Epsilon Newsletter
Math:
Both classes finished their first units this week. The 7th graders practiced multiplying and dividing rational numbers, then studied for their check-in. Their check-in will be sent home next week.
The Algebra students reviewed for their check-in by playing Gone Fishin, playing a partner dice game, and completing a solve and color. Their check-in was on Wednesday and have been sent home in their P&P folders. Thursday they started the relations and functions unit.
Humanities:
This week, students continued reading Esther Forbes’ Johnny Tremain, diving into Chapters 4 and 5 and discussing characters, conflicts, and the growing tensions in pre-Revolutionary Boston. Students also sharpened their literary essay skills by collaborating to build formal introductions using attention-grabbing hooks, background information, and strong thesis statements. They used writing from their summer reading books as sentence stems and worked with classmates to develop and improve their ideas.
To bring the novel’s setting to life, students also began creating maps of pre-Revolutionary Boston, tracking locations and events referenced throughout the story. As our reading continues, students are connecting the novel’s characters and events to the real places that shaped the beginning of the American Revolution!
Social Studies:
Whew, what a week! Movement, debate, and falling down laughter ruled the activities during history classes. Students explored how self-government developed in the English colonies during the 17th and 18th centuries. We began by learning about Salutary Neglect, a period when England often allowed the colonies to manage many of their own affairs with limited interference from the British government. Students connected this idea to the growth of colonial independence and examined how colonists gained experience making decisions, creating rules, and participating in government.
Students practiced their note-taking skills while learning about several important steps in the development of self-government, including town hall meetings in colonial Massachusetts, the Virginia House of Burgesses, the Fundamental Orders of Connecticut, and the Mayflower Compact. They then brought these ideas to life through a colonial town hall simulation, where students took on roles and experienced how communities could discuss issues, debate ideas, and make decisions together.
To finish the week, students began creating Government Pillar quilt squares for our collaborative folk-art quilt. Each square represents an important idea or institution that helped build the foundation of American self-government. We will put together our “quilt” next week!
Science:
On Tuesday in Ecology we learned about food webs. After taking short notes, groups were assigned a Texas region and a list of animals. They had to turn that list into a food web poster. On Thursday we took notes over the 10% rule and learned only 10% of energy is passed onto the next organism. Then, partners completed detective challenges about different ecosystems. Next week we will run a lab simulation and study what happens when there are disruptions in a meadow’s ecosystem.
Spanish 1A: Explorando mundos:
This week in Explorando Mundos, students completed their first Spanish checkpoint (quiz) on greetings and introductions. They practiced using phrases like Hola, Me llamo…, ¿Cómo te llamas?, ¿Qué tal?, Estoy…, and Soy de…
We also began focusing on classroom phrases students can use when they need help, including No entiendo, Repite, por favor, Más despacio, por favor, and ¿Qué significa…? Our class motto this week was: Usamos español cuando podemos. We use Spanish when we can.
Students are learning that they do not need to understand every word to participate. They just need tools, courage, and practice.
Spanish 1A Students practice introducing themselves, saying where they are from, and asking for clarification.
Students group together to build Food Web posters based on different regions of Texas. These posters showed the relationship between different species and how they acquire their energy. This activity enhanced our discussion of the 10% rule about energy consumption in different environments this week as well.
History lessons focused on the development of colonial self-government this week. With information on examples like town hall meetings, students created characters for a simulation to discuss various topics. The debates were lively and in some cases, downright hilarious!!
Writing practice became the topic of the week in Humanities classes. Students practiced developing strong introductory paragraphs while continuing exploring the topic of Johnny Tremain and the American Revolution.
Students learned about balance and focusing on tasks during our weekly PE session. They used a rally line to move a balloon across the gym. From using pinkie fingers to heads, they learned about focusing on task completion rather than being first.
