Hello and happy Sunday! You know, even though 2020 seems to be dragging by (and I've spent the majority of it at home), it's still hard to believe it's already December and there are only two weeks left of school for this calendar year. When it snowed this week, at first I was shocked, then I realized it was actually that time of year. Here are your announcements for this week. I hope it's a great one for you and your family.
Announcements from the Office
Look for the Dream Bus - The Dream Bus will be out again on Thursday, December 10th. We will be providing library books, bookmarks, and chips to our students. It is making the following stops:
Raywick City Park: 12:30-1:30
Hamilton Heights: 2:00-3:00
Office Hours - Our office is closed on NTI days (Friday, Dec 4th, 11th, and 18th). If you call the school, you can leave a message and it goes directly to our email. The number is 270-692-4578. Someone will call back!
MCMS Jolly Jamboree - We will have a drive thru Jolly Jamboree on Thursday, December 17th, from 3:00-5:00 pm (same time as food distribution, so grab 2 weeks of free food while you're there!). Teachers will be spreading holiday cheer and we have treats for our students.
Holiday Spirit Week - We will have a Virtual Holiday Spirit week the last week of classes, December 14-18th. The days are below. Please encourage your children to participate and to turn on their cameras (at least for a minute!) to show their teachers.
Monday: Cozy Christmas socks and/or slippers (does not need to be Christmas themed)
Tuesday: Long Winter's Nap (wear your PJs)
Wednesday: Holiday Headgear (Christmas hats, headbands, hair and/or scarves)
Thursday: Ugly Christmas sweater
Friday: Christmas colors
Covid testing - Don't forget about the drive-thru Covid-19 testing at MCHS on Monday from 8:00-2:00 provided by Healthy Kids Clinic.
Please join Marion County Public Schools on December 17th for a Virtual Christmas Production.
Announcements from the Classroom
Reading with Mrs. Vance - This week we have been working on a Choice Board for Where the Red Fern Grows. All 4 mini projects are due by Monday, Dec. 7, turned in as attachments on Google Classroom. On Monday, Dec. 7, we will return to our novel and begin reading chapter 6.
Camelot Science with Mrs. Wood - We will be reviewing for a test on Monday and taking our Weather/Climate test on Tuesday.
Reading with Mrs. Wood - We will be finishing "Life As We Knew It" next week and taking our test at the end of the week.
Camelot ELA - We have wrapped up our study of characters this week. Next week we will review identifying figurative language and make sure we are able to interpret it. We will study simile, metaphor, personification, hyperbole, idioms, irony and allusion.
Merlin ELA - Our focus this week has been on identifying and examining characters within the text. Next week we will be focusing on identifying and interpreting the different types of figurative language including simile, metaphor, personification, hyperbole, idioms, irony, and allusion.
7th Science - Students have finished their Unit 2: Body Systems playlist. The unit test was given on Wednesday. We started Unit 3: Photosynthesis playlist on Thursday.
Excalibur ELA - We have started our novel "A Long Walk to Water" this week. The students have a workbook that goes along with the book. They should have chapters 1-3 read and slides 4-9 completed in student workbook. NTI work for Friday 12/4/20 - Read chapters 4 and 5 in novel, "A Long Walk to Water." The novel is on Actively Learn linked in Google Classroom. The students will be responsible for completing the slides on the workbook that accompanies those chapters. Slides 10 - 13 should be completed before Monday 12/7/20.
I encourage you to ask your child about the book and offer to read along with them. Some of the best times and discussions I have in classroom are when we read a novel together. It is also one of my favorite things to do with my daughter at home.
6th grade Art - Students will need magazines/newspaper, glue and scissors for this week's project.
6th grade math (all houses) - We are continuing our integers/coordinate graphing unit with a test tentatively scheduled for December 16th and 17th.
All art classes - Students have a choice of a project the week before Christmas break (Dec 14-18). The materials they will need for their project are listed in a Google Slides titled "Art Christmas Choice board" on their Google Classroom. They were told to go ahead and plan for their project so they know what materials to collect.
Chorus: I want to send a big shout out to the chorus students. They recorded holiday songs in Flip Grid on Thursday and Friday. These were an absolute joy to listen to! Thank you so much!
This week, students have begun to learn a new computer program called Theta Music Training. This program allows students to learn music concepts and play music games along the way. The five-lesson, Introduction to Ear Training Course needs to be completed by December 18. Next week, students are learning solfege syllables and hand signs for pitches. Solfege helps students learn songs faster and sing on pitch better. They also have a new, teacher composed piece to begin learning. The song is called "Trust, Hope, & Love." It is about having hope in the middle of a pandemic, finding life's simple joys, encouraging good character traits, bringing people together, and having more Trust, Hope, and Love.