Shhh...It's Monday...

This morning the students in Room 503 experienced "a morning of silence." From the moment they walked into the room at 8:25 until their break at 10:05 (with one five-minute, out-of-the-classroom break in between), the Sixth Grade students did not speak.

Even our attendance was taken in silence, with the students holding up paper signs with one another's names on them. This brought accountability and communication to a new level.

The only voice that was heard (most of the time - there were some whispers here and there), was mine - as I gave directions and had to orally advise when the students took their vocabulary/spelling test.

Overall, the students did a terrific job with the silent practice. Tomorrow they will need clear, well-projected voices when they must recite the 1st through 4th stanzas of Jabberwocky in front of their peers. This is not an exercise in embarrassment - but an exercise in really working to hone our projection and articulation skills, as well as improving our memorization skills.

The students have their Math Data Project due this Wednesday and they have their research for their Ancient Egypt project due on Friday (the actual project being due on Wednesday, November 12, which means they will have a whole day off that Tuesday before to complete it).

For those parents who don't know anything about this project, here are the guidelines that the students received:

ANCIENT EGYPT
Independent, In-Depth Study

Become an expert! Explore, research, create and share…

Choose a person, place or thing from Ancient Egypt that you would like to explore further.
As part of your exploration you MUST:
· Fill out and turn in a Project Request Form to Ms. Pitman
· Go to the public library and find at least one (1) source that you can site in your project.
· Use at least two (2) internet sources that you can site in your project.
· Find at least two (2) photos or images that you can use IN your project.
· Research items must be brought to class and checked the Friday prior to the due date of the project:
PLAN YOUR TIME WISELY.
Be prepared to turn your project in ON TIME and present it to the class.
IMPORTANT DATES:
~ Project Form Due: Wednesday, October 29
~ Research completed by Friday, November 7
~ Projects due/ready to present: Wednesday, November 12
*You may use the original topic you had said you would like to explore further – or you may choose a new one.
Possible Project Ideas (or you may create your own):
Diorama “Scroll” Report Creative Map
Mural Sculpture/Papier Mache Board Game
“Artifact” Character Creation/Monologue

Regardless what kind of project you choose to do, you must have written information to back it up. You may write a separate report : 1-5 pages in length; create a poster that contains your background information, or, if possible, include the information in your project (power point presentation, mural, scroll, pyramid, etc.). The more creative you are and the more conscientious, the better!
~ Be neat
~ Be thorough
~ Use correct spelling.
Both your project and your report must be thoughtful and thorough.
Before turning your project in:
~ Re-read
~ Edit
~ Critique your own work
~ Have someone else critique your work
~ Ask yourself, “Is there more I need? Is there more that I can do? Is this my best work?”

Happy Researching!

Cheers,
Ms. Pitman