rmcmains

Crew had an amazing learning adventure on the beaches, dunes, and redwood forests! The geology of the coast gave us the opportunity to observe the effects of plate tectonics near the Mendocino Triple Junction and a perfect vantage point to discuss the cycling of water around our planet. We set up some water experiments...and then, ironically, it rained all over them! We'll set up new ones on campus this week...

The week ahead:
Math: We resume an exploration of area in our CPM textbook.
Expedition: We'll dig deeper into the water cycle and the effects of tectonic plate motion on the Earth's surface.
Literacy: Protected reading in Book Club on Monday and Tea & Treat discussion Wednesday / Writers Workshop Tuesday and Thursday with grammar Caught Ya's and informative writing.
Fix-it Friday will happen Friday morning before Community Meeting to accommodate the BearWalk - this is for crew who need to re-test on expedition learning targets.

Other Happenings:
SELS Summit Day on Tuesday - permission slips needed! We will ride the bus to the trailhead for Castle Peak that begins behind the I80 rest area. Parent drivers will bring us back to school.
McMains Crew will run this Friday's Community Meeting.Friday is the SELS BearWalk - students are reminded to wear school-appropriate costumes and comfortable walking shoes. Crew, remember to get those friends and family pledges for your laps - every cent you raise goes to your crewroom!
SELS will host a parent Math Night on November 6th - come experience the College Preparatory Math / Common Core math program to really understand the rich learning your child is experiencing. Discover the benefits of collaborative study teams and how this structure deepens your child's fundamental conceptualization of mathematical ideas.

What a wonderful kick-off to our Who Am I expedition! We were graced by 14 lovely deer during one morning meeting on the beach by the lake, and entertained by 4 river otters on another. Tiny brown bats, delicious food prepared by our loving parents, funny skits, night hikes and plenty of personal and all-crew challenges. Thank you, Walton's Grizzly Lodge!

Two days into the new year and already crew is coming together. In the first few weeks we will focus strongly on aspects of our character expedition, Who Am I? and the development of study team roles and the new math program. We will not begin our science expedition until after our character kick-off at Grizzly Adventure Camp.
I will post regular crew updates on this blog:

Expedition - Character 6th grade is all about choice and responsibility. Crew began by taking responsibility for choosing their own best-fit math study team, individual "ThinkSpace", and cubby.
Dojo is a hit - and thank you parents who have logged in and are following along. Remember, this is just a snapshot of times during a day I may notice your child practicing habits of work in positive or negative ways.
College Prep Math - Crew took a pre-assessment on all the concepts we will explore this year. It will come home Tuesday. Chapter 1 is designed to learn and practice Study Team Roles and the processes we will follow this year while introducing concepts we will study late this year.
Expedition - Science -Kick-off is the Lassen Volcanic Road trip on September 30!
Literacy - Using their items from the summer reading assignment, crew began creating an idea board for themselves as if they were the next character in Seedfolks. We will develop that idea into our first narrative writing.
We will explore VERSO as a way to read, write, and respond to other's ideas.
Look For and Reminders: This week math pretetss, parent info on math, and Grizzly Adventure Camp permission slips ( due September 9th).