Winter Holidays

Winter break is quickly approaching and things are looking very festive in the learning commons. Students are enjoying staying warm by the holiday fire! Over the break there will be no book exchange. Please keep reading the books you have at home. Winter break is a perfect chance to visit your local public library. We have 2 libraries near James Ardiel, City Centre Library and Guildford Public Library You can get your very own library card and check out as many as 50 books at a time!

Have a lovely winter break everyone!

Birds Nests and Other Animal Homes

Last week we explored one of my favourite things, BIRDS NESTS! I love birds nests because it amazes me how the birds can build such thoughtfully designed, cozy structures using what they find in nature. The two birds nests I have collected include materials such as fishing line, cardboard, paper towel, and plastic. It is important to know that you must never collect an active nest during breeding and nesting season (Spring and Summer). 

After reading various books about birds nests, we researched how animals build their homes using the resource Discovery Education. Students became interested in how beavers, moles, owls, and other animals built their homes. We learned that mice and rabbits build nests too! 

Can you spot the birds nest in this picture of our school grounds? It was amazing that we could see a birds nest from the library window! 

Below you can see the two birds nests I have collected. One is from Summerland, a dessert climate. The other is from Manning Park, a forest environment. Can you guess which nest is from which area? 

             

"Looking Closely" Series by Frank Serafini

This week in the LLC, we are reading the series "Looking Closely" by Frank Serafini. Students are discovering four environments of the planet: the pond, the garden, the desert, and the forest.

Serafini's books challenge students to observe the world from a different perspective and see if they can recognize a creature or element of the environment when the camera lens is zoomed in. Below is an example of everyday items that are zoomed in. Can you recognize the four items below?


       

    

   

    


We are also learning how to scan a QR code to access our James Ardiel blog. QR stands for quick retrieval !

Welcome Back

Book Care

This week in the library learning commons, we are talking about proper book care. At James Ardiel, we care for our books! It is important to look after our books so they last long, and many students can read them. These two videos highlight proper book care. Skippy Jon Jones and the Pigeon are both popular book characters. Watch below to see the helpful tips they give!