Letort's Sixth Grade Blog

We have completed our first week of school.  The students have done a phenomenal job getting back into the routine.  Have a safe and happy long weekend!

Reading
We worked on Lesson 22 over the past two weeks.  In this lesson, we read a nonfiction text about the terracotta warriors of ancient China.    While reading the selection, students completed venn diagram to compare and contrast information presented in the selection.  Students also learned how to interpret graphic aids to support their understanding of the text.

Math
In Mrs. Johnson’s class, students learned the rules for adding, subtracting, multiplying, and dividing positive and negative integers.  We also reviewed the distributive property, and then used it to simplify algebraic expressions.  Additionally, students learned how to solve algebraic equations using positive and negative integers by balancing.  The next test is scheduled for Tuesday

In Mrs. Mitchell’s class, students learned about solids, ordered pairs, and how to solve word problems.  Students then took the Chapter 10 test.  We will begin Chapter 12 on Monday which focuses on area and volume.  Some of the lessons in this chapter are a review.

Science
Students spent time working on a recycling project.  Each child papier mached (using old newspapers) a plastic container and painted it.  Then they used compost to plant a perennial.  The activity was designed to show students how items that are often thrown in the trash can be reused for other purposes, and the little things we do day-to-day can positively impact Mother Earth.  (And hopefully it brought a smile to the mothers on Mother’s Day!)

This week we started the ecology unit.  The students learned the definitions of producer, consumer, and decomposer.  We also discussed food chains and how all living organisms depend upon one another to survive.

Social Studies
Our end of the unit test will be on Wednesday, May 19.  Students should study the information in their packet.  We are in the process of planning our fiesta.  Those who are interested in volunteering their time or cooking skills need to fill out a form that was sent home with your child on Friday.  During our next unit, students will learn about Canada.

Writing/English
In Mrs. Mitchell’s class, we have been learning about adjectives.  Students know how to use the comparative and superlative forms of adjectives, as well as how to use proper adjectives.  In writing,  students are researching their biomes and will be writing their rough draft.  Students have been given time throughout this past week  to work on their report.  It is due on Tuesday, May 18.

In Mrs. Johnson’s class, students learned note-taking skills in preparation for their research reports.  Together we worked on completing an outline on the temperate deciduous forest; we gathered information on the animals, plants, and climate common to this biome, as well as the human impact on this biome.  Students also learned how to fill out bibliography cards on the books and websites from which information is gathered.   This week, students spent several hours at the library gathering research information on their assigned biome.  Next week, students will begin writing the report.
Additionally, we continue to work on Daily Language Review each day to practice grammar skills.

Reading
We started theme 5 in the Storytown series.  Throughout this theme, students will discover how modern communities are linked to the past.  The first story is Ancient Greece; students will learn about the history and people of Greece.  While reading the selection, students will complete graphic organizers such as venn diagrams to compare and contrast information presented in the selection.  Students will also learn about various study techniques such as SQ3R, K-W-L charts, and outlines.

Math
In math during the fourth marking period, Mrs. Johnson will be teaching a pre-algebra class for those sixth grade students who qualified based on their performance on the math placement test given in March.  In this class, students have been learning how to write and solve algebraic expressions and equations.  We also learned how to calculate the absolute value of an equation.  Additionally, students learned about the four quadrants of the coordinate system and how to locate points on this system as well as how to determine the domain and range of relations.

In Mrs. Mitchell’s class, students have learned about reflections (flips), translations (slides), and rotations (turns).  We also discussed diagonals and symmetry.  Our last lesson involved deciding if an answer was reasonable.

Science
Last week students spent time researching their assigned inventors and preparing for their oral presentations.  This week students had the opportunity to present their research findings to their peers.  The presentations were very entertaining!  We also discussed patents and why they are important to the creation of new inventions.  Test on Monday!

Social Studies
Students can now have a short conversation in Spanish.  They are enjoying the ability to converse in another language.  We have also learned about the cultures that have shaped Mexico, as well as ways in which Mexicans earn a living.  Students will be given a quiz soon on the information that we have already covered.

