Revel Recap: Dec 8-12
Important Upcoming Dates
Collecting Donations for the Ottawa Food Bank and Toy Mountain from November 10th-December 12th, 2025
Spark Holiday Book Exchange- Friday, December 12, 2025.
Secret Exploration Exchange - Wednesday, December 17th
Secret Discovery Exchange - Tuesday, December 16th
Session 3 Exhibitions
Joint Spark and Discovery: Wednesday, December 17th at 4:15 pm
Exploration Studio: Thursday, December 18th
Doors open at 4:00 pm, Program begins at 4:15 pm
Spark Studio
Mindfulness and Launch
Monday morning kicked off with everyone sharing highlights from their weekends, followed by some fun with the Boomwhackers! After a quick warm-up, we practiced our song for the Exhibition and then enjoyed playing some other holiday tunes! On Tuesday, the Sparks took part in the 100 Snowman Activity. This fun and mindful task encouraged them to follow ten steps to build their own unique snowman. With each step, they added a set of ten items such as: 10 blue ears, 10 carrot noses, 10 yellow arms, and more! Wednesday, we settled into calmness with a Christmas themed Cosmic Kids yoga session. The Sparks stretched, breathed, and followed along enthusiastically! On Thursday, they turned back to their boomwhackers. They focused on the beat of their boomwhacker, listened carefully and worked together to ensure everyone was becoming familiar with their individual roles in the song. Afterwards, they enjoyed some relaxing holiday music while doing puzzles and festive colouring. To end the week, we visited Discovery to perform our Boomwhacker piece for them! We had the chance to listen to Discovery’s holiday song in return, leaving all the Rebels very excited for next week’s performance at Exhibition!
Quest
The Sparks had an exciting week on their cooking journey! We began by learning all about kitchen tool safety and food safety to help everyone feel confident and prepared in the kitchen. To kick off the week, the Sparks worked with chicken and potatoes to make their very own chicken strips and fries from scratch. Starting with chicken breast, they practiced safely slicing it into strips using their learner-safe knives. Then, they used a meat tenderizer to gently flatten the pieces. They set up a three-step breading station with bowls of flour, eggs, and breadcrumbs. With guidance, the chicken was then cooked in either the air fryer or the oven, giving learners the chance to compare the two cooking methods and outcomes.
On Tuesday, the Sparks prepared their own lunch once again! On the menu today was making homemade mac and cheese. They graded the cheese, measured and mixed the wet ingredients first, then combined with dry ingredients to create a delicious dish. It turned out so well that it disappeared within minutes, and many Sparks were eager for seconds! To wrap up their cooking adventures for the week, Wednesday’s workshop gave the Sparks an opportunity to make meatballs and rice. They worked together to mix, scoop and prepare the meatballs before cooking their final meal of the session. On Thursday, the Sparks reflected on their Quest and voted for their favorite dish of the week. The winner was…meatballs and rice! Lastly, we talked about table manners, what they are and why they’re important. We spoke about simple habits like chewing with your mouth closed, using utensils properly, and being polite at the table (elbows off the table and knees and feet off the table). Rebels agreed manners help everyone feel respected and comfortable during meals. We also encouraged the Sparks to share these table manners at home with their families so they can practice them together.
Art Workshop
During their art workshop, the learners listened to the story called, Mr Willowby's Christmas Tree by Robert E Barry. Mr. Willowby receives a beautiful, tall Christmas tree, but it’s just a little too tall for his living room. So the butler trims the top off. The little trimmed piece is then passed along to someone else, but each time the tree is still too big, so another top gets trimmed and passed on again. The tree top travels from Mr. Willowby’s elegant house to several different animals, like a bear family, foxes, rabbits, and even mice, with each family trimming it again and making it the perfect size for their home. In the end, one big tree brings Christmas cheer to many homes, reminding readers that sharing brings joy to everyone. Followed by this they used pastels to design pine branches with colour ornaments attached to them!
French
This week, the learners continued learning and practicing the songs Vive le vent and Le p’tit reine au nez rouge.
VIVE LE VENT, VIVE LE VENT D'HIVER ⒹⒺⓋⒶ Chanson de Noël avec paroles pour les petits
Le petit renne au nez rouge (Chanson de noël avec paroles)ⒹⒺⓋⒶ Noël des enfants
Through singing, the learners are developing pronunciation, rhythm, and vocabulary in an engaging way. These activities also help build memory skills and confidence when speaking. Families can support learners at home by listening to the songs together.
