Cluster Four Update
April 14, 2023
REMINDERS TO STUDENTS AND THEIR CAREGIVERS
Please, charged your Chromebooks at home.
Please, bring a pencil and pen to class.
Cluster 4 Math Class with Mr. Martin (updated 4/12)
Hello Cluster 4 Families!
We have just finished up the first half of Unit 6. When we get back from break, students will have a few review/practice days before taking the mid-unit quiz. After this quiz, we will finish up the unit working with inequalities followed by the end of the unit test.
During this unit, students extend what they learned in Grade 6 about solving one-step equations to solve equations of the form `px+q=r` and `p(x+q)=r`, and equations that include expanding, factoring, or adding terms. Students also solve inequalities and graph their solutions on a number line.
Section 2: Solving Equations (Lessons 5–12)
Students learn how to solve equations of the form `px+q=r` and `p(x+q)=r` in and out of context. They also rewrite expressions using fewer terms by adding, expanding, and factoring, which can help make complex equations look more familiar before solving. This section builds on work from Grade 6 with solving one-step equations, which will support students when solving equations with variables on both sides in Grade 8.
Lesson 5 begins the section by introducing students to a new representation, the balanced hanger. Students will explore moves that keep a hanger balanced.
Lesson 6 connects the moves on a hanger diagram in Lesson 5 to moves used to solve an equation. This is the first lesson where students take more formal solving steps to determine an unknown value in an equation.
Lesson 7 is an opportunity for students to practice solving equations with and without hangers and to attend to features of an equation that make it more or less difficult to solve.
Lesson 8 is the start of a series of lessons that support students in making sense of more complex equations. This lesson connects the equations students have been exploring (`px+q=r` and `p(x+q)=r`) to expanding and factoring from Grade 6. Students solve equations of the form `p(x+q)=r` by dividing first or by expanding first.
Lesson 9 continues the work of Lesson 8 as students apply properties of operations to factor, expand, and reorder terms. Students use always-equal machines to determine if two expressions are equivalent. This will support students in later lessons as they write equations like `24-4x=60` in more familiar forms like `-4x+24=60` or `-4(x-6)=60`.
Lesson 10 builds on students’ work in Grade 6 and in Lessons 8 and 9 as students write complex expressions like `5x+3(2x-4)` using fewer terms. These strategies will support students with writing equations like `5x+3(2x-4)=50` in more familiar forms, like `6x-12=50`.
Lesson 11 asks students to use the tools they have been developing for writing equivalent expressions in Lessons 8–10 to solve more complex equations, like `24-4x=60` and `5x+3(2x-4)=50`.
**Mid-Unit Quiz**
Section 3: Inequalities (Lessons 13–17)
Students use what they have learned about solving equations to solve inequalities that represent situations in and out of context. They also create graphs that represent solutions to inequalities, including those with `\ge` or `\le`. Students’ work in this section will support them in making sense of inequalities in the coordinate plane in high school.
Lesson 13 builds on students’ Grade 6 work with inequalities of the form `x>c` and `x<c`. Students explore the symbols that mean ‘or equal to’, and graph simple inequalities on the number line.
Lesson 14 returns to the hangers context from Lessons 5 and 6. Students use imbalanced hangers to determine the solutions to inequalities that use only positive numbers.
Lesson 15 invites students to use their intuition and their work with solving equations in Section 2 to write and solve inequalities about situations related to budgeting. This is the first time that students solve an inequality with a negative number and consider the direction of the solution of the inequality.
Lesson 16 asks students to solve inequalities with increasing complexity to help a fictional sheep eat grass without falling in the water. This is also the first lesson where students solve inequalities with negative numbers out of context.
**End of Unit Test**
Social Studies with Ms. Lorigan (4/14/23)
Social Studies students are wrapping up a unit on trade and cultural exchange.
The Silk Routes: Trade and Cultural Exchange Across Asia Essential Questions
What would a traveler or trader on the silk routes experience?
What were the most important goods and ideas that moved on the silk routes?
How has the Silk Road legacy of tolerance fared over time?
Students are continuing to work on many important social studies skills: vocabulary development, executive functioning, nonfiction reading, map-reading and labeling, using multiple sources, and extracting key information as it relates to the learning targets. Students are able to access the social studies content on paper handouts as well as texts and videos on Google Classroom.
By the end of this unit, students should be able to…
Describe the purposes and features of exchange on the Silk Routes.
Generate inquiry questions and identify sources and information relevant to answering them.
Argue in writing which was the most important good or idea to move on the Silk Routes.
Describe the diversity of religions, languages, ethnicities, and cultures that coexisted in trading cities.
Explain how Chinese reactions to religious and ethnic influences from abroad have shifted over time, historically and today.
Science with Ms. MacAulay (updated 4/13/2023)
Along with the end of the term, we concluded our chemistry unit in science. Many students demonstrated mastery of the learning targets on their final chemistry test. We have cleared our chemistry joke board (see picture; thanks to Nora and Emmy) to make room for jokes about energy, the topic of our next unit.
