Ms. Boyce’s Blog

Math: This week, sixth graders will continue working on Chapter Three. As each lesson becomes more difficult, it is important for students to stay on track, take diligent notes, and complete their homework correctly. The Chapter Three test is scheduled for next Tuesday, November 10th. By Wednesday, students will have written down the directions that will be on the test – it is important to study before Monday night in order to be prepared for the test. I have seen outstanding improvement with preparation for tests and quizzes – it would be great to have all students score 90% and above for the Chapter Three Test!

English: I have received the English papers, and after grading a few, I am very impressed with the variation of sentence structure (openers) and word choice. This was expected, but the major area of improvement lies in editing for grammar, spelling, and punctuation errors. Though I have only graded a few, so far, the average paper grade is around an 86%. For the rest of the week, sixth graders will be working on their quote paragraphs, which will mostly be completed in class.

**Report cards are issued on November 18th!

Happy Halloween Week!

Math: We’re continuing with Chapter Three, which is decimals and multiplication. Students seem to have a strong grasp of multiplying decimals, but their multiplication is rusty!! Please encourage students to dust off those math fact flashcards and practice each night. There will be a short mini-quiz on multiplication of decimals  and estimating decimal products on Friday. We will review on Wednesday and Thursday.

English: The final typed paper is due on Friday, October 30th. All guidelines have been and will again be given a number of times in class. Peer edits were completed last week, so the papers have been edited and will be evaluated by peers on Monday with a similar rubric that I use. Major skills being assessed include sentence structure (variation of sentence openers… subject, conjunction, participle, preposition, adverb, adjective), paragraph organization, and word choice.

Math: There is a Chapter Two test on Tuesday, October 20th. To practice responsible study skills, students should create a practice test to complete and correct. They can use homework problems because they have the correct answers for the problems. Though it is not mandatory and not a grade, it definitely would prepare them for the test. Last week, I provided the students with all of the directions they will see on the test; we also completed a variety of problems for review. There are no surprises on the test – every student is capable of 100%! My goal is for every student to score a 90% or above – I can’t wait to grade them to see if we met our goal! Later in the week, we will start Chapter Three, which is multiplication of whole numbers and decimals.

English: This week, students will get their graded outlines back, and from the outline, they will draft a sloppy copy of their first major paper. They have been advised that it is a huge assignment worth more than 100 points; it is very important that they follow directions and implement the necessary skills we work on in class (word choice, sentence structure, grammar, starting creatively). On Thursday, we will have our first short etymology test. Students should study their ‘binder clip’ each night for practice!

Math: The Chapter Two quiz will be brought home this week to be signed by a parent. Many students did well, but there are still a few who are not showing responsibility with their study skills. Studying should occur at least three days before quizzes and tests; this will allow for some comfortable time to meet with me if any questions or concerns arise. If your child needs help, he or she can make a quick appointment to see me in the morning. As long as I do not have meetings, I can meet with him or her the following morning. The Chapter Two Test is scheduled for Tuesday, October 20th. Everything on the quiz will be addressed on the test. Notebooks should be checked for organization, completion, and correction of any incorrect problems for Wednesday, October 14th. We will spend this short week and next Monday reviewing these concepts. Please check to see that your child is completing his or her studying at home.

English: The Sentences Test will be passed back on Wednesday. I will try to show them their updated averages when I pass back the tests. Some students did an outstanding job – many 100%s, 96%s, and 92%s. Then, there were a few students in each homeroom who scored below 60%. After taking notes, practicing these concepts for so long, and allowing extra time for questions, there is no way a student who studied the notes and examples could score that low. I expected scores in the 80%s and 90%s; anything lower than that is unacceptable. If a student is confused, he is she simply raises a hand to ask a question. I am more than happy to answer any questions – they are welcomed at all times in my classroom. Please continue monitoring your child’s study skills at home. We are beginning our first major paper of the year. They know how to write a sentence and vary sentence openings. Now, it is time to to put those skills to work. We’ll start by learning how to informally outline a paper. That will be followed with a rough draft. I’m excited about the topic assigned, and I hope your child is, too!

Math: Continuing from last week, we will be working on decimals, place value, rounding and estimating, and adding/subtracting of decimals. A quiz is scheduled for Tuesday, October 6th. PLEASE know that for every quiz and test, I have the students write down the exact directions, or instructions, they will see for the upcoming quiz/test. This means that there are NO surprises when it comes to tests and quizzes; students know exactly what they’re going to be tested on and exactly how they will be tested on it. For the Chapter 2 Quiz on Tuesday, students wrote down the exact instructions this past Friday (10.2.09). To better help them with this quiz, they also wrote down a page number and problem numbers for examples that correspond with each set of instructions. Try to get your child developing great study habits. Like they were told on Thursday and Friday: it is not good enough to start studying on Monday night. Studying should begin a good three to four days in advance; that way, if any questions or concerns arise, students have enough time to contact me for help!

English: Work with sentence structure has moved on from studying subjects and predicates to the six ways to start a sentence: subject, conjunction, adverb, adjective, participle, and prepositional phrase. The idea is for students to be able to vary their sentence structures while writing. To get a better idea of this concept, see how the same sentence changes below:

Starting with a…

subject: The nervous man tripped as he was walking quickly down the street. conjunction: Because he was walking quickly, the nervous man tripped down the street. adverb: Quickly walking, the nervous man tripped down the street. adjective: Nervous, the man tripped as he walked quickly up the street. participle: Walking quickly, the nervous man tripped down the street. prepositional phrase: As he was walking quickly, the nervous man tripped down the street.

Most writers start their sentences with a subject; by varying sentence openers, writers make their work varied and flow smoothly together. A short test on sentences (predicates and subjects as well as sentence openers) is scheduled for Thursday, October 8th.

