June 3rd - 7th

This Week:

Monday, June 3rd - NO SCHOOL for Kindergarten (Lieu Day)
Tuesday, June 4th  - Bike to School Day & Book Exchange (Last day to take a book home!)
Wednesday, June 5th  - 
Thursday, June 6th  -
Friday, June 7th  - AM Class Attends

Last Week:

In Math, we started looking at "One Less" strategies. Using the number line we explored different words that represent one less, such as taking away, going backwards, subtracting, and before. Every day we played our "One Less Game".

Thinking Like a Paleontologist
We did some more drawings and made fossils. We also discussed what kind of tools we would need to dig fossils. In our journals, we drew the tools and learned how to label our work. Our next step is to bury our fossils and uncovering them in our dinosaur land.








Jump Rope for Heart! 
Thank you for all the donations. The children had an awesome time during this one-hour outdoor event. We skipped, played with hoola-hoops, did some chalk drawings, chased a lot of bubbles, and for a healthy snack, we ate bananas. Thanks to our parent council for supporting this special event.


Important Dates Coming up:
June 10th - School Council/Fundraising Meeting 6:30 PM
June 13th - Circle of Sports Day PM
June 14th - PM Class Attends
June 14th - Volunteer Tea
June 21st - Aboriginal day
June 21st - AM Class Attends & Snack Day (Please order if interested)
https://healthyhunger.ca/index.php
June 25th - School Wide BBQ (Please order if interested)
https://healthyhunger.ca/index.php
June 26th - Last Day of K - Grade 3 Classes

Bike to School Day

Royal Oak School Parents and Guardians,

Our annual Bike to School Day is fast approaching. On Tuesday, June 4th Royal Oak School Families and Staff are encouraged to participate in the Bike to School Day come Rain or Shine. 

Bike tags and further information (including a map) will be sent home with Kindergarten students on Thursday, May 30th, and with Grade 1-3 students on Monday, June 3rd. Bike tags must be brought to the school on your student's handlebars for ease of organization and storage in the School Gym. Students are welcome to drop off their bikes from 8:40am - 9:10am. PM KG students can drop their bikes off to the Gym before class, between 12:50pm and 1:03pm.

A snack of Orange slices will be available between 8:40am and 9:10am. Don't forget to bring your water bottles!

***NOTE: Different Locations for KINDERGARTEN PICKUP***

All Kindergarten Bike to School participants (AM & PM) will be dismissed through the Gym door closest to the houses at the back of the school and Non-Participants will have a regular dismissal at the KG doors.

Grade 1 & 2 students can pick up their bikes on the compound at the back of the school following the afternoon dismissal. 

Grade 3 students will be dismissed through the Gym and will pick up their bikes on their way out to the compound.

If you would like to volunteer at this event please use the Sign Up Genius Link Below.

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/60B0A4FA9AE2CA5F94-bike

We look forward to seeing you all there!

May 27th - 31st

This Week:

Monday, May 27th -
Tuesday, May 28th  - Book Exchange
Wednesday, May 29th - Jump Rope for Heart Day (AM Class during PE Class)
Thursday, May 30th - Jump Rope for Heart Day (PM Class during PE Class)
Friday, May 31st - NO School Professional Development Day
Monday, June 3rd - NO SCHOOL for Kindergarten (Lieu Day)

Sound Explorations:   Continue exploring the letters X and Z!

Last Week:

Thank you to all of the volunteers who accompanied us on our field trip to the Calgary Zoo.  We couldn't have done it without your help.

Our final field trip of the year was a success!  Children participated in a guided program to learn about how penguins stayed warm, where they live, what they eat and who are their predators. Children were also able to go on a Prehistoric scavenger hunt through the newly reopened Prehistoric Park.  Through conversations reflecting on our experience, we discovered that we saw a variety of animals which enabled us to bring back a range of personal experiences to share.










Independent writing and drawing task in response to our zoo field trip:




"What is better than gym? Outside gym!" 
The children went outside with Ms. Hennick and practiced their skipping and soccer skills.



