“What makes The Cooper School…The Cooper School?” is a question the teachers discussed Wednesday morning before the students arrived. We talked about the students’ love for learning, projects, community, inclusivity, and more. However, one comment that stands out was made by Ms. Maggie, when she mentioned how the middle school students are not conforming to the social norm established not just by society, but also by the clicky groups that are typically made in middle schools. Reflecting on her comment, I paid extra attention to the lack of cliche pre-teen norms that are not part of our daily life at school. Yes, there are groups of kids that have common interests and hang-out outside of school with private text chains, however, all groups accept everyone in the middle school for who they are and would consider their feelings. Everyone isn’t wearing the same thing, or talking exactly the same, or afraid to show their true selves. Middle school can be such a tricky time, when adolescents are figuring themselves out through peer approval. It’s pretty special to see our kids figuring themselves out without the typical judgment that can make this period hard.
-LD
Math:
This week, we began multiplying unit fractions by whole numbers and applying this skill to finding the area of rectangles with fractional side lengths. Next week, we’ll wrap up this unit on fractions as division by beginning our review work. Our test over this unit will be on Monday, September 30th. Students will receive a study guide next week!
ELA:
This week in ELA, 5th grade essayists learned traditional essay structure. As a model for the value of re-reading a text, students viewed, reviewed, and then annotated the transcript of a short documentary film about a small soccer team in Thailand. The wealth of notes and evidence they took down was then used to draft a thesis and outline for a mini essay. 5th grade also took part in their first grammar unit of the year. They have begun preparing for their first grammar test next Wednesday.
Next week, essayists will draft their mini essay and receive individual and small group feedback. Writers will then begin preparing for their long form essay based on their notes and ideas from the last unit’s reading of Hello, Universe.
Social Studies:
The fifth graders are finishing their human geography projects and I am impressed with how well they are doing so far! We have finished our first test of the year and will be moving into the western hemisphere. They have been working hard and I cannot wait to begin our new unit!
Science:
Fifth graders learned about renewable and non-renewable resources. They learned how fossil fuels are made and why they take so long to be created. The fifth graders took a quiz to see how many Earths are required to support their lifestyle and then came up with ideas that could reduce their ecological footprint. The fifth graders also presented their influential scientist slide shows…they were great!
Important Dates:
October 14 & 15: Fall Break- No School
October 31: Halloween Carnival (11:30 Dismissal)
