What's happening in Humanities . . .

Dear Friends,

So sorry for not updating my blog the past few weeks.  I had a death in the family recently and it's been a little chaotic at home for me the past few weeks.  A big thank you to those that have stopped by or sent emails for your kind words and encouragement during this time.

I hope that your child has been sharing what's happening in Humanities the past few weeks and is keeping you in the loop.  Here's a quick rundown of what's been happening . . .

Family Night - This week we are gearing up for Family Night next week.  It takes place next Thursday night from 5:00 - 8:00.  If you are new to IA, Family Night is a chance for parents and members from the community to visit our school and discover the exciting things happening at our school.  Our team will be exhibiting the Zero Waste Project.  Their final product that they are making is due next Tuesday.

Writing - Students are going through the writing process with the DEAR Book Review.  Write now most are getting feedback and revising and editing their 3rd drafts.  They are also writing responses to specific prompts as we read Life of Pi.

Reading - DEAR is on hold in my class, since we are reading Life of Pi.  We typically read about 3 chapters a day, 3-4xs a week.  The team seems to be really enjoying the book so far and hear them talking about it outside a class (always a good sign).

Social Studies - We are focusing on world geography this week and will begin to focus each week on a specific continent and it's various geographical features.  Also, we continue to talk about different religions and philosophies around the world.  I'm looking to schedule a few guest speakers of different religions and philosophies to share their beliefs and cultures.

Language Arts - New vocabulary words for the week include:  aversion, callous, carrion, coherent, conundrum, dire, dyspeptic, empathy, lucid, and sullen.  The team was assessed on the first five last week and will be assessed on the next five this Friday.  These words are taken right from Life of Pi.

Field trip this Thursday

Hello Families!


This Thursday we have an exciting field trip planned to the San Diego Zoo.  The purpose of the trip is to see some of the animals we've been reading about in Life of Pi up close and personal. We'll be leaving at 9:45 and staying till 2:00.  Students can bring their own lunch or buy lunch at the zoo.  We need about 5-6 drivers and 2-3 chaperones.  Please email me if you are available to drive or chaperone.  Admission will be free!

Thanks again for your continued support!

-Jennie

Who is Richard Parker & Orange Juice?

Hello 7th Grade Families!
     
     We are in the middle of another exciting week!  The class and I finally started reading Life of Pi yesterday.  The class had lots of questions as we read and made lots of great predictions of what they think will happen.  Many wonder how Pi survived the boat ride with a Bengal tiger and many predicted that Pi will kill the tiger.  They received a character chart graphic organizer and wondered who is Richard Parker and Orange Juice?  Questions and predictions are a great discussion tool as students read any book.  As your child reads his or her own book at home each week, as them what questions they have and to make 1 -2 predictions of what will happen next.

     Looking Ahead:
Unfortunately, I will be out the rest of this week (Wednesday - Friday) to attend a funeral in Texas.  Our team will be in great hands with Tiffany.  She will be subbing for me and is a co-teacher at our school and helps out at all grade levels.

     Writing - Students began writing their first book review on their DEAR book.  They were given a template of topics to include and have time each day this week to work on their first drafts.  The first draft will be due this Friday.  This is a great time to take a look at their writing and give them some feedback.  I encourage students to read other book reviews on Amazon to see both good and bad models of book reviews.

     Vocabulary Charades & Quiz - Students have been reviewing their vocabulary words all week.  We did a crossword puzzle and will play charades today to review.  Quiz on the first five terms will be this Friday:  abiding, credible, compulsion, discernment, and exemplary.  There will also be a few questions on Life of Pi.

     Social Studies - Students are in groups and have been researching different topics that relate to Life of Pi, such as Hinduism, Islam, Christianity, India, Canada, etc.  The groups are becoming experts in their topic and creating posters to present to the class early next week.

Other exciting news:

Its Zero Waste Lunch week!  Students have taken inventory in two grades so far and saw a HUGE improvement in the amount of trash produced.  Teachers and students were very impressed with our team's assembly on Zero Waste last Friday.  Maybe we'll take our show on the road!

 Some of our Zero Waste Superheroes greeting students after our assembly last Friday.

Zero Waste Superheroes having lunch with the lower grades this week.

