Monday October 31, 2011

8th Grade Math:  Today in math students began class with the problem of the day.  Next, we played decimal jeopardy!  Students were handed a erasable whiteboard and a dry erase marker, and Mr. Olsen presented several different problems for students to complete in a timed activity. 

Assignments:  Review homework #15 is due on Wednesday. 

7th Grade Math:  Today in math students began class by using their flashmasters.  We then completed a packet of halloween related activities related to decimal operations. 

Assignments:   Review homework #15 is due on Wednesday.

Science:  Today in science, students began class with a written Do Now.  Students were then reminded of behavior expectations when a substitute is present, as Mr. Olsen will be absent on Tuesday for IRIS training.  Students then broke back into their groups with Mr. White's students.    Once all students were in their groups, each group was handed a work permit, where each group member made specific plans for the class period in order to contribute to the overall groups project. 

Assignments:  Students can be continuing their research on their assigned topic for their group project.

FYI:  Parents!  Starting on Monday (10/31, the first day of the second quarter), teachers in the Aurora house will no longer accept late work from our students.  Students will get credit for the work they do, when it is due. 

Thursday October 27, 2011

8th Grade Math:  Today in math students began class with the problem of the day.  Next, we jumped back into chapter 2 and continued working with section 5 on solving equations using addition and subtraction.  Mr. Olsen led students through several important vocabulary terms and many, upon many examples problems.  Students then worked on several problems from the math book, before being handed the 2.5 worksheet and asked to complete the odds only for Friday. 

Assignments:   Students should be completing the 2.5 worksheet (odds only) for Friday if they did not finish in the class time provided.  Review homework #14 is due on Friday. 

7th Grade Math:  Today in math students began class by using their flashmasters.  We then graded the 2.5 worksheet as a class.  Next, wejumped back into chapter 2 and began the conversation on the metric system of measurement.  Mr. Olsen led students through several vocabulary words and definitions, before having students measure several items in the classroom for practice using a metric ruler. 

Assignments:   Review homework #14 is due on Friday.

Science:  Today in science, students began class with a reflection on their upcoming presentation project.  We then graded the quizzes we took yesterday as a class.  Students were then placed in groups within our classroom, and then they met up with the students from Mr. White's classroom who will fill out their groups for the upcoming project.  Once all students were in their groups, each group was handed a work permit, where each group member was assigned a specific topic to work on for the next few days in class to contribute to the overall groups project. 

Assignments:  None.

FYI:  Parents!  Starting on Monday (10/31, the first day of the second quarter), teachers in the Aurora house will no longer accept late work from our students.  Students will get credit for the work they do, when it is due. 

Wednesday October 26, 2011

8th Grade Math:  Today in math students began class with the problem of the day.  We then graded the 2.4 worksheet in class.  Next, we jumped back into chapter 2 and started working with section 5 on solving equations using addition and subtraction.  Mr. Olsen led students through several important vocabulary terms and many, upon many examples problems. 

Assignments:   Review homework #14 is due on Friday. 

7th Grade Math:  Today in math students began class by using their flashmasters.  We then jumped back into chapter 2 and continued the conversation on scientific notation, standard form and product form.  Mr. Olsen led students through several example problems and moved around the room offering assistance to students who needed help.  Students were then handed the 2.5 worksheet and given 28 minutes of class time to complete the assignment. 

Assignments:   Students should be completing the 2.5 worksheet on scientific notation for Thursday if they did not finish in the class time provided.  Review homework #14 is due on Friday.

Science:  Today in science, Mr. Olsen's students are back in Mr. Olsen's room!  We began class with a written reflection on the past three weeks, including what they have learned in each classroom, what part was their favorite, and which part was the most difficult for them.  We then transitioned into a post assessment on the salmon unit.  Students were given a quiz, where they were to label the internal and external parts of a salmon.  Next, students were introduced to the Salmon Unit Presentation Project.  Students were handed a directional worksheet, describing in detail, what is to be expected of them throughout the project, as well as a rubric detailing how, and what they will be graded.

Assignments:  None.

Tuesday October 25, 2011

8th Grade Math:  Today in math students began class with the problem of the day.  We then graded the quiz we took on Friday in class.  Next, we  transitioned back into chapter 2.   We jumped back into chapter 2, section 4 on solving variable equations.   Mr. Olsen led students through a couple different important vocabulary words, such as equation, solving an equation and solution.  Students worked on various example problems before Mr. Olsen handed out the 2.4 worksheet. 

