December 22

Merry Christmas!

It’s a most holy and special time of year! The 4th Advent candle (another purple candle) will be lit this Sunday which means that Jesus’ birthday is right around the corner! On December 25, we celebrate the birth of our King.

Our Grade 3s and myself wish you and your families a blessed, beautiful, and wonderful Christmas! Gather with the ones you love, and remember the true reason for the season.

God Bless and have a Happy New Year!

Mrs. Sullivan


December 2

Advent

Advent is a time of preparation, hope, and joy. The word Advent comes from the Latin word ‘adventus’ which means ‘coming.’

In the season of Advent, we are reminded to be patient, think of others, and remember to truly be mindful of what the season is all about–Jesus. We can become consumed by the shopping, decorations, and so on, but our family, friends, and taking care of each other is also very important. 

The Advent wreath is a countdown of sorts to Jesus’ birthday. The 3 purple candles and 1 pink candle represent the 4 weeks leading up to Christmas. Each week we will be lighting one more candle on our classroom wreath and will share in prayer and song together. Last Friday, we took home our own handmade wreaths. They turned out beautifully. Well done, everyone!What is Advent? 2023 Guide to Meaning, History, Traditions

 

November 10

Learning About Remembrance Day

This week, we’ve been spending quality time using literature to help guide us through what Remembrance Day truly means. We enjoyed reading a gorgeous book called A Bear in War by Harry Endrulat and Stephanie Innes. It is told from the perspective of a teddy bear that belongs to a little girl named Aileen. Her dad goes off to War and she ends up mailing him the teddy bear to keep him company and remind him of home.A Bear in War: Innes, Stephanie, Endrulat, Harry, Deines, Brian: 9781927485125: Books - Amazon.ca

There are wonderful illustrations mixed with photographs of real life items as this is a true Canadian story! Students are always amazed that you can actually visit the real teddy bear at the National War Museum in Ottawa!

The Peace BookWe also read a very colourful book called The Peace Book by Todd Parr. In simple ways, it shares different ways that we can think about what peace is. We then brainstormed some of our own thoughts about what peace means and created our own class book.

We’ve been focused this week preparing for our Remembrance Day ceremony in our school gym. We each had a role to play and were proud to be a part of the special day. Way to go, Grade 3s! You were so wonderful.

Have a look at our artwork and our messages about peace. Enjoy!

 

April 20

Happy Easter!

Happy Easter! He is Risen! I hope you were able to enjoy some family time this past weekend and celebrate Jesus’ resurrection on Easter Sunday.

He is risen Pictures, He is risen Stock Photos & Images | Depositphotos®

 

With all the snow we’ve received lately, it may be hard to believe that Spring is really here. We’ve been up to so many different things and are eager to share many pictures of our the activities we’ve been involved in. From sharing our biographies to building leprechaun traps to making paper mache Easter eggs, we’ve been keeping busy in our Gr.3/4 classroom.

 

March 4

Would You Like Some Pancakes With Your Syrup?

This past Tuesday, we celebrated Shrove Tuesday, otherwise known as Pancake Tuesday or Mardi Gras. Mardi Gras is French which means “Fat Tuesday”.

The day before Lent begins, Christians around the world celebrate Shrove Tuesday.  Historically, foods such as fats and dairy would have been consumed so as to prevent them from spoiling since people would have given these items up as their Lenten sacrifice for the upcoming forty days.

We enjoyed some of our own pancakes in class that day!

If you like pancakes, what’s your favourite topping?

December 17

Merry Christmas!

As we approach the last Sunday of Advent, Christmas draws nearer and we are all ready and excited for a much needed break. I am so appreciative of everyone’s support and love during these times.

I wanted to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas! This is a special time of year and it should be full of joy and anticipation of our Lord’s birth. I hope to hear all about the family adventures and special moments in the new year!

Big hugs…

Love, Mrs. Sullivan

A funny video/skit to start off the holidays…

A new favourite of mine! Check out this song called Noel by Chris Tomlin.

November 29

Advent is Here

On Sunday, we marked the 1st Sunday of Advent. What an exciting time of year, isn’t it? Many of us have our Christmas trees up, decorations on and in our homes, and we are awaiting the coming of Jesus! How awesome.

