Creating the Alphabet
“Research shows us that children, who know the names and shapes of letters when formal reading instruction begins, are more likely to experience success in learning to read than children who have...
“Research shows us that children, who know the names and shapes of letters when formal reading instruction begins, are more likely to experience success in learning to read than children who have...
Inquiring Minds is pleased to take this opportunity to feature this video of John Maeda, a Japanese-American graphic designer, computer scientist, academic, and author. His work in design, technology and leadership explores...
"Emergent mathematics is a term we will use to describe how children construct mathematics from birth and continuing throughout the life of the person through a combination of cognitive development and interaction...
Inquiring Minds is pleased to share today’s blog post from Ms. Isabella Bei, Richland’s 5/6 teacher, on her class’s recent experience with poetry. The Grade 5/6 Students have begun a journey in reading...
Mrs. Daniel, one of Richland Academy’s Senior Kindergarten teachers, recently attended a conference for early childhood professionals from across York region. The keynote speaker talked about the importance of early childhood educators,...
Inquiring Minds would like to share some important links to TVO programming which covered the Learning 2030 Equinox Summit last month. The insight and opinions shared in this series are immensely valuable...
Today Inquiring Minds is pleased to share an update from Richland Academy’s Grade 3/4 Teacher and Athletic Director, Mr. Lionel Ownsworth, on the Small Schools Athletic Federation events that Richland teams have competed in. Go Huskies!
It has been a great first part of the year for Richland athletics, and our students have represented the school with Husky spirit at the Cross-Country Championship run, the Under 10 and 12 Soccer Tournaments, and the Ultimate Frisbee Event to start off the year.
The Ultimate Frisbee Tournament was new for Richland this year, in large part due to Ms. Bei’s enthusiasm for the sport and her inclusion of it in her grade 5/6 P.E. schedule. We had a great time at Shepard’s Bush Park and competed well, but the experience of the other teams was apparent and we ultimately did not make the final rounds. We played games against TCMPS, VIS, and RMS, and we finished off with an exhibition match against a team from Burlington. Overall, we learned a great deal about how to play the game, and we will be ready for next year. Many thanks to the grade 5/6’s for playing hard and learning some new skills in this event, and Ms. Bei is already planning out strategy.
The Cross-Country run was held at Sunnybrook Park, and we had perfect fall weather for the event, with the predicted rain holding off until the very end. All our runners finished their races, with Z.P. finishing 10th in the U-8 event, and A.H. and A.L. coming in the top 20 of their division, the U-10 girls.
There were over 150 runners in each event! All the students were happy to have competed, and in some cases improve upon results from last year. It was a fun day overall, and many thanks to Mrs. DeSimone and Mr. Gandhi for acting as field marshals (and taking pictures), and Mr. Hilkowitz for helping the students off-side with Mrs. Brown while I took care of race starts and finishes with the runners.
We had an equally fun day at the U-10 Soccer Tournament, and while it took us several games to find our footing at ‘The Hanger’, we did eventually win our final game and thus capture the Division B Consolation Championship title. Everyone played hard and worked as a team throughout, and we lost, tied, and won our games with Husky dignity. Our three girls had to play every single minute of each game(regulations), and they were our rock at defense. 
Playing with heart and intensity up front, our players had many fine chances to score when the opportunity arose. H.G. was a strong mid-field presence throughout, running up and down the field to attack and defend, and G.B. showed us how quick he can be with defenders having difficulty keeping up with him. D.C. and A.H. showed us their skill as attacking and defending mid-fielders, keeping and maintaining play whenever they were on the field. 
They were always a threat, and A.H. scored the winning goal in our final game. Z.P. played an outstanding game in net, virtually stopping our opponents cold at every turn. Many thanks to Mr. Hilkowitz and Mr. Carter for helping out as trainers/coaches for the event, keeping the children in form with drills and pep talks when we were not playing.
Inquiring Minds is delighted to share this post from Ms. Amy Pitt, Richland Academy’s Performing Arts teacher. Richland has been recognized by Unicef Canada as a Rights Respecting School, and today we...
Today’s blog post comes from Richland’s PK and JK teachers, and captures the experience they had with their students. After the official opening of the Hawkins Exhibit, ‘Cultivate the Scientist in Every Child’,...
At the end of Wednesday’s school day, a group of Richland Faculty loaded a six passenger vehicle and made their way westbound to Hamilton to partake in a professional development series on Making Thinking Visible, presented by Seneca Professor, Louise Jupp.The evening’s session focussed on the features of documentation through an inquiry lens. We examined the following five features of documentation;
Louise referred to the importance of the inquiry experience as an instrument to develop a new and different vision of oneself and one’s actions through the use of all our senses. The open-endedness of inquiry learning, as well as the art of documentation, act as catalysts to cognitive development. Documentation facilitates the turning of the pages of the inquiry process, opening the doors to dialogue, and the path to further learning and the layering of knowledge.
Our engagement in the marble run activity enabled us to see ourselves in relation to one another. We understood and empathised with the complexity and the depth involved in a child’s learning journey and how they contribute to that learning.
As a group, when reflecting on our learning journey, one filled with innovation and creativity, we discovered that our chosen roles and communication styles had an impact on that journey. We understood the importance of collaboration and social dynamics as we experimented with the materials provided to create marble runs that put scientific principles into practice.
We look forward to our next session when we will be invited to take a closer look at images, and their central role in making learning visible. We will participate in reflective discussions around the roles of documentation, emergent curriculum, and the facilitation of experiences for children.
On our next trip to Hamilton our journey led us to an evening of images and working documentation.Why are images so important to documentation? Photographs give us a window into what children see and understand, but words, too, are images. Both are languages that support and work together to tell a story. The written sets the context for the image. A question that arose from us was, “What considerations does the photographer have in mind when taking a photo?”