Cluster 1 Newsletter

In ELA, we have begun reading Refugee by Alan Gratz. It’s a historical fiction novel that features three different protagonists fleeing from dangerous situations. If you have background knowledge on World War 2, Cuban Refugee Crisis, or the Syrian Civil War, help your reader out.

Over the past few weeks in math class we have been working on dividing fractions. Students have used many strategies to reason about these division problems: finding common denominators, asking questions, and drawing diagrams. Our next unit will be all about decimals!

Is that mitochondria made from a potato? Teams of students have been busy researching specific cell organelles and making 3D models of them. The models were created from all sorts of materials…like potatoes, clay, bottles, cardboard, and soccer balls. Students really had to think creatively to build these complex structures. Each model has a corresponding informational sheet based on student research. We will organize these excellent products to build our Cell Museum. In this way, students will teach each other about the other organelles that work together to make a cell function. We might even cellebrate by taking a few cellfies! Next, Sixth Grade Cell Biologists will use microscopes to look at some actual organelles. To do this, students will learn how to make a wet mount slide of onion tissue. They will compare actual cell structures of plants and animals with those they see in textbooks and note the differences. Students are welcome to bring small objects from home to look at under the dissecting microscope. Ask them what they might like to bring!