6th Grade Language Arts: Talk Show Presentations

The Outsiders

Counting By 7s

Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life

The Outsiders

Finishing Unit 4

This week in math we are finishing unit four on rational numbers uses and operations.  This week we have been working on converting fractions to decimals to percents and creating circle graphs by using the percent of a number.  Tomorrow we will complete the unit by continuing to work on finding the percent of a number.  We will then have our unit four test on Thursday.

Have a enjoyable and relaxing two week break and safe travels for those going out of town.

Week 16: 6th Grade Science

Week: 16

We are completed our unit on the Features of Life and Homeostasis.  When we return we will begin working with the microscope and discovering parts of the cell.

Have a happy and safe holiday.

Topic:  The Microscope

Objectives: 

Identify parts of the microscope

How to find magnification

Describe field of view

What is a compound microscope?

Be able to use a microscope

Make a wet mount slide

Essential Question:

How does magnification work?  

This week the kids will start this unit by understanding the parts of a microscope, how magnification is calculated, how the specimen move under magnification, and understand what  the “field of view” is. 

Key Terms:

magnification

compound microscope

field of view

Differentiation:

Observing

Inferring 

Building

Math integration

Upcoming:

Taking a look at the Skeletal System

Hour of Code

The middle school students participated in Hour of Code today using TinkerBox HD a physics-based building environment. What does that mean? It means it is a virtual environment with objects that operate and interact as they do in the real world, with gravity, simple machines, and based on scientific concepts. Students built upon their experiences with code from Hour of Code in previous years and moved into a visual learning environment. They had the opportunity to practice with puzzles and create their own Rube Goldberg machines.
Throughout the experience today, students were asked to problem solve, think through situations sequentially, and examine cause and effect behaviors. They interacted with one another offering support and creative solutions. The TinkerBox HD app is on your child's iPad. Ask them to show you how it works.
For further information and coding opportunities, the code.org site is a wonderful free resource with coding and app creation opportunities for children. I would also encourage you to check out Scratch Jr. (works well as an iPad app) and Scratch for more advanced coding experiences. Scratch offers a platform for students to write code and create a game that can be shared with others in a safe online setting. Your child might also be interested in experimenting with a Makey Makey (If I explain it, I won't do it justice). Take a look at this wonderful device that makes it possible to turn bananas into a keyboard. You might also look into the Tynker app. This app provides coding and problem solving challenges for all ages and levels. Coding is the perfect opportunity for kids to utilize their problem solving and spatial reasoning skills over the winter break.
A special thank you to Ted Grunebaum, Heidi McDermott, Margaret Steele, Vince Menees, Julie DePrey, David Tipton (dad to William in kindergarten), and Mike Check (dad to Josie in 1st and Braeden in 3rd). They each enjoyed facilitating the experience for the kids.

Pickleball Tournament

Congratulations to the Purple Dogs (Collin and Lily) for defeating the Golden Falcons (Ellana and Wyatt) in the Championship round of our 6th grade Pickleball tournament! The Purple Dogs will now get the chance to win a free Slim's lunch if they can beat Mr. Hotaling and Mr. Hirsch!

Week 15: 6th Grade Science

Week: 15

Topic:  Anatomy: Body Organization and Homeostasis

Objectives: 

Identify the levels of organization in the body.

Understand the “Hierarchy of Life.”

Be able to use a microscope.

Define homeostasis.

Essential Question:

How is a book organized?  

This week the kids will start this unit by understanding the parts of a microscope, how magnification is calculated, how the specimen moves under magnification, and understand what the “Field of View” is.  Then they will look at parts of the cell and research their functions.  

Key Terms:

cell

tissue

organ

homeostasis

stress

Differentiation:

Observing

Inferring 

Making Models

Math integration

Upcoming:

Next week we will conclude the unit by looking at how the body is organized.

Fractions/Decimals/Percents

This week in 6th grade we are continuing to work on our unit on rational numbers uses and operations.  Last week we focused on adding and subtracting fractions and mixed numbers and this week we are focusing on multiplying fractions and mixed numbers.  We are finishing the week with reviewing how to convert between fractions, decimals, and percents.

