End of the Year!

Picnic

Tomorrow we will have our class picnic to celebrate the end of the school year! We will head out to the park at 1:00. Students should bring a picnic lunch, a blanket, hat, sunscreen, and a water bottle. 

Yearbooks

Students will have time on Wednesday to sign each other's yearbooks. If you have a yearbook please bring it to school on Wednesday. If you did not purchase a yearbook then I will give you a special paper here at school for your classmates to write their end of year messages to you on. 

Assembly

On Thursday we have our last assembly beginning in the morning around 9:30 (by the time all classes make their way to the gym). This is just a reminder that our class will be singing and families are welcome to attend. 

Thursday at 12:10

School ends at 12:10 on Thursday. 

Farewell from Mrs. Gibbs

     Every year each class is different and memorable. I have thoroughly enjoyed teaching all of my grade twos and threes this year. We definitely had our ups and downs too, but we learned so much from each other. When I reflect on our year together I am always amazed at how much I learn from my students, which helps me grow as a teacher. This year there were a lot of firsts. Many times I caught myself saying "this is the first time I have tried this with a class...". Some things worked well and I will continue, like looking for all opportunities to learn outside. Other things I will change, like for example the type of paint we put on our snow snakes! I am thankful that the students in this class were so open to, and patient with trying new things with me.

     While writing this I find myself thinking back to the first day of school. For many it was a great exciting reunion of seeing friends and teachers, others were nervous or even disappointed to be in a class without someone they had hoped to be with. For two of our classmates their adventure was unique as they were both new English language learners. Their courage impressed and inspired all of us. But what also impressed me was the willingness of all students to help. I said this many times this year, this was a class made up of extremely kind students. When someone was in need, there were always multiple offers to help. The world needs more kind people -just like the students in this class. 

     When I think back on the year it puts a smile on my face. There was lots of important learning and exploring together. In the fall we spent time making art outside in nature, decorating our Writer's Notebook and then writing our personal narratives, experimenting with forces and simple machines (remember those paper helicopters?), making connections to books like The Name Jar, and Big Red Lollipop, reading a few Tree House novels together, and traveling to VORC with the Grade Twos. As we moved into the winter I remember Mrs. Lacroix speaking to us about the importance of Remembrance Day, hosting the November Pride Assembly, exploring traditions and celebrations and the First Nations and Early Settlers in Canada and then visiting the old School House with the Grade Threes, creating the snowsnakes and then the Ted Harrison artwork, skating, Winter Carnaval, and the Blue Spruce Books. As the weather changed and the long transition to spring began I remember a few good storms and snow days, working on our non-fiction writing, exploring global communities and Ontario using google maps, learning multiplication (remember the grocery store, and the karate belts?), the fabulous PSAs, Clementine, Mrs. Gibbs' Store, and more time spent outside exploring soil, plants, air and water, and having DPA around the track. We ended the year thinking about the human impact on plants and animals, and the ways plants and animals impact us. I encourage students to reflect on their own learning this year. What were the highlights? What did you enjoy the most and pursue that topic further. For example if you enjoyed learning about plants then continue learning about plants. As questions about plants, read about plants, try to identify plants, examine plants in nature, and explore how plants are helpful and harmful. Share your learning with others. 

     Finally I want to take thank the parents of the students that I teach each day. Really, from the bottom of my heart thank you so much for your trust, ongoing support, conversations, and kind notes. Thank you for supporting me, as well as our school. There were many requests throughout the year and I am thankful for your understanding. Whatever you do this summer, enjoy it! Enjoy the extra time together and make many memories!