September 2017 Miss Michelle Preolo mpreolo@tenafly.k12.nj.us Social Studies 6 NAVY Team This Year will focus on: Teambuilding Interdisciplinary Cross teaming American Neighbors Unit Staying connected Miss Michelle Preolo mpreolo@tenafly.k12.nj.us

My Academic Goals Bridge the gap Of so many different experiences TO KEEP MY TEACHING RELEVANT– to help students see connections between them and the real world - quote of the day CHALLENGING & EXPLORATORY BY NATURE.

My philosophical goal is to promote an inviting environment in which all students feel valued, feel the ability to take risks in order to pose and explore questions. have a positive attitude toward learning thus making success achievable for each accept responsibility for their achievement by using self reflection as part of their self evaluation and learning.

Studentship skills are life long Essential Questions What is Social Studies ? GEOGRAPHY FOUNDATION- application to the USA Regions and economics WHAT ARE THE 5 THEMES OF GEOGRAPHY ? WHY DO WE USE THEMES OF: People, place, environment, regions and location What is economics? American Neighbors- a cultural study Studentship skills are life long Content may not be I have headed a curriculum on introducing note taking at the sixth graqde skills to be reinforced at the 7th grade level And hopefully mastered at the 8th grade level

What are student-ship skills? Locker maintenance Planner set up Note taking The “How to’s” of learning Time management Materials (organization) Date everything! Ask questions when appropriate. Be an active participant! Setting and following routines Binder/planner/notebook/folder Think about what you forgot Bathroom/water Do now – channel one news

Overarching Essential Question How does the Physical Geography, Climate and history influence the economy and culture of a region? New cross team 3 week unit in may/June

resources Textbook – available on line Chromebooks Their textbooks serve as a source of connection between lessons and home smart board Many other multi inquiry materials

Assessing students Your child is a whole student in which assessment is based on every aspect of their learning They are not a point system Therefore – on line grading may not reflect their total achievement accurately until the end of the marking period Knowledge builders Homework Participation Preparation Class materials - required daily Notebook organization Hands on projects- in class and at home Will include Research

HOMEWORK REVIEWING IS REAL HOMEWORK Wish list- to be announced as the year goes on – not required REVIEWING IS REAL HOMEWORK content is vehicle

Important information Conferences are only one way to communicate Emails and phone calls– are the most efficient means of communicating due to the number of students each team teacher encounters every day.

GENESIS AND HW WEBSITE Together Everyone Achieves More! Genesis concerns from parents - please do not worry HW is such a small part of the marking period - if a child as you will read below does not complete an assignment that is for class discussion the following day - it can't be made up - they do not receive a 0 but a 65 - which i s more than they would have received if they did it the following night - it is a moot point after class discussion to ask them to finish it - as you will also read below - it has always been my policy to work with every student in meeting their needs for hw assignments, tests, quizzes,etc. Be assured that if there are missing assignments - I remind those students daily - by recording in their planners - please check daily and I speak to them individually. Your child at this point in the year can explain each and every entry in grade book as well as the contents of their notebook as an overall picture of what we do in social studies. The parent portal should be used as a snapshot of your student’s academic progress. - please do not be alarmed on HW assignments - some are a yes/ no indicating they did it and have extra time like signing first marking period letter. others like preparing for a class discussion the next day are a pass/ daily - and a fail is not a zero but a 65 - those cannot be made up as they are critical to the lesson the following day and have very little impact on a child's marking period grade - other hw assignments are graded with an O- S - U 0- again those number values can be found on genesis parent portal - those are assignments where simple questions need to be answered - O indicates child went above and beyond - S indicates they answered questions as asked with simple statements and a U indicates they didn't do it - again not a zero. • Genesis is provided as one form of home/school communication. • Student achievement cannot be accurately measured solely by numerical means. Many factors influence student grades: daily participation, effort, preparation, and performance. •The final grade will be posted at the end of the marking period.

What would I tell a new teacher? You have to be passionate about the children and your teaching in order to find success in this career There is no way you can prepare a a lesson that will speak to your children the way you can- go with the teachable moments!!! always try to remain consistent – persistent and optimistic Embrace your studnets and provide them with the compassion and attention that they need. They are individuals!