March 1

Upcoming School events!

Hello, Grade 4 Families,

Here are the upcoming events. Each child will be coming home with the below slide.

*For Monday, March 25th dress down day during Ruach Week, we decided as a class that each person will wear whatever costume they want (school-appropriate) for the Carnival!

 

December 15

Amplify Reading program

What is Amplify reading?

Amplify is the new reading platform (the umbrella company) that the OJCS purchased licences for this year to use as a pilot project to enhance our current reading programs. We bought three programs for our school through Amplify, each explained below.

  1. mClass – DIBELS 8 assessment 
  2. Boost Reading 
  3. Boost Close Reading

Why did we choose Amplify? 

It is the platform that most closely aligns with the evidence-based body of research referred to as the ‘Science of Reading’. The Science of Reading research shows the need for students to have word recognition skills (such as phonemic awareness, decoding skills through phonics, and reading fluency) and language comprehension (including knowledge of vocabulary, morphology, and syntax) to read and comprehend text. 

What is DIBELS?

DIBELS ® (Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills) is a set of procedures and measures for assessing the acquisition of literacy skills. They are designed to be short (one-minute) fluency measures that can be used to regularly detect risk and monitor the development of early literacy and early reading skills. These results help us identify who is below, at or above grade level in each skill and then target instruction (i.e. with small groups, resource support, homework etc..) accordingly. This is an assessment that is completed in class with the teacher. 

What is Boost Reading?

Boost Reading is the reading program licence we purchased for our students K-5. Boost Reading is a literacy acceleration and remediation program that uses adaptive technology to deliver personalized learning instruction for K–5 students. The engaging world of Boost Reading adapts to each unique reader. Boost Reading was authored by experts in literacy, cognitive science, learning, and instruction. It builds on well-established principles of effective instructional design and delivery, as well as new and cutting-edge research on how students learn to read.

Can my child use this program at home?

Yes, please! Get your child set up to use Boost Reading at home by making sure they have a set of headphones and a quiet place to play. Boost Reading is personalized to your child’s needs, so you don’t need to and you should NOT assist them with their learning. Once they log in, they’re ready to start using the program. Some students will begin with a placement activity that helps the program match them to the best content. To ensure the most accurate placement, students must complete each activity independently. It’s always helpful to encourage your child to have fun and do their best!

What will I see as a parent on report cards?

On the report card, teachers will share how a student is performing in various strands related to reading, including decoding, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension. With data from the DIBELS assessment, the report cards will indicate whether the student is performing above grade, at grade or below grade level in each specific skill assessed. They will also share the next steps to target skills that are still developing. 

October 23

Goal Setting conferences – November 2nd and November 3rd

Dearest Grade 4 parents, 

North Star alert!  At OJCS, our students own their own learning, which means learning to goal-set is of paramount importance to their growth and development – now and throughout their lives.  Our conferencing opportunity to sit together with you and your child to discuss personalized goals is swiftly approaching on Thursday, November 2nd & Friday, 3rd, we are sending along some much-needed information to support you and your child through this growth process. 

Here is a helpful timeline so you understand the flow of the Goal-Setting Conferences:

A grade-level appropriate lesson has been taught to help your child understand the benefits of setting personal goals (whether academic, social skills-related, social-emotional and/or spiritual).

  • Our teachers are currently meeting individually with each student to help them think about what goals would be most beneficial for them at this time. You will receive a blank goal template ahead of time, ready to discuss on the day/night. This is a part of your child’s homework this week. You are encouraged to discuss your own goals for your child with them and bring these ideas with you to Goal-Setting Conferences to add with the teacher.
  • You will book your Goal-Setting Conference with Ellie so that you can meet with the classroom teachers to have a meaningful discussion about the goals selected and to make a plan to help invite success.

This is a new process we are piloting in response to student, parent and teacher feedback.  We believe strongly that it will help everyone more easily connect the dots with regard to what should be prioritized for your child, with their voice and yours a part of the conversation.

Thanks in advance for the time you will be taking to discuss goals with your children.

With excitement,

The Grade-4-Team

October 6

Global Maker Day – Call for your recycling!

Hello Grade 4 families,

We need your recycled goods!

We are beginning to collect items for the OJCS Global Maker Day, on Tuesday, October 17th. We are looking for wine bottle corks, popsicle sticks, cereal/cracker boxes, toilet paper tubes, paint stir sticks, popsicle sticks, and plastic tubs/lids (think yogurt pots, sour cream tubs – clean please!) items to help with our creativity. 

Thank you for your continued support!

 

June 2

Mon Arbre Généalogique

To end our unit on Ma Famille, grade 4 students in Madame Sylvie’s class presented their family to the class “en français” with great pride. In addition to practicing the vocabulary learned in class, they showed their computer expertise and creativity. Creating their family tree entailed listening to a short Youtube video before attempting to follow the intricate steps on their own. The end results were quite impressive coming from such a young audience. Hearing them speak French when presenting their family tree projects made me incredibly proud of them. Félicitations les quatrième année – Madame Sylvie est fière de vous tous!

May 15

Grade 4 updates!

Upcoming Events:

  • Generations Day – Monday, May 15th
  • Oren’s dress down day on Wednesday, May 17th – Wear something ‘ crazy’
  • Menchies are being served on Mondays and Wednesdays after school. $4 per cup and all money raised goes towards the grade 8 grad trip.
  • No school Monday, May 22nd for Victoria Day
  • N0 School Friday, May 26th for Shavout.

Homework:

  • Practice your speech, using Verbal and nonverbal cues. Please see the homework board for Ms.M’s Slides.

What’s happening in Grade 4:

We had a great night out for Grades 4/5 night at Fun Haven. I managed to get one snap before Lazer tag!

 

We have started self-directed science. Please my blog post to find out more about the whys and hows surrounding student choices in curriculum planning! Here are some snaps of students working on their projects:

 

Alongside their self-directed learning, there are teacher-led lessons. We ventured outdoors to collect, classify and test the rocks and minerals we found on the school grounds.

We also have students bringing their rock collections to class. This is a wonderful extension of their learning. This week we have Mr.S and Mr. G showcase: