K-Zone Room 4 Edition

A New Year, a New Term

2010-01-25T07:16:00.000-08:00

Intermediate Newsletter
Term 2 -2010

Once again hello from the intermediate division. It is that time again term two, where we give you the low down on what is going on with your ever-changing children. It is hard to believe that we are about halfway through this school year already. We have been very busy in all areas of the school which has made the year seem to fly. Here is a run down of what term two has and has already occurred

Language Arts

This term we will be focusing on the following areas;
- Persuasive Writing
- Explanatory Writing
- Report Writing

Throughout the second term we have looked closely at these three types of writing. In each case we follow the same guidelines. One week in each of the following areas: whole class instruction, small group instruction, pairs, and an individual assignment at the conclusion of the unit. Along with these writing units they are also involved in their very own personal reading program which is running very successfully. As well we have continued with our new Nelson Reading program. I can clearly see the impact it has left on many of the students. The discussions that we have these days are well thought out and the students seem to offer more insight into their way or thinking. These books allow the children to make predictions, activate their schema, synthesize and evaluate media. They have been a great add on to our reading program. Finally the aspect of speeches have once again reappeared in our busy schedule. We have decided as a division to treat this pursuit as an academic club, rather than incorporate it into our language programs. Qualifiers from the club will still have the ability to present and compete against one another in a future assembly.

Mathematics

Term two has seen a lot of action already. We started off the term with integers and have progressed to algebra and patterning. The students are looking at creating pattern rules and figuring out the general term of a sequence. From this they are able to correctly create a scatter plot and predict future trends. They also have been busy with substitution and figuring out the missing numbers in expressions. From this they will be moving in to transformations for grade 8 and making more frequent and effective use of the Problem Solving approach to Mathematics. This involves using more real-world applications for concepts. Increased use of manipulatives throughout the process is encouraged.

Physical Education

We have moved on from volleyball and are now focusing on basketball. We are continually trying to develop their basketball skills so that we can incorporate them into a successful tournament during the unit. Along with basketball we have also added floor hockey which seems to big a big hit amongst many students. Lastly we will be allowing many of our talented young ladies to teach a unit on gymnastics.

Geography/History

With the end of January coming there will be a shift. Those students who were studying geography will be moving to history and vice-versa. Our last geography unit will be Natural Resources where the children will look at Renewable and Non Renewable resources and what we can do to protect and prolong them. As for history, the students are currently learning about the time period of New France and its dissolution as a result of the loss of the Seven Years’ War. From there, they will be engaged in a study of the War of 1812 and will be finishing up with a brief look into the Rebellions of 1837.

Science

In January the students will be completing their unit on Cells, Tissues and Organs. Here they have focused on many key concepts which are a vital component to Grade 9 science. Using student experiments as well as daily assignments, the students will understand many difficult concepts that our bodies perform on a daily basis. These components are vital to human growth and survival. Once this unit is complete students should spend some quality time preparing for their unit test, they will then begin their new unit on Fluids. Here the focus for the students is on learning to use hydraulics to help move large objects. It is important to remind parents that all students know of their unit test two months in advance. All key terms and definitions that are used throughout the term are posted in the science room at the beginning of each unit. It is the responsibility of the students themselves to record and learn these terms.

Intermediate Sports and Clubs

With January half over, both boys and girls teams for the upcoming basketball season are in full effect. The season begins January 12th and runs until the middle of February. Come out and support the Bengals as they look for yet another championship this season. In the intramural realm Mr. Kitcher will be starting up ball hockey in the near future. The chess club will return after a month off, to begin practicing and sorting out team members for the spring Regional Championships. The club’s numbers in terms of Intermediate participation have significantly dwindled, and as such the team may only have one, or two intermediate representatives. Mr. Kitcher hopes Intermediate numbers will increase back to their former glory in future years.

And So.... Another new school year begins.

