WELCOME TO 6TH GRADE SCIENCE!

Dear Dolphins Students and Parents:

Welcome to the 2008-09 school year! Please note that the SchoolNotes account for science will be used as a preview for upcoming units, a review of standard classroom procedures/grading, as well as list of upcoming homework assignments.

Daily and weekly homework assignments may also be found by checking your child's agenda. If you find that your child is finding it challenging to successfully and completely copy down his/her homework assignments, please communicate this to me via email or a phone call. Thank you for your assistance as we work together in developing your child's independent learner strategies!

CURRENT UNIT: Nature of 6th Grade Scienc

Over the course of the past few weeks we have forayed into the realm of Earth's interior. We have explored Earth's layers, forces within the Earth that move our tectonic plates, and have also learned about sea-floor spreading and continental drift. The first half of our unit concluded last Friday with an assessment. Our next adventure will examine how earthquakes and volcanoes are forces from within the Earth that can cause major change on the Earth's crust. 

Heading into December, we will take a look at the top layer of the Earth - the crust. As we focus on minerals, rocks and soil.

GENERAL CLASS INFORMATION

MATERIALS

All students should have a science journal, pencil and a DMS agenda in class each day. Students are also encouraged to create and utilize a team binder which will be home to their student agenda, pencil pouch w/ needed materials for all core classes, as well as grade trackers. Being prepared and organized is the first step in becoming a successful learner!

HOMEWORK

"After School Opportunities" are provided on a regular basis (at least 3 out of 5 days). The average amount of homework that you can expect your child to have is 90 minutes per night (for all subject areas). This number is an average time per night rather than a total arrived at by dividing four core classes into 90 minutes;

All homework activities should be kept in the science journal and are due the following day unless otherwise noted by Mr. Anderson;

Homework counts as 10% of the final grade and is reflective of effort rather than a percentage of what is correct or not - the goal is to develop scientific thinking that may be practiced independently;

Late assignments are always accepted the next day - but for partial credit.

TESTS/QUIZZES

Quizzes may or may not be announced.

Notice of Unit tests will be given at least two days in advance, and a tentative test date will be listed on the Dolphins team calendar. A study guide will also be part of the test preparation and will often count towards a portion of the test grade. After most unit tests, students will be provided with an opportunity to make corrections (on a seperate sheet of paper), and may use any notes or the text to assist them. Test corrections will be awarded one point per correct answer, and will be added to the percentage earned on the initial test. 

All test corrections will be due the next day after graded tests have been returned. A parent signature is needed inorder for test corrections to be accepted.

EXTRA CREDIT OPPORTUNITIES

All extra credit opportunities will be embedded within existing homework assignments, tests and quizzes. Therefore, no extra credit opportunities will be offered at the end of a trimester.

Extra credit opportunities will include:

• Please be sure to check out the science links page. These sites may be a useful tool when working on homework assigments and preparing for tests.