Peel Domination

Half Brother Connection

edispeel — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 19:56:54 +0000

In the Idea Hive class we are reading the book Half Brother by Kenneth Oppel. We are reading the book over Skype with a class in Snow Lake Manitoba. The book is about a boy named Ben who is helping his scientist parents raise a chimp, named Zan, to learn sign language.

In the story, Half Brother Ben learned not to judge something before in the beginning because you may discover that you enjoy it. Ben didn’t want to have any part of Zan, but he is realizing he might be fun to have around. This reminds me of how at first I hated going to the barn. After I spent more time there I found that I really enjoyed it.

cc licensed ( BY SD ) flickr photo shared by law_keven

My Funny Christmas

edispeel — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 15:33:21 +0000

It was Christmas morning when I woke up. I bounded down the stairs and ran straight for the Christmas tree, only to find no presents under it. I looked all around the room. There was no sign of the gifts. I had a mixture of emotions like sadness, confusion, even a little angered. I ran to my parents room yelling at them there were no presents. They replied that they forgot to bring them to the Christmas tree and they were just down stairs in the basement. Then they told me to bring all the presents. I was relieved to know that there were presents but I was not happy to have to get everyone else’s presents before I could play with my new toys.

elkit

The Kittens of The North

edispeel — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 17:34:21 +0000

In my class we are studying the effects of global warming on polar bears in the Churchill area. Polar bears have been effected by global warming because increasing temperatures make the ice freeze later in the fall and melt earlier in the spring. This shortens the period of time in which polar bears can hunt seals on the sea ice. Seals are the polar bears number one source of food and there is not many other things the polar bears could eat to support an animal of their size. If the polar bears can’t hunt they will starve and die off. With the polar bears extinct it will disrupt the food chain. Global warming is heating our planet and as a result creating an unsuitable habitat for polar bears to live. I created a Glogster to summarize my research.

Our teacher got the idea for this project from her friend Mr. McKiel. He got an opportunity to spend a week in Churchill, Manitoba studying polar bears in their habitat on Tundra Buggy One. We followed the work done by Tundra Buggy One for one week by watching their pod-casts and reading their blog posts. While doing this project we learned about absolute and relative location, the characteristics of place, and the vegetation of Churchill. Next we did research and found out how serious this problem is for the polar bears.

amckiel

During this activity, our class wondered what we could do to help solve this problem. We stumbled upon the Polar Bears International website where we could adopt a polar bear. Immediately, we agreed to adopt a polar bear. In 12 days we had raised over $290. Then we sent the money to Polar Bears International who will now spend it helping the polar bears. After we skyped with Mr. McKiel and talked about our project. To celebrate our accomplishment we spent that afternoon drinking White Coke and eating white donuts.

hdurnin

I was surprised by how much money we were able to raise in such a short period of time. Someday I hope to travel to Churchill to see the polar bears. I thought this was a great experience for our class do this and I’m glad I got to take part. In conclusion I think polar bears are the kittens of the north.

Ten Marks and a Train Ticket: Benno’s Escape To Freedom

edispeel — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 16:43:51 +0000

In my class we read the book Ten Marks and a Train Ticket by Susy Goldstein, Gina Hamilton and Wendy Share. It is about 2 Jewish brothers journey out of Nazi Germany. The book is directed toward kids. The story is told from the younger brother, Benno’s, perspective. It tells about his escape on the Kindertransport to his life in Canada. Here is a Timeline of their life together.

1. The boys parents have seen that it is not safe in Germany for their Children and told them during dinner that they would have to leave on their own- January 29 1939.

2.Heniz and Benno made it out of Germany and into Holland- January 29 1940.

3.Benno and Heniz have been taken to a convent with many pointless rules- March 9 1941.

4. Heniz and Benno were moved all around Europe together until Heniz got married and left Benno Behind- August 6 1945.

5. Benno got married, had kids, moved to Canada, and told his daughters of his past- November 23 2001.

The image I found memorable is of Benno and Heniz being turned away at the boarder the first time. It stands out to me because of how crushed they would feel. I can visualize the sad and disappointed looks on there faces, knowing that they came all this way for nothing.

Panoramio

This is an important quote from the story. “It is very serious to cross the boarder without permission. We will have to send you back where you came from. I was trying hard not to cry.” There are reasons I think this quotation is important. The first reason is what it shows about the character. It shows all the disappointment the character, Benno, is feeling. It also shows the character does not want to show the emotion he is feeling. The second reason is how it changes the story. It changes the story by showing the reader that Heniz and Benno will need to find a different way out of Germany and that it’s not going to be easy.

Why do you think there was so many rules at Emmakinderhais? It surprised me when that over 9000 children were saved from Nazi Germany on the Kindertransport. It surprises me because I would think the Nazi Government wouldn’t have let any Jewish people escape without their knowledge . After Benno moved to Canada someone put a swastika on his car. How could some one have that much hate to put a swastika on Benno’s car? I learned that some people, today, are still prejudice towards Jewish people.

