Narwhal Class Updates by Madeleine

I am Madeleine and this is an overlook of what we are working on in classes. In Katrina's Language Arts class, we are studying heroes. First, we studied how Joseph Campbell defined the hero's journey. We read a  Reader's Theater version of the Epic of Gilgamesh and recently watched the Labyrinth and decided whether or not the main characters, Gilgamesh and Sarah, fit into Campbell's monomyth pattern.. In Social Studies, we are doing a mock election. This includes students dressing up and presenting speeches as the candidates, staying up to date on the news as media consultants, writing speeches and having a historian document the process. This is a fun and interesting unit!
In our science class, we are learning about archaeology and how artifacts are preserved and which environment best preserves them. Bill's math class is working on dividing and multiplying fractions and mixed numbers, while Linda's math class is working on integers and variables for high school algebra credit. In drama, we are working very hard on a revised play version of Homer's The Illiad. In music, we are exploring the new keyboards and improving our skills. This is an exciting time of year in Spanish class because our Bolivian exchange students have arrived! I am hosting a student named Carla; she is so sweet! We are working on fall images in art class, using colored pencils to create shaded and lighted places in the image. In Writing Workshop, we are working on including lots of details in our pieces. I loved writing a super detailed paper. It was hard, but fun to do!
Friday Groups are a special treat for us in middle school. They are something I enjoy. This conference period, groups have included Photojournalism, Life and Music on the Crooked Road, Camp Cooking, Beginning Robotics and a Nature/Art group. New Friday groups start this Friday!
- Madeleine

Other Updates from Katrina
We have been very busy at school these last few weeks! Here are a few important dates that are coming up:

Tuesday 10/23- Narwhals are presenting election speeches to Boxwoods classes.

Wednesday 10/24- Pizza day; Field trip to Hollins to see La Llorona, by Community High School; MS Dance at Kirk Avenue Music Hall

Tuesday 10/30- Mock Election at CS

Saturday 11/3- Flapjack Fundraiser at Valley View Applebee's to raise money for Spring Trips

Tuesday 11/6- Conference Day! No regular classes this day!

Thursday 11/8 Fall Into the Arts Event-- The Tempest: Explored

Monday 11/12- Off Campus All Day! We are going to Poplar Forest for an archaeology presentation.

There are so many other wonderful things going on at CS. Please be sure to check Quick Notes for a complete list of dates! An exciting event coming up soon is the next public event in our Fall Into the Arts series-- on Thursday, November 8th, the Virginia Stage Company will present The Tempest- Explored at the June McBroom Theater, at Community High. Tickets available online at www.communityschool.net

One final announcement. Following the success of several other levels here at CS, the middle school has created a closed Facebook group, as an additional form of communication. Please search for "Community School MS," and request to be added to the group!

As always, I look forward to your feedback. Feel free to call or email me anytime.

-Katrina

New Scholastic Orders!

October Scholastic orders are coming home today! To order inline, go to www.scholastic.com, sign in or create a login and enter H2CNC as our classroom code. There are several additional catalogs available online as well! This is an easy way for us to get free books for classroom and discounted books for your home libraries.
Thanks for your support!

Important Dates QR Code

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Welcome Back to School!

Welcome and welcome back!

Community School's school-wide theme this year is "Creating Ripples, Making Waves." In the middle school, we'll use this to guide our exploration of the lasting effects of ancient civilizations in our modern world. We are starting our journey in language arts class with the epic of Gilgamesh. We'll study the many different definitions of what it means to be a hero. In social studies, my advisees have already jumped right in! Yesterday, we discussed Pangea and the history of the world. Next week, we'll watch Cave of Forgotten Dreams, the 2010 documentary about the Chauvet Cave in France. We'll learn about prehistory, how people documented their lives and will explore the ways we document our own.

Playground safety skits, a CS tradition, are tomorrow at 10:30. Our students will act out the playground rules for the younger students. Following that, Friday Groups will begin! This first section, students were able to choose from Camp Cooking, Life Along the Crooked Road, Nature Ramble and Art, Beginning Robotics and Photojournalism.

Come back and check this blog often; though I will post updates, our students will also be writing here. You can also follow "Katrina's Language Arts" on Facebook!

Scenes from our Summer N.E.T Trips!

We are 3/4 of the way through our summer program, N.E.T (Not Enough Time!). So far this summer, students read Jefferson's Sons and visited Jefferson's home, Monticello; they studied Shakespeare and went to see The Merchant of Venice at the American Shakespeare Center and hiked the trail at Roaring Run. Here are a few pictures:

Viewing the gardens

"Pictures of people taking pictures of people taking pictures." (Jack Johnson)

The pond where fish were kept until dinner!

Waiting for our house tour

Asparagus!

Jefferson's gravestone

After Monticello, we went downtown Charlottesville and shared our thoughts on the First Amendment Wall.

Ami Trowell, getting the group ready to see The Merchant of Venice.

Performing excerpts

Improv games

Dancing in the ballroom before dinner at the Stonewall Jackson Hotel.

Post-play euphoria! We had a great time!

Head of the Roaring Run trail!

Three trips down, one more to go! Hope you all are enjoying your summer as much as we are!