Double Digit Multiplication

Our math class is working with double digit multiplication. This concept is more complicated than single digit multiplication because students must remember to multiply the ones digit first, regroup if necessary, then multiply the tens digit, regroup if necessary, and so on. We headed out to the blacktop with some sidewalk chalk to practice these steps in "hopscotch multiplication".

Character Partnership

We spent time with our 6-B Character buddies this week. We worked on a project that had two purposes. First, we continued a discussion about differences by talking about eye color. Then we extended this idea by discussing how looking into someone's eyes is a way to show interest and make a connection.

We spent time practicing proper handshakes by matching the grip strength of the other shaker, displaying a friendly smile, and holding good eye contact. Then the students, in groups of Sixth Agers and Ninth Agers, walked throughout the school, introducing ourselves to adults in our community. The students filmed the project on flip cameras and recorded the eye colors of all of the adults in our community.

Island of the Blue Dolphins Google Doc

Our reading group is collaborating on a
Google Document about The Island of the Blue Dolphins. We will work together on vocabulary, characters, themes, plot lines, and identifying key sentences to use later for our story sequencing.

Wikipedia Editors

Our reading group has finished The Egypt Game and is working on various final projects. One such project is a book review. Instead of independently writing a plot summary or character analysis, the students independently reviewed the Wikipedia entry for The Egypt Game to determined what information was correct, incorrect, or insufficient. Following their independent research, we edited the Wikipedia page together to share our knowledge with the wider online community. The students did a terrific job verifying their facts and collaborating together on this project.

Working as editors was also a wonderful opportunity to discuss what makes different websites reliable. This is a topic that they are discussing in technology class as well, and will help us during future internet research projects. If you are interested in exploring some additional resources to facilitate a conversation about reliable websites and using technology skills, feel free to visit the Lower School Technology Resource Blog.

Student Blogger

Everyone has worked really hard on Prezi this week! I  have liked working on Prezi, it is so much fun to upload the pictures.

Fly Composition Technology Extension

The boys have been hard at work on our newest technology extension project. We are in the process of completing our Fly composition, a creative story in which the student turns into a fly and travels around the school. We are extending the composition by taking photographs throughout the school in the locations visited by the fly-students, uploading them, and creating a Prezi presentation about the journey. The boys have all completed the first two steps of the project, and everyone has begun to edit their Prezis. Finally, the boys will share their finished presentations in front of the class. Keep up the good work, 9-1!

Student Spotlight

Our Ninth Age students participate in a variety of extracurricular activities.
Below is the art work of a 9-1 student from his weekend art classes.

 I am so impressed by the time and effort spent on this piece!

Incredible!

Math Division Games

Working with partners, the students created their own division games to practice their facts.

Here is a video of their work!

The Missing Chapters of The Egypt Game

The students have been working hard on their "missing chapters" from the Egypt Game, as you can see in the video  from this week. Here are the first drafts of a few student's Story Patch stories. I have uploaded the documents into Flip Snack, a great website for turning all PDF's into book formats.

Monday we will complete the group editing process and finish our last Egypt Game project.

 Terrific job, students!

The Sneetches

It was wonderful to see our Ninth Age boys working so hard on the class play this year. They did an incredible job, and should be truly proud of themselves! A big "THANKS!" goes out to our parents for all of their support at home which helped in making the boys' play a great success.

 After the play, the boys enjoyed some jellybeans

("Jellybeans are delicious!"-Greg, A Star-belled Sneetch)

generously sent in by one of our parents.

Yum!

Missing Chapters in The Egypt Game

We have recently completed The Egypt Game in reading class. One of our final projects was to write a "missing chapter" from the book. This new chapter had to align with the story line of the book and match the author's style of writing, while adding an exciting new plot twist or character. The students then took their writing to the next level by creating virtual chapters on Storypatch, a digital storytelling application on the iPads. Here is a video of that process. Terrific job, everyone!

Virtual Fact Review

Many of our Ninth Age math groups are working with multiplication and division. Even if your child has finished with these units, it is imperative that they continue to review their facts! Voldemath is a user friendly game that  can be used to review all four operations. Additionally, they can select facts 1-12 or practice the facts that are giving them the most trouble. Enjoy! 

International Week

Many thanks to our incredible foreign language department for hosting international week. The week was filled with excitement and learning, and it was enjoyed by students and teachers alike! 

Water Conservation

Today we had three middle school visitors who presented about water conservation to our class. They did an incredible job with their informative and interesting presentation. Great job!