Dancing by Peter Kacz

We did dancing in P.E. a few weeks ago. We had to learn hip hop, line dancing and we had to make up our own. David and I made up a weird dance that consisted of 24 beats and 4 moves (try and follow that one!).

David and I used different moves in our dance and so did everyone else in the class. There were some great (and hilarious) dances. Everybody in the class got into groups and created some kind of dance.

Ms.Bublitz taught us specific moves like the 'grape vine' and she taught us whole dances like The Men In Black dance.

We did a lot of dances in P.E. with Ms.Bublitz during April and May.

Birds attack! By Gavin Gill

On a warm sunny day in May we were marking our math (from the day before), when two birds flew into the classroom. Their names were Molly and Joe, although there have been some heated disputes over the names.

Ms.Bublitz (our student teacher) ran out of the class and Tanner jumped under a desk. Please note, Ms. Bublitz’s pathological fear of birds had her disregard the safety of the entire class; she forgot we were even there!

Neil was screaming his head off and in the melee, I kicked my whole desk over.

We all ran screaming into the hallway at which time Mrs. Albrecht appeared. She told us to go back into the classroom while she tried to shoo the birds out the door. They (the birds) were not having any of it.

We all went outside with Ms. Bublitz and walked/ ran while Mr.Harrington came and tried to get Molly and Joe out. After one hour we went to the library and after recess we got to go back inside because Molly and Joe were gone.

Published By: Gavin Gill also known as G doc in the hood

Last Post of The Year

Sports Day at Willoughby Elementary By: Peter Kwon

Today was the day everyone was waiting for - everyone was so excited to start Sports Day. I heard people cheering for Yellow, Orange, Red, and Green House colours. There were also some parents here, cheering for their children. Teachers were also having fun watching their students compete.

There were many fun games such as hockey, carrying a wiffle ball on a badminton racket, carrying a potato on a spoon, pulling a big rubber ball with a hoop, and carrying a tray that has a dish, a cup, a fork, a spoon, and a knife.

As the time passed by, the order of 4 colours began to change, but not Yellow. Yellow always stayed in the first place position, followed by Orange, Green, and then Red.

Finally it is the time for the Grade Seven chariot race and grade groupings’ tug of wars! Red came in the first place, wearing red clothes and hats. Green came in second with their ‘bee’ costumes. Yellow came in third and Orange came in last because their chariot broke down.

During the tug of wars, it was very funny when one team could not handle the other team’s strength and every one of them fell backwards and forwards. As I remember, Orange won most of the tug o wars.

Then it was time to finish our wonderful Sports Day. Now, we need some drum rolls! First, Red came in last. Green was third. Who is the first place? Yellow or Orange? And the second place was… Orange! So that means Yellow came in the first place! Congratulations, Yellow!


Track and Field By: Harry

At Willoughby, students tried out for track and field by running a preliminary race. The top students were chosen to represent our school.

My name is Harry and I was chosen to compete after I won the 200 meter trial race. I went to the track meet, on May 28th, and participated in the 100 meter, 200 meter and the relay race.

I thought Willoughby was going to do great, but it was harder than I thought. I was disappointed that I got 6th place (out of 8) in the 200 meter.

One of the students Harry competed against ran like Naruto – he finished the race in like 20 seconds.

I was so upset, I missed the 100 meter race. Then I realized, I can do this! I ran my hardest during the relay race. Although I didn’t win, I think I did my best and I ran as fast as I could.

I think the Track Meet was awesome. I also think that doing your best is better than the final outcome..



Photography Analysis by Brianna

During the last two weeks we have been studying photography angles. We now know ten different angles. To start off learning the angles, we found magazine pictures that used the angles, cut the photographs out and labeled them.

Afterwards, we brought digital cameras and went outside (during designated times of the day) to take pictures. The picture taking could take you all over the school ground from the far back field to the doorway of our classroom.

I think we all had a wonderful time studying photography.

Our End of the Year Trip to Playland By. Mike. C

Where do I start? Well, Playland was awesome. We went with Mrs. Sofiak’s class. Everyone had fun but I think we didn’t stay long enough. We got wet, we got hyper, and some of us got sick.

The Playland trip was planned in April, and we all complained it would be forever before we go to Playland. But soon enough, I was exclaiming to Mrs. Albrecht, “How did the time pass so fast?” Mrs. Albrecht replied, “I don’t know. I really don’t know.”

Once we arrived at Playland we were already hyper. After we got in it was nothing like you’ve seen before. (Parents, you have never seen your kids this excited, trust me.)

