Here is where we will post important information and what is happening in our 6th grade classrooms.  The posts will be updated on Fridays.

WEEK 15 - 12/01-12/05/2025

Dear Grade 6 Families,

Lot's to share with you this week!

This email includes information about: 

• The end of Term 1

• Year Book

• Technology Update from Mrs. Warren

• Winter Sing-A-Long

• Greek Mythology Presentations

• Weekly Updates from classes

We hope you had a wonderful long weekend and could enjoy some family time. On Wednesday last week, we had Steam activity day and watched The Lightning Thief movie since the students are done reading the novel. 

As a reminder, grades closed for the first term today. Can you believe 1/3 of the year is already over? Report cards will be released on Friday, 12/12. Please be sure to reach out to Mrs. Rigo (jrigo@abschools.org) in the office if you don't know your login credentials for PowerSchool as our report cards are electronic and will not be sent home with your child. The pink assignment cards came home today, please and return on Monday; this is the last one for term 1. 

Please read this announcement from the yearbook committee. They are already hard at work creating a wonderful memory of the Gates years for your child:

Dear 6th Grade Families, 

A yearbook is something your children will cherish for years to come as a great way to remember their peers and time at Gates. At the end of the school year each 6th grader receives a yearbook and has their own page section. At this point in time, we are asking all 6th grade families to submit photos of your children to be included in the yearbook. 

Please make this a priority for your child as we want to make sure we include everyone. We need submissions by the end of January (January 31st, 2026).

Your child will appreciate seeing their picture(s) in the yearbook!

Please send four high-resolution photographs of your 6th grader to Gates6thGradeYearbook2026@gmail.com. Make sure to include your child's name in the email so we know whose pictures they are.

1. A baby picture

2. A 6th grade portrait of your child - any picture you take or digital school pictures work 

3. A casual picture of your child (elementary school age)

4. A Kindergarten portrait of your child - any picture you take or digital school pictures work 

5. Classroom Activities at Gates over the years (Dino Dig, Fun Run, Field Trips, 1st Grade Play, etc.) or group class photos from K to 6th grade. 

Please note, we are not allowed to publish photos of students that do NOT attend Gates so please be sure to provide photos of only your child and Gates students, teachers and staff.

Please ensure that the image adheres to the following specifications:

•  High resolution (Original pictures are best)

•  Portrait orientation (for the portrait)

•  Clear and well-lit

•  JPEG format only

•  Scanned photos or digital photos will work best - please do not take a picture of a picture 

Please let us know if you have any questions or need assistance with getting these pictures to us.

Go Panthers!

Thank you for all your help, 

6th Grade Yearbook Committee

Michelle Rooney

Mollie Kaufman

Ashleigh Klingemann

Lopamudra Sen

Soula Stratakias

  Please read the following email about the use of technology sent by Mrs. Warren: 

As our 6th graders continue to use technology more independently, we want to ensure they are doing so safely, responsibly, and in ways that reflect our school values. We have noticed some recent instances of students not following our technology expectations, and this feels like an appropriate time to revisit these guidelines with all students and families. These expectations are also being reviewed at school to support consistent understanding and responsible use.

Please review these key expectations with your student:

• Passwords must remain confidential. Students should never share their login information with classmates or friends and should always log out when finished using a device.

• Impersonating someone else online is serious. Using another student’s account or sending messages under someone else’s name violates school policy and can lead to misunderstandings or harm.

• Online research and browsing must be appropriate. Students are expected to access only content suitable for school and aligned with academic work.

• Technology is a privilege, not a right. Access to ABSchools technology may be limited or removed if expectations are not followed.

• Reinforce that online behavior should always show respect, kindness, and inclusivity, Gates core values.

Thank you for your support in helping your child use technology responsibly and in ways that support learning. Students have been discussing digital literacy and safety with the librarian, Ms. DeGeorge as well and it would be great to deepen that conversation at home so you can add your expectations and requirements for the use of technology.

As a reminder, the annual Gates Sing Along is scheduled on the last day before Winter break, Tuesday, December 23 from 9:45 -10:30am. Following the sing-along the 6th graders will be presenting their Greek Mythology projects. Please plan to join us in the Boardwalk STEAM Lab and the Learning Commons from 10:45 - 11:30 for these presentations. It is a half day and sign-out sheets will be available in the office for those families that choose to dismiss their child early after the presentations. To avoid traffic, please park in the Elm Street parking lot and walk across the boardwalk. 

In math, students have been working diligently on modeling fraction division. This is an extremely difficult concept for students to understand and we have had 9 lessons just working on this one concept. Earlier in the week, we moved from modeling to the algorithm of fraction division. There is a unit quiz on Tuesday 12/19 where students will be using both modeling and the algorithm to answer fraction problems as well as word problems. To help prepare for that quiz we are working on a variety of practice problems on paper and using Khan and zearn.org exercises. 

In ELA, students finished reading Rick Riordan's The Lightning Thief. In addition, they have been using their god/goddess research this week to create a new demi-god. They have also used scene analysis to plan their rewrite of an exciting scene which will include this new character they developed. The scene rewrite and process they used will be showcased in the end of unit (and end of module) culminating presentation for The Lightning Thief. Students will be presenting their slides and narratives after the Gates Winter Singalong on 12/23. The showcase will take place from 10:45 - 11:30 in the Learning Commons and the Boardwalk STEAM Lab.  After, winter break we will being our next book, The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind. 

In social studies, we started the second unit focusing on the Middle East and North America (MENA) region. Before we will start the exploration on Mesopotamia next week, we have been discussing how geography affects complex societies and reviewed geography skills using the MENA region. Along with classwork, students also completed another daily geography skill sheet that requires them to use the atlas to find responses to questions. At the end of the week we looked at the water scarcity issue that affects people in the MENA region and the important question of who has the right to the precious fresh water - the people who live upstream or downstream? This work will continue into next week.

In science, we are wrapping up our wave unit this week ending with some fun activities using Morse Code. Students created Morse Code "trees" as a way to help us code/decode messages and think about the question: Can waves be used to transfer information. We made light "telegraphs" and have been using that to send and decode messages with peers. On Friday we put the A in STEAM and are using what we learned about morse code to create an art piece of our choice - writing kindness messages, creating morse code jewelry, and other projects that let us showcase our creativity! You can see some of our work here. Please note: Alot of students are bringing home their light telegraphs today. These are paper circuits that include a coin cell battery. If you have a tiny human at home, please help your 6th grade remember to keep these away from them as they can be a choking hazard. 

