What an amazing year of learning we have had so far!  We are so proud of your effort and attitude as leaders in our school. Celebrate your growth in practicing the virtues and your achievements as a learner.

Have a safe and joyful winter break!
See you on Monday, January 5.

                                                     Ms. Makowski and Mrs. Calvert

We are celebrating a week of dancing with our artists, R.J. and Shan.  We look forward to sharing our learning with our parents and family member either this afternoon at 1:30 or tonight at 6:30.

Reminder:
Tomorrow is wear your PJ's to school day.  We are also having a pizza lunch for all students.

Our advertisements our for social studies regions are looking amazing!  Please refer to the rubric in D2L to ensure you are working towards excellence.

If you are in Mrs. Calvert's math class please share with your family your Math Design Project ideas and the task criteria and assessment posted in D2L.  How is this project connected to meaningful real life problem solving? What part of the project is easy for you?  Challenging?  These projects are due on Friday, Dec. 19.

BUSY WEEK!

-remember to send in your request for tickets for our 6:30 dance presentation on Thursday, December 18^th

                -doors open at 6:10 pm 

-FREE pizza lunch on Friday, December 19^th

-Pajama Day on Friday, December 19^th – students can bring a stuffie/teddy bear as well – teachers are giving specific instructions for size

                -remember we are still going outside for recess so have outerwear (snow pants, coats etc)

We have completed the research for our Quality of Life Projects and started our advertisements.  Share with a family member which advertising media you have chosen.  Remember you are trying to convince another student to move to your region in Canada for the 'Quality of Life'.  What important information do you need to include? Why did you chose this particular media?  How can you make it engaging and interesting for your audience?

Reminder:
Friday, Dec. 19 is pyjama day, if you choose to wear them. We will also be having a pizza lunch for all students.

No sport club on Thursday, Dec. 18 because of the evening dance celebration.

This is the last school week of 2014!  We have a very busy week ahead with our SoundKreations dance celebration on Thursday, Dec. 18 at 1:30 and Thursday evening at 6:30.  Please share with a family member what are your thoughts around our dancing.  Why do you think we are having a dance artist?  How is this experience connected to your learning? Is movement one of your learning styles?  What about music?

Reminder:
Please return ticket confirmations for our dance celebration on Thursday afternoon and Thursday evening.

What an amazing week of learning!  Be proud of your effort on your Quality of Life research.

Reminder:

The YMCA is offering free passes for grade 6 students!  Please go to the hyperlink below if you are interested:

http://www.ymcacalgary.org/blog/free-grade-6-memberships/

"How did it get so late so soon? Its night before its afternoon. December is here before its June. My goodness how the time has flewn. How did it get so late so soon?"

                                                                                                                     Dr. Seuss

We have collaborating to build an assessment rubric for our Quality of Life social studies projects. Share with your family how you decided with your partner what categories are being assessed and how would you demonstrate excellence in the three categories.

Reminder:
Please remember to wear comfortable clothing for our dancing unit with SoundKreations.  We will be having a Dance celebration of our learning on Thursday, December 18 at 6:30.

We have begun our Quality of Life social studies inquiry research.  Please discuss the following questions with a family member: Where are you locating your information?  How are you organizing your notes?  What ideas do you have for representing your learning in your advertisement to convince people to move to your region of Canada?

Today was our first day of our Artist-In-Residence dance unit by SoundKreations.  Explain to your family what is the type of dancing we will be studying.

Reminder:
Sports Club is tomorrow at 3:15.

**  Important Notice Today **

 

We started working with SoundKreations artists today on dance!

-please read the notice

-indicate which performance you will attend by circling either 1:30 or 6:30

-return the notice with your child asap no later than December 16^th

-only 2 tickets available for each family for 6:30 performance (we will have waitlist tickets)

 

*remember students need to attend both 1:30 performance & 6:30 performance!

News from your community...

CROSSROADS FAMILY MOVIE NIGHT!!

ENJOY THIS FREE FAMILY EVENT!

ALTHOUGH HE’S A LIAR AND A BIT OF A SHREW, A LITTLE COMEDIC AND REALLY DUMB TOO.