2009-08-26T20:05:00.000-07:00

Hello all, and welcome to the 2009/10 school year. For the first time in my teaching career, I will be finding myself teaching a selection of students for a second time as their homeroom teacher.
I trust all enjoyed their well-deserved breaks. Something I find to be a pleasure to do, but also a necessity as well, is to reflect on my experiences as a teacher from the year that has past.
After a summer of reflecting, I saw where my efforts at improving my practice need to be focused. It is my goal to create a much more communicative environment with students and their families. Parents can expect to see a statement of progress, in terms of students' overall efforts at least once per cycle in the student agendas. These have always been my front line of communications with families. It would be very appreciated if parents could please ensure that the agenda is initialed daily. As well, at the end of the month, students' evaluation portfolios of assessment pieces and work samples will be sent home for parental oversight. Both items will serve as my way of knowing that you are being informed of what is going on in the classroom on a daily basis. I will be encouraging my students to become more reflective of their own efforts on a daily basis, in the form of affirmations of their strengths of the day, as well as where they found they were having difficulties. I strive to create effective triads of communication (teacher/student/guardians). If all three are on the same page, greater levels of success have been proven to occur. In the coming days, I will be posting a rough outline of what to expect in terms of learning material for the coming term. It will be posted as an attachment for easy printing off at home for your reference.
As I perused this year's class list, I found myself pleasantly surprised that I had taught many of the students either last year in Grade 6, or two years ago, when they were in Grade 4. This should make the adjustment to routines and expectations that much easier, as many of the students will have a prior knowledge of my approaches to teaching, and my expectations for classroom conduct. I am looking forward to an excellent 2009/2010 campaign.
Take care for now,
Mr. Kitcher

Reflecting on FDR by Sarah W

2009-05-12T05:51:00.000-07:00

'The only limit to our achievements tomorrow will be our doubts today'
-Franklin Delano Roosevelt
(F.D.R.)

One time Franklin Delano Roosevelt said 'The only limit to our achievements tomorrow will be our doubts today'. What I think this quote means is that the achievements you will have to tomorrow is the amount of doubts you had today. For example you could have lots of achievements today but then tomorrow you wont have many doubts(nothing good will happen, not a lot of achievements.) I also think what F.D.R. is trying to say is that you shouldn't take things for granite because one day you could have lots of achievements and then the next day you could have a horrible day with no achievements. That is what I think about Franklin Delano Roosevelt's quote 'The only limit to our achievements tomorrow will be our doubts today.'

Relecting on Brandeis, by Bradley A

2009-05-11T09:27:00.000-07:00

Most of the things worthdoing have been declared impossible before they were successfully done. By Louis D. Brandeis

When Louis once said this quote it reminded me of sometimes of the way I act. By what I mean is that by when sometimes Mr Kitcher says that most language tasks or sheet are worthdoing that sometimes I blab out saying it is impossible for me to do, before I was able to successfully finish it.
Therefore that is why Louis D. Brandeis' statement made sense to me, because it had a little bit of me in it.
By: Bradley A

Greetings all...

2009-05-06T06:32:00.000-07:00

Hello Bengal Nation,
The students are continuing to build their repertoires in their overall language skills, from visual; oral; expressive; and receptive positions. They are enjoying the opportunities to publish via the class blog. The students' thoughts have not been altered in any way, shape, or form by myself. As you may have read, a number of students are capable of some very deep thought.
I want to take a moment to clarify a concern that has been relayed to me. It revolved around an air of confusion of how a report card grade has not seemed to match up with a result on an evaluative piece of work. As educators, it is incumbent upon us to look at our evaluation of students from a big picture point of view, rather than relying on one specific task. Many students deal with various levels of anxiety, when it comes to on demand tasks. These same students can be providing all manners of evidence as to 'getting it' with materials being learned.
My classroom is not test driven. Though we will have tests and quizzes from time to time, the vast majority of my assessment and evaluation is born from observations and discussions within groups, and on individual bases. While it is great when a student 'rocks a test', his efforts along the way to the test count for as much, if not more than the test itself.
The finish line is in sight, and I feel the class has had a remarkable journey thus far.

