We are driven by five genetic needs: survival, love and belonging, power, freedom, and fun. ~William Glasser

Welcome!  We're well on our way to completing our Survival Guides, and from what I've seen so far, they're going to be awesome!  Remember to read them over "out loud to yourself" -- revise and edit -- we'll put them together later this week!

ASSIGNMENTS FOR THE WEEK OF 
JANUARY 28--FEBRUARY 1

 SPELLING, GRADE 6:

• Monday:  pages 133 & 134
• Tuesday:  pages 135 & 136
• Wednesday:  pages 137 & 138
• Thursday:  pages 139 - 142
•  Friday:  pages 143 & 144 (quiz on this week's learning) and Spelling test  
• (Don't forget; 5 task cards are also due Friday!)

SOCIAL STUDIES:

• Monday:  Mrs. M.'s class - "Assignment 1" -- using information from book pages 14-27, create "Ancient Egyptian Tools" activity and complete Vocabulary Word Search (great grade-booster!)
• Tuesday:  Mrs. D.'s class - same as above.
• Wednesday:  Mrs. M.'s class - "Assignment 2" -- complete Scrambled Tools worksheet, Pyramid Flow Chart worksheet, and True North activity. Also, complete questions 17 - 20 in packet.
• Thursday:  Mrs. D.'s class - same as above
• Friday:  Homeroom Activity time

LANGUAGE ARTS:

• Monday:  Turn in Introductions in preparation for conferences.  Continue work on Obstacles and Tips.
• Tuesday:  Conference with me -- or -- continue writing/typing -- or -- share writing with a friend.  Tomorrow we'll finish up in preparation for creating brochures.
• Wednesday:  Final edits
• Thursday:  Begin Brochures
• Friday:  Finish Brochures and turn in

DON'T FORGET: WRITERS' NOTEBOOKS ARE DUE  
TUESDAY, JANUARY 29TH.  
 ~
Excellence is attitude!

“Success is the sum of small efforts, repeated day in and day out.” ~ Robert Collier

NOTE:  THIS BLOG DIDN'T POST LAST WEEK USING MY SCHOOL WEB ADDRESS.  SORRY FOR ANY INCONVENIENCE.  IT'S STILL HELPFUL FOR KEEPING TRACK OF ASSIGNMENTS.

This week has been a time to take stock of what we're doing--or not doing, as the case may be--and get back on track.  Late work loses points, guys, and even one zero can alter a grade pretty significantly.  In fifth and sixth grade we begin the process of taking charge of our own learning. 

Thing is, with the unprecedented wealth of information available today, opportunities to learn are everywhere, all you need are the skills, behaviors, and motivation to learn -- and those you develop here.  Think about how you engage in your lessons.  Think about how your behaviors impact both your learning environment and that of others.  Be aware of how you learn best, and use those talents every chance you get. 

End of pep talk. ;}

ASSIGNMENTS FOR THE WEEK OF JANUARY 22--25

SPELLING:  None this week

SOCIAL STUDIES: 

• Tuesday (Mrs. D) and Wednesday (Mrs, M) Begin PYRAMIDS unit.  We read and discussed pages 5-13.  Assignment:  answer questions 1-16
• Thursday (Mrs.D) and Friday (Mrs. M.) Complete activity packet. 

LANGUAGE ARTS:    

• Tuesday:  Catch-up day 
• Wednesday:  Create WEB for "How to Survive. . ." brochure 
• Thursday:  Write Introduction (set the stage
• Friday:  Share introductions with class.  Begin work on 3 obstacles (problems) and tips for overcoming each of them.

• NOTICE:  WRITERS' NOTEBOOKS DUE NEXT TUESDAY, JANUARY 29!
  

READING:  

• Book projects due FRIDAY!!!  Be ready to present. (You'll need to include a "Story Map."  

• 6th graders:  you need to have two story maps, one for each of the two books you read this month.  (You had all month to turn the first one in--remember the reminders?  Did you wait until the last minute?)

Remember: Make everything you do the best thing you've ever done.  It's a mindset. 

Hand Image:  http://priyanathan.imagineteachers.com/files/2011/05/Illustration-raised-hands.jpg

“YOU HAVEN’T LIVED UNTIL YOU’VE FOUND SOMETHING WORTH DYING FOR.” MLK

Dear Families--

I spent a great deal of time reviewing videos outlining the Civil Rights Movement of the '50s and '60s in preparation for our discussion about Martin Luther King (1929-1968).  I found them particularly moving--in part because I recall what it was like living in the deep south from 1957 to 1964. Though I was a young child in 1957 when my family moved there from Vermont's Northeast Kingdom, I vividly remember segregation. There were no black children enrolled at my school. Access to public toilets and water fountains was determined by the color of our skin. Black and white children did not live in the same neighborhoods nor did they often play together in the same streets. As disturbing as those times were for the people who lived through them--their ultimate value has been in reminding us how our country has struggled in defining "freedom" and "equality." Our discussion about the Civil Rights Movement was time well spent. Ask your child to tell you about what they learned today.

Students: See how much you learned by completing the interactive timeline found here.

~

I keep trying to find interesting ways for the kids to learn important concepts in Social Studies--after all, the key to our future is in understanding our past...

Martin Luther King image:  http://seattletimes.com/art/mlk/index.jpg

The ancient Egyptians did not call their home "Egypt" (that name is based on the Greek pronunciation of the name of Ptah's temple in Memphis - "Hwt-ka-Ptah"), instead they referred to it as Kemet (or Kem - the black land) or Ta Mery (the beautiful land). ~ Jeremy Hill (Ancient Egypt Online).