7th grade bake sale - We're having a bake sale Tuesday - Thursday this week from 3:30 -4:15.  Thank you to all the families that have already donated some delicious baked goods and beautiful jewelry to sell.  We're hoping to raise enough money for future field trips to Suzie's Farms and museums at Balboa Park. 

Class Buddies - Below are a few pictures of when some of the team met with their buddies in first grade.  They'll meet with them again this Friday and will continue every other Friday.  

I will have access to my email, so if you have any questions, feel free to email me.  Thanks and have a great week!

This Week in Humanities

Monday, October 29 - Friday, November 2

This week in Language Arts we are preparing to read Life of Pi.  We are
discussing components of fiction:  setting, symbols, character profiles, and different
types of narration.  We also are working on new vocabulary words for the week, which
include:

Abiding
Credible
Compulsion
Discernment
Exemplary
Illustrious
Incessant
Ludicrous
Obscure

Besides defining each word, students are writing meaningful sentences, listing a synonym and antonym for each, and listing the parts of speech - all on an index card for each word.

Help your child familiarize themselves with their vocabulary words by including them in your daily conversations.

This week in Social Studies we are discussing India, Pacific Ocean, Canada, Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam, & Christianity.  All of these topics are discussed in Life of Pi and the class is sharing what they know about these topics.

Other things happening in Humanities include our big Zero Waste Assembly.  The entire 7th grade team is putting on an All School Meeting this Friday at 11:00 AM.  They will present their findings from our lunch inventories, present a skit on Zero Waste Lunches, and many more exciting things they've been working on.

Due Dates - 
Vocabulary Words are due at the end of this week.  

DEAR - Students have to finish their 1st DEAR book by next Monday, 11/5.  All students will be expected to write a book review for their blog, which will be due Tuesday, 11/13.

Student Led Conferences

Hello IA Families!

Upcoming Dates
10/23 - Vocabulary Quiz

10/23 - 10/25 - Student Led Conferences

10/23 - 10/26 - Minimum Days, dismissal is at 12 PM

10/26 - Makeup/Retake Quiz Day
             Halloween Dance hosted by 7th grade team  - 5:00 - 8:00, cost is $7, costumes are welcome, cost      includes entrance, pizza, drinks, and snacks.  We still need about 5 chaperones, please contact me if you're interested.
             Yearbook Club for 5th - 8th graders 12:15 - 1:15  sign up sheet in Main Office for those interested.

Important info from the PA

1.  The IA Parent Association has created a Facebook page that will provide updates and reminders about upcoming events.  Go to http://www.facebook.com/IAParents and "like" the page to ensure that you see our updates in your News Feed.

2.  "Spook-a-Grams" will be on sale at IA starting Tuesday, October 23.  "Spook-a-Grams" are a holiday gram which also includes a treat attached.  You can send a fun, holiday message to your child, your children can send some to their friends, or you can order for an entire classroom.  Print out the attached form or pick one up in the office.  Fill it in and cut into four "Spook-a-Grams."  A sales table will be set up outside the office during student-led conferences.  The cost is 50 cents for each gram and they will be delivered to students in their classrooms on Wednesday, October 31.  The Parents Fundraising Group is hosting this event to raise funds for IA.

What's happening in Humanities . . .

Language Arts - Students finished up their Socratic Seminar on who is responsible for Kevin's death early this week.  The blame was pointed at many different groups including:  Kevin's mother, the meat packing factory, government, and the farmers who feed cows corn.  Students took their vocabulary quiz today on their 10 terms from last week and turned in their vocabulary definitions, sentences and drawings.  We continue to work on journal writing, reading our own personal books, and grammar.  

Social Studies - This week we had class discussions on the upcoming presidential election.  Many students have very strong opinions on who they'd like to see win.  A great sight to see was students not arguing about their political views, but listening and respecting everyone's different opinions.  Students also learned about the presidential election and what a popular vote is over an electoral vote.  

Things students can do at home to reinforce reading and writing:  

• Have your child read for 20 - 30 minutes at home, 5 days a week.  Maybe you can do a book club with your child and you read and discuss together.  Reading fluency, comprehension, and writing all improve tremendously when we read daily.
• Journal writing - students can journal daily before going to bed for a short period of time.  Journal writing helps students understand themselves and helps develop student thinking.  A challenge could be to include a certain number of vocabulary words in each entry.

