Autumn is in the Air!
For many of us, October marks the beginning of autumn. Fall break, crisp mornings, Halloween, and changing leaves give my midwest heart loads and loads of joy. During a conversation with a few fifth graders, we were discussing our favorite parts of fall – all of which had the underlying theme of fall colors. The fall color-scape is one of the most diverse of the year, and we love being surrounded by it.
This is exactly how I’ve felt about the students here in the first few months of the year – so overjoyed and lucky to be surrounded by such uniqueness and diversity. October is bound to be full of new life, diversity, and uniqueness in the TCS middle school! Like the changing seasons, I am stoked to continue to watch these students grow into the amazing humans they are destined to be.
-AG
Here’s a look at what is happening in each of the classes:
What’s happening in Science?
Sixth graders explored more about renewable and nonrenewable resources this week. They learned how fossil fuels are created and how they take millions of years to be created, compared to renewable resources which will not run out. They also took a quiz to see how big their carbon footprint is to consider ways they can reduce their carbon intake. The sixth graders read through articles about climate change to contemplate how the background of a writer impacts their perspective on the work. Lastly, they worked diligently on their Ted Talks about climate change solutions. Next week, they will explore fluid conduction.
What’s up in ELA?
This week in 6th grade, we worked on rewriting. 6th grade writers worked hard to identify the most meaningful parts of their personal stories and expand them with more detail in the next draft. Students collaborated with one another by reading and giving feedback on their writing partners’ pieces.
Next week, 6th grade will return from Fall Break to make final touches to their personal narratives, publish their work in google classroom, share stories with their peers, and display their pieces in the classroom.
What’s going on in Math?
This week, students applied their knowledge of ratios to real life by studying unit prices, unit rates, and speeds before diving into percentages. Next week, 6th graders will use tape diagrams to help build their understanding of percentages before they explore the relationship between percentages and fractions, and solve percentages word problems involving sales.
What’s happening in Social Studies?
This week, the sixth graders dove into the Indus Valley Civilization, by solving the mystery of why the civilization was abandoned. Students learned the different theories of the end of the civilization before creating one of their own. Student’s then moved into the beliefs of the region by studying the Vedic Age and then taking part in a jigsaw activity differentiating Hinduism and Buddhism.
Next week, the students will dive into some of the early empires of the region. Students will learn about the Maurya and the Gupta Empires before choosing one of the empires to then create a diary entry of life during that time.
Important Dates:
October 9-10 – Fall Break (No School)
October 11 – Cooper Clusters
October 18- Parent Lemonade (2:00-2:45)
October 31 – Halloween Carnival (½ Day)
November 1 – Teacher Work Day (No School)
