About
Reading & Literature
- Read and discuss novels, short stories, myths, and tales
- Develop critical thinking skills throuhg literaty analysis of character, setting, theme, and tone
- Analyze literature and improve comprehension: whole class discussion, literature groups, and group projects
- Connect literature to social studies: cultural universals and ancient civilizations in literature
- Read and extract main ideas from non-fiction sources
Writing & Language Arts
- Write effective paragraphs, stories, and essays
- Recognize sentence structure and parts of speech with daily grammar practice
- Develop critical thinking skills through analysis and editing of one’s own and others’ written work
- Increase breadth of vocabulary
Social Studies
- Understanding cultural universals and their interconnections
- Dig 2: an introduction to archaeological methodology and ethics
- Ancient Civilizations: Egypt and Greece
- Study of farmworkers’ rights
- Public speaking skills: practice through simulations and presentations
- Research skills: finding and assessing quality of paper and electronic sources, taking organized notes
Mathematics
- Solidifying basic operations using integers, fractions, and decimals
- Data collection, organization, and analysis
- Using ratios, rates, proportions, averages, and graphs to draw conclusions and solve for unknowns
- 2D geometry
- Dealing with imprecision: estimating and rounding reasonably
- Using words and equations to explain why and how in math and science
Science
- Water quality: learn how society influences the natural world
- Chemistry of preservation and decay: natural recycling
- Consumer education: product testing and comparison and analytical writing
- Physics of motion: apply the abstract to the concrete
Spanish
- Use Total Physical Response storytelling model: Canechi y Chipote
- Use Realidades B textbook, workbook, and interactive website
- Communicate using four modalities: reading, listening, speaking, and writing
- Paired communication activities and Mini Speaking Assessments
- One-on-one and small group conversation
- Present, preterite, and future tenses
- Use University of Texas at Austin Oral Proficiency site
Fine Arts
- Drawing: one-point perspective
- Clay: animation
- Ancient civilizations: Prehistoric, Egyptian, and Greek
- Background – middle ground – foreground perspective collage
Music
- Sixth grade choir with guest choir master
- Three-part a cappella singing
- Intermediate conga drum technique
- Develop drum ensemble concepts
- Dividing the beat, pattern development, and rhythm cycles
- Performance band for instrumentalists
Service Learning
- Study the ecology of Lake Merritt and clean the lake
- Map Your World: improving the community through civic engagement
InPlay and its sponsoring partners have not reviewed any of the activity programs nor do they endorse any of the programs. Parents should thoroughly research all programs before enrolling their children.
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