Compute Class
I have fallen in love with the excitement in their eyes when they walk into the room. Well, let me introduce myself, “My name is Ms. Lapointe.” This is my first year teaching at Evangel Christian School, and I am blessed to be here. The excitement is in the air, and the learning possibilities are endless.
One fine day when I looked at the screens of the computers around the room, and there was a rainbow of colors with their students’ names typed in 72-size fonts in a document in Microsoft Word. It was wonderful! They typed their names using a small 8-font on the left margin, and then used the mouse to control the pointer to enlarge the letters. They edited the text: just their names.
The lesson did not appear that significant at first. They came in quietly, holding their excitements and letting it loose once they entered the room. “Computers are fun,” one student shouted. First they always ask if they can play games. The answer is always, yes. “I have a wonderful game for you.” The students use abcya.com to warm-up. They turn on the computers, sign-in, and begin to use the keyboard game. The game is designed to help them learn the keys on the keyboard and to practice moving and controlling the mouse.
Emmanuela Lapointe
Computer Teacher
Minerals
This month we started to learn that the Earth’s crust was made of minerals. We learned, on an atomic level, what makes a mineral different than the other natural substances found in nature. We also learned how to identify the different types of minerals that are known today. In class we got to test our learning skills by using the identification markers like, color, luster, streak, and harness. The class will be studying more about how we mine for these minerals and what their uses are.
Mr. Lamb
Geology
We started the year off with a lot of review from last year to get the kids back into science mode. We went over the different branches of science to show the overlapping relevance of each area of study. We quickly moved through the introduction week and started focusing on Geology. We went outside to show how a makeshift compass can get you to the magnetic north-pole, but we also learned that the magnetic north-pole is not the true geographic north-pole. The science of mapmaking as a form of model testing is heavily relied upon by many branches of geology; to name a few, meteorologists, oceanographers, and cartographers. The students made a map model of the school and some of the results were quite colorful!
Mr. Lamb
Candy Animal Cells
This month we have been analyzing life on a cellular level. Last month we learned that all of life is comprised of cells, now we are delving deeper and seeing what a cell is and what its function is. Last week we studied prokaryotic and eukaroytic cells This week we studied animal and plant cells and in class the kids made a 3-d animal cell out of candy!
Mr. Lamb
Life Science
Our first month back to school was packed with so many interesting topics. We had a safety lab that was preparation for the upcoming labs that we will have this year. We started the year off introducing Life Science and the many different subcategories within Life Science. Our second section that we moved into was addressing the question of Life, what makes something alive and other things not alive? We discussed the six characteristics of living things and the way life was organized in the world around us.
Mr. Lamb
Protists and Fungi
Last month lead us into the kingdom of Protists and Fungi. In this section we took a close look at different single-celled organisms called Protists, a famous one being the amoeba. The simplest of life is found in the Protists and Fungi kingdom. At this microscopic end of the chain of life you find bacteria on the furthest link, and just passed it, viruses. We are currently reviewing the bacterial and viral diseases, their symptoms, and the current fight for life in the field of medicine.
Mr. Lamb
Lets Look At Cells
In class we looked at plant cells through a compound light microscope and learned that every living thing is made up of tiny organisms called cells. During the first month we compared animal cells with plant cells, and learned the main differences between them. We got to talk a little about photosynthetic organisms and how they differ from animals. We learned about mitosis and osmosis, diffusion and differentiation. In class we had a demonstration of how water, through the process of osmosis and diffusion, slowly changed a raisin back into a grape! All of these topics have to do with the cell’s life cycle, how it behaves in nature, and how it affects us.
Mr. Lamb
God Hates Pride
Students have been learning how God chooses the sometimes unpopular choice in people to do His work. They have seen through the life of Jacob and Esau how most people would have chosen Esau but God chose Jacob because He sees the inner man. We’ve also taken it a step further in what God hates. The perfect example of this is the pride of Satan. This caused him as well as many other angels to fall. In class we are having many great discussions and students are very interested in this topic.
Mrs. Racoma
Middle School Music
Students in middle school have now played their first song on the guitar and have begun learning their first two chords. This month, students have focused on the “G” and “D” chord. In the midst of learning to play the guitar, they have also started learning their song for the Christmas program. Each class is learning how melody and harmony work together in producing a nice sound.
Mrs. Racoma
Working On Rhythm
Students have continued working on Rhythm this month. Students have used tennis balls to show how many beats are in each measure. This music method is called Dalcroze, which is a type of teaching that allows students to learn music through movement. They also continue learning about melody through a variety of songs. These classes have also begun their work on the Christmas program, which is held in December.
Mrs. Racoma