Eric Walters Readathon and Midland Public Library Visit

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Hello Bayview Staff and Students:

Greetings from your Friendly Neighbourhood librarian.

I have exciting news.  On November 10,  Canadian Author Eric Walters is coming to Midland Public Library and Students from Grade 4 to 8 can win a tickets to go on a walking field trip to see him.

To enter, all you have to do is read an Eric Walters Book before October 26 and complete a ballot online at bit.ly/EricWaltersMPL

Throughout October, Mr. McGaughey will announce other ways for you to get a ballot to win.

 

On Halloween, Mr. McGaughey will notify the winning students.

On the morning of November 10, winning students and teachers will walk down to the Midland Public Library for the presentation.

 

Happy Reading,

 

Mr. McGaughey,

Your Friendly Neighbourhood Librarian

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Put on your codebreaking hats.

Hello Bayview Students.

As part of getting the school community to think about password safety and encryption, I am going to share a secret code with the school every week.

Here are a few of the codes students cracked in September.sept26-secret-message sept-20-secretmessage

Some resources for Codebreaking and Cryptology:  Crypto Club .

 

Some of my favorite videos for choosing a good password.

 

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Ms. Young Grade 8 Holiday Narrative Assignment 2014

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/82/Johnny_Carson_and_sons_1955.JPGUpdate 2014

Each year, Ms. Young asks her grade 8 students to write children’s books to give as Christmas gifts to children in the hospital or at the Rosewood shelter.

Students are going to add activities and artwork to create a gift storybook for children at the shelter.

Learning Goal: 

Use technology such as Smart Ideas or Mindomo:  to create a plan, define the elements of a story and organize your thoughts.

Language Arts:   Write a Narrative children’s story using the writing process and distinct voice.

Due Date:  December 2014

Preparation time:  November and December 2014

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I have the biggest classroom in the school

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Last June, Mrs. Hamelin retired from the library at Bayview School after a 30 year career, most of it in the library.  For the last two years I have been part-time librarian with Mrs. Hamelin, and the rest of my time was as a primary planning time teacher.  I am very excited to be Bayview School’s full-time librarian this year.

We Got Mail from Duo Percussion

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On April 3, all the Grade 1-3 classes walked to the Midland Cultural Centre to see a performance of Victory Quest, by Duo Percussion presentd by the Brookside Music Association.  Brendan and Dave charmed children and adults alilke with their journey through an imaginary video game quest.  On the way, they introduced  percussion instruments from around the world, and performed a variety of musical styles ranging from classical and jazz to popular music.  The duo shine most brightly when performing as a vibraphone duo and the children were all excited by their closing number, a vibraphone rendition of Adele’s Rolling in the Deep.  In my 20 years teaching, this is one of the best programs geared ‘for school-aged children’ that I have seen.

After we got back to school, my grade 2/3 social studies class and I wrote a letter to Brennan and Dave of Duo Percussion.

Ms. Graham’s

Grade 2-3 Class

Bayview Public School

 

Thursday, April 03, 2014

 

Dear Brennan and Dave:

We saw you performing Victory Quest at the Midland Cultural Centre today.  We enjoyed the Mario music at the start of the show.  We all enjoyed the last song, Rolling in the Deep.  Mr. McGaughey likes how you told an adventure story while showcasing a variety of musical styles and instruments.  We also enjoyed the Harry Potter theme.

 

We have a few questions for you.

  • What do you like the most about being a professional musician?
  • How do you tell the difference between crash cymbals and ride cymbals?
    How long did it take to learn how to be a professional percussionist?
  • Do you ever get scared on stage?

 

Thank you again for your wonderful show this afternoon.

Yours truly,

 

Mr. McGaughey with Ms. Graham’s Grade 2-3 class.

 

Last week a package arrived for us from Duo Percussion containing answers to our questions, postcards, a signed glossy photo, and enough Duo Percussion stickers for everyone in the class.  Thank you, Brennan and Dave.

 

 

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Grade 5 Research Links

Hello Grade 5 students.
Today you are going to do some quick scientific research for me using the Internet.
I want you to find out as much as you can about:

1) The Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus

or

2) The dangers of Di-Hydrogen Monoxide

I have given you one link for each topic. Please find other links to support your research on the topic.

Keep notes of your findings using Microsoft Word or SmartIdeas.
We will print off your research and share it at the end of class.

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Instant Snow

In my grade 2 science classes, I have been teaching about the three phases of matter: solid, liquids and gases, and how to change the state of the matter between them.

The past two weeks have been very cold in Midland.  One afternoon when it was abou -20C, I conducted a demonstration with several of my classes.

While the children watched from the window, I took a kettle of boiling water outdoors and tossed it into the air.    The near boiling water began to turn into steam and immediately flash froze in a puff of white steam and ice crystals.  For it to work you need a very cold day (below -20C and very hot, almost boiling water).

*Caution:  Don’t try this without an adult.   You could scald yourself with the boiling water before it freezes.  Be careful that the wind is not blowing back towards you.

 

 

 

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Ms. Young’s Grade 8 Narrative Project

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/82/Johnny_Carson_and_sons_1955.JPG

Each year, Ms. Young asks her grade 8 students to write children’s books to give as Christmas gifts to children in the hospital or at the Rosewood shelter.

During our weekly computer classes,  students are going to adapt those stories into an interactive “Choose Your Own Adventure” type story using powerpoint.  They will also use Smart Ideas to help them plan and outline their stories.

Here is a draft version of the assignment prepared by Mr. McGaughey and Ms. Young

ASSIGNMENT:  Use SMARTideas and Powerpoint to create a choose your own adventure style story.

Learning Goal: 

Smart Ideas:  Use an outliner and brainstorming to create a plan, define a problem and organize your thoughts.

Powerpoint:  Gain confidence in using powerpoint to create slides using multimedia, transitions, hyperlinks.

Language Arts:   Write a Narrative children’s story in a non-linear style.

Due Date:  December 2013

Preparation time:  Once weekly with Mr. McGaughey and maybe more if Ms Young books the laptops.

 

Success Criteria:

  • Creates an outline of the story and choices using SMARTideas.  Should include at least 3-10 parts/choices.
  • Writes the full story using power point.  Try to include–  Prose (Words) , clip art, audio clips and transitions.

 

Resources: 

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Digital Storytelling

The grade 7/8 class is creating digital stories to educate and inform others about social issues.   In my weekly lessons with the class we have been discussing ‘What is digital storytelling?’ and the tools they can use to make them.

 

Learning Goal:  Students will apply the creative process to publish a multimedia work in order to educate and inform their chosen audience about a social issue linked to their grade curriculum.

Oct 29:  We watched videos about what is digital storytelling.

 

The primary tools the students will be Smart Ideas and Microsoft Photo Story.