Smooth Sailing into September
Having finished a whirl-wind of a curriculum night, gotten into the thick of our first units of study, and settled into our routines, back-to-school to-dos feel like they are finally complete. While back-to-school can be a stressful time for parents, teachers, and students alike, there has been something in the air at The Cooper School for the past several weeks that has made every day feel more exciting and adventurous than the day before. With students taking risks in their learning, engaging in meaningful conversations, and building intentional friendships, this first (almost) month of school has been anything but stressful.
Although I’ve only been on board at The Cooper School for about a month, I can whole-heartedly feel and see what makes The Cooper School so special. I have high expectations that every month at The Cooper School will feel as exciting and adventurous as this first month has.
-Allison Gold
Here’s a look at what is happening in each of the classes:
What’s happening in Science?
Sixth graders explored pressure this week! They manipulated syringes to explore how the pressure impacts the compression of air. They also experimented with water pressure vessels, to observe how air pressure impacts fluids. The sixth graders applied their knowledge of pressure by making air pressure maps similar to what they see on weather forecasts. Lastly, they considered how latitude impacts weather and climate around the globe. They worked on understanding how to locate cities using the coordinate system. Next week, they will experiment with the density of fluids and how it impacts weather.
What’s up in ELA?
6th graders are reaching the end of Boy this week. We pushed one another towards more and more detail in our annotations, going over the annotation rubric by which readers will be graded next Friday. 6th graders also began grammar lessons this week, starting with preposition work– dissecting a prepositional phrase and considering its function in a sentence.
Next week, we’ll participate in a short-form writing response workshop where we answer a prompt that connects to Boy. Readers will then be assessed on a similarly formatted question the next day. Grammar instruction will move into the ‘deletion’ of prepositions to reveal subjects and a variety of verb forms in a sentence.
What’s going on in Math?
This week, 6th graders reviewed concepts of area, surface area, and nets, and took their test on Friday! I’m beyond proud of how hard students have worked to prepare for the test! They thoughtfully completed study guides, engaged in review games, and asked intentional questions.
Next week, 6th graders will be introduced to ratios by exploring diagrams, recipes, and equivalent ratios.
What’s happening in Social Studies?
This week students learned about the different empires that formed in the Fertile Crescent. Students created a Venn Diagram comparing the first empires and their characteristics! Students were then challenged to map the different empires, depicting the differences in the sizes of the first 6 empires of this region. Students ended the week by learning about the different beliefs of this area, and specifically learning the history and basics of Judaism.
Next week, the students will prepare for their assessment on the Mesopotamian Region. Students will then progress into their new unit focusing on Egypt and Kush. Students will begin their unit by looking into the Quest. A quest is a unit long project that asks the students to answer one question; “What makes a great leader?” Students will begin to answer this question as they start the unit by learning about Egyptian Society under Pharaohs.
Important Dates:
Friday, September 15th- Parent Coffee (8:15-9:00)
Saturday, September 23rd- Charleston Battery Family Fun Night
Monday-Tuesday, October 9-10 Fall Break
