I probably just had the best day of teaching in my life.
I would really like you to ask your 6th grader what happened in Christian studies. In case they don't tell you what happened here is my story.
It all started in my Christian Studies class. We have been having some issues in our Middle School. We have dealt with these issues in many ways. In my 6th grade class we have been praying for each other after our Bible lesson. We have been writing down prayers on index cards and then passing to the left and right.
Today I decided to do something completely different. I had the kids push their desks to the sides of the room so that the middle space was bare. I had 6 chairs on the outside of the bare space. The kids were curious to say the least. They all wanted to know what I was doing. I played worship songs as the kids sang along. If they wanted someone to pray for them, they would go sit in a chair. I have done this before with my High School youth group. It has always been a great time, but I was concerned because they are 6th grade and pretty immature. For the first four songs everyone just sang. I thought I had made a huge mistake. No one was willing to take the risk of having others pray for them. On the next song, someone took the risk. I had intended for just one kid to go pray for those in the seats, what I saw was several people going over to pray for each other. My heart was so touched. That was what started the huge ball rolling. At one point I was singing with only one other student. Everyone else was praying or receiving prayer. Eventually I ran out of songs and it seemed like everyone had prayed for each other.
I then decided to pray for each child out loud. Can you believe it? I would say what I am thankful for each child and something I know they are struggling with. Most of the time I was in tears. Tears of joy of course. We were interrupted by a fire drill. I was praying for Briana Millett at the time, so right in the middle of the class. I knew I was doing the right thing when almost everyone came to me and said we have to finish. When we came inside, I kept them from their next class and finished. As I was praying for the last student, several kids came and stood by me. Then they took in turn to pray for in the way I was praying for them. They lifted me up and prayed for my struggles. In the end we had a huge 6th grade group huge. I will always remember that.
The rest of the day was also enjoyable. Students were on task. They were focused. I also heard that the other students had talks and I will let those teachers share with you. We are changing the culture in this place. As an added bonus our students were great at lunch and earned their third gold star. When they come back from Spring Break they will no longer have assigned seat. (unless we need to go back to it)
As far as students coming work...
Christian Studies we will be going on to Jeremiah and soon have the Babylonian invasion.
In Science students should finish their instruments and bring in sound proof material.
In Math we finished the test on Ch. 6 and moving on to the second book starting with the Pythagorean Theorem (say that 5 times fast)
In history we will finish India in the coming days.
Have a wonderful Spring Break.
Blessings
Mr. Bauer
Friday, March 24, 2017
Thursday, March 23, 2017
Research Papers
I am so pleased with the hard work everyone has put in this week. I challenged each student to have enough note cards to meet the April 4th note card expectation, and they have succeeded! We have also spent time talking about the direction they see their paper going. After Spring Break we will finish up the note cards and begin working on the outline.
The final paper for 6th grade is due Thursday, May 4.
The final paper for 7th & 8th grade is due Wednesday, May 11.
Book Reports
3rd Trimester Reports due Friday, May 26
This week students have been searching and previewing books for their last report of the year. Students have been encouraged to find a good book before Spring Break so they can enjoy some down time reading a good book. Time reading their book also counts toward the Read-a-thon everyone is participating in. There will be a day in April and in May set aside for reading / working on their reports.
I have been enjoying the quality of work everyone has been putting in to their reports. There have been some wonderful books shared each trimester which have encouraged others to read them for next term. Keep up the great job!
Monday, March 20, 2017
Happy Monday
Good Afternoon,
This last week was a productive one. The report cards are done, the lock-in is over, and students continue to learn and grow. I just can't believe that we have one week before Spring Break.
In 6th Grade Bible: we just don't seem to mover very far very fast. I guess that can be a good thing. We have made it through Joash. We are in the middle of Hezekiah. Jerusalem is under attack and God will continue to protect his people.
As far as praying for each other, I want to ask the kids to answer two questions in the morning on a note card. Something like, what excites you about the future, and what are you worried about in the future. We will then pass to the left, right, or some other direction and pray for each other. This will encourage empathy and build up understanding for each other.
In math (Course 3) we have completed functions and will test this Thursday-Friday.
In Science the students have been tasked with 2 upcoming experiments. The first is to build a musical instrument at home. The letter sent home should explain everything they need. We will also try to sound proof a "room". The room will be a box and the students are asked to bring in material they want to test to reduce the noise of a buzzer. I would like to conduct our experiment right after Spring Break.
In History we have moved onto India. I don't know much about India and am excited to see what helped or hindered its development.
Please continue to come talk to me about anything. I wouldn't mind if you just wanted to come talk about how awesome you kid is. It always seems like I only meet with parents about the hard things, so if you would like to come talk about the good, I am up for that as well.
Blessings on your day,
Mr. Bauer
This last week was a productive one. The report cards are done, the lock-in is over, and students continue to learn and grow. I just can't believe that we have one week before Spring Break.
In 6th Grade Bible: we just don't seem to mover very far very fast. I guess that can be a good thing. We have made it through Joash. We are in the middle of Hezekiah. Jerusalem is under attack and God will continue to protect his people.