**Most students did a much better job of writing down, organizing, and completing homework by the due dates this week. Keep up the great job!

Math: The Chapter One test is permanently scheduled for Wednesday, September 23rd. Thank you for your patience with the changes; I wanted to make sure students weren’t rushed through any of the lessons. We started the chapter review on Friday, but that will be finished on Monday so there is not homework over Fisher Fest weekend. On Monday, we’ll finish the review and go over all of the directions that will be seen on the test. For homework, students must create a neatly organized practice test using the directions given on Monday. They will bring this blank quiz to class on Tuesday. Tuesday will be a day for a review of all skills as well as ample time for questions. For homework, students should complete their self-created test. They can correct their answers using their notebooks since all written questions should have been pulled from past homework assignmens. Wednesday is the test – please assist in making sure these sixth graders have studied in a structured and organized manner. This will teach them effective study strategies for the future. Thursday will be a fun extension of chapter one; when they arrive home on Thursday, please ask them to explain what they were doing! Friday will be the start to Chapter Two: Decimals and Metric Units. Any help needed should be sought before Wednesday and preferably by appointment if possible, as it helps me plan my time better. Thank you!

English: Dissecting sentences will again be our focus this week. The reason I am spending so much time with this is because a sentence is the basic part of writing. If students cannot write appropriately punctuated and well-written sentences, the paragraphs will only be worse. Please know that the first trimester may seem all about grammar and less about writing; however, with time, students will be writing such outstanding sentences, we will have loads of time to work on various writing pieces for the rest of the year. Just to elaborate on the process, students will first learn about the parts of a sentence (subject, predicate, simple subject/predicate, compound subject/predicate). Following that, they will learn how to identify the types of sentence structures (complex, compound, simple) by locating subjects and predicates. After, students will learn the six ways to start a sentence (by subject, conjunction, adverb, adjective, preposition, participle). These concepts will take weeks to learn in order for students to effectively master them. I’m excited to be teaching the parts of writing a sentence like this because it joins grammar, punctuation, and writing skills cohesively. This means students are learning skills in context instead of isolation. Feel free to ask them what they are learning in class – explaining the concepts helps their learning!

Math: Parents, I cannot stress enough the importance for studying for quizzes. For one and a half class periods, I explained how to study for a math quiz. I encourage you to ask your child the strategies we discussed in class. I am also pushing for very organized and structured notes. While I will be checking students’ notebooks periodically in class, take a glance at your child’s notebooks to see how they are looking. It’s never good to operate with a sloppy and disorganized notebook! Concepts for the week include reviewing addition and subtraction of whole numbers, rounding/estimating, solving word problems, and solving algebraic expressions. The most difficult concept will definitely be the algebraic expressions. Expect your child to come home with twenty to thirty minutes of math homework this week. Practice (hopefully) makes perfect!

English: The first small writing assignments are up on the wall, and we’re ready to tackle how to improve writing skills. We must start with the very basics in order to establish consistent improvements in writing. Remember that every sentence is important! This week, we will be focusing on the basics of a sentence: subjects, predicates, simple subject, simple predicate, compound subject, compound predicate, simple sentences, and compound sentences. Related to this will be our punctuation skill of the week: commas between compound sentences and using semicolons to separate two independent clauses. Feel free to ask your child what they’re learning in class; sometimes, they might be able to teach you an important grammar/punctuation lesson! Have a great week!

There was an unbelievable amount of students coming to both English and math class without having their homework assignments completed this week, especially on Friday. There is absolutely NO excuse for not having homework completed. These students know who they are, and I would encourage you, as parents, to ask your children how their homework went this week. Because of these incomplete assignments (especially the major project in English), grades are slipping fairly low. While students should be independently responsible for completed homework assignments, I would suggest for you to check your child’s progress with homework. If you find that he or she is slipping, your child should probably stay home from extracurricular activities to devote needed time for his or her responsibilites. I know that with your help, students will learn necessary study habits and have a successful year!

Math- This week, students will continue on with concepts from Chapter One. A quiz is scheduled for Friday; we will review on both Wednesday and Thursday. Please make sure your child studies for the quiz since we will especially work on how to study for math quizzes and tests! The chapter one test is flexibly scheduled for Friday, September 18th. Please know that this date is absolutely subject to change depending on how our lessons go this week.

English- Students will be writing their first mini paragraph story this week. They need to bring a photograph of a favorite vacation; if an authentic picture is unavailable, they are more than welcome to print a picture of a resembling landscape or landmark. The project will be worked on in school and possibly at home for completion. Finally, students will be working with our etymology words this week. Ask your child about our innovative vocabulary unit for the year! They should review these word parts on a daily basis using the ‘handy dandy binder clip.’

Welcome to my blog. I will be your child’s sixth grade Math and English teacher for the 2009-2010 school year. I’m looking forward to a great year with him or her!

Math:

This week in math, we will be starting on our first chapter, which is place value, ordering, and comparing. Students should be very careful following note-taking directions and homework completion instructions. Daily homework will be given and should take approximately twenty to thirty minutes to complete each night.

English:

We are just beginning dissecting simple parts of language, which starts with parts of a sentence and then the sentence as a whole. In collaboration with this unit of writing, students will work with punctuation, which directly correlates to putting types of sentences together. Careful and organized notetaking is strongly encouraged. Homework will be given intermittently (about three times a week) when needed and should take between fifteen and twenty minutes per night.

General Information:

My blog will be updated once a week to keep parents informed of the topics covered that week in both subjects. Students will receive daily homework and will be made aware of upcoming tests (about 3-5 days in advance). Any time you need to speak with me, feel free to email me. (eboyce@sjfschool.net)