Assignments:   Students should be completing the 2.4 worksheet if they did not finish in the class time provided.  Review homework #13 is due on Wednesday. 

7th Grade Math:  Today in math students began class by using their flashmasters.  We then jumped back into chapter 2 and began the conversation on scientific notation, standard form and product form.  Mr. Olsen led students through several example problems and moved around the room offering assistance to students who needed help. 

Assignments:   Review homework #13 is due on Wednesday.

Science:  This week in science students are beginning the rotation we have planned for our students here in the Aurora House.  Mr. Olsen's students are with Ms. Pasteris this week, and will be learning about the preservation and preparation of salmon using cultural means.   In Mr. Olsen's classroom today, Mr. White's students shared the information they researched on their assigned physical stream parameter yesterday with their classmates today. 

Assignments:  None.

Monday October 24, 2011

8th Grade Math:  Today in math students began class with the problem of the day.  We then graded the quiz we took on Friday in class.  Next, we  transitioned back into chapter 2.  Today we were reviewing the distributive property and combining like terms.  We then jumped into chapter 2, section 4 on solving variable equations.   Mr. Olsen led students through a couple different important vocabulary words, such as equation, solving an equation and solution. 

Assignments:   Review homework #13 is due on Wednesday. 

7th Grade Math:  Today in math students began class by using their flashmasters.  We then graded the quizzes we took on Friday as a class.  Next, we jumped back into chapter 2 section 4 on dividing decimals. 

Assignments:  Students should be completing the 2.4 worksheet on dividing decimals if they did not finish in the class time provided.  Review homework #13 is due on Wednesday.

Science:  This week in science students are beginning the rotation we have planned for our students here in the Aurora House.  Mr. Olsen's students are with Ms. Pasteris this week, and will be learning about the preservation and preparation of salmon using cultural means.   In Mr. Olsen's classroom today, Mr. White's students went to the computer lab and worked with a partner in researching an assigned physical stream parameter.  Students were looking to define the parameter, find the importance of the parameter to a salmon, and find three fun facts about the assigned parameter.  Students will be expected to stand up in front of the class tomorrow (Tuesday) and share their new found knowledge.

Assignments:  Students can be spending some time furthering their knowledge of the assigned physical parameter that they spent time researching in class today in science class.

Thursday October 20, 2011

8th Grade Math:  Today in math students began class with the problem of the day.  We then transitioned back into chapter 2.  Today we were reviewing the distributive property and combining like terms.  We then jumped back into chapter 2, section 3 on simplifying variable expressions.   Mr. Olsen led students through a couple different important vocabulary words, such as coefficients and constants.  Mr. Olsen then passed out the 2.3 worksheet and provided students with 35 minutes of class time to complete the assignment.   


Assignments:  Students should be finishing up the 2.3 worksheet on simplifying variable expressions if they did not finish in the class time provided.  Review homework #12 is due on Friday. 

7th Grade Math:  Today in math students began class by using their flashmasters.  We then jumped back into chapter 2 section 4 on dividing decimals.  Mr. Olsen led students through the important rules of multiplying decimals, before we moved into dividing decimals.  Mr. Olsen led students through a couple example problems, before handing out the 2.4 worksheet on dividing decimals and Mr. Olsen assigned the odds only!

Assignments:  Students should be completing the 2.4 worksheet on dividing decimals if they did not finish in the class time provided.  Review homework #12 is due on Friday.

Science:  This week in science students are beginning the rotation we have planned for our students here in the Aurora House.  Mr. Olsen's students are with Ms. Pasteris this week, and will be learning about the preservation and preparation of salmon using cultural means.   In Mr. Olsen's classroom this week, Mr. White's students were introduced to the Salmon Habitat and Water Quality Unit.  Students reviewed the nine physical stream parameters that they measured on Switzer Creek.  Tomorrow (Friday) Mr. White's class will be heading outside for the entire afternoon with guests from Alaska Department of Fish and Game.  A fishery biologist will be joining us to help further the knowledge of our students and water quality.

Assignments:  Students can be spending some time furthering their knowledge of the physical parameter that we talked about in class today in science class.