IMPORTANT REMINDER

As you all know, our school has an agreement that we do not assign meaningless homework.  However, students are expected to complete their unfinished classwork at home or on campus outside of class time.  Students should be bringing their binders home daily and checking to make sure everything is complete.  If you have any questions about this, please speak to me during our SLCs.

Thank you for reading my blog and I hope to see you this week at your child's conference.

Jennie

Exciting things are happening in Humanities

Hello Families!

Hope you are doing well and enjoying the cooler weather!

Some amazing things are happening in Humanities the past two weeks.  The team had their first Socratic Seminar in class today.  The topic was:  should more split classes by gender?  We watched a few news clips of schools around the country that are doing this and read an article on the topic as well.  It was surprising to see that there were students who supported same gender classes as long as they had opportunities throughout the day to be with the other gender.  The Socratic Seminars gave all kids the chance to talk, even the quieter ones and helped students that talk more usually, talk less to give others a chance.  Tomorrow's Socratic Seminar will be about a boy named Kevin who died from e coli and the question will be:  Whose to blame for Kevin's death?  Ask your child tonight, who he/she thinks is at fault and why?

We are continuing to work on grammar, capitalization, spelling, and vocabulary.  Students were given 10 new vocabulary words to define yesterday.  They had to write meaningful sentences and draw pictures that will help them remember each word.  They will be quizzed on the weekly vocabulary every Friday.  Ask your child about these words and encourage him/her to use these terms in their daily conversations.

Important Announcements:

This Thursday's field trip is to Sea World.  The cost of the trip is $6.00 for both students, teachers, and chaperones.  Anyone that has a Sea World pass can enter free.  If you're interested in joining us, please let us know.  We'll be leaving promptly at 9AM and pick up is at 1:30PM.  Students will be eating lunch there, so please pack a lunch or students can buy lunch at Sea World.  Parking is free!

SLCs - Student Led Conferences will be held next Tuesday - Thursday.  Here is a link to sign up.  https://docs.google.com/a/innovationsacademy.org/document/d/1HxKoq05xOs2QoibuP8dTDeVlW2g6I_9JmiLCoLhrAb4/edit

Minimum Days - Due to SLCs, next week students will be dismissed at 12:00 Tuesday - Friday.

DEAR - several students are coming in to class without a book to read.  Students are welcome to pick a book from my class library, but there are several that aren't interested in those books.  Please check with your child and make sure they have a book they are reading for class that they enjoy.

There will be no field trip next Thursday, October 25th, due to SLCs.

Feel free to email me if you have any questions at jennie@innovationsacademy.org

Did Indians use elephants to fight in wars?

Hello Friends & Families,

Thanks so much for all of those that attended our Back To School Night last Thursday.  It was wonderful talking to each and everyone one of you and sharing what great things our students are working on.  Please know that my door is always open and you can come by anytime after school to see what your child is working on or share celebrations and/or concerns.


Where I'm From
This week students finished editing their Where I'm From poems and self assessed them using a writing rubric.  We'll be framing the final copies this week and they will be displayed throughout the room.  Students will continue to work on charcoaling their sketch for our team mural.  Ask your child what did they sketch?  How does their sketch define who they are and where they are from?

Zero Waste Project
Students have started to take a photographic inventory of different classrooms on campus and will do a data analysis in Wes' room.  In humanities, teams will make posters on what to recycle and what to compost for their assigned classroom.  Looking ahead, students will come up with a plan to educate and help their assigned classroom reduce their waste.

India & Life of Pi
We are gearing up to start Life of Pi in a few weeks.  This week, we had discussions on tigers and why they are considered such vicious animals.  We read the poem "Tiger" by William Blake and analyzed it.  Also, we are discussing India, since the beginning of the book takes place there.  The kids filled in a KWL chart on India and came up with great questions of what they want to know.  One being my title:  were elephants used to fight in wars?  We'll use these questions to guide us as we learn more about the country.  Looking ahead, kids will be in groups researching different topics of India and presenting their findings to the class.

Vocabulary 
-brawl      -illiterate     -patronize     -docile     -aspire    
-indifferent     -pristine     -export     -import    -duped

Students will be assessed on the ten words above this Friday.  They'll be expected to know the meaning and write a meaningful sentence.

Announcements
Field trip to Birch Aquarium is this Thursday from 9 - 12PM.
No school for students on Monday, 10/8