Unified Arts

We wrapped up conflict resolution and have begun our Tiger Pride unit where students learn exactly what having Tiger Pride means. They are taking what they learn in health class and demonstrating this in gym class by learning how to be responsible using different types of equipment like scooters and jump ropes. They are doing a fantastic job taking care of the equipment, picking up the equipment at the end of class, and having fun while doing it. They are quickly learning that when you take care of your environment, your environment quickly becomes a positive place to be!

Students have been learning about the harmful effects of nicotine, e-cigarettes, and the power of addiction through the program Catch My Breath. The ultimate goal is for them to gain enough knowledge and confidence to assertively say “No” if ever offered something that would be harmful to them. They have been doing a fantastic job with class discussion and asking important questions.

Students are continuing to learn new equations and concepts on calculating statistics. Recently, the players they had to calculate the stats for were chosen by a spin of a wheel. This gave them an opportunity to explore players and parts of the game they may not have experienced before.

Last week we wrapped up the Stock Market Game and had two teams place in the top 20% for our region! We have moved on from discussing smart shopping to investigating different payment methods and the pros and cons of each. We are hoping to discuss taxes and W-4’s before break. Did you know students can apply for a work permit in the state of Maine when they turn 14? We ensure that they know how to do this and also how to claim EXEMPT on their W-4 so taxes are not deducted.

In Mrs. Hatt’s 6th grade social studies we have been learning about Hammurabi's code. The students are learning about early civilizations and where things, such as the alphabet, originated. We will be learning about the Egyptian empire in our next unit. We are continuing to work on note taking, vocabulary and map skills in the new year.

In reading intervention, our students are continuing to work on vocabulary, fluency, spelling and comprehension. Our class enjoys playing word-based games like Up Words, Scrabble Jr. and Scattergories. If you have the opportunity to play with your student over break, you will be impressed with their skills. Please have your student read as often as possible and complete their reading log over vacation and return it to school after break. I encourage your student to read to younger family members, friends, neighbors or a pet. Have a wonderful break!

In our Exploring our World Class we are working on perseverance as we build designs for our “Egg Drop” competition. Students have been given limited materials and constraints with the engineering task of creating a design that will protect the egg when it is dropped! Some students have come up with some really wonderful ideas and we are excited to test our designs before winter break!

The end of our clay unit means a celebration for each grade level! 5th graders planted their chia pets which have all successfully sprouted and been sent home to flourish. 6th graders are wrapping up our World History of Clay with a popcorn party using their finished coil vessels. 7th graders celebrated their functional sgraffito mugs with hot chocolate! Next up, Pop Art Papier Mache!

The students have been very creative sewing many things from pillows to teddy bears. They made winter items like snowmen and trees out of toilet paper rolls. They also made containers to hold eggs and we did an egg drop to see what eggs survived.