Let there be...snow?!

Welcome back to a very cold, snowy, icy, polar vortex of a year! 2014 has certainly made a chilly appearance. Here's hoping the bad weather is behind us!

Sixth graders have begun our new unit: Literature Changes Thinking. Over the next month or so (depending on the weather!), we'll be digging into persuasive text, including essays, books and articles. We'll be learning vocab, including audience, essential information and author's purpose. We'll also learn how to be smart readers, looking for bias when we read or listen to news stories.

This unit promises to be an interesting one; we'll be discussing hot topics such as: should there be zoos, facebook, the cafeteria social scene, if co-ed classes should end, and if there should be homework over the holidays.

Students will wrap up the unit by working with a partner on their own debate article, modeled after the Scholastic News SCOPE magazine articles we've read. They'll get to weigh in on one of thirteen topics and research facts to support their opinions.

Now, if we could only persuade Jack Frost to go some place else...

Happy persuading!
Mrs. Boltz

More on Stewart from "I Was Beyond Crying"

I did some digging about Stewart. I found this article from 1985. The accident happened in the Washingtion, D.C. area. He was in a summer school for gifted students...interesting since many of you thought he had bad grades! :) Some of you questioned the experiment, and you were right to do so. The school would NOT have approved it. And, a student did not follow the teacher's directions, which then resulted in the explosion! Read the article to learn more.

If you are curious about things, do your research. Do a simple google search and grab the information you seek! This article provides another point of view and more information. It helps us better understand that day.

http://www.ugelow.com/1985/08/13/explosion/

Chase knowledge!

Mrs. Boltz

Celebration Video

                                                                             lancasteronline.com

Today, we wrapped up our reading of the novel Wonder by watching a lip dub video created by local Elizabethtown Middle School. The video, while amazing in its undertaking, also speaks to themes in the book Wonder. I hope you enjoy it!

http://lancasteronline.com/article/local/850767_Watch-600-Elizabethtown-middle-school-students-lip-dub--Home--by-Phillip-Phillips.html 

It's hard to blend in when you were born to stand out.

Don't judge a Book boy by its cover his face.

6th grade students at MMS are thoroughly enjoying reading the novel Wonder by R.J. Palacio. In class we are analyzing characters by "STEAL"ing information from the text: S-what the character SAYS, T - what the character THINKS, E-what EVERYONE ELSE says about the character, A- the character's ACTIONS and L - how the character LOOKS. We've also been analyzing text structures such as varying points of view and flashback. In addition to English topics, the story has a strong message of courage, friendship and growing up. Happy Reading! Mrs. Boltz

Deadlines

Optional Extra Credit Book Reviews are due Friday, Oct. 25 for 15 possible extra credit points for the first marking period. See the LINKS on my web site for the document “Extra Credit Book Review”. Students also had the opportunity to get a copy in class. This is an optional assignment for extra credit. They will not be accepted after the deadline.

We will be on the computers all week typing our final informative papers using google docs. Papers are due on Monday, Oct. 28. Students should have plenty of time to complete this in class, but may need time in study hall or at home to complete it by the deadline. Please see the LINKS on my web site for “Informative Writing Piece Guidelines and Deadlines” and “Informative Writing Piece Rubric.”

Red Robin Burgers

This week students will be drafting, revising and editing their informative writing pieces on the Character Traits of a Best Friend. Students used error analysis to grade writing examples using the rubric. This gave students a clear picture of basic (McDonald's burger), proficient (Wegman's burger) and advanced (Red Robin burger) writing. We all agreed, the juicier the writing, the better! Students were also encouraged to "hook" the reader with a strong introduction using a quote, a question, an anecdote or a statement about friendship. How will you hook your reader in the opening paragraph?

FRED helps us become stronger writers

Last week, students learned how FRED can help them become stronger writers. Here's the explanation of the acronym with some examples. Please encourage your child to use FRED across the curriculum in his/her writing.

F - Fact or focus statement. This introduces our readers to the topic of our paper. It is clear and powerful.

Logan Williams cannot go out in the sunlight because she has a rare genetic disease called XP.

R - Reasons. Reasons support our fact or focus statement. They may answer the question, "Why?"

 Logan Williams cannot go out in the sunlight because she has a rare genetic disease called XP. This disease makes sun exposure impossible because the sun’s dangerous UV rays can cause deadly skin cancers in victims of XP. 

E - Examples. Examples support our reasons. They may answer the question, "How?"

Logan Williams cannot go out in the sunlight because she has a rare genetic disease called XP. This disease makes sun exposure impossible because the sun’s dangerous UV rays can cause deadly skin cancers in victims of XP. Logan must play outside at night, while most kids are sleeping. To play outside during the day, she needs to wear a dark green suit that covers her entire body – head to toe. 

D - Details. Details further explain or clarify our examples. They beef up our writing and make it more powerful.

Logan Williams cannot go out in the sunlight because she has a rare genetic disease called XP. This disease makes sun exposure impossible because the sun’s dangerous UV rays can cause deadly skin cancers in victims of XP. Logan must play outside at night, while most kids are sleeping. To play outside during the day, she needs to wear a dark green suit that covers her entire body – head to toe. The suit, created by NASA, includes goggles, a hood and textured gloves for gripping.