Important Dates Coming up:
June 3rd - NO SCHOOL for Kindergarten (Lieu Day)
June 4th -Bike to School Day
June 7th - AM Class Attends
June 10th - School Council/Fundraising Meeting 6:30 PM
June 13th - Circle of Sports Day PM
June 14th - PM Class Attends
June 14th - Volunteer Tea
June 21st - Aboriginal day
June 21st - AM Class Attends & Snack Day (Please order if interested)
https://healthyhunger.ca/index.php
June 25th - School Wide BBQ (Please order if interested)
https://healthyhunger.ca/index.php
June 26th - Last Day of K - Grade 3 Classes

Stampede Breakfast Friday, May 24th 7 - 9 AM

We are excited to announce that the Calgary Stampede Downtown Attractions Breakfast Committee will be hosting a free Stampede Pancake Breakfast for our entire school community and their families on Friday, May 24, 2019. This event will begin at 7:00 a.m. rain or shine and will run until approximately 9:00 a.m. Families are encouraged to come early to enjoy this free yummy event.

This year we are excited to partner with William D. Pratt Middle School and will be bringing the communities together on the basketball courts and the Pratt soccer fields. Families are invited to bring a blanket or camping chair to sit on as they enjoy a breakfast picnic on the basketball courts and the adjacent Pratt fields. In the event of rain families will be invited inside the gym at W.D. Pratt School.

There will be no teacher supervision provided at the Stampede Pancake Breakfast, so families are responsible for the supervision of their children for the entirety of the event. Our teachers will resume their regular supervision on the school grounds at 8:55am and our regular school bell will ring for student entry at 9:10 am.

All families are encouraged to wear their best western attire to show their Stampede spirit!

Jump Rope for Heart fundraiser

Our annual Jump Rope for Heart fundraiser is now underway. Royal Oak School held our kick off assembly last Thursday and students have brought home their fundraising envelopes. Your envelope explains everything that you need to know about the fundraiser. You can also register and fundraise online at JumpRopeForHeart.ca. It’s an easy way to raise money and earn great bonus prizes! Our fundraiser will run until May 29th. On Wednesday, May 29th we will collect fundraising envelopes and have our JUMP DAY. All classes will participate in fun skipping activities and we will have bubbles, sidewalk chalk, music and a healthy snack provided by the parent council.

**Please note that PM kindergarten students will have their jump day on Thursday, May 30th**

Did you know that when you jump rope for others, you are also jumping for yourself? Get the exercise your heart needs while raising money to help all kids grow up healthy!


Helen HennickPhysical Education Specialist, Royal Oak School

May 20th - 24th

This Week:

May 20th - NO School Victoria Day
Tuesday, May 21st  -  Field Trip to the Calgary Zoo (All Day 9:10 AM - 3:50 PM)
Wednesday, May 22nd - 
Thursday, May 23rd -
Friday, May 24th - Stampede Breakfast 7:00 - 9:00 AM & SNACK DAY CANCELLED & PM Students Attend
Letter Learning for the next 2 weeks:   
/X/ & /Z/
We will explore our final two letters of the alphabet and their phonetic sounds.  The uppercase 'X' is written the same as the lowercase 'X' they just differ in size. The same is true for the upper and lowercase letter 'Z'.

For the 'X', start at the top and draw a diagonal line to the right.  Jump back up to the top and draw a diagonal backwards line that intersects the first line. For the 'Z' you start at the top and make a line going to the right, then a diagonal line going to the left. Finally, a line going back to the right.








Last Week:

  

Students are engaging in a disciplinary literacy inquiry that asks them to "think like a paleontologist." We started this inquiry with drawing and wondering by closely observing different types of dinosaurs and asking questions. 

Students shared their wonders:

"I wonder why some dinosaurs had sharp teeth"
"I wonder where dinosaurs lived"
"Could dinosaurs fly?"
"I wonder how big they were?"


Students have engaged in reading nonfiction literature about dinosaurs by closely observing the pictures in the texts. Students are learning to use textual features including looking at pictures and diagrams to build understanding. 

 

"My dinosaur is 9 tall and the volcano is 9 tall too."

Students have started exploring measurement. We have defined math vocabulary including length and weight (heavy and light). To begin exploring these concepts, students have engaged in hands-on activities to build understanding including using a balance scale to compare weights, and using snap cubes to measure dinosaurs. Snap cubes are an example of how to measure length using non-standard measurement.

Our afternoon classes enjoyed the Jump Rope for Heart assembly. 

Student fundraising packages for Jump Rope for Heart went home this week. This is a fundraiser to build an understanding of cardiovascular health. The connection between physical activity and health have been explored in Physical Education classes, as students learn how cardiovascular activities (skipping, running, jumping) lead to good heart health.

