Winter Break!

Yay, it's officially winter break!  I hope you all have a wonderful holiday season!  I'll see you in 2017!

Elfis' first full week!

Our classroom elf, Elfis, had a lot of fun last week!  Check out the pictures to see what he's been up to! 

Science Newsletter 12-8-16

A few science updates...

We have been learning about minerals for a little over a week and will be wrapping up before winter break.  I announced our test over minerals today which will be on Wednesday, December 14; students received a study guide and a list to study in class.  The study guide is due by Tuesday, December 13.  This is the list to study:

*There are 6 crystal shapes

*Streak helps identify minerals - the color of the powder of the mineral

*Luster - metallic and nonmetallic

*Fracture and cleavage

*Magnetite is an example that is magnetic (attracts a magnet)

*Hardness - when a mineral is harder/softer than an object, test it using the scratch test

*How to read/interpret Mohs Scale of Hardness - you don't have to memorize this!

*Color is the least reliable to identify a mineral but is still helpful

*Density - how heavy or light a mineral feels for its size (will it float or sink in water)

*Streak and color don't have to be the same but they can be

*Quartz is good in sandpaper (because it's hard)

*Diamonds make good cutting/drilling tools (because they're hard)

*2 examples of why several tests should be done to identify a mineral

*2 examples of products that are made of minerals and what minerals make them

We will be continuing to learn about minerals through next week and will continue to discuss these topics up though the test day.

Our BTG group at school is also sponsoring Operation: Bear Hug.  They are asking students to bring in new teddy bears/stuffed animals that will be donated to homeless shelters and hospitals.  The homeroom with the most brought in will earn a prize!  There will also be drawings where students who brought in stuffed animals can win up to $100!  We appreciate your generosity in advance!

Remember that we have the wonderful ability to check grades online!  Be sure to check in on your child's grades periodically so you, and they, know how they're doing in their classes!

Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns!  Have a wonderful day!

Holiday Visitor

It's hard to believe that Thanksgiving is already over and that we're less than 2 weeks away from winter break!

We had a holiday visitor arrive in our classroom this week!  Elfis is keeping his eye on things in science class!

Elfis arrived on Thursday, December 1!

He was keeping an eye on mobile devices on Friday, December 2!

Cockroach Lab

We completed our annual cockroach lab last week!  It's one of my favorites of the year!  I took a bunch of pictures during each class and posted each period's pictures on my website.  They can be found on the My Slideshows tab.  The password for each is "cockroach" if you wish to view any!

Organelle of the Year Award Projects

We had another successful year of completing the Organelle of the Year Award projects!  Students worked in groups and had to convince the rest of us that their assigned organelle was the most important and should win the award.

All of the groups did an excellent job!  These were the winners in each class:

1st Period: April, Emma, Jordyn - Chloroplast

2nd Period: Nora, Marley, Alana, Sophia - Cell Wall

3rd Period: Vanessa, Sydney, Maddie, Eva, Lauren - Nucleus

4th Period: Alanna, Olivia, Mackenzie, Audrey - Cell Wall

8/9th Period: Casey, Joseph, Thomas, Michael, Aaron - Cytoplasm

11th Period: Taylor, Emma, Jessica, Emma - Lysosome

Science Newsletter 11-8-16

Good afternoon!

A few science updates...

Students will have a test over cells on Thursday, November 10.  They received a list of what to study as well as a study guide last week.  The study guide is due by tomorrow, November 9 when we'll go over the answers in class.   This test is a combination of topics from the Organelles Quiz and Intro to Cells Test.

