6th Grade
Sixth graders are reading The Giver and Gathering Blue, companion books by Lois Lowry. We have had discussions about how to define "utopia" and "dystopia" and where the two societies in the books fit. The teachers recommend that students follow up with Messenger and Son on their own this summer. The two books finish the series. Students will create summer reading plans before the end of the school year.
7th Grade
7th grade students have been working hard on argumentative essays. They have learned about claims, counterclaims, rebuttals, and the importance of citing sources. Students are now reviewing a variety of materials in preparation for the Smarter Balanced Assessment next week. Please help your child feel confident for their assessment next week by ensuring they eat breakfast each morning and get a good night's rest!
8th Grade
Students in Mrs. Marrero’s ELA classes have just wrapped up an engaging writing unit. Throughout the unit, students explored a range of writing styles: they developed argumentative essays taking a position on the risks and benefits of genetically modified foods, conducted research on the impact of diet on adolescents for their expository writing, and tapped into their creativity by crafting narrative pieces titled “A Seed’s Journey.”
As a culminating experience, students also planted seeds, which are now beginning to grow in our classroom’s mini indoor greenhouse—bringing their learning to life in a hands-on, rewarding way.
Mr. Milton’s students spent a couple weeks reading and talking about brains, electronics and school. We brought all that new learning together in our Attention Assessment, in which we added more and more electronic distractions during a concentration activity. After evaluating all that material, we interviewed school principals and superintendents, as well as Education School professors, about their thoughts and views on the topic.
Now, we’re using all that material as refresh/review preparation for the upcoming state test.