On The Run

edispeel — Sat, 29 Oct 2011 01:45:38 +0000

A grade ⅞ class at Turnberry Central Public School kept track of our running information over the month of September. We kept a record of our pace and distance. Every few days we raised our distance and we looked at it’s effect on our pace. Then we did a math project with the information. We used an online spread sheet and graphed our results.

Online-English

There are improvements I’ve made in my cross country running. The first improvement I made was running longer distances. The graph shows that I was able to run farther by the end of cross country then initially. I subtracted my final distance from my first distance.(2-0.5=1.5) Then I divided the difference by the smaller number. ( 1.5/ 0.5=3) Then I multiplyed it by 100. (3×100=300) The percent improvement for my distance is 300%. Another improvement I made was running at an increased speed. Every time I ran the required distance twice my pace improved. The red line on the graph shows my speed increased the second time I ran the same distance. When the distance remained the same (blue line) the pace increased (red line). Therefore, practicing running improves our running ability.

There are goals I’ve set to improve my physical fitness. The first goal I made was to improve my fitness by running about 1 km. back and forth to the barn each day. My new goal will help my running ability. A second goal I made was to participate on all 6 sports teams for Turnberry . This will improve my sport skills. I hope to improve my physical fitness by continuing to achieve these goal.

Life Science

Idea Hive Common Interest Survey

edispeel — Tue, 27 Sep 2011 16:00:16 +0000

This school year I am not in a normal classroom. My class is part of the Idea Hive classroom. The Idea Hive connects two schools from Wingham, Ontario and Snow Lake, Manitoba. We are connected through the Internet. Throughout this year our two schools will be doing projects and assignments together.

Ideahive

Something I have in common with everyone is that we all have a favourite Website. One thing I have in common with most people is our favourite video game is Call of Duty. Some of the people who like Call of Duty are Joan, Wesley, Jordan and Riley. Another thing I have in common with a few people is we want to be rich. The people who said they want to be rich are Alexandra and Kassie. Something unique about me is that I am the only one who said that for my dream vacation I would like to stay home. The reason I would stay home is that I don’t like to go new places, and my home is my favourite place to be. The person who is most like me is Kassie. Both our favourite sports are soccer and as a goal we both want to be rich.

Tracy O

Who after reading others answers wants to change some of theirs?

Summer Wood Stacking Adventure

edispeel — Thu, 15 Sep 2011 16:42:07 +0000

This summer I got to spend my time with my “favourite” cousin Jacob. Every morning and night we did chores in the dairy barn together. In the first weeks of summer we spent our days doing one of the least liked jobs, splitting and stacking wood. The reason I hated piling wood so much is because after a few days it got so boring doing the same thing over and over again. But the absolute worst part of wood is that the radio only gets one station, 101.7 and they play the same songs everyday. That made the days drag on longer. But it was always nice that I had someone to talk to and some one who was just as miserable as I was. Then Jake and I worked on unloading and mowing straw for a couple weeks. Then back to wood. Next we got to roof my grandparents new home. It was nice to get a new job. After that we only had one more day of wood together and then all the wood was done. Just in time for school where I get to continue to see him everyday.

readerwalker

This summer I made a bookshelf with my sister. The day before my sister was leaving for university she decided that she needed a bookshelf but she didn’t want to buy one. So she asked me if I could help her make it. First we went to the barn to find some wood we could use. All we could find were some old rough barn boards, but we decided they’d have to do. Then we drew up the dimensions of the book shelf. Next we had to square the bottom of the board. After that we cut the boards to the size we wanted with a skill saw. Then we sanded down the boards so they were smooth. After, we assembled the shelf and screwed it together. Finally we attached a piece of mahogany to the back of the shelf to keep it stable and so books couldn’t fall behind the shelf. Now I know exactly how to build a book shelf.

eric.langhorst

The one thing I learned this summer is that the people I work with are a very funny group of people. I got to work with my cousin, Jacob, my Uncle Trevor, Tim, our hired hand, my Dad, and my two brothers, Matt and Ike. We were always finding ways to tease one another and always able to make each other laugh. When we’re together our day could never be that terrible. No matter how bad a job we were told to do we could always find some enjoyment in the company of each other.

In my letter I mostly talked about my summer job. I wonder if Mrs. D had summer jobs and if so what were they.
Mrs. Durnin said she had 19 kittens on her farm this summer and I was wondering how many litters did it take to have that many? We have only had 5 kittens this summer in total.

Clevergrrl

The Forest Race

edispeel — Tue, 28 Jun 2011 18:01:12 +0000

It was a sunny spring day in the woods. Mr. Fuzzy, the squirrel, was a very friendly critter. He was having a stop at a bird feeder when a particularly grumpy, competitive Blue Jay, named Mr. Chirpy, appeared on the bird feeder.
“Hey!”said Mr. Chirpy ”What are you doing on my bird feeder?”
“Isn’t it the whole forest’s feeder?” asked Mr. Fuzzy.
“No! You’re no bird! You’re just a dumb chipmunk!”
“I’m not a chipmunk! I’m a Squirrel!”
“Oh, just go stuff your mouth full of acorns!”
“No way, everyone knows bird feed tastes better!”
Just then Mr Chirpy had an idea, like a light bulb going off in his head.
He said, “Why don’t we race for it? If I win, I get the bird feeder. If you win, which you won’t, the bird feeder is yours.”
“Okay,” Mr. Fuzzy agreed “as long as you don’t try to fly during the race.”
He hoped the feeder could be shared by the whole forest. After all, he was the best runner in the woods. He would win.

