January 29, 2015
In our continued efforts to keep families informed and updated about the curriculum at Blake, each month we will be 'highlighting' updates from the different departments. We hope this will help facilitate conversations at home and maintain a bridge between home and school. Below please find the updates for the month of January, 2015.
Art
Grade 6: Watercolor is a useful medium when learning about color mixing. Students have designed their own still life compositions and are interpreting them in watercolor paint. They are experimenting with layering color, dry brush, and wet in wet techniques.
Grade 6+: After weeks of planning, students have decided on their final mural design and are starting the process of painting. The work in progress is in the main office at Blake, and the other mural is being painted on a giant canvas and will be hung when finished.
Grade 7: Students are continuing their examination of self-portait and identity. They are finishing up their gridded portraits and will begin an abstract self-portrait next week. How can artists paint a portrait without showing a person’s face? This is something the 7th grade class will think about when creating a representation of their identity.
Grade 8: Students in the 8th grade are painting figures in action with acrylic paint. For most, it is their first experience with acrylic paint and they are learning the step-by step process in working with this medium. Each student has chosen their subject matter--the human body in action and movement. Students have identified different ways artists have created visual movement and rhythm in artworks and will use this information to create their own finished piece.
English
Grade 6: Focusing instruction on ways to use the six traits of writing, especially adjectives in narrative writing, students incorporated these skills into their writing about a memory special enough to “preserve” in writing. Students showcased their memories using an introduction, body paragraph, and conclusion. On the launching pad? Laurie Halse Anderson’s historical novel, Fever 1793. Prior to launch, students and teachers are hard at work learning more about the historical context of the yellow fever outbreak in Philadelphia. The book offers important insights into adversity’s ability to create positive change.
Grade 7: Students in Grade 7 have just completed their persuasive 5-paragraph essays, taking a stand on the positive or the negative impact of technology in their lives. To scaffold good writing, Grade 7 teachers provided instruction on the five parts of speech. This grammar instruction, piggybacking the Grade 6 grammar lessons these students had the previous year are part of a district-wide initiative to improve writing by understanding its grammatical base. After all, once you know the “architecture” of good writing, you can build “skyscraper” essays! After engaging in pre-novel discussions about the history and impact of racism, students will begin reading Mildred Taylor’s novel, Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry. This Newbery Medal-winning novel explores life in southern America during the Depression.
Grade 8: Grade 8 teachers have used class time to discuss the genre of science fiction and look into the sub-genre of dystopian literature. These lessons will pay discussion dividends as students head into their second novel of the year, Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451. In addition, Grade 8 students recently completed their placement essay. This essay, in addition to other data points like Grade 7 ELA MCAS score, .Grade 7 English grade, and the Term 1 Grade 8 grade will used to make placement decisions for each student. The goal? Find the level of appropriate academic challenge for each Grade 8-Grade 9 student and make high school English classes a rich learning experience with a pace and level of support/independence that fosters academic excellence.
Guidance
The seventh grade rotation of Group Guidance and Embracing Diversity wraps up this week. The students in Group Guidance took a moment to reflect upon not only the school year coming to it's half way point, but also that the 7th graders will officially be half way through middle school too! Embracing Diversity have lately examined national Hate Crimes statistics and briefly utilized the new PBS resource "America by the Numbers": http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/america-by-the-numbers/episodes/episode-101/
The sixth grade Group Guidance recently covered these topics: acquaintances vs. friends, differences between joking/teasing/bullying and the "ingredients to a true apology." Students watched celebrity apologies and compared them to our ingredients list to determine if they were authentic apologies or not.
Library Media Center
Last November, Blake began its schoolwide lessons on Digital Citizenship. Teachers Marjorie Heim (6th), Sarah Donovan (7th) and Seth Hellerstein (8th) oversaw Advisory lessons on cyberbullying. Diane Horvath and Jon Haycock followed the Advisory activities with a student panel discussion in the auditorium which focused on student daily digital routines as well as parent digital guidelines. Next week, using a similar format, our activities will focus on an individual’s “digital footprint.” Although only in middle school, most Blake students have already developed online digital footprints. Google and other search sites are able to track most every search they have made. Companies called data brokers scan blogs, pictures and comments made on personal web sites and social media to continuously update people’s personal profiles. We’ll be making students aware that anything they post on the net can contribute to their online profile and reputation. The information on profiles will often be used for harmless marketing but silly or mean things they post could come back to haunt them in the future when applying to colleges or for a job. We’ll also discuss how positive things a person posts on the net (including school work, thoughtful comments etc.) can enhance the quality of an individual’s digital footprint.