This is the list of what to study:

**Organelles

*Know the function of each

*Nucleus is the control center of the cell, contains DNA

*Mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell, gives it energy

*Lysosome gets rid of waste

*Cell Membrane surrounds the cell like skin, controls what goes in and out

*Cell Wall surrounds the cell, gives it protection and shape

*Chloroplasts conduct photosynthesis, are green

*Cytoplasm is the gel/liquid that fills up the cell

*Vacuoles store water and waste

*Be able to look at picture and identify the organelle

**Paramecium

*Unicellular

*A protist

**Animal & Plant Cells

*In multicellular organisms

*Animal Cell contains: cell membrane, cytoplasm, lysosome, mitochondria, nucleus, vacu0les

*Plant Cell contains: cell membrane, cell wall, chloroplast, cytoplasm, lysosome, mitochondria, nucleus, vacu0les

**Cell Division

*Cells grow larger, copy organelles, and then split in half to reproduce

*This means there is one parent

*Makes exact copies, offspring are identical to the parent

We finished our Organelle of the Year Award Projects last week and they were really great!  I think the classes really had fun with them too!  Here are the winning groups from each class:

1st period - April D, Emma F, Jordyn M (chloroplast)

2nd period - Nora J, Marley K, Alana L, Sophia M (cell wall)

3rd period - Maddie A, Lauren B, Eva M, Vanessa P, Sydney R (nucleus)

4th period - Mackenzie C, Alanna M, Audrey M, Olivia R (cell wall)

8/9th period - Thomas C, Joseph D, Casey L, Michael M, Aaron W (cytoplasm)

11th period - Jessica C, Emma E, Taylor S, Emma W (lysosome)

We've been doing some activities in our ISN this week.  Students will need to finish these if they did not finish them during class.  Our next ISN Check will be sometime in the next week or two.  On page 14, students glued in charts with the organelles on them; they had to fill in the charts about the organelles.  On page 15, students had to write a brief summary of cell division and add an illustration of what happens when cells divide.

Thank you to everyone who donated food to our food drive!  We had an incredible amount brought in and our BTG club will be able to help a lot of families in the area!

Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns!  Have a wonderful day!

Food Drive Themes

This week, we are having a spirit week for the food drive!  If students bring in at least 1 non-perishable food item, they are able to participate each day!

Monochromatic Monday - Wear one color from head to toe!
Pajama Tuesday - Wear your comfiest jammies!
Wacky Tacky Wednesday - Wear something crazy and mis-matchy!
Black Out Thursday - Wear all black!
Jersey Friday - Wear your favorite team's jersey!

Thank you for your participation!

Science Newsletter 10-27-16

Good afternoon!

A few science updates...

Students will take a quiz over organelles on Thursday, November 3.  They received a list of what to study and a study guide in class today. The study guide is due by Wednesday, November 2 when we will go over the answers together in class.  Students are welcome to turn in their study guides early for me to check if they'd like!  This is the list to study:

*Nucleus is the control center of a cell, contains DNA

*Mitchondria is the powerhouse of the cell, gives it energy

*Lysosome breaks down and gets rid of waste

*Cell Membrane surrounds the cell like skin, controls what goes in and out

*Cell Wall surrounds the cell, gives it protection and shape

*Chloroplasts conduct photosynthesis, are green

*Cytoplasm is the gel/liquid that fills up a cell

*Vacuoles store food, water, and waste

*Animal Cell contains: cell membrane, cytoplasm, lysosome, mitochondria, nucleus, and vacuoles (many)

*Plant Cell contains: cell membrane, cell wall, chloroplasts, cytoplasm, lysosome, mitochondria, nucleus, and vacuole (one)

*All cells contain: cell membrane, cytoplasm

*Identify the nucleus, cell membrane, and cytoplasm in a picture

*Identify differences between plant and animal cells that you could see under a microscope

Students are working on their Organelle of the Year Award Projects during class. Each group has an organelle that they are "nominating" for the award and their job is to convince our class that their organelle is the best one!  They received a rubric on Tuesday and worked in class on today and yesterday and will also work Friday and Monday.  We will present on Tuesday, November 1 and Wednesday, November 2.

We got our letters back from our pen pals over the weekend!  We discussed our pen pals' letters and began to write back in class on Monday.  Students received a rubric to help them with this.  Many finished and turned in their letters on Monday but if they did not finish, it is due by tomorrow.

