8 South Newsletter
December 2013
Language Arts
Before the winter break, students concluded a three-week unit on poetry and the authors that write it. The students began by researching an author. Then, the students read some of the poet's work and analyzed it for meaning and poetic devices. Finally, the students made connections between the author's work and his/her life. Because of this sequence of lessons and assignments, the students were able to read poetry that was new to them and understand that an author's life affects his/her work.
In January, the students will be embarking on another short unit that is focused on identifying bias within an author's work. The students will be reading an editorial, "The Trouble with Television" by Robert MacNeil. The students will examine this piece to identify the author's voice and any possible bias. The students will also look at other aspects of the writing, such as the main idea, the organization, and the support that the author presents. Identifying bias is a life skill that all of the students will be able to better understand through the course of this unit.
Math
Both algebra and pre-algebra students have learned about functions and are now learning about slopes and intercepts. They will learn how to find the slope and y-intercept of a line in order to write an equation for the line. However, there are big differences in what each class is doing with these concepts. Algebra students are expected to learn these concepts quicker, and then immediately apply them to multifaceted real world applications; on the other hand, pre-algebra students are getting an overview of all these concepts and developing an understanding for how they can be represented in words, pictures, graphs, tables, mappings, and equations.
Science
The start of the New Year will also be the start of a new and completely different unit. We will be jumping from life science to force and motion that will include exploration of Newton’s Laws and how they apply to the Earth, Moon and tides. This unit will afford the opportunity for more hands on activities than the reproduction unit and will also incorporate several math concepts.
Global Studies
Before the vacation, students learned about the birth of democracy in Ancient Athens. Students had a chance to participate in an Ancient Athenian assembly. This simulation gave students a chance to practice and get feedback on their oral presentation skills, which is a focus for us this year.
In January, we will continue our unit on Greece, by studying the Persian and Peloponnesian Wars and the achievements of the Ancient Greeks. As the students investigate these topics, they will need to focus on several overarching historical questions: How should a country or civilization respond to hostility from foreign groups,how does geography shape society, and how are some societies able to flourish while others decline? During the remainder of this unit students will also be working on the skill of summarization.
Writing
In the first part of January, studentswill be completing a benchmark assessment to evaluate their narrative essay skills. In the second half of the month, students will be writing an argumentative essay on an aspect of school they would like to change. As will all essays, we will focus on the process of developing an essay as well as the skills of revision.
Upcoming Dates and Events:
MLK Jr. Day – No School- January 20th
End of Quarter 2- January 24th
Questions or Comments?
Team Leader and Math:
Mark Gostkiewicz
Language Arts:
Joshua Strecker
Science:
Robb White
Global Studies:
Rebecca Suntheimer
Special Education:
John Woitovich
School Counselor:
Doug Gagne