Wednesday October 19, 2011

8th Grade Math:  Today in math students began class with the problem of the day.  We then transitioned back into chapter 2.  Today we were reviewing the distributive property and combining like terms.  Students took a quiz on Friday of last week, and they spent about 30 minutes of class time making corrections from their quizzes.  We then jumped back into chapter 2, section 3 on simplifying variable expressions.   Mr. Olsen led students through a couple different important vocabulary words, such as coefficients and constants.    

Assignments:  Students should be finishing up their quiz corrections if they did not finish in the class time provided.  Review homework #12 is due on Friday. 

7th Grade Math:  Today in math students began class by using their flashmasters.  We then jumped back into chapter 2 section 3 on multiplying decimals.  Mr. Olsen led students through the important rules of simply multiplying the decimals as you would whole numbers, and then counting the number of digits behind the decimal point in the original factors, as that will tell you how many digits need to be behind the decimal point in the product.   Students began class by practicing multiplying decimals for the first 25 minutes of class, before we moved into section 2.4 on dividing decimals.  Mr. Olsen led students through a couple example problems, before we ran out of time. 

Assignments:  Review homework #12 is due on Friday.

Science:  This week in science students are beginning the rotation we have planned for our students here in the Aurora House.  Mr. Olsen's students are with Ms. Pasteris this week, and will be learning about the preservation and preparation of salmon using cultural means.   In Mr. Olsen's classroom this week, Mr. White's students were introduced to the Salmon Habitat and Water Quality Unit.  Students were introduced to the nine physical stream parameters that they will be measuring on Switzer Creek later this week.  Tomorrow (Thursday) Ms. Villanueva's class will be heading outside for the entire afternoon with guests from Alaska Department of Fish and Game.  A fishery biologist will be joining us for each of the next two days to help further the knowledge of our students and water quality.

Assignments:  Students can be spending some time furthering their knowledge of the physical parameter that we talked about in class today in science class.

Thursday October 13, 2011

8th Grade Math:  Today in math students began class with the problem of the day.  We then transitioned back into chapter 2.  Today we were talking about rates and unit analysis and how to convert from one unit to another.  Students practiced many conversions before we jumped into simplifying variable expression and section 2.3.  Mr. Olsen led students through a couple different important vocabulary words, such as coefficients and constants.    

Assignments:  Review homework #11 is due on Friday. 

7th Grade Math:  Today in math students began class by using their flashmasters.  We then jumped back into chapter 2 section 3 on multiplying decimals.  Mr. Olsen led students through the important rules of simply multiplying the decimals as you would whole numbers, and then counting the number of digits behind the decimal point in the original factors, as that will tell you how many digits need to be behind the decimal point in the product.  Students were then handed the section 2.3 worksheet and given 40 minutes of class time to complete the assignment. 

Assignments:  Students should complete the 2.3 worksheet for class on Friday.  Review homework #11 is due on Friday.

Science:  This week in science students are beginning the rotation we have planned for our students here in the Aurora House.  Mr. Olsen's students are with Mr. White this week, and will be learning about the otilith bones in the salmon heads, in order to age them and search for copper wire tags that were inserted at the hatchery when they were reared.  In Mr. Olsen's classroom this week, Ms. Pasteris's students spent the day in the computer lab working with a partner defining their assigned physical stream parameter, as well as explaining the importance of said parameter to a salmon.  On Friday, student groups will stand up in front of the class and relay the information they researched to the rest of their classmates.

Assignments:  Students can be spending some time furthering their knowledge of the physical parameter that was assigned to them in class today in science class.

Tuesday October 11, 2011

8th Grade Math:  Today in math students began class with the problem of the day.  We then transitioned back into chapter 2 section 2 and the distributive property.  Students were introduced to the distributive property last Friday, and we revisited the concept again today in class.  Mr. Olsen reviewed the rules that were introduced last week, and continued working with the students on example problems and the reasons for each step in the process.   Students were then handed the 2.2 worksheet and given 37 minutes of class time to complete the assignment for Wednesday.  

Assignments:  Students should complete the 2.2 worksheet on the distributive property for class on Wednesday.  Review homework #10 is due on Wednesday. 

7th Grade Math:  Today in math students began class by using their flashmasters.  We then jumped back into chapter 2 section 2 on adding and subtracting decimals.  Mr. Olsen led students through the important rules of lining up the decimal points and filling in zeros in order to make sure that both or all numbers involved in the problems have the same number of digits according to place value.  Students were then handed the section 2.2 worksheet and given 45 minutes of class time to complete the assignment. 

