Thank you to all involved in the 7th vs. 8th basketball game on Nov. 24. It
was loads of FUN! Congratulations to 8th grade on their win.
Now that the first trimester is over, we are well into our books and for some
classes, our projects. The weekly work coming in is good review for map
skills for 6th and 7th graders. You are doing well. The 8th grade continues
to recall and research historical facts through their weekly work.
As far as projects go, the 7th graders are finishing up their Colonial
projects in small groups. Their topics range from Leonardo Da Vinci, First
Ladies' Roles - Then and Now, Spanish Missions, Colonial Houses, and Colonial
Cuisine. Mmmm! We will even have a sampling of the cuisine in class.
The 8th graders are finishing their individual projects on immigration. I am
always impressd each year with the enthusiasm some of our students have when
researching facts about their own family history. Many of the students
report to me daily about their recent findings and the long distance
interviews they are conducting with family members all over the U.S. The
pictures, documents, and family trees I am seeing are quite impressive. This
is undoubtedly one of my favorite projects the 8th graders do because it is
THEIR history. Some of the facts they are learning will be with them the
rest of their lives. It is a lesson about keeping up with our own family
histories as much as possible before those facts are gone with each passing
generation.
Where each grade is in their respective books:
6th Grade - Ancient Egypt. We are delving into the civilizations of Nubia
and Egypt along the Nile River. A bit later we will be virtually preparing
our own mummies and building our own pyramids!
7th Grade - Revolutionary War. We are going through the sequence of what
occurred during the Revolutiionary War and how brave the Patriots were to
fight against the British. Upon completion of this chapter we will begin our
study of the U.S. Constitution.
8th Grade - Immigration. After Thanksgiving Break the students will be
tested on this chapter and will begin presenting their immigration prjects to
the class. They will complete a chapter independantly, and then we will get
into the WWI time period.
As you can see, we are quite busy, but there is also much to learn regarding
current events. We touch upon some of the current facts as well as our
daily "Fact for the Day" regarding anniversaries of historical events.
Happy Holidays to all!
Mrs. Drabik
