sept. 27, 2019

Hello Families!

It's been another huge week in class 7A.  Monday we had an awesome trip to the zoo, and Tuesday we had an even more awesome trip to Lake Louise!  On Wednesday we worked with our buddies to winterize the naturalization area and planted many bulbs that will come up in the spring.

In curricular news, we are moving along really well!

Science - Students wrote their first quiz in science on concepts from the ecosystem unit.
Math - We are nearly finished our mean, median, mode, range and outliers component of the statistics unit.  We will have a quiz on this next Thursday.
Social Studies - We have a presentation on Monday about the ways of life of the first nations people.  We will be jumping ahead in the curriculum to look at residential schools so that we can pair that learning with Orange shirt day.
Language Arts - Students continue to work on their science fiction short stories.  We also are continuing in our regular writer's workshops, read-alouds, and individual reading.

Next Week
Monday - Social Studies presentations
Tuesday - Science Presentations
Wednesday - St. Patrick's Island field study
Thursday - Math Quiz
Friday - Crossroads Market field study

It has been an awesome, and very busy year so far, thank you all so much for the support you have given us so far.

Finally, I wanted to share with all of you that I will be away from October 7 to 21.  We will have Kat Han as the substitute teacher for that time.  She is a regular in the school, and has been with the class already on the days I have been away.  I will give highly detailed and interactive plans for her to follow while I'm away.  If you have any questions about this please feel free to contact me at blferrell@cbe.ab.ca

I will post another update next Friday!  Have a great weekend!

Brandie

Class Website

Hello Families,

I'm starting to post school related content (learning materials, project outlines, etc.) on my class website.  Here is how to access it:

https://sites.google.com/educbe.ca/msferrell7a/home

This should assist in work completion at home, and hopefully saving a few trees!

Brandie

7A Update - September 19, 2019

Hello 7A Families,

I am SO sorry that is has been since the first week of school that I have posted.  The beginning of this school year has been off to a whirlwind of a start.

We have already gone on two field studies, with two next week!  I think we had super fun and educational experiences at both Journey 2050, and Beakerhead.  Both of these trips are laying the foundation for in class learning as well.

As I go through forms and ensure I have everyone's media releases I will be able to start posting pictures.  If you DO NOT want a picture of your child in the blog (despite having a media release signed), please let me know.

Curriculum Updates
Science - We are working on a species profile to compliment our learning about ecosystems.  We are going to start looking at elements of the plant unit as well, and how to set up an experiment.

Math - We have completed a review of important concepts from previous years and engaged in some creative problem solving.  We have also learned about mean, median, and mode, and will use this statistical learning in the creation of our experiments.

Social Studies - We are learning about the ways of live of some of the First Nations People of Canada.  

Language Arts - We are working on quite a lot here.  We have started our routine of daily writer's workshops, are beginning a short story unit to work on different reading comprehension skills, and are reading No Fixed Address as part of a class read aloud.  The author will be coming to the school to do a presentation for the grade 6's and 7's as part of Calgary's Word Fest.

Upcoming Field Studies

Calgary Zoo

Date: Monday, September 23th 

Time: 9:30 - 2:30

Purpose: We are going to study the habitats of the different species at the zoo, and reflect on whether or not their needs are being met, we will also examine different species and their adaptations for survival.

Lake Louise and Moraine Lake

REMINDER .... this trip starts at 7:30am and returns at 5:30pm.  Students MUST be at school at 7:15.  Thank you!

St. Patrick’s Island

Date: Wednesday, October 2

Time: 9:45 - 2:30

Purpose: We are going to conduct an ecological study here.  This is going to be the first of many trips to St. Pat’s, as the students will choose a part of the park, and creating a longitudinal study that will be followed throughout the year.

Crossroads Market

Date: Friday, October 4

Time: 8:10 - 12:25

Volunteers required: 3 - 5

Purpose: This is going to be an inquiry-based field study, where the students will journal about the different stands in the market and what they are observing about these small businesses.  This will start the process of our marketing fair in the spring.

**This is a walking field trip, and it is approximately 3.5K each way.  Please be prepared for any type of weather.

Bridgeland Scavenger Hunt – Outdoor Education Activity run by PE

Date: Friday, October 18

Time: 8:00 – 12:30

Volunteers required: as many as possible (up to 7)

Purpose: Students will learn navigation strategies and the history of Bridgeland through this interactive Outdoor Education activity!

Ralph Klein Park

Date: Wednesday, October 23

Time: 8:10 - 2:50

Volunteers required: 3

Purpose: We will be participating in the Bioblitz program.  We will also study their LEED certified education building as part of our structures and forces unit, and study the rooftop garden, making connections to the Plants unit.

Pearce Estate Park

Date: Monday, October 28th

Time: 9:00 - 2:30

Volunteers required: 3 - 5

Purpose: We will conclude much of our ecosystems unit here, as well as do a study of Harvie Passage.  We will examine how rivers shape landscapes, and how humans can impact the natural environment.  This is part of our planet earth unit.

**This is a walking field trip, and it is approximately 3.5K each way.  Please be prepared to walk and spend the day outdoors.

Welcome to 7A!

Hello Students and Parents!

Welcome to your grade 7 year.  This year you will be in the 7A homeroom, with me, Ms. Ferrell, as your teacher.

Forms
Your child should have come home today with a few forms and letters. The main package of forms will be coming home later this week.  This will contains many important sheets, such as media releases, permission to try out for athletics, and many others.

While all of these forms are important and should be returned in a timely manner, it would be greatly appreciate if you looked at the FINE ARTS AND DESIGN options selection form with your child tonight and returned it by tomorrow, Wednesday, September 4th.  This is required so we can create our options classes and start them by Thursday at the same time as band.

Supplies List

• lined paper (1 pack) 
• grid paper (1 pack) 
• geometry set  
• scissors 
• erasers (many) 
• 30 cm ruler  
• pencils and pens 
• 5-6 duotangs (no binders or coiled notebooks please) 
• pencil case/pencil box  
• fine-point sharpies or markers 
• scientific calculator (must have the pi button as an option) 
• This is very important, as we are asking that students NOT use their phones in class as calculators. 
• pencil crayons 
• pencil sharpener 

Field Studies

We have already planned three field studies for September!  We do not have a classroom co-ordinator yet, so if you are able to be a parent volunteer on any of these trips please let me know immediately!  My e-mail is blferrell@cbe.ab.ca 

The field studies are:

• September 9th: Journey 2050 at the Stampeded grounds
• Time: 8:30am - 2:30pm
• Volunteers required: 3
• Purpose: During this field study we will be learning about agriculture in Alberta, different types of land use, and the future of the global food supply.
• September 18th: Beakerhead at Prince's Island Park
• Time: 9:00am - 2:30pm
• Volunteers required: 3 
• Purpose: During this field study students will be exposed to what is possible when the world's of science and art collide.  This immersive experience will be the basis of much of the work we will do this year in projects.
• September 24th: Lake Louise and Moraine Lake 
• Time: 7:30 - 5:30
• Volunteers required: 3
• Purpose: During this study we will bus to Lake Louise and take the sight-seeing gondola up the ski hill for the Bear Program and a hike.  We will have a lunch buffet at the ski hill before heading to Moraine Lake.  While there we will walk along the lake shore and learn about the mountain building process.

That is everything for now!  I look forward to meeting all of you in the upcoming year!

Brandie