Hopefully March will both come in like a lamb, as we have a very busy next couple of weeks here at Gulf Shore with both our Student-Led Conferences and our annual Science Fair.

Parents are reminded that conferences will take place on Thursday and Friday. There will be no classes for students on Friday, March 2nd so that they may attend their learning conferences. Monday, March 5th is also a Professional Development Day for staff, so there this will make for another extra-long weekend for students 🙂

If you haven’t already confirmed your conference time by returning the form I sent home last week, please do so as quickly as possible. I am also still missing a few permission forms for the Queen’s University survey. This survey will take place next week.

French-As we work through our unit “L’art de image” this week students will finish up their reading evaluation and begin to discuss the important parts of an interview. This will help us to form our success criteria for what counts in an interview. Preparing questions for and then interviewing their peers will give students the opportunity to practice both their writing and oral language skills. This will be our focus over the next few weeks. We will also spend time continuing our preparations for conferences, as we set goals for our learning over the next few months.

Social Studies-As we continue to study the Renaissance, this week we will finish up our maps and start discussions about the physical elements of the Italian landscape and how they impacted human activities during this time period including the differences between the plaines, the coastlines and the mountainous regions. We will also debate the pros and cons of this territory.

Science-We are nearing the end of our chapter on the Earth. This week we will finish up discussions around renewable energy and we will then prepare for our summative assessment on Chapter 5.

Grade 9 Science-This week we will begin to wrap up our biology unit. We will start with a case study on organ donation that will test of understanding of all the systems we’ve studied to date. Discussions will also take place around new advancements in biotechnology and controversial topics related to human body systems such as designer babies, genetically modified foods and cloning. We will also start preparation for our final dissection-a pig fetus.

Grade 7 Science- Our Science Fair is a week from Wednesday so this week we will put the finishing touches on our projects. Presentations in class will start next Monday so everyone should have their projects completed by then. I’m available for extra help at recess and students are reminded to share their documents with me in Google, if they’d like for me to correct their written work. Work also continues on our exploration of the organelles of plant and animal cells.

Have a fantastic week! I can’t wait to see everyone at conferences on Thursday and Friday 🙂

Mme MacNevin

Thank you all so much for the wonderful treats and messages last week. The Gulf Shore Staff is most definitely appreciated 🙂

These next few weeks will be very busy, as we prepare for both our Student-Led Conferences and for our annual Science Fair. Conference time sheets will be coming home tomorrow. Please get them back to me as soon as possible, especially if you need to make any changes to your scheduled time.

Also, before the long weekend, I sent home a permission form for the Health Behaviour survey administered through Queen’s University that will take place in March. Please fill out this form and send it in as soon as possible. I’m still missing quite a few. Your child’s participation in this survey is greatly appreciated 🙂

On Wednesday evening at 7:00pm there will be a Home and School meeting in the Science Lab. Wednesday is also the date reserved for our 7-9 Ski Night.

Here is a snapshot into the learning that will take place in our classes this coming week….

French-We continue to work through our anthology unit entitled “L’art de image.” During our reading periods this week, students will finish reading interviews that explore different careers related to photography, film, and art. They will discover the structure of an interview and determine the key messages in the interviews we will read. The final text of this type, which we will read later on in the week, will be an evaluation of their reading comprehension skills. In writing, we continue with our “texte ludique” inspired by our funny images. Work also continues of improving our oral language skills and striving to meet the goals we’ve set for ourselves. Mme Roxanne will also continue to help us follow all the excitement of the Olympic Winter Games 🙂

Social Studies-Today will mark the end of our study of the Middle Ages, as we move towards discussions surrounding the Renaissance. During our classes together this week we will look this movement in more detail, as we map out the Italian cities that were at its core and begin to explore the its key players, paying particular attention to art.

Science- This week we will conclude the “Earth” section on our “Terre et Espace” unit, as we discuss different types of energy. Preparations will then begin for our assessment on Chapter 5 later next week.

Grade 9 Science- This week we will finish up our study of human body systems with our review and quiz on the muscular/skeletal system. Then, students will start to look at new biotechnologies, as they put all their work on systems together through an exploratory project. More details will be explained in next week’s post 

Grade 7 Science- Our main focus over the next few weeks will be the putting the finishing touches on our Science Fair projects. Students should now be finishing up their data analysis and drawing their conclusions. Work will also start on their posters this week. During other classes, we will start our biology unit of study, beginning with the parts of the cell and its functions.

Have a marvelous week!

Mme MacNevin

Here is a look at some fun we’ve been having in the lab this week. The Grade 8 class identified minerals and the Grade 9 class dissected chicken legs and wings to discover more about bones and muscles and how they function.

Welcome to mid-February! This week will be a short, but busy week here at Gulf Shore 🙂

A reminder that the dance has been rescheduled to tonight from 7:00-9:00pm for students in Grades 7-9.

