Shelly & Justin 20/21 Blog

Hello all and Happy New Year. Students took the level set assessment in ACHIEVE3000 this week. This resource compiles articles about many topics and allows students to read them at their instruction level. Though this is just one set of data that your student is provided, lexile levels for 6th grade students to be proficient are between 950-1070. Here is a quick reference for lexile levels. We will use this resource at least one time per week and depending on how your child does on completing the questions from the article, it will adjust their lexile level on a monthly basis.  In Social Studies, we will turn our attention to Ancient Egypt. We will look at the Egyptian Creation Myth, geography, social class system, paper making, clothing, art, etc... Overall this unit will be more hands-on. Today in Social Studies, we had a discussion around the events at the US Capitol yesterday. We went through a timeline of events, who works in the capitol, how people felt that work in the capit...

Hello and happy December! We had such a lovely time working on our clay Sumerian tablets in Social Studies. Though the class time was fun, it made me miss being at school that much more. I love the chatter of middle schoolers and the relaxing nature when we do class projects. We will study AD, BC, BCE, and CE this week. During the last two weeks prior to winter break, we will have a justice unit. During this time we will look into different types of justice and study Ancient African Rights and Laws. We will end our unit with a modified Socratic Seminar the day before break. In ELA, we are in the processing of choosing a topic for our soapbox speeches which we will finish before break as well. Students will learn note-taking skills, how to make an effective attention grabber and closer, and what to include in the body of their speech. 

Hello all. Reminder that all students in 6th grade can pick up some clay that we will use in Social Studies class in the next couple of weeks. We will use the clay when discussing early ancient writing. The building is open Monday-Friday from 8am-4pm. Please reach out if you would like me to deliver the clay to your house.  In Language Arts we are wrapping up our book unit. During this unit, we started each class with a mini lesson on a specific element of fiction (plot structure, character traits, symbolism). After the students had time to read a bit, they completed a journal prompt tied to the element of fiction that was taught that day. We will finish next week as we tie our books into some of the 13 principles of the Black lives matter movement.   There will be a written and visual art piece to this closing assignment.  In Social Studies, we are finishing up a week of taking focused notes using Cornell notes. Students will answer the essential question for this c...

Happy November! Quarter 2 started today so students should have one or two classes that switch for 7th OR 8th hour. Report cards will be finalized on Wednesday, so they are subject to change up until then. Here is quick video to watch regarding the new report cards. In Social Studies, we shifted last week to analyzing campaign ads, looking at who gets to vote and why, learning about the electoral college, and uncover our values that may lead to who you may vote for. Next week, we will learn about the shift from hunters and gathering to farmers. During this unit, students will learn how to take Cornell notes. If possible, please print out a few copies of the Cornell Note template found in your email as it will help students next Monday. If you want some note templates dropped off, please let me know. Students can also use a notebook and set up their notes using the Cornell style.  In ELA, we have switched to a book unit. Students chose a fiction book they are reading while we discus...

  Science: Poop! Students are learning about fecal transplants and how they affect a person's gut microbiome.  They are also working on writing their first scientific argument that contains a claim, evidence and reasoning.  Friday Oct 16 will be their final test for the Microbiome Unit and well move on to study the Metabolism.  Ask your child to share some of the key vocabulary or key concepts form their Sci notebook. Math 6 & 6/7:  Working on Area/Perimeter, Data collection, generic rectangles, Prime & Composite Numbers and Prime Factorizations. Covering lots in the first chapter and beginning of 2nd chapter of our CPM curriculum.  Chapter 1 does a lot of review and its been useful as many kids had wholes left over from our SPring semester online and a long summer.  Chapter 2 moves into some really new material like prime factorization.  This is a skill that many kids will need more practice with so ask your child to show you a prime fact...

Hello! Hope this finds you well. Social Studies Early People Project presentations start on Monday. I have been meeting one on one with the students are they are coming together well! Few reminders: Oct 22nd in Social Studies we will have a guest speaker from BLOC (feel free to join us). October 23rd there is no school for students. In Language Arts, we will take the eReading assessment on Tuesday & Thursday (10/20 & 10/22) Taking the aReading assessment During in person instruction students took short Reading and Math Readiness assessments at the start of the school year to help teachers determine what were the next instructional steps for each child. The FastBridge assessments are usually given at school, but this time, we need students to take it from a distance. Students will benefit from your support and encouragement to ensure the information received accurately reflects what they know and still need to learn.   The staff at Velma Hamilton Middle School, along with d...