What Matters?

In our Olweus team meeting today, we finished The Richest Man in Town by V.J. Smith.  It's a story about Marty, a man who made a positive difference in the world just by being a good listener and treating everyone he met with kindness.  He was a true friend to all, even though his life was not easy.  There were many wet eyes by the end of the story today, but great lessons were learned about friendship.  Next Friday, we will write a recipe for friendship based on what we feel are the qualities of a good friend.

Language Arts tests were given in class today.  Students did a fine job of demonstrating their knowledge of vocabulary, the story elements, and spelling patterns in the assigned words.  Please check out the test packets sent home today if you have a child in this class.

Although a small portion of Social Studies was spent on a quiz of the West African countries, students also worked on their travel brochures; researching information on the Ipads.  Much information was gathered by the pairs of students for this project that is due in the coming week.

 The students enjoyed hearing from several of our Cecil firemen during a program held at the end of the day.  The men shared information that the students have heard each year, but it's so important to be reminded.  They talked about the importance of keeping fresh batteries in fire alarms within our homes, as well as what a fireman looks like, to prevent them from being frightened.  In fact, they watched a fireman dress in his equipment, while each piece's purpose was discussed in detail.  We all need to be reminded about fire safety from time to time.

Homework:
Reading - Finish your novel and complete your role for next Friday's cafe.
SHARE TEST PACKET AND FRIDAY ENVELOPE CONTENTS.  OH...AND HAVE A WONDERFUL WEEKEND!

How Will it End?

We are finishing our novel in the coming week, and I took a moment in cafe to ask each student to share a prediction or what they are hoping to learn as they finish the novel, From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler.  Most students are interested in knowing if the children will end up back at home and how this will happen.  Some want to know more about the statue of the angel and if it is authentic.  Others are interested in the feud between Mrs. Frankweiler and her attorney.  Why is she writing this letter in the first place?  We will know in time for the next cafe, so stay tuned!

Following the novel, we are excited about a project that we will share with our entire school!  We will be creating a wax museum for everyone to visit on Halloween!  The novel will be divided among groups by chapters.  Each group will choose a scene from the chapter to portray in the museum.  They will illustrate the setting on large paper, create props, and dress as characters.  They will create a summary for those visiting the museum to read.  Finally, on the day of the tour, students will freeze in place like wax dummies to show the scene to the visiting students!  Fun!

Homework:
Reading - Finish novel and complete your assigned role.  Review your story, April's Mud, and spelling words.  Tests are tomorrow!
Social Studies - Review your poke and peek!  Quiz tomorrow.
Wellness - Read 92-95 and complete questions.  

Nelson Mandela's Childhood

Our class learned about the childhood of Nelson Mandela today!  I began sharing the biography, stopping frequently to check for understanding through discussion. Many students had great questions and shared their thoughts.  The students took notes on items that surprised and interested them, and later wrote a paragraph, along with a sketch for use on our upcoming timeline of his life.  They enjoyed hearing about where he lived, his father and mother, how he was given his birth name and western name, the sad and happy times he experienced, his schooling, and lessons he learned about leadership.  The short clip above mentions some of the information shared in today's reading.  Enjoy!

 In addition to learning about Nelson Mandela, we worked on a project with Miss Albitz related to our study of Africa.  Pairs of students were assigned a country.  They are acting as travel agents, putting together a brochure of the country.  Today, they were given directions about the project, and used Ipads to research together. 

TOMORROW IS PICTURE DAY!

Homework:
Math - Hardback book p. 45-46, questions 1-27
Reading - Tomorrow is cafe day!  Be ready with your role!
Spelling - Study using Spelling City activities
Writing - If not finished, complete your Nelson Mandela writing
Social Studies - Study for Friday's test
Wellness - Questions need to be completed for Friday (pg. 92-95)

Learning About Nelson Mandela

In Social Studies, we've been studying the geography of the continent of Africa.  We've learned many interesting things, and will soon learn more about the people and their culture.  As part of our study, the students will be hearing a biography about Nelson Mandela.  To prepare for this story, we watched a brief film called South Africa: A Land Apart.  The film helped us to become more familiar with the land, people, and the governmental changes over the years. 

Apartheid was a word discussed in the film.  The people of Africa were separated by race, much the same as the time of segregation in the United States.  Africans were treated as second class citizens in their native country, similarly to the way Native Americans and African Americans were treated in the U.S.  The biggest difference was that Africans far outnumbered Europeans in Africa.  The Dutch and British were the minority.  The students know from the film that Nelson Mandela was imprisoned and freed after serving a long sentence.  As the biography is shared, they will learn about his childhood, education, and what he did to make a huge change for the better in Africa. 

Our team visited the Book Fair this afternoon!  CISPO did a great job!

 A special thank you to Savannah for her presentation to the class today!  She shared pictures of her Caribbean vacation and items she gathered on her trip.  Everyone enjoyed all that she shared.  In addition, she shared a daily journal with me with reflections of all her interesting experiences.
INDIVIDUAL PICTURES WILL BE TAKEN THIS THURSDAY.

Homework:
Math - Practice sheet
Reading - Read chapters 7-8 in our novel, and complete your role.  Quizzes on April's Mud on Friday.
Spelling - Study
Social Studies - Study.  Team 310 will take their test on Thursday.  All students will be tested on West African countries on Friday.
Wellness - Read pages 92-95 and complete the questions for Friday.

Columbus Day

Happy Monday and happy Columbus Day!  Although we did not review Christopher Columbus's accomplishments at school today, our sixth graders would have learned a bit about him last year when studying the European explorers and their travels.  Some schools and public offices have been closed today to honor him.  Columbus was not the first to discover America, but he left a huge impact.  Some students may remember hearing positive and negative aspects of the Columbian Exchange.  Columbus was searching for the Indies and did not realize that he'd found a new land when he arrived in the Caribbean Islands.  Due to the records he kept and the impact his visit made, he is remembered on this holiday.

Our class learned a bit about the power of words today in P.S.S.A. prep.  We practiced being  word detectives when faced with unfamiliar words in print.  Some of the tips and clues we used were examining surrounding words for synonyms, antonyms, and context clues.  We also considered multiple meanings and words used in certain subject areas.  The students did a fabulous job with examples containing unfamiliar words, and they were able to explain their line of thinking.  Next week, we will fill a Bingo board with unfamiliar words taken from a list, listen to a sentence filled with any of the above clues, and determine which word to mark.  With each word we unlock and make our own, we are helping our vocabularies to grow.  Our knowledge and words are powerful! 

OUR CLASS VISITS THE BOOK FAIR TOMORROW!  

Homework:
Math - Practice sheet
Reading - Read chapters 7&8 and complete role
Spelling - Complete p. 12 in Spelling practice book
Social Studies - Group 308, test tomorrow.  Group 310, test on Thursday.  All students, countries of West Africa quiz on Friday.
Wellness - Read pages 92-95 and complete questions for Friday