Projects: Looking Back at Week 2 and Forward to Week 3

Hello everybody! I just wanted to give you a quick update about what we have been and will be up to in Projects.

So last week (8/22-8/25) students worked in groups to create a 3D model of a structure or system that they then related to different parts of a cell. They started work on their models on Monday and completed them Thursday. Your students did some great work! I will take some pictures to post on here for you to see each project. Students also had a vocabulary quiz based on the Quizlet that they had been studying.

This week in Projects, students will be finishing up with our unit on cells and begin our unit on body systems. Today students got to do a Gallery Walk and see what other groups in other classes did for their projects. They also evaluated the participation of their peers and their own performance, as well as reflecting on the process, product, and assignment. Tomorrow, students will be taking their final exam for cells. They should make sure that they are familiar with the different parts of a cell and what they do, and they need to know the differences between plant and animal cells.

Then Wednesday and Thursday we will begin studying body systems. We will be studying the 6 major body systems (digestive, circulatory, nervous, respiratory, excretory, muscular). We will continue learning about these systems next week.

I will update the blog by next Tuesday to let you know how this week went and give you a preview for the following week. Have a great Labor Day Weekend!!

-Ms. Williams

Math: August 22- August 25

We've really dived into the material this week, and I was able to start evaluating and understanding the level of each student and each grade as a whole. We've taken our first couple of quizzes, and we're learning to get the testing jitters out of the way. The students are grasping the concepts well, but sometimes it's just easy to make those "silly mistakes" that throw off our entire answer. So we're going to focus and double check all of our work going forward.

6th grade: This past week we reviewed adding/subtracting/multiplying/dividing fractions and decimals. We'll spend a few more days reviewing this coming week, and prepare for a chapter test on Wednesday. This test will cover adding/subtracting/multiplying/dividing whole numbers, fractions, and decimals. 

7th grade: This past week we reviewed finding the Least Common Multiple and square/cube roots. The entire class prepared well and felt confident for their upcoming test. Due to student council elections, the chapter test was postponed from Thursday to Monday (tomorrow). They understand the material well, and I think they will do great!

8th grade: We've had a slow start to eighth grade. We're a little chatty and distract each other from getting our work done, but we're starting to see the importance of focusing in class and understanding the lessons. With this new classroom set up, there is a lot of personal responsibility to learn the material. Towards the end of last week, the students really buckled down and did a great job. This last week we reviewed Real Numbers and the Distributive Property. This upcoming week we will learn graphing on a coordinate plane and prepare for a chapter test on Wednesday!

Math: August 15- August 18

The first week of school has flown by! We've set up all of our Usernames and passwords, and we're getting familiar with our new math class structure of "flipping the classroom." We're ready to start off this next week strong and learn some great math. 

6th grade: This week we reviewed adding, subtracting, multiplying, and dividing, and we began to learn about fractions. We began a quiz, and will continue it on Monday. 

7th grade: This week we learned about prime factorization and the greatest common factor. We had a quiz, that students did very well on, and will prepare for a chapter test this coming week.

8th grade: This week we reviewed the order of operations and learned about number sets, including the set of real numbers. We had a quiz in class and will have two more this upcoming week. So be prepared! 

Great First Week in Projects!

Hello parents and students!

This first week of Projects was fantastic! We learned about how cells are the building blocks of life, about how animal and plant cells are different, and we learned about the functions of different organelles in a cell. Students created a cell model using a water bottle, which they will be excited to show you at Back to School Night. Students also created an analogy between how a cell functions and how a school functions.

Next week, students will be working on their Final Product for our Structures and Process of Cells Unit in teams of four. For their Product, students will create a 3D model of a system or structure (such as a school) and they will relate the parts of that system or structure to the parts of a plant or animal cell. The Products will be completed by Thursday the 25th, when students will do a Gallery Walk to showcase their Final Product.

Also on Thursday students will also take a Vocabulary Test on terms that they will have studied on Quizlet. For more tactile students it would be a good idea to create flashcards on notecards that they can physically manipulate.

The final test for cells will be Monday the 29th so that students can know their results from the Vocabulary Test and review those terms, which will also be on the final test.

Please let me know if you have any comments, questions, or concerns by emailing me at iwilliams@oasisacademyfallon.us. I am so excited to learn and grow with your students this year!

Welcome!

Welcome to a new school year! 

My name is Mrs. Weed, and I am excited to teach the 6th, 7th, and 8th grade math classes. I will be sharing this blog with Ms. Williams, who will be teaching the 8th grade projects and homeroom class, so keep an eye out for posts and updates from us both!

I am excited to meet each of you on Back to School night to explain in detail the structure of our math classes this upcoming year. I created a new tab containing a basic syllabus that will give a brief overview of our plans for the year. We will review it on Thursday and discuss any questions you may have. 

I love to learn, and I love math! I am grateful to spend this year with your son/daughter, and I'm confident we'll challenge our minds and learn lots!