December 15th - 19th

A Busy and Joyful Last Week Before Winter Break!

We wish all our families a safe, restful, and happy winter break. Thank you for your continued support, and we look forward to being together again in the new year!

Our grade three class had a wonderful and busy final week of learning before winter break, beginning with some outdoor fun in the snow! Students worked together to build and create in the snow, using teamwork, problem-solving, and creativity. Back in the classroom, students drew on this shared experience to inspire their writing. Using what they saw, felt, and did outdoors, students wrote five extended sentences, carefully adding adjectives and adverbs to make their writing more detailed and interesting for the reader.

We also spent time getting our bodies moving in Physical Education. Students worked in small groups to exercise different muscle groups while continuing to practice cooperation and perseverance.

Another highlight of the week was reading How to Catch a Gingerbread Man. After discussing the story, students used their imaginations to write about a trap they would design to catch the Gingerbread Man. Their writing showed creativity, clear explanations, and thoughtful details.

Despite the excitement of the upcoming winter break, students demonstrated strong focus and effort with the many writing tasks completed this week.

We ended the week on a special note by attending an assembly to say farewell to Mrs. Scarrow. Afterwards, we sang carols with our kindergarten buddies, celebrating connection and community within our school.

Talk With Your Child About Their Learning

Here are some questions you can ask your child to help them reflect on their learning this week:

• What did you build in the snow and who did you work with?

• Which adjectives or adverbs did you use to make your snow-writing more interesting?
  
  

• What muscles did you use during Physical Education and why is exercising important?
  
  

• What kind of trap did you design to catch the Gingerbread Man? What materials would you use?
  
  

• What was your favourite writing activity this week? Why?
  
  

• How did it feel to sing with the kindergarten buddies?

Curriculum Connections – Grade 3 LearnAlberta

English Language Arts

• Creating and extending sentences to communicate ideas and experiences clearly
  
  

• Using descriptive language (adjectives and adverbs) to enhance meaning
  
  

• Responding to texts by sharing ideas and creating written responses
  
  

• Building writing stamina through sustained writing tasks
  
  

Physical Education & Wellness

• Developing physical competence through movement and muscle-building activities
  
  

• Working cooperatively in small groups
  
  

• Understanding the importance of physical activity for overall well-being
  
  

Personal and Social Responsibility (Cross-Curricular Competencies)

• Collaborating respectfully with peers
  
  

• Demonstrating perseverance and focus during learning tasks
  
  

• Building relationships and a sense of belonging within the school community

Grade 3 Hip Hop Art & Music Celebration!

Our Grade 3 students have been exploring the world of Hip Hop with SoundKreations, and this week they brought their learning to life in a creative and colourful way!

Students painted vinyl records to represent what they’ve learned about the roots, rhythm, and expression of Hip Hop culture. Each record tells a story—some show movement, some show emotion, and others show the energy of music and dance.

To go along with their artwork, students also created graffiti-style word art. Each student chose one  word that inspired their painting—such as creative, love, fun or move—and designed it using bold lines, bright colours, and expressive lettering, just like real street artists do.

These activities connect beautifully to the new Learn Alberta Grade 3 curriculum, especially in the areas of:

• Fine Arts: using different materials and artistic techniques to express ideas and emotions

• Music: exploring rhythm, pattern, and musical traditions

• Literacy: choosing meaningful words and designing creative text to communicate ideas

• Well-Being: understanding how music and art help us express who we are and what inspires us

Our students have shown so much creativity, confidence, and teamwork throughout this project. We are so excited to see everything come together during their Hip Hop performance on Tuesday evening. We know they are going to shine!

We can’t wait to celebrate all their hard work!

Friendly Reminders:

Sibbald Spirit Week – Dec 15-19th

Our Grade 5 Student Voice has chosen some fun Spirit Days for the last week of school:

 

• Monday 15th – Red & Green Day
• Tuesday 16th  – Fun & Cozy Sweater Day
• Wednesday 17th  – Wacky Hair/Headwear Day
• Thursday 18th  – Character Day (dress like your favourite holiday character)
• Friday 19th  – PJ Day (stuffies must fit in a backpack)

December 1st - 5th

 What Did Students Do This Week?

The grade threes continued working on writing interesting complete sentences. To demonstrate their understanding of sentences, they followed the writing process. First, students used a word web as a planning tool to generate and organize ideas before writing. Then, we reviewed that every sentence needs a subject, verb, complete thought, correct capital letters, and end punctuation. Students also worked on (or will work on) adding adjectives and adverbs to make their writing more interesting. As a class, we also looked at different levels of writing and determined what would make a seed, sprout, sapling, or tree. Then, students wrote at least five sentences about a topic and added clear, helpful details to add interest and description. To end, students edited their work, using teacher feedback and a checklist.

English Language Arts Learning Outcomes:

• I can use organizational processes, methods, or tools to support the creation of written texts.

• I can create written texts that draw upon a variety of sources of inspiration.

• I can include a variety of carefully selected words and to add interest.

• I can edit writing for spelling, punctuation, and grammar.

Possible Questions to Ask Your Child:

• What is a subject (noun)?

• What is a verb (action, linking, or helping)?

• Can you write me an interesting sentence about your picture prompt from last week (animal, sport, place or celebration)?

• What feedback did your teacher give you to work on?

Photos

  November 24th - 27th

What did students do this week?

This week in grade three, students continued exploring one of our big Social Studies themes: Where do we live and what makes Alberta unique? We used maps, songs, loose parts, and hands-on inquiry to help students learn about our place in the world.

Alberta has six major physical regions and we explored each one:

1. Rocky Mountain Region

Found in western Alberta, this area has tall mountains, snowy peaks, deep valleys, and famous national parks like Banff and Jasper.

2. Foothills Region

Located just east of the mountains, the foothills have rolling hills, forests, and many natural resources.

3. Grasslands Region

Southern Alberta is home to wide open prairies, sunny skies, farms, and prairie wildlife like pronghorns.

4. Parkland Region

A mix of forests and grasslands, this region has fertile soil, lakes, and wildlife. Many communities live near or within parkland areas.

5. Boreal Forest Region

Northern Alberta is covered in thick forest, wetlands, lakes, and rivers. Wildlife such as moose, wolves, and beavers live here.

6. Canadian Shield Region (in the far northeast)

A very small part of Alberta touches the Canadian Shield, an area of ancient, rocky land. It has thin soil, many lakes, and unique wildlife.

** Hands-On Learning Highlights **

* Loose Parts Mapping

Students used rocks, fabric, LEGO, sticks, gems, and other materials to create loose parts maps of Alberta’s regions.

* Alberta and Canada Songs

We listened to and learned songs that helped us remember the provinces, oceans, and Alberta’s regions. Music made reviewing geography fun and memorable!

* Student Map-Making

Students created their own maps including:

-Title

-Alberta’s six physical regions

-legend with symbols

Social Studies Outcomes - (I can...):

• use geographic tools to ask questions about the world and Canada

• identify Canada's provinces, territories, and capital cities

• identify and locate Alberta on a map

• distinguish the different physical regions

• describe natural features, plants, and animals of each region

Possible Questions to Ask Your Child:

• Can you show me where Alberta is on a map of Canada?
• Which oceans surround Canada?
• Which physical region is Calgary in?

• Tell me about your loose parts map.

• What materials did you use in your loose parts map?

• Which song did you enjoy the most?

• What is a legend?

Photos