September/October Dear Parents/Guardians; Welcome back! The school year is well on its way and we are very busy working at getting organized and establishing routines. This may take some time, but with patience and consistent effort we will prevail. The following is a brief outline of what we have planned for the class for these next two months. Dates and timelines for assignments will remain flexible according to the class needs. We recommend that you review your son/daughter's agenda daily, in order to be aware of what is happening in both classes. The grade 6 and 7classes will be on a rotary system between French and English this year, with half days on Fridays. Language Arts: English: Both 6 and 7 The word study program will be on a three day cycle. The first day is a pre-test, the second day has questions about the words, and the third day (Fridays) will be for word study tests. Students are strongly encouraged to review the words at home on a regular basis. The words will be provided for practice at home. The English word study program will run every second week. We will have weekly grammar lessons in English as well. Our first, First Steps Writing assignment is Exposition writing. Students will be writing an "Opinion Piece." This Opinion piece will be a short article that will persuade the reader to agree with a particular point of view. Students are required to have a book for personal reading at all times and will be completing a "Plot organizer" assignment. Students have Literacy Portfolios where they will keep track of the books that they read over the course of the year and a Reading Inventory. Our focus this year will be on Balanced Literacy. In October, each grade will be working on a novel study. The grade 6's will be reading "Hatchet," by Gary Paulsen. The grade 7's will be reading "Cowboys Don't Cry," by Marilyn Halvorson. French: Both 6 and 7 We will be examining "la grammaire and orthographe" on a daily basis all year and applying it to different parts of the curriculum. Students will be responsible for copying from the board and doing accompanying worksheets or activities. Formal testing will take place midway and at the end of each unit. For our Balanced Literacy, we will be starting with guided reading activities using our class readers. Students will also work on a word study program every second week with a dictation of different words or grammar concepts. Students will receive their dictation words and paragraph a week prior to being tested on it. We will be starting to work on our Recount writing piece for First Steps Writing, developing an autobiography. Phys. Ed./Health: We have been involved in playing and learning about soccer. We will be examining various cooperative games to have the students get to know each other better. Our next component will be volleyball. Students are expected to wear proper gym clothing for every class. For Health, the grade 7's will be starting on a mini-unit on Hepatitis B. There will be a presentation by the Thunder Bay District Health unit. Students have received a form to fill out and return to school if they choose to take part in the vaccination program. The first round of vaccinations will take place on September 16th,2003. The grade 6's will be starting a unit on healthy eating and self-image. They will be examining the Canada Food Guide and will be doing various activities and projects. Music: This year, we will have a variety of mini-music projects that will enable students to develop an appreciation of different music genres. Students will be expected to work in groups to develop and present these projects. There will also be some music theory taught throughout the year. Environmental Studies: Grade 6 Students will be examining Aboriginal Studies. They will be expected to have regular homework in this area. Madame Guerin will be their teacher for this subject. There will be activities and projects for each term that students will by reponsible for. More details will follow with Madame Guerin. History and Geography: Grade7 For the next 4 to 6 weeks we will be doing our first history unit on New France. Students will have regular reading and written assignments to do. A unit test will take place at the end on all of the material covered. Our first unit in Geography will be on Geographical Inquiry. The unit will not start until late October, early November. Art: Students will be studying Art appreciation and techniques. They will examine various works of art from different artists around the world. They will create specific art work using the techniques taught. A portfolio of their art will be kept at school. Mathematics Grade 6: Students will be completing a Number Sense and Numeration unit during the month of September. Topics will include: Adding and Subtracting review, decimals, place value, large numbers, and fractions. During the month of October we will begin a Measurement unit. Topics will include: Linear measurement, perimeter and area. Students will also be working on math journal questions once a week and a "Problem of the Week." There will be short tests following each strand of math. I have asked students to bring home math tests to show their parents their progress. The tests should be signed by the parents/guardians and returned to the school the following day for an extra mark. Please be aware that math homework assignments are given each English day. These are short assignments that should take no longer than fifteen minutes. Mathematics Grade 7: The grade 7's will be completing two strands of math during September and October. Number Sense and Numeration topics will include: Choosing a calculation method, comparing and ordering numbers, place value, rounding and estimation. Measurement will include: Linear measurement, perimeter and area. Tests will follow each unit. Students are encouraged to have them signed by a parent and bring them back to school the next day for an extra mark. Please be aware that math homework assignments are given each English day. These are short assignments that should take no longer than fifteen minutes. Science Grade 6: We are currently studying a Life Systems Science unit on, "The Diversity of Living Things." Topics will include: Characteristics of plants and animals, tree diagrams, classification systems, growth, reproduction, movement, response and adaption. Students will be taking notes, watching videos, performing experiments, operating microscopes and completing a short report on a plant or animal of their choice. (Outline to follow). Science Grade 7: The grade seven class will be studying a unit on Ecosystems. There will be a series of lessons and short in-class assignments. There will also be a quiz. Students will be assigned a short, report type project to coincide with the information that we are studying in class. An outline for the report will be given in class. Reminders:
Pauline Fontaine and Jennifer Kashuba
PLEASE RETURN THIS PORTION TO THE SCHOOL TO ENSURE THAT YOUR CHILD HAS SHARED THIS NEWSLETTER WITH YOU! My son\daughter ____________________ has shared the newsletter with me. Parent signature: ____________________
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