Sixth Grade News

Last week of school

2010-06-21T13:49:00.000-07:00

June 21, 2010

Wolf Ridge was a success! EVERYONE had a wonderful time and learned a bit about themselves and each other. It was great seeing students in a different environment and watching them achieve goals they had never dreamed possible. It was nice to see the kindness in each student and how well they worked cooperatively.

The ropes course was a challenge for everyone mentally and physically, but they all made it and the zip-line at the end was a great reward. Canoeing was a first for many and it could not have been more beautiful out on the lakes. Ask your son or daughter what a smammal is? They should have some good stories to share.

June 22--all school photo, please wear blue.

June 23---last day for switching for math and reading

June 24--- field day, please read over the flyer that was sent home.

June 14, 2010

2010-06-10T07:46:00.000-07:00

June 10, 2010

Dates to remember: June 15, 2010 6th graders will be taking the last part of their NWEA. Be sure to get a good nights rest and do your very best.

June 18th 6th graders going to Wolf Ridge will depart at approximately 9 am. Those students not attending are still expected to be at school. A teacher will be made available to them to work on missing or current work.

June 22 is the all school photo.

June 24th is the last day of school and it will be a fun filled day. Be sure to dress comfortable and wear your tennis shoes.

Social: Due to NWEA testing we will only have one day of social this week. Each student will be assigned a chapter on Immigration and will be finding information on their chapter. Each student will also look for a current article on immigration and the US to share with the class.

Science: Students have wrapped up their ocean animal projects that was due on June 9th. There are several students who still need to get it turned in. We will continue to work on ocean movement and life which is in their science packet. Please look through the Excel Energy workbook and complete the kit.

LA: The personal narrative will be due on June 16th. Don't forget to "show" not tell your story. Use figurative language to add depth to your writing.

Math: Ms. A's math class will be finishing up Course One Text book before the end of the year.

Ms. Wallwork's class will be taking a test on June 17th and finishing up the year on lesson 110 followed by a last test. We are covering slope and exponents this week.

Reading: Ms. A's class will be finishing the novel The Rats of Nimh and working on comprehension.

Ms. Wallwork's reading class will finish up our short speech unit but continue working on presentation and proper audience etiquette. Students will also be put into groups of three and read from the same book. They will then practice their presentation skills by presenting back to the class.

June 7th

2010-06-04T06:56:00.000-07:00

The end of school is drawing near, here are a few dates to remember:

NWEA's for 6th graders will be on June 9 and 15th be sure to eat a healthy breakfast and get a good nights sleep.

June 6th is the pancake breakfast feed to be held at the Sauk Rapids legion from 8am - 1pm.

June 8th the band and choir concert to be held at Westwood Community Church. The 3rd through 6th graders will be performing at 7pm.

June 14th is the volunteer appreciation BBQ to be held at Riverside Park from 5:00 to 7:30.

June 16th a select group of choir members will be performing at the Mall of America.

June 24th the last day of school and your field day filled with fun!

Social: On June 9th you will have a test on the Industrial Revolution. Be sure to study the vocabulary.

Science: June 9th your Sea Animal research project is due.

LA: We wil continue to work on our Personal Narrative Writing piece. Don't forget to be descriptive, show don't tell. We will also continue to prep for the NWEA test.

Math: Ms. Wallwork's class will have a test on June 8th. Don't forget to review the vocabulary specific to you for the NWEA test. Ms. A's class is working on percents, compound interest and simple interest, and reviewing proportions and ratio boxes.

Reading: Ms. Wallwork's class will continue to work on the techniques needed to be a good speaker and good listener. Ms. A's class will be starting the Rats of Nimh on June 7th. They just finished up Where the Red Fern Grows.

June 1, 2010

2010-05-31T18:27:00.000-07:00

June 1, 2010

Welcome back, we hope all of you enjoyed your time off.

NWEA's will be upon us shortly, be sure to put your best effort into them!

Social: We will be finishing up our unit on the Industrial Revolution. Be sure to look over your vocabulary words in preparation for the test.

Science: Working on science packet

LA: We will not have spelling this week due to the shortened week. We will begin a fun Narrative Writing unit by using music!! We will also be preparing for the NWEA's.

Math: Ms. Wallwork's class is working on angles, positive and negative numbers, and finding the length of a semicircle and its area.

Reading: We will work on public speaking by learning first what a good audience looks like and what a good speaker looks like. Each student will read a short children's story to their peers to practice proper speaking techniques.

4th Quarter is a very exciting time in physical education. The students have finished their spring fitness tests and are anxiously awaiting the 5th annual STRIDE field day. Spring fitness test reports will be sent home in Thursday Folders next week. The majority of the remaining physical education classes will be outside. We will be having units in t-ball/softball and cooperative games. Thank you for helping make this school year great. I am looking forward to finishing the year off with a lot of fun in physical education.

Updates and Reminders:

Pancake Breakfast
It is time for the 2nd Annual STRIDE Academy Pancake Breakfast.

-What: Pancake Breakfast
-When: Sunday, June 6th, 8:00 A.M. until 1:00 P.M.
-Where: Sauk Rapids Legion on Benton Drive
-For: Funds to support the growing extracurricular program

May 3, 2010

2010-05-03T07:11:00.001-07:00

May 3, 2010

Can you believe it is May already?

Social: This week in social we will be watching Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens and continue our coverage of the Industrial Revolution. Vocabulary is due on Friday, May 7th.

Science: Students are taking an Ocean's test Monday, May 3rd. Then they will be continuing with the Xcel Energy project. Each student upon completion of this project will receive a packet containing an energy saving shower head, two energy saving light bulbs,a filter alarm for the air-filter on your furnace, and a water saving faucet for your sink. At times they will be working on this project in homeroom and study hall.

LA: Yes, we will have spelling this week, lesson 21 for most of you and we will continue to cover grammar rules, this week being verbs. It is also our final week of Julius Caesar. Students will have 3 days in class to finish their presentations. We will start presenting on May 11th. Our next unit will cover narrative writing.

Math: Ms. Wallwork's class will be taking a test on Tuesday with Study Island to follow on Wednesday. We will be working in the 7th grade area to continue to work towards growth with our NWEA's. The remaining of the week we will be working with angles.

Reading: Ms. Wallwork's class will continue with the aftermath of the trial of Tom Robinson in To Kill a Mockingbird. At the end of the book we will be watching the movie, To Kill a Mockingbird staring Gregory Peck.

Ms. A's class is starting their first novel, Where the Red Fern Grows. They will be doing comprehension and vocabulary questions throughout.

Gym: 1st-6th Grade: The students will be finishing their fitness tests this week. I am very impressed with how hard the students have been working. Keep an eye out for your child’s fitness report in their Thursday folder in early June.

Reminders and important information: Your son or daughter should have brought home a liability release and a health form for Wolf Ridge. These forms need to be turned in before intersession. Also, if your child has a balance due for the trip please ask them for the amount or call Ms. Wallwork at 230-5340 ext 155. This trip is a great way to end the school year with a lot of team work involved.

Remember, any F's on mid-quarter will disqualify you from attending Wolf Ridge.

Our last day of school before intersession is May 14th. Be sure to check out the activities that will be available.

April 26, 2010

2010-04-26T07:19:00.000-07:00

It is our last week of MCA testing. We will be taking the math portion on Tuesday and Wednesday. Be sure to get a good nights sleep and eat a healthy breakfast! Have a great attitude and give it your best, you will do fantastic.

Mrs. Swanson's last day is today, Monday, April 26th, Ms. Ahmed will be taking over her classes while she is gone. If you have questions direct them to Ms. A.

Social: Only one day of social this week. Questions for chapter five are due on Thursday and we will be learning a little about Charles Dickens and his contribution during the Industrial Revolution.

Science: We just wrapped up the salinity of the oceans and will be having a test on Thursday. Also, we will be spending one day in science on a new Xcel Energy project. Look for a letter in Thursday folders explaining a bit more. Some time will be used during homeroom and study hall also for this project.

Language Arts: We will return to spelling this week, so don't forget to study your words. Also, we will be finishing up questions for Julius Caesar and working on your individual projects. Be sure to be working on them outside of school.

Math: Ms. Wallwork's math class will be working with scientific notation, solving two-step equations, and inequalities, and finding probabilities. No test in math this week.

Mrs. Swanson's math class will be covering two step equations, area of complex shapes, and identifying rotations, translations, and reflections. No test in Mrs. Swanson's math class either.

Reading: Ms. Wallwork's Literature II class has had some great discussions about To Kill a Mockingbird. Be sure to ask your child about what they have read and learned. We will continue with chapter 13 on Monday along with discussion, comprehension questions, and vocabulary.

Ms. A's class will continue with Tom Sawyer and working on vocabulary and comprehension questions.

Reminders and updates:

Gym:

1st-6th Grade: The students will be starting their Physical Fitness Testing. The tests measure physical fitness by using the following tests: pull ups, sit ups, shuttle run, sit & reach & endurance run/walk. Please encourage your child to do their best. These tests help STRIDE measure the effectiveness of the physical education program and help set physical education goals for next year. Once our testing is finished, you will receive an individual fitness report. These reports are valuable in developing an exercise program to enhance your child's overall level of fitness.

Music:

Kindergarten – 6th grades are busy preparing for their spring concert. Kindergarten – Second Grade concert will begin promptly at 6:00P.M at Westwood Community Church on June 8. Grades 3-6 and the STRIDE Academy Band will perform at 7:00P.M.

The STRIDE Academy Select Choir has been chosen to perform at the Mall of America for their 2010 Music Concert Series. What a great honor! The choir will also perform for our upcoming spring concert. Thanks to all for supporting the Music Program at STRIDE!!

April 12, 2010

2010-04-12T07:46:00.000-07:00

The middle school groundbreaking was this past weekend, if you got a chance to check it out, it was wonderful. Mrs. Swanson and Ms. Wallwork walked around trying to decide which classroom to have next year! We are very excited to see the expansion and can't wait to prepare our classrooms.

Social: We have begun our unit on Industrialism, Capitalism, and Socialism Unit. We will start off this week learning how farming became more efficient during the Industrial Revolution.

Science: Our Ocean Structure unit is underway. This week students will work on completing a model of the ocean floor and it's features with a partner and mapping out the ocean floor using the idea of sonar. Students will be assigned their at-home lab for this unit on Thursday and it will be due on Friday, April 23rd.

