Projects:
We are continuing with our unit on space, which includes the studies of moon phases and gravity. We will continue this for another week before heading into social studies and the Great Depression.
8th Grade Reading:
Students are working on their final exam, which is an ongoing assignment while we read the novel. Students should be collecting evidence for the theme they have chosen for the book. The final is worth a lot, and students should make sure they are organizing their thoughts. We are loving this book!
7th Grade Reading:
The Maze Runner is such a fun book to read with my 7th graders! This week we will do a novel chart in groups and focus on humor, fear, figurative language, and important quotes in the book.
Writing:
SBAC is right around the corner and we are working HARD on writing prompts that will improve our skills and overall performance. Students need to make sure they know what a thesis statement is and how to work on it throughout their essays. This week, they are writing about the benefits of recess on teachers and students, and using sources to use evidence to back up their points.
**Math night is this Thursday night at 6:00.
Tuesday, February 24, 2015
Wednesday, February 18, 2015
Wednesday, February 18, 2015
We are starting a new unit in projects this week. students will begin by learning and doing a few activities around the different phases of the moon. They will keep a journal and record new information in them daily.
In 8th grade reading, our class novel is progressing nicely. Students seem to be enjoying To Kill a Mockingbird. This is a wonderful book with so many possibilities. In the next few weeks, I will be expecting a lot from the kids as far as discussion and written response go.
7th graders are loving The Maze Runner. This week they took a short quiz and are working on collecting evidence for their final exams. Please ask them about their class reading. The more students talk about their books the more they retain!
In writing, we are picking apart our Smarter Balanced practice writing from last week. Since this was a practice, we are able to go back and compare it to the rubrics given. I think this is proving to be a worthwhile exercise, as students will be well prepared for the actual writing assessment they will take in a couple of months. In addition to this, students are still working on diagramming sentences. They come a long way with this, and most students can now pick apart and recognize parts of speech in sentences! This is such an important skill to have as they progress in their writing.
In 8th grade reading, our class novel is progressing nicely. Students seem to be enjoying To Kill a Mockingbird. This is a wonderful book with so many possibilities. In the next few weeks, I will be expecting a lot from the kids as far as discussion and written response go.
7th graders are loving The Maze Runner. This week they took a short quiz and are working on collecting evidence for their final exams. Please ask them about their class reading. The more students talk about their books the more they retain!
In writing, we are picking apart our Smarter Balanced practice writing from last week. Since this was a practice, we are able to go back and compare it to the rubrics given. I think this is proving to be a worthwhile exercise, as students will be well prepared for the actual writing assessment they will take in a couple of months. In addition to this, students are still working on diagramming sentences. They come a long way with this, and most students can now pick apart and recognize parts of speech in sentences! This is such an important skill to have as they progress in their writing.
Tuesday, February 10, 2015
Tuesday, February 10, 2015
Projects:
Students are designing their own websites related to weather. This is a great project, as most of them have not built a website before. We're having a great time!
8th Grade Reading:
We are continuing with To Kill a Mockingbird. Students are paying close attention to character traits in the first five chapters, and using dialog in the book to explain how it relates to character traits.
7th Grade Reading:
We are through the first 14 chapters of The Maze Runner. Students will now complete 2 tasks to show comprehension and make predictions.
Writing:
Today we worked on diagramming sentences with multiple prepositional phrases. Additionally, students continued to work on a practice performance assessment for writing. This practice will come in handy when it comes time to actually take the writing assessment in April!
**The dance last Friday was an absolute blast! Thank you to all of the kids for making it so much fun. Everyone danced and had a great time. I'm so impressed with them!
Please click on the link to view pictures from the dance. If it doesn't work, try copying and pasting the URL.
http://oasisacademyfallon.smugmug.com/Valentines-Dance-2015/n-c5SGQ/i-ScR83PW
Students are designing their own websites related to weather. This is a great project, as most of them have not built a website before. We're having a great time!
8th Grade Reading:
We are continuing with To Kill a Mockingbird. Students are paying close attention to character traits in the first five chapters, and using dialog in the book to explain how it relates to character traits.
7th Grade Reading:
We are through the first 14 chapters of The Maze Runner. Students will now complete 2 tasks to show comprehension and make predictions.
Writing:
Today we worked on diagramming sentences with multiple prepositional phrases. Additionally, students continued to work on a practice performance assessment for writing. This practice will come in handy when it comes time to actually take the writing assessment in April!
**The dance last Friday was an absolute blast! Thank you to all of the kids for making it so much fun. Everyone danced and had a great time. I'm so impressed with them!
