Week of October 31 - November 4, 2016

Here's what's happening in Language Arts and Social Studies this week -

Monday, 10/31

ELA - Students will work on their Chromebooks for Learning Menu. This is due Friday, November 4.

SS - Students continue textbook work on Chapter 12 to learn more about the Soviet Union.

***SOCIAL STUDIES TEST - THURSDAY - Pages 333-347

Tuesday, 11/1

ELA - Students will review vocabulary words added from Sadlier-Oxford's text Unit 1 (3 Activities due November 8) and practice close-reading techniques with the story "The Great Fire".

SS - Students will continue to review events from WWI and WWII and study for the test.

Wednesday, 11/2

ELA - Students will continue analyzing story from Tuesday.

SS - Students will continue reviewing important events related to WWI and WWII and will complete pg. 348 (Discussion Questions #3-8). 

Thursday, 11/3

ELA - Students will continue analyzing "The Great Fire" and work on Chromebooks for Learning Menu assignments.

SS - Test: Chapter 12 (Sec 2 - 3)

Friday, 11/4

ELA - Students will conclude analysis of story and turn in a well-developed paragraph based on discussion questions.

SS - Students will select an article from a magazine or www.newsela.com that relates to WWI or WWII and write a summary of the article.

Week of October 24 - 28, 2016

Welcome to the 2nd Nine Weeks :)

We have officially completed the first nine weeks of 6th grade! That's an important milestone that celebrates nine weeks of adjusting to middle school, grades, multiple classes, and due dates. Of course, adjusting physically and mentally are very significant parts of our journey together. Did you know that children this age need at least 10 hours of sleep each night? And that this is the fastest growing period your child will experience other than from their earliest development? I say this to help us all stay focused on the development of the whole child - making sure they are eating right, sleeping enough, and participating in physical activities in and out of school. 

Here's what's happening this week....

**Please log in with your child to Google Classroom to review assignments and resources**

Monday:
ELA: Small group spelling tests continue today; reviewing types of pronouns (subjective, objective, and possessive)
SS: We are beginning our study of World War I and will be doing quite a bit of textbook work this week. Today we will be reading about how Europe got involved in the war.
Homework: Exercise 1 (Subjective pronouns  practice) - Google Classroom

Tuesday:
ELA: Reading two poems looking for pronouns and antecedents as well as imagery. 
SS: Students will work in pairs or small groups to answer questions from the textbook about Monday's reading assignment.
Homework: Exercise 2 (Objective pronouns practice) - Google Classroom

Wednesday:
ELA: More work with pronouns and antecedents using our textbook
SS: Reading about the Soviet Union
Chromebooks for Learning Menu: Students will complete one appetizer activity.
Homework: Exercise 3 (Possessive pronouns practice) - Google Classroom

Thursday:
ELA: We will begin working with vocabulary from the Sadlier-Oxford series.
SS: Students will work in pairs or small groups to answer questions from the textbook about Wednesday's reading assignment.
Chromebooks for Learning Menu: Students will complete one entree activity.
Homework: Exercise 4 (Possessive pronouns practice) - Google Classroom

Friday:
ELA: Students will learn the definitions of their new vocabulary words as well as start to write a sentence with each word.
SS: Textbook work - Chapter 12 review
Chromebooks for Learning Menu: Students will complete one dessert activity.

Week of October 17 - 21

Welcome to the Week :)

Hello Families,

I know it has been an interesting/trying week with Hurricane Matthew visiting Savannah. I hope that all of you are safe and sound and ready for our sense of normalcy to return - I know I am :)

Just a few announcements/dates for you to consider:

•        Tuesday, Oct. 18 - PTA Meeting (I have 5:30 - 8 written down but I am hoping that is a mistake - seems like a very long meeting.) I will certainly correct the times once I learn for sure what they are.
•       Our last day to input grades is October 19. Please check PowerSchool with your child to make sure all work is submitted by Wednesday. All students received their PowerSchool log-in information a few weeks ago so you may want to check their travel folders for that information if you don't already have access.
•       Report cards will be printed and ready to be sent home on October 26. Mr. Trent and I usually like to go over the first report card during parent/teacher conferences. Once he and I have had a chance to meet, we'll send home new sign-up sheets for conferences.  