Language Arts: We are still preparing for MCA's. Don't forget to get a good nights sleep and eat a healthy breakfast every morning. We will begin Act IV of Julius Caesar this week and review literary terms.

Math:

Ms. Wallwork's class will be learning how to collect like terms and multiplying algebraic terms to simplify algebraic expressions.

Mrs. Swanson's class is working on fraction-decimal-percent equivalents, algebraic addition of integers, compound experiments, and ratios problems involving totals. Students will also take another assessment on Wednesday.

Reading: Monday, Ms. Wallwork's class will be previewing To Kill a Mockingbird. We will begin each lesson with the vocabulary and ending with discussion about what we have read. This is a higher content book that will create in-depth discussions.

Specialists:

P.E.: Students will be finishing up a whiffleball unit and will be continuing their preparation for the fitness test.

Music: Students are busy preparing for their spring concert. Please put June 8th on your calendars as this will be the evening that the spring concert will take place at Westwood Community Church. More information will be coming in regards to times! Thanks for your continued support of the music program at STRIDE Academy!

Updates and Reminders:

Information was handed out at conferences about the end of the year trip to Wolf Ridge. Please start filling out this information and returning it as soon as possible. In this weeks Thursday folder you will find the health form that will need to be filled out and returned.

Please remind your child to bring a white t-shirt into school by Wednesday, April 14th. Next week the sixth graders will create t-shirts to wear on MCA testing days. Those dates again are Tuesday and Wednesday April 20 and 21st for Reading and Tuesday and Wednesday April 27 and 28 for Math.

April 6, 2010

2010-04-05T14:39:00.000-07:00

Welcome to Spring and the last quarter of this school year! It is exciting to actually have nice spring weather outside. Conferences were held last Thursday, April 1st. If you did not attend your child's conference PLEASE call their homeroom teacher and reschedule.

We are well underway preparing for the MCA's this month. To help you out at home be sure to sign onto Study Island and spend some time working on math and reading.

Social: We will begin our unit on Industrialism, Capitalism, and Socialism. Students will understand the impact the Industrial Revolution and the working conditions for children in England.

Science: Students will begin their final unit for this year on Oceans! This unit is split into two smaller sections, the first is the Oceans: Structure and the second is Oceans: Movement and Life. For the first two lessons students will review the continents and oceans of the Earth and the features of the ocean floor. With a partner students will make a model of the ocean floor. We will need some shoe boxes for this project!

Language Arts: We will continue with MCA prep work, involving a lot of vocabulary. Your packet that was handed out on April 6th is due on April 9th. We are also beginning with Act III of Julius Caesar. Students will be answering questions and journaling about what they read. Julius Caesar will end with a large project of the students choice.

Reading: Ms. Wallwork's class will be learning about the Antarctica this week and also watching a movie about Ernest Shackleton and his quest to become the first man to reach the South Pole.

Math:

Ms. Wallwork's class will begin this week with lesson 81, using proportions to solve percents, finding the area of a circle, and multiplication in scientific notation.

Mrs. Swanson's math class started the week with a reteaching packet from lesson most commonly missed on the benchmark test given. The rest of the week they worked on lessons dealign with functions and graphing functions, transversal, and sums of the angle emasures of triangles and quadrilaterals.

4th-6th Grade P.E.: We will be starting a whiffleball unit. The students will be learning the following baseball and softball fundamentals: swing weight transfer and pivot, crow hops, force outs & tag ups. The students will also be practicing the events for their spring fitness test. They will be doing pull ups, push ups and sit ups. Please encourage your child to practice these events at home. With the change of seasons there is a great opportunity to get outside and be active. Each child should be accumulating at least 60 minutes of moderate physical activity per day. With your continued help at home, we will collaboratively be able to ensure that all students are able to attain and maintain a level of health enhancing physical fitness

Updates and Reminders:

Information was handed out at conferences about the end of the year trip to Wolf Ridge. Please start filling out this information and returning it as soon as possible. In this weeks Thursday folder you will find the health form that will need to be filled out and returned.

Please remind your child to bring a white t-shirt into school by Friday, April 9th. Next week the sixth graders will create t-shirts to wear on MCA testing days. Those dates again are Tuesday and Wednesday April 20th and 21st for Reading and Tuesday and Wednesday April 27th and 28th for Math.

Don't forget the groundbreaking ceremony for the new middle school building Saturday, April 10th. Please RSVP to Julie in the office if you plan on attending.

March 22, 2010

2010-03-23T07:31:00.000-07:00

Thank you to all those who helped out at Family Fun Night and all those who attended. It was a very successful evening!

Big reminder, conferences are coming up on April 1st. Check your child's Thursday folder for times.

Social: We are finishing up our Enlightenment Unit on March 29th. Students will have learned a little about John Locke, Thomas Hobbes, Isaac Newton, and Rene Descartes. All questions need to be turned in by Thursday. Our next unit will cover the French Revolution.

Science: To complete this unit we watched a movie about volcanoes and reflected on how it affects our life and the Earth. On Thursday students will review for their test and turn in their science packet. ALL packets must be turned in on Thursday. The test will be on Monday, March 29th. The 3D Earth project is also due on test day.

Language Arts: There is no spelling this week because we again our working on MCA preparations. Your child should be bringing home vocabulary homework to help him or her to continue to work towards their goal. In Julius Caesar we are on Act II. Students are answering comprehension questions and journaling through pictures.

Math:

Ms. Wallwork's week started with an assessment and will continue with simplifying complex fractions, translating percents of a number into equations, and read and interpret graphs. Our next test is March 31st.

Mrs. Swanson's math is starting the week with another assessment and an investigation on experimental probability. Then students will complete three lessons on geometric formulas, expanded notation with exponents, order of operations with exponents, powers of fractions, and classifying triangles.

Reading: Ms. Wallwork's group is nearing the end of Travels with Charlie, he is currently traveling through California. At one point while traveling he passes through St. Cloud. Next we will be covering some technical reading through the use of magazines and newspapers, such as Time, National Geographic, and the Wall Street Journal.

Specialists: Mr. Heerts fifth and sixth grade students will continue working with and learning notes of the Treble Clef and Bass Clef in music class this week. They will have a test over all notes of the bass and treble clef.

In Mr. Lutterman's gym class the students will be finishing a unit on Friends and Relationships.

Updates and Reminders:

School pictures were sent home. As a parent you must decide to either keep the pictures and pay for them or send them back to STRIDE. A notice was sent home with your child on Tuesday.

MCA testing dates are April 22nd and 23rd for Reading and April 27th and 28th for Math. Mark your calendars now. It is important your child attends school on these days.

The end of the quarter is March 31st. Conferences are on April 1st. Reminders were sent home about your conferences time. If you do not have a time or do not know your time please contact your child's homeroom teacher.

There will be a short break from April 1st to April 5th. Class will resume April 6th.

March 15, 2010

2010-03-16T07:20:00.000-07:00

FAMILY FUN NIGHT MARCH 19TH FROM 5-8 PM

Don't forget to attend a fun filled evening this Friday at STRIDE. There will be concessions available and many fun games or activities to choose from. Some of them include: cake walk, bingo, crazy hair, fishing booth, duck pond, sucker pull, golf, karate, and many more. If you haven't signed up to help work and would like to please contact either Mrs. Swanson or Ms. Wallwork.

Welcome back from a nice break, it appears the nice weather may be here to stay. Over break the new middle school buildling is finally started!!! YEAH! If you have any questions please contact Mrs. Swanson, Mr. Ulbrich, or Mr. Beutel.

Social: Students will begin presenting their power points on Wednesday and finish up next week. Each group is responsible for one chapter and a hand out for each student. Students will be graded on their power points and handouts/assessments. We will then begin our unit on Industrialism, Capitalism, and Socialism.

Science: This week students are studying how plate movement creates different underwater features such as trenches and ridges. Students are also being the teacher by presenting information on volcanoes features. Our next science test will be Monday, March 29th. The science project on the Earth is also due on test day.

Language Arts: No spelling this week, we are devoting some extra time to the MCA's that are coming up in April. We will continue on with Julius Caesar by finishing up critical thinking questions and starting in on Act II.

Math:

Ms. Wallwork's class is working on fractional parts and we began this week with Lesson 71. We will also be finding the area of complex figures and solving ratio problems.

Mrs. Swanson's class is working on area of a circle, solving for an unknown number, using proportions to solve ratio word problems, estimating square roots, and measuring turns.

Reading: Ms. Wallwork's class is a little over half way through Travels with Charlie. We continue to work on vocabulary for the MCA's and the NWEA's. Be sure to study the RIT words that were sent home before break.

Updates and Reminders:

School pictures were sent home this week. As a parent you must decide to either keep the pictures and pay for them or send them back to STRIDE.

MCA testing dates are April 22nd and 23rd for Reading and April 27th and 28th for Math. Mark your calendars now. It is important your child attends school on these days.

The end of the quarter is March 31st. Conferences are on April 1st. Reminders will be sent home of the time you signed up for conferences last fall. If this time works then do not return the slip, if it does not work please inform us of another time.

There will be a short break from April 1st to April 5th. Class will resume April 6th.

February 22, 2010

2010-02-24T08:05:00.000-08:00

As you can see by the
picture below,
Julius Caesar is under way!

It is our last week before our spring break! Students will return to class on Monday, March 15, 2010. Enjoy your time off and time with your family. Intersession activities will take place March 1st to March 5th. All-day care is available the second week of intersession so please contact Valarie Weyer for information.

Thursday, March 4th is the second annual Ice Fishing Event for the 5th and 6th grade students. Please have permission slips given to Mr. Thole as soon as possible for your child to attend.

In science students were given their next project to work on. This will be due at the end of March. Information will be sent home in the Thursday folder in case your child would like to work on it during break.

In language we have finished up Act I, scenes 1, 2, and 3. Students will be answering questions related to what they have read and new vocabulary they are learning.

Please make sure to have all work in by Friday so that you are all caught up when you return to school.

Don't forget Family Fun Night, March 19th, 2010, from 5-8pm. We look forward to seeing everyone there. Remember this is how you earn money towards your trip to Wolf Ridge.

February 16, 2010

2010-02-16T10:14:00.000-08:00

Congratulations on a job well done at the spelling bee and a special congratulations to Meghan Moran for her 1st place position.

Social: Sixth graders are starting "The Enlightenment" unit. Students are in groups of 4 based on the individual they wanted to report on. They could pick from Isaac Newton, Rene' Descartes, Thomas Hobbes, or John Locke. Each group will be putting together a power point to present to their classmates along with an assessment of their individual of choice.