Please click on the link to view pictures from the dance. If it doesn't work, try copying and pasting the URL.
http://oasisacademyfallon.smugmug.com/Valentines-Dance-2015/n-c5SGQ/i-ScR83PW
Tuesday, February 3, 2015
Tuesday, February 3, 2015
7th grade Flocabulary homework is due tomorrow.
Projects:
Students are finishing their posters on global warming and will present them tomorrow. I'm seeing some nice work!
8th Grade Reading:
Almost finished chapter 3 of To Kill a Mockingbird. I'm reading aloud right now, and students will start reading more independently soon. It's important to set the stage and talk about characters in the story and their function in it. We are having some nice discussions.
7th Grade Reading:
Students finished their maps of The Glade today. OH MY GOSH, those kids really know how to get creative with a project. I am impressed with what they put together, as well as the evidence they are taking from the text to complete the assignment. Tomorrow there will be a quiz (open book) on chapters 8 and 9 and we may move farther ahead in the reading afterward.
Writing:
We started diagramming sentences today. This is a tried and true method of encouraging students to recognize parts of speech, as well as determine their function in a sentence. Believe it or not, it should help with overall writing as students become more aware of subject/verb agreement through these exercises.
This Friday is the middle school dance. I encourage all students to attend. It's such a special, special night and the kids have worked hard in the classroom to earn it. Remember your permission slip, your guest's permission slip (if you're bringing one), and your $5 admission fee.
Candy grams are on sale all week, as well as next Monday, during lunch. They are 50 cents apiece and are being sold by student council.
Projects:
Students are finishing their posters on global warming and will present them tomorrow. I'm seeing some nice work!
8th Grade Reading:
Almost finished chapter 3 of To Kill a Mockingbird. I'm reading aloud right now, and students will start reading more independently soon. It's important to set the stage and talk about characters in the story and their function in it. We are having some nice discussions.
7th Grade Reading:
Students finished their maps of The Glade today. OH MY GOSH, those kids really know how to get creative with a project. I am impressed with what they put together, as well as the evidence they are taking from the text to complete the assignment. Tomorrow there will be a quiz (open book) on chapters 8 and 9 and we may move farther ahead in the reading afterward.
Writing:
We started diagramming sentences today. This is a tried and true method of encouraging students to recognize parts of speech, as well as determine their function in a sentence. Believe it or not, it should help with overall writing as students become more aware of subject/verb agreement through these exercises.
This Friday is the middle school dance. I encourage all students to attend. It's such a special, special night and the kids have worked hard in the classroom to earn it. Remember your permission slip, your guest's permission slip (if you're bringing one), and your $5 admission fee.
Candy grams are on sale all week, as well as next Monday, during lunch. They are 50 cents apiece and are being sold by student council.
Monday, February 2, 2015
Monday, February 2, 2015
Please remember to sign up to send something in to our dance this Friday! It's from 6-10 pm.
Also, if your child is bringing a guest to the dance, the guest MUST bring a signed copy of the same permission slip your child brings. No students will be allowed into the dance without a permission slip.
Projects:
Students are creating posters to show 9 pieces of evidence toward global warming. These will be considered products and graded accordingly, so they need to be sure they are doing their best work!
8th Grade Reading:
Today we watch the Flocabulary video and students took a quiz on the content. We will continue To Kill a Mockingbird for the rest of the week.
7th Grade Reading:
Students are busy creating a map of The Glade in The Maze Runner. I can't believe the hard work and creativity going into these. I'm impressed.
Writing:
This week we will be working on Smarter Balanced practice in writing. Students will learn how to access the site, as well as what the writing/reading prompts will look like when they take the actual test. We will also continue with sentence diagramming in order to remember parts of speech and their purpose in a sentence.
Also, if your child is bringing a guest to the dance, the guest MUST bring a signed copy of the same permission slip your child brings. No students will be allowed into the dance without a permission slip.
Projects:
Students are creating posters to show 9 pieces of evidence toward global warming. These will be considered products and graded accordingly, so they need to be sure they are doing their best work!
8th Grade Reading:
Today we watch the Flocabulary video and students took a quiz on the content. We will continue To Kill a Mockingbird for the rest of the week.
7th Grade Reading:
Students are busy creating a map of The Glade in The Maze Runner. I can't believe the hard work and creativity going into these. I'm impressed.
Writing:
This week we will be working on Smarter Balanced practice in writing. Students will learn how to access the site, as well as what the writing/reading prompts will look like when they take the actual test. We will also continue with sentence diagramming in order to remember parts of speech and their purpose in a sentence.
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