Grades and assignments can be found in the Portal

Science:

This week students are finishing their Life Over Time assessment and will be kicking off the Internal Processes and Plate Tectonics unit, which will continue into next week. 

Thank you to those who shared or donated to our Solving Food Insecurity with Aquaponics grant! Radishes and green leaf lettuce was harvested!

ELA: 

This week we finish our Social Issues Book Club unit by reflecting on the author’s use of figurative language, analyzing our story’s overall plot, and discussing themes from our readings. The kids have enjoyed their books!! On Thursday, we will be taking the SRI test. Friday’s half day will be a review game day.

Grade Improvement Opportunity until 5/17:

Literary Essays have been graded and entered into the gradebook. Students are able to edit and fix their highlighted errors for a higher conventions grade. See green scoring guide for details. Nice work!!

HW:

*Read a good book!  

* Edit highlighted errors to improve essay grade (optional)

Math: 

Students are working on their data projects and having some fun learning new things about their classmates.  Sections II & III due this week along with a quiz over measures of spread.  Here is a link for kids to practice: Website to review math skills

 

There are still an enormous amount of missing assignments, so please continue to check the portal.  All late work has been re-copied for kids, entered on the portal (with notes) and also copies are attached on the portal.  Also, several students were given the opportunity to revise D & F assignments ( also attached on the portal) Friday is the absolute last day for late work to be submitted. Note the attached pic for the remainder of math deadlines. It is posted in the room and we refer to it often.

American History:

Last week most students completed the station activities that focused on the Harlem Renaissance. Some were even able to move on to the two activities that drew their attention to the period called the Roaring 20’s. This week will include activities that introduce the prosperous period in our history right before the Great Depression. The highlight will be the Stock Market Simulation activity.

Grades and assignments can be found in the Portal

Science:

This week students are continuing to use data and evidence to make conclusions about how life on Earth has changed over time. They are exploring fossil records, the K-T boundary, and the 5 mass extinctions that have happened since Earth formed. 

Work for 3 stations are due Wednesday, May 1st. Friday, May 3rd will be the Life Over Time Test.

Thank you to those who shared or donated to our Solving Food Insecurity with Aquaponics grant! Radishes and green leaf lettuce is ready to be harvested!

ELA: 

This week we continue our Social Issues Book Clubs and analyzing the relationships of our characters throughout the book. It’s been so fun to see the kids engaged and enthusiastic about their reads!

Grade Improvement Opportunity until 5/17:

Literary Essays have been graded and entered into the gradebook. Students are able to edit and fix their highlighted errors for a higher conventions grade. See green scoring guide for details. Nice work!!

HW:

*Read a good book!  

* Edit highlighted errors to improve essay grade (optional)

Math: 

I blinked and we now have four weeks left in the school year!  Attached you will find a copy of the calendar posted in the math classroom.  You may also notice a full list of upcoming assignments posted on the portal.  If there is no score then that means the assignment is pending.  A zero grade will alert you of missing work.

 

Students will finish off the year on Unit 8, Data & Statistics.  Each student will conduct a survey, graph the data, compute measures of center, and compute measures of spread.  Their final assessment is a project rather than a test and each section will be scored along the way.  All due dates are on the attached calendar along with a couple quizzes and computation assessments.  Students will have ample time in class to complete the project.  No further homework will be assigned with the exceptions of keeping up with project deadlines and completing revisions, if needed.

American History:

Last week we started our new unit called, The Roaring 20’s and the Great Depression. We began the unit with a brief look at some of the “Push and Pull factors that caused the Great Migration of African Americans from the South to the North. This week we will begin a look at the changing roles of women in the 1920’s. We will discuss and define terms like; Harlem Renaissance, Flappers and prohibition to name a few.