Reader/Writer Workshops
Group One Spark learners practiced rhyming with the og, at, and ing word families this week. In one activity, they were given a picture and had to find the correct rhyming match. In another, they explored a set of six words and worked together to identify which ones rhymed. Throughout the week they also worked on Bob Books and the red reading drawer.
Group Two learners continued developing their procedural writing skills this week. With Monday being a chilly day, we wrote about how to make hot chocolate. We began by discussing the steps we take when making hot chocolate and then watched an informational video to reinforce the process. After that, the learners wrote about the materials needed and the steps involved. To finish, they followed a directed drawing of a cup of hot chocolate to accompany their writing.
Math Workshops
This week in Math Lab, Groups 1 and 2 teamed up for a fun and hands-on review of 3D shapes. Learners explored a variety of 3D figures using both cards and physical shapes. Being able to hold and feel each object really helped them connect the name to the shape in a more meaningful way. After reviewing the shapes, we played two engaging games to reinforce what we learned. First, we played What’s Missing? One learner removed a shape from the pile while another tried to figure out which one had gone missing. This encouraged careful observation, working memory, and vocabulary practice. Then, we played Hot and Cold. Learners took turns hiding shapes around the studio and guiding their partner to find them using “hot” (getting closer) and “cold” (farther away).
Group 2 also continued our exploration of fractions. We started by watching a fun Scratch Garden video to strengthen our understanding from last week. After that, we used our fraction circles material, exploring fractions from a whole to fifths. Each learner traced and colored their fraction shapes and then practiced writing the fractions to match.
Geography
As the holidays are quickly approaching, our Guides have been sharing winter traditions from around the world! For example, in Australia, families love decorating their streets with bright Christmas light displays for everyone to enjoy. They were fascinated to hear that when Santa arrives in Australia, he swaps his warm suit for a T-shirt, shorts, and flip-flops! He even gives his reindeer a rest and calls on his kangaroo helpers, known as the “Six White Boomers.” We also explored traditions from the Netherlands, where Santa Claus is known as Sinterklaas. He arrives by steam boat from Spain about three weeks before December 5th, bringing excitement and celebration throughout the country. After learning about these global traditions, the Sparks enjoyed a fun “Would You Rather?” slideshow. They made choices such as: Would you rather see a penguin or a polar bear? Would you rather go figure skating or play hockey? Would you rather go sledding or build a snowman?
To finish the geography workshop, the Sparks planned their dream winter vacation! They answered questions like:
– Who would you see on your vacation?
– What activities would you do?
– Where would you go?
– When would you travel (month and time of day)?
– Why would this be your ideal vacation?
– How would you get there?
Some shared ideas were going on a trip with their grandparents to building snowmen and opening presents in China. One learner said they would go to Antarctica to go skating, and lastly, another Rebel wanted to visit the Bahamas and swim at the famous Pig Beach!
Additional Highlights
This week, we continued to enjoy our 12 Days of Holiday Read-Alouds! We listened to Have Yourself a Cheesy Little Christmas, The Elf on the Shelf, Tough Cookie, The Crayons’ Christmas, and Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Sleigh. The learners have been loving the festive fun in each story! On Friday, Rebels had a wonderful time doing their book exchange together. What amazing books families brought in! The Guides hope the learners enjoy reading them with their families over the holidays.
To wrap up the week, the Sparks worked together to create an exciting goal plan for the new year! They designed a weekly goal sheet for the studio, outlining meaningful tasks they aim to complete each day. When they meet their goals, they’ll earn fun rewards the whole studio can enjoy. Some of the rewards they chose include a cozy hot chocolate break, a visit to the Spark candy shop, extra free-exploration time, a full day dedicated entirely to free exploration, and even watching a mini-episode of their choice. They’ll finish their sixth week of hard work and achievement with a special pizza and movie afternoon!
…and of course, Dazzle the Dinosaur continues to bring smiles and joy to our learners each morning!
