Monday, January 4, 2010

General Announcements:

• You must have an independent reading book every day. If you are getting close to the end of one, have the next one at school and ready to go.
• Wed., 1/6: Next installment of Field Trip Money due ($20)
• Friday, 1/8: 6-7-8 Dance, 8-11 PM! Decoration committee meets 3-4 and must arrange own pickup at 4, Food committee meets at 7:45 in All-School space. Comment with music requests!

Math:

• 7th & 8th Grade:
  • Due Tue., 1/5: Math's Mates 2.3, begun in class today, with work for * problems shown on a separate piece of paper and corrections for 2.2 on same piece of paper.

Social Studies:

• Due Tues., 1/5:
  • Sort all notes and assignments by date, least recent on top.
  • 3-hole punch all papers not punched and fasten in folder. If your folder has a pocket, you may put your test in the pocket instead of hole-punching and fastening in.
  • Glue stick cover to folder.

Science:

• Due Wed., 1/6: In Physical Science textbook, read pgs. 317-324. Quiz on vocab/Inner Planets this Wed., 1/6.
  • Group 1 has books tonight (Mon. 1/4).
  • Group 2 has books tomorrow night (Tues. 1/5).

Language Arts:

• Due Tues., 1/5: In LA journal, write a five-sentence paragraph in which you describe the Prism lunchroom today. Try to create the atmosphere/mood of the lunchroom by using some of the writer tools we discussed in class today (e.g. dialogue, imagery, details). Refer to the definition of mood in your LA journal.

Spanish:

• 7th Grade:

• 8th Grade:

Moment of Zen: The Flaming Lips have been balancing playfully on the edge of ultracool and insane, pop and noise since forming in 1983, with a penchant for turning the absurd into something matter of fact (see 2002's "Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots" suite and 1999's "Waiting for Superman") and the everyday into the sublime ("Suddenly, Everything Has Changed"), and for unique reinventions of form (see the experimental 1997 album Zaireeka, comprised of four CDs meant to be played simultaneously at the listener's discrection). Following from their whimsical take on reality comes one of lead singer Wayne Coyne's most recent creations, pictured above, a double-necked guitar where one of the necks is a Guitar Hero controller, linked to a type of synthesizer on the body of the instrument. Click the picture for more info on this unique hybrid instrument.

Monday, December 22, 2009

General Announcements:

• Copies of Eighth-Grade Project documents for phase one available for download here.
• Take home pokeberry pouches from display board.
• You must have an independent reading book every day. If you are getting close to the end of one, have the next one at school and ready to go.

Math:

• 7th Grade:
  • Due Tues., 12/22:
    • Complete 1.1 on p. 7 of new CMP book (Covering and Surrounding) about designing layouts for a bumper car ride given specific requests and materials, as begun in class today. For parts A, B and C, you should have three possible sketches that fit the criteria for each - no half-tiles.
    • Read through 1.1 Follow-Up (you may want to do this before doing the main part of 1.1) and complete 1.1 Follow-Up, questions 1 & 2.
• 8th Grade:
  • Due Tues., 12/22: Complete #14-20 in handout packet according to directions (more practice with determining slope & y-intercept and writing equations to describe a linear relationship using the form y=mx + b, given data points that lie on that line). Each line must be graphed on a separate set of axes, but each page may have more than one set of axes. Show how you got your answers and explain where necessary.

Social Studies:

• None assigned

Science:

• Due Tues., 12/22: Challenge assignment from handout (copy of p. 320 from science book), begun in Study with Grace
  1. Graph average distance from the sun and surface temperature for each planet based on table on the other side (p. 317, using temperatures in gray box on p. 320 for inner four planets). All parts of graph must be properly labeled (Title, axes (with units!), planets).
  2. Answer questions a, b, c in gray box on p. 320 either on the back of your graph or on separate paper.
• Due Tues., 12/22: Write one ¶ about two things you found interesting on our field trip Friday. Use supplied paper.

Language Arts:

• None assigned.

Spanish:

• Nada ¡Que tengan buenas vacaciones!

Moment of Zen: The work of Lego sculptor Nathan Sawaya. Click the picture to visit his website.

