Grade 2 Similarities and Differences within Communities

This week, we interviewed classmates about themselves and their family communities. Students had fun doing the activity and getting to see the similarities and differences with each other. We also practiced using a venn diagram to help compare and contrast their results.

During math, we explored what a meter is and what objects are more or less than a meter. We then continued to explore centimeters. During language, we continue to work on using the dictionary as a resource so we practiced how to put words in alphabetical order. Students had fun getting more words and having a long list. Some also started to make their own game using the words!

Grades 4 and 5 - First Lego League Robotics Team

For the last two weeks, our First Lego League robotics team has been working to build all the models that will be used for the different missions on the game board.  Building them is always fun and the students have been enthusiastic about working on them during snack and recess times, as well as ASP time.  Next week, we will begin the hard work of designing the basic frame of our robot, deciding which missions to try and complete first or together with others, begin building tools and attachments to help complete them, and start programming!  

For the project, we will look at what life is like for astronauts in space.  We will have to determine a problem that humans have staying in space for a long duration of time, such as the three years needed to get to Mars, and try and find a solution.  One astronaut who has been influential in spreading publicity about the impact that staying in space has on the human body is Scott Kelly, who spent 340 consecutive days in the International Space Station.  There is a Time Magazine produced documentary about his time spent there which we will be watching some of to help us begin our thinking about what the life of an astronaut is like and try and determine what problems may be.  You can find it here http://time.com/space-nasa-scott-kelly-mission/

Grade 5 and 6 Work Rights Week 5

Grade 5 and 6 went on an excursion on Wednesday, September 26, 2018. 

At the beginning of the trip, we went to a park in Saitama.

The park had a zip-line, fountains, a baseball diamond, a soccer pitch and a jungle gym play area with slides. 

There was a nature area too. 

We ate at the park's indoor facility.

Our class, then, toured  Glico Factory in Chiba. 

The owner made his snack healthy and he lived until the ripe old age of 99 years of age.

We saw the production of a Pocky inside a factory from the dough to the end product. We were not allowed take pictures except for certain places. 

This factory produces Pocky and Pretz. 

We found out that the founder of Glico's first product was a carmel that had enough calories to allow a runner to run 300 meters. The original neon runner sign is still seen in Osaka and served as the first advertisement for this company. The company's name was derived from the "glycogen" found in oysters (and used in Glico's caramels) and the word "company." 

Glico is a global company and has many factories around the world.

We saw 1500 toys that were put in Glico's packages over their years.

The children viewed the different packages of Pocky over time from 1960 until now. The students had fun taking a quiz about their experience and winning prizes. We talked about unions and how they brought safe work conditions and fair wages to factories. We agreed that everyone should have the right to work by joining a union or not. We could see that Glico's factory is a very safe place. 

Grade 1 - Activities to Keep Us Healthy

We've begun talking about different activities that keep us healthy. Exercising allows us to develop strong muscles and bones. Our class list included things such as: 

• running
• playing soccer
• playing with our scooter
• riding bicycles
• playing tennis
• playing baseball
• doing push-ups
• swimming
• playing with a hula-hoop
• playing with a jump rope
• doing ballet
• doing yoga

We chose some of our favorite activities/exercises and started to make our own book. 

We are practicing our math skills by cooperating with our friends. We write an addition problem for our friend, then check each other's answers and see if we wrote our numbers correctly.