Assignments this week:

I appreciate your patience as we all strive to get back to a routine. As such, the assignments this week will be forthcoming.

In ELA:

We are working with narrative writing. Monday, 10/17, we will review the characteristics of narrative writing. One of the things I plan on doing Monday is having a round-table/informal discussion with the students about their Hurricane Matthew experience. I think it is important to talk about and share our different situations so that we can really try to empathize with our classroom communities. Following that discussion, students will be asked to write about Hurricane Matthew from different points of view as a classwork assignment. If this makes your child uncomfortable in any way, please let me know and I will provide an alternative classwork assignment.

By Wednesday/Thursday, we will return to our class story "Eleven" and write a narrative essay that will count as an assessment. 

In SS:

We will review the different kinds of governments in Europe and prepare for a test Thursday.

Reminders:

European Country brochures were due September 19 and were graded on the 26th. However, there are many students that did not turn them in at all. This is counted as an assessment and will result in a grade of 0 if not completed and turned in by Wednesday, Oct. 19.

Other Assignments:

SS - Worksheet: Who Rules? Due Sept. 21

       Comparison Chart #1: Comparing Russia, Germany, and the U.K. in climate, natural resources, location, and population density.

        Comparison Chart #2: Comparing Russia, Germany, and the U.K. in imports and exports. 

ELA - 

I am working with students on their individual spelling and vocabulary needs and will putting them in groups this week. I will give them assignment choices to accompany their word lists. They should expect a test Thursday or Friday. This may change depending on how far the students get in completing their assignment choices.

And, finally, if you haven't had a chance to log in to your child's Google Classroom account, I hope that you will take an opportunity to do so soon. Explore the Chromebooks for Learning Menu and provide feedback - it is something new we are doing and I hope to get the students involved in creating their own Learning Menus in the future.

Again, I hope you are all safe and sound. Flexibility is our focus this week as we work to get back to normal. Thank you.

Announcements for the week of October 3

Parent Conferences:

Parent conferences will begin Thursday this week. If you have not signed up for a slot, one has been set aside for you. Please check your child's planner for more information about your scheduled time. If you are unable to come at your scheduled time, please let us know at your earliest convenience. Thank you.

 Swim Team:

Middle school students  who are interested in joining the district's swim team must attend a mandatory meeting Monday, October 3, at 5:30 at Savannah Arts Academy. Please see Ms. Christy if you have any questions. 

Band Concert: 

Our 6th - 8th Grade Band Students will perform their Fall Concert Thursday, October 6 at 6:30 in the Multi-Purpose Room.  All are invited to attend!

Opportunity School District Information:

Also Thursday night, local PTAs are sponsoring an informational meeting on the proposed amendment concerning the Opportunity School District which will be on the November ballot.  The meeting will be held at the JEA at 6:30.

Week of October 3 - 7, 2016

Happy Fall to All :)

Here's what's happening in class this week:

Monday, 10/3 **European Country Brochures Due**

ELA: Read aloud of "Eleven" by Cisneros
SS: Comparing location, climate, and natural resources of Germany, Russia, and the U.K.
Homework: Complete one "appetizer" from Chromebooks for Learning Menu (Google Classroom)

Tuesday, 10/4

ELA: Paired reading of "Eleven"
SS: Identify major exports of  Germany, Russia, and the U.K.
Homework: Complete one "entree" from Chromebooks for Learning Menu (Google Classroom)

Wednesday, 10/5 **END OF FIRST NINE WEEKS**

ELA: Independent reading of "Eleven" and rewriting specific scene of story
SS: Compare and contrast parliamentary and presidential democracies
Homework: Complete one "dessert" from Chromebooks for Learning Menu (Google Classroom)  AND study for European Governments Test

Thursday, 10/6

ELA: Students complete final draft of rewriting scene
SS: TEST - European Governments
Homework: Complete Chromebooks for Learning Menu (Google Classroom)

Friday, 10/7

ELA: Final draft due of Mrs. Price's Point of View in "Eleven". Students discuss how the story would be different if it were written in the 3rd person limited point of view and complete writing assignment in class.
SS: Students will compare economic systems (traditional, command, and market)
Homework: Any work not completed in class