The View From A Pumpkin Patch
Plot and Summary
Mourning the loss of her mother's death, nine year-old Noah unlikely befriends independent and brutal Kajal, as the two help each other by discussing what is missing in their lives. After Kajal is paralyzed below the waist, and befriends Noah, she realizes the true meaning of friendship and the importance of family. Meanwhile, even though Noah's sister, Nadia, has been considered strange and a loser throughout all her years of education by her classmates, her optimism and the spirit of her mother left behind do not allow her to feel that way about herself.
Planted
Plot and Summary
Living their whole lives next to coal-burning power plant, thirteen year-old Alissa and eleven year-old Margret, after raising the money, escape from their polluting parents who run the plant, to travel the world and conduct experiments that they hope will change the environment forever.
Essential Question: Do you think sixth grade should be in elementary school or middle school?
Decide by using your instincts, your experience in sixth grade, and the information below:
Some information gathered from The Los Angeles Times (online):
The LAUSD school board of education has decided to make a goal to put sixth grade in all elementary schools by 2012. (Quoted from a 2007 article)
Do you think this a good decision? There are a lot of weird things going on in middle school today--mostly things that sixth graders should not have to be subjected to. It has only been about thirty years, you know, since the national change of taking sixth grade from elementary school and putting it in middle school occurred.
The Standardized Test Scores (STAR test scores) show that sixth graders in middle school have lower test scores than the ones in elementary school--probably because of all the new changing classes and all the work. In fourth and fifth grade, you also get introduced into Rotation (at my school):
You have regular class, and then math, and then more regular class. There are two different types of math, and not everyone switches, but most do: Advanced (more than State Standards) and Regular (State Standards). Usually one to two months before the end of Advanced, you finish the textbook, unlike Regular where you don't get to finishing the textbook most often. In fifth grade, you get pages from sixth grade textbooks and algebra, if you're in Advanced.
But this is only pre-rotation, not full rotation.
But the CA Standardized Tests also show that seventh graders who enter middle school for the first year have worse test scores than the ones who have already been in middle school for a year....Maybe sixth graders should have half a year in elementary school, and half a year in middle school. Maybe that will solve all of this madness....
with Also: Do you think the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) will stick to what it said in the 2007 article? Woodland Hills Elementary is an elementary school (circa 2009-2010) and it still doesn't have sixth grade in it....But some schools in the LAUSD do. (Do not confuse LAUSD with the Las Virgenes Unified School District, or LVUSD.)
Essential Question: Do you think kids should get paid to go to school? Explain using your instincts and resources below:
School is just another way of saying "work before actual work" isn't it? And in actual work, you get paid money. In most cases, minimum wages, and in some cases, maximum wages...So you should at least get to use some of this scale in school, right? It starts in first grade. You get paid $5 for a good job when you get your report card, but there are some flaws in this experiment, so you would also have to pay $5 if you do a bad job. In second grade, the amounts are multiplied by 1.25. And then, in third grade, the second grade amounts are multiplied by 1.5. But in fourth and fifth grade, here is where you can earn a lot of money. Every test you take will have a certain amount of points, whether it is for all of you grade or for little of it. Every test is worth five points; multiple choice; seven points; free response, total questions being 25.
In middle school and high school, things get tougher. Try to experiment with your own grading scale, because mine will be way to confusing....In college, you get paid nothing. Sorry!
Self-Questions
Essential Question: To prevent all the gasses and exhaust that come out from cars, do you think we should travel on horses?
Essential Question: If you had the option of being an author or an actor, which one would you be?
Essential Question: Would you rather live as a child in the 19th century, 1900s, 1920s, 1930s, 1940s, 1950s, or 2009? Explain.
I think sixth grade should be in elementary school and middle school at the same time. What I mean by this, is sixth grade still being in elementary school, but you get introduced to a full rotation (having different periods, teachers, and classes). KIDS SHOULD GET PAID TO GO TO SCHOOL!!! Riding on horse would be awesome...no exhaust or gases...well, some gases that aren't too bad for the environment...I would so be an author. I am not so good at acting anyway, and writing books are so much more wonderful, with many possibilities, even if it is only two pages. I would rather live as a child in the 1920s because they made a lot of things by hand back then, the environment was better, kids were care-free, and life was good.
ReplyDeleteI would probably live right now because (I know this isn't something adults would think of as a good reason) there are a lot more video games and stuff to do, but in the 1900's people would get together more and play. Also there are lots of good books now a days. But in the 1900's people would live close to each other, but there was no cars so you cant get to peoples houses if they are far away or it would take along time. So basically i would like some 1900's things in 2009 and some not. Like school now is a lot more fun.
ReplyDeleteI know I already commented but I only answered one question. Now i will answer the question about being an author and going on horse. I would probably rather be an author because then i would now lots of people would be reading my books and probably enjoying them. Also i could read my own book and it might win a prize or be made into a movie like the Harry Potter series was and that was a big hit! Now the question of riding horses. i think we should but it might be harder to get places. On the other hand people wouldn't have to pay for gas and best of all NO GLOBAL WARMING!!!!! Plus you wouldn't get car sick but it might smell a little. And i think kids should get paid to go to school cause that would be totally awesome but that might get us spoiled. On the other hand it might teach us to study more and do better on tests in fear of losing money. That wouldn't be a good thing:( . Also putting 6th grade in elementary school would kinda suck because you would have to wait one more year to see what its like and one year less and you would only have one teacher in 6th grade and 2 years in middle school.
ReplyDeleteYour answers have made me think. I think some kids are ready for middle school in 6th grade and some aren't. There are schools that let you choose. AEW used to be a k-8 school.
ReplyDeleteAbout horses - kids used to ride their horses to AEW when the school first began. The school is over 50 years old. I think it would be cool to ride a horse to school. I just don't want to clean up after it.
You do get paid to go to school - your parents clothe you and feed you. They also give you a place to sleep and a roof over your head. If you get paid to attend school, would you start paying for your own food and rent? Just something to think about.