Weekly Updates - Cluster 6 (10/10)
10/12 - 10/15
Cluster Announcements
ELA
This week, students completed their first personal narrative- writing about a time that they had made a poor choice as a child. Students shared their stories in small groups, having another group member read their story so that they could listen to their writing. Students reported that this was an effective way to notice small or unintentional errors in their writing or message. Finally, students analyzed their pre and post-assessment for narrative writing by comparing a hard copy of each with an abbreviated narrative writing rubric. As a way to reflect on our own teaching, students completed two short google forms to validate and improve on the writing unit. For enjoyment, ask your student to share their fantastic story with you!
Next week, students will begin their first whole-class novel, Warcross by Marie Lu.
The novel focuses on 18-year-old Emika Chen who, after losing her father and being expelled from high school, turns to Warcross to escape from her hardships. To make a living, she becomes a bounty hunter—an individual who tracks down perpetrators of crimes related to Warcross, such as gambling.
Please encourage your student to independently read each evening- with the start of our new novel, there is no excuse not to.
Science
Last week we went back in history to the early 1900s and learned about how the scientist Alfred Wegener gathered evidence from around the globe to support the theory of continental drift. Students worked in groups to gather information about one of Wegener's six different types of evidence and presented their findings to the rest of the class using a group generated Google Slide.
Learning Objectives for next week (10/12-10/15)
I can explain how the spreading of the ocean floor has created new crust and contributed to plate movement.
- I can construct a model to show the process of seafloor spreading.
- I understand that oceanic trenches are areas where old crustal plates are remelted into the mantle.
- I can explain how mid-ocean ridges are locations where tectonic plates move apart and create new crust.
Civics
This week in Civics we reflected on our excellent work on our US Identity Maps - they came together beautifully and students were very proud of the finished products! We then launched our mini-unit on elections and voting, starting by learning and working with some key vocabulary (voter registration, ballots, primary elections, general elections, etc.). Students also thought about and wrote about why voting is a core democratic value, and learned how to register to vote. The deadline this year to register to vote in Watertown is Wednesday, Oct 13. Local elections are November 2 this year!
Next week, we’ll be learning about how local government works in Watertown, and taking a look at our nonpartisan local elections. We’ll work with more election vocabulary related to political parties and the political spectrum, and we’ll continue with “What in the News?” Wednesdays.