Each group had parent supervisors and they even went on some of the rides. They looked like they were kids again.

I’m not saying that Mrs. Albrecht exaggerated, but she figured there would be hardly any schools there. But guess what? There were a lot of high school and elementary school students there. Although the lines were really long, it was still worth it. Some of the rides carried a lot of people so we didn’t have to wait a long time in line.

From my point of view, I think the roller coasters were the best. For any adults who don’t know what roller coasters are, ask your kids - they probably know all about it.

All I have to say is that we had a tremendous time at Playland.


Good-bye Ms.Bublitz By: Eric C.

Wow, where should I start? So much has happened since Valentine’s Day but this article is only about Ms.Bublitz leaving.

We are really sad to see you leave, Ms.Bublitz. You were great Ms.Bublitz. Every day you came into the class energized and ready to have a good time. We had some great times (especially when the birds flew into the classroom). I can’t believe you left us in the room alone with those birds… way to make sure we’re safe!

Overall, you were a great student teacher and at times it seemed like you were the actual teacher. I think the other student teachers were jealous.

Thank you Ms.Bublitz you were a fun teacher and whatever school gets you is very lucky!

Speeches By: Sean

Mrs.Albrecht assigned two-minute speeches. She gave us two minutes to talk about anything we wanted. A couple of people spoke about their animals, but it wasn’t as easy as it sounds.

Mrs.Albrecht tested us on – eye contact –clarity – loudness – timing, and not reading off sheets.

“The most hard thing was trying to remember what to say” said Eric C.

We got two days to find a topic, and practise at school and at home.

We presented our speeches to the class and my speech was on pandas that I saw at the San Diego Zoo There was a mama panda and a baby panda (they were just imported from Japan). I passed around some pictures that I had taken when I was at the zoo.

Our Last Entries

Interview With Ms. Kuehn By: Jackie

I decided to interview Mrs. Kuehn for my final class article because she has helped me a lot over the last few years.

Mrs. Kuehn’s favourite day is the first day of school, in September, because she loves her job as an English as a Second Language teacher. She looks forward to teaching new students that the English language is difficult, but not too scary.

Her other favourite day is the end of June, because she enjoys seeing the growth the students have made and she enjoys the beginning of summer weather.

Mrs. Kuehn's favourite food is Hungarian food, as well as dumplings or anything with paprika seasoning. Her other favourite food is Vietnamese food: especially soup, noodles, and dumplings. She also enjoys French cuisine.

Mrs. Kuehn’s favourite singer is Celine Dion because she is a beautiful and talented singer. As well, Mrs. Kuehn admires how Celine overcame many English-speaking obstacles, while learning to sing in English. As a result, Celine is one of the top-charting singers in the entire world. It just goes to show that perseverance pays off,especially when learning a new language.

Albrecht's All Stars - Building Esteem While Tackling Curriculum

I came up with an idea the other night while I was reading students’ goals, looking through the infamous Parents’ Purple Student Progress Binder, as well as analyzing my grade book.

Whether it be spelling, writing summaries, auditory comprehension, giving a Current Events presentation, math seatwork, creative writing, building islands, putting effort into the school community, or demonstrating empathy when assisting peers, this grade six class is unique in the vast amount of areas students have talent or skill in.

All the classes I have taught, over the years, demonstrate similar attributes, but this year my students’ abilities are more varied with wider ranges.

After, what seemed to be, hours of note taking, I decided to group together like-minded, similarly-talented, skilled students into smaller Working Groups (Albrecht’s All Stars). These groupings will not be required to work together all of the time, however, they may be called upon to perform specific tasks within the classroom or within the school (the groups have been made available to other teachers to call upon).

I did not go into thorough detail about each group’s various talents (I do not want to limit their approach to tasks) but I did give them a brief explanation. An example would be: Group *** you're gifted with seeing the ‘big idea’ or the finished product. You are able to immediately visualize how a task should look when it’s completed (as opposed to a person who may be unsure of, or worried about, what is expected of them.).

Another working group was commended for their advanced story writing abilities. They have the ability to create a story which is detailed, creates a visual and draws the reader into the text.

One working group was celebrated for their verbal ability. The students in this group do not enjoy writing down their lengthy and detailed ideas. Subsequently, these students skip valuable details in order to complete their assignments quickly. This working group would be allowed to present information orally, through video, visuals, drama and/or audio tape. By allowing an alternate presentation, their learned information will remain intact and their contribution to their peers’ learning would be considerable.

