We have enjoyed getting to know your children over this past few weeks, and are now settling into our class routines. The kids are coming to class, participating in lessons, working hard, and learning a lot! Read on for specifics on class happenings.
Summer Reading Book Discussion Groups have been scheduled beginning next week. Please, visit this link - Summer Reading Book Discussion Group Schedule. Students will earn extra credit for participating since the reading was suggested instead of required this year.
In writing workshop this week, we emphasized writing as thinking, generated idea lists in our Writers' Notebooks for narrative writing and worked on building our writing stamina.
Your students are delightful! I'm really enjoying getting to know them. I'm having fun and hope they are too :)
We have been hard at work continuing to build routines in both reading and writing workshop!
In writing, students have been introduced to various writing "territories" (lists and heart map) which help create ideas to complete a free write on. They also help narrow down topics so just one topic can be the focus of the writing activity. This free write practice will be especially helpful as we head into our first "official" piece of writing later this quarter.
Throughout the week in reading workshop, we discussed various reading responses that were used in conjunction with our read aloud, Count Me In. The new reading response that students were introduced to is called powerful words/phases/illustrations. Students identify powerful words and phrases from the read aloud chapter as well as draw illustrations to show their understanding of the reading. These response types will be something we continue to revisit throughout the year!
We have really started to dig into our study of waves! This week, students worked on several online simulations, as well as some non-digital activities. Although certainly not required, I encourage you to participate in these lab activities with your child if you'd like. I love giving them a chance to have conversations with you about their science observations!
Many of our lab reports will be completed using Schoology Quizzes. This "tool" allows students to receive immediate feedback on objective items, and I can more quickly read through their responses on subjective items. As a teacher, I appreciate the item analysis data that helps me to understand the trends - both proficiency and gaps.
We are studying all kinds of waves! From gamma rays to longitudinal waves, we are learning about them all. Students have spent time getting comfortable with wave vocabulary like: amplitude, wavelength, frequency, crest, trough, compression, and rarefaction. We have spent some time exploring the relationships between amplitude, frequency, and wavelength through demonstrations and online labs. As this week goes on we will do more online labs as we start to build more connections, and focus on sound waves.
Every week we are doing "Current Events Friday" where students read an article about a connection between what we are doing in class and current events. I love taking the time to make real world connections between our science topics. Last week, we read about how radio waves can help us find aliens, how spiny lobsters can send sound waves up to two miles away, and why astronauts may need sunscreen to protect them from light waves.
We had a short, but very productive week in history. We began a refresher on the common characteristics of civilizations, ask your scholar about GRAPES. We will have a quiz next week over a review of the maps and characteristics. Students also submitted their boundary crosser projects this week. I was very impressed with what I have seen so far! Today we discussed Patriot's Day and the events of Sept 11. Next week we will finish our review and may even begin digging in to Greece! Have a great weekend, Aloha!
Our young historians dove headfirst into current events this week as we began our weekly current event routine. Due each Friday, the Weekly Current Event will give students an opportunity to understand what is happening around the world within their areas of interest. We will dedicate our class time on Friday to small group discussions about the articles to connect with classmates and develop our perspectives. We also reviewed primary and secondary sources - what they are and how to evaluate which sources are the best choices for answering historical questions.
Next week, we'll explore bias and fake news. Students will be assessed on sources and bias on Tuesday.
We'll also celebrate Constitution Day on Thursday with a scavenger hunt. I'm looking forward to our first Current Event discussion next Friday!
We are continuing to study Integers and Operating with Signed Numbers. We will move on to Proportions next.
Click the link to view my daily agenda. Mrs. Yang - Math 7 Daily Agenda
To see what's happening in Algebra, click HERE to view the daily agenda.
We are aiming to have our first test on the first half of our functions unit mid to late next week.
Van Gogh Inspired bedroom artworks are due Monday and we will start our new project! Remember we will meet on Tuesday and Thursday and as always, email me with questions!
Reconnecting with Nature artworks are dure Friday 9/11/2020. We will start our new project on Monday next week. The next unit will focus on using mixed media and creating functional artwork. Remember we will meet on Tuesday and Thursday on google meet. I am available the other days during class time for questions. Have a great week of creating.
This week students were inspired by the Recycled Orchestra of Paraguay and made their own drums out of recycled items found in their homes. We then reviewed and practiced various rhythmic patterns on our drums. Next week, we will continue drumming and learning about music from many different parts of the world.
The students were quite intrigued this week exploring the Recycled Orchestra of Paraguay, an orchestra comprised of students playing instruments made from recycled materials. Students created their own recycled instruments. We also started working on playing the rumba and improvising within this rhythm framework. Next week we will continue to develop improvisation skills and musicianship and explore music cultures around the world and how music connects us.