Happy weekend,

Mrs. Conley and Ms. Tosches

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WEEK #13 11/17 - 11/21

Hello Grade 6 Families,

This week we met with our book buddies and created turkeys in disguises in Mrs. Conley's class and Ms. Tosches' class we created grateful turkeys after hearing a read aloud from one of our students. With the holidays upon us, please let us and the office know of your traveling plans. As we are planning lessons and preparing some fun activities, it is helpful to know, who will be present.  

Can you believe 1/3 of the year is almost over? Term 1 ends on Friday, 12/5 and report cards will be released on Friday, 12/12. Please be sure to reach out to Mrs. Rigo (jrigo@abschools.org) in the office if you don't know your login credentials for PowerSchool as our report cards are electronic and will not be sent home with your child. They will be available to view for only a couple of weeks, so if you want a hard copy, please print it. 

We are noticing that students are coming to class unprepared. They are missing many materials, their books are not in new condition, they drop their chrome books (quite often actually) and they do not have their earphones. We gave each student all of the materials they would need for the year, and have expected them to interact with them in a respectful manner. It is actually one of our work habits on the report card (respects the rights and property of others, including school materials.) In addition, there has been a marked rise in the kindergarten like behaviors - kids poking each other with school materials, "stealing" pencils and papers, teasing, etc. We are requesting your help in discussing this with your child (we have done this a lot.) Students will not get new materials other than paper; this includes not getting pencils as students received 24 at the start of the year. If you have a financial difficulty and cannot provide materials or earphones for your child, please reach out and we will make a school-year loan that will come with a contract between the school, the student and the family.

In our classes, we’ve been using ideas from Zaretta Hammond's book Culturally Responsive Teaching and the Brain to help students move from dependent learners—who rely heavily on adults to direct their thinking—to independent learners, who can plan, monitor, and reflect on their own work. This means we’re giving students more chances to take ownership, try strategies on their own, and build confidence in their problem-solving skills. What we hope you'll also notice is your child taking more initiative, asking different kinds of questions, or talking about the steps they used to figure something out. All of this is part of helping them grow as independent, empowered learners.

Here are our success criteria for being an Independent Learner: 

• Answer "right there questions" by themselves (these are questions that can easily be answered by reading the board, looking at resources, or reading directions. We get A LOT of these questions)

• Start and continue tasks without prompting 

• Use available resources

• Pause. Think. Try before asking for help

• Check in with peers after trying

• Use strategies I have learned to problem solve 

In math, students continued Unit 4 which is all about dividing fractions. There is quite a bit of modeling using pattern blocks, fraction strips and tape diagrams. Students are also reviewing inverse operations by writing both multiplication and division sentences for each problem along with the two ways to look at division as "How many are there?" and "How many in each group?" This work will continue after Thanksgiving. 

In ELA, we wrapped up our first essay and Unit 2 of the Greek Mythology Module. In our essays we compared similiarities and differences between a chapter in The Lightning Thief and the same scene in the Percy Jackson movie. It was really fun to see the differences between the two mediums and to think about why the director would have made these choices. We worked hard writing these essays using the SRSD model for writing informational texts. This is a very structured way to teaching students to write a response to a prompt that includes evidence and explanations, as well as an introduction and conclusion. We worked on responding to feedback from the teacher and our peers, and "redesigned" our "prototypes" as needed. That's right, we are working the Design Thinking process into our writing! We also launched unit 3 of this module on Thursday. In this unit, we work on our culminating task of researching Greek God, or another god of our choice, and creating a new character in the book based on the traits and powers of the god. We will then create a presentation and write a narrative that incorporates our character right into the story! 

In social studies, students are involved in a research project with a partner about "Who had a better life: Foragers or Farmers?" They developed their own research questions and used resources to collect evidence. We also connected the work to the UN's Sustainable Development Goals discussing what we can learn from foragers and farmers on how we can live sustainably in regard to good health and well-being, clean water and sanitation, reduced inequalities, responsible production and consumption, and life on land. At the end of the week students used their researched evidence to start writing their CER on who they feel had a better life. This will will continue into next week along with the Early Humans Unit Assessment.  

In science, we completed our first official assessment on light and sound waves. We answered selected response (aka multiple choice) questions and open response questions. We did really well, overall! On Thursdays we had a BLAST exploring some analog items that Ms. Tosches brought in - an 8mm projector, a A-track, cassette tapes, records and 45s, reel-to-reel, tapes, an original Polaroid camera, plus a few other things! We also did a matching activity to connect an analog version of an every-day item to the digital version. Somethings we didn't know too much about: road atlases, voltage meters, how a rotary phone works, VHS tapes, and encyclopedias!   We are starting to learn about analog and digital signals and trying to answer the question: Can waves transfer information? 

Happy weekend,

Mrs. Conley and Ms. Tosches

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WEEK #12 11/12 - 11/14

Hello Grade 6 Families,

On our short week, the weather has changed greatly and we want to remind you, that students go out to recess every day. Please have them bring warm clothing - layers may be best as it has been so fickle with one day warm and the next with an icy wind. We also noticed a lot of coughing, sneezing and nose blowing with the onset of this colder weather. Donations of tissues and desk wipes would be greatly appreciated! Thank you so much. Also, our 6th graders are growing and many are taking advantage of the free breakfast that is offered. Their growing bodies need a lot of fuel to make it through the long academic morning. We have several students asking for extra snacks each day. Could you please talk to your child to discuss if they need an additional nutritious snack to what they are currently bringing from home. We are also accepting extra snacks to have as backups in our classrooms just in case. Thank you for helping feed the sixth graders' bodies and brains!

Reminder: Next Friday, 11/21 is "Decades Day" - students are allowed to dress up in attire from a decade of their choice...if they chose to! 

On Wednesday we had an All School Assembly with 5th grade reading the book Gratitude Jar and presenting their own jars. What a lovely idea for the upcoming holiday.

In math, students wrapped up the week with some housekeeping. They cleared the math section of their binder by handing in specific pages for the binder check and took the rest of the pages home. They set up the binder for units 4 and 5 which focus on operations with fractions and decimals. They wrote index cards for the key terms for the units and completed two lessons in the new textbook reviewing how to interpret division problems. 

