The wonderful artwork and decorated halls for out 100th birthday. Happy Centennial Herbert Spencer!!

June 7, 2012

Dear Parents,

I have arranged a couple of walking trips within our community in the next few weeks to support the concepts presented in the Social Studies curriculum. The weather is improving, hopefully, and we will learn more about our “special” neighbourhood, the place we live. The following dates have been booked. If you would like to join us on any of the trips, please indicate on the slip below.

 June 18^th to Electric Company (First Street – 10 min walk) 9-11:00

June 21^st to Irving House (Royal Ave.- 23 min walk) 9:00-11:30

I cannot believe we are in the final month of school. The year has passed so quickly. I want to thank those parents who have taken the “extra” time from their busy schedule to volunteer in our class. We really appreciate your interest and expertise that you bring to our classroom.

Yours truly,

Carla Sumarlidson.

____________________________________________________________________

          My name is ________________________________

          I would like to volunteer for ____________________________

                                                            Field trip and date

The Iditarod, snow dogs and Akiak. Akiak knew it. the other dogs knew it, too.

April 17, 2012

Dear Parents:

Wednesday, April 25^th will be our Open House. The class will be “OPEN” from 1:45 to 4 PM. Parents are to attend, if they wish, with their child. Please do NOT feel obligated to attend if you came before Spring Break when we displayed our Imaginary Animals and Inuit Posters.

Remember, parents that students are very excited to share with you their school experiences and this is an opportunity for you to see classroom displays and build a positive bond with your child. I will be on hand for facilitation. You will be in the room with other parents and students so, as a reminder, please do not bring younger siblings to this conference.

I will be there to support your child when necessary, remind him/her of things to share with you.

Your job will be to encourage and praise your child for the things he/she is able to do and to ask questions of your child. Remember that you can have the opportunity to speak with me at another time if you wish.

Before you leave the school you might want to visit the Computer Room or gym.

I, _______________________________, will be able to attend the OPEN HOUSE with my

          (your name)

child ____________________________________ …

           (child’s name)

Yours truly,

Ms. C. Sumarlidson.

École Herbert Spencer School

April 2, 2012

Re: Field Trip to Burns Bog

Dear Parents or Guardians,
We will be going on a field trip to Burns bog on Monday, April 16^th.  This field trip will help to deepen the students’ understanding of plants and animals, habitats and communities, food webs, ecosystems, natural resources, history and First Nations as well as human impacts on the environment. 

Most of this day will be spent outdoors rain or shine, so please ensure that your child is dressed appropriately for the weather. 

We will be leaving school at approximately 9:00 am and will be returning at approximately 12:30 pm.  We will be travelling to our destination by bus. 

We are asking for some parents to accompany us on the bus and at Burns Bog.

The cost for the field trip is $2.00 per student. Please forward the following permission slip and $2.00 to your child’s teacher by Tuesday, April 10th.

Thank you,

Mme Copley

Ms. Sumarlidson

I, __________________, give permission for my child, _______________ ,to attend the field trip to Burns Bog on Monday, April 16^th, 2012 and to travel there by bus. 

­­­­­ Yes, I would like to accompany you on The Field trip to Burns Bog.

First Nations' Drums

Students created these beautiful skin drums and decorated following directed instruction of the eagle spirit.

Imaginary Animal Projects

Just a few of the amazing projects completed by students. Imaginary animals in their habitats some including prey and adaptations. Well done, everyone!

Parents and friends are invited Thursday, March 15th 9:20-12:00 to visit the classroom to see these projects and the research on the cultural aspects of the Arctic. Looking forward to seeing you there.

Anti Bullying - Wear Pink Day

Put your hand up and use your voice to stop bullying of everyone!

Handwriting Becomes Art - Name Bugs

Trip to Museum of Anthropology - Feb. 3rd

École Herbert Spencer School

UBC Museum of Anthropology

January 20^th, 2012

Dear Parents,

Field trips are a very important aspect of your child’s learning. Field trips allow your child to try and experience new things, and provide a learning environment that the classroom environment cannot always provide. As part of our Social Studies, our class will be participating in a class field trip to the UBC’s Museum of Anthropology. This field trip will provide a wonderful addition to our First Nations unit.

We will be travelling to the museum by school bus with Mme Copley’s class.  We will be doing a workshop with a facilitator called “The Potlatch”.

We will need a small number of parents to lead and supervise groups of students in the gallery while we are not at our workshop.