Grades and assignments can be found in the Portal

Science:

This week students are finishing the Evolution by Means of Natural Selection unit and are exploring the cause and effect relationship between traits and probability of survival in organisms. Tasks A & B of the Antibiotic Resistant Bacteria project are due Monday 4/15. Tasks C (Extension) & Task D (Extra Credit) are due Friday 4/19. 

Tuesdy April 16th will be our test. Students received a study guide via Google Classroom last week. 

Thank you to those who shared or donated to our Solving Food Insecurity with Aquaponics grant! We can see the radishes growing!

ELA: 

This week we are diving into our last reading unit! The students have chosen their novels for our Social Issues Book Clubs and are very excited! We will begin reading on Monday and this week we’ll focus on getting to know our characters and analyzing their relationships with others throughout the book.

Grade Improvement Opportunity until 5/17:

Literary Essays have been graded and entered into the gradebook. Students are able to edit and fix their highlighted errors for a higher conventions grade. See green scoring guide for details. Nice work!!

Homework:

*Read a good book!  

* Edit highlighted errors to improve essay grade (optional)

Math: 

American History:

The students are completing their digital propaganda sign and speech. See Google Classroom for directions and instructions. This week will include discussions about how German Americans were treated during WW1. As well we will talk about the plans and efforts to end WW1. The Unit test has been moved to April 23rd.

Grades and assignments can be found in the Portal

Science:

This week students are continuing the Evolution by Means of Natural Selection unit and are exploring the cause and effect relationship between traits and probability of survival in organisms. There is 1 Evolution by Means of Natural Selection assignment that is due on Tuesday at the end of class.

On Wednesday student will begin working on an Antibiotic Resistant Bacteria project to end our Evolution by Means of Natural Selection unit. Monday April 15th will be our test. Students will receive a study guide via Google Classroom on Wednesday. 

Thank you to those who shared or donated to our Solving Food Insecurity with Aquaponics grant! We will continue this work throughout the remaining 6 weeks of school!

ELA: 

We are finishing our Nonfiction One Pagers that we started last week. The creativity and abstract thinking on these has been impressive! Periods 4, 7, and 8 One Pagers are due by Wednesday. 3rd period’s pages are due Thursday. We will spend the rest of the week reviewing key skills such as plot, figurative language, conflict types, and theme. Then, onto our Social Issues book clubs!

Grade Improvement Opportunity until 5/17:

Literary Essays have been graded and entered into the gradebook. Students are able to edit and fix their highlighted errors for a higher conventions grade. See scoring guide for details. Nice work!!

Homework:

* Work on One Pager

* Edit highlighted errors to improve essay grade (optional)

Math:

Math Homework: 

American History:

This week the students will finish their learning on what life was like in the US during WW1. We will look specifically at the propaganda used to support the war efforts and how anti-war people were treated. There will be some learning on how German Americans we viewed and treated during this time.

The end of unit test will be Wednesday April 17, 2019

A hard copy of the study guide has been provided to each student. There is an electronic copy as well. Study Guide

Grades and assignments can be found in the Portal

Science:

This week students are continuing the Evolution by Means of Natural Selection unit and are exploring the cause and effect relationship between traits and probability of survival in organisms. There are 3 station assignments that will be due at the end of class Friday, April 5th.

This Tuesday April 2nd, is Steger's 4th Annual Honeysuckle Hack!  During Science  class, the kids will go outside and help Master Naturalist volunteers pull, cut, and drag this invasive plant to clear it from our campus.  The district will mulch it for us to spread around new growth.  This is a great culminating event for our extensive study of ecosystems and human impact.  The kids are encouraged to wear appropriate clothes and shoes for working outdoors.  They will not need to bring tools, but if they have gardening gloves, that would be helpful.  Thanks for your support of this incredible event!

Thank you to those who shared or donated to our Solving Food Insecurity with Aquaponics grant!

ELA: 

We are finishing our Tapping the Power of Nonfiction Reading Workshop Unit this week. We have wrapped up the unit by working on a study guide for our post-assessment happening Tuesday 4/2 and Wednesday 4/3.