In ELA, we planned for our Compare/Contrast essay this week. This including organizing our evidence and explanations, creating introduction and transition sentences. Next week will type up our essays, share peer feedback and revise our work. We are comparing this to the design-thinking process and considering our first draft of the essay as a "prototype" that we can expect to change after we evaluate it! 

In social studies, students used their knowledge of early complex societies to work with their group to create a poster project showing these four characteristics: agriculture, population in specific area, specialization, social levels. They used icons to show the distribution and placement of each on the map and then presented the poster to the classmates. Next week, the sixth graders will conduct a cumulative research project with a partner 

In science, we prepared for our first assessment next Tuesday! Students will have a quiz on light and sound waves. They each have a study guide, we practices different questions today by playing team jeopardy, and we will also be reviewing in class on Monday. The next part of our unit will be focused on analog and digital signals. 

If anyone has any of the following items, could I borrow them?! 

• Rotary phone, a-track tapes, cassette tapes, wall phone, walkman... these items will be used in conversations about analog and digital! If you send anything in, PLEASE LABEL IT!!! 

Enjoy the weekend,

Mrs. Conley and Ms. Tosches

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WEEK #11 - 11/4 - 11/8

Dear Grade 6 Families,

On Wednesday, we concluded our fall conferences. It was wonderful to meet you and great to hear your perspective on how your children are settling into their 6th grade year. Please keep in touch and let us know if there are any developments we need to be aware of as your child continues their journey through their last year at Gates.

In case you missed it, earlier this week we connected with students about expectations for how we treat each other and we had an important discussion about thinking before we speak and body positivity. The goal was to help students understand how comments about someone’s appearance can affect others and to encourage kindness, empathy, and respect in our classroom community. We talked about how everyone notices differences, but the way we talk about those differences matters. Even comments meant as a joke can hurt someone’s feelings or make them feel excluded. Students learned that body positivity means accepting and respecting all bodies—every shape, size, and ability—and recognizing that there isn’t one “right” way to look. We value our partnership with families and encourage you to continue this conversation at home. Please reach out to us if you have any questions about this. 

As a reminder, next week there will be no school on Monday, November 10 and Tuesday, November 11 Veterans Day.

During this week we accomplished a lot:

In ELA, started drafting our compare and contrast essay, comparing chapter 16 of Rick Riordan's The Lightning Thief  and the corresponding Lotus Casino scene in the movie with the same title. We've been identifying evidence from both the book and movie to prove similarities and differences, we've analyzed a model essay so we understand the expected structure, and we've written focus statements and hooks for our introduction! We'll wrap up the week with one of the hardest parts of writing - explaining your evidence and the impact that it has on the reader/viewer. Overall, it's been a great week in ELA with lots of discussion and collaboration. 

In social studies, students digitally sorted statements describing either the Paleolithic or Neolithic lifestyle. After a class discussion, they wrote a response to how Neolithic life changed - with the onset of domestication - from the earlier nomadic lifestyle of the Paleolithic era. We returned to the question of important turning points in history and decided that making fire and larger brains were the most important turning points during the Paleolithic era and domestication of animals and plants helped start agriculture which is the most important turning point of the Neolithic time period. This led us to the development of early complex societies. Students read about four characteristics all early complex societies have: food surplus from agriculture, populations in distinct area, social classes, and specialized jobs. We created a flow diagram to show the connections between the 4 characteristics and students used that to write a summary paragraph. At the end of the week we looked at complex river societies and students started on their cluster 3 project to show their understanding. This work will continue into next week. 

In science, we've been running simulations to test sound waves. Specifically, we've tested how pitch and volume affect a wave. We used a virtual oscilloscope to measure the volume of different sounds and how the amplitude is affected when you adjust the volume up and down. We've also been practicing "If...then..." statements to synthesize our findings. 

Ask us to complete this statement about how volume affects a wave: If the ___(variable: what is changed)___ is _________, then ________________ is ___________.

We should also be able to do the same with pitch!

Next week we will start to learn about how mechanical waves travel through different mediums. 

In math, students finished work on percent as well as ratio and rate work. We circled back to double number lines and tape diagrams as students are solidifying several approaches to showing ratio and proportional thinking. With Unit 3 wrapped up, students had several opportunities to review with Khan videos and exercises, practice sheets and a review packet. They took their Unit 2&3 Ratio, Rates and Percentage assessment on Friday. This assessment will come home next week for your review and signature. 

Enjoy the long weekend.

Mrs. Conley and Ms. Tosches

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WEEK #10 Week of 10/27 - 10/31

Dear Grade 6 Families,

It has been wonderful to see our second group of families this week for conferences. We appreciate your support and feedback. Please feel free to reach out any time to touch base with us about your child's progress. If you have not had an opportunity to sign up for your fall conference, please follow the link below to schedule a 15 minute conference with your child's homeroom teacher on November 5, which is the the last fall conference day.

Conference Sign-up Link Ms. Tosches

Conference Sign-up Link Mrs. Conley

We had a beautiful, yet brisk day for the Fun Run, Walk, and Roll and were thrilled to see so many families cheering on the Gates students. The sixth graders completed more than their suggested laps putting in their best effort. It was wonderful to see how proud they were of their accomplishment. We heard many of them talking about their "last" fun run, indicating that they are already thinking about the transition to the junior high school.

This week we could feel the anticipation of the students for Halloween and upcoming holidays. We enjoyed a comfy cozy day with some special activities today. 

November is always a month peppered with days off which is helpful when adjusting to the time change happening this weekend. Looking ahead, there is no school on November 10 and 11 as well as the Thanksgiving break from November 27-28. As families plan to travel more over the holidays, please let us know the dates your child will be absent. As per district, your child will receive the work they missed upon their return to school. We expect the missed assessments and assignments to be completed within a reasonable time frame that will be determined with your child. Any assignments we post in google classroom are available for your child to complete even when absent. 

We had another busy week, studying the following:

• In math, we continued working on percentages, looking at several ways of diagramming them, from double number lines, to tape diagrams, to grids and tables. Students used fractional understanding to connect to what the whole and the part of a problem is. They solved word problems finding either the percentage, the missing part or the whole of a number. We will finish up this unit next week and then start with the review for the unit test at the end of the week.  In Flex, students continued to practice more percentage problems using Khan, a card fraction war game, and percentage worksheet.

