School Planning Day in the Woods

While my first day back to school with the kids is tomorrow, the staff had our official start day last Thursday. In our district, we have a School Planning Day built into the calendar, usually in the second or third week of classes. This year, it falls on September 21. Most schools, however, decide to do the planning day before classes start - which makes a lot more sense!

I'm switching schools (again) this year, and my new school decided to hold our planning day off site at a salmon enhancement centre. Although the majority of the day was spent in grade group meetings, part of the day was dedicated to touring the facility and taking in the beauty of the surroundings.

We took a walk through some of the trails and breathtaking doesn't begin to describe the beauty. These pictures do not do it justice!

This is a salmon ladder. It has run dry because our summer was so dry. Hopefully, we will have more rain and the stream will connect with the ladder soon.

Everything was unbelievably green!

The moss covering the trees was absolutely beautiful!

This is the beginning of the trail. We saw an owl in the trees, too, but it was too quick for my camera.

It was so nice to get away from the school and to explore a new site so close to our campus. I'm already thinking up ways to take my classes here for a field trip. It would fit so well into the science curriculum!

And the best part of all is that we now get a free day off on September 21 because we already worked through our Planning Day :)

Comments

Come To Canada! A travel brochure using typical Canadian Stereotypes.

As a wrap-up project to a lesson on stereotypes with a Grade 7 class, I decided to have the students create travel brochures for our great country, but they were only allowed to use typical Canadian stereotypes to bring in tourists. Each student had to include information on food, accommodations, sights, and activities to try. It was hilarious to read what they came up with! I was very impressed with their final projects! Some students included typical Canadian advertisements, as well! So, what do you think? Would this work in your classroom? Have you done something similar? Let me know in the comments below. Looking for more great tips and ideas for middle school? Subscribe to my email list and receive an exclusive FREE sub plans resource. It includes plans for math, ELA, science, social studies, and Core French. Click here to subscribe.

Using Disney's "Inside Out" With Middle Schoolers

I love Disney movies! My first memory of going to see a movie in the theatre was with my mom and sister when I was about 3 to see The Little Mermaid. Since then, I've been hooked. I still go to see Disney movies with my sister when they come out in the theatre, but now we also take her 5-year old son (most of the time). When I saw "Inside Out" this summer, I loved it! It takes place inside the brain of an 11-year-old girl named Riley. The main characters are Riley's emotions - Joy, Sadness, Fear, Disgust, and Anger. The emotions interact with each other and steer Riley through her days, creating memories. Riley's core memories (important times in her life) create aspects of her personality as Personality Islands. Riley's 5 main personality islands are Goofball Island, Family Island, Friends Island, Hockey Island, and Honesty Island. When Riley was young, Joy was steering most of her actions, but in the course of the movie, Riley's family mov

Water Cycle Foldable

My Grade 4's are learning about weather in science. To help them understand the water cycle better, we created foldable water cycles. On each of the four flaps, we wrote the processes of the water cycle, and under the flaps, gave definitions of the process or information about that part of the water cycle. My students enjoyed making the foldables, and now have a better understanding of the water cycle. This activity was a great supplement to the weather pack I created. The class is working through that pack, but when we came to the water cycle section, a significant group of them were still confused about the processes. Instead of simply memorizing the water cycle, they were able to engage with it. This activity was a good, interactive piece that helped to cement the ideas into their memories. After they created the foldable, almost every student earned 100% on the water cycle quiz in the weather pack! To view the weather pack we are u

One Teacher's Adventures

Search This Blog