I can't believe the third quarter of sixth grade is already halfway done! This week in Language Arts, students were divided into four different teams to begin the "Archeological Dig" project! Each group selected an ancient civilization that they will be keeping secret from each other. Over the next month, they will research and write a thorough research paper on that civilization before beginning the interactive phase of the "Dig."
In History, sixth graders learned about three key philosophies that arose in ancient China: Confucianism, Daoism (Taoism), and Legalism. They learned about each of these under the conditions that each 'philosophy' encouraged. Ask them how it felt to learn in such different ways! In math, we learned about percents, and percent of change. We'll have a chapter test next week. Wishing everyone a wonderful weekend!
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What a packed four days! This week was filled with fun holidays and great lessons. In Language Arts, sixth graders revised and submitted their creative mystery stories! We honored the efforts of these rising authors by taking some class time to read excerpts from their stories to each other. One cold morning, we even had hot chocolate and mystery stories! These stories wrapped up our winter Mystery Unit. In History, we moved from Ancient India to Ancient China. We began by making a map of China (each student was assigned a quadrant of a smaller map and had to do their best to translate and recreate their section so we could come together to make a large scale one). From that, we learned about the geography that isolated China for thousands of years in ancient times, as well as the early Shang Dynasty. In Math class, we worked on fraction-decimal-percent conversions and had some fun applying that knowledge to the Olympic medal standings! In PE, sixth graders had a special guest Monday morning! For their rugby unit, Andra Wilson invited England-raised Ty Brandt, who grew up playing rugby for his school and played Fly-Half for the US Pacific Northwest team. Mr. Brandt (or "coach Ty" as the students called him) also happens to be Ms. Armstrong's fiancé. ;) Valentines Day and Chinese New Year brought some fun celebrations to our class! Enjoy the four day weekend! It was a busy week this week! In Language Arts, sixth graders finished reading the class novel The Westing Game in a marathon read-aloud on Wednesday! Ask them about the book, their character, and the resolution! This book enthralled many in the class and they were SO excited to share their theories and predictions! They also continued writing their mystery stories; I'm looking forward to reading final drafts on Wednesday. In Math, we began a unit on converting between decimals, fractions, and percentages. In History, sixth graders learned about the life of Siddhartha Gautama and the core values of Buddhism. Sixth graders completed lotus flower designs, reflecting on choices they'd make if they were practicing Buddhists. On Thursday, we went on a field trip to Arlington Theater as part of the Santa Barbara International Film Festival! Filled with kids, the theater laughed and cried along to Coco, this year's highlight Pixar film that is nominated for the Best Animation Oscar. After the film, the students watched an interview with writer and Director Adrian Molina, who answered student questions about animation, the values and memories in Coco, and pursuing their dreams. If you haven't seen Coco, I HIGHLY recommend it as an adult! The story is rich and meaningful, and the animation is breathtaking. Below, you can catch some clips of sixth graders in action during the weekly House Dodgeball tournament as well as Adrian Molina sharing his thoughts with the kids!
This was a fun week to be a sixth grader at Laguna! The very first period on Monday, students participated in a Japanese tea ceremony in art class. They had made small ceramic cups with Dug Uyesaka, and Mrs. Yuki Nakamura was kind enough to come and teach the students about the traditions, values, and methods of tea ceremonies. The students enjoyed both matcha and green tea from their handmade cups, as well as several different kinds of Japanese snacks. In Language Arts class, sixth graders practiced "show don't tell" techniques to use in their creative mystery stories. We also flew through more chapters of The Westing Game, all the while learning that things are not as they always seem in this genre of writing. Assumptions about characters are constantly uprooted or confirmed with mystery stories, and with 16 different characters to keep track of, this is a commitment for a reader! In Math this week, sixth graders wrapped up our Chapter 5 unit on Rates. Mrs. Valentine was kind enough to teach the unit and incorporated in several new and fun math activities. TEDxLagunaBlancaSchoolWednesday was an exciting day for our whole middle and upper school! Sixth graders attended two out of three sessions of the first ever TEDxLagunaBlancaSchool! A TEDx event is an independently organized series of "TED" talks that happen within a community, supported and approved by the official TED organization. This all-day festival of talks was hosted in the gym and coordinated by a dedicated group of 21 high school students. Eighth grade English teacher Mrs. Alldredge taught the course, Mrs. Jacobs supported the course, and whenever the sixth graders went to science class, I (Ms. Armstrong) went to assistant teach the program as well. Sixth graders were able to watch ten presentations, on topics ranging from how to foster self-confidence to how technology can save our seas. From adoption to community healing, and from anti-bullying to the recent power of fire and water in our hometown. It was an enlightening, uplifting day for everyone!
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June 2018
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