ASSIGNMENTS FOR THE WEEK OF JANUARY 14--18

SOCIAL STUDIES:

Welcome to the beginnings of our study of Ancient Egypt!

Thus far we have had an overview of the geography of ancient Egypt and an introduction to the great pharaohs, learning about the varied crowns and the conditions under which they were worn. (assignments for January 7-11)

This week's activities include hieroglyphic writing and sarcophagus design as we prepare for the major part of the unit, which we will begin next week.

Check out this great interactive site to learn more about hieroglyphics and sharpen your translation skills.  It's fun!

Explore Ancient Egypt and take the quiz. (Don't forget to print it off and hand it in. You can always go back and take it again to improve your score!)

This Ancient Egyptian timeline has a lot of really good information, too.  Read it and take the quiz. (Print off and turn in!)

A list of the major gods of Ancient Egypt can be found here. Challenge yourself to click on each one to learn more, then complete the activity.

For fun, here's a cool jigsaw and word search to test your skill.

OK, OK -- one more fun site.  Lots of activities to do here.

NOVA provides a great interactive site for learning more about pyramids; check it out!

We'll be reading and writing about a variety of the articles at this National Geographic site.

LANGUAGE ARTS:

On Monday, we completed our District Writing Prompts, with a few students finishing up on Tuesday.  Students were provided with class time to work on their Writer's Notebooks.  Wednesday and Thursday, we took a break from prompts and portfolio pieces to read and interpret poetry, both artistically and in writing.  We'll have an opportunity to share on Friday, with some time, hopefully, to explore some of the interesting information from the sites above.

6th GRADE SPELLING:

Remember 5 task cards are due by Friday--and for Pete's sake, study those words!

We'll complete packets on Thursday -- they're due on Friday, too.

Work hard; give your best effort.  Remember, excellence is attitude.

Mrs. Maynard

Egypt landscape image:  http://digital-art-gallery.com/oid/84/640x261_14748_Nachshon_Who_Was_Afraid_To_Swim_

2d_illustration_children_book_landscape_egypt_piramids_river_picture_image_digital_art.jpg

Winter is the season in which people try to keep the house as warm as it was in the summer, when they complained about the heat. ~Author Unknown

Winter.  Cold days, colder nights.  Heck of a time to have the furnace go out on us, but on Sunday morning, that's just what happened.  Thankfully, our little Hearthstone kept the whole house warm till late Monday when the furnace guy came. 

Ahhhh, winter. . .

ASSIGNMENTS FOR THE WEEK OF JANUARY 7 -- 11

Language Arts, Grades 5 & 6

Monday:  Complete first draft of B.E.E. (Basic Explanatory Essay)

Tuesday:  Revise and edit.  Type second draft.

Wednesday:  Peer share/edit.  Begin work on final draft.

Thursday: Complete final draft and turn in.

Friday:  TBA

Social Studies, Grades 5 & 6

Monday (Mrs. M) & Tuesday (Mrs. D.):  The Crowns of Ancient Egypt activity
Wednesday (Mrs. M) & Thursday (Mrs. D): map of Ancient Egypt
Friday:  Scholastic News (Mrs. M's class)                                                                                         
Spelling, Grade 6

Monday:  pages 109 - 111 & Task Cards
Tuesday: pages 112 - 114 & Task Cards
Wednesday: pages 115 - 118 & Task Cards
Thursday: pages 119 - 120 & Task Cards
Friday:  Test -- turn in Task Cards & packet


Keep the home fires burning!
Teri

 

Winter image: http://0.tqn.com/d/webclipart/1/0/I/5/5/Winter-trees-and-Icicles.jpg

 

"Let our New Year's resolution be this: we will be there for one another as fellow members of humanity, in the finest sense of the word." ~ Goran Persson

A belated happy new year, everyone!  

I hope your holiday was restful and family-filled.  I think we all came back to school a little bleary-eyed; thank goodness for a short week to move us gently into what will be a very busy couple months. We used these days to complete assignments that were not turned in before the holiday, and to introduce what is to come:

ASSIGNMENTS FOR THE WEEK OF JANUARY 2 -- 4

LANGUAGE ARTS, GRADES 5 & 6

Wednesday, January 2:  Introduce "Center Square" activity--create a brainstorm list of concrete and abstract nouns, and have one chosen for tomorrow's "4-Metaphor Poetry" activity.
Thursday, January 3:  Share lists and discuss "4-Metaphor Poetry."  Use class time to think of four metaphors for your chosen noun, and write those comparisons into short free-form poems. 
Friday, January 4:  Transfer concrete and abstract nouns and poems into Writers Notebooks following the format given in class.  NOTE:  Whatever isn't completed in class becomes independent and due, along with the 5 squares of your choice, at the end of the month.

SOCIAL STUDIES, GRADES 5 & 6

Wednesday, January 2 (Mrs. M.) or Thursday, January 3 (Mrs. D.):  Complete Lesson 4 (Mesopotamia) and complete worksheet pages 22 & 23

SPELLING, GRADE 6

Wednesday, January 2:  Complete pages 99 -- 102
Thursday, January 3: Grade pages 99 -- 102; complete pages 103 -- 106
Spelling test on Monday for 10 words (you have a copy of the list)

There are a number of students who owe back work.  They have been notified and given a list of things they need to turn in to me. Please check your child's planner each night to help them stay on top of assignments.

Thanks!
Teri

"Happy New Year" image: http://img.xcitefun.net/users/2012/12/310748,xcitefun-new-year-greeting-cards-2013-2.jpg