Copy
View this email in your browser

Literacy Focus: Reading and Writing 

Dear Families,

With the days growing shorter and the weather making a shift, there is a sense of comfort and warmth within our school setting from all of the love, learning and laughter. It has been a pleasure to witness all the sharing occurring about “gratitude” and what it means to our students and staff. As we moved through Remembrance Day and the month of November, I believe that the recent display in our foyer, our colourful “Gratitude Tree,” prompted mindful moments of reflection and appreciation. Each morning, students and staff had the opportunity to write down what they were grateful for and take a moment to appreciate all that we have, including those who fought and died in the line of duty to keep us free. 

Over the next few weeks, excitement will be growing about the upcoming holidays and celebrations! I look forward to sharing this special time of year with you all and with our wonderful and talented students. Please feel free to reach out if I may support you in any way.

Warmest wishes,

Leah Zeballos
Interim Director of Early Learning

Scroll Down to Read More
Reading Buddies at Pythagoras Academy
At Pythagoras Academy, students participate in a school wide buddy reading program. This program features peer mentoring. Students are paired with different grade level buddies and use this community reading time as a way to reciprocate knowledge and skills related to reading and writing. Specifically, students share reading strategies and assist one another with reading and writing goals. Younger students are able to witness fluent reading skills and strategies, meanwhile older students have the opportunity to share their knowledge and model these strategies. As students share their love for reading and favourite authors, this cooperative learning time builds community and strengthens friendships amongst students of all ages, abilities and grades. 

"No matter what anybody tells you, words and ideas can change the world."

- John Keating, Dead Poets Society
Messages from Across the Grades

Junior Kindergarten "JK" 

This month, in our junior kindergarten classrooms, students have been introduced to a variety of new vocabulary during our theme study of "Hibernation, Migration, and Adaptation."  Although the children continue to develop and master their understanding of the alphabet, teachers have also been encouraging the students to build their vocabulary and enhance their understanding of the world around them, through literacy! Literacy skills allow students to seek out information, explore subjects in-depth, and gain a deeper understanding of the world around them.

Grades K/1

In Kindergarten, our reading and writing efforts have been paying off! We have been diligently working on over 30 sight words since the beginning of school and, with the help of our "Fun Family Phonics" program, we now know our letter sounds. Writer’s Workshop is part of our Kindergarten program this year. Using our “Brain Pockets,” we are able to think of wonderful stories to tell. In Grade 1, we are improving our reading and writing skills with our "Daily 5" routine. We have also started using the "5 Finger Method" to strengthen our reading and writing skills. 

Grades 2/3

The grade 2's and 3's are exploring oral storytelling in literacy with a focus on written detail and vocal expression. While the grade 2's are creating story vines to retell or share their take on a given fairy tale, the grade 3's are writing short stories that will be told aloud through the creative outlet of loose parts in our "Story Studio." Engaging in the Story Studio framework: Inspire- Create-Share, teachers and students are connected to natural elements and interact with their own experiences and learning through story.

Grades 4-8


Grade 4 students are practicing their oral language skills and differentiated reading strategies in their daily guided reading groups. Students are developing their writing by responding to their guided reading texts and weekly "Paragraph of the Week" assignments. Additionally, they are developing their vocabulary and understanding of words by using the "Words Their Way" program as well as "Lexia," an online phonics program. Grade 5 students have focused on descriptive writing and parts of speech. They have been practicing using triple scoop words and adjectives in their writing.

Grade 6 students explored how an understanding of formal letter writing allows us to use it for a purpose such as writing letters to the Prime Minister of Canada, Justin Trudeau, advocating for clean and accessible water for all. In addition, students have been exploring fairy tales where they have looked at the development of characters, specifically between heroes, villains and gender roles. Grade 7 students have been practicing their oral language, reading and writing skills when preparing for the FSA’s, while working alongside the grade 8’s on the Remembrance Day assembly. 

