Sign Up for PTCs!

Parents, please don't forget to sign up for Parent-Teacher Conferences. Conferences are October 12-14, 12:20-4:00 each day. Slots for Wednesday are almost gone, but there are plenty of openings on Thursday and Friday. A Google doc was shared with all parents this week, which allows you to see what's available and sign up. If you have any trouble using the doc, contact me at joe.wack@k12.shorelineschools.org and I'll work with you to secure a time.

Have a fantastic day!

Science!

We are ramping up our afternoon programs this week. Room 21 students will be cycling through three different classes, starting with Science. We'll be spending four weeks looking at the phases of the moon. We'll talk about the moon's position, relative to the earth and the sun. We'll discuss the nature of shadows. We'll talk about lunar and solar eclipses.

For the next week, Room 21 students will be bringing home a small additional piece of homework: they will be tracking the phases of the moon. Each night for the next week, they'll need to step outside and spot the moon. They will use their Moon Journal to shade in the moon to match how it looks in the sky.

I really want students to go out and use their eyes to find this information each night. Given that this is the Pacific Northwest and we get clouds from time to time, it might not always be possible for students to witness the moon first-hand. On evenings when they can't see it, here's a website they can use to see exactly what phase the moon is in on any given day. Again, this is a back-up and shouldn't be used unless they can't see the moon.

Thanks for supporting your student's learning and Happy Moon-Watching!

Reminder

Students will not be in school on Monday.

Curriculum Night

I want to thank all the families who came to last night's curriculum night. It was great to put faces to names and to get to see some of the families I'd already met again.

For anyone who was unable to make it last night, I wanted to post some of the information you missed. For anyone who was here but didn't want to have to feverishly take notes, I'm providing some of the links and dates and such.

MATH:

• Our math program is the EnVision math program from Pearson.
• It's based on the Common Core 6th Grade math standards.
• We will be covering a wide variety of topics through the year, with special focus on fractions, decimals, ratio and measurement.

ELA: 

• For ELA, we use Springboard, a program designed for middle school through high school; it is a change from the program the school uses for K-5.
• The theme for ELA this year is Change.

SCIENCE & SOCIAL STUDIES:

• Science units in sixth grade cover Moon Phases, Seasons, The Solar System and Hazards on the Homefront.
• Social Studies in sixth grade focuses on Ancient Civilizations, Geography and Current Events.
• Sixth graders will be having Science with me, Social Studies with Mr. Dalasta and Interactive Read-Aloud with Ms. Stenfjord.
• The students will cycle through all three classes in 14 session units, beginning next week.

HEALTH: 

• In the spring, sixth graders will be taught a health curriculum which will include information on sexual exploitation, the reproductive system and HIV/Aids.
• The curriculum comes from the district and can be viewed at this site.
• Additionally, there will be a meeting for parents who wish to learn more about the health curriculum and ask questions. The meeting will be on October 6th at 6:30 in the Shoreline Room at the Shoreline Learning Center, 18560 1st Ave NE. 

HOMEWORK:

• Homework will be as light as I can make it; I believe kids should have plenty of unstructured time after school to explore their own world. They will not be completely free of homework, because we want to make sure they're prepared for middle school, when homework will increase greatly.
• Students in my class have a math sheet for homework every night which reinforces the lesson we did in class.
• They also need to do 30 minutes of reading at home and record the reading in their reading log.
• Your student might not have math work to bring home, as they sometimes have extra time during the math block and I allow them to complete the homework in that time. 
• If you want to check in that your student is doing their math homework, or just check in on what math topics they're covering, ask them to bring their binders home. 
• Students do a self-check of their homework every morning and their self-check is recorded by our homework monitor.
• As the year progresses, students will have more in-depth reading assignments; they will have occasional projects they need to do at home and they will have a recurring current events assignment. More information will be posted here as these assignments are rolled out.

FIELD TRIPS: 

• We currently have three field trips planned for the year:
• October 25th to the Pacific Science Center
• November 15th to see a play at Shorecrest High School
• January 26th to the Museum of History and Industry

CAMP ORKILA:

• We had a parent meeting about Camp Orkila last night.
• The dates for the trip are May 22nd - 25th.
• I will post a more detailed piece about the camp later.

CONTACT:

• Email is the best way to get in touch with me.
• My email address is joe.wack@k12.shorelineschools.org
• I can also be reached at the school at 206-393-4338

PARENT-TEACHER CONFERENCES

• Parent-teacher conferences are October 12, 13 & 14, from 12:20-4:00.
• I will be posting a sign-up sheet on Google Docs and encourage parents to sign up for a slot as soon as they can.

VOLUNTEERS

• I will be reaching out to parents who have expressed an interest in volunteering at the school.
• As of now, the volunteer opportunities we have are:
• Popcorn sales: We need parents to sell popcorn on Fridays on the playground; the shift would be from about 11:30 to 1:30.
• Field Trip chaperones: We need field trip chaperones.
• Copying: I would love any help I can get making copies on Fridays for the following week.

Once again, thank you to all the folks who made it to the event last night. I look forward to having more in-depth conversations at PTCs next month and working with you and your students all year.

Have a great weekend!

Homework 9/22

Hey Families--

Just a quick note to apologize: Room 21 students will not have math homework tonight; I did not get the copies made in time. They will still need to read for half an hour. Today's math homework will come home with them along with tomorrow's homework for them to complete over the weekend.

Once again, I am sorry for my lack of copyreadiness. Hope to see you all at tonight's Curriculum Night!

A Small Change

A quick note to families of Room 21 students:
After discussing school policy with Mr. Lohman, I have changed my contact email address; if you wish to contact me with any questions/concerns/suggestions/what-have-you, please email me at joe.wack@k12.shorelineschools.org. This is an official address, which is the preferred arrangement of the district. Thanks much! I look forward to hearing from you!

Test Alert!

Students will have their first unit test in Math tomorrow. The test will cover all the topics of our first unit, on Numeration. Students will have to demonstrate knowledge of place value, ordering, exponents, comparing numbers, comparing decimals, multiplying by units of ten and writing numbers in various forms.

Welcome to Room 21

Dear families--

Welcome to our class blog for the 2016-17 school year. I will be updating this site at least once a week in an effort to keep families in the loop with what's going on in our classroom.

Things you can expect to see on this page:

• Alerts of upcoming tests/quizzes/project due dates.
• Links to give your student a little extra help on particular topics
• Celebrations of students who have performed exceedingly well
• Pictures of class projects
• Explanations of upcoming units

As I've already told the class, the best way for parents to get in touch with me is via email. My email address is mr.wack.sixth@gmail.com. I check my email throughout the day and can usually get back to you within a few hours.

Please contact me with any questions about the class or with any information you want me to have. I am super excited about this school year and looking forward to getting to know you and your students.

Testing...Testing...1, 2, 3

For five points of extra credit, give Mr. Wack a piece of paper saying that you saw this picture of Rodin's sculpture, The Thinker.