Mathematics
They say you truly understand something when you have to teach it. 6th grade mathematicians at Blake are putting that theory to the test. Students have been working hard with advanced fractions and their associated rules of arithmetic. In an effort to put their knowledge to the test, students are using their iPads and Explain Everything to produce lessons on various operations with fractions. If you have forgotten how to add ⅜ and ¼ , just ask a 6th grader. They would be happy to help you!
7th grade Blake mathematicians are in the middle of wrapping up their Geometry unit with a test scheduled for this week. They will soon begin a study of the fundamentals of Algebra and examine how to work extensively with variable expressions. Students will return to the fundamentals of elementary school and apply addition, subtraction, multiplication and division to the unknown (variables). Our language will include a variety of letters, x, y, z, a, b, c, o, m, g!
With Midyear Examinations behind us students in 8th grade have turned their attention back to solving equations in one variable. By now all of our students are able to solve multi-step equations in one dimension...meaning one variable. Soon, we will “borrow” the second dimension to turn each side of the equation into a line. We will then examine how adding this second dimension will allow us to solve equations in a different manner. Before we have had problems with just x, now we will have problems with x & y. Do I see z in the near future?
Music
General Music: 8th grade general music classes will be exploring the history of the american musical in a newly designed unit called “The Say the Neon Lights Are Bright: The American Musical.” Students will be exposed to the rich history of american theatrical entertainment starting with vaudeville to present day. Cultural and social associations will be discussed as the students view and listen to several of the history’s most important musicals including Showboat, Oklahoma, West Side Story, South Pacific, and the Lion King. Students will be logging opinions on important class discussions/topics in journal entries. In addition to learning the rich history of the genre, students will explore specifics of how musicals are written and how music is woven into the storyline. The unit will culminate in students generating elements of their own musical and/or reviewing a musical for the class.
Orchestra: The Blake Orchestra program is gearing up for an exciting concert on March 19th! We just started working on the grand finale piece, "I'm Shipping Up to Boston" to perform with the celtic rock band Moxie Strings from Michigan. The Grade 7-8 Orchestra has also started preparing for MICCA - an adjudicated festival that takes place at the end of March.
Science
6th grade science is currently exploring matter. Students "journeyed through the universe" investigating how mass and weight are affected in various locations of our universe. Our explorers scanned videos with their iPads to learn about the environment they traveled to and then collaborated with peers to ponder mass and weight at this location. Students were excited and thoroughly invested in this activity. See Twitter feed from Kristin Buley for pictures! @buleykristin #BMSED
Seventh grade science students have been very busy writing their first full lab report of the year on the recent Egg Lab. Students observed "shell-less" eggs in various solutions over a 48 hour period to see real-life examples of diffusion, osmosis, and plasmolysis. Photosynthesis and cellular respiration are now the central focus as students explore the relationship between the chloroplast and mitochondrion. Digestion is the next cellular process students in 7th grade will investigate. As part of this unit of study this year, students will compare the digestive systems of three animals - an earthworm, a dogfish shark and a rat. Students will themselves have the opportunity to perform a worm dissection, while for the other two organisms the teacher will complete the dissection allowing students to focus on the differences in the structure of the digestive system. An alternative activity will be provided to those students who are unable to participate in the dissection process. Should parents/guardians have any questions they should contact their child’s science teacher.
Grade 8 Science just finished up their unit on Physical/Chemical Properties and Changes. Students are now working on States of Matter and Phase Changes! During this unit students will learn how to read phase change graphs, see some demonstrations, and participate in boiling point labs.
In Tech, we are all anxiously waiting for the arrival of Dash and Dot (new robots at Blake)! Students will be learning how to write code to manipulate the robots to complete tasks. The Coding unit will be taking place after our current Bridge unit where students are using apps to complete screen-casts and build bridges; then using the West Point Bridge design program students will design and building bridges out of pasta. There's a lot of exciting things going on in Grade 8 Science!
Social Studies
As part of their study of World Geography, 6th grade students are currently studying the many different regions of Africa. As part of their cultural study, they will be learning about and then creating tribal masks. Next up is a study of the origins of the African Slave trade and its worldwide implications.