Assignments:  Students should complete the 2.2 worksheet for class on Wednesday.  Review homework #10 is due on Wednesday.

Science:  This week in science students are beginning the rotation we have planned for our students here in the Aurora House.  Mr. Olsen's students are with Mr. White this week, and will be learning about the otilith bones in the salmon heads, in order to age them and search for copper wire tags that were inserted at the hatchery when they were reared.  In Mr. Olsen's classroom this week, Ms. Pasteris's students are working on learning about habitat and the water quality parameters associated with salmon rearing and spawning.  Today Ms. Collins students were taken outside by guests from the Alaska Department of Fish & Game sportfish division, who took students out to Switzer Creek and measured eight identifiable stream parameters as well as why these parameters are important to the salmon.  Students from Ms. Pasteris's  home base should be prepared to spend the entire afternoon outside on Wednesday. 

Assignments:  Students can be spending some time furthering their knowledge of the physical parameters we are looking at here in science class. 

Monday October 10, 2011

8th Grade Math:  Today in math students began class with the problem of the day.  We then transitioned back into chapter 2 section 2 and the distributive property.  Students were introduced to the distributive property last Friday, and we revisited the concept today in class.  Mr. Olsen reviewed the rules that were introduced last week, and continued working with the students on example problems and the reasons for each step in the process. 

Assignments:  Review homework #10 is due on Wednesday. 

7th Grade Math:  Today in math students began class by using their flashmasters.  We began class by grading the 2.1 worksheet before we  jumped into chapter 2 section 2 on adding and subtracting decimals.  Mr. Olsen led students through the important rules of lining up the decimal points and filling in zeros in order to make sure that both or all numbers involved in the problems have the same number of digits according to place value. 

Assignments:  Review homework #10 is due on Wednesday.

Science:  This week in science students are beginning the rotation we have planned for our students here in the Aurora House.  Mr. Olsen's students are with Mr. White this week, and will be learning about the otilith bones in the salmon heads, in order to age them and search for copper wire tags that were inserted at the hatchery when they were reared.  In Mr. Olsen's classroom this week, Ms. Pasteris's students are working on learning about habitat and the water quality parameters associated with salmon rearing and spawning.  Today students were introduced to Mr. Olsen and given a rundown on what to expect over the course of the week.  Tuesday and Wednesday of this week will include guests from the Alaska Department of Fish & Game sportfish division, who will take students out to Switzer Creek and measure eight identifiable stream parameters as well as why these parameters are important to the salmon.  Students from Ms. Collins homebase should be prepared to spend the entire afternoon outside on Tuesday. 

Assignments:  Students can be spending some time furthering their knowledge of the physical parameters we are looking at here in science class.  

Thursday October 6, 2011

8th Grade Math:  Today in math students began class with the problem of the day.  We then transitioned back into chapter 2 section 1 on the properties of addition and multiplication.   Mr. Olsen led a review of the properties introduced yesterday in class, before leading students through several example problems.  Once students demonstrated to Mr. Olsen that they were picking up the material and could complete several examples, the section 2.1 worksheet and were given about 35 minutes of class time to complete the assignment.  Students were also reminded that tomorrow (Friday) is the last day that Mr. Olsen will accept late work from chapter one.

Assignments:  Students should be completing the section 2.1 worksheet for Friday if they did not finish in the class time provided.  Review homework #9 is due on Friday. 

7th Grade Math:  Today in math students began class by using their flashmasters.  Mr. Olsen then passed back the chapter one tests and explained to students that they could receive up to half of the points they missed on the test by making their corrections on a separate piece of paper and turning it into the bin by Friday morning.  Students were then given the rest of the hour to work on and hopefully complete their test corrections with Mr. Olsen present to provide assistance and help where needed.  Students were also reminded that tomorrow (Friday) is the last day that Mr. Olsen will accept late work from chapter one.

Assignments:  Students are to complete their chapter one test corrections by tomorrow (Friday) if they want credit for their test scores.   Review homework #9 is due on Friday.

Science:  Today in science students began class with a reflection on the activities they participated in earlier this week with the Fish and Game folks.  We then broke into pairs and went to the computer lab in order for students to research an assigned physical stream parameter we measured during our field experiences, and find the definition of the parameter and related it back to the importance of salmon rearing and spawning habitat.  They will present their findings to their classmates tomorrow in class. 

