Goldstream tomorrow!

Hello students, parents and guardians. Just a reminder that tomorrow is our morning for Goldstream - I'm looking forward to it! I'm sorry I wasn't there today to remind you about all sorts of things, but I know you were in very good hands with Mr. North. Keep your eye on the weather in the morning. It will probably be foggy, and that means cool, especially amongst the trees, where we will be. So dress warmly - you can always peel off a layer if it gets warm. Please bring a healthy lunch as well - we may eat it at the park, or back at school, depending on the time. Thank you to the drivers: Nik's Dad, Omar's Uncle, and Jacob's Mom, along with Mr. NOrth and I. Nik's Grandpa has also offered to drive. We just couldn't do these trips without family support, so I am very grateful. I am looking forward to hearing about your day today, and Goldstream tomorrow. And next week....Watermark! Missed you today, Mrs. Kilpatrick

Happy Sunday, and a plea for drivers!

Hi everyone (students, parents, guardians, Grandma's and Grandpa's...)! First off, I want to thank all of you who made it to the parent/teacher interviews. It was a pleasure to meet so many of you and gain valuable insight to your children. As many of you heard from me, this is still very early in the year - we have spent most of our time together getting to know each other, learning "the ropes" at Lansdowne Middle School, setting classroom expectations, and now we're well and truly into learning the curriculum. My practicum student, Mr. North, is teaching Language Arts - students, this is a good time to share your learning and teach your family what you know about text-to-text, text-to-world, and text-to-self. Mr. North is also teaching about the United Nations in Socials - I think you will find many text-to-text and text-to-world connections as you continue in Social Studies. A reminder: this Thursday morning, October 24th, we will be going on our field trip to Goldstream Park. Thank you so much to Nik's Mom and Grandpa for volunteering to drive! With Mr. North and myself driving, we are very close to having enough seats for everyone - but I do need one more driver/vehicle. If you are able to do this, could you please contact me as soon as possible at my email: kkilpatrick@sd61.bc.ca. I will send home a note this week about what you need to do students, to be prepared. One of the most important things, is being punctual. We will be leaving the school between 8:45 and 8:50 and cannot wait if you're not there. You will need to pay attention to the weather and dress appropriately - and that for sure means dressing for warmth. Proper footwear will be important - we will be doing some hiking. Layesrs - sweaters, jackets, and perhaps rainjacket, will also be important. A tuque or hat is always a good idea at this time of year. And, you will need a nice big lunch (because you will work up an appetite!). Depending on the weather we may stay at Goldstream before eating our healthy bag lunches, or we may head back to school just in time for lunch - but either way, please bring your lunch as usual. I think that's enough for now! I will continue to give you reminders at school and on the blog. Hope everyone is enjoying the cool fall weather - Bogey and I just got back from a little walk, and it's beautiful outside!

Happy Thanksgiving - I'm grateful for YOU!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone. I think this is one of my favourite holidays - it's a time to pause and really reflect on what I have to be grateful for - so much! I'm grateful for my family - my children and husband, my mother who is about to turn 97, my siblings, Bogey, Nappy and Jewel, my friends, my health and everyone else's, the community I live in, and all of the good things in the world we all share. I also reflect on what is not right in the world, and resolve to try and make a difference wherever I can. Students! I noticed that the movie I told you about, WATERMARK, is in town! I am going to inquire to see if it will be in town next week, and if so, let's try and go! I am hoping to preview it tonight, and will let you know. It's a blustery October day today - I plan on getting outside and doing some walking and hiking, maybe some gardening, and then I will come back in and read my book. I hope you will get outside and do some reading too! Did I mention how grateful I am for all of you, Advisory 62? Happy Thanksgiving to you and your families.

Welcome to Mr. North and remember your water cycles for tomorrow!

Hello everyone, here I am! For starters, I would like to welcome Mr. North to Advisory 62! Parents, if you haven't heard, Mr. North is my student teacher for the next nine weeks. I strongly believe in mentoring, and I am looking forward to working with Mr. North as a pre-service teacher. It is hard for me to let go of keeping this awesome class all to myself, but I know that Mr. North has a lot of exciting plans, we will do some team teaching, and, with two of us, we will be able to engage in more small group work and local field trips - I'm excited! Speaking of field trips, we will be going to Goldstream Park on Thursday October 24th. This field trip will tie in with our science curriculum, as well as simply getting us outdoors, connecting us to the natural world, and teaching us about indigenous plants. Mr. Mark Albany will be leading us on a hike in the woods, after we bake some bannock on a fire. We will need some parent drivers so I'm hoping with this advance warning some of you may be able to make arrangements to accompany us. I will send home a permission slip later this week. We also have some swimming dates coming up (see upcoming dates)- please mark your calendars for those as well. We are delving into all of our subjects now - students you have done a great job of settling in to middle school. We are working on punctuality and being prepared, and it's coming along well. Parents and guardians I'm looking forward to an opportunity next week to meet with as many of you as possible, to share insights into your children's learning at this early time of year, and to hear from you what "makes your child tick". Please make sure you call the school office (250-598-3336) to book a time. Water cycle scientific illustrations due tomorrow (Wednesday) students!! And finally, thank you all again for your thoughtful inquiries into Bogey's health! He is doing quite well - still fighting an immune disorder that is making his little body work very hard, but despite some ups and downs he is definitely feeling better. He's getting lots of attention and spoiling (as usual!), and he stays close to my side. I was thrilled that he managed a little walk on the beach today!