Discovery Studio
Mindfulness and Launch
We kicked off our mindfulness sessions in Week 2 with a Studio Winter Quilt activity on Monday morning. Rebels selected a “patch” to colour/fill in as well as a patterned background, and worked to complete their individual squares. Once complete, Rebels will attach their squares together to create a festive holiday quilt. For Launch, we reviewed a few administrative items heading into this week that would affect our Week 2 and Week 3 schedules, including our upcoming Spirit Week days! Rebels also helped build a practice schedule for their French Choir rehearsals. Tuesday morning, Rebels did a mindful colouring activity. For launch, we completed a studio “ICEE” check-in: Rebels reflected on our studios intentionality, civility, energy and excellence and voted on the one quality that is the best of the four right now, as well as one quality that needs our attention. Most Rebels shared they think we are treating each other well and feel our civility is high, while our excellence needs attention. They pointed to less body breaks during Core Skills, quality Quest work and clear recipe writing as ways to increase excellence. We can’t wait to see what you accomplish this week! Wednesday morning we rehearsed for our upcoming exhibition Boomwhackers performance and then met with our squads. Rebels discussed the science behind their North Pole Noggins Quest challenge, considering what variables contributed to their success or failure in terms of making their elf head (i.e. balloon) expand. Thursday morning we gathered to share our 2026 goals, resolutions or intentions, as well as the best gifts we’ve ever received and why they were so special. Rebels are hoping for things like fun times together next year, to move up in their extracurriculars like gymnastics and hockey, or to build personal traits like their confidence. And while all the gift stories were truly special, the reasons Rebels shared were extra heart-warming. For example, gifts felt special because they were from a sibling, because they were extra thoughtful, or because they grew their family (i.e. pets!). Friday, Discovery and Spark Rebels joined forces to do a whole group Boomwhacker rehearsal in preparation for Exhibition next week.
Reader/Writer
This week in Reader/Writer, both Draw/Anchor and Aim/Release Rebels were tasked with the same challenge of writing a specific list of instructions to bake a holiday cookie recipe. Both groups received resources to assist them in this task, such as a procedural video that the food blogger made from start to finish, the list of ingredients with necessary measurements and our mentor text recipes that learners’ families sent in this week. Rebels watched the procedural video a few times (which was strictly a visual aid, no audio/verbal instructions were provided) to help guide them through which ingredients were used and when. They split off into teams of two or worked independently to complete the instructions to the best of their ability. The mentor text recipes were very helpful in showing Rebels how specific the language and vocabulary needs to be when writing instructions. Some family recipes included pictures, ordering steps numerically or using very clear transition sentence starters, and some even colour-coded certain words or measurements. Next week, Ms. Jenna and the Rebels will be back in the kitchen to see if any of our learners perfected the instructions and can direct Ms. Jenna in making a batch of holiday cookies successfully. Stay tuned!
Math Lab
Rebels continued their Grocery Store Math project this week with a focus on reasoning and justifying with other grocery store owners to reach consensus on the correctness of their problem-solving. On Tuesday with Group 2, some Rebels finished all the tasks and moved on to problems related to planning an agricultural conference. On Thursday with Group 1, Rebels focused on developing a peer approval system. First, they would compare their results. If both are the same, they would check in with the answer key. If they have reached different conclusions, they would take turns to share their thinking and re-do any calculations together. Rebels, you are developing such strong reasoning and justifying skills, well done!
French
This session, music has been an important part of our learning activities. The learners have been practicing the songs Vive le vent, Le p’tit renne au nez rouge, C’est l’hiver, and Au royaume du bonhomme hiver. Singing these songs allows learners to explore new vocabulary, improve pronunciation, and become more comfortable speaking in French.
Le petit renne au nez rouge (Chanson de noël avec paroles)ⒹⒺⓋⒶ Noël des enfants
VIVE LE VENT, VIVE LE VENT D'HIVER ⒹⒺⓋⒶ Chanson de Noël avec paroles pour les petits
Au royaume du bonhomme hiver - Comptine de Noël avec paroles pour bébé et maternelle
C'EST L'HIVER (Marie Michèle Desrosiers)
Civilizations
This week’s chapter was all about the Middle Kingdom of Egypt! Rebels located the area around the Nile River, Nubia and Canaan on their maps and used “H” to indicate the path of the Hyksos people when they conquered the Nile Delta. We heard about the different dynasties of the region between 1900 and 1200 BCE and looked to our master timeline to compare what was happening in other continents around the same time. Rebels discussed what they would do as leader of Egypt around this time: where would they invest any money or resources (e.g. military, government, farming)? They also debated whether it is better to have a small, stable civilization or a much larger civilization led by an unstable government. Lastly, we watch a video about modern day production of papyrus and how this industry fits in the culture and economy of Egypt today!
Quest
Week 2 of The Science of YUM! Quest was all about Bread Baking Basics! What do you know about bread and how it is made? What is yeast and what does it do to bread? Rebels began our second week of Quest with a lesson and research period all about the science of yeast! Rebels learned important takeaways such as the fact that yeast is a living single cell organism that eats sugar and starch, and “burps” out carbon dioxide, which causes bread to expand (and also causes the air bubbles and holes to form inside of our bread!) After our lesson, we headed over to the kitchen for our first lab on leaveners. Rebels experimented with a basic mixture of flour, salt and warm water, and added three different leaveners (baking soda, baking powder and active dry yeast) to each mixture to see what would happen and how they would change. They looked at the visual changes, touched and felt the way different textures formed, and which leavener would create the best version of dough. Rebels had a blast mixing the different ingredients and creating their own mini dough balls. Once complete, we put several of the dough balls into the oven to see how heat would impact each one. Revisiting the dough balls the following morning, we cut into each one to see if we could tell just by the way the bread looked inside which leavener was used. Rebels came to the conclusion that the dough balls containing little air bubbles/miniature holes inside contained yeast.
