Sixth Class Blog
Week 13
The girls are well underway with their Christmas cheer and as the days are flying by, they are becoming more like their “Blitzen” character.
As 6th class leaders, the girls are taking on 4 challenges everyday. Can we reach 29 Hi-Viz jackets? Can we lead with zero wrappers? How many random acts of kindness can we carry out each day? Are we working on our “Fitmas” levels each and every day? In one week, the girls have shown that the trend is on the rise. So well done girls, only a few weeks left so keep it up!
In English we have been listening to lovely Reports and reading some to our target audiences. The layout in their Publishing Copies is fantastic, and we are getting there with our Documents on the tablets also. The girls are also enjoying poetry and oral language. We started studying ‘Stopping by the woods on a snowy evening’ by Robert Frost. And I’m really enjoying ‘Think-Pair-Share’ oral language and how the girls communication is developing.
We moved on to 2-D shape this week in Maths where the girls are doing a lot of discovery. Ask the girls what Dominoes, Trominoes, Tetrominoes, Pentominoes, Hexominoes. And also, what about Diamonds, Triamonds, Tetriamonds, Pentiamonds, Hexiamonds! And how have they used these to tesselate. The girls also did some teaching and informed the class about Symmetry of 15 different 2-D shapes. Good work here girls.
In Science the girls, again, did some teaching. They worked in pairs to inform the class about some Materials that changed the world. Ask the girls about some of these materials. At this time of year, we must think of others and so in Geography, we learned about Famine and the causes of it and how it can affect people’s lives. And also in History, we got some inspiration from Mahatma Gandhi, and how he brought about peace in non-violent ways. How can we help others in our area at this time of year?
We are doing our Music and PE dance classes outside now so have a listen for the girls as they practice their Christmas songs and learn some new cultural dances.
Art is getting very exciting now as our 3-D art sculptures got blasted with a lot of papier machee! There was a lot of hands on mess, but they are ready now for the next step next week, which is the painting and decorating.
Lots more fun ahead in the coming weeks. Try to get plenty of sleep, exercise, and eat healthy so that you have the energy for the last few weeks of school.
Best wishes,
Mrs. Power
Week 12
This week the girls were getting into the Christmas spirit. And they even convinced me to play some Christmas music!
We have been playing some Irish – Cluichi Teanga (word language games) over the last few weeks. Some familiar ones are ‘Feicim le mo shuilin beag, rud eigin ag tosu le…’ (I spy with my little eye) and ‘Deir O’Gradaigh (Simon Says), and some others.
We have listened to some of the wonderful Reports in English and all the girls are doing their final drafts in their copies and typing them into a document. Well done for getting to the final stage. I am really impressed with the work you have produced.
The girls went on a virtual tour of the Rainforest in Geography and learned about Solids, liquids and gases in Science – Have any of you been experimenting in the kitchen by making some ice-cream??
In Art, the girls have been very busy cutting, bending and tying wire to make the frames for our art projects. We will soon see a Christmas Tree, a Gingerbread house, a Present and Blitzen the reindeer!
6th Class are taking on the role of Blitzen in our Christmas theme this year. Blitzen along with Donnar were the leaders of Santa’s Sleigh in the story ‘Twas the night before Christmas’. And 6th Class are going to show leadership in the lead up to Christmas – We will be monitoring our leadership each day by see can we have the lowest wrapper count in the school; Can we show leadership by wearing our new hi-viz jackets each day; Can we carry out a Random Act of Kindness each day! December 18th is International Migrants Day and we will display some positive and welcoming wishes for all our migrants, especially during these times.
Ho! Ho! Ho! – Let the festive fun begin!
Best wishes,
Mrs. Power
Week 11
Great progress made again this week. Well done girls.
We had some fun in Irish doing drama this week, where the girls brought their story to life “Sa Stiuideo Teilifise”. It’s easier to learn Irish if you have some fun along the way.
In English, the girls are becoming much better at their Comprehension Strategies in Guided Reading groups. They can see that by slowing the reading process down, a better understanding can be gotten. They are also about to start adding their Final Draft on their reports into their Publishing copies. We may take some recordings when the girls read them aloud next week.
We had a little review in Maths this week also, to see how far we have come since the start of the school year. You are all doing well and if you keep up the good work in class, you will continue to improve. We also played some maths games online using the topic of ‘Place Value’.
In History the girls were looking and learning about indigenous nomadic groups from around the world. Why not ask them what groups they learned about. We learned about some unusual landforms from around the world also, in Geography such as – The Grand Canyon, The Uluru, Mt. Rushmore, Glaciers and many more. And in Science, the girls learned the sad effects of oil pollution around the world.
We started our Christmas Art projects this week also, so watch this spot for updates over the coming weeks.
Only a few weeks to Christmas, I’m sure the excitement is starting already.
Take care,
Mrs. Power
Week 10
The girls are well and truly settled in now after the midterm break and enjoying school life. Some are already ready for Christmas!!! But this is the fun exciting term on the lead up to Christmas break.
The girls have been busy editing their first drafts of their Reports on Unusual plants in English. They are taking on board some suggestions from their teacher and improving their work so that it’s even better. Soon, when they are happy with all the changes they have made, they will move on to their Final Draft in their Publishing Copies.