Thursday, December 17, 2009

General Announcements:

• Friday, Dec. 18: Field trip to Amherst College (Bassett Planetarium & Amherst Natural History Museum) still needs a few more drivers. We will leave Hilltown right after All-School (~9:30 a.m.) and be returning about 2:30 p.m.
  • All students must bring their own lunch, even if you usually get pizza or a lunch from Blue House on Fridays.
  • Please dress warmly, as some parts of the field trip will not be heated. Dressing in layers is recommended.
• Copies of Eighth-Grade Project documents for phase one available for download here.
• You must have an independent reading book every day. If you are getting close to the end of one, have the next one at school and ready to go.

Math:

• Note: All assignments should be turned in to Grace first thing, before 8:30
• 7th Grade:
  • Due Fri., 12/18: Make-up work only
• 8th Grade:
  • Due Fri., 12/18: #1, 2, 3 on p.166 of Additional Practice (photocopy from Teacher's Edition, handed out in class today) — more practice with determining slope and y-intercept for linear equations in the form y=mx+b

Social Studies:

• None assigned:

Science:

• None assigned :

Language Arts:

• Note: All assignments should be turned in to Grace first thing, before 8:30
• Due Fri., 12/18: On separate paper, typed or neatly handwritten, write a one-¶ response to your beginning experience with Shakespeare's play. Be certain the paragraph is edited and has a main idea sentence as its first sentence.

Moment of Zen: For those of you who have been folding pieces to make a 12-piece spiky ball ("stellated octahedron" in geometry-speak), there's a lot more to do with them besides. The pieces are called Sonobe units, named for their creator, Mitsonobu Sonobe, and there are many websites out there with other ideas of 3D figures to make with them and plenty of pictures of these sometimes-boggling constructions. Click the picture above (featuring a 30-piece spiky ball or stellated icosahedron) to visit one of these sites.

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

General Announcements:

• Friday, Dec. 18: Field trip to Amherst College (Bassett Planetarium & Amherst Natural History Museum) still needs a few more drivers. We will leave Hilltown right after All-School (~9:30 a.m.) and be returning about 2:30 p.m.
• Copies of Eighth-Grade Project documents for phase one available for download here.
• All students must have an independent reading book every day. If you are getting close to the end of one, have the next one at school and ready to go.

Math:

• 7th Grade:
  • Due Thurs., 12/17:
    • Finish Math's Mate 2.2 begun in class today, with work for * problems shown on separate sheet of paper.
    • Bring colored pencils to class 12/17.
• 8th Grade:
  • Due Thurs., 12/17:
    • Finish Math's Mate 2.2 begun in class today, with work for * problems shown on separate sheet of paper.
    • Quiz on definition of "slope" as defined in glossary of CMP book

Social Studies:

• Due Thurs., 12/17: Write a story summary of either Horatius at the Bridge or The Decision of L. Junius Brutus. Illustrate it with a ½-page, colored pencil drawing.

Science:

• Due Thurs., 12/17: Read Physical Science, p. 311-317 and answer questions 1-8 on p. 320. Group 2 has the textbooks tonight (Wed.). Group 1 should ask about a copy of questions if not finished.

Language Arts:

• None assigned

Spanish:

• 7th Grade:
  • Due Thurs., 12/17: Finish your 8 drawings representing Ch. 4 in Pobre Ana

• 8th Grade:
  • Due Thurs., 12/17: Finish your drawing of two favorite scenes from Piratas

Moment of Zen: This picture, of a family from Bhutan, is part of a photo series of families from around the world and a week's food for them, from the book Hungry Planet: What the World Eats by Peter Menzel and Faith D'Aluisio. Click the picture to see a number of other examples from around the world from Germany to Sudanese refugees in a camp in Chad, with a whole lot in between. It's interesting not just to see how much food and cost, but also what's included.

Tuesday, December 15, 2009

General Announcements:

• You must have an independent reading book every day. If you are getting close to the end of one, have the next one at school and ready to go.
• Copies of Eighth-Grade Project documents for phase one available for download here.

Math:

• 7th Grade:
  • None assigned
• 8th Grade:
  • Due Wed., 12/16: Study the definition of "slope" in the glossary and be ready for a quiz on it on Thursday. I will type it and leave works out that you have to fill in.