7th graders are studying the Minoans and they have been learning about the myth of Theseus and the Minotaur in the labyrinth at Knossos on the island of Crete. Students are creating mazes of their own. They’ll also be making a connection between the Minoans and the lost civilization of Atlantis. The next unit in the Ancient Civilizations curriculum is the Mycenaeans and the Trojan War from whence comes the famous saying, "the face that launched a thousand ships."
World History I 8th graders are studying the European Middle Ages. Students are learning about concepts including feudalism, chivalry and the role that institutions such as the Catholic Church played in people's lives. They will be engaging in a number of hands on projects and activities during this unit in order to help make connections between Medieval Europe and the Modern World.
Wellness
Physical Education
The biggest news at Blake Middle School this month may be the start of the much anticipated 2015 volleyball unit in physical education class! Students have been assigned to a specific team in their class who they will work with for the remainder of the unit. Each student has signed up for an individual role that they will fill throughout the volleyball season. The roles include: Team Captain, Manager, Statistician, Fitness Leader and Camaraderie Captain. Currently, students are practicing their technique and execution of the forearm pass, set and serve this week, and have begun some pre-season scrimmages. In the next few weeks, students will continue to practice skills and compete in regular season games in preparation for the annual grade level vs faculty matchups! Bump, set, spike...teachers, start your engines!
Health Education
Grade 6 is in the midst of their unit on Decision Making. The students are learning and practicing how to make decisions using the I.D.E.A.L. decision making process. Ask your 6th grader to explain the process to you.
Grade 7 students have started their unit on stereotyping, where they explore the origin, hurtfulness and ways to avoid perpetuating negative stereotypes. They have also begun practicing social skills such as: starting and having a conversation, apologizing, asking for help, and expressing one's feelings.
Grade 8 students are creating posters to help reduce harassment and bullying in our school. Poster topics include: Why does someone harass? What are the outcomes of being harassed? Why don't people report harassment when they should? What types of harassment takes place? Where does harassment take place? Resources to assist students with harassment or bullying concerns are provided and discussed.
Consumer Science
Another rotation of consumer science class has come to a close, and a new crop of eager students will walk through my door this week! The goals of this program are multifaceted. Students are expected to demonstrate proficiency in varying degrees of measuring, food preparation, cooking and cleaning depending on their grade level. Above all else though, is the expectation of safety in the kitchen. Stove safety, knife safety, appliance safety and oven safety can not be underestimated. Thorough hand washing, dish washing, as well as safe food handling prevent the spread of disease. At this time there are many infectious diseases affecting our school community. I have always found it incredibly thoughtful when a students suggests he or she not cook while ill. They are so smart! They realize that they can easily spread their illness to others through food preparation and close proximity. Thanks to everyone who has helped to maintain a healthy environment in our school!
World Language
Grade 6
Spanish: In 6th grade, our students are busy preparing for their first speaking quiz ever in Spanish! They will show us that they are fully able to use a variety of physical and personal attributes to describe themselves and others.
French: We are learning about French cuisine and café culture. Students are learning about some differences between French and American foods and restaurants, and how to order in a French restaurant. This week, we are having our traditional dégustation, a food tasting of typical French breakfast foods such as baguette and croissant. Bon appétit!
Mandarin: In 6th grade, we are learning and practice typing Chinese on the Ipad.
Grade 7:
Spanish: In 7th grade, our students completed a project that explored their actual bedrooms and the bedrooms of their dreams! We learned lots of new vocabulary and had fun looking up new words like water slide, jacuzzi, flat screen TV's and chocolate fountains to adorn our new rooms! Students completed the project writing their first comparative essay in Spanish - well done!
French: The French classes have begun the Sports and Activities unit. They will be learning vocabulary which will enable them to talk about their own sports and hobbies, which will culminate in a puppet show!
Mandarin: We are reviewing and learning how to ask and respond the following questions: What day of the week it is? What time is it now? When is your birthday? Which grade are you in? Which school do you attend? Where do you live?
Grade 8
Spanish: 8th grade students are beginning the unit on shopping! We are looking forward to learning how to talk about what we would like to buy for ourselves, and as gifts for others. Grammar structures will include learning how to work with indirect object pronouns and how to make statements of comparison.
French: Grade 8 students are just finishing the Telephone Unit. Their favorite assignment was to leave me a phone message in French explaining what they did over the weekend and describing a small problem they had. Today we are using the Nearpod app which incorporates a video created in Paris just for them.
Mandarin: We are reviewing and learning how to ask and respond the following questions: What day of the week it is? What time is it now? When is your birthday? Which grade are you in? Which school do you attend? Where do you live?