Wishing You All The Best!

Hello students & parents!

I hope that you are all enjoying your summer! I would like to thank you all for such a wonderful year- I really enjoyed being your teacher this year. Students, I wish you the best this coming school year as intermediates! Parents, thank you for your support during the year! I am looking forward to visiting you all sometime during the school year. 

Introducing Maxwell Massaro- born July 4th! Maxwell is now 5 weeks :)

Take care everyone!

Mrs Massaro :)

EQAO UPDATE!

Hello students & parents!

Please note that we are in EQAO prep mode now, so it is very important that the students are at school this week.

EQAO will be taking place next week & the week after, so please make sure your child is at school as it can be difficult to find make-up time to write the test & there is a deadline in 2 weeks!

We have been preparing for EQAO in class, and your child has an EQAO duo tang with previous EQAO test questions that they can also practice at home. EQAO tests the students on their Language & Math skills.

If possible, please write in your child's agenda or send a note stating that you are aware of the upcoming EQAO dates- thank you!

Thank you for your support!

Mrs Massaro

EQAO PREP!

Hello students & parents!

As you may have already noticed, we are starting our EQAO prep as EQAO will take place the last week of May. There will be practice EQAO questions taken from previous tests of EQAO in both Language & Math and these practice questions will be posted on EDMODO each week. As a class, we will go over the practice questions for the week and I will show them sample answers & grades that were actually given on these tests. Please support your child by making sure they go on Edmodo often & work in these EQAO Language and EQAO Math groups! Students, this is your second secret quest to make sure you are reading the blog carefully- send me a private message on Edmodo telling me what chapter we will be studying in Math the week of May 12. These practice questions on Edmodo are also graded, so please encourage your child to do their absolute best!

We will also be focusing thoroughly on 1-2 chapters of Math each week until end of May and small assessments will take place each week, so please take a look often at what your child is learning & how they are doing. The schedule will look something like this:

Week of April 14 & April 21:  complete chapter 6 & work on chapters 9 & 10

Week of April 28- chapter 11

Week of May 5- chapter 12

Week of May 12- chapter 13

Week of May 19- chapter 14 & review

For the reasons above, it is so important that your child be at school if they are able to during the next few weeks! Thank you for your support always! 

Mrs Massaro

Spring is here!

Hello students & parents!

I hope you are enjoying the warmer weather and sunshine- let's hope it stays! Please take a look at our updates/reminders for the next month.

REMINDERS/UPDATES:

- thank you for sending EXACT CHANGE for pizza, sub orders and trips- it really helps!

- I will be absent this Thursday & Friday, as well as April 22 for workshops.

- Subway lunch is April 11th & Hot Dog lunch is April 25th for those who have put in orders- enjoy!!

- School Mass April 15th at 10:30am, Holy Rosary April 17 at 10:30am and May 2nd Month of Mary Mass.

- please note that Good Friday is April 18th & Easter Monday is April 21st. Please enjoy your Easter long weekend with your family!

- we have 3 trips planned:  the Science Centre on Monday April 28 that is FREE thanks to the generosity of CSAC and we are also watching a Passion Play at Don Bosco high school on Monday April 14th in the morning- permission forms will be sent home this week- please look out for them! We will need volunteers for the Science Centre so please indicate on the permission form if you are able volunteer for the day- thanks! The students will also be going to the Black Violin Concert at the Living Arts Centre May 1st in the AM!

- Scientist in the Schools for Electricity May 8th in the PM!

- please continue to check out your child's blogging at http://kidblog.org/MrsMassarosClass-2/ and leave comments!!

- if you haven't done so already, please follow St. Marcellus on Twitter at @MarcellusTCDSB!

- in Math, we are working on Chapter 6- Multiplication! Students have been working on multiplication drills at the start of each lesson. It is SUPER IMPORTANT for students to know their multiplication table up to 12 very well as multiplication is the building block for many upcoming Math chapters! If possible, please test your child on their multiplication tables by verbally asking them questions or using flash cards, which you can get at the Dollar Store. We also hope to cover Chapter 9 & 10- Multiplying & Dividing Decimals this month.

- in Media, the students continue to work on creating their Digital Footprint videos in groups. Please see the previous blog post in March for more details. This project will be due in May.