Reflecting on Success According to Philip Sydney, by Caitlin M

2009-04-21T09:37:00.000-07:00

When Philip Sydney said "Either I will find a way to succeed or I will create one" I think he ment was if you can't succeed then you have to find a way your self, like if you have a math test and you study really hard and you fail because you studied the wroung stuff then you have to ask the teacher if you can do a re test, because you have to ask to try better to succeed in school. I also think that if you either find a way to succeed or create one then you are succeeding one way or another. But you have to secceed your self you can't have your mom or dad doing your homework because you will succeed if you do the work, so you can keep what you learned to succeed farther in school and in your jod. That is what I think Philip Sydney ment when he said "Either I will find a way to succeed or I will create one."

Reflecting on Thomas Carlyle, by C. Ireland

2009-04-02T06:56:00.000-07:00

Thomas Carlyle once said that people often do less than they should, unless they do all that they can...
I do agree with Carlyle because most people take the easy way out because they want to get whatever they are doing over with. They don't care what people say because they don't care either. If some people are just learning something and don't really understand it, while others get it very well. You could say that they don't care, or you can pay attention to them and realize they just need some time. One of my goals in life is to never take the easy way out of anything and do everything to the best of my abilities. If all you do is take short cuts then you will never be respected by anyone; but if you do everything the best that you can then you will get a job and not get fired on the first day. If you need help on things becasue you don't understand it then you should ask somebody to help you, in no time you will know what you are doing and won't have to ask anymore.

If you like to do things the easy way then I can't stop you, but if you like to do everything right then you will have a great future.
That is all i have to say about Thomas Carlyle's quote.

Reflecting On the Upcoming 3rd Term, by C. Smith

2009-03-30T07:12:00.000-07:00

I think I have more strengths then weaknesses going into the third term. I beat the class avarage in everything but french and music. That means that going into the third term I just have to work just as hard if not harder in all of the other subjects but I can also work extra hard in french and music to get my mark up higher. I have only really set one goal going into the third term, getting on the honour role. I came rally close in the first term and I think i came really close in the second but now going into the third I am going to really try hard to get on it. If I make it I will know because i will see my marks go up and my avarage will be over 80%. I will also know because at the assembly they will call up all the people thet made the honour role and they will call my name. Those are my strengths, weaknesses, and a goal I have set going into the third term.

Reflecting On Charles Simmons by R. Fisher

2009-03-26T06:26:00.000-07:00

"uncalled for excuses are pratical confessions."
Once Charles Simmons said " uncalled for excuses are pratical confessions." I think that Charles Simmons is trying to say that don't use excuses just confess what had happened or what you did because the truth is always the right answer. I also think that I would confess the truth because then people will think your a better person. I agree with Charles Simmons statement because you have friends and people that trust you and if you think that people will like you better for your excuses that you make then your wrong people will like you for who you are and not because you said something that is not true. If you are in a situation and you don't know what to do tell the truth, people will understand the problem. That is what i think Charles Simmons means when he says "uncalled for excuses are pratical confessions." That is also why i agree with Charles Simmons statement.

Reflecting on Benjamin Franklin by A. Vidal-Oliver

2009-03-25T09:24:00.000-07:00

Benjamin Frankin once said "Do you love life? Then do not waste time becuase thats what life is made of."
What that means to me is, If you love life you shoud not waste time beucase then your wasting your hole life.Thats like never doing anything, being lazy intell you die,once your dead you realize you should have done something with your life.

Reflecting on Mahatma Ghandi, By Sarah F

2009-03-24T06:39:00.000-07:00

"To be afraid has its purpose, but to be a coward has none." - Mahatma Ghandi
I agree with this quote once said by Mahatma Ghandi because being afraid of something is fine. Every one's afraid of something. But to be a coward is something totally different. If you're a coward you won't be able to live your life. For example if you're a coward you won't be able to try things like roller coasters because you're to chicken to just try it. Also while your friends our out there not being a coward you'll just have to sit there watching them have fun. So it's OK to be afraid of something but it's not OK to be a coward and this is why I agree with Mahatma Ghandi's quote.