As far as praying for each other, I want to ask the kids to answer two questions in the morning on a note card. Something like, what excites you about the future, and what are you worried about in the future. We will then pass to the left, right, or some other direction and pray for each other. This will encourage empathy and build up understanding for each other.
In math (Course 3) we have completed functions and will test this Thursday-Friday.
In Science the students have been tasked with 2 upcoming experiments. The first is to build a musical instrument at home. The letter sent home should explain everything they need. We will also try to sound proof a "room". The room will be a box and the students are asked to bring in material they want to test to reduce the noise of a buzzer. I would like to conduct our experiment right after Spring Break.
In History we have moved onto India. I don't know much about India and am excited to see what helped or hindered its development.
Please continue to come talk to me about anything. I wouldn't mind if you just wanted to come talk about how awesome you kid is. It always seems like I only meet with parents about the hard things, so if you would like to come talk about the good, I am up for that as well.
Blessings on your day,
Mr. Bauer
Tuesday, March 14, 2017
Giant Probability Experiment!
Yesterday, all the middle schoolers were introduced to a giant probability experiment that has swept the nation. This experiment is conducted by millions of people around the world every year as everyone tries to beat the odds. This grand test of probability and statistics is the March Madness Bracket Challenge. Each student was given a bracket to try and guess how this year's college basketball tournament will go. We then calculated how many different brackets can be made (over 147,000,000,000,000,000,000!!!). To put this number into context, if every person on the planet filled out 20 billion different brackets, there is still a chance the perfect bracket would not be predicted!
As the tournament plays out, we will track the progress so all the students can see how they did with some extra credit being offered to the best bracket in every class. This is really a great hands-on activity that brings probability and statistics to life every year.
Happy March Madness!!!
Monday, March 13, 2017
Homework and Upcoming Focus
Good Afternoon from the Desk of Mr. Bauer,
I am writing to give you a little heads up on what is coming up.
In 6th Grade Bible: we continue to work through the sin of man and how God continually remains faithful. We have now made it passed the three main kings (Saul, David, Solomon) and on to the divided kingdom and the many kings would defile God. Today we heard Ahab and Jezebel die. We know move into the time Elisha was a prophet, we learn about young King Joash, Hezekiah, and Josiah. The students are really good at remembering the stories as well as point out the evil in others. We do have a hard time when it comes to recognizing our own sin. I also want to start praying for each other in class more. I am not sure what that looks like right now, but hope to give a plan on that really soon.
Mr. Munster and I had a great time today as our prep time is the same. He should me many of his "toys" that we will be using with the kids in the coming weeks. We will soon move away from physical waves and learn more about light waves and sound waves. We have a couple of good experiment ideas and hope the kids will really get into them.
In math we come to a close on functions in the next couple of days. This means our next math test will be early next week. From here we start the second book. Our next chapter will be on the Pythagorean Theorem.
In History, we finished learning about the kingdom of Kush today. We will have our assessment on Thursday. This will give the kids two more days to study. The next two chapters in the book are about Judaism and its beginnings. I think our time would be better spent by moving on to look and learn about India and its origins. We learn so much about Judaism in our Bible time. If we have time at the end of the year, we can come back to it and reinforce some of what we are learning.
Blessings on your day.
Mr. Bauer
I am writing to give you a little heads up on what is coming up.
In 6th Grade Bible: we continue to work through the sin of man and how God continually remains faithful. We have now made it passed the three main kings (Saul, David, Solomon) and on to the divided kingdom and the many kings would defile God. Today we heard Ahab and Jezebel die. We know move into the time Elisha was a prophet, we learn about young King Joash, Hezekiah, and Josiah. The students are really good at remembering the stories as well as point out the evil in others. We do have a hard time when it comes to recognizing our own sin. I also want to start praying for each other in class more. I am not sure what that looks like right now, but hope to give a plan on that really soon.
Mr. Munster and I had a great time today as our prep time is the same. He should me many of his "toys" that we will be using with the kids in the coming weeks. We will soon move away from physical waves and learn more about light waves and sound waves. We have a couple of good experiment ideas and hope the kids will really get into them.
In math we come to a close on functions in the next couple of days. This means our next math test will be early next week. From here we start the second book. Our next chapter will be on the Pythagorean Theorem.
In History, we finished learning about the kingdom of Kush today. We will have our assessment on Thursday. This will give the kids two more days to study. The next two chapters in the book are about Judaism and its beginnings. I think our time would be better spent by moving on to look and learn about India and its origins. We learn so much about Judaism in our Bible time. If we have time at the end of the year, we can come back to it and reinforce some of what we are learning.
Blessings on your day.
Mr. Bauer
Sunday, March 12, 2017
Housekeeping Items
*Tuesday is auction picture day. Students are to wear a solid colored shirt for the pictures. No logos, stripes, designs, etc. SOLID COLORS ONLY!
** Scholastic Book Orders are due online by Thursday night. Orders will be submitted on Friday. This is a good time to select a book for the last book report of the year!
*** The Middle School Lock-in begins at 7:00 pm Thursday night and ends 7:00 am Friday morning. Students must have their permission forms and money to their teacher by Wednesday.
