Hour of Code at Boxwood

During Computer Science Education Week (December 5th - 9th, 2016), students from all over the world will be participating in The Hour of Code. The Hour of Code is a one-hour introduction to computer science. Students and teachers can choose from a variety of activities for kindergarten and up. "Coding" refers to computer programming. This is important because computers are and will continue to be a big part of our future. We want to support our students to gain the ability to create technology. Various classes are taking part in "coding" activities this week. Here are a few pictures of students coding. Special thanks goes out to Ms. Calverley for organizing this learning opportunity to support our future computer programmers!

Grade 8s Learning about Water Systems

Presently our Grade 8 students are learning about water systems. Ms. Breckenridge is not only teaching them about water systems but she is also engaging them in thinking about solutions to our water problems. A key learning target for this is for students to become aware of different ways to conserve water. The pictures below show the students working together to brainstorm different ways to conserve water at home, school, and the community.

The Arts at Boxwood

On my daily walk today I noticed great examples of art at Boxwood. In Ms. Royce's grade 8 class which is presently being taught by Ms. Au-Yang, I had the honour of being shown an art piece that was created by all members of the class.  Students had to reproduce a famous painting. Each student has a small square of the painting to reproduce using pastels. In order to get it right, they had to communicate with their peers. At the end, they discussed how they could have done better with this task. Students not only demonstrated their skills with using pastels, but they also worked on their collaboration skills. See the result below. Well done grade 8s!

My next visit brought me to Ms. St. Jean's 5/6 class. They have been working on using patterns in art. Their task was to create an art piece using patterns in the style of traditional Islamic art. In this example of learning, students were learning about art from around the world and how to use patterns to create art pieces. Well done class. Check it out below!

My last visit brought me to Ms. Turcotte's grade 7 band class. Students have been busy working at music theory, making appropriate sounds and using correct technique with their mouthpieces. Today, I got to see them playing notes collectively on their instruments! They have improved so much. I appreciate the work that this class has put in to improve their skills. Keep it up.

Using Kahoot to Support Math Learning

Kahoot! is a free game-based learning platform that makes it fun to learn – any subject, in any language, on any device, for all ages! This is an engaging way to use technology to engage students in reviewing concepts that they have learned. We are always looking for ways to use technology to enhance our students' learning. Today, I observed Ms. Romanese's class using Kahoot to review number patters. Check out the pictures below to get a glimpse of their learning.

Using Kahoot to Support Math Learning

Kahoot! is a free game-based learning platform that makes it fun to learn – any subject, in any language, on any device, for all ages! This is an engaging way to use technology to engage students in reviewing concepts that they have learned. We are always looking for ways to use technology to enhance our students' learning. Today, I observed Ms. Romanese's class using Kahoot to review number patters. Check out the pictures below to get a glimpse of their learning.

Remembrance Day @ Boxwood

Last Friday, November 11th, Boxwood P.S. had our Remembrance Day ceremony. The purpose of the ceremony was to honour the sacrifices that Canadians made in the past, and are still making today, for our freedom and liberty. We had different presentations and performances from our school band and different classes.We also observed the "Last Post" to honour and show our appreciation for these sacrifices. Lest we Forget!

Remembrance Day @ Boxwood P.S.

Tomorrow we are going to have our annual Remembrance Day ceremony. The purpose of this ceremony is to remember and recognize the efforts and sacrifices of our veterans from yesteryear and the men and women who serve in our armed forces today. Many of our staff and students prepared today by rehearsing their presentations. Our ceremony will begin at 11:00am sharp tomorrow and the sacred "Last Post" will begin at exactly 11:11am. Parents are welcome to attend. Please check in at the office first before proceeding to the gym.

Halloween at Boxwood

Yesterday we had a wonderful day to celebrate Halloween. We saw many creative and awesome costumes. We had our annual costume parade in the morning and then we finished with getting some physical activity by dancing to the "Monster Mash". In the afternoon, our intermediate students had a dance. This year student council implemented the new idea of having a Photo Booth. Many of our students enjoyed taking group pictures and "selfies". A great day was had by all. Special thanks goes out to our student council who organized and facilitated all of these events.