Reflecting on Aughey, by A. Khan (gr.7)

2009-03-23T06:22:00.000-07:00

John H. Aughey quoted, Lost Time is never found again, I think that this means once a time passes by you can never get that time back. So if you are going to study for a test but never do, you'll never get that time back to study. Another example would be if your going to a sports game and you decided to miss this game out because your team has always lost but the time your not there and your team wins that game, which means you never got to win with your team, so you lost time and you'd never get it back again. That is what i think of this quote by John H. Aughey.

Happy St. Patrick's Day

2009-03-17T05:08:00.000-07:00

First off let me apologize for not having my picture accompany this posting. Cyber cafés don't like people placing USB sticks in their computers. As many of you know, Jacob Beam is well represented down here in South Carolina. The Intermediate division had their first round of the Spring Golf Tournament yesterday at the Old South Golf Links. It is amazing how two terrible holes can take a player right out of contention. Fun was had by Mr. Millin, Mr. Sotola, and of course me. The conditions were ideal, as their were a few clouds, moderate temperatures, and just a hint of a breeze. I am making an effort to get the entire division to go to The Salty Dog Cafe for lunch either today or tomorrow. If we get there today, try to access the café's website's remote web cam and we will try to give the school population a wave at around 1:30 pm. Signing off for now, but I will be back! Enjoy your green beverage of choice today folks!
rk

The Time is Upon the Class... Yay!

2009-03-12T08:45:00.000-07:00

As the March breeak approaches, the class recieved it's new gently used computer, from the lab as the school's allotment has finally arrived. Our Language program will be kicking into high gear as the students will now become bloggers in their own right. On any given day, one or two students will be asked to post an entry to this site. It may be how they are feeling about their progress, or it may be something based in other subject areas. Parents, keep your eyes open for your child's thoughts and ideas. As it stands, one student's family expressed the desire not to be identified by use of a photo, when it came to the publishing of work. As for the rest, parents can expect to see their child's 'headshot' accompanying their articles as they are published.
In the meantime, enjoy the break. For those heading off to warmer climates, please be safe and enjoy yourselves. The first student posts will be happening possibly tomorrow, but more likely after the break.
rk

And here we go again

2009-01-14T10:14:00.000-08:00

January 2009
Happy New Year and welcome to 2009!
As we return to our routines after a restful and well-deserved break for the holiday season, I wanted to convey how enjoyable the year has been thus far. The majority of students in the class have responded very well to the expectations put out in September.
This entry serves to give all of you an overview of the coming six weeks’ curricula.
Our Language Arts program continues to roll along, with some new focii, as well as revisits to some from the first term. The class performed rather well as a whole in our first literature circle novel studies, and new circles will be beginning in the coming week ahead. Added to that, the class has also embarked on small group guided reading sessions using shorter texts from a resource produced by Nelson Literacy. Our Writing focus for the early stage of the term will be looking at using writing to persuade an audience to our opinions on given issues. We will also continue to build our poetry repertoires that Miss Barbary had established in her time with the class. Focus for the term will be the analysis of song lyrics as poetry for effective use of various literary devices. Our media literacy pursuits will take us into the realm of audio media (radio, Internet sound bites). The students will be listening to, evaluating, and eventually creating pieces of audio media for given audiences. The students’ oral communication expectations for the term will be centering on the giving of book talks based on the SSR (self selected reading) materials, as well as the composition of a research based speech or multimedia presentation.
In Mathematics this term, the class will continue to build on their collaborative problem solving pursuits initiated before the break with Mrs. Hurd and me. For some strands of math the students will be grouped along grade lines, while in other strands the groupings will be more heterogenous. Strands to be covered in the coming weeks are Data Management (graphing, measures of central tendency, stem and leaf plots, and surveys), fractions and decimals, and 2 & 3 Dimensional Geometry.
It was discovered that focussing on one content area (Social Studies/History/Geography vs. Science) was more effective than working both areas at the same time. As such, our focus until February will be in the humanities area of the curriculum, after which we will move into 2 units of science leading to the March Break. Social Studies will be focusing on studies of Aboriginal peoples (specifically the Wendat of Central Ontario) for the Grade 6s while the Grade 7s will learn of Canada’s westward expansion.
The class’ Arts curriculum will continue to work on two dimensional sketching, as well as a brief study into pointillism using the medium of oil based pastels.
As we begin our foray into 2009, students are again reminded to ensure their agendas are kept up to date, and that parents get the opportunity to see them daily. I do make an effort to write in each student’s agenda on an at least weekly basis. The agendas are looked over by me almost daily. I need to emphasize that this is my primary method of communication with home in terms of personalized feedback, concerns, and proud moments.
Enjoy the month and try to keep warm.
Mr. K.

