Projects

Project 1: The Storybird Project (Le projet de Storybird)

Start Date: October 12th

Over 7 weeks, the students create and carry out a step-by-step plan to raise funds for a non-profit organization of their choice by creating and selling books through storybird.com (a student-friendly website for creating and printing stories or poems). 

Here's an example! CLICK ME (new window)

Here's what will happen: 

Part 1

1. Create a plan for the project. *this should follow closely to the components below
2. Research, choose, and present a local non-profit organization that they would like to support.
3. Carry out a vote as a class for which organization to help!
4. Display our results in a variety of graphs. 
5. Read stories and talk about the different parts of a story.
6. WRITE, WRITE, WRITE! We need lots of practice. They will be doing this individually and in groups. 
7. Create a survey to find out what genres their friends and family like.
8. Showed the results of our survey in a variety of graphs, including single and double bar graphs, pictograms and pie charts.
9. Write a newsletter that explains The Storybird Project to friends/family. 
10. Work through the steps to publish their story (write, edit, revise, get feedback, create an account and post on Storybird).

Part 2

1. Talk about the environmental impacts of printing and creating storybooks. 
2. What can we do to create a positive impact on our environment? 
3. Students will use recycled materials to present their ideas.

UPDATES:

1. Research a charity. Vote for a charity as a class. Graph the results.

• Big Brothers Big Sisters

Mentoring children and teens to help them find jobs and become better people.

• Salvation Army

Helps people who are in poverty or are homeless with food/clothing/education.

• Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation

Research and funding to learn more about cancer prevention, treatment, and looking for a cure.

• Goodwill

Uses donations to help train people who face difficulties to work and find good jobs.

• Food For Life

FFL provides food to local people in emergencies, runs outreach programs and provides food to agencies.

• Mississauga Humane Society

Rescues animals and finds them “forever homes” no matter why the animal was mistreated or unwanted by its original owner. It is run by volunteers.

• Eden Food Bank

Eden Food for Change works to be a place where everyone in western Mississauga can be a part of a community focused on good food. Through our food bank we provide access to nutritionally balanced groceries. Our kitchen programs teach people the skills and knowledge to provide healthy meals.

OUR VOTE RESULTS:

Project 2: What's New? (Quoi de neuf?)

Start Date: TBD

The students will be working to create a full newspaper for the students and parents of Plum Tree Park P.S. The final product will be posted in the school and online for everyone to read and enjoy! 

Here's what will happen: 

Introduction: 

We will be talking about communication and the variety of ways that messages can be communicated (especally in the 21st century with technology and globalisation). 

What will happen:

1. Create a plan for the project. *this should follow closely to the components below
2. Brainstorm and decide on a name.
3. Talk about the audience for our newspaper and decide what its contents will be (e.x. what has been going on in our class, school events, important information, etc.).
4. Explore the various components of a newspaper and assign roles (i.e. comics, weather, opinions, events, math, art.....)
5. Write a letter to the principle requesting permission to distribute/post the newspaper around the school as well as explaining the project.
6. Read news articles and study newspaper formats.
7. Students will draft and edit their section of the paper.
8. Add games/final touches/pictures...
9. VOILA! Publish and post the newspaper! 

SCIENCE: 

Research and collect samples of rocks and minerals to write about in thew Science section. 

MATH: 

Explore number patterns.

Create word problems/games for readers to try out. 

SOCIAL STUDIES: 

Research a city in Ontario (Grade 3's) or in the rest of Canada (Grade 4's) and compare life there with life in our city.

Extension: Choose which city they prefer to live in (theirs or the one they reserached) and they have to convince the rest of the class to agree with their decision.