Coupla Things v28 (4/10/16)

Post date: Apr 10, 2016 5:36:49 PM

Hi Room 25 Family.

The week away from school (and home) was fantastic. Amy and I went to the Sierra foothills for a few days and then to the wine country and coastal towns for even more amazing stuff. The scenery was spectacular; forests dripping, rivers booming, fields in full bloom, and sunny days, starry nights. Hopefully you have been enjoying the great weather and longer days as well.

1. Spring Conferences: During the week of May 2 to 6 school will end at 1:15 to allow time for afternoon conferences. They are optional but usually productive and enjoyable. The kids will show some of the work they've done and possibly discuss various aspects of high school or even intentions for the upcoming summer. If you (kid and parent) want to schedule a conference, please take a look at this document and sign up in a cell (let me know if you can't edit).

2. Homeroom Time: Intensives are done now, so 8th graders won't be rotating classes. During the 46 remaining days there will be lots to do but we'll have time to do things well and in a relaxed but productive pace. We'll be back into the three-subjects-per-day routine as well as do various things regarding field trips, special-interest topics, and school-service projects.

3. Upcoming Core Curriculum: In science, we'll be finishing out the year with one unit on electricity and magnetism and another on waves. In history the topics will be westward expansion, industrialization, and global relations. The next writing project will be a traditional five-paragraph essay (probably about the student's personal interest target topic) and MLA formatting, which all high schools expect the kids to use.

4. Target Topics #2: For a few weeks, each kid has been building curiosity and knowledge (and a document) about an area of high personal interest. On this spreadsheet there should be a linked cell in your kid's row and their document should have some initial questions and signs of research. Next week we'll discuss presentation/activity formats.

Calendar

April 12: Chris to SF with room 26

April 16 (Saturday): Parent work day

April 27: K-5 Science Fair exhibits

April 30 (Saturday): Student to Student Conference

May 2 to 6: Spring Conferences

May 6: Middle School Dance

May 7: Spring Auction

May 16 to 19: Standardized Testing

May 20: DCS to Maker Fair

May 27 (Friday): Staff Development Day

June 1 (Wednesday): Talent Show (before rafting departure)

June 1, 2, 3 (Wed-Fri) Rafting South Fork American (tentative but "probably" dates)

June 6-10: Chris doing Google training for Hawaii public school teachers

June 8: Science Fair (design challenges)

June 16: Last Day of School