• In ELA, we have been finding text evidence to support a theme in a variety of texts. This includes excerpts from The LIghtning Thief as well as reading the myths "Theseus and the Minotaur", "Cronus" and "Medusa." We've also been practicing writign summaries. Some recent work is coming home to students today - the work can stay at home and does not need to be signed. 

• In social studies, we explored where in the world domestication of animal and plants started. Students placed icons of animals and plants on digital maps to show the regions where they originated. They made the claim that agriculture started in several areas during the same time period and started to spread from whose centers. They used the evidence from the maps and the timeline to prove their claim. We then turned our attention to comparing the lives of Paleolithic and Neolithic people through a statement sort which led to the table groups determining the most important turning point for each era. Next week, we will explore the beginning of complex societies and the characteristics that are present in each. This will build the basis for their end of unit assessment. 

• In science, we are still collecting evidence to answer the question "Do waves carry energy?" To make some real-world connections, we learned about Hurricane Melissa - how hurricanes form, how wind forms, and how wind creates waves. We also collecting evidence about sound waves and have been exploring different simulations to see how pitch impacts wavelength using the Google Chrome Music Lab. 

Have a wonderful weekend.

Mrs. Conley and Ms. Tosches

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WEEK #9 Week of 10/21-10/24

Hello Grade 6 Families,

We would like to welcome Jennie to Gates. She joined Mrs. Conley's class this week and was greeted with a warm welcome from the 6th graders. 

It has been wonderful to see our first group of families this week for conferences. We appreciate your support. Please feel free to reach out any time to touch base with us about your child's progress. If you have not had an opportunity to sign up for your fall conference, please follow the link below to schedule a 15 minute conference with your child's homeroom teacher. 

Conference Sign-up Link Ms. Tosches

Conference Sign-up Link Mrs. Conley

On Tuesday, we had our second fire drill of the year - the students did an excellent job walking to our station quietly and listening to directions. This upcoming Wednesday, October 29th the weather will hopefully cooperate for us to hold the Gates Fun Run, Stroll and Roll event.  On Friday, October 31, there will be a school-wide Comfy Clothing Day in lieu of Halloween celebrations. Looking ahead, there will be no school for students on November 10th and 11th for Professional Day and Veteran's Day. 

We had another busy week, studying the following:

• In math, we continued work on unit rates with speed and pace problems. Students used a new way to show work horizontally in our ratio tables by finding the constant of proportionality. We also continued our work around better buys and wrote our first CER in math. Students practiced writing their own CER response to "which is the better deal?" problems. During math flex, the 6th graders practiced ratios and rates with Khan Academy exercises, textbook practices, and additional worksheets. Next week, we will dive into percentages, looking at several ways of diagramming them, from double number lines, to tape diagrams, to grids.

• In ELA, students have been practicing identify the theme vs. main idea of a text. We have done some collaborative work at the standing vertical whiteboards for this (building thinking classrooms) to have our peers supporting our thinking, bounce ideas off of each other, and engage in meaningful group discussions. We also read the myth "Theseus and the Minotaur." We identified the theme of this myth and evidence from the text that supported our answers. We then used this myth to learn about writing our first summary in 6th grade! As us about what is needed to write an effective summary! 

• In social studies, students took a mid unit assessment on the Paleolithic Era early in the week. Their work will come home next week for your review and signature. We then started to look at the transition from the Old Stone Age to the Neolithic time period by discussing domestication of plants and animals and the start of permanent settlements. Students engaged with charts, maps, videos and text to deepen their understanding. At the end of the week, they explored the invention of metallurgy. With a partner they documented how metal tools affected early humans as they started to settle down and begin farming. Next week, we will continue to learn about the Agricultural Revolution and what led to early complex societies. 

• In science, we have been collecting evidence to answer the question: Do waves carry energy? We created a "candy wave generator" with small group and then connected them together as a class! We watched as the energy traveled from one end to another. Later in the week we used an online PHET Simulation from the University of Colorado called "Waves on a String." We ran tests to see whether or not the wavelength of a wave would change if we adjusted the amplitude and then the frequency. If you want us to show you what this looks like and how to use the simulation, click this link! We should be able to tell you that amplitude did not change the wavelength, but that frequency did! We will continue to explore the concepts of waves for the next few weeks!

Have a wonderful weekend.

Mrs. Conley & Ms. Tosches

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WEEK #8 Week of 10/13-10/17

Hello Grade 6 Families,

If you have not had an opportunity to sign up for your fall conference, please follow the link below to schedule a 15 minute conference with your child's homeroom teacher. 

Conference Sign-up Link Ms. Tosches

Conference Sign-up Link Mrs. Conley

We had a successful picture day on Tuesday. For the secod year in a row, we even took a photo with the whole 6th grade. We were told it will be a spread in the yearbook. 

The student portrait packages will be mailed to the school within 3-5 weeks. If families have any questions about portraits, payments, or ordering, please direct them to the CoffeePond Customer Care Department.
Lifeguards@coffeepond.com
508-907-6633 ext. 0

Lastly, please note that Retake Day is scheduled for Tuesday, November 25th.

We are now in full school mode. Unfortunately, we are still working on following directions and keeping up with the established expectations and speed; we are hearing this message from all of the teachers the students have, including specialists and lunch assistants. The lack of direction following and ability to get settled into work is causing the loss of work time, time on projects in special, and even recess as they are waiting to go out until students are quietly lined up. 

If your child misses any days, please have them contact the teachers to arrange for make-up of their missed assignments once they return to school. If they feel well enough to work from home, most assignments are posted in google classroom, so they can stay informed about what is happening in the different subjects. We also encourage students to communicate with us per email or to reach out to a reliable classmate if they have questions. 

• In ELA, students prepared for the first "text based discussion" which they will have next week as part of their end of unit assessment. This involved students identifying challenges that the main character, Percy, faces in the text (Chp 1-12). The goal was to identify the challenge, explain how Percy responded to the challenge and what his response says about his character! We also had to find a piece of text evidence to support our statements. Next week we will use our organizers to have class discussions. 