At various times throughout the year, I will be calling on specific groups to supplement curriculum based lessons for the entire class. I am hoping that students who struggle with, or feel inadequate in, certain subject areas will learn new techniques by watching and interacting with their peers. Hopefully they will learn new strategies for learning in their problem subject area and ultimately gain confidence

I believe we (especially as youth) are all equally talented. We just need the time, practise, new strategies and learning techniques to experience success which will then build our confidence. in order to build our confidence.

I look forward to seeing these groups interact with, and learn from, e

Parent Volunteers Needed!

Dear parents of Grade Six Students, in Divisions Three, Four and Five.

I need some volunteer assistants to help out with Grade Six Volleyball Practises as well as Game Days. Volleyball is fun to coach and it doesn’t have a plethora of rules to remember; you’ll be glad you came out to participate and assist.

Also ... Gulp ... I Volunteered to coach BOTH Grade Six Boys’ AND Grade Six Girls’ volleyball teams.

WITHOUT ADDITIONAL ASSISTANCE FROM THE PARENTS, THERE WILL NOT BE A WILLOUGHBY TEAM IN THIS YEAR’S LEAGUE.

• Practise assistants to help with drills and skills during the 8:15 practises

• browse the internet for warmup volley ball games (I have a few, but am physically limited due to injuries)

• Volleyball game day drivers

If you are able to assist with morning practises. Please forward your name and phone number in your son/daughter's agenda and I will contact you regarding days you are available.

If you are able to assist by being a driver for the 'away' games, please let me know and ensure you submit two photocopies of your drivers licence and your insurance coverage to the office (1 for me and 1 for the office).

Thank you all for being a part of your children’s learning/ school /experience/ and memories. This is an involvement that will never be forgotten by your child and it will also create a great memory for you.

Thank you!

Nightly Multiplication Drills

Math Drills

Article Contributed by Sean M.

The students in Division 4 were given a packet of multiplication drill sheets to take home. After we look over the sheets with our parents, we will choose one of the drills to officially ‘start’ our practise drills.

(After we have chosen our starting drill, we will tell Mrs. Albrecht and she will run off a copy on a transparency. Then we can practise the drill as many times as we want without wasting a lot of paper. We will just wash off the ink and be ready for the next try.)

Once we have received our ‘official’ starting drill, we have to practise every night (only once a night). However, we can attempt the drill as many times as we wish. The drills are between the 4x and the 12x tables).

(In February, Mrs. Albrecht will be adding some division and fraction drills as well.)

We are practising our drills because the faster we can recall facts, the easier it is to do all mathematics. Also, we want to be able to ‘beat’ our own recorded time. We will write down how long it took to complete the drill the very first time we try it, and then we will try to ’beat’ that time.

For example, if it takes someone 4 minutes and 18 seconds to do the 8 X drill on Monday, then hopefully by Sunday, it will take him/her only 4 minutes 3 seconds to finish. Mrs. Albrecht will be very happy if we improve upon our first time and hopes our parents will write her a note in our agenda, so she can encourage us.

If we can finish the entire drill within 3 minutes and 30 seconds (with only 2 mistakes or less) we can bring back the drill and pick a new one.

If we become too frustrated with a drill, we can exchange it for a different one after two weeks. Sometimes it is really hard to reach the 3.5 minutes time, and Mrs. Albrecht will be happy if we show improvement.

Mrs. Albrecht has to receive a note from our parents before she will give us a new drill. The note will either report the time it took us to complete it, or it will say that we are too frustrated to continue.

Mrs Albrecht says, Ready...? Set...? Start your drill...!

Mrs. Albrecht - Time Bandit

October 1st, 2007

I think I may have become a “Time Bandit” in my students’ eyes. Last Friday, September 28, an interesting exchange took place between myself and the students in Division Four.

“Next time I see you will be in October” I casually announced as they were leaving for the day.

“What?”

“No way!”

“How can that be?” was the reaction.

Then the teacher-pupil exchange took on an accusatory tone as the class realized that September had indeed, passed.

“Hey, what happened to the third week of September?” a boy asked (with the tone of a lawyer, I might add).

“Yeah”, came the supportive chorus, with accompanying nods.

I started to laugh at this implausible scenario (that, somehow, I had stolen and hidden an entire week of school). I reminded the students that we had only been in our officially assigned classrooms since September 10th,which made the month seem very short.

So yes, they were right. We hadn’t ‘ideally’ received a third week of a school month. Technically, though, September was over and all weeks were accounted for.

I knew then that I was going to be held accountable for many school ‘happenings’ (whether they are my responsibility or not). This group of children is not letting anything slide by without close examination.

And I wouldn’t want it any other way.