Week 8 - October 25, 2010

Dear Parents,

Can he do it?

Everyone is excited about the 8^th grade haunted house and of course Halloween Fair. It has been our tradition to dress up after lunch, visit the Nursing Home then return to an afternoon of fun and it saddens me to hear some of the 8^th grade boys complaining about having to take the time to visit the Nursing Home. This attitude seems to be at the root of many challenges we face. As we give students greater freedom we expect them to take greater responsibility. Responsibility requires thinking beyond one's immediate needs.

The 5^th and 6^th graders continue to work on their Life Thru Time Play. The performance will be on Friday, November 12^th at about 2:30PM. The 7^th and 8^th graders did an activity called “Contagious Classroom”. The students simulation the spread of the flu by exchanging some of the contents of each others cups. After the exchanges, I added an indicator to each cup to measure the amount of “flu” each student had. The purple color made it obvious that some students were quite ill and others just had a mild case.

Loose tooth

The 8^th grade math students have begun their final investigation and will be finishing the unit on the Pythagorean Theorem next week. The 6^th graders are exploring fraction to decimal conversions and the 5^th graders are learning to use protractors, compasses and geometry templates.

Week 7 - October 18, 2010

Dear Parents,

The biggest events of the week included finalizing NECAPS and getting ready for Parent Teacher conferences.

Although everyone found the process tiring, students worked very hard on their assessments. This weekend Mrs. Kennedy and I will happily finalize this process by packing up the tests and getting them ready to ship out.
I have noticed a strong correlation between parent-teacher conference attendance and student progress. This trimester we have had a light turn out. I hope that meant most parents feel they have a good handle on their child’s progress. We are happy to talk to you any time you have any questions or comments.
Students have been bringing in deodorant/perfume and spraying it in the classrooms or on the bus. There are two issues. Some students and staff are allergic or sensitive to this and some students have sprayed other students in the face. Would you help us with this by keeping these items at home?

The 5th and 6th graders are developing a play to depict the evolution of life on the planet. We don't have a date for the performance yet. The 7th and 8th graders are tracking down a mysterious disease. This science unit requires that students learn about viral, bacteria and protozoan-caused diseases in order to track down the culprit.

The 5th, 6th and 8th grade math classes are working on multiplication strategies, fractions and the Pythagorean theorem, respectively.

October 15, 2010

Dear Parents,

The highlight of this week was the return of Nick and Marena. The class just didn't seem complete without them and it is good to see the boys' snack group reconvene under the white board.

This was the first week of frost. Many plants have been removed from the garden but soon everything will need to be covered or pulled. The 6th graders began some of this cleanup work. A special thanks goes to Tyler. He took on the fence project and made a lot of progress. Arianna and Brooke planted garlic. For pictures, go to the The Learning Garden Blog:
http://penobscotgarden.blogspot.com/

Next week is the final week of NECAPS. Students have shown exceptional focus and effort. I appreciate your attempts to make sure your child is coming to school rested and prepared to learn.
Mrs. Kennedy and I are at a Technology and Education conference. We have seen some amazing things, learned a lot and had some fun.

If you have not done so already, please call Mrs. Kilpeck and arrange for a Parent-Teacher conference. I look forward to seeing you next week.


I hope you have a great weekend!

Week 6 - October 11, 2010

The highlight of this week was the return of Nick and Marena. The class just didn't seem complete without them and it is good to see the boys' snack group reconvene under the white board.

• This was the first week of frost. Many plants have been removed from the garden but soon everything will need to be covered or pulled. The 6^th graders began some of this cleanup work. A special thanks goes to Tyler. He took on the fence project and made a lot of progress. Arianna and Brooke planted garlic. For pictures, go to the The Learning Garden Blog: http://penobscotgarden.blogspot.com/

• Next week is the final week of NECAPS. Students have shown exceptional focus and effort. I appreciate your attempts to make sure your child is coming to school rested and prepared to learn.

• Mrs. Kennedy and I are at a Technology and Education conference. We have seen some amazing things, learned a lot and had some fun.

If you have not done so already, please call Mrs. Kilpeck and arrange for a Parent-Teacher conference. I look forward to seeing you next week.

October 1, 2010

Dear Parents,

We ended last week by attending the Common Ground Fair. The weather was damp but the fair was less crowded. All the students enjoyed themselves and came back with new experiences and memories.
I am sure that all of you know Rocky was found by Jakob McKay and Wyatt McKechnie. Since then Rocky has enjoyed some modifications to his tank and Mrs. Kennedy's husband is working on a better tank enclosure. On Wednesday night, Rocky shed his skin. Students were amazed at the process and impressed with the length of the shed.
The 5th and 6th graders are taking a break from their current science unit, Life Through Time, to write a compare/contrast paper on fish and amphibians. At the end of each major time period in our unit, students vote for the organism that best represents the time period. If you have ever had a chance to see them in the variety shows, you know that Mr. Cole, Mrs. Hasselbrack, Ms. Currier and Mrs. Kilpeck have lots of acting talent. These actors have delighted students with their impersonations of jellyfish, sponges, sea squids, worms and many other organisms.
The 7th and 8th graders are working on a unit which combines math and science. Students are learning how to make mathematical comparisons of data from the Center for Disease Control. The data I chose to use this year is mortality rates for pneumonia and influenza. Students are currently finishing a writing/research assignment on a particular pandemic.
This week the 5th , 6th , and 8th graders completed their first unit test in math.
Laura