On Tuesday, Rebels competed in Revel’s very first “North Pole Noggin Nationals!”, a follow up experiment (and friendly competition!) to our lesson on the science of yeast. In small teams, Rebels had to create an elf with the biggest noggin, using a water bottle, balloon, yeast, warm water and candy canes! Rebels had so much fun creating their “elf”, and experimenting with proofing yeast - a simple test that bakers will use to see if live yeast is active by dissolving it with sugar and warm water. The gas caused by this reaction inflates the balloons (noggins). The team with the largest balloon (the biggest noggin) won the tournament! As we reflected on the experiment and revisited the elves the next day, and wondered why some balloons inflated right away (within 6-10 minutes), why some balloons experienced a very delayed inflation, and why did some balloons deflate after a few hours? Was it the temperature of the water? Was it because some groups ground up their candy canes into more of a powder and some broke them into smaller chunks? Was it because the yeast wasn’t active? Rebels discussed and came to the conclusion that a variety of environmental variables can effect the outcome of this experiment, including how quickly the sugar can be dissolved in the water and the temperature of the water being used to mix ingredients together. Rebels also learned that some balloons deflated after a certain amount of time due to the carbon dioxide gas diffusing out through the balloon material faster than air.
Now that Rebels were confident in their knowledge of bread ingredients and the science happening inside of the dough, they were tasked with a “Bread in the Bag” baking challenge on Wednesday. Back in the kitchen, Rebels followed a recipe to the best of their ability to make 2 mini loaves of bread. On Thursday, we tried making Matzo, a staple dish commonly eaten during the Jewish holiday, Passover! Matzo is an unleavened recipe, made from flour and water, and the Rebels were able to see and compare what happens to two different bread recipes (one containing a leavener, and one without). Rebels discussed the difference in taste, texture and look of both recipes as they ate their bread and Matzo together.
Additional Highlights
Rebels have been having a blast in the snow at recess! Please ensure your Rebel has appropriate gear, a change of clothes (especially socks!) as we continue our winter play outdoors. Next week, Rebels may go toboganning for Tuesday’s recess, so please make sure your Rebel brings their sled and helmet if they want to join!
Exploration Studio
Mindfulness & Launch
We opened our week with a discussion on the importance of problem-solving; recognizing challenges, thinking through options, and finding solutions that consider both logic and emotions. Rebels then reflected on a recent problem they faced and how their feelings influenced their approach to solving it. They also identified a current situation they are facing and listed the steps they will take to clearly define the issue, generate solutions, and evaluate their options before making a decision. We then learned how to iron napkins, and interested Rebels used an online tutorial to learn how to fold them into a special shape! On Tuesday, the Rebels finished writing their "I Am From" poems. After ensuring the order of each line was as they wanted, they created an artistic piece to display. On Wednesday, the Rebels took a beautiful, snowy walk, and on Thursday, they paired up and became ACME agents on a worldwide hunt for Carmen Sandiego. With a set of 14 clues that led them all over the globe, Rebel learned about landmarks, geological features, and political systems! After our collaborative puzzle session on Friday morning, our Current Events team discussed the World Cup, the announcement of the first games in Canada, Ontario's significant increase in ADHD medication, and a story about a deer getting stuck in a chair.
Reader/Writer Workshop & The Hobbit
Since our Hobbit essays are due next week, Rebels spent Monday's workshop learning how to become better editors. Before giving feedback to at least two other learners, we reviewed grammar rules, the importance of hooks, and how to incorporate quotations seamlessly. Rebels then read over and commented on at least two peers' essays before reviewing their own feedback and improving their draft.
Reading Challenge, Paragraph of the Week and Grammar
On Monday, we learned that we need to use a comma between two adjectives that describe the same noun equally. (If you can add "and" or switch the order without changing the meaning, a comma is needed.) Rebels spent the remainder of the week determining which underlined adjectives required commas, and correcting paragraphs alone and with a friend, ensuring to fix the missing or incorrect commas used with coordinate adjectives.