Assessment in Mathematics

As you know, mathematics is a focus for us at Boxwood. Our goal is to support student's conceptual understanding of mathematics and increase their ability to solve problems. To do this, we are learning strategies as a staff to accomplish this. Today, I am at a session for administrators facilitated by Dr. Chris Suurtnamm to further my understanding of how to support effective assessment in classrooms. The picture below identifies what sound classroom assessment is.

Three-Part Math Lesson

As many of you know, math is a focus of our board and school. One area that we are working to improve is our students' ability to solve real life problems. Presently, I am observing a grade eight math class that is presently engaged in solving a problem focused on furthering their understanding of percentages. I am looking forward to them presenting their mathematical thinking to the class soon!

Dental Screening at Boxwood

Today, we have our dental screening at Boxwood provided by York Region Public Health. Good dental health supports positive academic achievement and well being. Below are some tips for a healthy smile.

Descriptive Writing using Google Docs

Google Applications is a tool that YRDSB schools use to enhance student learning. Students have access to their own "Google Drive" in which they can create documents, presentations, and spreadsheets. The great feature about this is that student's work is automatically saved as they work. Students can also create folders in order to organize their work. Many of our classes now use "Google Apps", and some classes even submit their work to their teachers using this technology (for more information look up Google Classroom). Here is a picture of a class working on Google Docs for a descriptive writing assignment.

New Water Filling Station

Water Filling Station at Boxwood

Today, we received our water filling station. As you know, water is essential to our health. While students still have the option of drinking from the fountain, students can now fill up their water bottles in an efficient manner. Students simply have to put their bottle in front of the sensor and water flows into it. Hopefully, this will encourage our students to drink more water.

Terry Fox Run

We are learning about the significance of Terry Foz and his efforts to raise awareness of cancer and funds for cancer research.

May PA Day

We had a great morning of professional learning. We focused on Positive Classroom Norms, Math Games, Talk Moves, and using Google Forms for Assessment

Hoops for Heart

Grade 6-8 students being active for Hoops for Heart!

Getting Ready for Arts Carousel Night

Today we have been hard at work getting ready for our annual Arts Carousel evening. Great samples of art and musical performances will be displayed.

Growth Mindset

Watching a Jo Boaler video discussing the importance of fostering a growth mindset in our math classes. We want our math classes to be a "learning" subject as opposed to a "performance" subject.

Math Learning at Boxwood

Learning how the environment can support our math learners!

Math Games and Mini-Lessons

Ms. Brown's class is working on multiplying and dividing decimal numbers. To reinforce these concepts, math games and mini-lessons are being used. During my visit today I observed students engaged in a math game/activity in which students rolled dice to create decimal numbers and turning over cards that indicated if they should multiply or divide by 10, 100, or 1000. This allowed students to have the opportunity to practice this concept. While pairs of students were working on this, Ms. Brown engaged some students in a mini-lesson to support their understanding of this concept. Having students in a small group allows her to support the needs of her students more effectively. Improving students' math conceptual understanding is a provincial, board, and school focus. We are continuing to learn, as a community (e.g., students, teachers, families), ways to develop a deeper understanding of math. Way to go 6A!

Science Innovators at Boxwood!

On Saturday, April 2, 2016, 150 students from 37 schools from around York Region participated in the York Region Science and Technology Fair. Two of our students, won the "Environment Award" for their project, An Innovation For Efficient CO2 Reduction. They were awarded the Gold Medal and a Travel Award which means that they will represent York Region in the Canada Wide Science Fair (CWSF) being held at McGill University from May 15-20th in Montreal, Quebec. Special thanks to Ms. Breckenridge for supporting these students. The Boxwood community is very proud of the efforts of these young gentlemen!