**** Students are to be collecting pledges for the all - school Read-a-thon. Pledges are due by March 19. Reading begins Monday, March 20 and ends April 2. Reading their books for the research project, book report, and Literature class all counts towards their time. Let's work hard together to raise money for more FOSS Science Kits!!
***** Students are to bring their library books, note cards, file boxes and chromebook to class everyday as we work on making source cards and note cards for the research papers. If they forget to bring them to class they will need to spend extra time at home working to get them done.
Tuesday, March 7, 2017
Writing - Research Papers
Research Time
We have come to that special time of year that students embark on a special journey - researching and writing a paper. Students in 6th - 8th grade have selected topics they will be learning more about during these next several weeks. Detailed information will be coming home with students as we go through each step of the process. The most important part of this assignment is the process of researching and sharing what they have learned. These skills are used everyday in our real world. If you have not returned the permission slip to go to the public library on Friday please do so as soon as possible. I look forward to guiding the students through this process and reading their special reports.
Successful Field Trip
I am sure you are all wondering how the field trip went. I was a success. We met Mr. Schultz at the Scoggins Creek Bridge and released about 450 Rainbow Trout fry. They will make their way down to Hagg Lake within the week and start growing there. Mr. Schultz said that we hope to have %5-10 of the fish make it to adulthood. That doesn't seem like a lot, but for us that is between 25-50 fish. Not bad for a little Middle School like us. We did have a reporter from the Forest Grove paper meet us there. She took pictures of the kids releasing fish and asked some questions of the students, teachers, and Mr. Schultz. Please let me know if you see something in the paper in the coming weeks. It would be really neat to see what they say.
We also had an Earth Quake Drill today. It is no big deal and I really wouldn't have said anything, but Mr. Schiemann complemented our "bigger kids" for showing a good example to the "younger ones". He made sure that I heard the compliment and gave me a thumbs up for the behavior of our Middle Schoolers. Way to go guys, you rocked it.
We also had an Earth Quake Drill today. It is no big deal and I really wouldn't have said anything, but Mr. Schiemann complemented our "bigger kids" for showing a good example to the "younger ones". He made sure that I heard the compliment and gave me a thumbs up for the behavior of our Middle Schoolers. Way to go guys, you rocked it.
Sunday, March 5, 2017
Mr. Bauer :Fish, Science, and Course 3 Math
Good Evening,
I am so excited about our Field Trip on Tuesday. All 6-8 graders will head to Hagg Lake to release the nearly 500 Rainbow Trout that we have watched hatch and grow. They are very active now and really need to get a food supply. The weather on Tuesday looks cold and rainy. Kids should come prepared for the weather. If they want to be part of the releasing, they should bring rubber boots. I will bring a couple of extra pairs that we can share if you don't have a pair. We will be back before lunch, so if you purchased lunch, you will not miss out.
In Science, we have moved on from Space Science. We have already started learning about waves. In our last experiment, I retired 10 slinkys after our tests. It was a fun experiment of timing and creating different shapes in our waves. The kids had a good time. Next we will use a water/light table. The light shines through the water (there is a glass bottom in the table) as we make observations about the different waves and the properties about how they change. I think the kids will enjoy this one as well.
In Math, course 3, we have started to learn about functions and relationships in inputs and outputs. In a function, there can be only one answer for each input. It is fun to see those who have really put in the effort, grow each day. We continue to have Math Club each Tuesday and Friday after school until 4:00.
If your family would like to donate any gift cards, the auction committee is still accepting them this week.
I hope you all had a wonderful weekend.
Blessings
Mr. Bauer
I am so excited about our Field Trip on Tuesday. All 6-8 graders will head to Hagg Lake to release the nearly 500 Rainbow Trout that we have watched hatch and grow. They are very active now and really need to get a food supply. The weather on Tuesday looks cold and rainy. Kids should come prepared for the weather. If they want to be part of the releasing, they should bring rubber boots. I will bring a couple of extra pairs that we can share if you don't have a pair. We will be back before lunch, so if you purchased lunch, you will not miss out.
In Science, we have moved on from Space Science. We have already started learning about waves. In our last experiment, I retired 10 slinkys after our tests. It was a fun experiment of timing and creating different shapes in our waves. The kids had a good time. Next we will use a water/light table. The light shines through the water (there is a glass bottom in the table) as we make observations about the different waves and the properties about how they change. I think the kids will enjoy this one as well.
In Math, course 3, we have started to learn about functions and relationships in inputs and outputs. In a function, there can be only one answer for each input. It is fun to see those who have really put in the effort, grow each day. We continue to have Math Club each Tuesday and Friday after school until 4:00.
If your family would like to donate any gift cards, the auction committee is still accepting them this week.
I hope you all had a wonderful weekend.
Blessings
Mr. Bauer
Saturday, March 4, 2017
Subject Update: Digital Literacy
This last week, our topic for Digital Literacy was using a spreadsheet to make a timeline. This could be useful in the future for all middle schoolers as an option for a technology book report.
Our next topic in class will be how to use the many features of the public library website. This will help with their upcoming research papers.
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