Our school is one of many in the province that had special activities this week to celebrate Alberta Culture Day.
Our first special event was a performance by the Foothills Brass quintet. They were wonderful to listen to. They taught us a bit about the building blocks of music -- tone, rhythm, melody and harmony. This video will show you little clips of the highlights from the performance.
Our other special event had us participating in a drumming workshop. We all got to play djembe (gembay) drums. We learned that they are a drum from West Africa, that is played with the bare hands. (Many of us had sore hands by the end of the workshop!) Mr. K., our drum teacher, told us to tell our parents that we had "slapped the goatskin", when they ask us what we did at school today. In this video, you can see and hear us playing a few different pieces.
We all enjoyed the day, experiencing different types of music!
We were wondering...
Have you ever heard a brass quintet or djembe drums?
How do you celebrate arts and culture?
We were so surprised when we got to our classroom this past Monday morning. Our teacher had done a little redecorating over the weekend. This is what our door looked like...
There were also balloons and a tablecloth...
We started the day by watching a video of the book "The Dot" by Peter H. Reynolds.
We talked about the message behind this story and how Vashti showed many different habitudes...imagniation, courage, passion, perseverance, self-awareness and adaptability. That was almost all of them!
Throughout the week, we did many different "dot" activities in all of our subjects. In math, we were given the challenge to write as many fact families as we could. Some students challenged themselves by writing fact families with bigger numbers and some even did multiplying and dividing fact families. Here are some pictures to show you some students' work... (Sorry for the sideways pictures)
In math, we also did dot to dots to practice skip counting, drew pictures of equal groups (circles with dots on them) to practice multiplication and the best math activity was doing some graphing using packages of Skittles. The best part was eating our dot candy after our work was done! (Oops...our teacher forgot to take pictures of this!)
Since our school and classroom try to be "bucket fillers", we also spent some time brainstorming ideas for what "bucket fillers" and "bucket dippers" do. Here are some of our ideas...
On Thursday afternoon, we really had a chance to "make our mark". Our town is updating some playgrounds and we were invited to come and help! It was so much fun to help out in our community and we can't wait to play there when it's done!
We started with a safety meeting with one of the town employees.
Then it was time to get to work! We had to place these big black Lego-type pieces around the park. They weren't heavy, but were kind of awkward to carry.
After our work was done, we sat and watched the cement truck and adult volunteers do the cement work.
The town was kind enough to even buy Tim Horton's Smile Cookies and water for us as a treat and a way to say thank you!
The hard working "Braybrook's Bunch".
In art, we did a couple of different "dot" projects. For the first one, everyone designed and colored a dot. Then, everyone's dots were cut into 4 pieces and each piece was put with 3 other students' work to create a collaborative dot masterpiece! Check them out...
For the second art project, we learned about Kandinsky and his piece called "Color Study of Squares with Concentric Circles". This video helped us understand how to do the project.
It was finally time for us to try it on our own. We just nicely got started today, so we will have to work on them more next week. They are looking pretty impressive so far!
To end the week, told us about a song that has been written to go with this book. We read the lyrics and then enjoyed singing it together.
It was such a wonderful week celebrating!
We were wondering...
How did you (or how could you) celebrate International Dot Day?
How will you "make your mark"?
We've been learning that our brain needs to take breaks in order to work it's best. Brain breaks can be many different things from moving, to turning and discussing something with a neighbor or even something as simple as breathing. If you want to learn more about what brain breaks are and why they are important, click here. Our teacher learned about a website with lots of different movement activities, called Go Noodle. Now, doing these brain break activities is our favourite part of the day!
One of the first things we had to do is choose our Classroom Champ. The choices are:
Then it was time to start moving! One of the choices is to do track and field events -- yes, in the classroom! In each event, an Olympic athlete tells us about the event and helps us warm up. Here's a video of us warming up for the high jump:
Then it's time to do the event! Here we are doing it with the Olympic athlete:
Another one of our favourite activities is to dance! We can choose different Zumba dances. Check this one out:
He leads us through stretching and yoga type exercises. Some of them are really hard!
After all of that movement, we need to settle and refocus. Airtime helps us do that. In this video, you can see us doing the breathing exercises with Airtime:
Probably the best part of all, is that with every activity, we earn minutes. Here you can see what our Classroom Champ looks like today:
When our minutes reach the top, our Classroom Champ has to go to the "Transmogrifier", where he transforms. It's so exciting to see how he changes! Once our Champ has gone through all 5 levels, we receive a certificate that our teacher prints off and puts up in our classroom. Here's our most recent certificate:
Some of the students in our class have even signed up for their own free account so they can do these activities at home on their own! There are so many awesome things about these brain breaks!