On Monday we celebrated the special season of Advent with a liturgy which was done beautifully by Mr. McKeough’s class. We lit 1 purple candle on our Advent wreath which sits on our prayer table. Father Saleem from St. George Parish blessed our wreath, too.

Advent means a coming. It is a time when we prepare our hearts to get ready to welcome baby Jesus into the world. The colour purple was the colour of royalty because purple dye was costly and rare. So the liturgical colour of Advent is a symbol of looking forward to welcoming the coming of a King.

There is much symbolism within the wreath itself.

  • the wreath is in the shape of a circle meaning that God’s love has no beginning and no end
  • the evergreen boughs represent the hope for eternal life
  • the candles show that Jesus is the light of the world

This is also a time we are asked to think of others and remember what is most important at this time of year–family, friends, and Jesus. The best present we could ask for is not going to be laying under the tree on Christmas morning–it is the birth of our Lord.

We each made our own Advent wreaths and they look so beautiful! Well done, everyone! Find a special place in your home where you can light your candle each day.

How are you preparing for Christmas this year?

November 11

Lest We Forget

 This week, we’ve been spending quality time using literature to help guide us through what Remembrance Day truly means. We began by reading a gorgeous book called A Bear in War by Harry Endrulat and Stephanie Innes. I truly LOVE this book and read it every year (and it always chokes me up!). It is told from the perspective of a teddy bear that belongs to a little girl named Aileen. Her dad goes off to War and she ends up mailing him the teddy bear to keep him company and remind him of home.

There are wonderful illustrations mixed with photographs of real life items as this is a true Canadian story! Students are always amazed that you can actually visit the real teddy bear at the National War Museum in Ottawa!

 

On Wednesday, we read a wonderfully colourful book called The Peace Book by Todd Parr. In simple ways, it shares different ways that we can think about what peace is. We then brainstormed some of our own thoughts about what peace means and created our own page in our Religion notebook. Students were encouraged to be inspired by Todd Parr’s illustration style, too!

We had some good discussion around whether Remembrance Day should be a national holiday.

What do you think and why?

Finally, check out our Remembrance Day artwork and our thoughts on what we think peace means.

 

April 6

He is Risen!

What a beautiful Easter weekend we had. We hope you and your family had a fantastic Easter holiday filled with love, hope, and joy.

Easter time is a time of renewal and so is Spring. We begin to see new life sprouting from the ground. We see the birds beginning to prepare for babies to be born, the snow is gone, and buds begin to reveal themselves on our trees. 

At Easter, we eat delicious foods, we gather with our loved ones, we may hunt for Easter eggs, and indulge in goodies like chocolate. But Easter is about much more.

Jesus’ death on Good Friday and resurrection on Easter Sunday gives us hope. Jesus asks us to be more like Him. How can we serve others? What can we do on earth to walk in the footsteps of Christ?

Why doesn’t Easter fall on the same day every year? Did you know that unlike most holidays which have a set date each year, Easter celebrations are tied to the lunar cycles? Thus, Easter falls on the first Sunday after the first full moon after the vernal equinox. 

What family traditions do you have at Easter time?

Why is Easter special for you?

February 24

Pink Shirt Day–What’s It All About?

Today marks Pink Shirt Day across Canada.

What is Pink Shirt day all about? It all began when a boy in the 9th grade wore a pink shirt on his first day of school in Nova Scotia. He was made fun of and was picked on because of this. A few boys saw what happened and decided to do something about it. They bought 50 pink shirts and distributed them for others to wear. By the end of the week, most students in the school were wearing pink to show support for the boy who was made fun of.

 

We looked at several quotes today and discussed what they meant and why they are always important, not just today.

Here’s a look at some of the ones we discussed today:

  1. Kindness–it costs nothing but means everything
  2. We rise by lifting others
  3. Kindness begins with me
  4. Kindness is the mark we leave on the world
  5. Throw kindness around like confetti
  6. If you can anything, be kind

We designed some of our own pink-tshirts today too.

 

 

We revisited this poster called THINK. It’s a great acronym to remind ourselves how we can be kind to others when it comes to our words…

What are ways you can show kindness to others?