The Arts 
During the month of November, Grade 7/8 had a guest speaker, a representative of the Legion, who mentioned a contest that they were sponsoring. This inspired grades K-8 to ignite their passion and love for the arts and literature and integrate them in a meaningful way, capitalizing on Remembrance Day and the meaning behind that day. National 1st place posters will be displayed at the Canadian War Museum. Meanwhile, 2nd and 3rd place posters will be displayed in Parliament Hill.
Social Emotional Learning

The month of November encourages us to embrace the power of gratitude. Gratitude is more than a simple saying “thank you.” Gratitude's amazing powers can shift us from focusing on the negative to appreciating what is positive in our lives. Gratitude helps support social communication, as it helps us understand one another's feelings, practice empathy and learn the social power of kindness and appreciation. It also supports emotional development. Gratitude helps kids notice what makes them feel good and take time to focus on that. Throughout Pythagoras Academy, staff and students have been embracing and showing acts of gratitude in a variety of ways. Our amazing JK teachers, Mr. Edgar and Ms. Leah, created and presented a “Gratitude Tree” which currently stands in our atrium. This tree provides an opportunity for students and staff to pause and reflect on what they may be grateful for by adding examples to leaves and pinning them to the tree for display. Throughout the school, K-8 students and staff, have explored, discussed and shared moments of gratitude by either visiting the tree or expressing acts of kindness towards each other. 

Literacy and the Library Commons 

The Pythagoras Academy teachers in grades K-3 participated in a workshop led by Adrienne Gear, a leading local author, whose focus is in elementary literature. By examining key concepts and leading strategies, like Brain Pocket writing, teachers are able to facilitate the most engaging activities and lessons during literacy. Brain Pocket writing can be facilitated during center time, incorporated into Daily 5 or used independently during class time. Strategies like these allow for practice writing and interesting opportunities to incorporate dazzling details, rather than working from worksheets alone. Our goal at Pythagoras Academy is to make writing meaningful and interesting, while differentiating literacy tasks towards each student's passions and abilities.

Informational Technology 

This month, students in Grade's 7 and 8 reviewed how to use the DoInk APP with a green screen. 
Students took time to research and find images released under Creative Commons CCO: Free for commercial use, no attribution required images and clipart on the Pixabay APP, to use as their main background and to understand copyright infringement and privileges. 

Then, students had to partner up and take numerous pictures in front of the Greenscreen to look as if they were immersed the picture plane as a character. We had a lot of fun working on this digital storytelling project. After their multi media compositions were completed, students uploaded them to Seesaw with a creative title or caption. 

Featured Teachers

During the months of November and December, Pythagoras Academy students are going on a virtual #GridPal adventure to Mumbai, India! Using Flipgrid, Pythagoras Academy Kindergarten and Grade 4 classes are partaking in a discussion platform where students will converse with one another in different languages, asynchronously. The students we have paired with have yet to return to school and are still working from home in a remote learning environment. Together, we will be encouraging one another by sharing our ideas and connecting, both in French and in English, on topics like “Introductions” and “Celebrations around the World.” This opportunity allows for different perspective taking and an understanding of our global community. We are proud to go on this learning journey with our partner school, Edubridge International School, who prides themselves on global connections and projects. 

"Educators have made thousands of connections, using Flipgrid to increase social learning, global empathy, and cultural understanding." - Flipgrid

JK-G and JK-K have connected with Energy Leaders- Fortis BC by providing sensory rich learning opportunities to explore natural gas. Students learned about hazardous situations and reliable sources of health information, like a natural gas leak and 911. They can describe ways to prevent and respond to unsafe situations and exhibit actions or behaviours that reduce the risk of danger. To extend the discussion home, students were given "Scratch and Sniff" cards to share the sensory experience and safety message with their family.

Our featured teachers this month are: Mme. Anne (French Specialist), Ms. Cleveland (Grade K/1 Team Lead), Ms. Gallagher, Ms. Tang and Ms. Stephanie. 

 Upcoming and Important Dates 

December 6: Elem. Parent/Teacher Conference. (Half Day)
December 7: Elem. Parent/Teacher Conference. (Half Day)
December 8: JK Parent Teacher Meetings (Time TBD)
December 9: JK Parent Teacher Meetings (Time TBD)
December 10: JK Parent Teacher Meetings (Time TBD) 
December 10: Breakfast with Santa
December 10: Winter Charity deadline for donations
December 14: Tacky Christmas Wear
December 14: JK Fire Drill
December 16: Virtual Presentation of Winter Concert
December 16: Christmas Movie Day
December 17: Last Day of Classes (Half Day)
 Upcoming Community Events 
November 18 - January 1
Langley- Christmas Glow Drive Through 
November 26 - January 2
Vancouver- Bright Nights at Stanley Park
November - January 
Surrey- Holiday Lights
Scan this QR code to be taken to our PA WeChat Channel 
Facebook
Instagram
Website
Copyright © 2021 Pythagoras Academy, All rights reserved.

Our mailing address is:
8671 Odlin Crescent, Richmond, BC V6X 1G1

Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.