Science: This week students will learn about the layers of the Earth and receive their final project of the quarter, the 3D Earth Model. This will not be due until after break. Due date will be announced after break. Students will also watch a video on Rocks and Minerals on Friday. The science biography project is due NEXT TUESDAY! February 23rd!

Language Arts: Both classes will be finishing up our Julius Caesar movie this week and then learn a bit about William Shakespeare. No spelling or grammar this week due to the short week. If you would like to work ahead and start studying now, that would be a good idea.

Math:

Ms. Wallwork's class is taking their first test from Course 2 on Tuesday and will be covering ratio boxes and identifying geometric solids.

Ms. Swanson's class started the week by taking their next test. They will then work on constructing perpendicular bisectors and bisectors of a given angle, adding, subtracting, multiplying, and dividing units of measure, and area of the base and volume of rectangular prisms. The next math packet #25 was handed out and will be due February 26th.

Reading:

Ms. Wallwork's reading class is well under way traveling across the United States with Charlie and John Steinbeck. We are also continually working on building our vocabulary. Ask your son or daughter about some of their new words they are learning.

Updates and Reminders:

Monday, February 22nd from 4-8 is our Five Guys benefit. Be sure to stop in for a delicious bite to eat!

-The 2nd Annual Family Fun night is March 19th from 5-8pm. Be sure to mark your calendars for the event. It is a great time for family fun.

-Thursday, March 4th is the next Ice Fishing event. Remember this event is FREE for students in grades 5 and 6. Dress rehearsal for the event is on Friday, February 19th. Students should come dressed in all the items they will wear this day.

-PE class this week and next week are completing the C-Motion dance unit.

2010-02-08T12:23:00.000-08:00

Big event coming up here at STRIDE, the annual Spelling Bee Monday night at 6:30 was rescheduled for Friday morning.

Social: Students are exploring Greek/Roman gods and goddesses this week and sharing with classmates. On Friday we will begin "The Enlightenment Period." Students will be preparing Power Points and assessments for each chapter and presenting to classmates.

Science: Monday and Friday for science students will teach their classmates about specific vocabulary by becoming the expert of one vocabulary word and sharing it with the class. The focus of these vocabulary words is on the parts of the plates during movements, the types of pressure put on the plates, and what the plates are made of and from. Don't forget to have your child continue to work on their biography project. This is due February 23rd.

Language Arts: Reminder that the students are buying their own copy of Julius Caesar and should turn in $5.11 to Ms. Wallwork this week. If this is a hardship, please let me know and we will take care of it. We will be teaching this unit a bit different, Ms. A and myself will be combining classes. This will allow for a much broader range of discussion and sharing of information. Students will be creating journals with pictures as we read and answering comprehension questions through the play.

Don't forget to study for spelling, unit 18 or 8 (Wallwork) lesson 17 for both levels in Ms. A's class. Don't forget Ms. Wallwork's students need to finish Grammar Rule 23, vocabulary packet, and sayings and phrases.

Sayings of the week: Don't look a gift horse in the mouth.
Don't lock the stable door after the horse has been stolen.

Math:
Because Ms. Wallwork's class did so well on the end of unit exam and bench mark test we will be skipping 60 lessons and start with lesson 61 in Course 2. We will cover polygons, classifying triangles, symbols of inclusion, and adding positive and negative numbers. I expect we will come across new math concepts, because of skipping so many lessons, and we will stop to be sure there is complete understanding of any new concept.

Mrs. Swanson's class is working on comparing fractions by converting to decimal form, finding unstated information in fraction problems, capacity, area of triangles, and using a constant factor to solve ratio problems.

Reading: Ms. Wallwork's class has begun Travels with Charlie and will be plotting his travels across the United States and we will also continue with daily journals.

Updates and Reminders:

Physical Education Skatetime/C’Motion Reminder

From February 16th-22nd, the K-3 Physical Education classes will be participating in a program called Skatetime and the 4-6 Physical Education classes will be participating in a high energy dance driven program called C’Motion. These units are being implemented because of there emphasis as “Lifetime Activities.” If you have not yet turned in your permission slip or fee please do so as soon as possible. Due to insurance purposes, we will be exclusively using Skatetime’s skates, so please do not have your children bring skates to school. Students skating are encouraged to bring all the safety equipment they wish. Wrist guards will be provided.
Skatetime will be a great opportunity to earn volunteer time and also have fun. It would be very nice to have a few extra sets of hands to help tie skates and assist children who may be having a hard time. Contact Mr. Lutterman if you are interested. Let me know if you have any questions or concerns

Luke Lutterman
STRIDE Academy
PE/DAPE & Activities Director
Please return the Wolf Ridge questionnaire.

The St. Cloud Police Department is visiting sixth grade on Wednesday, February 10th. Students are taking part in the KEYS program that offers them knowledge and skills to resist drugs, alcohol, and peer pressure.

There is no school on Monday, February 15th.

February 1st, 2010

2010-02-03T07:19:00.000-08:00

Big event coming up here at STRIDE, the annual Spelling Bee Monday night at 6:30. If you are able to attend I know the students appreciate it.

Social: We are finishing up our Ancient Greece and Rome Unit this week with a test on Thursday. Remind your child to have their note-card ready. We will be starting next week with The Enlightenment Period. Small groups of students will be presenting a chapter using power point.

Science: There is only one day of science this week. Students will demonstrate how heat, pressure, and time create a metaphoric rock using starbursts. Don't forget to have your child continue to work on their biography project. This is due February 23rd.

Language Arts: We are finishing up our Descriptive Writing Unit this week and we will be starting Julius Caesar next week. Reminder that the students are buying their own copy and should turn in $5.11 to Ms. Wallwork this week. If this is a hardship, please let me know and we will take care of it. Don't forget to study for spelling, unit 17 or 7 (Wallwork) spelling review (Level 6) and 15 (level 7) for Ahmed's class.

Math:

Ms. Wallwork's class officially finished course one this week, CONGRATULATIONS. All of the students did excellent on the end of unit test and benchmark test. These tests determine where we start in course 2. Looks like this class will be skipping quite a few lessons. I am very proud of the work they have done. Keep it up!!

Mrs. Swanson's Course 1 class is working on exponents, writing decimals numbers as fractions, writing fractions and ratios as decimal numbers, and writing fractions and decimals as percents. They will have a test on Thursday and enrichment day on Friday. The Course 2 class finished the textbook and started on Course 3. Be proud of them.

Reading: Ms. Wallwork's class presented small biographies about different members of the secret annexe where Anne Frank hid. This was a very interesting novel and I think we all learned a lot. We will start out Travels with Charlie by exploring different focal points of the United States. We will continue with our journals each day. I see the students evolving in their journal writing as time goes on.

Updates and Reminders:

Please return the Wolf Ridge questionnaire. Another copy will be sent in your child's Thursday folder.

The St. Cloud Police department is visiting sixth grade on Monday, February 1st, Thursday, February 4th, and Wednesday, February 10th. Students are taking part in the KEYS program that offers them knowledge and skills to resist drugs, alcohol, and peer pressure.

January 25, 2010

2010-01-26T08:01:00.000-08:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY Ms. Wallwork!!!

Starting on February 1st, 6th graders will be participating in the St. Cloud Police Departments KEYS to Success program, Knowledge and Education for Youth to Success. There is a letter in their Thursday folders this week explaining more in depth.

Social: Students have covered Augustus, Julius Caesar, and now we will be covering the fall of the Roman Empire. To end the unit each student will be doing a mini project on a Greek God or Goddess or other figure from Ancient Greece or Rome.

Science: Monday students demonstrated how plates move to form rifts, volcanoes, earthquakes, and mountain ranges. Wednesday will label the different names of the plates the Earth is made of. Friday students will define transform faults and magma and discuss how hot spots affect the Earth's surface. DO NOT FORGET science biography project are due at the end of February. Students should be continually working on this project.

Language Arts: Ms. Wallwork's class is on spelling 16 this week, don't forget to study. grammar rule 21 covers appositives. Remember they rename a noun. For example: Ms. Swanson, a 6th grade teacher, is having a baby boy. (a sixth grade teacher is the appositive, renaming Ms. Swanson) We are also continuing with our descriptive papers about ourselves. We hope to finish up this unit in the next two weeks. Ms. Ahmed's class is on spelling 15 (Level 6) 14 (Level 7), and grammar rule 20 on commas and colons. They have been studying idioms and will also conclude their descriptive writing project on February 1st. This is the due date for their descriptive writing assignment.

Math:

Ms. Wallwork's class will be having a test on January 26th and finishing up the entire book this week, CONGRATULATIONS. We will start Course 2 next week.

Mrs. Swanson's class is completing lessons on reducing fractions before multiplying, coordinate planes, parallelograms, and multiplying three fractions. They also will take a test on Tuesday. Congratulations to Mrs. Swanson's Course 2 independent study group that has completed Course 2 and will start Course 3 next week.

Reading:

Ms. Wallwork's class is watching a documentary on Anne Frank. They are listening to interviews with a classmate, her father and many other people who had contact with her prior to and while in the concentration camps. Our next book will be Travels with Charlie by John Steinbeck.

Ms. Ahmed's reading class has been reading about Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad. They have had many great discussions on the subject.

Updates and Reminders:

Tuesday night is the band and piano concert at 6:00pm at Westwood Church.

Please remember to have students come to school in tan khaki pants or skirts and a SOLID polo shirt with no logos. If they would like to have a sweatshirt it should be not hooded, solid, with no logos. All STRIDE Polo's or sweatshirts are okay. Students should not be wearing shorts or capris at this time of the school year.

Students are required to wear a hat, gloves or mittens, and a winter jacket at recess. Boots are HIGHLY recommended.

2010-01-18T17:32:00.000-08:00

I hope everyone enjoyed their three day weekend along with the warmer weather. Below you will find some updates for your classes and reminders for everyone.

Social: We will be watching a power point on Julius Caesar and then covering The Age of Augustus. Our big unit is nearing the end, so be sure to answer all questions and keep up on the vocabulary. Our next unit will cover The Enlightenment Period, where you will get to make your own power point presentation.

Science: Our next unit is ready to begin! The unit is on Plate Tectonics: Movement of the Earth. It will be the only unit, other than the biography project, that is part of third quarter. This is due to the length/content of the unit and the amount of class time used to test students for both NWEA and MCAs and prepare them for the tests using Study Island. This week students will begin by using a vocabulary study on important terms to understand how the Earth's plates move.