• In math, we started looking at how ratio thinking can help us with measurement as we began Unit 3. We are continuing to use unit rates, but are also adding ratios to convert different types of measurements. We focused on several this week, like speed (kilometers per hour to miles per hour), capacity (cups to tablespoons) and weight (kilograms to pounds.) We also compared prices of items and looked for the better deal. During Flex, we started to practice long division in oder to expand from the partial quotient method students learned in 5th grade. This practice will continue as long as needed.

• In social studies, students have been learning about the Old Stone Age through lively discussions, reading, and watching videos. Students have been fascinated by the development of early humans, and the important turning points. We looked at cave art and wondered which came first, the art or language? The students have their own theories which are encouraged as long as they back it up with evidence from reliable sources. We analyzed a CER (Claim Evidence Reasoning) sample to strengthen our own writing. At the end of the week we looked at the Paleolithic diet and students were surprise that they did not have dairy and grain foods yet. Finally, students started to read about the migration of early humans out of Africa and the climate changes that made that movement possible and/or necessary. They used the History Atlas to completed a map reading skill sheet that reinforced the same topic on migration.

• In science, students wrapped up our light unit by finishing their stop motion videos. They are not ready to share with you yet as students really want to do "voice overs" to explain how light interacts with difference materials. Up next - we will be answer the question - Do waves carry energy? as we start to think about mechanical waves (sound waves) and eventually analog and digital signals! 

Have another wonderful long weekend.

Mrs. Conley & Ms. Tosches

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WEEK #7 Week of 10/6-10/10

Hello Grade 6 Families,

It is that time of the year, when we as teachers start to reflect on the first few weeks of school and how students are settling into their learning spaces and we'd love to share that information with you! Conferences start on October 22. Please follow the link below to sign up for a conference with your child's homeroom teacher. Information about all subjects will be shared. 

Conference Sign-up Link Ms. Tosches

Conference Sign-up Link Mrs. Conley

As a reminder, Tuesday 10/14 is Picture Day at Gates. Here is the information from the office:

Dear Gates Families,

Picture Day is just one week away – Tuesday, October 14th! We’re excited to once again partner with CoffeePond to capture our students’ smiles.

A few important reminders:

• Order forms were sent home with students. Please complete and return them to your student’s teacher before Picture Day.

• If you prefer to order online, you can easily do so using the QR code attached to this email.

• All orders are due on Picture Day.

• Portrait packages will be shipped directly to the school from Coffee Pond and distributed to students approximately 4–6 weeks after Picture Day.

Thank you for helping us make Picture Day a smooth and fun experience for everyone — we’re looking forward to seeing those great smiles!

This week, we worked on the following:

• In Math, we investigated one more method of showing ratio and proportional thinking - the tape diagram. We are officially done with our first math unit and have been reviewing all week for the unit test on Friday. Next week, we will start Unit 3 which is looking at unit rates and percents. We will apply our ratio and fraction knowledge to problem solve.  

• In ELA, students have been working on identifying how Percy's point of view of Mr. Brunner (now known as Chiron) has developed over time. This week we did a "Building Thinking Classrooms" based lesson to help us map this progression over the course of chapters we have read so far. Students are working on identifying the feeling or opinion that the narrator has based on events/actions in the story. We also took our mid unit assessment which focused on identifying the meaning of unknown words using context clues, word connotations, and point of view development. Look for these to go home next week. It will need to be signed and returned. So far we have read through chapter 10 of The Lightning Thief. 

• In social studies, we continue learning about turning points during the Paleolithic Era that helped early humans evolve. We looked at connections between making stone tools, controlling fire, growing brain size, developing language, and creating art. After reading texts and watching videos, students discuss their thoughts with their group and then writing short answers using the CER (Claim-Evidence-Reasoning) format to prove their statement. We also incorporate analyzing charts and tables into our lessons to further our understanding of the topic. Next week the students will have their first assessment. They are allowed to use their notes fro the binder and they are encourage to make sure they have all the pages organized to be ready for the test. We also continued our geography knowledge with another practice of comparing absolute and relative locations and using latitude and longitude to find absolute locations on a map of the USA.  

• In science, students have been working on their stop motion videos to show how light interacts with difference materials. We've been doing an excellent job of collaboration (one of our "Habits of Character" from the EL curriculum). Once the videos have been completed, they will be shared with families! 

Have a lovely long weekend! We will see the kiddos on Tuesday 10/14 for picture day!

Mrs. Conley & Ms. Tosches

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WEEK #6 Week of 9/29-10/3

Hello Grade 6 Families,

Sixth grade is the perfect time to begin to add responsibilities for your students, both with homework and chores to help out at home - this will increase both success and effort. We also wanted to remind families that "September is for practice" is officially over. Routines have been set, and missing work on the assignment card now affects student report cards. You can see these assignments past the black sharpie line on the assignment card. 

Your sixth graders are growing both physically and mentally and they need a lot of fuel i.e. snacks to get them through the long morning. Please discuss some nutritious options with them. We have some snacks available just in case. Breakfast at school is free this year, so we suggested to get one and use it as a snack later in the day. 

Conferences start on October 22. We will send sign-up links next Friday by 5pm, so you can schedule a Wednesday afternoon time to meet with your child's homeroom teacher who will share information about all subjects. 

Coming home in the backpack are a Spelling Bee form and the Picture Day form. 

As a reminder, the Fun Run will take place on Wednesday, October 8. Please make sure your child is wearing comfortable clothes and sneakers. Water will not be provided, so students should bring their own water bottles. If you wish, have your child apply suntan lotion and bug spray at home. Students should not bring these items to school. Here are the details provided by the Gates PTO about the event.

Dear Families, 

The Gates Fun Run, Walk, and Roll is almost here! As a reminder, this is our BIGGEST fundraiser and one of the most FUN events of the year! Below are a few details regarding the event for you and your student.

WHEN: Wednesday, October 8th from 9:00-11:00 AM (Parents should be on the look out for parking information and arrival time for families that will be sent out by the PTO). 

WHERE: Elm Street Field (Parents can park at the Elm Street parking lot by the Boardwalk or the tennis court parking lot.)

WHAT TO WEAR (parents): We are encouraging parents to wear any Gates gear they have or wear AB colors blue and gold.

WHAT TO BRING (parents): We are encouraging parents to bring homemade signs to hold up and cheer on their child(ren) as they participate in the event. Booster will have cheer items for parents to use as well.

