January 31st (Interims Sent Home)

Have a great weekend.

A note that Div 1s interim reports were sent home today. These reports need to be signed and returned. If they are not returned, we will follow up with a phone call. Mr. Horner and I only made notes beside the subjects if an explanation was required. For example, to clarify why you received a not meeting or minimally meeting in your work habit. We do this so that you can improve in time to do well on your term 2 report card.
Thankfully, many of you were meeting to exceeding our expectations. Additionally, many of you have shown improvement since term 1. Well done.

TBH Div 1

TBH Div 2

January 30th

Ski Trip Update:

Some parents still need to meet with a grade 8 teacher or our administration and sign the District moderate risk waiver form. Please approach us via email, if you need to schedule a meeting (students cannot go on the trip without this meeting). If you are a parent wanting to go on the trip, chaperones are not needed, but your company always is welcome. If you pay through us, you will get the transportation, lesson and lift ticket at a cut rate. Otherwise, you can drive up and deal with payment/passes as a regular mountain user.

Now for the sad news: Mount Washington has closed until their snow base increases. We will keep you posted as this situation evolves. West Coast mountains can build up their base over a few days, but they can also have dry years.

Here is how we are going to work some scenarios:

If the Mountain doesn't open by February 18th, we will move the date of the trip.

If the Mountain doesn't open again for the season, we will cancel the trip and we will offer families one of two options:
1.  a full refund
2.  the ski trip payment will be put toward the grade 8 camp trip in June (this option would involve a part refund as the camp will be cheaper than the ski day)

As both a parent and a teacher, I hope that our trip will be a go (although the old lady in me doesn't mind the idea of not getting up at 4:30am! ;-)

Any questions or concerns, please email me: gbridal@sd62.bc.ca

The phrase for today's entry is: "Bring on the snow!"

January 29th

 
Tomorrow is exploratories so come prepared for the activity that you have signed up for.

Thanks to all your parents who came out last night for the ski meeting. If your parent was unable to attend, meetings can be arranged with our administration or with a grade 8 teacher to satisfy our District's moderate risk field trip policy. Please tell chaperones that I am still hunting down the answer to this question: how do chaperones or do chaperones pay? Stay tuned for the answer to that one.

To get an entry today, answer this question: Why do the knights in the cartoon have a red cross on their tunics? (and what is with Mr Happy Face?)

January 28th

Class notes:

If you were not able to complete the Plant/Animal Cell Lab in class today, I expect them to be submitted tomorrow. You should be reviewing for your Social Studies quiz. Use the S.S. course link to review the main ideas. I am not asking for you to memorize dates, but you should know who the Normans were, how they changed your history, how we know so much about them and what the crusades were.

Interim Reports:

Mr Horner and I are putting together an interim report for each student in Divisions 1 and 2. This report has a work habits focus, but performance and work habits have a direct relationship with one another; if you have good work habits, you will perform well. If you need to develop your work habits, your performance probably could improve. As a student moving into High School, you are the driver in your education. Expect these reports home on Monday next week.

Parents:

Ski Meeting Tonight at 6:30. 

For an entry, today's set of words are: Domesday Book.

For an extra entry, comment: What was the Domesday Book?

January 27th

Ski Trip:

Notices went home today regarding the Ski Trip and mandatory parent meeting. Please tell your parents to be there at 6:30 pm and please promise them that we will keep the meeting to 10 minutes tops. If they want to talk outside of the mandatory "talk", we will be there to field questions. Otherwise, they come and get it over with quick so that they can get on with their very busy evenings.

Math: Starting Dividing Fractions by Fractions

Science: Completed Plant/Animal Cell Lab Write-Up/Working on: Body Systems Project

Social Studies: Finishing Journal Projects/ Starting to look at the Crusades/ Review TEST on Thursday

Today's entry requires you to enter a comment. Answer this question: What is your favourite thing about going up a Mountain on a snowy day?