Money, Cobalt and Paragraphs

Those three topics obviously have little in common, except that they were the focus of our learning this past week. In math, our minds have shifted to learning about currency, denominations and value of money, how it links decimals, and being able purchase and make change. Making change requires quick thinking and having basic addition and subtraction skills. More work needs to be done, but they are having fun! This week we will be doing some math assessments to evaluate their learning in fractions, measurement, and their ongoing number skills.

In language this week, our learning focus was about paragraph structure in texts, such as when to know whether a new paragraph should be started, and how to end a paragraph. The routine activities of spelling, and group reading continues. In the reading groups however, the focus is beginning to shift to more silent reading, and sharing their ideas, summarizing and discussing story and nonfiction texts with their partners. As they prepare for grade four, being able to read independently (silently) for longer stretches is important. This skill is also meant to be built when reading at home. I reiterated this week that 20 minutes of uninterrupted reading, from a text which is appropriate for them, is non-negotiable. That is, as a school, this is the basic lower limit of homework responsibilities. Some students are neglecting to record their reading tasks in their reading record book, as well as show parents their work. Reading for children this age is critical in my view, and is the best academic task they can do outside the classroom. We have a motto in our classroom, we learn to read, and read to learn. I'd be pleased to discuss this with parents at any time.

 In our Unit of Inquiry into how minerals are used for just about everything we make and use, we gave thought to responsible mining.  Specifically, we investigated the plight of child miners, such as in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where most of the world's cobalt is mined. The children were quite moved about one little boy, Dorsen, who spent about 5 years of his early childhood mining, so that consumers can purchase smartphones. About one teaspoon of cobalt is used for every smartphone, three for a laptop, and about 10 Kgs for a electric car battery. The students are in the early stages of learning about supply and demand, but are face with the moral dilemma of exploitation for children in order to produce the technology we want. The children used Dorsen plight as the basis of a writing activity, by writing from his perspective in a diary. This week coming, we will be looking to the end of this unit of inquiry by having a Special United Nations Meeting of Mining Stakeholders in the mining industry to explore solutions. The students will be practicing their power of persuasive arguing to offer solutions from different perspectives--the mine owners, the child miners, the families of the child miners, the consumers and the technology companies. Each of these stakeholders will have different perspectives on the solutions, so we look forward to seeing your children in action. Ask them about it next Friday!

Have a wonderful weekend ahead!

Mr Shawn and Ms Olga