May 13 - 17
Language Arts: We are finishing a wonderful story, Where the Red Fern Grows, about a boy, his dogs and the responsibilities of growing up.
We are going to focus on writing in Second Person (You!). We have learned that most writing is either in First Person (personal narratives, autobiographies) or Third Person (biographies, technical papers, social sciences and most fiction). Second Person is used for providing instructions, as in recipes or other forms of requests or commands. So we are writing an instruction booklet in Second Person. See the assignment HERE. Finally, we will learn about another form of writing: Persuasive Writing. (You need to do/buy/believe this!). We have learned the four ways in which advertisers try to convince us to buy something and then how we can persuade someone to adopt our viewpoint. The first of these four ways were first identified by the philospher Aristotle--Ethos, Logos and Pathos---and the fourth, later on: Kairos. We are creating a print advertisement using all four of these persuasive methods. Speaking of writing, our science papers are being handed back and they were excellent overall. Great job, grade 6! Creatively speaking, we are also writing Rosary poems this month.
In grammar we are now studying the correct usage of the comma. See the Purdue OWL power point HERE. In vocabulary, we will complete Unit 15 in a unique way: each student will be responsible for presenting a vocabulary word so that the other students learn its meaning, how it is used in a sentence, antonyms and synonyms. For help with flash cards or fun exercises, visit www.vocabularyworkshop.com
Math - We have finished up our chapter on probability and reviewed Friday and Monday. Our test will be on Tuesday. We will finish this week reviewing algebra and completing functions. We will not have a weekly quiz.
Science - We have finished igneous rocks and will have a quiz on Wednesday over these types of rocks. We will then move on to sedimentary rocks and metamorphic rocks at the end of this week and next.
Social Studies: We have begun our study of Confucius and his analects this week. We will also learn about Daoism and the Yin/Yang complimentary relationship in the universe.
Religion: The week we complete chapter 18. We are also studying about Fatima and the miracle which the Blessed Virgin brought to three young children in Portugal.
Thank you, Mr. Heinze, for a great tour!
The Talent Show is scheduled for Wednesday, May 23rd. Audition forms are available on the music page and are due by April 30th.