Important Dates Coming up:
May 30th - Jump Rope for Heart Day (During PE Class)
May 31st - NO School Professional Development Day
June 3rd - NO SCHOOL for Kindergarten (Lieu Day)
June 4th -Bike to School Day
June 7th - AM Class Attends
June 10th - School Council/Fundraising Meeting 6:30 PM
June 13th - Circle of Sports Day PM
June 14th - PM Class Attends
June 14th - Volunteer Tea
June 21st - Aboriginal day
June 21st - AM Class Attends & Snack Day (Please order on if interested)
https://healthyhunger.ca/index.php
June 25th - School Wide BBQ (Please order if interested)
https://healthyhunger.ca/index.php
June 26th - Last Day of Kindergarten Classes


Pamela McDowell

Dear Families,

Last week the students engaged in many activities to promote and inspire the love of reading. One of the days included a visit from a fabulous local author, Pamela McDowell. Her books are written as a narrative non-fiction, focusing on the needs and ecological issues animals are facing.  She presented to each group of students about the writing process and how she begins by researching everything she needs to know in order to be accurate when writing her story.   

She reminded students during each presentation that there is more information on her blog on her website http://pamelamcdowell.ca/#&panel1-1 They can find info on how a wind turbine works, how scientists attach GPS trackers to ospreys and how software is used to identify individual salamanders. Everything on her website is kid-friendly and child-appropriate. 

Students are welcome to contact her with questions at info@pamelamcdowell.ca

For those students interested in ordering one of her books, please contact your teacher directly for an order form. Please send EXACT cash only (No cheques - we are unable to provide change) to your child’s teacher no later than Tuesday, May 21th, and within 2 weeks your child will get an autographed copy of the book

May 13th - 17th

This Week:

Monday, May 13th - School Council/ Fundraising Meeting 6:30 PM
Tuesday, May 14th  -  Learning Commons Book Exchange - Please return ALL field trip permission forms and make payments online
Wednesday, May 15th - 
Thursday, May 16th -Jump Rope for Heart Kick-Off Assembly 1:30 PM
Friday, May 17th - NO School Professional Development Day

Have you had your child's eye's checked?
Children often are not aware that they are having a difficult time seeing.  It is important to have your child see an optometrist.  Eye exams are free for children in Alberta.  If your kindergarten child requires glasses there is a program that can provide a free pair of glasses for children in kindergarten. If your child requires glasses please follow this link for more information.
If your older child requires glasses please contact the school as we can sometimes connect you with helpful programs.  Eye health is important. Please take care of your eyes!

Letter Learning /q/
To write the uppercase letter /Q/ start the same as a magic C, close up your letter to make an O and then jump down to add a straight line on an angle.  

The lowercase /q/ starts the same as a magic c as well.  Close up your c to make an o then head down like a lowercase a but continue moving below you home line to make your q and add a small tick to the right (we can't find a font that matches how we write it and our picture shows a curved line while we actually practice a straight tick).




Last Week:

We continue to explore and practice our numbers by playing daily math games. Our games are becoming more complicated with multiple steps. 

For example, our "One More Game" has five steps.
Step 1: Roll two dice
Step 2: Subitize the larger number
Step 3: Count on to find the total of the two numbers
Step 4: Add one more to the total
Step 5: Find the total on the game board


Practicing our number formation has also been a focus this week. Our numbers all start at the top just like our letters.





We are beginning to talk about measurement. This week, we measured the length of our hands using snap cubes. We talked about accuracy and starting at the bottom and going all the way to the top. Below are some examples of accurately measured hands!

What else could you use to measure your hand?



Literacy week was a great success. We enjoyed dressing up as book characters, and buddy reading within our classes. Thank you for the thoughtful costumes and for sending books. Students were thrilled to engage in reading this week!





THANK YOU so much to our Parent Council for your hard work planning Literacy Week and to the volunteers who helped make it happen! The students absolutely loved planting on "Grow a Royal Reader" day. Thank you for making learning magical.



Spring is here!
We are enjoying the nice weather and being able to get outside to play on the playground.  We love being able to run, jump, climb, slide and be loud with our friends.


 



Important Dates Coming up:
May 20th - NO School Victoria Day
May, 21st - Zoo Field Trip (Full Day)
May 24th - PM Students Attend
May 24th - Stampede Breakfast 7:00 - 9:00 AM & SNACK DAY CANCELLED
May 30th - Jump Rope for Heart Day (During PE Class)
May 31st - NO School Professional Development Day
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