Students becoming Bloggers....

2008-09-03T07:25:00.000-07:00

Greetings all,
I wanted to place this short post with an accompanying video to show you all how our class plans to implement blogging as a means of furthering our language (specifically writing) program. For some, the idea of writing without a pen or pencil has a wider appeal, and in today's era of differentiating instruction to reach the broadest range of learners possible, blogging seems a natural fit. Simply put, the term blog is actually an abbreviation for 'web-log'. The blog is actually a journal entry in an electronic medium. I think that a number of students in the class will see tangible rises in their writing skillsets, by 'losing' the pen/pencil and their accompanying fine motor challenges.
As you watch the short video, pay close attention to its reasons for blogging, and you will see that it actually provides us with another way to show students the relevance of writing in the world. The other cool thing about this is that their thoughts and reflections will be 'out in the world' for all to see.

As the year progresses, students will all have turns at posting their thoughts on various philosophical quotes, their day to day experiences, hopes, fears, and dreams. In the interests of security and relative anonymity, only initials will be used as a means of identifying the authors. However, many of the students have expressed interest in having their writings contain a 'head shot' to be attached to their entries, thus making them appear like columnists. A permission to publish students images for blogging will be attached to the one 'paper' class newsletter this Friday. If parents would rather their children's images not be added to the blog, please inform me on the bottom of the class newsletter for September.
rk

Welcome to the K-Zone

2008-08-29T19:59:00.001-07:00

Welcome to the K-Zone folks. This coming year promises to be one of challenge, intrigue, and discovery. There are those who say that a 6/7 split is the worst of split-grade classes. I try to look upon such a task as a summit waiting to be ascended. As is the case with any split grade class, it offers students opportunities unavailable in straight grade classes. I find there is a heightened opportunity for mentoring and peer interactions in the split grades. Some think they are the bane of educational existence, I, on the other hand, see them as chances for greatness. I think it is in the split class that students are afforded new chances to shine. For example, a strong student is given exposure to materials beyond his/her actual grade level, and to that end, a student that has experienced difficulties prior, can take some time to review the previous year's fundamentals, in order to bring him/herself up to speed. The year promises to be one of challenge, and fun. Stat tuned to the blog as it will be the mainstay of the class' communications with the community at large. Every student in the class will be contributing to the publishing of material on this site, thereby giving themselve an opportunity for their first 15 minutes of global fame.
By the way, you have probable noticed the small advertisements placed by Google on the right side and at the bottom of the blog below the sports headlines. Feel free to click on any of these ads if they interest you as they are spam and spyware free. Also, Google will pay the blog on a per click basis. Any time the blog generates 100 dollars of revenue, Google cuts a cheque that will be pumped back into the class for literacy materials, games, and instructional aids. It is my hope that we as a class can take advantage of this program, as the revenue is calculated on a 'per click' basis. Let's have a great year and stay tuned for frequent updates as to the happenings within the class, and major assignments' due dates etc.
Yours in Education,
Mr. K.