Halloween Hop!

Please collect and return the Halloween Hop pledge forms.  Any amount will help the students but just imagine, if every student collected $50, the school would have $16 000 to spend on new equipment, technology, buses for field trips and special programs for the students (e.g., Scientists in School, musicians, performances).  100% of the monies raised goes towards the students here.  It is our only fundraiser of the year.

On the Farm!

Yesterday we had a 'farmtastic' visit to Brooks Farms.  True, it was a little rainy, ok, well a lot rainy but in my books rain is liquid sunshine and nobody melted.

Our visit started off with a short lesson by Farmer Betty about pumpkins and where our food comes from.  We saw some great photos about the life cycle of the pumpkin.  Did you know that just one pumpkin vine can have up to 10 pumpkins on it and each plant can have more than one vine?  

After our outdoor lesson, Farmer Bill took us to see the animals.  We saw the potbelly pigs, the chickens, the turkeys, the ducks and the geese.  There was even a goat munching on pumpkins.

The highlight for many of our students was the zipline.  With lots of adult support, children had the opportunity to try out this awesome activity.  During the free time portion of the day, many groups re-visited the zipline for many thrill rides!

Before lunch our classes had a ride on the train to the pumpkin patch where each one of us was able to select the perfect pumpkin.  Farmer Neil said the best pumpkin was the one that was about the size of our heads!  

After lunch it was time to explore.  Groups visited the pirate ship, the hay bale tunnel/climb, the slide, the sand pit, the hay jumping pit, the corn maze, the musical bridge and of course the chicken show.  There was lots to do and see.

The corn maze!

This is not 'people' corn.  It is turned into corn syrup, corn flakes, corn oil, corn meal etc.

The Musical Bridge!

The Chicken Show!  (A personal favourite!)

The Hay Bale Tunnel/Climb

The staff at Brooks Farms commented on the engagement and enthusiasm of both our students and the adults in the group.  There were other school groups there and they left quite soon after arriving because of the conditions - but not us!  We were having a great time and making the best out of damp and chilly situation.  Thank you to our parent volunteers for accompanying us and setting a great example for enthusiasm and engagement.  Jodie and I both value your support and appreciate your help!

Today we drew pictures and wrote about our experiences.  We did a recount as a class and shared some of our favourite parts of our adventure.  

We truly had a great time and look forward to other adventures during the year!

Waste Reduction Week

Hello Families,

Next week we will be participating in Waste Reduction Week.  In an effort to increase our awareness and reduce the amount of waste produced daily at our school, our school EcoTeam is asking that all students bring in Waste Free lunches for the week.  It's a shortened week next week because of the PA Day so the campaign will begin on Tuesday and end on Friday.  Many of our students are bringing lunches with little to no waste already and it is great to see!  We encourage you to think 'outside of the (juice) box' next week and limit the amount of packaging and waste in the lunches you are packing.  Reusable containers are a great start!  Learning the lesson of less waste is important for our young students as they will be the ones who inherit our earth. Thanks for your consideration - every little bit counts!

Spirit Day Tomorrow!

Tomorrow is our first Spirit Day!  Our House Captains have asked that we all dress in our house colours tomorrow to show our spirit!  We used our house colours for the Terry Fox Run so the children have been introduced to the concept but it's likely some will have forgotten their colour.  Here is a list using their initials.

RED

H.A. (SK)
A.C.  (SK)
O.F.  (JK)
N.D.  (JK)
O.R.  (SK)
C.T.  (JK)

BLUE

L.G.  (SK)
D.G-J.  (SK)
E.P.  (JK)
C.M.  (SK)
M.T.  (JK)
R.J.  (SK)

GREEN

C.B.  (JK)
H.C.  (JK)
E.D.  (JK)
S.E.  (JK)
B.F.  (SK)
M.K.  (JK)

YELLOW

A.A.  (JK)
M.P.  (JK)
M.R.  (SK)
K.S.  (JK)
R.W.  (JK)
E.W.  (SK)

Cackle has a friend!

Cackle left us another note - and there were talon marks in our playdough this morning!!

Brooks Farms on Monday!

We are very excited about our trip on Monday!  Please check the weather report the night before to ensure your child will be dressed appropriately for the weather.  Being outside for the whole day is much different from being out for recess for only 30 minutes.  Dressing in layers is the best.  Discourage your child from wearing their 'favourite' piece of clothing as it will likely come home dirty!  Don't forget a lunch, snack and a water bottle!  See everyone on Monday! Have a fantastic fall weekend!

Our New Friend...

Today we were surprised by a new friend who appeared in our classroom!

We had a lot of wonderings about our new friend and started a list to record them...

After lunch we came back to a letter pinned to the front of our friend!  How exciting!

Finally, at the end of the day we voted on a new name for our new friend.  The options were Elsa, Sophia, Boo, Amelia and Cackle.  After two rounds of blind voting her name was official - CACKLE!  She was smiling a little brighter when she heard her new name.  We are hoping to learn more about Cackle tomorrow!