- Students, if you have read this line, message me privately on Edmodo & tell me one thing I shared in this blog post! :)

- in Language, we have completed working on making predictions & making connections with Black History texts and will be moving on to POETRY and making inferences! Students are also continuing practicing their writing process by completing their persuasive paper on an influential Black History key figure. Soon, students will also be creating their own poetry!

- in Science, we are completing Space & students will have a final test in a few weeks and are working on a project about a Space topic of their choosing, which they will present using Blendspace- an online presentation tool on Thursday April 24. When we visit the Science Centre, students will also be checking out various exhibits that connect to our different Science strands this year.

- in Social Studies, we are beginning our First Nations unit! Much of the work & assessments will be done on Edmodo, so please check your child's Edmodo account often!

- in Health & Fully Alive, we continue to explore our SELF IDENTITY by participating in discussions about our body & mind.  I have been meeting with the girls and boys separately so that they are comfortable asking questions and contributing to discussions.

- in Religion, we also continue to explore different virtues each month and at times incorporate drama to demonstrate the virtues. April's virtue is JUSTICE.

- in Art, the students have been taking the lead on Art lessons in pairs each week! I have been very impressed with the artistic talent in our class! In this Project Based Learning, students teach a lesson that has a moral lesson and a follow up Art activity.

As always, thank you for reading! 

Mrs Massaro

Welcome March!

Hello students & parents!

We are already in March- I can't believe it!! Although we hope Spring is around the corner, it is still quite cold, so please ensure you dress warmly!

REMINDERS/UPDATES:

- thank you for sending EXACT change for pizza, subway, trips. It really helps out!

- tomorrow (Tuesday March 4th) is Shrove Tuesday so the students will enjoy a pancake treat! Thank you to all students who have brought in $3, which goes towards charity.

- we will be participating in a school mass on Ash Wednesday of this week.

- reminder that Friday is a P.A Day, so no school.

- March Break will take place next week (March 10th-14th). Enjoy your break & be safe!

-  the students are now blogging on:  http://kidblog.org/MrsMassarosClass-2/. Please check out the blog and comment on students' posts- they would LOVE that! If possible, please get other family members and friends to comment as well- thank you! Please talk to your child about the importance of EDITING their posts by checking spelling before they submit!!

- our school now has a Twitter account @MarcellusTCDSB. Please follow us for school updates! A media consent form has been sent home today regarding the release of photos for the use of this site.

- we are continuing our focus on Black History in Language for the month of March and will be using these sites often for lessons, discussions & assignments:  http://www.timeforkids.com/news/stamp-york/31486  & http://www.biography.com/people/groups/black-history.
The students are working in pairs on creating a Fakebook profile (similar idea to Facebook but not a real account) for a Black History key figure, putting in details about their life and achievements. During Daily Café, we are also reading various Black History themed books and working on a persuasive paper on an inspirational Black History key figure.

- in Media, students are working in groups on a culminating project focusing on creating a powerful video, which details what kind of Digital Footprint we want to leave behind. The video must include the topics we have discussed in our Digital Citizenship unit:  cyber bullying, your online identity, safe/smart searching, do you know who you are really talking to online, cyber gossip/drama and copyright.

- in Health & Media, we are focusing on self image and the students are currently working on taking a 'selfie'- a self portrait by using a camera. This assignment is intended to encourage positive self image as the students will be posting positive comments about each other. The students should print a coloured 'selfie' to bring to class for after March Break.

- In Math, we are completing chapter 7- 2D Geometry with a test tomorrow and moving on to chapter 8- Area and Grids. Please continue to sign your child's assessments & encourage them to use Nelson Online for extra reinforcement and attend extra help workshops when needed. Most students who attend our lunch workshops have a much better understanding of the lessons as it is a smaller group and they can clear up any questions they have. They also improve their grades so it is a win win!

- We will be beginning new units in our Social Sciences. In Science, we have started studying Space through a few educational and engaging movies about our universe and in Social Studies, we will be studying First Nations after March break once we have completed Canada's Trading Partners' final test on Edmodo this Thursday. For these subjects, the students have completed online Edmodo quizzes so please take the time to check how your child is doing! Also, please check Edmodo often for assignments and discussions.