Social Studies:

• Due Thurs., 12/17: Write a story summary of either Horatius at the Bridge or The Decision of L. Junius Brutus. Illustrate it with a ½-page, colored pencil drawing.

Science:

• Due Wed., 12/16: Write a 1-¶ reflection on what the Relative Planet Size activity showed you and what surprised you most in this activity.
• Due Thurs., 12/17: Read Physical Science, p. 311-317 and answer questions 1-8 on p. 320. Group 1 has the textbooks tonight (Tue.). Group 2 will have the textbooks tomorrow (Wed.) night.

Language Arts:

• Due Wed., 12/16: Bring independent reading book.

Spanish:

• 7th Grade:
  • Due Thurs., 12/17: Finish your drawing representing some part of Ch. 4 in Pobre Ana

• 8th Grade:
  • Due Thurs., 12/17: Finish your drawing of two favorite scenes from Piratas

Moment of Zen: The Bacon Cake Is a Lie... ...Or at least so claims Seattle-based home food-artist "Ms. Humble," who runs the food blog Not So Humble Pie, and has not only made "bacon cake" (which both contains and is styled to look like bacon) but also the edibles constructed in the pictures above (the sushi are actually cupcakes, and contain no actual fish). This biological anthropologist turned food artist also has a penchant for science-related food, her collection of which includes gingerbread scientists, cookie Drosophila melanogaster, chocolate atoms and a periodic table fashioned out of cookies. The whole thing is worth checking out, but I recommend her Gallery of Weird Food, containing some of her most adventurous creations, as a jumping off place.

Eighth Grade Project Documents

I know you are all keeping track of the information about eighth grade projects very carefully, but in case of shark attack, alien invasion or parents wanting a copy, here are digital copies of each: (unfortunately, these are not easy right-click/Ctrl-click->Save as downloads, you must follow the link and then download - I will see about getting .pdf versions of these on the school server soon) Added 12/15/09

• Assessment Rubric for Phase One
• Dec./Jan. Calendar with project deadlines
• Sample journal entries with scores

Added 1/20/10

• Assessment Rubric for Phase Two (with expectations)
• Assessment Rubric for Phase Two (Recording Form)

Added 1/22/10

• January Project Calendar
• February Project Calendar

Added 3/24/10

• Calendars for Phase 3 of Project (March-June)
• Thesis Proposal Guidelines

Monday, December 14, 2009

General Announcements:

• Ancient Greece Museum Exhibits are ready to go home if they have not already. They are in the 3rd floor classroom and hallway.
• You must have an independent reading book every day. If you are getting close to the end of one, have the next one at school and ready to go.

Math: 7th & 8th Grade:

• Due Tue., 12/15: Work for 20 min. in grade-level Math League.

Social Studies:

• None assigned

Science:

• Due Tue., 12/15: Answer Qs on worksheet about relative planet size. Exension p. 2; #1-3 + Extension on p. 3 (Answers on back, in complete sentences).

Language Arts:

• Due Tue., 12/15: In your LA journal, record a fact about Julius Caesar that you found interesting and a fact about William Shakespeare that you found interesting. Be certain to record the source of your facts in journal as well and using standard bibliography form (Use the style sheet given to you by John for the bibliography). Citation Format Guide with examples (.pdf)

Moment of Zen: Beyond Whining: The Complaints Choir The Finnish word valituskuoro, which translates as 'complaints choir' describes the sound of a number of people complaining all at once. This sparked the idea of an actual choir, singing complaints set to music, for Finnish artists Oliver Kochta-Kalleinen and Tellervo Kalleinen. Shortly thereafter, the Helsinki and Birmingham (UK) Complaints Choirs were born in 2005, in very short order. The Helsinki Complaints Choir—dozens of people, dressed in formal wear—sang in a concert hall about what flat-out annoyed them: everything from people talking on their cell phones too loud to losing to Sweden in hockey. The idea caught on, and there have since been a number of complaints choirs in cities all around the world. You can see a comprehensive list of complaints choirs - many with videos - by clicking the picture above or reading this article describing the development of the art.