With the storms brewing this past week and the feelings of uncertainty, and maybe even fear, they can bring, I am brought back to the discussion my advisory held a few weeks back. We explored the autumnal equinox and what it entails scientifically – which is often where most people stop. Much like I speak about the “winter arc”, I view the autumnal equinox as a pivotal moment in our year – especially here in Charleston. September is very much a goodbye to the summer (even though it might not feel like it – my glasses fogged up every morning when I left my house), as we dive into earlier nights and chillier temps. This shift in energy feels HUGE for us – as we have seemingly become immune to the morbid heat and humidity the south brings us every summer.
However, the kids and I often talk about how our calendar years feel like they start in August. With a new school year comes new aspirations, hopes, dreams, and goals – and the autumnal equinox is an ideal time to evaluate our goals and their progress, and shift the energy if needed. During this point in the school year, we often fall complacent. Six weeks is enough time to learn the routines and find ourselves coasting along – until we catch ourselves – and now is the time! What habits have we created? Do they align with our goals? What things have we grown this summer? Do they align with our goals? What things can we shed to better align ourselves with our goals?
I did this activity and created a tree in my classroom, where green leaves represent growth, and orange leaves represent sheds. From the kiddos, I noticed hopes of growth in family time, patience, and confidence, while I noted hopes to shed things like screen time, co-dependence, and preconceptions. How awesome is it that our ten-fourteen year olds can identify these things in themselves? Surely, we, adults, can do the same.
I challenge not just myself and the kids, but all of us to use this major shift in our atmosphere – whether it brings on feelings of fear or uncertainty – to help us realign ourselves with what we want. What habits can we nourish, what habits can we shed, and what can we grow instead to help us be the best version of ourselves?
-Allison
ELA- 7th grade continued their reading of Gather this week, tracking how the climax of Ian’s story and the social groups in the novel communicated a theme. We also worked on our literary conflict trading cards, due 10/9. Students began another grammar unit, learning about direct objects, indirect objects, and subject complements.
Next week, 7th graders test for grammar on Thursday, 10/9, so be sure to use the study guides coming home on Monday! We will finish our novel study and play with conflict trading cards next Thursday, as well!
Science- This week in science 7th grade explored craters on the moon’s surface. Students conducted an experiment to find the effect of mass and speed on the size of craters. Students then learned about different types of craters and the frequency of objects impacting the moon and the Earth. Next week students will explore space beyond the moon. They will classify the different objects we find in space and investigate different theories about the moon’s formation.
Social Studies- Seventh grade students have been learning about the Latin American empires and how they lived before the arrival of Europeans on the continent. Their class discussions and group work in this unit has been amazing and I am impressed by their questions and their desire to learn more about the continents and how people used to live. Next week we start European exploration and them arriving in the Americas and their impact on the world.
Math- This week in math, 7th graders reviewed what they’ve learned so far about scale and dilation before taking a quiz on Thursday. They were assessed on their ability to find scale factor, apply a scale factor, and evaluate similarity vs. congruence.
Next week, we’ll continue exploring congruence and it’s relation to slope and similarity. We’ll take our first stab at slope (rise/run) by translating triangles to help us understand where slope comes from, what it is, and how we find it.
