The beginning of November brings the beginning of the much anticipated 3 Week Block of full-time teaching. I thought I would be feeling much more nervous but the program is designed so that I have been picking up classes gradually each week and it doesn’t seem to be such a huge undertaking compared to last week. 

This week we also had our two evenings of Student Led Conferences. It was great to meet many of my student’s parents for the first time and really nice to see each student have the opportunity to share their successes and what they have learned so far in the school year. 

My students have been working hard to finish their Giving Tree artwork to put up on the bulletin board outside the classroom. I was so impressed with the amount of work they put in to replicate the illustrations of the classic story.  

This week I kicked off my unit in Science on Structures and Materials. I created a Wonder Wall for students to ask any questions or post their ah-ha moments on. Through this bulletin board, they have gotten a preview of what is to come and I think they are getting excited to do some exploring. 

 In Social Studies, we have been learning about Indigenous cultures. This week I had my class working in small groups to learn about Indigenous homes and structures to integrate the two subjects. It was fun to see my students make connections between each class. I created an activity on SEESAW so that students could move through each station with an option to read an article, flip through a book, or listen to a recording to learn about each structure. They had a great time being able to work together and get up and moving around the classroom. I also found it really easy in this setting to work with individual students and check in on those that needed extra help. 

This week was extra busy with report card prep and Student Led Conferences. I’m looking forward to next week where I might make it home before 8:00 p.m. on a few occasions, but I won’t hold my breath. There is always more that can be done in the classroom, so one can never tell! This was a great week, but I am exhausted! 

Looking forward to next week!

Miss Philip

Artwork inspired by The Giving Tree: A Retelling of a Traditional Metis Story
by Leah Dorian
Learning about early Indigenous structures.