General Advice for Parents: Here’s a PDF file for parents to read as they help their children do their best in 6th grade. It’s easy to read and implement some of the ideas offered in Getting Organized for Schoolwork & Homework. General Advice for Students: Find a way that will help you learn better. Use your strongest intelligence to learn the material. For example, if you have to study for a test and if you have a strong body (kinesthetic intelligence), try writing questions on flash cards with the answer on the back and putting them all over the house and the yard. Then, from a starting line, run from question to question. Make a game of it! Another example - If your musical intelligence is strong, try writing songs about the information you learn or listening to music as you study. If you have a strong interpersonal intelligence, study a little bit each day with a partner. Don’t try to eat an apple in one bite – YOU’LL CHOKE! Instead, eat little bites. You’ll not only save yourself from choking, but you’ll be taking time to enjoy the taste of the apple. In other words, study a little every day. Read the SQ3R way: Survey – quickly look over a reading assignment and notice what’s about to come. Read chapter titles, headings, and subheadings, picture captions. Question – Think of questions to ask yourself about the material. Even read the review or self-test questions at the end of each chapter. Read– Try to find answers to the questions you just thought of. Restate – Summarize what you just finished reading. Review – Look over the material and assignment again. This can be done right away or a few days later. Projects: For middle school students completion of long-term projects is often a difficult task since it is usually very tempting to procrastinate. If you don't have any homework, I strongly encourage you to work on the project, if one has been assigned. There will usually be one for each quarter. Plan ahead for long term projects. Set a goal for what you want to do and break the project into small parts. For example, On Monday, choose what you are going to build. On Tuesday, draw a sketch of what the model will look like. On Wednesday, you can make a list of the materials you will need, so that on Thursday you can go and buy them. All that’s left is to build the project on Friday! Remember, small bites! For further information about projects, please refer to handouts given in class and visit my class folders. Remember that for projects that are turned in late, 10% will be subtracted from the project’s final grade for each class date that the project is not turned in. Exit Cards: There are four things you can included on your bi-weekly exit cards to show what you have learned and what you still need help with. Draw diagrams. Give examples. Explain how to do something. Make connections to things outside of school or to things you’ve learned before. Exit cards don't have to be long, just specific and detailed. Here are some examples that might help. (example-1, example-2, example-3, example-4, example-5, example-6, example-7). Binders: The 6th grade science & math binders are checked once each quarter to see if they are organized and useable as reference tools. Please organize your binders chronologically and repair them when needed. By doing the following, you will have a good binder. Keep papers in order. Use the front & back of papers when it makes sense. Include all papers and copies given by me to you. Copy the daily class questions. Write the date for each class so information is easier to find. Copy review questions so you can study them later. Print out whiteboard pictures and include them in your notes. Keep the papers neat and organized. Write detailed notes, even if it means staying a few minutes after class to get everything down. Much of what is done in class is not in your textbook.