Dear Parents,
This week we have a normal week with school occurring at
normal days and normal times. The only slight modification to our normal
routine is the Athenian Spirit Day on Friday. Students may wear their Athenian
t-shirts in lieu of their ordinary school polo shirts. All other aspects of the
dress code remain as usual that day.
In math, we are working on some geometry
for state standards. Our focus in geometry is angles, but we will also study
parallel and perpendicular lines and shapes that contain them. After we finish
with geometry and angles, we will spend more in depth time on problems which
require students to find the number of possible unique combinations out of a group
of choices. For example, if there is a menu with roast beef and chicken for the
main course, salad and fries as side options, and water, milk or juice to
drink, how many possible combinations of main course, side dish and beverage
are there? Students need to accurately answer such questions and be able to prove
their answers. They can prove their answers by creating lists of possible
combinations, charts, and tree diagrams.
Also in math, we will have a
slight change to our homework structure. All students should have a pretty good
grasp of their multiplication facts by now, so they should no longer need math
facts and parent supervision to study them. Instead, they will start taking
home multiplication fact worksheets and filling out half a worksheet on nights
when math facts are assigned. When the worksheets are full, the students will
turn them in, as math facts will continue to be a part of their grade.
Hopefully you also remember that
students’ math notebooks are being graded as part of their math homework this
semester. This will comprise a major portion of their math grade, and it is
very important for students to do well on these notebook grades. Below I have
included a screen shot from the RM system on what the notebooks should look
like. Some main features to note: The problems should be numbered and arranged
in a single, neat, vertical row. Each page should have a proper heading with
the student’s name, the date, and the title of the lesson on which they are
working. If any student gets a problem wrong, they should cross it out neatly,
and underneath it they should record the correct steps and answer provided by
the computer. This makes the student think about what they did wrong and gives
them a record of how to perform similar problems correctly next time.
In science, we are continuing our study of the atmosphere.
We will place a special emphasis on atmospheric pressure this week. In
addition, we are changing the homework structure slightly in science. In order
to be good scientists, students need to be familiar with various units of measurement.
They need to know the relationships between units of measurement in order to
understand scientific arguments and in order to perform experiments. For this
reason, they are going to start spending some time a few nights each week
memorizing the relationships between units of measurement. I have selected units
of time to start with because they should be familiar and easy. Students should
spend 5-10 minutes memorizing these units on nights when memorization is
assigned. They will be given a sheet of paper with the units they are required
to memorize. Attached to that sheet will be a log, similar to their math fact
logs, which parents should sign in order to confirm that students completed the
required memorization for science class. The students will turn in these logs
at the end of the week for credit.
I will only be assigning science memorization on nights when
math facts are NOT assigned. In this way, the students will not increase their
homework time but merely change some of its focus.
These are all the notes I have for you this week. As always,
please message me with any questions, comments or concerns you may have.
Sincerely,
Rebecca Wycklendt
No comments:
Post a Comment