Language Arts: Spelling 15 this week along with learning about specific placement of commas. We continue to work on our descriptive writing unit by learning better how to use similes, metaphors, and other figurative language.

Math: Ms. Wallwork's class will be learning brand new concepts; compound interest, simple interest, and principal. It would be wonderful if your child could talk to you about interest and using a savings account.

Mrs. Swanson's math class students will work on multiplying and dividing mixed numbers, using prime factorization to reduce fractions, lengths of segments, and complementary and supplementary angles.

Reading: Ms. Wallwork's class is nearing the end of Anne Frank and we will finish off the unit by watching the movie and presenting what we learned about the various people who helped the Frank family in hiding for two years.

Updates and Reminders:

Let’s celebrate our Vikings and come dressed in purple on Friday, January 22nd. Students can where jeans. If students are not participating in Purple Pride Day they will wear the normal uniform of polo and khakis. We Vikings fans will look the other way if you would like to represent another football team. Go Vikes!!!

Students will complete their NWEA testing Wednesday, January 20th in the areas of Reading and Language. Be sure they have a good night of sleep and a healthy breakfast that morning.

In PE class students will begin the C-Motion unit and are finishing their hockey unit. Please look for slips regarding C-Motion and the cost behind this unit.

January 11th, 2010

2010-01-12T17:03:00.001-08:00

A fresh start this week for the new quarter. Students will receive their second quarter report card in their Thursday Folders this week.

Social- We are covering the Punic Wars and Julius Caesar this week. Be sure to re-read anything you didn't understand. Be ready for a small pop quiz.

Science- Students will finish sharing their Disease Posters on Tuesday and get their next big project for third quarter. The next project is science biographies. Each student will be assigned a scientist in class Tuesday. They are then required to complete a project following the criteria from their explanation sheet. A copy of this sheet will be in their Thursday folder. This project is not due until Tuesday, February 23rd.

Language Arts- Spelling 14 and 4, lesson and test, and Grammar Rule 19 are due on Thursday due to incentive day, Friday. We are still working on descriptive writing, including similes, metaphors, alliteration, and adjectives. Be sure to know the different areas of figurative language.

Math-

Ms. Wallwork's class is working on unit multipliers, with a test on Thursday. Don't forget we take the NWEA math test this Wednesday. Get plenty of sleep and eat a fabulous breakfast. We have a regular math test on Thursday.

Mrs. Swanson's class is working on subtracting mixed numbers with regrouping, classifying quadrilaterals, prime factorization, division by primes, and factor trees. Students will take another assessment on Wednesday and complete an enrichment day on Friday. The focus for the enrichment day will be decimal numbers. Students will complete a variety of operations using decimal numbers.

Reading- We learned today that Miep Gies died in Amsterdam at the age of 100 on Monday, January 11th, 2010. She was the last known person alive to have helped Anne Frank and her family while in hiding. She worked for Anne's father and found ways to get extra ration cards in order to get the Franks food. As a class we made a rubric for a poster presentation each student will do. Each student will research a person involved with the Franks and present to the class. We also continue to expand our vocabulary, be sure to go over a few words every night.

Next up Travels with Charlie by John Steinbeck.

Updates and Reminders:

The next round of NWEA testing is taking place this week and next week. 6th grade students will test in math on Wednesday, January 13th and Reading and Language on Wednesday, January 20th. Be sure your child gets a good night sleep and eats a healthy breakfast.

The next school board meeting is taking place on Tuesday, January 19th at 6:30pm at STRIDE.

There is NO SCHOOL on Monday, January 18th.

Students who completed all academic and behavioral expectations are participating in an incentive day on Friday, January 15th.

Monday, December 21st, 2009

2009-12-20T19:44:00.000-08:00

December 21, 2009 Happy Holidays!

Yes, it is hard to believe but there are only three days of school this week. Be sure to have all your work turned in before you leave on Wednesday, so you can relax and enjoy spending time with your family over break.

Social: We are a little over half way through our Ancient Greece and Rome unit. On Tuesday, we will be talking about Alexander the Great and reviewing chapters 7 through 9. Don't forget to stay up on all of the vocabulary. A great resource to use is http://www.dictionary.com/, it is great for pronunciation also.

Science: In science, we will be finishing our Human Body unit by learning about the ways we prevent disease. In students Thursday Folder this week, you will find an At-Home lab that is just a quick discussion about vaccinations and hereditary dieseases, this will be due Wednesday, January 6th. You will also find a review for the test. Students have their Disease Poster that is due Wednesday, January 6th, the day of their test. This shouldn't be new work for students since this was all assigned before break.

Language Arts: Because of the short week, we will not have a spelling test this week. We will cover grammar rule 17 though and continue with our descriptive writing unit. Question for this week are adjectives and adverbs?

Math: Ms. Wallwork's class is covering area of complex shapes and transformations. There will be no test this week.

Mrs. Swanson's class is learning about the difference between probablity and chance and adding mixed numbers. Students will complete an enrichment activity on Wednesday that pretains to the MCAs.

Reading: Ms. Wallwork's class will be putting together a small potato recipe book this week. Potatoes were a main staple for Anne Frank while she was hiding in the Secret Annex. It was affordable and would store for long lengths of time.

Reminders:

*No Panther program this week.
*Turn in all calendar money.

*Assembly on Wednesday in the afternoon.

*There is no school from Thursday, December 24th through Friday, January 1st. We will see everyone back after the break starting Monday, January 4th.

Things to do over break:

Clean out and organize your backpack.

Spend wonderful time with your family.

Do a bit of reading, escape to other worlds.

Get outside and play.

Get plenty of rest.

Monday, December 14th, 2009

2009-12-14T06:19:00.000-08:00

Mid-terms went out last week in your child's Thursday folder. If you did not receive your child's mid-term please contact their homeroom teacher. Also, do not forget the Winter Music Concert tomorrow, (Tuesday, December 15th), at 7:10pm for 4-6 grade students. Students should arrive at 7:00. Choir students should be there at 6:00. Also, congrats to the boy's basketball team for their first victory Friday night against Becker.

Social: This week we are learning about Socrates and the Socratic Method. We are also learning how the Golden Age of Athens came to be and the philosophers from that time period. Currently, students are discussing and taking notes from a power point.

Science: This week students are learning about the pathogens that invade our body and our lines of defense against them. There will be a quick lab about spreading germs as well. Students were assigned a disease to research and include what the disease is, how you contract the disease, and how to prevent getting the disease. This will not be due until Wednesday, January 6th.

Language Arts: Well we finished up our poetry unit with a very successful Coffee House. Thank you all for attending, I know the students really enjoyed seeing everyone there. This week we will be starting our Descriptive writing unit with a pretest. We also will have spelling test 12 and grammar rule 16. Don't forget to study those spelling words.

Level 7 spelling words: vacant, apartment, resident, offer, permit, kitchen, complain, property, enormous, and consent. (Here you are, Claire :-)

Math:

Ms. Wallwork's class is learning about positive and negative numbers by using an "electrical charge" model. This would be a good concept to work on at home. There is a test on December 16th and we will finish out the week learning about area of complex objects.

Mrs. Swanson class will reduce by grouping factor equal to 1, divide fractions, and find common denominators. Students will have another test on Wednesday and an enrichment day on Thursday.

Reading:

Anne Frank has begun in Ms. Wallwork's class again with a lot of focus on the vocabulary and comprehension. We are all looking forward to reading this novel. Feel free to get yourself a copy if you would like to read along with your son or daughter. Some of the vocabulary we have covered include the following: ardent, fanatic, superfluous, chattels, piqued, obstinate, prude, vague, rebuke, sarcasm, congenial, plied, pall, disdainful, and procured. Dictionary.com is a great website to use for pronunciation and definitions of the words.

Ms. Pueringer's class is Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIHM. This book will go through the month of December.

Mrs. Schmitz is finishing The Prince and the Pauper and writing from the Authors Pt. of View in L.A. We will start level 6 next week.

Ms. Ahmed's class is doing a read-aloud of Behind Rebel lines and completing the SRA reading curriculum. They will also be doing lesson 12 in spelling and grammar rule 16.

Reminders:

Winter break begins on December 24th

Don't forget about the 4th grade winter wear drive.

Winter Concert is on Tuesday, December 15th at 7:00pm for 4-6 grade students. There will be no Panther program this night due to the concert.

Girl's Basketball have their first game tonight at STRIDE at 3:30pm.

2009-12-07T07:05:00.000-08:00

December 7, 2009 (Pearl Harbor)

Yes, we are getting into the last days before our winter break. Be sure to stay caught up on all of your work. Reminder, our 2nd annual Coffee House will be Friday, December 11th at 10 am. Be sure to check in at the front office before making your way to Mrs. Swanson's room

Social: We are covering The Golden Age of Athens and The Peloponnesian War in our Ancient Greece and Rome unit. Stay prepared for mini pop quizes and be sure to answer all chapter questions.

Science: Continuing our study of the human body we reviewed the parts of the lymphatic system and what is in our blood. Students were also given the information on their project for this unit, a disease poster. They will each be assigned a disease to research and include what the disease is, how you contract the disease, and how to prevent getting the disease. This will not be due until Wednesday, January 6th.

Language Arts: Well our poetry unit is coming to an end. Please be sure to get your permission slip in if you intend to watch Long Shots. Also, think about the poem that you would like to share with our audience on Friday. Yes, there will be spelling this week with a test on Thursday.

Math: Ms. Wallwork will have a test today, Monday, December 7th. The week will continue on with ratio boxes, experimental outcomes and conversion from metric to US Customary System.

Mrs. Swanson class started the week with a test. Then completed an investigation of displaying data in graphs including a circle graph, bar graph, pictograph, line plot, and stem-and-leaf plot. The rest of the week they completed lessons on rounding decimal numbers, mentally dividing decimal by 10 and 100, decimal charts, and simplifying fractions.

Mrs. Schmitz math class is working on long division, fractions of groups, and surveys.

Reading: Anne Frank has begun in Ms. Wallwork's class again with a lot of focus on the vocabulary and comprehension. We are all looking forward to reading this novel. Feel free to get yourself a copy if you would like to read along with your son or daughter.

Ms. Puringer's class is Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIHM. This book will go through the month of December.

Mrs. Schmitz is finishing The Prince and the Pauper and writing from the Authors Pt. of View in L.A. We will start level 6 next week.

Ms. Ahmed's class is doing a read-aloud of Behind Rebel lines and completing the SRA reading curriculum.

