DEC. 2018 8R News WWW.HANSOLORELIC.WEBS.COM

Dear Parents/Guardians,

With the Holiday Season shortly around the cor-

ner, I would like to send a heart filled Season's

Greetings to all. Over the past few weeks, I’ve no-

ticed that many students are going out on recess

wearing hardly any gear. Please talk to your chil-

dren about how important it is to keep warm in

such chilling temperatures.

The first three months were full of excitement and

I anxiously await all that the rest of the year has

to offer. Your continued support has been greatly

appreciated. By working together, we are only

stronger in the successful implementation of all

programs and a flourishing year!

Mr. J. Relic

Something Exciting to LA-about!

1. In November, we completed our first teacher-led novel study, “The Maze Runner”. Students were responsible for completing various read-ing comprehension questions, different writing pieces, and media tasks. During the last few week of school before the break, we are using this as an opportunity to revisit Persuasive Pieces of texts based on our Nut-cracker Unit of Study.

2. After the break we will begin Literature Circles. Students will work in one of six groups with 4-5 other students. For each cycle, they will have a pre-determined amount of pages to read, discuss what they read with their group members, and have a completed role for that day. The pos-sible roles are as follows:

* Life Skill Illuminator, Summarizer, Passage Picker, Word Wizard and Connector

*We have been continuing with Literacy Centers and Guided Reading on a daily basis. They have become a central cog in our 100 minute liter-acy block. When assessing students, I am finding that the positive ben-efits of guided reading are immeasurable.

Math Update:

We are currently in the middle of our Algebra

strand. This strand has posed some challenges

for some students. I have made myself availa-

ble every fitness break for extra support and

help. Students were also advised to practice

their questions at home and review concepts

nightly. An assessment has been scheduled for

the second week of December.

*Ask you child all the neat

things that we have been work-

ing on in our Algebra

unit...you’ll be AMAZED!

Science: During the month of December,

students will be engaged in inquiry based

learning centred around the Compound Light

Microscope. We will also analyze the final or-

ganelles found within plant and animal cells,

discussing the importance of Osmosis and

Diffusion. An assessment has been scheduled

for the third week of December.

Rudolph’s Rotary Mme. Cox Mr. Affleck Mr. Relic Mr. Fetter Mrs. Fennell

Geography: The grade 8's will be analyzing ways in which we can make our communities more sustainable, and then begin analyzing the global inequalities in the areas of economic development and quality of life. We will begin to discuss how to measure quality of life through the human development index (HDI), and the various levels of quality of life that exist around the globe. (Mr. Fetter) Phys-Ed: In the gym we begin our basketball unit and explore the fundamentals of basketball. Our culminating activity for volleyball is a volleyball tournament. (Mr. Affleck and Mr. Fetter)

Arts: Students will complete their interpretation of a 3-D Nutcracker using various elements of artistic design and materi-als (Mr. Relic and Mrs. Fennell)

Drama & Dance: students will work in groups to create Dramatic Tableaus with a focus on movement centered on the plot and viewing of “The Nutcracker and the Four Realms”. (Mr. Relic and Mrs. Fennell)

Music: Students will work on their sight reading skills while working on Holiday music selections. (Mrs. Capel Cure)

French: (Mme. Cox)

In French this month, we will be working on strategies for asking and answering questions on the play "Chat Angora" and familiar topics. We will be analyzing short clips/scenarios and discussing our opinions, as well as presenting our plays.

Our

Literacy

Writing

Focus