Literary Essays have been graded and entered into the gradebook. Students are able to edit and fix their highlighted errors for a higher conventions grade. See scoring guide for details. Nice work!!

HW: 1. Read shelfie at home  2. Review study guide for post-assessment 3. Edit highlighted errors to improve essay grade (optional)

Math:

After the last couple rounds of computation tests it has become clear that kids need more practice in order to maintain some of the basics that should have carried over from fifth grade. For the next few weeks there will be a Wednesday assignment due in addition to normal Friday work.  Students who aced (90% or better) each category are excused from one or more of these additional assignments. I have informed them and marked it on their assignment.

American History:

The students have completed an activity that helped to further their understanding about the different weapons and technologies used in WW1. This week we will look at the contributions Women and African Americans made during the period of WW1. We will also talk about the use of propaganda and the efforts to support the war.

Grades and assignments can be found in the Portal

Science:

This week students are beginning the Evolution by Means of Natural Selection unit and are exploring the cause and effect relationship between traits and probability of survival in organisms. 

This Friday, March 29th, is Steger's 4th Annual Honeysuckle Hack!  During Science  class, the kids will go outside and help Master Naturalist volunteers pull, cut, and drag this invasive plant to clear it from our campus.  The district will mulch it for us to spread around new growth.  This is a great culminating event for our extensive study of ecosystems and human impact.  The kids are encouraged to wear appropriate clothes and shoes for working outdoors.  They will not need to bring tools, but if they have gardening gloves, that would be helpful.  Thanks for your support of this incredible event!

Thank you to those who have shared or donated to our Solving Food Insecurity with Aquaponics grant!

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ELA: 

We are continuing our Tapping the Power of Nonfiction Reading Workshop Unit this week. Students are reading nonfiction novels and meeting and discussing those novels in book clubs. Students will not be bringing these novels home due to limited copies. Literary Essays are being graded and entered into the gradebook. Students are able to edit and fix their highlighted errors for a higher conventions grade. See scoring guide for details.

HW: 1. Read shelfie at home  2. Edit highlighted errors to improve essay grade (optional)

Math:

Students received computation tests back on Monday.  Yellow revision sheets are due by Friday, April 5. Kids can schedule a help session before school or during lunch or recess.  Like always, kids can also ask questions in class.  The test included forty problems.  In the portal you will see this assessment broken into three parts so that we can all see the breakdown of skills.  The first 20 problems are 5th grade content.  The next ten problems are fractions and the final 10 problems are decimals.  The kids had two full class periods to finish 40 problems.  Most kids are doing very well when working the skills in isolation.  Yet, they are running into trouble when having to work on all of the skills combined for one testing session. For those who need practice in a specific area, Khan Academy is an excellent resource.

American History:

The student are reading Primary Source documents that focus on some reasons the United States decided to enter World War 1, aka the Great War.

They are working in teams to discuss and write responses to questions pertaining to the documents. We will talk as a class about the their responses.

*Starting after Spring Break Vega students will begin choosing who they eat lunch with on Fridays. After a couple of weeks students will begin a gradual release of choosing where they sit throughout the rest of the week as well. 

Since beginning eating with homerooms students have been following the expectations in the cafeteria and displaying more self-control in the decisions they make. Thank you for your patience and understanding as we help support all students throughout the day. 

Grades and assignments can be found in the Portal

Science: This week students are finishing building their aquaponics systems and making predictions on their March Mammal Madness Brackets! 

Red Hat, will be here Tuesday, March 12th to get footage of our students working with their aquaponics systems in the classroom to be used in Red Hat's next documentary about open source and agriculture. 

*Parents please have your child's media release form signed and returned to Mrs. Mason by Tuesday morning. 

Thank you to those who have shared or donated to our Solving Food Insecurity with Aquaponics grant!