Reminders:

*** Coffee House December 11th at 10 am.

*** Winter break begins on December 24th.

*** Permission slips for Long Shots.

*** Don't forget about the 4th grade winter wear drive.

*** Winter Concert is on Tuesday, December 15th at 7:00pm for 3-6 grade students. There will be no Panther program this night due to the concert.

November 10, 2009

2009-11-30T07:11:00.000-08:00

Welcome back from our refreshing break. We would like to welcome Ms. Kolstad's replacement Ms. Ahmed. She was the short term sub before break. You can reach her by calling Mrs. Swanson's ext 154 or email her at sahmed@strideacademy.org.

Social: We will continue our unit on Ancient Greece and Rome this week by covering the Persian Wars, and the battles of Sardis, Marathon, Thermopylae, and Salamis. Students will also identify contributions that Greek Philosophers made to their culture. Be sure to be prepared for a pop quiz this week.

Science: A new short unit on the human body will take place between intersession and winter break. This week students will review the circulatory system by identifying the six main parts of the system and the five main parts of the heart.

Language Arts: We are hoping to have our Second Annual Coffee House on December 11th. I will send updates with an exact time in Thursday folders this week. Reminder if you have any scrapbook materials you would like to get rid of you can send them in with your student to either Ms. Wallwork or Ms. Ahmed. We will be reviewing poetry terms, and figurative language this week and also discussing adjectives.

Math: Ms. Wallwork's class will be working with mixed numbers, identifying transversals, interior and exterior angles, and using a number line to add integers, and use algebraic addition to subtract integers.

Mrs. Swanson's class is working on pi and circumference, subtracting mixed numbers with regrouping, creating a decimal number line to the tenths place, and dividing be a decimal number and by a fraction.

Mr. Thole's class is reading and writing whole number in expanded notation, solving two-step word problems, and finding an average.

Reading:

Today, Ms. Wallwork's class will be looking at various areas and happenings of WWII and then try to make connections to our previous readings and our upcoming book, Anne Frank A Diary of a Young Girl. We are going to focus on vocabulary a lot more during this novel so ask your son or daughter about any new words they may be learning.

Reminders: There is NO SCHOOL on Friday, December 4th. Our winter break is from Thursday, December 24th until Sunday, January 3rd. School will resume on Monday, January 4th.

Calendars must be sold and money must be collected by Friday, December 11th. This is to ensure we do not have leftover calendars.

The PATHS meeting and school board meeting were rescheduled due to the Winter Concert on Tuesday, December 15th. PATHS will meet Monday, December 7th at 6:30pm and the school board will meet Tuesday, December 8th at 6:30pm.

Winter Wear clothing drive for 4th graders!

WHO: all STRIDE students and families
What: donate new or gently used winter items (coats, boots, snow pants, gloves, hats…)
WHEN: Nov. 30-Dec. 18, 2009
WHERE: drop off in baskets/boxes located up front and around school or give to your child’s teacher
WHY: to help the 4th graders with this service project and help those less fortunate in our community at this time of year

2009-11-10T07:09:00.000-08:00

November 10, 2009

Well it is our last week before a big break. Be sure to stay focused and finishing up any work you may be missing. If you haven't already heard, Mrs. Kolstad took another job and we have Ms. Ahmed filling in for her this week. A replacement will be hired for the rest of the year and hopefully start after break.

Social: Do to the Veterans Day presentation we will not have social studies on Wednesday. We are learning more about Hercules and other Greek Gods this week.

Science: Students review for their test on Monday and will take their test on Wednesday, November 11th. The computer review game is a great tool to study for the test and they can print off the 10 questions and circle the correct answers to use on the test. State of Matter Brochures are due Wednesday, November 11th.

Language Arts:

This week Ms. Wallwork's class will not have a spelling test. We will be reciting our poems and working on our wonderful poetry project. Keep your eyes open for a notice in the Thursday folders for the date of our 2nd annual coffee house. This will take place soon after break.

Mrs. Swanson's homeroom, Ms. Ahmed's language, has spelling lesson 9 for Level 6 and spelling lesson 10 for Level 7. Students also completed grammar packet 13 on adjectives. All of these items are due on Friday, November 13th. Students are working on poetry by reviewing poetry terms and typing their poems.

Reminder if you have any scrapbook materials you would like to get rid of you can send them in with your student to either Ms. Wallwork or Ms. Ahmed.

Math:

Ms. Wallwork's class will start out the week on lesson 94 with a test on Wednesday. We will be using Study Island for our enrichment grade. They will be graded on certain areas of Study Island by the score they receive.

Mrs. Swanson's class has three lessons this week about simplifying and comparing decimal numbers, dividing decimal numbers by a whole number, and writing decimal numbers in expanded notation and mentally multiplying decimal numbers by 10 and by 100. The next test will be on Wednesday and a review of missed concepts on the past 8 tests and benchmark test will take place on Friday.

Mrs. Schmitz's class is working with polygons, division with remainders, and fractions.

Ms. Pueringer's class is reducing fractions by using the GCF, dividing fractions, and they have a test this week.

Reading: Ms. Wallwork's class is making book covers for either Hiroshima or A Wrinkle in Time. They will be displayed in the hall way sometime this week. We will also be watching the movie A Wrinkle in Time, thank you for getting those permission slips back to me. Our next book will be Anne Frank, A Diary of a Young Girl. Secret question of the week is, what is the meaning of the following Greek words: dictum, magnus, and mikros?

Mrs. Schmitz reading class is still reading The Prince and the Pauper and giving presentations in L.A.

Ms. Pueringer's class is reading Where the Red Fern Grows.

Reminders:

This is our last week of school before intersession! Be sure to stay all caught up with all of your classes so you will not have late work to do over intersession. Last day of school is November 13th, students will return on November 30th.

STRIDE Academy will be honoring Veterans on November 11th at 8:45 in the school gymnasium. All Veterans are invited to attend. Sixth graders should try and wear blue polos.

This Friday Native Americans from the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwa will be presenting some tribal dancing for students at STRIDE Academy at 1:00pm. Parents are welcome to attend.

Spelling for Ms. Ahmed/Mrs. Swanson Class

Level 6: nickel, muscle, castle, example, novel, several, vegetable, carnival, whistle, label, wrestle, hospital, bicycle, principal, tunnel, natural, grumble, general, principle, usually

Level 7: propeller, extolled, compelled, submitted, forgetful, forgettable, deferment, repellent, forbidding, referral

November 2, 2009

2009-11-02T07:40:00.000-08:00

Two weeks of school left before intersession! Be sure to stay all caught up with all of your classes so you will not have late work to do over intersession. Your last day of class is November 13th and you will return to school on November 30th.

Social: We will begin this week learning about Sparta and their conflicts with the Athenians. We will also watch the Disney Classic, Hercules. Just a reminder to be rereading throughout the unit. We will also have short pop quizzes throughout this unit.

Science: This week students will finish their unit on energy and matter. They will learn the difference between expansion and contraction and what causes it and learn what distillation is through an online example. Students at-home lab on phase changes is due Thursday, November 5th, State of Matter Brochures are due Wednesday, November 11th, and the test will take place on Wednesday as well. A review sheet will be coming home in your child's Thursday folder.

Language Arts: This week Ms. Wallwork's class will not have a spelling test. We will instead be taking "practice" reading comprehension test on Monday and taking care of Rule 12 on Friday. We will also begin typing and putting together our poetry books. Just a reminder, if you have any extra stickers, card stock, or anything that you think would be helpful in putting these books together that you would like to donate, it would be greatly appreciated. Ms. Kolstad's class is completing spelling lesson 9 or spelling review, grammar rule #12, and the bonus word is diabolical. Students are still working on poetry this week including sonnets and diamante.

Math:

Ms. Wallwork's class will start out the week taking a test and then continue working with area of a variety of shapes, writing the powers of 10 with exponents, and classifying triangles by the length and measure of the angles.

Mrs. Swanson's math class is taking a test on Monday and aiming for more 100% scores, an investigation on collecting, organizing, displaying, and interpreting data, Tuesday, and doing lessons Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday on percents of a number, renaming fractions by multiplying by 1, equivalent division problems, and finding unknowns in fractions and decimal problems.

Mrs. Schmitz's class is estimating answers by rounding first, dividing and story (rate) problems.
Ms. Pueringer's class is doing Investigation 9, Bar graphs, Lessons 91-94. Concepts to work on multiplying fractions, simplifying fractions, using the Greatest Common Factor (GCF) to reduce fractions.

Reading: Ms. Wallwork's class is continuing A Wrinkle in Time and we will finish it up before the end of intersession with the movie A Wrinkle in Time. We will be starting The Diary of a Young Girl, Anne Frank when we return from break. Continue to study those vocabulary words, don't forget to use dictionary.com for the correct pronunciation.

Mrs. Schmitz reading class is reading the Prince and the Pauper. We only have 15 lessons to go until level 6.

Ms. Pueringer's class is reading Where the Red Fern Grows.

Reminders: Last day of school is Novemeber 13th, students will return on November 30th. What is the Greek word for city-state? STRIDE Academy will be honoring Veterans on November 11th at 8:45 in the school gymnasium. All Veterans are invited to attend. Don't forget if you are doing a poster or writing an essay they are due by November 5th.

2009-10-22T11:44:00.000-07:00

Intersession is around the corner! Due to many students being absent be sure to stay caught up in all classes by making good use of your time. Also, if you weren't able to make it for conferences be sure to contact your child's homeroom teacher to set up a time that is convenient for you.

Social: We will start out this week studying about the Spartans, and Athenians. Your son or daughter should be able to tell you what a city-state is and how we got our words politics and police. We will also watch the movie Hercules.

Science: Students are exploring gas as a state of matter with a neat experiment. They will be learning the difference between a physical and chemical change, and finally covering the forms of heat energy; conduction, convection, and radiation. The at-home lab for this quarter will be given to your child Wednesday in science class and another copy will be sent in your child's Thursday folder.

Language Arts: Spelling Lesson 10 (Wallwork) Lesson 8 (Kolstad) this week along with a grammar rule that teaches about antecedents or possessive pronouns! Don't forget to study for the spelling test. Reminder to keep your eyes out for a Coffee House date. We are well underway with our poetry and each student should have written at least 12 poems by now, covering Haiku's, Cinquain's, Diamante's, and Five Senses poems.

Math:

Ms. Wallwork's class will start out the week on lesson 86 with a test to follow on Friday, October 30th. Some of the concepts being covered include; area of a circle (3.14 x radius squared), finding unknown factors, and using proportions to solve ratio word problems.