WHAT TO WEAR (students): Students need to wear athletic footwear and proper attire for this athletic event. Students will be given Fun Run, Walk & Roll t-shirts on the day of the event, which will be worn on the outside of any jackets.

Students will bring home their t-shirts after the event. 

WHAT TO BRING (students): Students NEED to bring their own water bottles since there will NOT be watering stations.

Go Panthers!

This week we worked on the following:

• In math, students continued working on table diagramming ratio work to answer word problems. We discussed the importance of essential information in a problem. We have been spending a lot of our time looking at unit rate and other points of comparison. The students worked on problems where they were asked to find different work paths and to share them out with their classmates. At the end of the week, we started exploring part-part and part-whole ratios and how to represent them in tape diagram. This work will continue into next week along with review for the unit test at the end of the week. 

• In social studies, we looked at the humankind family tree and realized that there were several species of early humans present before we homo sapiens evolved. We then explored our closest relative, the Neanderthal by reading texts with a parter and discussing the similarities and differences between them and modern humans. At the end of the week, we focused on the important changes in bodies and brains over time such as walking upright, larger brains and skulls, thinner bodies, and hands with thumbs that could manipulate smaller items. We also continued our map reading and analyzing skills by reviewing the continents and major oceans of the world. 

• In science, students learned how to make stop motion animation videos! We will be using these skills for partner project next week to show what we know about how light interacts with different materials (light can be reflected, absorbed, and transmitted). We are very excited about this opportunity! 

• In ELA, we continued focusing on vocabulary strategies, determining point-of-view based on text evidence, and using text evidence to answer questions. This week we also did our first "language dive." For this we focus on one phrase or sentence and how it can help us understand the story more.  This time the sentence was " I thought about some of the kids I’d seen in the Hermes cabin, teenagers who looked sullen and depressed, as if they were waiting for a call that would never come." ASK US why the students feel like this and what it might look like or feel like to be waiting for a phone call that would never come! 

Have a wonderful weekend,

Mrs. Conley & Ms. Tosches

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WEEK #5 Week of 9/22-9/26

Hello Grade 6 Families,

Thank you so much for all of you who have sent in supplies for the classroom and donated books to our grade level library. Students love the new additions on the book shelves.We are always accepting tissues and wipes, especially moving into cold season! 

This is the last weekend for make up work on the pink assignment card that you sign every Friday. Once it is October, our "month of trial and error" is over. We expect students to be able to abide by the rules and routines of the classroom and get their work in on time. Any missing work after Monday morning will begin to impact their student skill grade on the report card. This message has been shared often with the students this month and we have discussed strategies to be successful in our classrooms. The goal is to have an empty card. If you notice that your child is struggling with handing in assignments on time, please have them show you their agenda and the finished work both on paper or on google classroom. They might need help packing their bag the night before school to make sure all the materials - binder, agenda, math textbook, chromebook, novel and supply bag - are in their backpack. If we take a little extra time to help them develop good study habits now, it will make the rest of the year less stressful and the transition to junior high a breeze. 

Lastly, please remember there is no school next Thursday (10/2) in observance of Rosh Hashanah.

This week students worked on the following:

• In math, we started Monday with reviewing for the first quiz which the students took on Wednesday. The rest of the week, we continued to look at several ways to show work to find equivalent ratios. We now can find ratios using diagrams, double number lines and tables. Adding onto this concept, we have been looking at "for every one" also known as "per" or finding the unit rate. In addition, students reflected on their quizzes from earlier in the week. Please feel free to reach out to Mrs. Conley with any questions or concerns. During math flex the focus was on reviewing how to use long division efficiently and move from remainders to fractional remainders. This work will continue to the next week with students learning how to use decimals in division which is a Grade 6 standard.  

• In social studies, students learned about "Oetzi," the Iceman, a mummified human from prehistory who was found in the Italian/Austrian Alps. They worked like social scientists to find out the many questions they had about who he was and what the artifacts could tell them about how he lived during this time before writing. Next week we will start to look at the human history and its important turning points by continuing to ask many questions that will guide our exploration of the topic.  Throughout the week, students finished their first independent map reading and interpreting task (called DOG Week 2) using their atlas. At the end of the week, students completed a museum walk of their 5 Themes of Geography posters that now hang in the hallway. They reflected on another student's work and gave constructive feedback.

• In ELA, we continued reading Rick Riordan's The Lightning Thief and have read through chapter 4, having rich discussion about the book and working on finding the gist. We completed our first "Close Read" this week, looking at an informational text about Why Greek Myths Are Still Relevant Today. From this students are working on defining unfamiliar vocabulary words, using an affix list ( a list of suffixes, root words, and prefixes, their meanings and origins), as well as finding supporting details in a text to support what we identify as the main idea. We are really loving reading The Lightning Thief and are tracking important parts of the story. ASK US ABOUT: the characters we've met so far, events we can't explain, and curious / odd "natural events! We should have a lot to say...ESPECIALLY about the smell when bad things happen! 

• In Science, we are continuing to explore light and how it interacts with different materials. We knew that light can be absorbed, reflected, and transmitted through different materials, and this week we learned about refraction! Some of us knew this word, could use it to explain why a straw looks bent when you put it in water - but we couldn't explain WHY! Now you can ask us about it! Hopefully we can tell you that the speed of the light wave changes when the wave passes through a different medium (example, from air and into water). We are also working on reading information texts and using the text to answer "selected response" questions (otherwise known as multiple choice questions). 

Have a wonderful weekend,

Mrs. Conley & Ms. Tosches

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WEEK #4 Week of 9/15-9/19

Hello Grade 6 Families,

Tonight is the Family picnic (5:30-7:30 pm) and Scholastic Book Fair at Gates (3:30 - 7:30pm) - see PTO for more information. The teachers had a chance to look at the book selection and there are some fantastic new books. Hopefully you get to enjoy the event and purchase something engaging to read. 

Congratulations to our new student council representatives Emma K., Ashwin, Aaviv, and Lana. Thank you to all the candidate who took time to run and prepare a speech. We are proud of you. 