We were wondering...
Have you used Go Noodle before?
What types of other brain breaks do you use? (Adults--you need brain breaks too...what do you use?)
We started our special writing project by listening to the book, "The Important Book" by Margaret Wise Brown. We were amazed to learn that this book is older than our teacher!
Photo credit: Amazon
We talked about the organizational pattern of each page -- it starts by telling the important thing about something, then tells some details and then closes by saying the important thing again.
We then worked together to write a paragraph using this organizational pattern about some important learning from grade three. Here is what we came up with...
From there, it was our turn to write a paragraph about what we think has been important learning in grade three (so far).
Baileigh -- The important thing about grade 3 gym is that you get energy. You get to play dodgeball. You get exercise by hopping. You can plan basketball. But the important thing about grade 3 gym is that you get energy.
Trace -- The important thing about grade 3 writing is writing stories. We do writing on writer's workshop. We do publishing. We do special projects. But the important thing about grade 3 writing is writing stories.
Sam -- The important thing about grade 3 music is that we can play with instruments. We play in the music room. When we go to music, we switch stations and play drums and the wood blocks. But the important thing about grade 3 music is that we can play with instruments.
Logan -- The important thing about grade 3 handwriting is that we learn to handwrite. We now know how to do uppercase L. Now we know how to do all of the lowercase letters. Now we are on uppercase B. But the important thing about grade 3 handwriting is that we learn to handwrite.
Mavry -- The important thing about grade 3 gym is that you learn new things every time. We know how to juggle now. I can do things I couldn't do before. I have lots of fun. But the important thing about grade 3 gym is that you learn new things every time.
Tatum -- The important thing about grade 3 social studies is that you learn about things in the world. We learn about maps, people and organizations. You learn about quality of life. You learn about homes. But the important thing about grade 3 social studies is that you learn about things in the world.
Tristan -- The important thing about grade 3 snacks is that we get nutrition for learning. I love beef jerky and the chocolate milk. But the important thing about grade 3 snacks is that we get nutrition for learning.
Jess -- The important thing about grade 3 gym is we learn different sports like basketball. In basketball, I now know that you have to stay behind a line if you are going to shoot. If you are going for a slam dunk, you can jump high. But the important thing about grade 3 gym is we learn different sports like basketball.
Wyatt -- The important thing about grade 3 math is that we are learning about skip counting. We now know how to skip count by 25's, 3's, 4's and 5's. But the important thing about grade 3 math is that we are learning about skip counting.
Taya -- The important thing about grade 3 art is that we can paint. It is relaxing. It's a fun project to do. Art makes people smile. But the important thing about grade 3 art is that we can paint.
Makayla -- The important thing about grade 3 art is that it is fun and artistic. We do many different projects. All our art is always unique. But the important thing about grade 3 art is that it is fun and artistic.
Hayden -- The important thing about grade 3 gym is that we have warm ups. It is important to get our brains going to do activities and circus acts. But the important thing about grade 3 gym is that we have warm ups.
Ava -- The important thing about grade 3 library is that we get to have new books every week. Then we learn new things about different books and series. Then we sign them out and take them home. You have to be quiet in the library. But the important thing about grade 3 library is that we get to have new books every week.
Aidan -- The important thing about grade 3 gym is that we warm up. It is important. But starting warming up can start our day and get our brains going so we can learn. But the important thing about grade 3 gym is that we warm up.
Asher -- The important thing about grade 3 math is that we learn about skip counting. We now know how to skip count by 25's. Before, we learned about money. We learned counting by 2's first and it was too easy. But the important thing about grade 3 math is that we learn about skip counting.
Chacie -- The important thing about grade 3 gym is that we get lots of exercise. We juggle scarves, run 4 laps around the gym, play tag and sometimes play dodgeball. But the important thing about grade 3 gym is that we get lots of exercise.
Breanna -- The important thing about grade 3 art is you learn to paint. We know artists use paint. Before we learned about artists, we learned about paint. Also, we learned why art was created. But the important thing about grade 3 art is you learn to paint.
Kade -- The important thing about grade 3 gym is that we have fun and exercise. Gym is fun for everyone. When everyone plays in gym, they are happy. They gym is fun because people get to play with the equipment. But the important thing about grade 3 gym is that we have fun and exercise.