Mrs. Swanson's class is is working on subtracting fraction and mixed numbers from whole numbers, adding, subtracting, and multiplying decimals numbers and whole numbers, squares and square roots, using zero as a placeholder and circle graphs.

Reading:

Ms. Wallwork's class has started A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle. If you would like to read along with your son or daughter we will be starting on chapter 5 on Monday, October 26th.

Reminders:

Intersession starts on Monday, November 16th. Students will not have school again until Monday, November 30th. Question of the week what is an "article" when it comes to parts of speech?

October 19th, 2009

2009-10-18T17:41:00.000-07:00

A new quarter is here and a fresh start for your child.

Social: This week we will do a large overview of the first five chapters on Tuesday. On Wednesday we will take detailed notes about chapter one. Be sure to look over your notes daily, you never know when there might be a pop quiz.

Science: Our second unit on energy begins on Tuesday. Students will discover the three types of matter and how the molecules move in each type. This unit involves a lot of labs so if your child misses class be prepared to have them either make-up the lab or directions will be sent home to complete the lab.

Language Arts: We are starting out the week on lesson 9 for spelling and learning about different types of pronouns. We will also be learning how to prewrite, compose, and edit. Our poetry unit is in full swing.

Reading: On Monday, we will be going through our new Scholastic magazine working with comprehension and vocabulary. This week is the start to our new novel, A Wrinkle in Time. It will be a change of pace from Hiroshima. Hiroshima was very well received.

Math:
Ms. Wallwork's class will be doing proportions, order of operations, and use cross product to determine if two ratios are equal. There will be a test on Wednesday. Secret question: Do you know what the acronym PEMDAS stands for?

Mrs. Swanson's class will work on writing percents as fractions, decimal place value, and reading and writing decimal numbers. There will be the next test on Thursday and an enrichment day on Friday.

Notes and Reminders:

Please keep your child at home if they are running a fever, have a cough, or sore throat. This will prevent the spread of the germs present in their systems. Call ahead for homework if needed.

If you have any questions feel free to send Ms. Wallwork or Mrs. Swanson an email or leave a message on this blog.

Reminder also if you have any scrapbook type material you would like to donate, Mrs. Kolstad and Ms. Wallwork are working on a poetry project with their students where these items are needed.

October 12, 2009

2009-10-09T06:39:00.000-07:00

The end of Quarter 1 is here and if you have any questions feel free to send Ms. Wallwork or Mrs. Swanson an email or leave a message on this blog. Don't forget conferences are on October 15th, if you have not received a time please contact the homeroom teacher.

Social: We will be starting our Ancient Greece and Rome unit by watching a DVD about Ancient Rome. This is a very long unit so your son or daughter should make sure to keep up on the reading and vocabulary.

Science: Our final exam for our Science Rocket Unit is on Monday and we will watch October Sky on Wednesday to celebrate the end of the first quarter. Students who do not have a signed permission slip will not watch the movie.

Language Arts: Because of the short week, we will not be having a spelling test. We will continue to work on our poetry project. We have learned how to write a Haiku, Cinquain, and Diamante. Reminder if you have any scrapbooking items you would like to donate please send them to school with your child.

Reading: Ms. Wallwork's reading class will be finishing up Hiroshima this week. We have done a lot of discusion about this book, hopefully your son or daughter has shared this with you. After returning to school on October 19th, we will begin A Wrinkle in Time.

Math: Ms. Wallwork's class will be doing arithmetic with units of measure, volume of a rectangular prism, and proportions. Mrs. Swanson's class will work on measuring angles using a protractor, area of a rectangle, elapsed time, and exapnded notation.

THERE IS NO SCHOOL ON THURSDAY, OCTOBER 15th AND FRIDAY, OCTOBER 16th.
Don't forget your conference time on October 15th, if you are not sure please call your childs homeroom teacher.

Please keep your child at home if they are running a fever, have a cough, or sore throat. This will prevent the spread of the germs present in their systems. Call ahead for homework if needed.

October 5th, 2009

2009-10-04T16:18:00.000-07:00

The point in this blog is to inform parents and guardians what is happening in their child's academic day. It is important to thoroughly read the blog and ask any questions. If you have any questions or comments about the blog feel free to leave a message here or email either Ms. Wallwork or Mrs. Swanson.

Social: Due to rocket launching this week, Tuesday, we will have our social unit test on Thursday, October 8th. Be sure to study from your study guide and to reread any chapters you may have found difficult. Reminder, if it rains on Tuesday we will have the social test that day and postpone the rocket launch until Thursday.

Science: Our BIG launch is on Tuesday, unless it rains, 9:00am at Whitney Fields. Be sure to send your child with a hat, gloves, and warm coat that day because we will be outside for about two hours. Everyone is welcome to attend the launch. Thursday will be a review day for the science test. The science unit test will be on Monday, October 12th. Permission slips went home in last weeks Thursday folder about the end of the quarter movie. They need to be signed and returned in order for your child to watch the movie.

Language Arts: Spelling this week is lesson 8, pronouns and words with more then one meaning. A reminder about nouns, adjectives, verbs, and other grammar rules would be a good thing to go over at home. The poetry unit is underway. A part of this unit includes making a display for each students' poems. We do this using any kind of scrapbook supplies we can come up with. I have a good start for the students but if you have stickers, card stock, , double sided tape, or any embellishments that you would like to donate, please send them with your son or daughter. Don't forget the unit will end with a wonderful coffee house for friends and relatives. Also, Mrs. Kolstad and I are in contact with a teacher from the Ukraine. We will be matching up your son or daughter with a pen pal in the near future.

Math:

Ms. Wallwork's class will identify US Customary units and convert to the metric system, draw and use ratio boxes, with a unit test on Thursday. Be sure to keep your vocabulary journals up to date.

Mrs. Swanson's class will learn about measures of a circle, naming the types of angles, multiplying and reducing fractions by dividing, and finally least common multiples and reciprocals. On Friday they will take another test to check on their progress.

Reading:

Ms. Wallwork's Class is covering a lot of new vocabulary daily, working on comprehension, while also learning a bit about WWII. Students, challenge your parents to the vocabulary. Do not forget to go to http://www.dictionary.com/ to listen to the pronunciation of the words. We will also cover protagonist and antagonist. Our next novel will be A Wrinkle in Time.

Mrs. Kolstad's We are starting on the story Mrs. Dunn's Lovely, Lovely Farm. We are focusing on settings and narrative events.

Ms. Pueringer's group will be finishing out the Level 6 book with Tom Sawyer. After that, they will begin with some great novel units.

Notes: END OF THE QUARTER is October 14th . Be sure your child is caught up on all homework!

Reminder about the silent auction that will take place on October 24th. If you haven't bought your tickets please send a check for $15 dollars per ticket and I will be sure to get your name on the list of attending. You can purchase them up until Friday, October 9th. We have a large goal to meet and you can be a part of it. Students have made a great sixth grade pottery piece that will be going up for sale. Also, you will be able to bid on teacher donations, for example, maybe a day of snow shoveling, cookie making, or babysitting. There are a lot of wonderful items to bid on.

Conferences are Thursday, October 15h. If you did not sign-up for conferences at open house please contact your child's homeroom teacher.If you have not received it please contact your child's homeroom teacher.

Remember if you want to volunteer in the school, contact Lynn Imholte the volunteer coordinator. LImholte@strideacademy.org Secret question: What is the Edict of Milan?

PATHS meetings are the second Tuesday and the School Board meetings are the third Tuesday of every month at STRIDE Academy at 6:30pm. Everyone is welcome to the meetings. Meetings are usually held in room 154. Please refer to the schedules posted on the school website or bulletin board by the gym.

Extra credit spelling words this week are:
conscious
cooperate

Level 6 Spelling
refuse
glue
student
nuisance
coupon
renew
human
canoe
improvement
smooth
beautiful
rude
juice
through
threw
clue
humor
ruin
pollute
cruel

Level 7 Spelling
persuasion
discrimination
expansion
opposition
constitution
narration
supervision
segregation
proclamation
dedication
confirm
unnecessary
reaffirm
involuntary
indirect
preliminary
computation
unpredictable
preposition
predetermine

Monday, September 28th, 2009

2009-09-28T12:42:00.000-07:00

The point in this blog is to inform parents and guardians what is happening in their child's academic day. It is important to thoroughly read the blog and ask any questions. If you have any questions or comments about the blog feel free to leave a message here or email either Ms. Wallwork or Mrs. Swanson. Secret question, what do the Latin/Greek prefixes duo and ge mean? Also, can you give a word in our language that has developed from ge and duo?

Social: We are starting this week with chapter 5, The Rise of Christianity. Because of the proposed rocket launch next week on October 6th, the social test will be on October 8th. Be sure to ask your son or daughter if they have reread the chapter and answered the appropriate questions.

Science: VOLUNTEERS NEEDED to help construct the rockets Wednesday and Friday 8:45-10:10am, contact me, Mrs. Swanson if you can help. If you have not donated $5.00 yet for your child's rocket please do so if possible. If you could donate additional money toward the project that would be great. So far I have received $100 to pay for the rockets, the total cost of this project is about $300. THANK YOU to those parents who have contributed. Rocket launch date is now Tuesday, October 6th starting at 9:00am unless is rains.

Language Arts: We are on lesson 7 in spelling and are adding endings to verbs to change the tense. A reminder about nouns, adjectives, verbs, and other grammar rules would be a good thing to go over at home. We have starting our poetry unit and the students have been responding to poetry. They have learned how to write a cinquan and will also learn about metaphor/simile poems. Don't forget the unit will end with a wonderful coffee house for friends and relatives.

Math:

Ms. Wallwork's class will work will be taking a test on Tuesday. Be sure to keep your vocabulary journals up to date. We will also be covering fractions and converting each fraction to decimal form and also discussing capacity.

Mrs. Swanson's class will complete three lessons this week on adding and subtracting fractions and mixed numbers, reducing fractions, writing division answers as mixed numbers, and multiples. The class will take a test on Wednesday and work on Study Island Thursday.

Reading:

Ms. Wallwork's Class has started reading Hiroshima and we are spending a lot of time expanding on our vocabulary. Students, challenge your parents to the vocabulary. Do not forget to go to http://www.dictionary.com/ to listen to the pronunciation of the words. We will also cover protagonist and antagonist.

