Fifth Grade Pen Pals Share Winter Olympics Excitement
Posted 02/08/2010 11:03AM
Pine Point's fifth grade class is pen pals with a combined 4th/5th grade class in Ladner, British Columbia which is 17 miles south of Vancouver. This is in the far western part of Canada, north of the state of Washington. To generate some excitement for the Olympics and to help the School learn more about their pen pals’ home country the fifth grade offer some facts about Canada and her people. These were originally shared at Monday Morning Meeting on February 8.
Red and white are Canada’s official colors. The color white symbolizes peace and honesty, while the color red symbolizes hardiness, strength, valor and bravery. The maple leaf, centered on the Canadian flag, is a popular symbol of the country. Its significance can be traced back to a time well before European settlers came to Canada. The aboriginal peoples of Canada discovered the food properties of maple syrup.
Canada is the second biggest country in terms of land mass in the world -– only China has more land. Canada occupies 41% of the North American continent.
The class' pen pals go to school at Neilson Grove Elementary School in Ladner, British Columbia. As far apart as they live the fifth graders discovered some interesting similarities. Ladner has a population of about 20,000 people. In the 2000 census, Stonington had a population of about 18,000 people. So we live in towns that are roughly the same size. The town of Ladner was originally a fishing village on the Fraser River which also runs through Vancouver. Because of its geographical location, the people of Ladner have always been and still are active in fishing and boating. This sounds a bit like us, don’t you think? One really interesting fact about Ladner is that nearby there is a place called Boundary Bay. If you go swimming in Boundary Bay, you can actually swim from Canada to the United States.
The Winter Olympics run from February 12 to February 28. The games will be staged in the city of Vancouver and 2 hours north in Whistler Olympic Park. The city of Vancouver has about 2.3 million residents, many of whom are immigrants. More than half the population speaks a native language other than English.
The United States is sending one of the largest teams -– 216 athletes. There are 123 men and 93 women.
On Monday, February 8 the Olympic torch was on day 102 of a 106 day journey that will cover a total of 45,000 kilometers. That is about 27,000 miles! It will end its journey on Friday, February 12 when cross country skier Becki Scott carries it into BC Place Stadium.
Vancouver is the warmest Winter Olympics host on record. Due to its proximity to the ocean, it does not reliably have a great deal of snowfall. While Whistler Park does have snow right now, the city of Vancouver will likely have to truck snow in from other places to have the snow needed for events being held there.
Red and white are Canada’s official colors. The color white symbolizes peace and honesty, while the color red symbolizes hardiness, strength, valor and bravery. The maple leaf, centered on the Canadian flag, is a popular symbol of the country. Its significance can be traced back to a time well before European settlers came to Canada. The aboriginal peoples of Canada discovered the food properties of maple syrup.
Canada is the second biggest country in terms of land mass in the world -– only China has more land. Canada occupies 41% of the North American continent.
The class' pen pals go to school at Neilson Grove Elementary School in Ladner, British Columbia. As far apart as they live the fifth graders discovered some interesting similarities. Ladner has a population of about 20,000 people. In the 2000 census, Stonington had a population of about 18,000 people. So we live in towns that are roughly the same size. The town of Ladner was originally a fishing village on the Fraser River which also runs through Vancouver. Because of its geographical location, the people of Ladner have always been and still are active in fishing and boating. This sounds a bit like us, don’t you think? One really interesting fact about Ladner is that nearby there is a place called Boundary Bay. If you go swimming in Boundary Bay, you can actually swim from Canada to the United States.
The Winter Olympics run from February 12 to February 28. The games will be staged in the city of Vancouver and 2 hours north in Whistler Olympic Park. The city of Vancouver has about 2.3 million residents, many of whom are immigrants. More than half the population speaks a native language other than English.
The United States is sending one of the largest teams -– 216 athletes. There are 123 men and 93 women.
On Monday, February 8 the Olympic torch was on day 102 of a 106 day journey that will cover a total of 45,000 kilometers. That is about 27,000 miles! It will end its journey on Friday, February 12 when cross country skier Becki Scott carries it into BC Place Stadium.
Vancouver is the warmest Winter Olympics host on record. Due to its proximity to the ocean, it does not reliably have a great deal of snowfall. While Whistler Park does have snow right now, the city of Vancouver will likely have to truck snow in from other places to have the snow needed for events being held there.