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ELA: 

We are continuing our Tapping the Power of Nonfiction Reading Workshop Unit this week. Students are reading nonfiction novels and meeting and discussing those novels in book clubs. Students will not be bringing these novels home due to limited copies. Literary Essays are being graded and entered into the gradebook. Students are able to edit and fix their highlighted errors for a higher conventions grade. See scoring guide for details.

HW: 1. Read shelfie at home  2. Edit highlighted errors to improve essay grade (optional)

Math:

Students qare beginning work on the pre-algebra unit, Expressions and Equations.  Here is a link to the family math https://im.openupresources.org/6/teachers/6/family_materials.html

American History:

The student are reading Primary Source documents that focus on some reasons the United States decided to enter World War 1, aka the Great War.

They are working in teams to discuss and write responses to questions pertaining to the documents. We will talk as a class about the their responses.

Grades and assignments can be found in the Portal

Science: 

Thank you to those who have shared or donated to our Solving Food Insecurity with Aquaponics grant!

The following are materials not listed on the grant page that we will be in need of:  (if you have any of these not being used in your home we would be happy to take them off of your hands!) on:

• 10 or 30 gallon fish tanks (we still need 2)
• Gift cards of any amount to a hardware store (Lowes, Home Depot, etc)

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Human Growth and Development Week

2/25 - 3/1: 

Goal: Provide accurate information on physiology, reproductive processess, and risks associated with sexual behavior.

Human Growth and Development Parent Syllabus

ELA: 

On Monday, we are finalizing our literary essays and turning them in. Our next unit is Tapping The Power of Nonfiction. Students will be reading nonfiction books in book clubs, working on nonfiction reading strategies, and discussing the content.

HW: Students should be reading nightly.

Math:

Students are working on decimal operations.  We are using the traditional algorithms and simply working on speed and accuracy.  Please encourage your child to do the work by showing their procedures.  Once done, it is a good idea to use a calculator to check. I continually encourage the kids to ask clarifying questions when the calculator answer does not match their procedures. 

* This week will mark the last after school math help session for a few weeks. Students are welcomed to schedule a session before school or any time during lunch/recess. 

American History:

The students are completing the End of the Spanish-American War Newscast. They are finalizing scripts, practicing the newscast as well as editing recorded video. The final presentations will be viewed on Thursday.

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Grades and assignments can be found in the Portal

Science: 

Thank you to those who have shared or donated to our Solving Food Insecurity with Aquaponics grant!

Students are working on our PBL (Problem Based Learning) related to Food Insecurity and Aquaponics. Each period voted on a system design and we will begin building them in the coming weeks. This week they are using evidence (data) and reasoning to explain how limiting factors effect populations in ecosystems.

The following are materials not listed on the grant page that we will be in need of:  (if you have any of these not being used in your home we would be happy to take them off of your hands!) on:

• 10 or 30 gallon fish tanks (we still need 3 (Thank you Ms. McDade for 1!)
• 2 power strips and/or extension cords (Thank you Ms. Giles for 2!)
• 4 bags of River Rock
• Gift cards of any amount to a local Pet Store to purchase fish
• Gift cards of any amount to a hardware store (Lowes, Home Depot, etc)

ELA: 

We will begin the week analyzing poetry inspired by the work of Langston Hughes before making our own creations. By the end of the week, we will begin planning for our Literary Essay. During this unit, students will be making claims about the similarities they see between two novels they read during our last unit.

Homework: Students should be reading nightly.

Math:

Students are practicing fraction multiplication and division.  Students are preparing for the Mid Unit Assessment which will take place on Wednesday. Also students will complete a computation quiz on Friday.  We have spend ample time preparing in class and the kids should know exactly what to expect. A copy of the January practice test is on the portal.

American History:

We will begin the week by reviewing the results of the Imperialism simulation. Next the students will learn about some reasons for US Imperialism. We will wrap up the week with an activity that will allow the students to analyze political cartoons and primary resources covering events surrounding the Spanish-American War.