Mrs. Kolstad's group is working on The Table, the Donkey and the Stick. We are focusing on character perspectives and traits. Next week, we start on the story Mrs. Dunn's Lovely, Lovely Farm. We are focusing on settings and narrative events.

Ms. Pueringer's group will be finishing out the Level 6 book with Tom Sawyer. After that, they will begin with some great novel units.

Reminders and Notes:

Conferences are Thursday, October 15h. If you did not sign-up for conferences at open house please contact your child's homeroom teacher.

If you have not received it please contact your child's homeroom teacher. Remember if you want to volunteer in the school, contact Lynn Imholte the volunteer coordinator. LImholte@strideacademy.org

PATHS meetings are the second Tuesday and the School Board meetings are the third Tuesday of every month at STRIDE Academy at 6:30pm. Everyone is welcome to the meetings. Meetings are usually held in room 154. Please refer to the schedules posted on the school website or bulletin board by the gym.

Extra credit spelling words this week are:

characteristic

committee

Level 6 Spelling Words
thumb
struggle
umbrella
flood
touch
government
tongue
trouble
double
justice
difficult
compass
enough
crumb
among
cousin
tough
discuss
plumber
result

Level 7 Spelling Words
agreeable
deferment
hardiness
referral
annoyance
deniable
legibly
ridiculous
capacities
enforcement
manageable
shiny
coincidence
forgetful
narrator
testifying
courageous
forgettable
propeller
woeful

Monday, September 21st, 2009

2009-09-21T07:22:00.000-07:00

The point in this blog is to inform parents and guardians what is happening in their child's academic day. It is important to thoroughly read the blog and ask any questions. If you have any questions or comments about the blog feel free to leave a message here or email either Ms. Wallwork or Mrs. Swanson.

Social: We will cover chapter 4 on Judaism and Christianity this week. Questions for 1-4 will be due on Thursday. Secret question this week, what is monotheism?

Science:

Students will complete a lab on the affects of an oil spill and find out how difficult it would be to clean it up. Then students will begin to construct their rockets. If you would like to volunteer in the classroom to help construct the rockets contact me, Mrs. Swanson. If you have not donated $5.00 yet for your child's rocket please do so if possible. If you could donate additional money toward the project that would be great. So far I have received $100 to pay for the rockets, the total cost of this project is about $300. THANK YOU to those parents who have contributed. We plan on launching the rockets on Friday, October 2nd starting at 9:00.

Language Arts:

We are on lesson 6 in spelling and are covering verb tense. A reminder about nouns, adjectives, verbs, and other grammar rules would be a good thing to go over at home. We are officially starting our poetry unit on Tuesday the 22nd. This unit will end with a wonderful coffee house for friends and relatives.

Math:

Ms. Wallwork's class will work with parallelograms, fractions charts, exponents, and ratios. Our next test will be on September 29th. Be sure to keep your vocabulary journals up to date.

Mrs. Swanson's class starts the week off by taking their next test. Then they will do an investigation on fractions. Followed by three more lessons on divisibility rules, equal groups problems with fractions, ratios and rates.

Reading:

We have started reading Hiroshima and we are spending a lot of time expanding on our vocabulary. Students, challenge your parents to the vocabulary. Do not forget to go to http://www.dictionary.com/ to listen to the pronunciation of the words. We will also cover protagonist and antagonist.

Mrs. Kolstad's group is working on The Table, the Donkey and the Stick. We are focusing on character perspectives and traits. Next week, we start on the story Mrs. Dunn's Lovely, Lovely Farm. We are focusing on settings and narrative events.

Ms. Pueringer's group will be finishing out the Level 6 book with Tom Sawyer. After that, they will begin with some great novel units.l

Reminders and Notes:

Mid-terms went home in your child's Thursday Folder last week. If you have not received it please contact your child's homeroom teacher.

Remember if you want to volunteer in the school, contact Lynn Imholte the volunteer coordinator. LImholte@strideacademy.org

PATHS meetings are the second Tuesday and the School Board meetings are the third Tuesday of every month at STRIDE Academy at 6:30pm. Everyone is welcome to the meetings. Meetings are usually held in room 154. Please refer to the schedules posted on the school website or bulletin board by the gym.

Extra credit spelling words this week are:

athlete
Britain

Level 6 Spelling Words
breeze
complete
brief
degrees
breathing
meter
ceiling
gasoline
piano
memory
scene
succeed
piece
speaker
repeat
receive
liter
library
extremely
increase

Level 7 Spelling Words
manageable
awareness
woeful
defenseless
courageous
purposeful
absolutely
agreeable
enforcement
noticeable
hardiness
annoyance
deniable
loneliness
capacities
voluntarily
testifying
injurious
employment
destinies

Monday, September 14th

2009-09-15T06:29:00.000-07:00

If you have any questions or comments about the blog feel free to leave a message here or email either Ms. Wallwork or Mrs. Swanson.

Social: We have begun our unit on Judaism and Christianity. Your child will have questions for each chapter with chapter 1 and chapter 2 due this week.

Science:

Students began their second science unit, Rocket Science. This week they named the six types of energy, identify the parts of a rocket and the types of energy used in launching a rocket, and what fossil fuels are. The first student to bring Mrs. Swanson a list of the six types of energy will receive a prize. Thank you for all the donations already received for the rockets.

Language Arts:

We are on lesson 5 in spelling and are covering infinitives. A reminder about nouns, adjectives, verbs, and other grammar rules would be a good thing to go over at home. We are finishing our practical writing unit this week and will begin our poetry unit next week. This unit will end with a coffee house for friends and family. Look for more information at a later date.

Math:

Ms. Wallwork's class will be taking a test on Thursday after learning more about reciprocals and multiplication and division of fractions.

Mrs. Swanson's class did VERY well on their last test. Every student received about a 90%. This week students are working on rounding, estimating, using the number line to represent fractions and mixed numbers, finding averages, line graphs, factors, prime numbers, and greatest common factor. These are all review of concepts they have previously learned.

Reading:

In Ms. Wallwork's class is finishing their projects on the Mississippi this week. On Thursday of this week we will begin looking at Hiroshima. There are a lot of new words the students will be learning. If you have access to the Internet at home dictionary.com is a great place to review. It will pronounce and show the word in a sentence along with the definition.

Ms. Schmitz' reading class is reading about Greek Gods.

Reminders and Notes:

Picture Retake Day is Friday, September 18th.

Remember if you want to volunteer in the school, contact Lynn Imholte the volunteer coordinator. LImholte@strideacademy.org

PATHS meetings are the second Tuesday and the School Board meetings are the third Tuesday of every month at STRIDE Academy at 6:30pm. Everyone is welcome to the meetings. Meetings are usually held in room 154. Please refer to the schedules posted on the school website or bulletin board by the gym.

Extra credit spelling words this week are:

analyze
answer

Spelling Level 6 Words

Caribbean Sea
Himalayas
North America
Indian Ocean
Australia
Atlantic Ocean
Asia
Pacific Ocean
Alps
Nile River
Africa
Rocky Mountains
Central America
Mediterranean Sea
Appalachian Mountains
Andes
Europe
Mississippi River
South America
Amazon River

Level 7 Spelling Words

audible
appall
authentic
thoughtful
haunted
slaughter
precaution
notorious
flawless
seaboard
comical
stability
percentage
kernel
comparable
status
philosopher
minimum
faculty
vigor

September 7, 2009

2009-09-08T06:21:00.000-07:00

If you have any questions or comments about the blog feel free to leave a message here or email either Ms. Wallwork or Mrs. Swanson. The first student to let Ms. Wallwork or Mrs. Swanson know the meaning of the following Greek or Latin words will receive a prize; centum, ante, and bios.

Social:

This week on September 10th there will be a unit test on Deserts. Remind your child to reread or study from the unit questions. Our next unit will cover Judaism and Christianity.

Science:

Students will take their Astronomy Unit Test on Tuesday, September 8th. ALL assignments from this unit are due on Thursday, September 10th. If assignments are not turned in by this date they will receive a zero. Our next unit is on Rocket Science. In their Thursday folder this week is a letter about funds needed for this unit.

Language Arts:

Today, Tuesday we will start the week with spelling lesson 4 with a test on Friday. We will also be talking about plural nouns, and inferences. In writing we will be finishing up practical writing this week.

Math:

Ms. Wallwork's class will be having a test on Wednesday, September 9th. Then continuing the week with multiplication and division of mixed numbers and using prime factorization to reduce fractions. Remind your student about the vocab journals we have started.

Mrs. Swanson's class is using number lines to solve problems, solving equal group problems, and on Thursday, September 10th will be taking their next test. On Friday students will be adding to their math vocab journal and do an enrichment activity based on their NWEA math goal.

Mrs. Schmitz's class is writing numbers to one hundred millions.

Reading:

In Ms. Wallwork's class we will be comparing and contrasting the book Jacob Have I Loved and the movie Jacob I Have Loved. We will also be doing vocabulary review. Our plan is to start Hiroshima next week.

Ms. Schmitz' reading class is reading about Greek Gods.

Reminders and Notes: We will finish NWEA testing on Wednesday, September 9th (Math). Remind students to get a good night's sleep the day before and to eat a good breakfast.

A big THANK YOU again to all the parents, grandparents, and guardians who have donated to our classrooms. We really do appreciate it. Remember if you want to volunteer in the school, contact Lynn Imholte the volunteer coordinator. LImholte@strideacademy.org

PATHS meetings are the second Tuesday and the School Board meetings are the third Tuesday of every month at STRIDE Academy at 6:30pm. Everyone is welcome to the meetings. Meetings are usually held in room 154. Please refer to the schedules posted on the school website or bulletin board by the gym.

Extra credit spelling words this week are:

acquaintance

amateur

Spelling Level 6 Words

darken

person

weaken

often

lessen

onion

listen

quicken

prison

strengthen

lemonade

seldom

lesson

fasten

kitchen

ransom

captain

mountains

soften

custom

Level 7 spelling words

exceed

preceded

proceeds

receded

succeeding

conceding

cede

secedes

intercede

superseded

priestly

sovereign

unyielding

reigning

perceive

heirloom

seizure

weighty

either

veins

August 31st, 2009

2009-08-31T05:39:00.000-07:00

We still hope many of you are finding this blog helpful in keeping you up to date on what is happening in your child's classroom. Remember, if you have any suggestions or comments, please leave them on the blog and we will try to answer them as quickly as possible. Look below for the Level 6 spelling words.

