The Cooper School Daily
April 12, 2024
A Tree, a Symbol of Growth
A Tree, a Symbol of Growth
By: Emmylou Allen
A tree swaying in the field of sweet spring,
a story to tell needing to be heard.
The vivid colors that autumn soon bring,
in the restless strong wind, colors so blurred.
Winter comes; new appearances await.
With winter comes a terrible escape.
In my comfort, coziness is my fate,
weighed down by heavy snow branches agape.
As the sun hits my back, so leaves grow back.
My skin transforms – a golden tan arrives.
Sunshine’s rays in this time they never lack.
The old, wise trees have lived many past lives.
Trees grow tall as I grow into myself.
Lessons of nature give me words of wealth.
The line “trees grow tall as I grow into myself” suits this season of life for our middle schoolers so well. As we reflect back on the past school year, I’ve seen so much growth physically, academically, and emotionally in the TCS middle schoolers. They’ve stepped into their respective roles, taken charge of their academics, and grown into themselves.
-AG
Here’s a look at what is happening in each of the classes:
What’s happening in Science?
Seventh graders learned about chemical reactions this week. They burned sucrose, which changed the sucrose into something completely different before their eyes. They also added oxygen to limewater to chemically change calcium hydroxide into a new substance. The seventh graders learned how to balance the chemical equation they made while blowing carbon dioxide into the limewater. Next week, they will consider how kinetic energy impacts thermal design.
What’s up in Math?
This week, 7th graders expanded their knowledge of exponents to write really big and small numbers in scientific notation using powers of 10. Next week, we’ll wrap up this unit through exponent challenges before we dive into our final unit of study!
What’s happening in ELA?
7th graders worked hard to prepare their sonnet presentations at the top of the week – rehearsing with constructive feedback and encouragement from peers. We also continued rough drafting our graphic novels through sketching thumbnails and planning dialogue. We workshopped our cartooning skills as we look forward to drawing real pages next week!
Next week, graphic novelists will carefully craft the official pages of their novels, paying attention to the way we create “page turner stories” with visuals and captions. We will proofread run-on sentences and review verb types in grammar.
What’s going on in Social Studies?
Seventh graders finished their studies on the Civil War this week. Students were then challenged to use their knowledge to not only complete a study guide, but a unit assessment as well.
Next week, the seventh graders will be going on a field trip to see Show Way The Musical at the Gaillard. This will act as a perfect ending to our Civil War unit before we progress into the Reconstruction Era. Students will spend the remainder of the week studying the different plans that were proposed during this time period before choosing one that they would implement.
Important Dates:
April 17: Middle School Sports Banquet- 5pm
April 19: 1st, 5th, and 7th Grade Artist of the Month- 8:15am
April 27: Spring Auction & Gala- 6pm @ Founder’s Hall (tickets available until 4/12)
By: Emmylou Allen
A tree swaying in the field of sweet spring,
a story to tell needing to be heard.
The vivid colors that autumn soon bring,
in the restless strong wind, colors so blurred.
Winter comes; new appearances await.
With winter comes a terrible escape.
In my comfort, coziness is my fate,
weighed down by heavy snow branches agape.
As the sun hits my back, so leaves grow back.
My skin transforms – a golden tan arrives.
Sunshine’s rays in this time they never lack.
The old, wise trees have lived many past lives.
Trees grow tall as I grow into myself.
Lessons of nature give me words of wealth.
The line “trees grow tall as I grow into myself” suits this season of life for our middle schoolers so well. As we reflect back on the past school year, I’ve seen so much growth physically, academically, and emotionally in the TCS middle schoolers. They’ve stepped into their respective roles, taken charge of their academics, and grown into themselves.
-AG
Here’s a look at what is happening in each of the classes:
What’s happening in Science?
Seventh graders learned about chemical reactions this week. They burned sucrose, which changed the sucrose into something completely different before their eyes. They also added oxygen to limewater to chemically change calcium hydroxide into a new substance. The seventh graders learned how to balance the chemical equation they made while blowing carbon dioxide into the limewater. Next week, they will consider how kinetic energy impacts thermal design.
What’s up in Math?
This week, 7th graders expanded their knowledge of exponents to write really big and small numbers in scientific notation using powers of 10. Next week, we’ll wrap up this unit through exponent challenges before we dive into our final unit of study!
What’s happening in ELA?
7th graders worked hard to prepare their sonnet presentations at the top of the week – rehearsing with constructive feedback and encouragement from peers. We also continued rough drafting our graphic novels through sketching thumbnails and planning dialogue. We workshopped our cartooning skills as we look forward to drawing real pages next week!
Next week, graphic novelists will carefully craft the official pages of their novels, paying attention to the way we create “page turner stories” with visuals and captions. We will proofread run-on sentences and review verb types in grammar.
What’s going on in Social Studies?
Seventh graders finished their studies on the Civil War this week. Students were then challenged to use their knowledge to not only complete a study guide, but a unit assessment as well.
Next week, the seventh graders will be going on a field trip to see Show Way The Musical at the Gaillard. This will act as a perfect ending to our Civil War unit before we progress into the Reconstruction Era. Students will spend the remainder of the week studying the different plans that were proposed during this time period before choosing one that they would implement.
Important Dates:
April 17: Middle School Sports Banquet- 5pm
April 19: 1st, 5th, and 7th Grade Artist of the Month- 8:15am
April 27: Spring Auction & Gala- 6pm @ Founder’s Hall (tickets available until 4/12)