We just finished week 4 and some students are starting to settle into the new routines and expectations. Overall, they still need frequent reminders for listening and following directions in the classroom, at recess and lunch, specials and moving through the school. Respecting each other's space to learn has been discussed extensively. Transitioning from one subject or class to another is still not as efficient as we would like. Some students take much longer than others to pack their items and leave the classroom quietly. They even stay back to chat with other students which is not the appropriate time to do that. 

Homework assignments have increased too and you can see how your child is doing by taking a look at the assignment card when you sign it. The goals is to keep the card empty, which means all assignment have been completed in a timely manner with quality in mind. Students write their daily homework down in their agenda and they should bring it home every day. Feel free to ask for it and have your child check off their work as they complete it. A little help will go a long way to turn a dependent learner into a confident independent learner.

This week we accomplished the following:

• We met with our younger book buddies and got to know them a little. Partners interviewed each other about their favorite things, drew pictures and shared a book or two together.

• In social studies, students practiced their atlas and map reading skills. On Friday, they put together their first long term project, a poster for their city using the 5 Themes of Geography. You will be able to see their creations during conferences. We also started our first unit on Early Humans by looking at how social scientist study the past and discussing turning points in early human history. We are using a new program called Investigating History which applies many of the techniques and strategies students use in other subjects to engage students in formulating their own questions and researching them. 

• In math, we reviewed all 3 types of ratio diagrams we've learned and used various techniques to calculate equivalent ratios (also known as proportions.) Next week we will prepare for the first quiz on lessons 1-7 and take a quiz. Then we continue to look at part-to-part and part-to-whole ratio relationships. During flex, we reviewed multiplication with 2 and 3 digit numbers and practiced a variety of ratio problems using the learning site zearn.org. 

• In ELA, we began reading The Lightning Thief this week. Students have read through chapter 3 thus far. In class, we have been working on vocabulary strategies like using context clues. We have also started to analyze point-of-view and how to use text evidence to determine how a character feels or their opinion on a person or situation. Next week we will be doing our first "Close Read" - analyzing a informational text! We are LOVING The Lightning Thief and have been keeping track of characters, unexplainable natural phenomenon (such as "weird weather events"), and other moments that are making us think something bigger is going to happen in the story! Ask us about it!! 

• In science, we continue to think about how light interacts with different materias. We also learned what happens to light when it enters the eye and how the brain begins to make sense of this information. As us about this, too! 

Have a wonderful fall weekend!

Mrs. Conley & Ms. Tosches

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WEEK #3 Week of 9/8 - 9/12

Hello Grade 6 Families,

It was great to welcome so many families to the Boardwalk Campus for the Open House Night. Students were so proud to show off their classroom along with all the identity work we have been creating while establishing our classroom communities. If you were not able to attend, this links to a presentation with important information about 6th grade. Please review it and let us know if you have any questions. 

Some important dates to remember:

• Student Council forms were due on Friday, September 12. We will listen to the presentations next week and vote on our class representatives on Wednesday. 

• Band, orchestra and chorus will start on Friday, October 3 with classes starting the beginning of that week. As a reminder, chorus does not have any cost to families.  If your child is interested in band or orchestra, and you haven't signed up, please do so using this link:  5 - 6th grade link for band and orchestra If your child did not sign up for any of the three, they will remain in the classroom and read silently for 60 minutes. 

• The Scholastic Fair will take place during the Family Picnic on September 19th - from 5:30 - 7:00. Flyers for most of these events came home with your child in their backpack.

• The Fun Run will be held on October 8th

•  Picture Day is on October 14th. 

This week, we also had our first All-School Meeting. During this meeting, we discussed dismissal expectations for all students, including how to leave the building, behave on the bus, and exit the bus as well if they are bus riders. Lastly, we discussed when and how to go about asking for assistance or help from adult if there is an issue on the bus.

As a reminder, each student is required to have ear buds that interface with our chrome books. This is essential when we do testing; students have had this in their agendas since the first day of school. If there is a financial concern around providing some sort of ear bud or headphones, please reach out to your child's homeroom teacher.

Finally, it has been a gorgeous week, but as the weather is getting more fall like, please make sure your child wears appropriate clothing for the outside conditions. Whenever possible, students will go outside to play before lunch. Even 6th graders need that break and it is one benefit of being housed in a elementary school.

The students were quite busy learning to organize their binders. In addition, we worked on the following:

In math, a big part of the week was spent on the math portion of iReady, our district testing, which we concluded on Friday. We then looked at writing ratios in 3 different ways, displaying ratios in 3 different diagrams to represent ratios (picture, symbol, and table) and found equivalent ratios in word problems. Students started to complete homework assignments in their math textbooks and have been given keys to check their work. They are good examples of the mathematical thinking and showing work that we expect in 6th grade. Checkpoints are regular check ins that are graded and returned to students. You can see these in your child's binder. In Flex, students reviewed strategies to help with the memorization and practice of multiplication facts to increase their fluency. The retakes of those who took them, will come home on Monday for you to sign.

In social studies, we reviewed important lines on a map and practiced finding absolute locations using latitude and longitude. Students also took general notes on the 5 Themes of Geography each day, as we delved deeper in our understanding to help scaffold research. Students used this knowledge to research a city of their choice using the five themes of geography to describe the city and then wrote paragraphs about each theme. Next week in class, they will assemble their information and pictures they chose in order to complete their poster.

In science, students have started learning about light. We started off my watching a phenomenon video with two people who can't see eachother on either side of a mirror / window. We think it might be a one-way. We also worked in small groups to conduct their first science experience about light, and we did a great job! What we discovered is that light will respond in different ways to different materials - it was "bouncing off," "going through" and "being soaked up" by the materials we used. We now know that light can reflect, transmit, and/or be absorbed by materials. Finally, we thought today about different materials and characteristics they had in common. We were then able to group them into categories, and then resort them into materials that would reflect, transmit, and absorb light based on the properties of the materials. 

In ELA, this week students completed their name stories (which many of you saw last night at open house) and finished their first personal narrative "A Snapshot of Me!" 

We also started, and mostly finished our first district assessment - iReady. Next week we will begin out first unit in our EL curriculum and we will start reading our first book together - Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief! Here's a bit of the overview of what to expect: "They analyze how the author develops the point of view of the narrator, and they strategize to determine the meanings of unfamiliar words and phrases, including figurative language. In the second half of Unit 1, students prepare for a Socratic Seminar discussion by analyzing how Percy, the main character in the novel, responds to challenges." Students will also be working on the EL "Habits of Character" 

"Students work to become effective learners, developing mindsets and skills for success in college, career, and life (e.g., initiative, responsibility, perseverance, collaboration); work to become ethical people, treating others well and standing up for what is right (e.g., empathy, integrity, respect, compassion); and work to contribute to a better world, putting their learning to use to improve communities (e.g., citizenship, service)."