***

The next morning was the big day. They decided that the race would be from Mr. Chirpy’s tree, all the way up the mountain. Though, no one ever went up the mountain and came back alive.
“Get ready!” chirped Mr. Chirpy. “You’ll never beat me. Might as well give it too me now!”
“I’m the fastest runner in the forest. You can’t win!,” said Mr. Fuzzy, trying to sound tough. Mr. Fuzzy was usually a very polite squirrel, but today was too important to lose.
“On your mark, get set, GO!” yelled Mr. Chirpy, and the race was on.
They darted through the trees, over top of the rocks and across the river heading towards the mountain summit. As they climbed up the mountain, Mr. Fuzzy thought he saw a shadow, but it was too late.
“Mr. Chirpy help AAHHHH!” yelled Mr. Fuzzy.
With a quick swoop from above he was gone by the power of the sharp claws of the Hawk. Now, Mr. Chirpy assumed the scream was just to try and distract him. But as he looked back, he saw no sign of Mr. Fuzzy. Going against one of the rules of the race, he used his flying ability to fly up and do an Ariel survey. Mr Chirpy crashed into the Hawk along the way.
“Help! Save me!” cried Mr. Fuzzy.
Mr. Chirpy thought for a second. Was it worth the loss of the bird feeder? He did what he knew was right.
“Uh, Mr. Hawk, you let my friend go! After all, he is just a chipmunk.”
“I’m a SQUIRREL!” shouted Mr. Fuzzy forgetting momentarily that he was about to die.
“Fine,” yelled the Hawk and with that he whipped poor Mr. Fuzzy right at the side of the mountain.
“I’ll save you!” shouted Mr. Chirpy, and dived straight for him.
Mr. Fuzzy tried to bring out the flying squirrel side of him, and started to slow down, but it wasn’t enough.
“What are you doing, waiting for your morning coffee?” yelled Mr. Fuzzy. “I’m about to die!”
SWOOP! Mr. Fuzzy closed his eyes at the impact. Well, he thought. He didn’t think heaven was this dark. Then he heard Mr. Chirpy’s voice.
“Chirp Chirp.”
“You died too?” asked Mr. Fuzzy, dazed.
“Open your eyes, you stupid chipmunk!” yelled Mr. Chirpy.
“I’m a squirrel!” yelled Mr. Fuzzy, then he realized that he actually wasn’t dead.”Hey you broke the rules, you flew up and saved me. I win! This means the whole forest gets to share the bird feeder.”
“Fine,” laughed Mr. Chirpy.
And the bird and the Chipmunk lived happily ever after. [“I’m a squirrel!”]

Tree Planting

edispeel — Wed, 22 Jun 2011 16:23:54 +0000

The moist dirt,

with my shovel pressed through.

The over sized boots are

weighing me down, as I

Put the habitat back

to the balance it was once.

Heaving out a pile

of newly earthed soil,

My friend is ready to drop in an Elma.

The shrub slipped in slowly, as we

broke up the soil,

and tossed it down the hole.

I’m packing down,

my boots pressing on the soil like a steam roller.

I marvel at the plant

that will stop erosion,

and become part of the ecosystem.

Terrifying Trenches

edispeel — Fri, 17 Jun 2011 17:08:00 +0000

On Thursday June 16 Turnberry’s Gr. ⅞ class went on a field trip to Tillsonburg where Robin Barker -James had an in the trenches program at his farm, that recreates a trench battle in WWI. Trench battles in WWI took place from 1914 to 1918. Robin taught us basic bayonet fighting skills, like the thrust or the butt stroke. At the end of the day our school had a trench battle. Our school went to experience how difficult and traumatizing war can be.

hdurnin

“ The sound of explosions are ringing in my ears. The smell of gun smoke burning my is nose. It seems like this war will never be won. I’m cold and wet. I have pain coming from my leg. I taste the dirt in the air. I can see men falling all around me and garbage covering the battle field. I hate the feeling of know that today could be my last.”

1914 ‘football truce’ anniversary

At Robin’s farm we learned how much pain-staking hard work war is. We learned about the weapons the used during WWI. We learn the technology different countries had access to. He showed us the advancement in weapons throughout WWI. He showed us how to hold a rife and the proper way to throw grenades. Robin showed us a realistic trench system and his own collection of WWI memorabilia. He taught us the history of WWI. He told us about the sacrifices that were made for our country. The most important thing we a learn that if we are ever asked to go to war it should be for a good reason.