Inuit Immersion

Goota, our presenter on the Inuit way of life, was able to come in today.  Her information was so very valuable and if your child did not have anything to share about their day at school today, I would be very surprised!

She explained about the small soapstone 'stove' that would have been part of every home, showing us the Arctic cotton that would be used as the wick, and explaining that seal oil was the fuel of choice.

The smallest member of our class had the extreme pleasure of being allowed to ride on her back in the same way that children up to the age of three would be carried, close to mommy's back for heat, and allowing the mother's hands to be free to continue to do the work that never stops.

It was the Inuit who invented sunglasses, shown here carved from bone to protect the eyes when the sun glares on the miles and miles of snow and ice.

Goota shared many tidbits of information but the most interesting thing she shared by far, were traditional foods.  She used the ulu to cut seal meat, caribou, Arctic Char and narwhal, which the children could choose to try.  The pieces were small and proudly, most children took this once in a lifetime opportunity and had a taste.

Seal meat is very dark, almost black.

Arctic Char would be like salmon, and she likened it to sushi.

Many of the children were ready to have seconds!

In the afternoon, we tried our hand at carving.

We used soap and slowly and carefully shaved the soap...

..revealing a polar bear that was trapped inside!

I think this will be one of those days that the children never forget!

A new community

Sadly, our guest speaker is being rescheduled.  Our day went on though, with the students watching a short little video to introduce our next Canadian community to study.  They were surprised to find out that the people that we watched were Canadian!  They had different clothing,  different language and different music.  That's what culture is all about!

We had seen a man making a different type of home, a house made out of snow. 

We spent a fair amount of time building models of this type of home, using a paper platter, a paper bowl and some marshmallows.  We used white glue and followed a specific pattern to ensure that the whole bowl was covered.

It was slow and steady work, but the models turned so very well.

A reminder that tomorrow we are asking our student to wear pink  to show solidarity against bullying.

Hope to see you at 5:15 Thursday evening for  the buffet dinner before the School Open House.  I forgot to send home the sign up sheet, so please do send a note in the agenda or send me an e-mail to tell us how many people in your family will be attending and of course, who you are.  I will send the note home tomorrow.  So sorry!  Model building just took precedence.

Finally, Friday your little ones are staying home!  Teachers will be at the school listening to a variety of presentations.

Shrove Tuesday

We were treated last Tuesday to a lovely lunch provided by the Parent Council.  The pancakes were large and fluffy and the students just ate them up and wanted seconds! 

We were blessed to have Father Jack, Mrs. Szott (trustee) and...

..the top banana (Mr. Hauptmann) all there to serve us!

YUM!!

Look at the concentration on all that delicious food!

The students know why we eat pancakes on the day before Lent begins.  Can your child tell you?

Thought you might like to see how we displayed all those 'love notes' that our students printed last Friday. Each was asked to write 'why' they loved Madonna Catholic School.

Here's my favourite!  It's the reason we exist!

When I read this one (from one of my students!!), I almost cried.

Looks like all those morning announcements are paying off!

Wonderful thoughts!

This is the display that was created after the Grade Two led assembly.

Tuesday we are encouraging all students to wear PINK as a sign of solidarity to stand up against bullying.

Friday celebrations of 100th Day and Valentine's Day

Thank you to the teacher at the blogsite  what the teacher wants for sharing this fun review game for the 100 chart.  Valentine Battleship was a great hit and it was so interesting to see the manner in which the students played....some beginning strategians in the making!

Our cute OWL Valentine bag was another idea shared through a blogging site called Rulin' the Roost.

Wonderful to see how far the students' fine motor skills have come as they cut out all the various bits to create this darling little owl.

It's fun to fill the bags and even more fun to find out what's been put inside!

They were sooooo full of great treats and cards.

In the afternoon, the teachers had set up 8 different stations throughout the school for the classes to rotate through.  They followed the Valentine's and 100th Day theme.  There were activities that involved being heart healthy like this one.... 

...two teams using the scooters  to move 100 cups from one end of the course to the other.

The students used the numbers 1 - 0 - 0 to create a picture.

The students wrote out their reasons for loving our school.  The hearts are going to make a lovely display.

We used different materials to make a creation with a partner.  There were 100 pieces in each bag.

Co-operation was the key!

We made Valentines for God.  What has God done that makes me love Him?  How do I show God that I love Him?

We also partnered up and used a die to see how many times the die would land on a number.  One student rolled the die and the other made the tallies.  We didn't make it to all 8 stations but it was a great afternoon!

On Sunday, two of our lovely young ladies received the Sacrament of Communion for the first time.  PLEASE, do let me know when your child is receiving a Sacrament and I will do my best to attend that mass.  Congratulations girls on bringing Jesus into your heart!