In Irish they have had fun learning and composing Irish using online resources. They have also enjoyed some board games using the language in a more relaxed manner. Games such as Snap, Biongo (Bingo), Splot, and Iasc (fish).
Over the past number of weeks, the girls have focussed really well in Maths class as we have been covering Fractions, Decimals and Percentages. They are doing well on understanding the connection between these and also how to change from one to the other. Well done on your concentration here girls and also for asking questions. It’s really important to ask for clarification when you are unsure.
In History, ask the girls what they have learned about in the Industrial Revolution?? Or what landforms did they learn about in Geography and how they are formed. And in Science, what have we learned from our puzzles and Q&A session on ‘Plants that changed the world’.
As you can see, it’s been another busy week in the 6th class room, and remember to keep up the safety both in and out of school – wash, sanitise, distance….You can do it!
And finally, Happy Kindness Day – Remember to do your one act of kindness!
Take care,
Mrs. Power
Week 9
Welcome back after our Midterm break. I hope you all had a relaxing break and managed to recharge the batteries again. The girls arrived in, full of energy, on Monday morning and it was clear to me that the break did them the world of good. They are refreshed and looking forward to the next 7 weeks leading up to Christmas.
In English, the girls have started their first draft in their report on ‘Unusual plants’. Their planning and researching has paid off and they are doing really good so far in their reports. We also moved on to the editing process and this is where they will improve their work and make it even better. Well done girls!
We have moved on to the Aimsir Fhaistineach in Gaeilge, which is the future tense of verbs. They are getting a really good grasp of their verbs and understanding how to change between past, present and future. Keep up the good work here girls.
In Science, the girls were linking in with English class and learning about some common and not so common plants. They took the lead and did the teaching in class this week and finished up with a fun Q&A session. Maybe ask the girls some interesting facts about some of the plants and see what they can recall!
We enjoyed a lovely Zoom Assembly today and look forward to this each Friday. It’s lovely to touch base with our school community.
A special Happy Birthday shout out to Dara who celebrated her birthday during the Halloween break.
Keep up the good work girls and remember to stay safe.
Take care,
Mrs. Power
Week 8
We have made it to the midterm break and I think I may speak for the kids, the parents and the teachers, in that we all deserve the break. The only homework I want the girls to concentrate on over the midterm break is SLEEP! Relax and enjoy the downtime and have fun with your families. Well done on the huge effort you have all put into your first term. You have come such a long way, in such a short space of time.
We started the week with a Zoom call from Ms O’Reilly. The girls were thrilled to see and hear Ms O’Reilly virtually, to receive their attendance certificates from the Mayor and the Principal’s certificates also. Well done to the girls who missed no days, only one day, and 2-3 days.
The girls got creative and finished their ‘Futuristic Halloween Rock Band’ themed costumes!! Fantastic girls and good fun too.
We said farewell to Ms. Finucane on Thursday as she will be sailing off to retirement after midterm break. We wish her all the best and many happy years with her family and friends. How she will be missed amongst the staff and students of Our Lady of Good Counsel.
We would also like to thank Miss Whelan on the fantastic and inspiring lessons which she planned for the girls. We really enjoyed your lessons, your enthusiasm and hard work. Best of luck in your future studies. You are, and will continue to be, an amazing teacher. The girls finished their S.T.E.M. (Science.Technology.Engineering.Maths) projects – Fantastic rollercoasters!
Finally, I would like to wish you all a safe midterm break. And I look forward to seeing you all after the break.
Best wishes,
Mrs. Power
Week 7
Can you believe we only have a week to midterm break! It has to be the fastest term in History. The girls have been working really hard in class and the break will be great to recharge the batteries.
The girls had an IT day on Monday. Miss Whelan worked on the Scratch coding programme with them and they made some great progress. The process is becoming easier now and the girls are understanding the step by step approach. They will continue with this next Monday.
In English the girls were busy researching their unusual plants for their Report writing. They used the school Tablets to find out as much fascinating information as they could. We will continue this research next Monday and then set about organinsing our ideas into paragraphs.
I introduced the girls to ‘Seesaw’, our new teaching and learning platform. The girls learned how to gain access to the work that I assign to them. After Halloween, I can assign some homework on this and the girls can access their School Folder to do activities and send it back to me. It’s fun and exciting and the girls enjoyed figuring out and investigating the tools that they can use to communicate and complete activities.
The girls are learning a little about Oiche Shamhna (Halloween) in Gaeilge. Ta a lan focloir nua acu agus ta siad ag usaid an focloir seo ag cumadh a n-abairti fein – ar fheabhas cailini! (They have a lot of new words/vocabulary and they are using this vocabulary to create their own sentence – fantastic girls!)
We have moved on to fractions in Maths and we will do some hands-on and visual work to help understand fractions better and then apply it to real life situations.
Miss Whelan did some fantastic lessons in SESE this week where the girls enjoyed learning about the lives of the Ancient Egyptians. The powerpoint was really interesting and they were also intrigued by the mummification process.
The girls enjoyed learning more about Space and through the use of song, they discovered some interesting facts on the planets.
They’ve also been discovering the names of our bones in Science – Do you recognise these names??
The girls have started their Rollercoaster construction projects with Miss Whelan, and some spooky Halloween costumes will be created before Halloween in Art – Watch this space!
A special happy birthday to Shania who turned 12 this week – enjoy the weekend.
See you all next week – Mrs. Power
