Hendricks High School Happenings
September 11 - September 22 2017
English
Grades 11/12 just started reading Tim O'Brien's The Things They Carried. The structure for this novel unit will be a centered on student led Socratic discussions.
Grades 9/10 just started the American classic, Of Mice and Men. They will be focusing on close reading, understanding literary elements, and writing summaries.
Grades 7/8 are also working on writing summaries. They will be reading short stories from Ray Bradbury, a famous science fiction author. The next short story from Bradbury will be, "There Will Come Soft Rains."
-Mr. Adams
Social Studies
We’ve been in overtime these last couple of weeks in social studies. In American/World History, students finished up Unit 1, and put their newly acquired historical inquiry skills to practice by completing the Winston Churchill project. The project involved students applying a theme of history to a decade of British history, then closely reading a chapter from, “40 Ways to Look at Winston Churchill.” In MN Studies, students are learning about the Dakota and Ojibwe, and will start an in-depth project where they research more information about one of the tribes of MN. In United States History, the 7th and 8th graders recently learned about the Bill of Rights, Federalist vs. Anti-Federalist, and the Constitution. Lastly, the 5th graders wrapped up Unit 1, which tested their geography skills, such as longitude and latitude.
-Mr. Thoresen
Math
We are starting a project in Probability where the students have to create a word problem and make a poster with illustrations and steps to solve the problem.
In Geometry we are learning about parallel lines cut by a transversal and the angle relationships that they form. We will be doing a project at the end of the unit to apply what we have learned.
In Pre-Algebra we are comparing numbers and learning how to turn decimals into fractions and visa versa. Also we are learning about equivalent fractions.
In Pre-Calc we are learning about applying linear equations to real world data using lines of best fit and correlation coefficients.
In Algebra 1 we are learning about rational and irrational numbers. We are locating them on number lines and comparing them as well as determining approximations for solutions involving real numbers.
-Mrs. Gentry
Science
Chemistry students have reviewed the basics of the atom and will be diving into a few chapters of "The Disappearing Spoon (and Other True Tales of Madness, Love, and the History of the World from the Periodic Table of the Elements.)" Then, we will be branching off into different areas of chemistry that pertain to each student's career goals.
Biology students are learning about the cell cycle and cancer, complete with a murder mystery during which they had to determine the scientific cause of death in a fictional case study.
Our middle school students have been viewing cells under the microscope, and I don't think any of them will ever eat yogurt again....
The sixth graders have been studying the physical characteristics of powder in order to determine the identity of an unknown powder. In their extra time, they have been reviewing online Citizen Science projects in the hopes of finding one that they would like to pursue.
Finally, the fifth graders are learning about wonderful wetlands! They designed and tested model wetlands to determine how wetlands affect erosion, flooding, and pollution of neighboring waters.
Science is everywhere! We're off to a great start this year.