Writing/English
In Mrs. Mitchell’s class we finished learning about verbs and will then discuss modifiers.  Our final writing piece is an informational about biomes.  Students will be describing the animal and plant life, as well as the climate.  The piece will end with the students describing how humans have impacted their biome.

In Mrs. Johnson’s class, we are continuing the English unit on modifiers.  The students learned about adverbs and what they modify.  We discussed how to write the comparative and superlative forms of adverbs.  Students also learned about negatives and how to avoid double negatives in a sentence.  The unit test is scheduled for Friday, May 7.   Additionally, we continue to work on Daily Language Review each day to practice grammar skills.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Car Wash Update
On Saturday, April 24, some of LeTort’s sixth graders helped at a car wash to raise money for the Milagro House in Lancaster.  We would like to thank everyone who supported the car wash.  We are very happy to announce that we raised $667.36.  Way to go sixth grade!  Thank you to all who supported this community outreach project!

Reading
In Lesson 16, students read a biography on John Harrison.  While reading, students posed inferential and critical questions related to the text as a strategy to improve their comprehension.  During this lesson, we discussed the difference between first-person and third-person point of view.  In Lesson 17, students read an excerpt from Jerry Spinelli’s Maniac Magee.  Again, we generated questions as we read the text to aid in our comprehension of the story’s plot.  For our focus skill, we delved a little deeper into the idea of point of view and discussed the difference between third-person limited and third-person omniscient.

Book clubs continue to meet every cycle day 6.  Students have been dialoguing with their group members about the assigned readings and sharing their responses to the questions.  Students are reading the final pages of the book.  Ask your child to share a prediction of how they think the story will end.

Math
In both classes, we started chapter 11 which focuses on percents.  Students learned how to calculate percent of a number, which they then applied to calculating discounts, sales tax, and interest.  Students will also learn how to create a budget.  This chapter teaches lots of good “life skills.”  The chapter 11 test will be next week.

Science
We started the next unit, which focuses on inventors and inventions.  We have been looking at our day-to-day living and discussing how inventions impact all that we do; we’ve also discussed how drastically different our lives would be without these inventions and contemplated what life must have been like before certain inventions were created (i.e. refrigerators, blue jeans, can openers, toothbrushes).  At the end of this unit, students will be required to think of their own invention, and if possible, create a prototype of their idea.  These ideas will be showcased at our “invention convention.”  (More details to come.)

Social Studies
We wrapped up learning about Civil Rights by viewing the DVD, The Children’s March.  While watching the video, students chatted on Moodle about their thoughts and feelings about how children impacted civil rights.  Our next unit, Mexico, began at the end of the week.  We will start out by learning about the geography of Mexico.

Writing/English
In Mrs. Mitchell’s class, we are currently working on a variety of poems.  We completed an acrostic poem where students had to use the letters of their name to describe themselves.  Originally, I was going to move on to an alphabet poem, but instead I will have the students complete a shape poem first.  In English, we are still focusing on verbs.  We learned about the principal parts of verbs, as well as subject-verb agreement.

In Mrs. Johnson’s class, students have been feverishly working on their informational essays.  Students revised their first draft and wrote a final rough draft.  Then they spent time editing.  They are now working on writing the published copy.   All final copies are due on Monday.   We also continue to work on Daily Language Review each day to practice grammar skills.

Math Bowl Team
Last week, numerous students gave up recesses to try out for the sixth grade Math Bowl team.  The students completed a series of tests, each one consisting of fifteen math problems.  After evaluating the answers and tallying the totals, the following students were selected to represent Letort at this year’s Math Bowl competition:  Emily Ferrick, Emily Heckman, Cece Minnick, and Emily Robb.  Congratulation to these students and a HUGE thank you to all who tried out!

Reading
Our first two lessons in Theme 2 focused on plot and character.  Students have been analyzing the personality traits of the main character and discussing how these traits impact the plot of a story.  The stories we read in class were “Befiddled” and “S.O.R. Losers.”  We have also been looking at vocabulary words that have multiple meanings and discussing how to use context clues to determine the appropriate definition of a word.