JMMS is having a food drive!  Any non-perishable food items would be appreciated!  Our BTG club will donate the food items to needy families within our community.  There is a competition for the homerooms that bring in the most food items by the end of next week.  The winners in each grade level will win a prize!

Report cards are going home tomorrow!  Students will receive theirs during homeroom so be sure to ask you child to see his or hers after school tomorrow!

Thank you so much for your support.  Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns!

Science Newsletter 10-14-16

A few science updates...

Students worked on coloring their Cell Pictures (on page 12 in their ISNs) in class last week.  If they are not finished coloring them, they should be finished as soon as possible.  I'll be doing an ISN check next week before the end of the grading period.  The colors are:

Cell Membrane = Black

Cell Wall = Orange

Chloroplast = Green

Cytoplasm = Yellow

Lysosome = Pink

Mitochondria = Red

Nucleus = Purple

Vacuole = Blue

Students will have a test next Tuesday, October 18 over intro to cells information.  The test will be worth 20 product points and has 12 questions.  Students received a list of what to study as well as a study guide in class on Wednesday, October 12. The study guide is due by Monday, October 17, but students are always welcome to turn it in early! This is the list of what to study:

*Prokaryotic - cell without a nucleus, simple, few organelles

*Eukaryotic - cell with a nucleus, complex, many organelles

*Why the cell is the basic unit of life - all living things are made of at least one cell

*Example of multicellular organism (animals, plants...)

*Example of unicellular/single-celled organism (bacteria, paramecia...)

*Example of prokaryotic cell (backteria)

*Example of eukaryotic cell (plant cell, animal cell, paramecia...)

*Nucleus is control center of cell, like a brain

*Animals are always multicellular, bacteria are unicellular

*Organelles help the cell carry out the characteristics of life

(Students have several pages of information in their ISNs that will help with this too!)

We worked on a webquest over cells on Tuesday and Wednesday in a computer lab this week.  Many students finished their webquests in class.  However, if any students did not finish these, they are to be finished and turned in by Wednesday, October 19.

Next Friday, October 21 is the end of our first grading period!  It's gone by so fast!  Be sure that you are checking your child's grades online.  If he or she is missing anything, please be sure to encourage them to check in with their teachers!  Students are welcome to turn in any work to me before the end of the 9 weeks to help improve their grades.  Next week's test will be counted towards this grading period; students will have a chance to work on test corrections in class next week after they get them back.

As always, please let me know if you have any questions or concerns.  Have a wonderful day!

Mini Microscope Quiz

Don't forget that our Mini Microscope Quiz is tomorrow!  This is a review quiz over the same study guide we used for the Microscope Quiz last week.  It is 10 questions worth 10 points and has no extended response or drawings.  It is over the microscope parts and basic usage of the microscope.

Corrections: Microscope Quiz

Students may make corrections for their Microscope Quizzes if they'd like to.  They should complete their corrections on a Fix It Form (available in class).  They should turn in their Fix It Forms with their original quiz by Thursday, October 6.  If they complete corrections successfully, they will receive half credit back for anything they missed!

Microscope Quiz

Camp Muskingum

6C went to Camp Muskingum last Wednesday through Friday; we had a great time!  Here are a few pictures from camp (see Mrs. Moore's website to see more pictures!):

Camp Stay Behinds

I spent some time with the 6C students who did not go to camp last Wednesday.  We went on a scavenger hunt in the land lab behind JMMS and had a great time!  Here are some of the pictures from that hunt:

Camp Muskingum

The time is here...we leave for camp tomorrow!

Don't forget that students can be dropped off by entrance 5W as late as 8:30.  They should drop their bags off in the Gold Gym by their homeroom teacher's name.  Then, they should check in with their homerooms.

Pick up is on Friday at 1:00 in the North Park near the playground.  Please be sure that your child has a ride (with you, a relative, a friend, etc.)!