- In Health, we are looking at positive self image and we use Edmodo for the majority of our discussion and assignments, as well as the 'selfie' assignment I mentioned above.


 - In Religion, we also continue to explore our virtues of the month and we link these to various drama activities. The students recently worked on a drama skit involving their puppets about courage. 


Thank you for reading as always! Mrs Massaro

February has arrived!

Hello students & parents,

Thank you for checking back in! Please read below for some important reminders & updates.

REMINDERS/UPDATES:

- I will be absent this week on Wed AM & Friday for workshops. Next week, I will be absent Tuesday & Wed AM for more workshops. As I am on a few committees, sometimes the workshops happen all at once. 

- pledge forms have been sent out for the Much Music dance on Feb 10! Thank you in advance for fundraising for our school. Thank you to CSAC for organizing this event!

- Reports go home Feb 11. As always, please feel free to contact me regarding any questions!

- Monday February 17 is Family Day, so no school. Enjoy your family time!

- thank you for sending EXACT change for pizza, subway, trips. It really helps out!

- the students are now blogging on:  http://kidblog.org/MrsMassarosClass-2/. Please check out the blog and comment on students' posts- they would LOVE that! If possible, please get other family members and friends to comment as well- thank you! Please talk to your child about the importance of EDITING their posts by checking spelling before they submit!!

- we are focusing on Black History in Language/Media for the month of February and will be using these sites often for lessons, discussions & assignments:  http://www.timeforkids.com/news/stamp-york/31486 & http://www.biography.com/people/groups/black-history. 

- In Math, we are moving on to Chapter 6- Multiplication & Division and Chapter 7- 2D Geometry for the month of February. Please continue to sign your child's assessments & encourage them to use Nelson Online for extra reinforcement and attend extra help workshops when needed. Most students who attend our lunch workshops have a much better understanding of the lessons as it is a smaller group and they can clear up any questions they have. They also improve their grades so it is a win win!

- We will be beginning new units in our Social Sciences. In Science, we will be studying Space and in Social Studies, we will be studying First Nations once we have completed Canada's Trading Partners. For these subjects, the students have completed online Edmodo quizzes so please take the time to check how your child is doing! Also, please check Edmodo often for assignments and discussions. 

- In Health, we continue to explore what healthy living means and we use Edmodo for the majority of our discussion and assignments. 

- In Religion, we also continue to explore our virtues of the month and we link these to various drama activities. The students recently worked on a drama skit involving their puppets about courage. 

It looks like we have 6 more weeks of winter so please dress warm students! Forget fashion!! Stay warm :)

Thank you for reading!

Mrs Massaro

January Update!

Hello students & parents!

We are fully back into the swing of things and I must congratulate the students for their positive attitude and hard work since they have returned from Christmas break. Way to go students and keep it up!

REMINDERS/UPDATES:

- thank you for sending EXACT change for pizza, subway, trips. It really helps out!

- the students are now blogging on:  http://kidblog.org/MrsMassarosClass-2/. Please check out the blog and comment on students' posts- they would LOVE that! If possible, please get other family members and friends to comment as well- thank you! Please talk to your child about the importance of EDITING their posts by checking spelling before they submit!!

- pledge forms have been sent out for the Much Music dance on Feb 10! Thank you in advance for fundraising for our school. Thank you to CSAC for organizing this event!

- students will be involved in a Music workshop on Monday all afternoon. Many thanks to Ms Colella for organizing!

- P.A. Day on Friday January 24.

- Hot Dog Day & Dress Down Day Friday January 31.

- there will be a Social Studies & Science Edmodo quiz done in class this week. Please ensure your child is reviewing for these quizzes by looking over our class handouts & Edmodo videos.

- We have moved on to Chapter 5- Measurement for Math. Students usually have some Math homework each night from the textbook, workbook or on Edmodo. A quiz & test will take place in the next couple of weeks.

- Please check out this great site with your child to help them with their Social Studies assignments & assessments on Canada's trading partners:  http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/kids/places/find/

- Please look at the previous blog post, which outlines what we are covering for the month of January- thank you!

- As always, please check your child's Edmodo account once a week or more to keep track of what we are learning in class. We use Edmodo for every subject every week!


Thank you for reading!

Mrs Massaro