Thursday Update!

Today we had another session of hip hop, worked on our debates and presentations, had our first music class of 2016, and then worked on geometry related to measurement and skyscrapers.

As a reminder to everyone about homework and managing work time at home:

• We often have bigger projects we are working on, and I give as much time as I can to work on these during class. It is important to use the class time well so you are not left with too much homework.
• If you are working at home, be realistic about how much you can do in a night. If you have lots of activities on a night, then maybe you won’t be able to do as much on a project that night.
• If you have lots of activities after school, make sure you talk together about being balanced and ensuring there is enough time for everything. Activities are fun! If you know you have them, though, plan ahead and use your down time, as well as the time in class, wisely.
• Make sure you are getting enough sleep so you can be well rested and then use the time in class well, when your brain is fresh.
• And if it is too much, or you are having difficulty of any kind, please use your skills as a good communicator. Come and talk to Ms. D about what you could do to manage things better. Maybe you misunderstood the assignment. Maybe there are easier ways to do what you are doing. Maybe if you communicate about needing more time, Ms. D can adjust the schedule and work with you so the work can be completed.

It is always my intention that projects are fun. Some of us like to put A LOT of time into our projects! While typically I would say 60 minutes is enough for homework in a night, with MACC students this could be limiting, depending on how passionate you are about a topic. If you aren’t getting enough sleep, though, and are regularly spending more than 60 minutes a night (not including reading or homework from other activities), then let’s talk about it together.

Our goal for Monday: Be able to start debating (meaning positive and negative speeches would need to be done) and present our machines slideshows. No more class time on these items after our session tomorrow.

Math Homework: Many of you have done it already, but page 6 and 7 in the Skyscrapers booklet I gave you can be done on the same piece of lined paper. We had a great discussion today about shapes, edges, vertices, and more. Does a cone have a vertex? If it isn’t a vertex, then what is the part at the top called? How many faces does a cylinder actually have? As we continue working on our skyscraper math, I invite you to look at pictures of buildings around the world for ideas and/or share any wonderings and findings you make online about the math, architecture, and engineering involved.

Check out the 21 tallest buildings in the world according to Popular Science Magazine

FSA Notice went home for grade fours today. Parents, please read and let us know if you have any questions. We will be doing this testing in class over the next two weeks.

Hip Hop Clothing: Students need black and white clothing for their outfits during the performance on Monday.

Thank you and have a great night!