I'm so excited for camp and getting to know the students even better! See you Friday!

Science Newsletter 9-19-16

A few science updates...

We are going to camp this week!  I am so excited!  I hope that your child feels more comfortable with the idea of going to camp since we've had our class discussions.  We leave this Wednesday and students can come to school at their normal times or can be dropped off later and in homeroom by 8:30.  They are to drop off their bags to the gold gym when they arrive.  On Friday, we will get back to the Jackson North Park, near the playground area, by about 1:00.  Please arrange to have a ride there for your child; they are welcome to go home with a relative or friend if you are unable to pick them up.

If your child still had any questions, he or she is welcome to ask me!  

Today we are passing out midterms - it's hard to believe that we're halfway through the first grading period!  Your child should get a midterm from every teacher.  There is a signature line but we are only requiring a signature if your child has a C, D, or F in a class (it should be highlighted if we need a signature).  If you haven't yet, you should be receiving information on our online gradebook soon where you can access your child's grades online!

In science, we have Fix It Forms due by tomorrow.  These are quiz corrections for our Observation & Inference Quiz we took last week.  Students are welcome to correct anything they missed for half credit!  

Today we are beginning an intro to microscopes and will be discussing those in addition to life science in our first big unit!  This is usually a popular unit so hopefully your child will enjoy it!

Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns.  Have a wonderful day!

Science Newsletter 9-6-16

Hello!  Welcome to JMMS!  I hope all has been well for your children here; it seems that they've been getting the hang of things now!

I am Mrs. Dannug (formerly Miss Hubbard), your child's science teacher.  I send out emails periodically to let you know about information going on in class/school (the half yellow sheets that you filled out!).  This will most likely be one of the longer ones I'll send, but I want to make sure that everyone is ready for this coming year!

First of all, we've had a couple assignments for class already that my students have been doing well on!  If you have not seen/filled in 2 yellow papers (a full sheet and a half sheet), then hopefully your child will bring those to you soon!  The large sheet is the student lab safety contract page 3 (the first 2 pages are glued in our composition books, or ISNs).  This must be turned in by our first lab, which will be this week!  They've also completed a getting-to-know-you activity called Who I Am, which we worked on in class and was due Thursday.  Finally, we are pen pals with my sister's kindergarten class in Olmsted Falls and we worked on our introduction letter to them on last Tuesday in class.  These are due by tomorrow!

**If your child ever forgets to turn anything in, he or she is welcome to turn things in late for partial credit!

We will also have a mini quiz next Tuesday over observation and inference, our first science topics of the year!  Students will be told about this today and will be given a list of what to study as well as a study guide.  The study guide is due by this Friday when we will go over it in class.  Your child is welcome to turn it in early to be checked.  Here is the list of what to study:

*Definition of observation

*Definition of inference

*Be able to identify examples of observations and inferences

*Be able to create examples of observations and inferences

We are towards the end of our JMMS fundraiser!  Students should have brought home packets of information on selling cookie dough and to-back orders.  The top selling homerooms in each community get a doughnut party!  Doughnuts sound pretty delicious to all of us 6C teachers so be sure to turn in these fundraiser forms by tomorrow, September 7!

If you find yourself with questions about any of our classes, be sure to check out our websites, call our homework hotline, or most importantly, ask your child!  That being said, we are happy to answer phone calls and emails with questions!  Also, please don't remove any papers from your students' folders, especially if there is no grade on them!  We will tell students when they no longer need their papers and can take them home; I've already had students have to re-do an assignment because a parent took it out of their folders and got rid of it!  I hate to have students do work they've already done, as I'm sure you'd agree, so if you want to help re-organize, have your child ask us if there's anything they can get rid of before you do it!

Our annual 6th grade trip to Camp Muskingum is soon approaching!  Forms were due Thursday but if your child was absent or maybe forgot to turn it in, you can contact Mr. Michel to see if it is possible to still turn in forms this week.  When we get closer to going, I will take one or two class periods to discuss camp with the students and go over the camp packets with them.  I will try to answer all of their questions while also describing the experience a bit and helping them with ideas on how to pack!  