Social: Only one day of social this week due to testing and workshop on Friday. We will finish up the unit on Wednesday by reviewing deserts of North America and looking at Patagonia a vast plateau, or tableland, almost entirely without trees, in the southern part of Argentina. Then we will have a test on Thursday, September 10th. Be sure to study by looking at your questions and rereading the unit.

Science: Students at-home lab is due this Wednesday. Our final assignment in this unit is the life cycle of a star diagram, this is due on Tuesday, September 8th. We will review the unit Wednesday and take the test Tuesday, September 8th. ALL assignments from this unit are due on Tuesday, September 8th.

Language Arts: Today, Monday we will start the week with spelling lesson 3 with a test to follow on Thursday due to no school on Friday. We will also be talking about nouns, and cause and effect relationships. 6th grade challenge....what is the definition of an adjective and adverb, let Ms. Wallwork or Mrs. Swanson know for a prize?

Math: Ms. Wallwork's class has officially finished the first half of level 6 and will begin the week with Lesson 61 involving adding of three or more fractions and continuing with writing mixed numbers as improper fractions.

Mrs. Swanson's class is creating histograms and frequency tables on Monday, working with addition and subtraction word problems Tuesday and Wednesday. Everyone made above 80% on their test last Friday. Mrs. Swanson will have a sub on Tuesday and Thursday but will be in the building. Be sure to check that your child has been completing their math homework everyday.

In Ms. Pueringer's class they are working on probability experiment, letters to identify geometric figures, estimate arithmetic answers, subtract a fraction > 1.

Reading: Ms. Wallwork's reading class is finishing up Jacob Have I Loved this week. We will then be undertaking a small research project into how to save the Mississippi River.

Mrs. Schmitz' reading class is reading about Jackie Robinson.

Mrs. Kolstad's is finishing up The Odyssey this week and also completed their first timed check out.

Reminders and Notes: NWEA testing for the 6th grade will take place on Monday, August 31st (Reading), Tuesday, September 1st (Language), and Wednesday, September 9th (Math). Remind students to get a good night's sleep the day before and to eat a good breakfast. A big

THANK YOU again to all the parents, grandparents, and guardians who have donated to our classrooms. We really do appreciate it.

Remember if you want to volunteer in the school, contact Lynn Imholte the volunteer coordinator. LImholte@strideacademy.org

PATHS meetings are the second Tuesday and the School Board meetings are the third Tuesday of every month at STRIDE Academy at 6:30pm. Everyone is welcome to the meetings. Meetings are usually held in room 154. Please refer to the schedules posted on the school website or bulletin board by the gym.

Spelling Level 6 Words

length

tennis

instead

guessed

envelope

pleasant

energy

headache

echo

excellent

breakfast

insects

guest

measure

restaurant

against

treasure

metric

separate

success

August 24th, 2009

2009-08-23T11:26:00.000-07:00

We still hope many of you are finding this blog helpful in keeping you up to date on what is happening in your child's classroom. Remember, if you have any suggestions or comments, please leave them on the blog and we will try to answer them as quickly as possible. Look below for the L6 spelling words.

Social:

We are continuing to learn about world deserts. We have learned that the North American kangaroo rat uses it's kidneys to recycle water internally. Students will be learning about the Arabian Peninsula and the fact that it is bone dry yet has a wealth of oil.

Science:

On Tuesday, we are going to try to again see how hot the sun is on Earth by measuring temperature using sunlight. Students also will receive their at-home lab on Tuesday. It is due the following Wednesday, September 2nd. Thursday, students will study about the "life" of a star from birth to death and be assigned their final homework assignment. This will be the final week of this unit. We will review next Wednesday and take the test Tuesday, September 8th. ALL assignments from this unit are due on Tuesday, September 8th.

Language Arts:

Every Friday students must turn in their spelling lesson and grammar packet. These items are assigned on Monday and must be returned on Friday. Remind your son or daughter to study for their spelling test. We will begin this week with lesson 2 in spelling. The students are also learning about letter writing this week.

Math:

Ms. Wallwork's class will continue this week with lesson 58 with a test on Thursday. Overall, everyone did fantastic on last weeks test, you should have seen that come home in Thursday folders.

Mrs. Swanson's class is continuing to review many important concepts sure as measurement in inches and centimeters and perimeter. Students began a math vocab book where we kept track of important vocab from our math lessons. The first test is on Friday!

Mrs. Schmitz' math class is using pictures for fractions, rays/segments/lines/angles, multiplication table.

Reading:

In Ms. Wallwork's reading class we are about half way through Jacob Have I Loved. We are also learning facts about WWII since that is the time period of this book.

Mrs. Schmitz' reading class is reading about Jackie Robinson and practicing baseball terms

Mrs. Kolstad's class is on lesson 8 about The Odyssey.

Ms. Pueringer's class is finishing Harriet Tubman, next is All in Favor a play by Morton K. Schwartz.

Reminders and Notes:

NWEA testing for the 6th grade will take place on Monday, August 31st (Reading), Tuesday, September 1st (Language), and Wednesday, September 9th (Math). Remind students to get a good night's sleep the day before and to eat a good breakfast.

A big THANK YOU to all the parents, grandparents, and guardians who have donated to our classrooms. We really do appreciate it.

A little challenge to the sixth graders: Whoever comes up to Ms. Wallwork or Mrs. Swanson with the definition of the Greek word ante first will get a small prize! This will let us kn0w who is reading the blog. :)

Remember if you want to volunteer in the school, contact Lynn Imholte the volunteer coordinator. LImholte@strideacademy.org

Spelling Level 6 Words
trace
mayor
parade
escape
invade
complain
misplace
stain
raincoat
remain
safety
neighborhood
entertain
hesitate
explain
agent
congratulate
straight
weighted
disobey

2009-08-18T07:24:00.000-07:00

August 18, 2009

This is our official second blog for sixth graders. I hope many of you are finding this blog helpful in keeping you up to date on what is happening in your child's classroom. Remember, if you have any suggestions or comments, please leave them on the blog and we will try to answer them as quickly as possible.

Social

We have officially started our unit on deserts and have talked about the Sahara, the Outback, and the Kalahari. Check with your son or daughter as to the locations of these deserts. We will begin Lesson 3 on August 19th covering Australia. On Friday, we will be talking about the deserts of North America.

Science

This week our focus is on the sun. On Monday students identify the six parts of the sun. Students were assigned to create a 2D model of the sun. There sun model is due on Friday. On Wednesday, (if there is sun) we are going to see how hot the sun is on Earth by measuring temperature using sunlight. Friday, students will begin to study about stars and galaxies by naming the three shapes of galaxies and different star patterns.

Language Arts

We will be having our first spelling test on Friday, August 21st. Every Friday students must turn in their spelling lesson and grammar packet. These items are assigned on Monday and must be returned on Friday. Remind your son or daughter to study for the test. All the students also took a pretest for practical writing and that unit is under way as of August 18th.

Math

Ms. Wallwork's class will be having a test on Wednesday, August 19th. All of the students have gotten right back into the swing of math. Mrs. Swanson's class is reviewing about solving for an unknown in addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division problems on Tuesday and Wednesday. What the students don't realize is, they are doing Algebra!

Mrs. Schmitz math class is on lesson 23. We’ve done lines, rays, segments and missing #s in problems also perimeter.

Reading

In Ms. Wallwork's reading class we have covered quite a bit of information about WWII. We are on chapter 5 of Jacob Have I Loved. Also look for a reading list of the first four books we will be covering to go home in the Thursday folders this week.

Mrs. Schmitz reading class is on lesson 62. We are reading about Jackie Robinson. And combining sentences in L.A.

Mrs. Kolstad's class is working on Lesson 4, They Odyssey.

Ms. Pueringer's class is on Lesson 80 with a test coming up on Wednesday.

Reminders and notes

Ms. Wallwork's book orders are due August 19th. Mrs. Swanson placed her book order and it should be coming sometime next week!

A big THANK YOU to all the parents, grandparents, and guardians who have donated to our classrooms. We really do appreciate it.

Remember if you want to volunteer in the school to contact Lynn Imholte the volunteer condinator. LImholte@strideacademy.org

Sixth Grade News

2009-08-04T13:10:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the sixth grade! Mrs. Swanson and Ms. Wallwork are excited about the new school year and we have a lot of fun, exciting, and new projects underway.

This year we will continue to publish our news letter on line. Feel free to post general comments or questions and we will try to respond as quickly as possible. Also, if you have any suggestion for our newsletter feel free to give those and we will continue to develop it over time.

Your schedule for the year will look like the following:

Day 1

Homeroom 8:25-8:45

Social/Science 8:45-9:25

Science/Social 9:45-10:10

Language/Writing 10:10-11:05

Recess/Lunch 11:05-11:55

Math 11:55-1:10

Reading 1:10-2:25

Study Hall 2:25-2:45

If you have Ms. Wallwork you will start your morning with Social Studies, if you have Mrs. Swanson you will start your morning with Science. The only difference on day 2's is that you will be in homeroom until 8:55 and from there you will go to music and gym or gym and music if you are in Mrs. Swanson's class.

You will be receiving a lot of forms in your Thursday folder and on August 6th at open house. Be sure to read through and fill out all necessary forms. It is important to get those forms turned into the appropriate teacher.

Social
We'll start out this year with a unit about the deserts of the world and be watching a BBC video Planet Earth and learning about a variety of areas of the world.

Science
This year we will start off with studying Astronomy. Specifically, the life of stars and the structure of the sun. Students first assignment of the quarter is to make a 2-D model of the sun.

Reading
Ms. Pueringers class you will be starting out on lesson 76 in the SRA Reading L6. If you are in Ms. Wallwork's reading class we will be starting the year with Jacob Have I Loved. If you are in Mr. Thole's class you will be starting on L5 L1. Mrs. Kolstad will be starting with L6 L1.

Math
Ms. Wallwork's class will be starting out on L51 Course 1. Mrs. Swanson will start out the year on L41 Course 2, or L1 Course 1. Mr. Thole and Ms. Pueringer will both be in Level 5 starting on L1 and L51.

Be sure to be practicing math facts at home and turning in all homework.

L/A
Both Mrs. Kolstad and Ms. Wallwork will be teaching LA, High Performance Writing, and Core Knowledge this year. We will start out the year with practical writing. Don't forget to study your spelling words weekly.

Also, the first PATHS (Parents and Teachers Helping Students) meeting is Monday, August 17th at 6:30pm at STRIDE Academy. The next school board meeting is Tuesday, August 18th at 6:30pm at STRIDE Academy.