November 15 - 19th 

I can Identify similarities or differences between cultural traditions and communities. 

This past week was Metis week across Canada which proved to be a great way to to learn a little more about Metis people, their culture, their history, their art and their stories. We incorporated this learning into language arts, math, social and art. 

Here is a look at a couple of the tasks we were involved in - 

Math: I can Identify, reproduce and extend simple repeating patterns.  

We learned about the importance of the Metis sash and how it had many different uses from being a first aid resource, to being a halter for animals, to part of their traditional dress. Students learned that the different colors in the sashes had significant meanings as they were used to create patterns. Students had the opportunities to make paper sashes from colors that would represent themselves as individuals. 

 I can apply a variety of comprehension strategies (such as questioning), to deepen my understanding within and beyond texts. 

This week we continued on with our work around deepening our comprehension strategies of texts we have read or listen to by focusing on the role of the Questioner. This reciprocal reading strategy teaches students to ask questions as they read to deepen their understanding of the text. 

As a class, we examined the text, The Girl and The Wolf, which is an indigenous Metis tale. 

 Before we read the book we previewed the cover and the title and formed I wonder questions. Then as we listened to the story we stopped to develop additional questions that would clarify the meanings of the text, the pictures and the actions of the characters. After reading the text we examined our list of questions to determine if they had all been answered as we read through the book. After the second reading of the text, students then worked to retell the stories as an independent task. 

One last opportunity we had this week was to paint our fence art pieces. Students were so excited to finally get their turn to make their creations.  In the weeks leading up to our day to paint with Monica, we began planning our paintings by choosing colors and shading in templates. We also had the opportunity to meet with our fence art artist, Monica and spent time learning about her art and asking her student generated questions. Students were so engaged in this whole process and were very grateful for the opportunity to create a piece for the fence mural. Here are some pics from painting day!