English and Social Studies Update

In ELA we are about to embark on narrative writing with our Stargirl novel. Students have been focusing on various techniques authors use to hook a reader's attention. We have been focusing on the elements of plot and how conflict drives the key events in a plot. Students have been paying close attention to how the characters' thoughts, actions and words create conflict in a plot line of a story. They will now have an opportunity to write their own version of Chapter 24 in the novel. Most exciting of all, we send these writing narratives to the author of the novel, Jerry Spinelli himself!

In social studies we are about to begin our study of ancient Egypt. We will look at the geographical location of Egypt and Kush. The guiding essential question we will think about is how does location or place have an impact on the growth of a civilization?  We will also study a variety of pharaohs and their achievements, along with daily life in ancient Egypt and the kingdom of Kush. Students will be able to identify the achievements of the three major periods of ancient Egyptian history: Old Kingdom, Middle Kingdom and the New Kingdom. Through their studies, students will also be able to explain the social pyramid of Egyptian society.

Math & Science Update

In math, we recently finished our first unit which was a lengthy unit.  This unit helped to solidify students' understanding of fractions and decimals and to give them the necessary skills for the work we will be doing in our upcoming unit on fractions.  Students can expect to work with all four operations with fractions and mixed numbers.  They will need to rely on their skills with Least Common Multiple and Greatest Common Factor in order to work efficiently with fractions.  If math facts are an issue, it is recommended that your child spend some time practicing their facts as they will allow students to work more effectively with fractions.

In Science, we recently completed our first two units.  We completed our unit on the nature of science and our unit on mixtures, mass, density, volume, and weight.  This week we started our unit on energy in chemical reactions.  Students will be attempting to answer our essential question; how does energy transfer to and from the environment?  We will be focusing on exothermic and endothermic reactions in order to answer this question.

Below are pictures from our mixtures unit and from our current unit on energy in chemical reactions.

Team Taylor News

November is upon us and students are well into their routines and curriculum!  They are breezing through their schedules and understand the demands and expectations of a 6th grader. November notoriously speeds by like a flash.  It is a shorter month, due to the Thanksgiving holiday break. This year we also have a Professional Development Day on November 7th, which means no school for the students.  Also, we celebrate Veteran's Day on November 10th, which means no school on that Friday.

November also brings with it a heavier workload for the students. Expectations have increased and the work is getting harder.  It is imperative that students stay organized and focused.  The term is coming to a close in December.

We continue to encourage you at home to take a look at your student's agenda book and compare it to our website homework.  .  We also encourage you to check your child's grades via the Aspen portal.  If you have any questions regarding access to this, ask your child, they have login information and a password.  Students are realizing how important it is to complete their homework assignments with great effort.  This has a direct impact on their grades.

Middle school is all about teamwork.   We will continue to work on building positive relationships and form long lasting bonds. We will also continue to foster this philosophy during our Team Time blocks in our schedules.

As a part of our Admirable Attribute program, Team Taylor recognizes one boy and one girl from our team who exemplifies the attribute from the authors we read in 6th grade.  October's attribute was Curious.  We will be having nominations soon and the students who stand out as most curious will be chosen and announced.  The November attribute is Respectful.

We value the home/school relationships, please feel free to contact us if you have any concerns or questions about your child's progress.  We have times built into our schedule for parent/teacher conferences.  We meet as a team and discuss your child's progress.  Email is the best method to reach us.  Our email addresses are listed below.

Warm regards,

Team Taylor Teachers

Laura Welshoff, English & Social Studies

welshoff@franklinps.net

Danny Kelley, Math & Science

kelleyd@franklinps.net