While the cooler weather hasn’t arrived quite yet, we are getting into the Fall spirit at The Cooper School. This week, the students have begun to brainstorm ideas for the Halloween Carnival. The committees have been set and the excitement is building. Students have chosen which booths they will run for the elementary school, decorations for the carnival, and costume awards for grades Kindergarten through 4th. 

In addition to carnival prep, the middle school took a trip to Fort Sumter this week. The students thoroughly enjoyed visiting and exploring a National Park while they are currently in the midst of creating one of their own! They were part of a special flag raising ceremony and they received many compliments from bystanders!

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

What’s happening in Science:

Historians are delving into America’s past, present, and future this week! Our trip to Fort Sumter fostered a mature discussion on whether to conserve or preserve our natural resources. They looked at the views of President Theodore Roosevelt, a conservationist, and John Muir, a preservationist, to contemplate which philosophy adhered with their own views. Historians also learned about the Supreme Court ruling of Obergefell v. Hodges on same sex marriage, and applied their new knowlegde to consider other laws that would deprive people of life, liberty, and property without due process of law.

What’s up in Math?

Mathematicians are nearing the middle of Unit 2. We have been exploring scaled copies, scale factors, and we are now creating our own scale copies. Next week, we will begin to explore dilations and how to create scale copies using a coordinate grid. Towards the end of the unit, we will learn and investigate slope as it relates to linear functions on the coordinate plane. Students have a Mid-Unit Assessment next Wednesday, October 13. 

What’s happening in ELA:

This week seventh grade students have been developing their writing of “realistic fictions.” At the beginning of this week, students completed an assessment of their writing. Parents, you’ve got writers! I needed to know their writing ability so that I could measure their growth at the end of this writing unit. We’ve also discovered that writers get ideas for stories by imagining stories they wish existed in the world. Stories that can uncover and explore truths about their own particular circumstances, longings, and struggles. Students have 10 minutes of writing and 15 minutes of reading for homework assignments. Next week, they will start their two weeks rotation on learning grammar skills.

Important Dates:

October 18th & 19th: Fall Break NO SCHOOL

October 22nd: Booth Materials brought to school

October 29th: Halloween Carnival 11:30 Dismissal