Compton -- The important thing about grade 3 library is that we learn important stuff from books. People enjoy stories. The can not be noisy because the library is a quiet place. The librarian works there. But the important thing about grade 3 library is that we learn important stuff from books.
Mieka -- The important thing about grade 3 reading is you read. You also learn. You have new books. But the important thing about grade 3 reading is you read.
We were wondering...
What is important about your learning?
What do (or did, if you are older) you learn about in grade three?
In social studies, we are learning about 4 different countries -- Peru, Ukraine, India and Tunisia. Today's "Culture Day" really gave us a chance to learn more about the culture of three of these countries.
To start with, we were taught a bit about Ukrainian dancing. We watched this video, to help us get the idea of the "Troika" dance:
We learned each part of the dance and then put it all together to perform!
Some of our reflections...
It was good exercise. -- Wyatt
It was really tiring me out but it was fun. -- Compton
I liked it because it was crazy. -- Kade
I liked when you got to go under another person and
I learned that Ukrainian dancing is unique. -- Tristan
I liked the Ukrainian dancing because it is tiring and I can teach it to my family. -- Taya
Doing the dancing taught me a new dance move. -- Alexa
In our next activity, we got to learn more about Peru. Clothing in Peru is often made from alpaca and llama wool. We got to see and touch some!
It was amazing how soft they were! The necklace you see in this picture was made from a rock found in Peru.
Next, we learned that hand sewn pictures, called arpillera, are a popular form of art in Peru. The pictures often show the markets where women go to buy and sell vegetables, clothing and wool. Here are some pictures of arpilleras from the internet:
Photo credit for all 3 pictures: Arpilleras from Peru by The Folk Art Gallery
Then it was our turn to try to make a similar type of picture, but using construction paper. The details were quite tricky and it got a little messy, but the results were wonderful!
Some of our reflections...
I learned that the people in Peru make the craft out of yarn. -- Mavry
It was cool how they stiched the cloth into a picture. -- Hayden
I learned that they have different animals than us. -- Aidan
I enjoyed making the mountains. -- Trace
I learned what kind of art they did. -- Jaxson
It was fun just to experience the Peru animals. -- Chacie
Our last session focused on the culture of India. Since we had learned about the culture in the other countries, we started by talking about what culture is and some specific ideas about culture in India. This web shows our thinking...
When we talked about clothing, we looked at pictures from the internet of ladies from India wearing saris. Our teacher even showed us one...
We couldn't believe how long it was! How do ladies even wear it? This video answered that question for us...
Next, we learned about mandalas. This is an art form that often starts with a circle in the middle and contains many bright colors and designs. Mandala means "circle" in the ancient language of Sanskrit. They can be made out of sand or drawn or painted. Some people believe that they help to keep evil spirits away. Here is one example... Photo Credit: Mandalas
Then it was our turn to try making them. We used a template of a design and placed a clear page over top. Using permanent markers, we then colored the design. While we worked, we listened to music from India.
Some of our reflections...
I learned that you can turn a long piece of fabric into a dress. -- Tatum
I liked the dress. It is pretty. -- Baileigh
The sari was really long and I don't know how to wear it too. -- Asher
Mandalas keep bad spirits away. -- Sam
But the best part of the day had to be lunch--a multicultural feast! Our class was responsible for bringing food from India. The other classes brought food from Peru and Ukraine. We were lucky to have so many wonderful parent volunteers come in and get everything set up for us and served us the lunch. There was so much food to try -- from mango smoothies to butter chicken to quinoa. Many of us even found a new food that we liked!
Even our principal jumped in and helped with the serving!
Some of our reflections...
I liked the Indian chicken because it was tender, juicy and very squishy. -- Ava
I enjoyed the steak because it was yummy. -- Mieka
I liked the donut because it was sweet and the chicken was crunchy. -- Landon
What I think was interesting is that before I tried some bread, I thought it was normal. But when I tried it, I realized that there was stuff inside it. Now I like to call it "surprise bread". -- Makayla
I liked the chicken curry because
I wanted to try something new that I might like and that I did like. -- Breanna
I liked the pancake because it was rolled up. -- Evan
I thought the donut type thing was interesting because they were filled with potatoes. -- Logan
That wrapped up our Culture Day -- what a fabulous way to learn about the culture of these countries!
We were wondering...
Have you ever attended a cultural celebration?
What do you know about the culture of another country?
Photo Credit: 