On Wednesday students will be treated to a pancake lunch provided by our Home and School. Many thanks to them for this special treat 🙂

This week students will also be able to place orders to have cupcake delivered to our class on Valentine’s Day that they can decorate and then enjoy. Proceeds from this fundraiser will help support our student leadership team’s efforts to purchase a goat for a family overseas, as part of their work with the WE day foundation.

Also, late last week I sent home a permission form for a Health Behaviour survey administered through Queen’s University that will take place in March. Please fill out this form and send it in as soon as possible. Your child’s participation in this survey is greatly appreciated.

Finally, there will be no classes for students on Friday, February 16th, as teachers and staff attend professional development sessions across the province. Additionally, as Monday, February 19th is Islander Day, this will make for an extra-long weekend for students and a great chance to maybe get some progress made on Science Fair projects and enjoy some family time together 🙂

Now here is a snapshot into the learning that will take place over this four day week….

French-We continue to work through our anthology unit entitled “L’art de image.” During our reading periods, students will begin reading interviews that explore different jobs related to photography, film, and art. They will discover the structure of an interview and determine the key messages in the interviews we will read.

In writing, we continue with our “texte ludique” inspired by a funny image. Students will dive into the drafting stage this week. We will also continue to review the writing process, as we move through the creation of these stories.

Lastly, students will have another opportunity to self-reflect, as part of the oral language proficiency project. Together everyone will have the opportunity to listen to a voice recording of themselves speaking French and will take note of the great things happening in regards to their speaking skills. Students will also begin to set goals to improve on areas that may cause them some difficulty.

Social Studies-Everyone is hard at work on their fief projects. This week will be spent working to bring their visions to life through models, paint and even Minecraft, and preparing oral presentations that will be presented when we return after the long weeked. I look forward to seeing the finished products and I will of course be sure to post some photos for everyone to see them as well. Projects will also be on display during our Student-led Conferences early next month 🙂

Science-Last week we had a lot of fun identifying rocks and minerals. This week, our focus will shift to soil and energy, as we wrap up Chapter 5 and the “Earth” portion of our unit on Earth and Space.

Grade 9 Science- We are moving through our final body system; the muscular/skeletal system. In our next few classes we will learn about the three different types of muscle and their functions. We will also dissect a chicken leg, as we take a look at bones and muscles and their structures.

Grade 7 Science- I was very impressed with all the hard work and effort that went into our ecology presentations last week. This week we will focus on the characteristics of living things.

Additionally, as we move closer and closer to the date of the Science Fair, we will spend a few periods this cycle and next analyzing our data and preparing our reports.

Have a great week, a fantastic Valentine’s Day, and a safe and happy Islander Day weekend!

Mme MacNevin

It is only Tuesday and already there has been a great deal of excitement in our Science Lab 🙂
On Monday, the Grade 9 class completed their second dissection: a pig’s kidney!
And today, they analyzed the components of urine.
In Grade 8, we “mined” chocolate cookies, as we discussed how minerals make up rocks.
I can’t wait to see what tomorrow will bring!

What wild and crazy weather we’ve been having lately 🙁 Hopefully, with any luck, the storms will soon come to an end and we will have a full week this week 🙂

There will be a dance on Wednesday, February 7th from 7:00-9:00pm for students in Grades 7-9. The theme is “Well-dressed Winter.” There will be a DJ and the cost is be $5.00 at the door.

Let us have a look at what will be happening during our classes together this week….

French-We are now working through our anthology unit entitled “L’art de image.” During our reading periods this week, students will begin to read interviews that explore different careers related to photography, film, and art. They will discover the structure of an interview and determine the key messages in the interviews we will read.

During our writing blocks, students will find a funny image that will serve as their muse, as they will start to draft a humorous story to represent what they see. We will also spend some time discussing “les accords” and the importance in the French language of pairing our nouns and adjectives with their proper number and genre, in addition to our continued work on the “passé composé.”

Finally, as we continue to work on our oral language skills, students will also have the opportunity to begin the interview process, as they will visit the Grade 7 class to pose questions and then peer and self-assess their spoken language skills.

Social Studies-As we finish up our final assessments for our unit on the Middle Ages, this week students will write their written evaluation and will prepare their fief projects, that will be presented in class late next week.

Science-As we move through our unit on rocks and minerals, this week we will learn about different ways to identify minerals through a series of labs, including “mining” for minerals (aka. chocolate pieces) in chocolate cookie “mines.”

Grade 9 Science- Today, students will able to take an up close look at a pig’s kidney, as we begin our second dissection to help further solidify their understanding of the how our body eliminates waste. Later on this week we will conclude our study of the excretory system and start to look at our final human body system; the musculoskeletal system.

Grade 7 Science- Presentations will wrap up this week for our ecology unit and we will begin the second unit of our “Univers vivant,” as we begin discussions on the characteristics of living things and the structure of animal and plant cells.

Work also moves forward on our Science Fair projects. At this point, students should be conducting their experiments and beginning to collect data results.

Have a marvelous week!

Mme MacNevin