We're back!!!
What a tremendously fun and exciting re-entry to our school year!
Obviously, the elephant in the room is the fact that we could actually FIT an elephant in our room. Our new building extension is unbelievable, and thanks to all who were able to contribute to its realization (essentially our entire community) as well as all who were able to celebrate with us at our ribbon cutting ceremony.
It was terrific to get back into the swing of things with the middle schoolers. We have a great group with a ton of intelligence AND character, and it's going to be such a fun year. On Wednesday, we took some time to review some of the key expectations regarding middle school. The three foci were:
Be an active learner.
Maintain a positive atmosphere.
Lean toward your best self.
Each of these included multiple markers for success, and it prompted a great classroom discussion about freedom and autonomy while maintaining a sense of responsibility for oneself, one's class, and the school community.
We also took some time to address grades, which we will circle back to next week. It's important that with the introduction of this aspect of middle school life, we constantly assess HOW and WHY we use them, and what their benefits and liabilities can be. Regarding our ongoing assignments, I encourage you to log into our Google Classroom with your student to ensure that they have access and can navigate the site independently. (All students have been invited via their DGS email accounts.)
Lastly, since we all in the classroom, why not get some work done, right? So we jumped into our first lab of the year, primarily to review the steps of the Scientific Method and to apply this empirical process to a question - in this case "How does hot air respond to sudden cooling when contained within an aluminum can?" (Spoiler alert: the can implodes.) This will be relevant, not only as an application of the Scientific Method, but also as we press into our first content area involving wind, weather, and very soon, KITE DESIGN!
Thanks for an awesome first week!
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