HE’S A MEAN ONE, AS CUDDLY AS A CACTUS AND AS CHARMING AS AN EEL

COME WATCH A FAMILY CHRISTMAS MOVIE THIS FRIDAY NIGHT,  DECEMBER 12,2014

DOORS OPEN AT 6:30

FEEL FREE TO BRING AN ITEM FOR THE MAYORS FOODBANK CHALLENGE!

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We had a special presentation today from Kananaskis in the classroom, called 'The Weather of OZ'. Explain to a family member your connections to the presentation to what you know already about weather.  Share any new understanding of weather that you have after viewing this entertaining presentation. Do you have any wonders about weather?

News from your community...

**************************************

CROSSROADS FAMILY MOVIE NIGHT!!

ENJOY THIS FREE FAMILY EVENT!

ALTHOUGH HE’S A LIAR AND A BIT OF A SHREW, A LITTLE COMEDIC AND REALLY DUMB TOO.

HE’S A MEAN ONE, AS CUDDLY AS A CACTUS AND AS CHARMING AS AN EEL

COME WATCH A FAMILY CHRISTMAS MOVIE THIS FRIDAY NIGHT,  DECEMBER 12,2014

DOORS OPEN AT 6:30

FEEL FREE TO BRING AN ITEM FOR THE MAYORS FOODBANK CHALLENGE!

Thank you so much to the parents and students who attended our conferences.  We really enjoyed sharing your learning celebrations!  We look forward to moving forward in our Learning Journey together.

Today, we started our social studies inquiry project on Quality of Life in Canada.  Share with a family member which region of Canada you are interested in studying and why? Please have a look at the task criteria posted in D2L.

Please share with your parents how to access our Math Makes Sense textbook at home for extra practice on skills and problem solving.

Reminder:
Please begin reading for a new Journey Through Literature Project, which will be due at the end of January.

Thank you for another rigorous week of learning! Mrs. Calvert and Ms. Makowski are looking forward to meeting with you and your families tonight and tomorrow to celebrate your hard work and learning this year.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Reminders:
- No school tomorrow - Parent/Teacher Conferences

Terrific work this week exploring our Reading Powers! You have practiced several reading strategies this week. Which strategies were you using already when reading? Which strategies are new to you?


Reminders:
- Thank you to the many families who have booked a Parent/Teacher Conference! Please ask your parents to schedule a Parent/Teacher Conference if they have not done so already.

- There is no school on Friday Dec. 5 - Parent/Teacher Conferences

- Sports Club is cancelled Dec. 4.

Excellent work today examining advertising and how you can make informed choices! What connections did you make to today's lesson and the Apple a Day Presentation? Share your ideas with a family member. Begin to think about how you would like to create an advertisement for our upcoming Social inquiry projects.

Reminder:

- Parent/Teacher Conferences are Thursday Dec. 4, from 4:15 to 8:00, and Friday Dec. 5, from 8:00 to 12:30. Please remind your parents to book a conference. We look forward to celebrating your learning with your families!

- Mrs. Traquair will be offering two sessions to discuss the new report cards on Thursday December 4, from 5:30 to 6:00 and 7:00 to 7:30 in the Learning Commons. This is a great opportunity to learn about how the report cards have changed, and answer any questions you and your parents have. 

- Sports Club is cancelled Dec. 4 for Parent/Teacher Conferences

Welcome back to another busy week of learning! Thank you for your hard work on your Journey Through Literature Projects, and sharing your projects with your classmates today. Share with a family member a book your classmates recommended that you would be interested in reading. Please continue to read at home each day to prepare for your next project, which will be due in the new year.

December is an exciting month at Vista Heights School! Please go over the December calendar with your families. Make a prediction for the December virtue. Why do you think this is an important virtue for December? Be prepared to share your ideas in class.

Reminder:
- Parent/Teacher Conferences are Thursday Dec. 4, from 4:15 to 8:00, and Friday Dec. 5, from 8:00 to 12:30. Please remind your parents to book a conference. We look forward to celebrating your learning with your families!

- Sports Club is cancelled Dec. 4 for Parent/Teacher Conferences