Educating Our Eagles - Issue 21
Educating our Eagles 21
- Page 2 and 3: CONTENTS 4 Introduction - Curriculu
- Page 4 and 5: INTRODUCTION From SBRSD’s Directo
- Page 6 and 7: HIGH SCHOOL: Le Cancre by Jacques P
- Page 8 and 9: ELEMENTARY SCHOOL: Plant Variations
- Page 10 and 11: HIGH SCHOOL: Age of Jackson Ninth g
- Page 12 and 13: HIGH SCHOOL: Music Theater Workshop
- Page 14 and 15: HIGH SCHOOL: Annual Senior Luncheon
- Page 16: EDUCATING OUR EAGLES 16
<strong>Educating</strong><br />
our <strong>Eagles</strong><br />
<strong>21</strong>
CONTENTS<br />
4<br />
Introduction - Curriculum Director, Julie Dolan<br />
6<br />
Tenth Grade - Le Cancre by Jacques Prévert – Pierre Legér<br />
8<br />
Third Grade - Plant Variations – Amy Murray<br />
10<br />
Ninth Grade - The Age of Jackson – Patrick Barrett<br />
12<br />
High School - Musical Theatre – Courtney English<br />
14<br />
Full District - Senior Luncheon Photographs<br />
Cover: Mount Everett student, Jacob, puts the final touches on the Senior<br />
Luncheon dessert before serving to members of the SBRSD community.<br />
Right: To spread some holiday kindness and cheer each class at NMC<br />
from Pre-K through 3rd grade, created artwork to hang at Geer Nursing<br />
and Rehabilitation Center.<br />
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INTRODUCTION<br />
From SBRSD’s Director of Curriculum<br />
and Instruction, Julie Dolan<br />
Holiday Wishes & Gratitude<br />
I am pleased to share with you the December edition of <strong>Educating</strong> <strong>Our</strong><br />
<strong>Eagles</strong>!<br />
As we embrace the festive season, I want to extend my warmest thanks<br />
for being such incredible partners in your child’s educational journey. It’s<br />
your active involvement and commitment to our District that light up the<br />
classroom brighter than our holiday decorations!<br />
We are so proud of the students who are doing a fantastic job meeting their<br />
goals this year. Whether it’s mastering math, authoring outstanding essays,<br />
conducting fascinating science experiments, or participating in early college<br />
classes, their hard work and dedication has been truly impressive. It’s a<br />
testament to their potential and to the support they receive at home.<br />
I will also take this holiday season as an opportunity to celebrate the teachers.<br />
Their dedication and commitment to the students, families, and each other<br />
is amazing. They are so invested in providing excellence in education with a<br />
personalized approach that fosters confidence and an attitude that students<br />
can be successful at whatever they put their minds to.<br />
Please enjoy this occasion to see what is going on in the classrooms across<br />
the District. During this special time of year, I wish you and your family a<br />
holiday season filled with joy and peace. May the spirit of togetherness and<br />
celebration brighten your days.<br />
All My Best,<br />
Julie Dolan<br />
Right: Undermountain student prepares a holiday card<br />
for members of the Sheffield Senior Center with help<br />
from National Honor Society students.<br />
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5
HIGH SCHOOL:<br />
Le Cancre by Jacques Prévert<br />
After watching the movie Les choristes, which the story takes place in a boarding school in<br />
rural France a few years after the end of the second World War, the students studied and<br />
memorized the poem Le cancre by French poet Jacques Prévert. In this poem, Jacques Prévert<br />
describes a young student being questioned by his teacher in front of the class. With few answers to<br />
provide to his teacher, the student is mocked and booed by his classmates (which depict a similar<br />
scene from the movie).<br />
The movie, along with the poem, allowed for class discussions in French during which students were<br />
able to highlight the differences between school now and then. At the end of this unit, the French III<br />
students memorized and recited to the class.<br />
You may flash the QR codes to listen to the poem recited by students.<br />
Le cancre de Jacques Prévert (1900-1977)<br />
Le cancre<br />
Il dit non avec la tête mais il dit oui avec le cœur il dit oui à ce qu’il aime il dit non au professeur il est<br />
debout on le questionne et tous les problèmes sont posés soudain le fou rire le prend et il efface tout<br />
les chiffres et les mots les dates et les noms<br />
les phrases et les pièges et malgré les menaces du maître sous les huées des enfants prodiges avec les<br />
craies de toutes les couleurs sur le tableau noir du malheur il dessine le visage du bonheur.<br />
As a result of instruction, students will be able to:<br />
• understand the main idea and some supporting details.<br />
• make comparisons of basic language forms.<br />
• memorize and recite a poem in French.<br />
Observations:<br />
#1 Black & White photo: Doisneau, Robert « Le cadran solaire » 1956, Atelier Robert Doisneau,<br />
https://www.robert-doisneau.com/en/, December 8, 2023<br />
MA Standards:<br />
MA standards* (IM.1.b) (IM.6.b.2)<br />
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ELEMENTARY SCHOOL:<br />
Plant Variations<br />
Students in third grade will examine different types of apples and compare them. They will complete<br />
a data gathering chart to compare type, size, color, shape, texture, and taste. Students will be asked<br />
questions to guide a comparison discussion like: Which apple was the largest? Which apple was<br />
the sweetest? Which apple was the juiciest? Using the data collected, students will apply it to understand<br />
how farmers can grow the biggest, juiciest, most delicious apples.<br />
As a result of instruction, students will be able to:<br />
• recognize plant species have variations.<br />
• understand traits can be inherited.<br />
Observations:<br />