Our Reading Challenge this week focused on conflict. We reviewed each of the four types (Person vs. Self, Person vs. Person, Person vs. Environment, and Person vs. Society) before reading examples of each. Learners then completed an independent exercise in which they identified the type of conflict in several passages.
In this week's paragraph of the week, the Rebels awakened to find themselves stranded on a deserted island, thinking they were the sole survivor of a shipwreck. They spot another figure in the distance, but when they shout, the person continues to move further away. With the given prompt, learners described both their actions and the haunting atmosphere on the beach. After their freewrite, they revised by improving the description of the story's setting and found at least one description which could be improved with the use of a metaphor. Learners ensured that they followed a set of rules for formatting dialogue before typing up their final copy.
Math Lab
It's vacation time! This week, Rebels had to pretend that their family of four were touring the diverse cultural, archaeological, and geographical offerings of South America! Learners had to read an itinerary containing required information and use a set of currency conversions to complete a series of calculations involving flight times, hotel prices, and more. Overhearing the learners talk through each challenge and note different strategies was impressive!
Quest - Where in the World?!
This Quest is flying by! On Monday, learners created a timeline that included at least ten dates and brief explanations of their country's history. Some had difficulty determining which dates to include, while others struggled more with fitting it all into a Canva template of their choice; however, overall, they were successful. At our sessional Exhibition, families will compete in a Kahoot based on questions about each of the chosen countries of study. In preparation, Rebels prepared 10 multiple-choice questions for the game and sent them to Erin for inclusion. An additional challenge was introduced each Quest period before Rebels went to work on building landmarks, locating a recipe, learning phrases from their country's official language, making crosswords, and more! All work and no play? That's not the Revel Way! On Thursday, their Quest time was spent on a Revel tradition: decorating gingerbread houses! Some Rebels took on the added challenge of incorporating symbols or colours based on their country of research and will display the final product at the Exhibition.
Civilizations
How did life on Earth begin and change? This week, Rebels journeyed to the depths of Earth's early oceans to investigate the origins of life and then explored how life adapted and evolved as it developed on Earth. They began by trying to put the six mini-thresholds in order before learning more about the defining characteristics of life, including metabolism, homeostasis, reproduction, and adaptation, as well as the various theories on how life originated on Earth. We then watched a brief video on how life has changed over the years, allowing us to review our predictions from the beginning of class. Learners then listened to an article on the biosphere before utilizing a collection of climographs and biomes to answer a series of questions about geography and the biosphere in teams.
French
For French workshops this week, the learners listened to an episode of Du pain sur la planche to learn more about the life of Laurent Duvernay-Tardif, who took over his parents’ bakery in addition to being a professional football player and a doctor. The learners discussed and responded to comprehension questions about the episode. Then, on Thursday, we started baking baguettes! This gave learners a wonderful hands-on experience in making this traditional bread!
Personal Finance
This week, the learners were asked to determine whether they should buy or lease a car based on the provided information. We learned essential questions to ask before buying a car, and read about MSRP, down payments, financing costs, loan terms, taxes, and additional fees. Rebels then learned how to calculate a car payment with the help of a given example and provided numbers. We then weighed the pros and cons of leasing a car versus buying one before learning how to calculate lease payments. Rebels who were able to complete the calculations had one more chance to make a comparison before reflecting on whether they would personally choose to buy or lease with the information given and their lifestyle.
Additional Highlights
Surprise! The Explorations Rebels candy caned the school while the other learners were out at recess. It was fun to hear the exclamations and theories on who left the treats out all over the studios! On Friday, the band held a full dress rehearsal in advance of their performance at next week's Exhibition, while the Yearbook Committee was hard at work preparing a photobooth. We can’t wait to show you our hard work next week!
Potential Discussion Ideas or Questions to Ask Your Rebel:
Spark Studio
What are table manners?
What are the steps to making chicken strips?
What holiday books did you read this week and which one did you like the most?
French: Can you sing a part of Le p’tit renne au nez rouge or Vive le vent for me?
Discovery Studio
How do you remember which is the minute hand and the hour hand on an analog clock?
If it takes 26 minutes to make bagels and you get started at 10:14 am, what time will they be ready?
What are you most looking forward to next week?
What are you most proud of from this year?
Is there anything you need from us to have a successful last week of the session next week?
French: Do you feel ready to sing your French songs at exhibition?
Exploration Studio
What are the pros and cons of leasing a car? Based on the numbers you ran in personal finance, which would you choose?
Which Quest challenge did you enjoy completing the most this week? Which ones do you still need/want to finish?
What was the best piece of feedback you received on your essay?
What are you most excited to show us at Exhibition?