This field trip will take place on Friday, February 3 ^rd, 2012. We will be leaving the school, by bus, at about 9:05, so please make sure that your child arrives at school on time. We will return to the school by dismissal time.

Students are encouraged to wear appropriate clothes for the weather, as we will be attending this field trip rain or shine. The lunch portion of our field trip will occur outside. (make sure your child has an environmentally friendly lunch)

The cost of this field trip is $5.00. Due to job action, I will not be collecting money for this field trip therefore a parent volunteer (??) will be required to do so. I will ask this person to contact you via-email to let you know how and where they would like to collect the money.  A big thank you to this person from us!

Please return signed permission slips to me by  Monday, January, 30^th .

Yours sincerely,

Ms. C. Sumarlidson

           

_____Yes, my child __________________ has my permission to go on the field trip to the Museum of Anthropology, on Friday, February 3^rd , 2012.

_____ I have sent $5.00 to ________________________(parent collecting $) as part of the fee required for the field trip.

___Yes, I would like to attend the field trip and supervise a group of students when at the Museum of Anthropology.

___________________________

Parent/Guardian Signature

Christmas Letter

  

December 6, 2011

Dear Parents:

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you and your families!! I hope your preparations for the upcoming holiday are going well and that you are able to relax and enjoy this part of the year with your loved ones.

We are preparing our Christmas play and the students are eagerly awaiting their performance. The Grinch Who Stole Christmas is sure to be a success! I have set the date of the performance to Wednesday, December 14^th in the morning for classes and parents are invited to come either at 9:30 or 11:30 am.

We will make, bake and decorate gingerbread men/women as part of a literature sequence on Monday, December 12^th. Any parents who would like to join us that morning and help out with baking or decorating are welcome. Please write a note in your child’s agenda and let me know what you would like to do.

Donations of the following would be appreciated:

Multi-colored sprinkles

White icing (pre-made)

Smarites or M&M’s

Next, we have discussed participating in a “Secret Elf” activity. I will arrange for students who are interested to select another student at random. “Secret Santa’s Elves” provide encouraging words, thoughtful remarks, and genuine support towards their chosen person. Gifts are acceptable but I’ve asked students to limit money spent ($5 max) and provide “token” gestures of good will.

Lastly, we will have our Christmas celebration on Friday, Dec. 16^th in the morning (skating in the afternoon) and anyone who would like to contribute goodies they would be greatly appreciated.

Best wishes to you all in the New Year! See you in 2012!!

Ms. Carla Sumarlidson.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I plan to join you on December 12^th  to help with the Christmas gingerbread cookies.

Name ______________________________                          Phone # _______________________

Welcome to Whoville - We'll see you Wednesday!

The Grinch Who Stole Christmas Production

Gingerbread Cookies - A Christmas to Remember

Building Bridges - in more than one way

Progress Reports Coming Home Today

Dear Parents,

This is your child’s progress report. Your child has worked very hard to reflect on their progress and evaluate themselves then develop goals for next term. Research tells us that when students are able to analyze and articulate their progress there is a better understanding of their learning processes. This is called Metacognition.

Metacognition means becoming increasingly aware of one’s actions and the effect of those actions on others and on the environment; forming internal questions as one searches for information and meaning, developing mental maps or plans of actions, mentally rehearsing prior to performance, monitoring those plans as they are employed-being conscious of the need for midcourse correction if the plan is not meeting expectations, reflecting on the plan upon completion of the implementation for the purpose of self-evaluation, and editing mental pictures improved performance.

                                                Dr. Milton McClaren

The students completed several self evaluations and have reflected on their abilities in some basic areas. I have conferenced and commented on these evaluations. I think you will agree that our evaluations are close to being the same in most cases. Please take some time with your child to go through their books and celebrate their triumphs this term. I am very proud of each student’s journey in my class. Keep up the good work everyone!!

Parents please return all work to the school after you have had a good chance to look at everything. Duotangs must come back to school immediately so students can continue to work:))

Thank you,
Carla Sumarlidson.

Building Community One Map at a Time

"The Talking Cloth"

A Service to Remember - Well Done Div. 6

Super Fun Halloween Celebration!! Thanks to all who helped:))

Spooky Treats made our Halloween Menu memorable!!

Mayor Wright Reads his Book to us for Literacy Week

Thank you, Mayor! We really enjoyed your Tall Tale.