Dear Upper Elementary/Middle School Parents:
Happy New Year! As we begin the second semester, the fourth and fifth level students will continue to practice reading the script and perform Midsummer Night’s Dream on Friday, February 1 at 2:00 p.m. The middle school students will perform Romeo & Juliet on Thursday, February 14 at 2:00 p.m. Both groups of students have been busy reading dialogue, memorizing the script and acting in each of the scenes. We know you will enjoy their performances and should receive an invitation shortly. Please mark your calendar.
Literature/Drama: The fourth and fifth level students will continue to read and memorize their lines in Shakespeare’s Midsummer Night’s Dream. Additionally, they will continue with fourth level language skills: read and write dialogue, summarize text, find main idea and story elements. Fifth level language skills include: identify genres, write with details, write persuasively, respond to literature, and make inferences. The Wordly Wise lessons will be completed by the end of January. We will then focus on English and writing skills. All students have taken the TCAP language assessment which results were sent home in Friday folders. The fourth level spelling bee representatives are: Ethan Britt, Dash Breaux and Rasheed Sarieh. The fifth level spelling bee representatives are: Judson Gay & Lauren Freeman. The sixth level spelling bee representative is Calvin Caplan. The seventh level spelling bee representative is Ilham Aliyu. Congratulations!
Math: The fourth level concepts include: decimals, measurement, graphing, fractions, perimeter, area, geometric transformations, algebra and data collection. Fifth level concepts include: long division, equivalent fractions, explore volume and geometry. All students have taken the TCAP assessment and reviewed necessary concepts. Results were sent home in Friday folders.
Literature/Drama: The sixth and seventh level students will continue to read and memorize their lines in Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet. Language lessons include: literature response, use of descriptive language, understand themes, analyze characters, evaluate oral presentations, read informational text, write sonnets and discuss use of poetry for dialogue. The Wordly Wise lessons will be completed by the end of January. We will then focus on English and writing skills. All students will take the TCAP language assessment which results will be sent home in Friday folders.
Geography/History: The sixth and seventh level students will focus on The Civil War (1861-1865) in preparation for a field trip to The Tennessee State Museum to view historical documents on February 20. Additionally, middle school students will read “Hitler’s Daughter” in preparation for our field trip to TPAC on February 26. Please mark your calendar with these dates if you are able to join us.
Sincerely,
Helena M. Hess, Director
As the New Year unfolds, we welcome a new term and anticipate exciting new concepts ahead, while continually reviewing those to which we have already been introduced. Individualized Montessori education allows students to review concepts they need to practice while moving ahead in others. To help identify these areas, a Mid-Year Math and Language Assessment was given to each student.
Two overarching concepts which all Group B 4th and 5th level students will address in the coming weeks are: the world of measurement in its many forms and the study of geometry. We will explore and compare units of measure for: distance, volume, weight and temperature. We will calculate the area of regular and irregular shapes, measure volume in cube and liquid form, and explore geometric relationships such as translation, rotation, reflection, symmetry and equivalence.
We continue our multi-faceted approach to Math through: operations practice, fact memorization, concept application and problem solving. 4th level students will continue to develop all operations with whole numbers and fractions. They will continue to apply new concepts in problem solving, develop logic and reasoning skills, and understand the geometric expressions of operational math through the use of Montessori materials. 5th level students will continue to develop all operations with fractions and decimals, as well as explore the pre-algebra problem solving skills of: multiplication of binomials using geometric layout and the FOIL process, squaring and cubing, strategies to solve for variables, understanding function tables, and logic reasoning.
In Language 4th and 5th level students will continue developing vocabulary through Wordly Wise, word etymologies and word study. We will continue spelling development and lessons on grammar and punctuation. In reading we will focus on reading comprehension skills in addition to our literature study with an emphasis on historical fiction from the 1800s and tall/folk tales.
In Geography/History we will be moving from the 1700s/American Revolution into the 1800s/Westward Expansion and the Civil War. We will have two trunks visiting from the TN State Museum: Tennessee Land and People and A Civil War Soldier. We are very excited about our Civil War Highlights tour on February 20th at the TN State Museum where we will have the opportunity to view the Emancipation Proclamation, the original 13th Amendment and many other original treasures and documents from the national archives! Please contact me if you would be able to join us for this amazing field trip!
Elisabeth Gay
Level 4 Science
Fourth level science students will begin studying the Animal and the Plant Kingdom using the Albanesi phylum classification materials. They will use the BrainPop software program to help classify vertebrates and invertebrates. They will dissect frogs and use the Explore Learning software to conduct experiments dealing with cell structure, photosynthesis, plant growth, osmosis, the greenhouse effect, and the Archimedes Principle. Temperature studies using verniner sensors will be continued.
Level 5 Science and Middle School Science
Fifth, sixth and seventh level science students will continue using the physics workshop laboratory equipment to learn about acceleration and velocity as it relates to mass and incline angle. They will complete lever and pulley studies as well as determine the acceleration due to gravity. Students will predict and measure the acceleration of a car traveling down a ramp using different angles. Students will use the Explore Learning software to conduct experiments dealing with cell structure, photosynthesis, plant growth, osmosis, the greenhouse effect, and the Archimedes Principle, Boyle’s Law, Charles’ Law, Fan Cart Physics, pH Analysis, and Free Fall Tower. Physical science relationships will be studied using verniner sensors.
Middle School Mathematics
Middle school math students will be studying linear and quadratic functions using the Geometer Sketchpad and Explore Learning. Introductory algebraic concepts will be introduced. The Geometer Sketchpad helps students investigate mathematical models, objects, figure, and graphs. With Sketchpad, students are provided a visual way to explore and understand abstract concepts in pre-algebra, algebra, geometry, and science. Motion explorations dealing with velocity, speed, and acceleration will be used to graph relationships between time and distance and time and acceleration.
Dr. Herman Jackson
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