If you have any questions or concerns, please be sure to let me know!  Have a wonderful day!

Observation and Inference Quiz Study Guide

We will have a mini quiz next Tuesday over observation and inference, our first science topics of the year!  Students will be told about this today and will be given a list of what to study as well as a study guide.  The study guide is due by this Friday when we will go over it in class.  Your child is welcome to turn it in early to be checked.  

Observation and Inference Quiz

We will have a mini quiz next Tuesday over observation and inference, our first science topics of the year!  Students will be told about this today and will be given a list of what to study as well as a study guide.  The study guide is due by this Friday when we will go over it in class.  Your child is welcome to turn it in early to be checked.  Here is the list of what to study:

*Definition of observation

*Definition of inference

*Be able to identify examples of observations and inferences

*Be able to create examples of observations and inferences

Pen Pal Letters

Today students learned about our pen pals!  We are pen pals with my sister's kindergarten class in Olmsted Falls!  We went over the rubric/instructions and began writing our introduction letter in class.  These are due by next Wednesday, September 7 for anyone who did not finish in class today.

Who I Am

On Monday (August 29) students began working on our getting-to-know-you activity called Who I Am.  Some students finished this in class although most did not.  Students should finish this and turn it in by this Thursday, September 1.  **They were told to add color to the paper (their self portraits as well as the background/outlines/etc.).

Yellow Forms

Just an update...last week I passed out 2 yellow science forms to be filled out and returned.  There is a yellow half sheet that is information about my email newsletters and a full yellow page that has information from the student lab safety contract (this is page 3...pages 1 and 2 are in our ISNs!).  If you haven't yet, please be sure to send these in with your child as soon as you can!

3 days in...

We have made it through mid-week!  

Things seem to be going well for our 6C students and hopefully they think so as well!  We are starting to get into our actual class routines which will help them with acclimating to our schedule even more!

Today I passed out a form about my class email newsletter.  I send these every couple weeks with class updates about projects, assessments, homework, etc.  Anyone can sign up for this!  Please send it back with your child even if you don't want it, just so I know that your child brought it home to you!

Thanks for your support and please let us know if there is anything you have questions about!

First Day of School

Tomorrow is the first day of school!  It's so hard to believe it's finally here but I am so excited to start this school year!  

We are running an adjusted schedule to assist our 6th graders with entering JMMS!  In the morning, we are staying in homeroom for much longer than normal and are having 8th grade mentors join us.  Our 6th graders will have a chance to speak to the 8th graders and ask questions along with completing activities with them.

We are also having an assembly to welcome students to the middle school and they will be introduced to the idea of going to Camp Muskingum in September.  

Next, we will run through a mini schedule and students will be in classes for a fraction of their normal class times.  This will give them a chance to find their classes and see each teacher but not to make it too overwhelming for them on day 1!

I hope this helps ease your minds, as well as your child's!  Let's do this!

6th Grade Orientation

Tonight is our 6th grade orientation night!

Students and parents are welcome to attend to walk through schedules and meet the teachers!

The beginning of the alphabet should attend from 6-7pm and the end should attend from 7-8pm (you can switch times if you have a conflict).

We hope to meet you tonight!

Welcome!

Hello!

Welcome to Mrs. Dannug's Blog!

I am Mrs. Dannug, formerly Miss Hubbard!  I got married last weekend (yay!) and I changed my last name but I will definitely still respond to Miss Hubbard though in case you forget :)

I have moved my blog so that people, especially newcomers, don't get confused with the different names.  So if you've been following my posts at Miss Hubbard's Blog, I will just be continuing them here!  

You'll still be able to access my old posts, if you'd like, at misshubbardsblog.blogspot.com.

I'm still teaching 6th grade science this year for community 6C and cannot wait for my 9th school year to begin!  See you soon!