January 2011 archive

Snow is…

Snow is coming… (a video paying tribute to snow and how we around Toronto once viewed a storm)

As a winter storm approaches, paying tribute or complaining about snow in a descriptive paragraph/poetry is appropriate. 

Snow is the construction of forts at recess with my closest friends.  Snow is brushinhg the car off early in the morning.  Snow is white. Snow is shovelling. Snow is fluffy, icy, and crunchy when anyone walks on it.  Snow is making smiles on Kindree faces.  Snow is kids outside and away from video games.  Snow is beautiful when falling at night.  Snow is silent and peaceful.  Snow is honking horns and loudness during traffic jams.  Snow is white covered roofs.  Snow is making us all think, even for a moment, about warm days in July. Snow is mittens, snow pants, toques and winter boots.  Snow is the new meaning of a nice cup of hot chocolate.  Snow is Canada...whether we like it or not.

Duffle Bag Theatre

duffleThe Mississauga News has asked you to write a review of the Kindree show from the “Almost Famous Dufflebag Theatre”. Remember this must grab peoples attention either for the good or the bad. What aspects of the show made it fantastic or not so entertaining ? What made it different than traditional theatre?
Give the show a rating out of ten, or out of 5 stars to be included in your review.
At the end of reading your review, we should have a very good sense if we should go and see it or not.
Happy Reviewing.

Cinderella and Fairy Tales

As we get ready for duffle bag theatre, let’s examine these a little more closely.

After watching this video and what you know of Cinderella and similar fairy tales, a) what are some of the same story symbols, plots, characters that are present in many of these “classic” tales. b) what biases, stereotypes do they present to us the reader? c) How does the Paper Bag Princess relate to Cinderella?

See u tomorrow.

A Person You Admire…

Everyone has at least someone in life that stands about the rest as a person you admire.  A person that you may know very well or someone with whom you have only met a couple of times.  But, it’s their character or what they have achieved or how this person believes in you makes them worthy to be written about.

Write about this person or another person in your life that inspires you, challenges you and or makes you want to be better.  Please back up your selection with evidence that would make us truly respect and want to meet this person that you admire.  Limiting your choices, is not a common practice of mine but for this assignment, do not refer to celebrities in your selection….unless you know that person personally.

Checklist:

____: a good/catchy opening sentence.

____: evidence to support my statements

____: feelings or emotions that make your bio story real to you (personal experiences)

____: a great closing to your paragraph (1 or 2 sentences)

Martin Luther King Jr.

What do you take away from this video? What impact has his life and his life’s work had on us today and who we are as Kindree students and as people? Without his actions and message of peace, where would be today do you think as people? How did he open our hearts? He started the conversation of change didn’t he?
Watch the video…please comment. If theres a question I did not ask that you would like to talk about…please feel free to.

The Fun Theory

thefuntheoryhomework– instructions

All this week, we focussed on “embracing and understanding difference”.  Even when something is new or strange or even outside our “normal”  daily routine, it deserves or respect and attention. I think this video sums up our week in terms of changing our thinking on things that happen to us each and every day.  When we change the way we do and look at things, new perspectives make us better learners but more importantly…better people.

What’s the message behind this video as related to difference and change? What kind of impact did this “black and white” change make on these people?
extra question: Why would this car company want to present their product this way?

Math question: Please Complete in math book and not on our blogsite. How would you multiply 5×39 when the “3” key was broken on your calculator. How many different ways can you think of to solve this problem?

Reshaping the internet

  

Listen to me read the article   reshaping the internet    as you read along. 

With more than a billion Internet users worldwide, doubling that number – which should happen within the next decade – will obviously have an effect on the technology and the computer software industry.

Understanding the effect of another billion Internet users starts with considering where those people will be from. Although some will reside in North America, Europe and other developed countries, the majority of the growth willcome from the developing world. China is already the second largest Internet-using country in the world and will likely surpass the United States (the current leader) within the next year or two, adding 250 million Internet users over the next decade.

Countries such as India and Brazil should add another 200 million Internet users, while the fastest rate of growth is likely to come from Africa, which is starting from a much smaller base.

The next billion will differ in more ways than just geography. Most new Internet users will not speak English as their first language. Also, many new Internet users will have different cultural l views on hot-button issues such as online free speech, privacy, and copyright.

The next billion may also use different technology to access the Internet. The recent introduction of the XO laptop – previously known as the $100 laptop – demonstrates how the developing world has different requirements and how the technology industry will have to adapt to those changing environments. Indeed, flashy, high-end laptops with large screens, fast DVD players and enormous hard drives may give way to devices that are energy efficient, sturdier and better suited to users with varying levels of literacy.

Not only will the devices be different, but the next billion will access the Internet in different ways too. Internet connections by cablesd may be too expensive to install in some developing communities, which will make people rely on wireless and satellite-based connections. Those users may use mobile devices as their primary way to connect to the Internet, experiencing slower speeds of access and forcing e-commerce companies to adapt to a changing ways.

As we welcome the next billion, we must recognize that they will do more than just use the Internet. They will help reshape it in their own image and with their own values and change their own communities.

What did the article mean to you?  What did you find interesting or take away from reading this article or checking out the XO computer.
Things to consider:
– How will the internet  be different for the next billion users? Who will be the users and are they different from current users….if so, how? Where will access be available that doesn’t currently have access to the internet?xo

Link to the XO Computer: http://laptop.org/en/laptop/

Multiplication Homework

multiplication   Questions:

   1.Create an array of 14 cm x 11cm.

2. Answer the following 16×13 using our strategy of breaking the number apart in parts. 3×6=     , 3×10=         , ______, ______ .  

3. Use this mental math strategy to solve this question

 (example: 12 x 15– 12×10=120, 12×5=60, add together and get 180)

a: 13 x 11=                                                                   b: 21 x 11=

Imagine a Place

imagine7ahomework instructions: audio

Imagine a place where people could eat chocolate and not feel guilty about it.  Imagine a place where your dreams matched what some people can achieve.  Imagine a place where education is free and all can have it.  Imagine a place without hate. Imagine a world full of tree houses, where adults and kids can play and climb to the sky. Imagine a place in which purple hair would be cool once in a while.  Imagine a place where there wasnt any littering but rather lots of green space.  Imagine a place where we could travel back in time and watch history unfold in front of our eyes. Imagine a place where we can all imagine and believe in all life’s possibilities no matter where you live on the planet.

What’s your “Imagine a Place”?

Follow this pattern and write a descriptive paragraph.

Enjoy.