English Language Arts Activity with Mrs. Castaldo, Mr. Macli, and Mrs. Offner

Classes have just completed the novel, Seedfolks by Paul Fleishman.  As a culminating activity students participated in a debate. They had to defend their assigned character, and argue why he or she was the most important character in the story. Ask them if their character won. We will begin our next novel, The Cay by Theodore Taylor after Thanksgiving. Please remind students to keep up with their independent reading. Mystery projects are due on December 6!

6th grade Spanish and French Updates from Ms. Regan

In language class, students created family tree posters in order to demonstrate their knowledge of family vocabulary in Spanish and French. They learned how to talk about each member of their family, including how to describe how many family members they have and what their names are.

Greek Art and Culture with Ms. Appel

6th grade students just finished learning about ancient Greek art and culture. They learned how the Greeks made pottery and vases in order to create their own work inspired by ancient Greece. Students used scratch art paper to create their vases. They thought about lines, shapes, patterns, and symbols in order to create the decorative designs within their work. To finish off the trimester, which ends by mid-December, students are looking at the Op Art movement to create optical designs within a three-dimensional pyramid! Students are learning how to use contrast in their work as well as alternating patterns to create their illusions.

7^th Grade students read “A Raisin in the sun”

Mr. Tinnirello’s students in 7th grade English have started to read, “A Raisin in the Sun”, a play by Lorraine Hansberry that focuses on the difficulties with holding on to dreams.  Some of the play is acted out in class, but the majority will be read at home once students receive their copies of the book. 

Learning about the Road to Revolution

In Social Studies 7, Mr. Magnani, Mr. Scozzari, and Mrs. Katz began their unit on the Road to Revolution which focuses on the events of the 1760s and 1770s that led up to the outbreak of the American Revolution.  Students will participate in a “Choose Your Own Adventure” simulation from Mission-US.org called “For Crown or Colony?”. The game places students into Boston during the late 1760s as tension over British taxation begins to heat up! 

Additional Updates from the Middle School

In Science 7, Mrs. Loprinzo and Mrs. Rachiele will be working on Unit 3: Changes in Matter. They will focus on chemical changes and chemical reactions. Students will complete various activities indicating signs of chemical reactions and ensuring they are balanced properly. Also, students have been working on an Element Superhero project. Each student is assigned an element from the periodic table, and must create a superhero/villain character based on properties of their element!

Ms. Appel’s 7^th grade students created abstract shape collages inspired by the paintings of Sonia Delaunay. They learned how to create an interesting composition that included overlapping, line direction, use of contrasting colors, as well as different shapes. Next, students will learn about the artist Grant Haffner to create landscape paintings inspired by his artistic style. They will focus on creating space and depth in their work while using bold and bright colors as well as learn about different painting techniques.

Meanwhile, Ms. Appel’s 8^th grade students just finished creating abstract city collages inspired by the paintings of Stuart Davis. Students learned about positive and negative space and how they can use both within their work. They incorporated a variety of colors, overlapping elements, and line details in order to create colorful, bold, and fun city scenes. Next, students will continue to use their collage skills and understanding of positive and negative space to create symmetrical masks inspired by African art and culture.