Book clubs also met for the first time this week.  Students dialogued with their group members about the assigned reading and shared the role that they had completed (i.e. artful artist, word wizard, connector).  Ask you child to share with you what their book is about and whether or not they are enjoying the story so far.

Math

In Mrs. Johnson’s and Mrs. Mitchell’s math classes, students learned to write and solve division expressions and equations.  We also talked about how to use the order of operations (“Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally.) to solve challenging, multi-step equations.  In another lesson, students learned how estimate division equations using compatible numbers.  We also did problem solving where students had to decide whether or not an answer was reasonable based on the information presented in the problem.  Mrs. Johnson’s class did problem solving that involved creating a list or table to find the correct answer.  Some of Mrs. Johnson’s enrichment activities over the past two weeks included solving multi-step equations, “mystery numbers,” and “magic squares.”

Science
In our meteorology unit, students learned about humidity and relative humidity and about hygrometers, which are used to find the air’s humidity level.  We also talked about radar and how it is used to track storm systems.  In the Kids Discover magazine on weather, we read about different clues in nature that relate to weather forecasting.

Social Studies
Our Reconstruction unit is over.  We are now moving on to Immigration.  Students will learn why people immigrated, what they brought with them, what the voyage was like to America, as well as how they began their new lives in America.  We will be using the book Immigrant Kids to guide us through this unit.

Writing/English
In Mrs. Mitchell’s class, students completed their personal narratives.  Our next writing piece will involve persuasive writing.  In English, we discussed conjunctions and compound sentences.  We will be finishing our first English unit soon.

In Mrs. Johnson’s class, students spent time editing their rough draft and then wrote the final published copy.  Students submitted their personal narrative unit for the final grade.   In English, we learned about compound subjects.  We also continue to work on Daily Language Review to practice grammar skills.

Reading

Theme 1 has come to an end.  Theme 2 will begin Monday.  In this theme, students will read about people who use problem solving skills to face different challenges.  The comprehension skills will involve plot and characters, rereading to monitor comprehension, main idea and details, and summarizing texts.  Book Clubs will also begin on Monday.

Math

In both math classes, we are starting Chapter 3 which will focus on division.  Our first lessons teach the students about division expressions, division equations, and order of operations.  Please continue to look over your child’s homework each night to see if it is complete.

Science

In our meteorology unit, students learned about air pressure and how high and low pressure systems impact the weather.  Students also learned how to read a barometer and thermometer.  Next week, students will be collecting and recording air pressure and air temperature data.

Social Studies

We are nearing the end of our Reconstruction unit.  Students will be taking the test on this unit Monday, November 2.  An outline of the information that students will be responsible for has been handed out.  Students should begin studying this information each night for about 15 minutes.  Creating good study habits now will benefit your child’s education in the future.

Writing/English

In Mrs. Mitchell’s class, we are revising our rough drafts for our personal narrative and will be publishing them within the next two weeks.  In English, we are working on the last few lessons in our first unit.  The last few lessons involve conjunctions, compound sentences, and correcting fragments and run-ons.

In Mrs. Johnson’s class, students wrote a rough draft of their personal narrative, including a catchy introduction.  Then students worked on revising this first draft.  Next week we will write the second draft.  In English, we talked about simple subjects and simple predicates.  We also continue to work on Daily Language Review to practice grammar skills.

Monday, August 31 is our first day of school!  Don’t forget to bring the items mentioned in our survival pamphlet.  Both Mrs. Johnson and I are excited to meet all of you!  Enjoy your weekend and see you on Monday!

We are less than two weeks away from the start of school!  By now you should have received a “Survival Guide” from us.  With the “Survival Guide” is a parent survey.  Parent surveys can be given to your teacher during the first week of school!  Make sure to read everything carefully so that you are thoroughly prepared.  We look forward to seeing you the first day!

The Letort library is open on Wednesdays from 9-12 during the month of July.  If you need a book or magazine to read during your free time, Mrs. Ulmer is more than willing to help you out!  Again, don’t forget to log your reading minutes on your tracking sheet for the Reading Carnival!