Clear Out Those Old Sweaters and Flannel Pajamas!
The K-12 students will create beautiful keepsake blankets or quilts as their contribution to the upcoming Journeys School auction on February 4, 2012. Students will use re-purposed materials to personalize these projects with appliqués and decoration. The materials we need families to donate are: 100% wool of any sort (lambswool, alpaca, even cashmere), cotton flannel, buttons of any shape, size, and color, yarn of any color, and any trim (ribbon, lace, rick-rack, etc.) Stained, shrunk or even frayed items are fine as we will be using small pieces. If any item is of particularly sentimental value to your child, PLEASE pin a note on those pieces with his/her name so they will be able to work with those specific pieces. Boxes for materials will be placed in the schools' Town Halls. We will collect materials all week, November 28th - December 2nd. Email Joohee Muromcew (joohee@muromcew.com) or Cindy Daly (cindy.daly@earthlink.net) with questions or if you want to help!
Eighth Grade Lunches Starting Up
After the Thanksgiving break, 8th grade students will begin participating in a longstanding tradition of lunches with non-middle school faculty. Once a month, Travis Gay will eat lunch with the girls and Jack Shea with the boys. These lunches offer our Capstone students an opportunity to spend time with an adult other than their teachers to discuss, as a group, topics such as Capstone work and the transition to high school. Thank you to Travis and Jack for their time and guidance!
On Your Child’s Mind
This week, announcements will provide an overview of what your child is learning in science, Spanish, and social studies.
Science: Students now assemble the basic units of life - cells - into tissues, organs, and systems to understand how their body functions synchronously to keep them alive. This unit, entitled “The Way We Work” after the book of the same name by David Macaulay, will be integrated with technology and art. Students will use the technology design cycle (investigate, plan, create, evaluate) as a framework for 1) investigating which organs are fundamental to the respiratory, circulatory, and digestive systems; 2) planning; and 3) creating an artistic representation of these human systems in life-size overlays. Before completing one system and moving on to the next, students will 4) evaluate their overlay for accuracy and creativity. Ask your student to explain their “ribbon of life,” which connects atoms to cells to organs to complex multicellular organisms such as us.
Spanish: What is a family? Students will explore this essential question in Unit 3: La Familia. Cultural explorations will lead students to understand that families are basic units in society. Students will also comprehend that cultural traditions and beliefs influence family structure. Language acquisition of this unit will include vocabulary about family members and professions. Verb conjugations of regular present tense verbs will permit students to express what their family members do. Students will also learn more advanced grammar concepts, such as the verb tener “to have.” Your son/daughter will need your help this unit with family members’ names. Please support your student’s learning as he/she creates a family tree in Spanish about your family.
Social Studies: Students took to the polis (ancient Greek city-states) this week in social studies. The year is 495 B.C.E. and Plato, Aristotle, Pericles, and Socrates graced the classroom as they debated a resolution on the political structure in Athens in the decades to come. Students conducted research using the Teton County Library’s exhaustive online database system, prepared statements and rebuttals, and worked with teammates to create solid arguments in favor of and opposed to the pending resolution. Debates took place on Wednesday for the 6th and 7th grade and Friday for the 8th grade, and all students did a fantastic job!
Important Dates
Monday-Friday, November 21-25: No School, Thanksgiving Break
Thursday, December 1: Parent Council Coffee, 8:15am
Monday-Tuesday, December 12-13: Health Screenings, Grades K-12
Thursday, December 15: Winter Celebration, 6:00-8:00pm
Tuesday, December 20: Alumni Lunch and Panel
Thursday, December 22-Friday, December 30: Winter Break
Thursday, January 5: Parent Council Coffee, 8:15am
Friday, January 6: Early Release, 12:30pm