Have a great weekend!

Mrs. Conley & Ms. Tosches

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WEEK #2 Week of 9/2 - 9/5

We had a busy short week, starting rotations and giving homework assignments for the first time. Students are bringing home their assignment cards today and they need to be signed by a guardian and brought back on Monday. This card lists late and missing work that your child did not complete AND turn in this week. As a reminder, students are expected to have 60 minutes of undisturbed homework Monday through Thursday. September is a practice month, but once October comes around late and unfinished work will affect the student skill grade on the progress report card.

  Coming home in your student's backpack:

• Gates Spirit wear flyer

• Gate Fun Run, Walk, and Roll

• Gates Family Picnic

• Gates PTO Bundle Donation

This week we had our first fire drill which went well. Students are adapting to sharing their common spaces with other grade levels and Douglas students. We have been working on quick and quiet transitions, so that we can optimize instructional time. We also attended the instrument demonstration to learn about the Elementary Band and String lessons. Registration is now active via ParentSquare for grades 4, 5, and 6. Here is the link with more information:  5 - 6th grade link for band and orchestra

Thank you to all the families that sent in supplies. With the fall season coming, we could still use additional tissue boxes. The sixth grade team appreciates your contributions. Please also remind your child that they are asked to bring in some type of ear bud or head phones that work with their Chromebooks. We have a few loaners when students forget, but not enough for an entire grade and they will need them next week as we start the ELA iReady testing.

We look forward to seeing you all at OPEN HOUSE  on Thursday 9/11 @ 6-7:30 pm.

This week, all classes worked on:

• practicing a fire drill

• creating classroom rules and expectations during advisories

• instrument ensemble demos 

• finishing reading "Who Moved My Cheese?" and reflecting on how they will move with the cheese (change) this year

• Reading and discussing Show Way (last week) and creating a quilt piece to show their culture (this week)

• Reading and discussing The Day You Begin and writing their own story in google slides

• exploring Canva as a technology tool for use with the Who Am I? project

Social Studies: 

• learning about the five themes of geography with a song and a BrainPop video

• selecting the city they want to use for their five themes of geography project

Math: 

• setting up our binder and completing a self-reflection on Unit 2 standards in math

• completing key term cards for Unit 2 math

• Thinking about and contributing to a math practice question of - Which One Doesn't Belong?

• completing a timed multiplication and math readiness check 

• playing math multiplication game to increase fluency with math facts

• getting onto and working on Khan academy to prepare for homework next week

ELA: 

• Learning goals and success criteria; this is an instructional practice that helps students answer the questions: What am I learning? and How will I know if I've learned it? This strategy has been proven to help improve student learning, understanding, and build the skill of self assessment. 

  • We did this by thinking about the goal "Today I will be able to clean my bedroom." Students brainstormed the top things they thought would make for a clearn bed room, then shared out as a class. Together we came up with a list of "success criteria" - a checklist of sorts that we agreed on would be the "must dos" for cleaning a bedroom. See our lists below - incase you need them ;-) 

Science: 

• Students did their first independent hands on project - A divergent thikning task. This is a task that has many ways it can be solved. All students were given the same materials and amount of time (these were their constraints). Their learning goal: I can make something. Success criteria: keep trying (even if it isn't turning out the way you wanted), divide materials equally, only use materials on your desk. We really came up with some unique ideas! What we learned: even when given the same goal and same materials our brains approaching problem solving differently! 

• Students learned how to use our vertical whiteboards to answer the question: What is science? Vertical whiteboards are a strategy from Building Thinking Classrooms. What is “Building Thinking Classrooms”?
  This year our class is using an approach called Building Thinking Classrooms. It’s based on research about how students learn best. Instead of simply memorizing or following steps, students work in ways that help them really think, discuss, and problem-solve. You’ll often see students working in small groups, using whiteboards or other shared spaces, and moving around the room. This setup helps students explain their ideas, listen to others, and try out different strategies.The goal is for every child to become an active thinker and confident problem-solver in all areas of learning.

Enjoy your weekend.

Mrs. Conley and Ms. Tosches

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WEEK #1 Week of 8/27 - 8/29

It was wonderful to welcome the students into our classrooms. We had a great week in 6th grade getting to know each other. Even just after a few days, students are getting used to their new classrooms and adults who are supporting them. Follow these links, if you would like more information about the ABRS District, the Gates School, or specifically about Grade 6 at Gates. 

If you are out shopping and would like to contribute to the classrooms, we are in need of some basic supplies. We are looking for tissue boxes, paper towels and nutritious snacks. We greatly appreciate all the donations.

The following forms and expectations came home with your student and need your attention. They can also be found on our Grade 6 website. Please have your child return the forms to school by Tuesday, September 2. 

• Ask Basket

• Grade 6 Policies

• Grade 6 Contract

• Technology and Yearbook Permission Waivers

• District OnLine Resources Contract

• Chromebook Loan Agreement

• Parent Questionnaire - You can take a little more time for the parent questionnaire - it is due on Tuesday, September 9th. It helps us greatly to get to know your child, so we appreciate your effort. 

We will start our rotation schedule this upcoming Thursday (see schedule below). All classes were self-contained this week and worked on the following:

• Setting up and distributing student supplies, including binder, agenda, journal, and a zippered bag full of supplies

• Reading aloud Who Moved My Cheese? and taking notes/discussing

• Going to special last period of the day

• Reviewing the Gates expectations and rules

• Getting to know the procedures of the Advisories (the 6th grade version of morning meetings)

• Building a tower (Engineering Challenge) with a partner

• Filling in agendas for in-class and home-work assignments

• Signing into google classroom and completing a student survey

• creating extended name tags

• making a cover for their binder

• Reading and discussing Show Way and creating a quilt piece

• Playing "All About Me" Bingo outside with all sixth graders

Enjoy your long weekend! Don't forget that the next day of school is Tuesday, 9/2!

Mrs. Conley & Ms. Tosches