In the midst of projects, end-of-trimester assessments, and all of the other things life throws at us, our wonderful TCS middle schoolers hosted the spookiest and most creative Halloween Carnival in our backyard on Tuesday. From haunted houses, poke-the-ghost darts, and a nurses stations to spooky musical chairs, bowling, and t-shirt sales to fundraise for the Maui fires (+ so much more), the middle school students poured their hearts and souls into making this carnival a core memory for the elementary school students. After seeing so many smiles on faces, hearing giggles and spooky shrieks, I’d say they blew all of the expectations out of the water! Growing up in Indiana, Halloween wasn’t widely celebrated like it is here in Charleston, and I couldn’t think of a better way to spend my first Halloween here! Proud is an understatement.


AG


Here’s a look at what is happening in each of the classes:


What’s going on in Science?
Fifth graders finished their National Park models this week! They also finished their presentations that advertise what their park has to offer visitors. They researched more about the region it is located, learning more about temperature, landforms, and wildlife. They will present their parks to the middle school and to parents next week. The sixth graders will then start a new unit about living systems on our planet.


What’s happening in Math?
On Monday, students reviewed for their Unit 3 Assessment on fraction multiplication and division which they took on Thursday, before jumping into their unit of multi-digit multiplication and division on Friday. Next week, students will explore using partial products to solve multi-digit fraction multiplication problems, before exploring the standard algorithm to solve the same types of problems.


What’s happening in ELA?
5th graders completed their study of The Witches this week with fabulous discussions of many literary concepts we’ve learned and original ideas about the main narrator and the themes his behavior revealed. Students turned in thoughtful Powerpoints on their new novel study knowledge in the midst of a busy Halloween week. Bravo!


Next week, 5th graders begin a new unit on writing literary essays – a smooth transition into writing formally about the concepts we’ve been discussing in The Witches. Our grammatists will transition backs to wordsmithing as they study new grade level vocabulary for the next four weeks.


What’s happening in Social Studies?
The fifth graders read and analyzed a biography on Simon Bolivar before learning about the South American countries today. Students learned about the cultures and languages that we see today on the continent. Students finished the unit by being asked to map the South American countries.


Next week, the students will finish their unit with an assessment before starting their European unit. Students will learn about the early cultures of Europe before diving deep into Ancient Greece. Students will learn about Greek mythology and then be asked to create a Greek God or Goddess themselves!


Important Dates:
November 6th – Parent Teacher Conferences (Half Day-11:30 Dismissal)
November 7th – Parent Teacher Conferences (Half Day11:30 Dismissal)
November 8th – 5th Grade National Parks Presentation 2pm
November 17th – Harvest Feast (Half Day)
November 20th-24th – Thanksgiving Break