Students have already explored the concepts of potential and kinetic energy and can distinguish between these two types of energy and identify where they occur on a skate park halfpipe or roller coaster. When we return from April break we will learn how to calculate the amounts of kinetic and potential energy, then we will explore other energy transformations.
Physical Science Learning Standards
7.MS-PS3-1. Construct and interpret data and graphs to describe the relationships among kinetic energy, mass, and speed of an object.
7.MS-PS3-2. Develop a model to describe the relationship between the relative position of objects interacting at a distance and their relative potential energy in the system.
7.MS-PS3-3. Apply scientific principles of energy and heat transfer to design, construct, and test a device to minimize or maximize thermal energy transfer.*
7.MS-PS3-4. Conduct an investigation to determine the relationships among the energy transferred, how well the type of matter retains or radiates heat, the mass, and the change in the average kinetic energy of the particles as measured by the temperature of the sample.
7.MS-PS3-5. Present evidence to support the claim that when the kinetic energy of an object changes, energy is transferred to or from the object.
7.MS-PS3-6(MA). Use a model to explain how thermal energy is transferred out of hotter regions or objects and into colder ones by convection, conduction, and radiation.
7.MS-PS3-7(MA). Use informational text to describe the relationship between kinetic and potential energy and illustrate conversions from one form to another.
8.MS-PS1-4. Develop a model that describes and predicts changes in particle motion, relative spatial arrangement, temperature, and state of a pure substance when thermal energy is added or removed.
8.MS-PS2-2. Provide evidence that the change in an object’s speed depends on the sum of the forces on the object (the net force) and the mass of the object.
ELA
Students practicing the art of argument in ELA class to launch our argument writing unit
ELA
ELA
English Language Arts with Ms. McDonagh - updated 4/13/2023
English Language Arts with Ms. McDonagh - updated 4/13/2023
Should the U.S. instate mandatory military service? Is college worth it? Should parents have tracking access to kids’ phones? Should the voting age be lowered?
These are some topics we will be tackling in our argument writing unit. Our initial phase is working as a whole group on the topic of competitive sports to hone some key skills. Students are learning how to research a topic to find strong evidence, then practicing how to form an argument verbally and in writing. For the second phase of the unit, students will apply these skills to work more independently. Each student will choose a research topic that interests them, research to find compelling evidence, and form their own argumentative essays.
April break is a great time to dive into Independent reading. Taking a long car ride? Play an audio book. Take at trip to the public library. Independent reading is the best way to build vocabulary, fluency and stamina as a reader and it makes a huge impact on learning across subject areas. Help support your student by reading with them, talking about books you love or listening to audiobooks together. Every day, students' homework is to read for 20-30 minutes per day. With this pace, students usually complete close to 100 pages per week (which varies with how dense the text is on the page.)
Argument Writing
W.7.1
I can convince my reader and help them to understand my side of an argument with a strong claim.
W.7.1
I can interest my reader in my argument with a hook.
W.7.1
I can support an argument with strong evidence such as facts, quotations, examples, and definitions.
W.7.1
I can name opposing sides to my own position, but I still show why my position makes sense (counter-claims)
W.7.1
I can analyze and explain how the evidence supports my claim.
Independent Reading
RL10
Independently and proficiently read and comprehend literary texts representing a variety of genres, cultures, and perspectives and exhibiting complexity appropriate for at least grade 7.
Language Standards
L1
1. Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking; retain and further develop language skills learned in previous grades.
a. Use phrases and clauses to communicate ideas precisely, with attention to skillful use of verb tenses to add clarity.
L2
2. Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing
a. Use a comma to separate coordinate adjectives (e.g., a fascinating, enjoyable movie).
b. Spell correctly, recognizing that some words have commonly accepted variations (e.g., donut/doughnut).
Language-Based English Language Arts with Mrs. Sullivan (4/14)
The English class has entered Unit 5 to begin this last term. Vocabulary study reintroduced the students to words based on the subject of pollution: substance, variety, modern, and support. Multiple-meaning maps had students think on a deeper, more analytical level about vocabulary. Students then considered the “Big Ideas” about the reading “Coming Clean About Toxic Pollution.” Discussions were based on how toxic waste destroys the environment and what steps can be taken to prevent the destruction. During these conversations, students were asked to use specific language from the reading to explain their perspectives. The students completed a Peardeck writing by crafting a topic sentence followed by three strong pieces of evidence to support their writing. Online activities based on word knowledge and grammar continue bi-weekly as students apply what has been introduced through class minilessons.
Language Standards
L.2 Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing.
L.3 Use knowledge of language and its conventions when writing, speaking, reading, or listening.
L.4 Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning words and phrases based on 7th-grade reading and content, choosing flexibility from a variety of strategies.