Monday, September 12, 2011

The Second Week at Crosswinds...

Hi there everyone!
     Last week students got the orientation and had some time to explore their new classes.  This week, students will be setting up their science notebooks, and practicing skills they will need for their homework (always due on Thursdays).  If you want to see what it looks like click on the link below.

Science Homework Week 2 (don;t panic... there was no science homework week 1.)

This is due Thursday Sept 15th. 

Wednesday, September 7, 2011

Got Homework?

Howdy folks!
     Today was the last day of our Intro to Crosswinds program.  When we toured the grounds outside our school, saw horses (some saw turkeys), visited the park, played THICKETT!!! and fought our way through thistles and a downed tree that tried to block our path!  It wasn't all adventuring and games however, we created "Me Shields," processed the book "The Giving Tree" and prepared the all important planners for the rest of the year.  At the end of the day we had a little time left to set our goals for the quarter.  All in all it was a busy day.  I love to watch the growth the first few days of school.  They come in, not knowing any of the procedures here and they learn so much in just the first 48 hours.  The buses are working themselves out bit by bit, and should be smooth by week's end.

     Many students have been asking (almost pestering) me about homework.  Who am I to turn down all this enthusiasm?  On Thursday, I will ask students to check out this blog and answer the riddle posted there well here it is......



The Riddle:


You throw away the outside and cook the inside.  Then you eat the outside and trow away the inside.

What is it?


Hint... there are several correct answers.  Be prepared to justify your answer.

Monday, September 5, 2011

Need Locker Help?

Hi there!
Tomorrow is the first day of school and I am very excited! The Math teacher, Mr. Luepker, showed me a video on how to open your locker that I thought would be good practice for the first few days.
Of course, no amount of practice will help you if the office gave you the wrong combination.

In general, the schedule for the first 2 days are focused on getting to know each other, the school (inside and out) and the big ideas of the year.

If you have any questions, please let me know at mark.russo@emid6067.net or (651) 379-2653.

Sunday, August 28, 2011

Welcome to the new year!

Hi there everybody!
This blog is for anyone but mostly the 6th grade science students in Mr. Russo's class at Crosswinds Arts and Science Magnet school in Woodbury Minnesota.

Feel free to look back at last year's blog as a possible way to explore some of the assignments and topics that we will cover.

If you are signing on for the first time, at the top of the page is a link to "follow" this blog. If you do, you can be alerted every time I add homework, share relevant information, or just rant and rave with entries starting with, "Well back in my day..."

Parents, if you want to know every tiny detail about your student's academic progress, Infinite Campus is the best way to keep up with all the assignments, especially if your child may be "unsure" if they turned in their work or they looked awful shifty and nervous while saying, "Uh... Nope, no homework today... really!"

One of the most important things to understand early in Russo's class is that homework is ALWAYS due on Thursday. If there is school and it is Thursday, your child has homework due for science. OK, the first week of school and the last week of school don't count but EVERY other Thursday, you can count on science homework due. Hint: Look back through last year's blog and you can see some past examples of what homework looks like. (It is hard! Don't try to wait till Wednesday night before starting)

Tuesday, August 2, 2011

Final Exam support materials...

Howdy!

For those still polishing up their final exams... here are the reference materials we used in class...


Herman Hollerith and even More Herman Hollerith

The science related article about the Physics of Wet Dogs

The link for BrainPop (but you will need an account)

Here is the Room at the Inn puzzle

Here is Logic Puzzle 55

That is everything you need. Now here is the important part... there is no official "science class" tomorrow so if you forget to turn it in because of the exciting and distracting Olympics, and Goodbye ceremonies, I will have noting to grade and have to put an INC for your grade which means incomplete and there is nothing worse than being a 7th grader who still has to do homework to finish up 6th grade... well there are plenty worse things than that but trust me that is more annoying than a paper cut on your tongue.

Thursday, July 14, 2011

Hi there,
We have started the park project this week and will be building a model of a tennis court to practice our skills for when it is the student's turn to create their own model from their own design for their own park project. Have I emphasized that the student will be working this "on their own" enough? More than a week of class time will be exclusively devoted for students to work on their individual project but they are encouraged to continue their projects at home to expand and deepen their understanding.

here is the homework week 6 and here is the Brain Pop Link
here is the homework week 7 and here is the BrainPop link

Wednesday, June 29, 2011

Quarter 4 science homework and more!

Hi there,
Let's start with the basics... here is the homework so far for the fourth quarter.

Week 1 was to grow a plant (any plant) and bring it in.

Week 2

Week 3

Week 4


Week 5

Note: Google Docs "translated" the PDF so the homework download may look a little wonky, but it is all there.

After the break students will be working on the Park Project. In science they will be focusing on the 3D model of one part of their park. The goal will be to manipulate scale to make a replica for the student's presentation. The scale will be approximately 1 / 40.