Assignments:  Students can be spending some time furthering their knowledge of the physical parameters we are looking at here in science class.  

Wednesday October 5, 2011

8th Grade Math:  Today in math students began class with the problem of the day.  We then transitioned into chapter 2 section 1 on the properties of addition and multiplication.   Students wrote the properties and the definitions of how to apply them to an equation in their notebooks, before Mr. Olsen led students through several examples and helping students determine which property is being used. 

Assignments:  Review homework #9 is due on Friday. 

7th Grade Math:  Today in math students began class by using their flashmasters.  We then worked on a Cracking the Code decimal worksheet so Mr. Olsen could get a feel on where students are when working with decimals.  Mr. Olsen then introduced section one of chapter two, on comparing, ordering and rounding decimals.  After going over the new vocabulary words associated with this new section, Mr. Olsen led students through several example problems before running out of time.   

Assignments:  Review homework #9 is due on Friday.

Science:  Today in science students had some visitors from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game sportfish division.  Jeff Williams and Kercia Schroeder led students through the different physical parameters of streams that they measure when looking at salmon spawning and rearing habitat.  We spent the first fifteen minutes in the classroom for introductions and a brief rundown of what we were going to be doing while out on Switzer Creek.  We then spent about 1.5 hours out on the creek in two different locations taking measurements and filling in our data sheets. 

Assignments:  None. 

Tuesday October 4, 2011

8th Grade Math:  Today in math students took a hike on the trail behind the school and visited the birdhouses they built as seventh graders last year.  We wanted to take the time to revisit the project and help the students make the connections to last years math curriculum.  When we got back to the classroom, Mr. Olsen handed back the chapter one tests, and gave students the last fifteen minutes of class time to work on their test corrections for credit.   

Assignments:  Students are to finish up the test corrections from the chapter one test by Wednesday if they want some credit for their grade. 

7th Grade Math:  Today in math students took the chapter one test.  

Assignments:  None. 
 
Science:  Today in science students had some visitors from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game sportfish division.  Jeff Williams and Kercia Schroeder led students through the different physical parameters of streams that they measure when looking at salmon spawning and rearing habitat.  We spent the first fifteen minutes in the classroom for introductions and a brief rundown of what we were going to be doing while out on Switzer Creek.  We then spent about 1.5 hours out on the creek in two different locations taking measurements and filling in our data sheets. 

Assignments: Students will be blocking tomorrow in science with Mr. Olsen's class having a two hour science block on Wednesday.  Students will have a guest speaker from ADF&G sportfish division here to discuss the important parameters of salmon spawning habitat along Switzer Creek.  Thus, students should be prepared to be outside all afternoon on Wednesday, including waterproof footwear and a rain coat. 

Monday October 3, 2011

8th Grade Math:  Today in math students took the chapter 1 test. 

Assignments:  Students are to finish up the calculated coloring worksheet handed out after the chapter 1 test taken in class today.

7th Grade Math:  Today in math students began class with their flashmasters.  Students then transitioned back into our review activity we started last Wednesday.  Students were grouped in to pods of four, and each group was responsible for covering one section from chapter one.  Each group then build a poster and reviewed with the class the important vocabulary and key concepts of their assigned section with their classmates, including an example problem or two for review for our chapter 1 test on Tuesday. 

Assignments:  Students are be reviewing for their chapter 1 test on Tuesday.
 
Science:  Today in science students reviewed last week's activities in science to begin class.  Students then took a basic quiz covering the internal and external parts of the salmon.  Mr. Olsen then informed students that we will be blocking science and social studies the next two days.  We began talking about the importance of dissolved oxygen, pH, temperature and turbidity to water quality and making the connection to salmon spawning.  Students will be spending the next two afternoons observing and measuring several key parameters of water quality on Switzer Creek. 

Assignments: Students will be blocking the next two days in science with Mr. Sheufelt's class having a two hour science block with Mr. Olsen on Tuesday.  Students will have a guest speaker from ADF&G habitat division here to discuss the important parameters of salmon spawning habitat along Switzer Creek.  Thus, students should be prepared to be outside all afternoon tomorrow and Wednesday, including waterproof footwear and a rain coat.