Exploring Grade 4 with Mrs. Colhoun

This week, students participated in our Grade 4 Sexual Health unit, as outlined in the Alberta Curriculum. Our learning focused on puberty and the physical, social, and emotional changes that can occur as children grow and develop. Students had opportunities to ask questions, build their understanding, and discuss ways to care for their physical and emotional well-being. We encourage families to continue these conversations at home and invite students to share what they learned and any questions they may still have. Students who did not have permission to participate in the Sexual Health lessons worked on an alternative wellness assignment during this time. Thank you for your support in helping students develop a healthy understanding of growth and development.

This week, we investigated gravity and learned that it is a non-contact force , meaning it can act on objects without touching them. Students explored how gravity affects everything around us and discussed how it keeps us grounded on Earth. We also examined air resistance and watched demonstrations showing that when air is removed, a feather and a bowling ball fall at the same rate. This helped us understand how air resistance can affect the speed at which objects fall. Our learning also focused on how speed impacts force . We discussed real-world examples such as going upside down on a roller coaster and swinging a bucket of water in a circle without spilling it. Students were fascinated by how motion and forces work together in these situations! To finish our learning, students used their creativity and problem-solving skills to design and build a model that incorporated gravity in some way. The classroom was full of innovative ideas, thoughtful designs, and excitement as studen...

This week, our grade 4 classes had a wonderful field trip to Heritage Park. It was a great day filled with learning, exploring, and hands-on experiences. The visit helped provide important context for our learning about the Fur Trade and how it impacted the development of Canada. Students had a great time making connections to what we have been studying in class, and they represented Andrew Sibbald School with kindness, curiosity, and respect. We were very proud of the way they participated and engaged throughout the day. Our next Social Studies unit will focus on Confederation as we begin exploring the question: How is the government of Canada organized?

This week, after reading Love That Dog , students continued building their understanding of poetry by analyzing different poems from the book. We focused on identifying figurative language, including alliteration and imagery, and discussed how poets use words and sounds to help readers create pictures in their minds and connect to the poem. Students have now begun writing poetry of their own. We started our poetry books by creating “I Am” poems using similes. Students brainstormed things they are good at, as well as physical traits and personal qualities that make them unique. From there, we worked through examples and practised creating similes to help describe and illustrate those traits in a more creative way. Stay posted for our next poems!

This week in math, students explored factors, multiples, prime and composite numbers, and worked on finding the greatest common factor between two numbers under 100. A strong understanding of basic multiplication facts, as well as confidence with long division, continues to help support student success with these concepts. To wrap up the week, students worked together in teams to play a Jeopardy-style review game. It was great to see students collaborating, discussing strategies, and learning from one another while having fun!

This week in math, we have been exploring factors, multiples, and prime and composite numbers. Students are building their understanding of how numbers are connected and how we can break them apart or group them in different ways. A strong understanding of multiplication facts really supports this learning, so continuing to practice these at home makes a big difference. Quick recall helps students work more efficiently and confidently with these concepts. To keep things engaging, we used a variety of games to reinforce learning and even listened to a very catchy song—ask your child about the “prime rap”! It was a fun way to help these ideas stick.