MAP Testing, Team Building, Reading, Reading and More Reading...

Over the past several weeks we have been busy in the classroom with MAP (Measure of Academic Progress) testing in Reading and Math, Team Building with the Trojans to build community in our classroom and reading, reading and more reading.

The MAP testing started three weeks ago with a 53 question assessment. All 7th grade students were tested. This assessment serves as our baseline for the 2016/2017 school year. Students had to learn how to navigate the testing program which is always a challenge when there is a new program put in place! We successfully completed all of our tests and now we will begin the process of looking at data and setting individual goals with students.  Watch your child's binder for a Goal Setting Handout to have a conversation about how their goal setting conference went!

In USC we participated in a team building activity to focus on creating leaders in our class! The kids were tasked with using 6 red solo cups, 5 pieces of string, and a rubber band to build a tower out of the cups. The catch was, they couldn't touch the cups... at all... even through a paper bag! It made for a great discussion about teamwork and community.

Our teams quickly determined that they needed to tie the strings
to the rubberband to use the rubberband to move the cups!
Way to go teams!!!

We are about half way through "A Long Walk to Water" by Linda Sue Park. We are reading, discussing, questioning, and debating choices being made by the characters. As I've been talking with students about the book, I've been tweeting with Linda Sue Park (It's AMAZING how Twitter has changed education!). She and Salva (character from the book) are excited that we LOVE her book!