Welcome to my new Weebly Web Page for the 2014-2015 school year! I am hoping to bring you all sorts of helpful information as you and your child begin the new school year as 6th grade student and parent. This year, Ms. Brewin and I are welcoming Ms. Callie Robarts, who will be in for Ms. O'Bien-McCarthy who will be on maternity leave. I am quite excited about this and I am looking forward to a productive year of learning through discovery and exploration! There is much to do as the children begin the next chapter of their educational journey.
This year we will begin the journey together by getting to know one another, assigning lockers, locks and textbooks. We will engage in the exercise of formal introduction and move to a more relaxed exchanging of likes and dislikes. We will examine the rules associated with becoming a 6th grade student and assign weekly "jobs" to help our class become more efficient, organized and productive. All students will take part in this activity at various times throughout the school year. As the month of September progresses we will explore ways to enhance a respectful, safe environment in which all children under my supervision will feel welcome, valued and free to contribute thoughts and ideas to our class.
The expectations are to come ready to apply Bloom's Taxonomy to all that they do; to bring the knowledge they glean from the lessons taught each day, to develop an understanding of the concepts taught, synthesize the information and bring it to fruition by applying the lessons to their daily lives. If "thinking about thinking", or the metacognitive function, is applied then the internalization of information will be deeply ingrained within the farthest reaches of the brain, thus enabling the student to claim ownership of said information and utilize the information towards other higher levels of thought and application. This is the ultimate goal for all learning. My hope is that your child will learn how to learn.
You will see on this site, at the beginning of my web page, various highlighted topics. One such topic bar is for homework. I will not only post homework assignments on my homework wall, but also on this web page. Your child should have the necessary tools to complete all assignments during the school day, as well as any homework assigned for home. If, for some reason this is not possible, please send me an email and I will make sure all needs are met.
Our math program is vigorous and as such not all children will be moving at the same pace. With this knowledge you should be aware that I offer additional instruction at 6:45 A.M. every morning except for Monday mornings. I also offer additional instruction after school until 2:45. I will be hosting a chess club for those interested on Wednesday afternoons until 3:00 beginning mid-October. I am hoping to enlist a local Chess Master to visit with us to explain tournament play for those so inclined. I am also available during recess and lunch for those who might need a quick clarification of homework or a recent lesson.
As for the Academic Support period each day: three days per week I will work with those students who might be having some difficulty with new math concepts or concepts they might have had difficulty with in the past. This is flexible grouping and will be set up to address any student at any time. The other two days will be allotted to math enrichment activities which will be provided to any student who may be eager for new mathematical experiences, thus allowing for development of their critical thinking, logical reasoning and problem solving skills. It is a rigorous program with monthly testing which is under time restraints, but is very rewarding.
As my academic support time will be taken up by only a portion of my students on any given day, others will be able to move between Ms. Brewin's class to work on any issue they might have with English, and Ms. O'Brian/McCarthy (Robarts) to work on any science related concerns.
I understand this is quite a bit of information to digest, however we will hopefully see you at our Open House and clarify any questions you might have at that time.