MAP Testing After Spring Break

Spring MAP testing is coming soon. 7th grade will take the language test on April 8th, the reading test on April 11th, and the math test on April 14th. Should you have any questions about testing, please contact Kim Smith.

Week 27: 7th Grade Science

Week 27:  

Last Friday the 7th grade class presented their Anti-Smoking Campaign.  The variety of ideas from cartoon characters to film presentations was amazing.  More importantly, I believe they really understand the harmfulness of smoking and don’t let peer pressures lure you into this terrible habit.

Make sure you ask your son or daughter to show you their campaign.

Finishing Proportions/Ratios/Triangles/Probability Unit

This week in 7th grade math we are finishing our 6th unit of the year.  We have been working on this unit for most of the quarter and we will be concluding it on Friday.  Yesterday, we reviewed the two different methods for finding sale price and markup.  Today, we are working on the make a table strategy for solving word problems.  Tomorrow, we will be playing a game of Jeopardy to review for the test on Friday.  We are then off to Springfield next week and then Spring Break!!!!

Upcoming Assignments:
POW Cynthia's Solitaire Challenge due Tomorrow March 16
Alternative Assessment due Friday March 18
Test Friday March 18

Questions to ask at home:
What are the two methods for finding the sale price of an item?

Week 26: 7th Grade Science

Weeks: 26

Topic:  Inside Earth

Objectives: 

Identify the characteristics of Earth’s crust, mantle, and core.

Identify what causes convection currents.

Describe convection currents in Earth’s mantle

Essential Question:

How would you know if you were at the center of the Earth? 

Key Terms:

pressure

crust 

mantle

lithosphere

asthenosphere

outer & inner core

convection

density

This week: The past three weeks have flown by.  The kids have done a great job on creating a model of the geological features of our planet Earth.  This week they are preparing their class presentation. 

Differentiation:

using proportions

model making 

researching

art integration

Upcoming:  Creating a geology field guide

Trigonometry and percents

This week in 7th grade math we are getting into some great math concepts.  We started the week reviewing square roots and the pythagorean theorem.  We talked about pythagorean triples and how to solve the equation.  Today we learned about trigonometric functions.  We talked about what sine, cosine, and tangent mean and how we find the ratios.  Tomorrow, we will continue to work with trigonometric functions and review writing fractions and decimals as percents.  For the rest of the week, we will be reviewing how to use proportions to solve percent problems.

Upcoming assignments:
POW Totolopsi due Monday March 14th
Quiz on Tuesday March 15th
POW Cynthia's Solitaire Challenge due Wednesday March 16th
Alternative Assessment due and test on Friday March 18th

7th Grade Language Arts: Collaborative Writing Unit

This week seventh grade students are drafting their collaborative stories.  Students worked in groups of four to plan and develop the plot, characters, settings, conflicts, etc. Then each student was responsible for writing their own chapter of the story.  In order for the story to come together in a smooth and cohesive manner, students have to continually check in with their group members to make adjustments to the story as a whole as each student finishes their individual part.  Students will submit the first draft on Tuesday, March 15th, and the final draft on Friday, March 18th.

This unit was inspired by the novel Click.  Ten authors worked collaboratively to create a novel with each author contributing one chapter.  The novel Click is used as an interactive read aloud book during this unit.

Industrial Revolution

This week, the 7th graders began their unit about the Industrial Revolution.  They started out by learning about the changes made in the textile industry in England and about how those inventions came to the United States and changed the economy and culture of the country forever.  Today, they learned about the working conditions in factories by participating in an assembly line simulation.  Then, they read and discussed primary sources about workers in English mills.  Next week, they will learn about other new inventions and the transportation revolution.

Question for your 7th grader:

• Tell me about the factory worker simulation.

Week 25: 7th Grade Science

Week: 25

Respiration Project:  Get the Message Out

The week I am excited to see the 7th graders present their ads against smoking.  In reviewing their rough drafts they have come up with some great ideas.  Some of the ideas range from radio broadcasts, using childhood characters, the cost of smoking, and making their own film.  Don’t forget to ask them about it.

Probability and pythagorean theorem

This week in 7th grade math, we are continuing to work on our unit on ratios, proportions, and percents.  Last week, we started working on the scale model of the solar system and it turned out great.  All distances of the planets from the sun and sizes of the planets to the sun are proportional.  (see pictures below)  For the last two days we have been learning about probability.  Yesterday we reviewed how to do probability and the counting principal.  We also, went over how to make a scale drawing of our classroom for their project. Today, we learned about independent and dependent probability and about permutations and combinations.  Tomorrow we will begin to review the pythagorean theorem.

Upcoming assignments:
Quiz tomorrow Wednesday March 2
POW Days on Other Planets due tomorrow March 2
Project Scale drawing of students bed rooms as home due Monday March 7

Questions to ask at home:
What is the difference between independent and dependent probability and give an example of each?