Social Studies
This month in Social Studies, we have started our journey through Ancient Rome. So far in this unit, students have learned about the geography of Italy, the myth of Romulus & Remus, the government of Rome, the Twelve Tables, and the Punic Wars. Looking ahead, there is still so much more that students will uncover about Ancient Rome. Still ahead are good and bad emperors, like Julius Caesar, Rome’s accomplishments and achievements, gladiators, the Colosseum, the rise and spread of Christianity, and the impending Fall of Rome.
This month, we are also experimenting with various learning modes and styles. Students are using voice and choice to choose how they want to learn something, like opting between a video, a reading passage, or an option involving creativity/drawing. In addition, students are working through the Punic Wars in a pathway-style learning method. With this, they can see the entire path ahead with a final deadline and can pace themselves throughout the week and on each task. This also helps students develop their self-advocacy and time management skills.
Looking ahead into November, we have the end of our unit on Ancient Rome. Students will complete a short, guided writing prompt on the Fall of Rome using primary sources and will have an assessment on the topics learned during the unit.
Please continue to check Infinite Campus for updates on missing assignments and summative scores, especially with the end of the quarter approaching.
Literacy
This month in Literacy, students completed work with the SOF (Standard of Focus) RL.7.1 - I can cite several pieces of textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as make inferences drawn from the text. Students were able to practice citing and choosing the BEST evidence for various short stories and have now completed both Standards Mastery assessments to show their level of proficiency. Student SOF Trackers are updated each week as students individually keep track of their progress. Ask your child to see their tracker!
The next SOF we will focus on will be RL.7.3 - I can analyze how different elements of a story or drama interact. Students will be asked to think about the following questions as they read:
How do the events affect the characters?
How do the characters affect the events?
How do characters affect other characters?
How does setting affect the characters?
We will recently began reading a class novel titled The Giver by Lois Lowry. The Giver is about a 12-year old boy named Jonas who lives in a futuristic society which has tried to relieve its citizens of choices to ensure sameness, fairness and equality. Students will be analyzing how characters, plot and setting affect one another throughout the story as well as taking notes during each chapter.
Weekly Task Lists continue to be assigned every Monday and are DUE each Sunday night by 11:59 pm. All tasks on the weekly list are calculated in IC each week. We appreciate your reminders at home by checking in with your child throughout the week on their task completion progress!
Science
In science this past month, students reviewed the practices and tools needed during Microscopy. These skills will be put to use in our next unit: Cell Biology.
During Cell Biology students will learn about the history of the Cell Theory, Cellular structures and organelles, Cell functions, and how Cells are part of the levels of complexity in organisms. Within our studies we focus heavily on:
Cell Diversity (Animal, Plant, Protist, Fungi)
Eukaryotes and Prokaryotes
Cell differentiation/Specialization
Cell Division
Cell Transport
Cell/ Molecular Biology
And Cell Microscopy (Lab based investigations)
Looking into November, students will continue their investigations within Cell Biology, demonstrating their understanding through Creating a Cell Analogy Project, Written reflections and responses, Laboratory Practices/Cell Observations, and argumentation readings and Socratic debates.
We will continue to work with students to keep organized in science this year, developing our skills for inquiry based study, lab practices and engineering skills are a significant part of our learning processes. Students have been introduced to two different learning plan options: A Unit-Based Science Learning Plan (SLP) or Weekly Science Task List. Students will have the option for each unit to choose which learning path to follow. Students will still have access to all the needed materials when using either pathway and can track their progress and achievements as we move through our learning. Be sure to check out your student’s goals and learning plan in Google Classroom to see examples of their learning!
Rolling Agendas Reminder
Below are the links to ALL 7th-grade core teachers Rolling Agendas. Please remind your child to check agendas when they are absent so they can stay caught up!
Literacy:
Math:
Social Studies:
Science:
