Bienvenue à la deuxième année!!

I hope that everyone had a wonderful summer break! I'm excited to welcome parents, guardians, and especially students to my class and to our classroom blog. I'll be using the blog instead of sending home paper newsletters. We're a PLATINUM EcoSchool so we do what we can to reduce our negative impact on the planet.

Below I've posted our timetable. Please note that this is a preliminary timetable which may change after the first week or so of school. If it does, I will update it in a new blog post.

Please take a good look at it and take note of when we have Gym, Drama/Music, Visual Arts, and Library. You must come to school prepared for these subjects so that you can participate fully. For example, if you don't bring proper gym shoes, you will have to sit out for Gym. If you don't bring your library books back on time, you won't be allowed to take out another library book... oh dear!

First Assignment
Don't panic! It's a fun one! As a way to get to know each other and to exercise our French oral skills, students will be creating an "about me" bag. Each student will bring home a paper bag to be filled with FIVE things that reveal something about who s/he is. For example, if your child loves gardening s/he might put in a packet of seeds. Once five things have been collected, the bag comes back to school and your child will present to the class, explaining what each item is and why it is important or representative of who s/he is. I will model my own "about me" bag so that students are clear on what is expected. If you have questions, please ask your child to explain my presentation to you.

Happy Labour Day Weekend and 

Welcome Back to Clairlea!!

Hallowe'en Party

This Thursday, is Clairlea Spirit Day! The students and I have decided that it would be grand to have a party since it's also Hallowe'en. Everyone is invited to wear a Hallowe'en costume to school for the day. I will bring in some treats from everyone, but would be delighted if families wanted to send in some additional food items.

Please do not send in foods containing the following ingredients:

• nuts of any kind

• eggs

• soy

If you do not celebrate Hallowe'en, your child may wear purple instead to celebrate school spirit. Celebrations and traditions of Canada are an important part of the Grade 2 social studies curriculum. I'm looking forward to seeing some fun costumes and to teaching the students a little about the history of Hallowe'en!

Speaking in French.

I'm disappointed at how little French is being spoken by my students. In French Immersion, the expectation is that all students speak French at all times during the instructional day. If students do not use their French, they will not develop confidence, fluency, or vocabulary in their speech.

Yesterday, Madame Demeter spoke to me about her frustration with the students too. Please, please speak to your child about the importance of speaking French as often as possible. If they fall behind, it will become incredibly challenging to catch up.

Having said all that, my congratulations go to several students who always make a valiant effort to use their French - these students include Edna, Julianna, Arshad, Adalia, Emily, and Heysome. Bravo!