Students enjoyed comparing different types of apples. They were surprised how different the tastes were.<br />
Students were able to understand how one species can have many different variations in color, size, shape,<br />
texture, and taste.<br />
MA Standards:<br />
3-LS3-1 Provide evidence, including through the analysis of data, that plants and animals have traits inherited<br />
from parents and that variation of these traits exist in a group or similar organisms.<br />
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HIGH SCHOOL:<br />
Age of Jackson<br />
Ninth grade students were broken up into 8 groups of two/three students to<br />
study, prepare and present a Google Slides presentation on historical themes from<br />
1824-1840. Students were given a rubric to follow as guide in preparing their<br />
class presentations. Each group would become the experts in their respective theme<br />
and become the teachers of content for the unit. Major historical items to be covered<br />
ranged from the advances in transportation to early industrial growth, improvements in<br />
agriculture, the Supreme Court under the leadership of John Marshall, the expansion of<br />
slavery and the presidencies of James Monroe and Andrew Jackson.<br />
As a result of instruction, students will be able to:<br />
• work cooperatively with one another and to be able to continue to learn and feel<br />
comfortable presenting material in front of their peers.<br />
• have an understanding of how the advances in transportation and industrial<br />
development impacted the emerging United States market economy.<br />
• know the cause and effect the invention of the cotton gin played in the expansion<br />
of slavery and increasing sectional conflict.<br />
• become familiar with the foreign policy of James Monroe and understand how<br />
the Monroe Doctrine still applies to our current relationship with the world<br />
today.<br />
• recognize the impact the presidency of Andrew Jackson had on our country both<br />
in a positive and negative way.<br />
Observations:<br />
Any time students get the chance to use technology and work with their peers to further<br />
explore the curriculum is something they appreciate and enjoy. Their collaboration<br />
and discussions on the material was the most important aspect of the learning process.<br />
Overall the Google Slide presentations came out well.<br />
MA Standards:<br />
• Analyze the effects of industrial growth throughout antebellum America and<br />
New England, the growth of the textile and machinery industries and maritime<br />
commerce.<br />
• the technological improvements and inventions that contributed to industrial<br />
growth<br />
• the role of women as the primary workforce in New England textile factories<br />
• Analyze the causes and long and short term consequences of America's westward<br />
expansion from 1800 to 1854.<br />
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HIGH SCHOOL:<br />
Music Theater Workshop - Musical Review<br />
Music Theater Workshop is a student-led project based class. Students decide how<br />
they would like to structure the class, whether it be to put on a full musical,<br />
a few one-act musicals, or in the case of this semester’s class, a showcase of<br />
musical numbers and monologues from several theater productions. Students chose what<br />
they wanted to work on individually and group pieces. They are structuring a showcase,<br />
blocking and choreographing their pieces, and will come up with the prop, costume,<br />
advertising, and everything else that goes along with producing a show. They are<br />
working on pieces from Man of La Mancha, You're a Good Man Charlie Brown, Hamilton,<br />
Working, Mean Girls, Dear Evan Hanson, and Ghost just to name a few. They will have a<br />
free performance of their showcase in January.<br />
As a result of instruction students will be able to:<br />
• work together to put on a production of their choosing for an audience.<br />
• individually learn musical and acting material to perform.<br />
• learn how to creativly stage and block a musical number or scene.<br />
• learn how to give positive constructive feedback.<br />
• understand the time and effort for such a project from both sides of peforming and<br />
producing.<br />
Observations:<br />
I enjoyed seeing the students collaborate on putting their pieces together. They offered<br />
suggestions to improve the blocking. They were also very encouraging of each other as singing<br />
and acting can be a very venerable subject. There was a lot of risk taking and pushing of their<br />
abilities. It was wonderful to see!<br />
MA Standards:<br />
Select, analyze and interpret artistic work for presentation. Identify advanced strategies musicians<br />
use to practice and employ them in readying a musical work for performance. (F.M.P.04)<br />
Develop and refine artistic techniques and work for presentation. Perform with accuracy and<br />
expression works from the vocal or instrumental literature with a level of difficulty of 3, on a scale of<br />
1 to 6; or a comparable scale. (F.M.P.05)<br />
Convey meaning through the presentation of artistic work. Describe how decisions about a<br />
performance are connected to what students want to express, evoke, or communicate. (F.M.P.06)<br />
Synthesize and relate knowledge and personal experiences to make art. Describe what has<br />
influenced changes in one’s own musical style, and musical preferences. (F.M.Co.10)<br />
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HIGH SCHOOL:<br />
Annual Senior Luncheon<br />
On December 6, 2023, SBRSD students and staff invited senior citizens from the SBRSD community to<br />
gather for a meal. High school student-chefs prepared and served a meal to their guests while SBRSD<br />
students of all ages entertained with musical performances. This is an annual tradition at SBRSD.<br />
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