Upcoming assignments:

Unit 4 test on Thursday Dec. 17

Religion Websites

Thank you all for coming out to project fair last night!  The students were so excited to share their knowledge and skills with you last night.  If you want to take a closer look at any of their websites, here are the links:

Islam - Lia, Lorenzo, Katey

Christianity- Brecken, Jonathan, Ethan G.

Judaism- Toby, Aino, Collin

Hinduism- Ellana, Wyatt, Ethan B.

Buddhism- Marcus, Lily, Mai-Linh

Rain Sticks

The 6th graders are making rain sticks in art. Mary Johnson saves all the empty, thick cardboard laminator rolls for me and they make perfect forms for rain sticks. Two weeks ago we slipped out to the garage where we pounded many hundreds of nails for a good hour in the sides of the tubes (thanks for the hammers). Last year we did the hammering in the classroom and I think the noise really disturbed the 5th graders, so the garage was the perfect place. Then last week we poured about a half a cup of un-popped pop corn into the tubes, sealed the ends and gave them a layer of paper maché. This week we will paint them to look beautiful.  I hope Mr. Saltz can incorporate a rain stick number into music class because they sound lovely. Here we are in the garage and here are the sticks waiting to be painted.

Fractions

This week in 6th grade math we have been working with fractions.  We started out the week reviewing how to simplify fractions and how to order and compare fractions.  For the rest of the week we will be reviewing how to add and subtract fractions and mixed numbers.

Week 14: 6th Grade Science

Week: 14

Topic:  Electricity:  Electrical Safety

Objectives: 

Explain what Ohm’s Law is.  

What measures help protect people from electrical shocks and short circuits.

Essential Question:

What is the path of least resistance?  

This week the kids will work with voltmeters and ammeters apply Ohm’s Law.  We will discuss, What is a short circuit? and What does it mean to be grounded?

Key Terms:

short circuit

grounded

third prong

fuse

circuit breaker

Differentiation:

Hypothesize

Observing

Upcoming:

The Anatomy

6th Grade Language Arts: December Projects

Sixth graders started writing book reviews this week.  During the review writing process, our focus will be on crafting attention grabbing introductions, providing an interesting portrait of the novel’s story, developing opinions, and giving explanations that show strong analysis and conclusions.  Additionally, students will do research about the author or other interesting details to provide insight beyond the story.  Lastly, students will include their own recommendation for the novel.  

Students will draft their writing during class time this week and submit their first draft for teacher feedback through Schoology next week.  A plan for improvement for the final draft stage will be discussed during workshop conferencing.  Students will have opportunities during class to share their reviews with classmates inside and outside their book club groups.

They will also start working on their group project this week.  Students will write a script and hold a talk show based on the novel they read for the book club as their final assessment.  The topic of the talk show will stem from the important issues that are addressed in the novel.  They are expected to have a talk show that causes the audience to think about those issues.  Students will do this by incorporating quotes from characters in the novel.  

Sixth graders will also be making inferences about the characters’ feelings that were stated or implied in the story.  Additionally, they will predict what might have happened to the characters beyond the ending that was provided in the novel.  One student will take on the role as the host or hostess of the show.  The other group members will be different characters from the novel.  Groups will plan, write, and rehearse the script prior to the presentation day. 

Upcoming Due Dates:

Book Review First Draft Due: Tuesday, December 8, 2015

Book Review Final Draft Due: Monday, December 14, 2015

Book Club Talk Show Presentation: Tuesday, December 15, 2015

Project Fair

After many weeks of hard work, the 6th graders will finally be showing off their hard work this Thursday at Project Fair.  Join us in the NPES library this Thursday, December 3 to see and hear about what the students have created.  For those of you who have attended Project Fair before, expect this time to be a little different.  Students will give brief presentations about the process of their project from 6:30-7:00.  They will tell you about the inquiry and research process, the teamwork aspect of the project, and about how they gained digital skills that they can use for future projects and beyond.  At 7:00, students will be at stations where you can go look at their websites to learn about their assigned religions, watch videos, and ask questions.  If it is easy for you to look at the websites on your own device, feel free to bring them along.  Students will have a few ipads for you to use as well. QR codes will be available for you to easily access the websites that the 6th graders have designed. The sixth graders are looking forward to sharing their new knowledge and skills with you on Thursday.  See you there!