It's been a busy week - unfortunately too busy for me to remember the camera, so sorry, no photos :(
In Devotions we have been using a Jesse tree, where each ornament reminds us about God's work in our lives and the wait
for God's perfect timing - both in the sending of his Son as our savior
and the wait for his return to take us to our heavenly home. Even
these big kids are still thrilled to light the candle on our advent
wreath each morning. Plus we have an Advent Trivia calendar helping us count down the days!
In Religion we
have been looking at John the Baptist preparing the way for Jesus, His baptism, and temptation in the wilderness. We see how Jesus faced the devil's schemes just like we do, but was without sin, so He can be our perfect substitute and pay the price for our sins.
Other units:
Science: Cells - building our models in class next week
G Math - decimal operations and multi-step problems, division
T Math Factors and multiples (the building blocks for working with fractions)
Note: all students benefit from math facts review. I encourage the games on ReadyMath as they building in facts practice and conceptual reasoning in fun ways. Playing board and card games involving counting/adding are great activities too.
Literature: novel study:
WHAT IF...
...the government could force you to sell land?
...we had laws on what you could grow on your farm? or that said NO PETS ALLOWED?
...your family was limited to one or two children?
Would you exist?
I hope talks about our Literature novel have popped up in your family conversations. Students began the novel, Among the Hidden
by Margaret Petersen Haddix, and I have to put a STOP sign in
the novels to get them to put it down. Through the novel we discuss
literary elements like characterization and conflict, but also
propaganda, morals, and faith. It also coordinates with our new S.S. unit
on Urban Sprawl in which students are taking on the roles of local
citizen activist groups to debate how best to plan a city for population
growth. Ask your child about it!
CHRISTMAS
PARTIES will be hosted by our room mom on Dec 17 before a NOON DISMISSAL. I'll send more details out, but I believe pizza is on the menu, so the students will not need lunch that day.
See below for a special Christmas Spirit Week in 2 weeks!
Christmas Project Collection: -Moved to Easter!
This year the Junior High has decided to support Phil's Friends, an organization which provides care packages and motivation to people going through a cancer journey. Typically, during the Christmas season in lieu of Christmas book or gift exchanges with the class we ask families to donate items to our service project of choice. This year we are going to do things a little differently, we are going to forgo the Christmas Donations and instead push them back until Easter when representatives from Phil's Friends can come and meet with us. We appreciate your understanding of this change and look forward to making our Easter donation project a HUGE success so we can bless Phil's Friends with items they need. Students will be making Christmas cards for this organization during December and continue praying for the people to whom they minister.
Blessings to your family during this Christmas Season.
-The Junior High Teacher Team
