TA’s Notes:

***Please do not send in any food to be shared among Voyager students***

May 29th : No school (Memorial Day)

June 1st : 5th & 6th grade field trip to Fort Ticonderoga

June 1st - 2nd : 8th grade overnight to Ridin-Hy Ranch

June 7th : ⅚ 10 - 11am Learning Exhibition Open House (parents welcome!)

June 8th - 9th : Voyager House overnight to Camp Abnaki

June 15th- 8th grade Graduation 6:30pm (8th grade dance follows pick-up at 9:45pm)

June 16th: Last Day of School! (11:55am dismissal)

Dance at CVU for incoming 9th graders:

With cooperation from all the CSSU middle schools, CVU is proud to announce the 3rd Annual “Spring Social,” an event meant to bring together the CVU Class of 2021 before the end of eighth grade.

Who: All incoming 9th graders from the towns of Hinesburg, Williston, St. George, Shelburne and Charlotte

What: A DJ’d DANCE and an opportunity to get to know your fellow students of the CVU Class of 2021! This as a fantastic way for you to foster relationships with peers from other sending schools in the district before starting the 9th grade together in the Fall of 2017!

When: Friday, May 26, from  6:30pm → 9:30 pm

Where: CVU “Mini-gym” (upstairs)

Why:  Because you KNOW you want to see who will be joining you at CVU for the next four years. And,  its a great opportunity to make some connections before the start of summer vacation! And, it's a fundraiser for the CVU Senior Class Council. Be there!

Cost: $8 Admission

Snacks and drinks will also  be available for purchase

Casual (but classy!) dress→ this is not a “formal”

Questions? Please contact Michelle Fongemie at mfongemie@cssu..org

The Week in Mr. Merrill’s Room (⅚ Humanities):

This week 5th grade students started reading Holes as their final lit group book and 6th grade students started reading Hoot.

Both 5th & 6th grade students completed a mini unit on how the Constitution was written. They also started to study the origins of Vermont, the Green Mountain Boys, and Fort Ticonderoga in preparation for our field trip there next week.

Permission slip HERE can be turned in by students or scanned & emailed in to our TA at KFieldsend@cssu.org

The Week from Ms. Q’s Room (⅞ Math & Science):

CMP8

We created step-by-step procedures for solving systems of equations.   The methods included using equivalent equations, substituting one equation into the other and eliminating one term in both equations in order to combine them.  Each process works to find a solution where both linear equations have a common coordinate point.  It is always a multi-step process that presumes that you know how to keep equations balanced and how to use the distributive property.  We had a quick formative check-in on Thursday and next week we will work toward preparing for our final assessment.

CMP7

The 7th graders are in the midst of all things linear.  We explored what a y-intercept represents in the context of a problem and looked closely at how slope is formed.  We had a bit of an abridged week with the excellent concert. Students are also forming an understanding of how to solve multi-step algebraic equations.

Science 7th/8th

We had an abridged week this week with 8th grade Challenge presentations.  We began the week with the introduction of our final engineering challenges.  Students will be working to create a solar reflector or oven that will allow them to cook something. (Hotdog? Cookies?)  We read about the push to utilize solar ovens in places like Africa where wood is becoming scarce and the wood smoke harms women and children.  These ovens are built from cardboard and mylar and can help eliminate the need for walking great distances for firewood.  They can cook food thoroughly and purify water so that it can be safe to drink.  Students will be working with a partner to construct and test their ovens for a mini bake-off.

Week of May 15th - 19th

TA’s Notes:

***Please do not send in any food to be shared among Voyager students***

Important Dates

May 25th- 7:30 - 8:10am: Open House for 8th Grade Challenge (parents invited)

May 29th : No school (Memorial Day)

June 1st : 5th & 6th grade field trip to Fort Ticonderoga

June 1st - 2nd : 8th grade overnight to Ridin-Hy Ranch

June 7th : ⅚ 10 - 11am Learning Exhibition Open House (parents welcome!)

June 8th - 9th : Voyager House overnight to Camp Abnaki

June 15th- 8th grade Graduation 6:30pm (8th grade dance follows pick-up at 9:45pm)

June 16th: Last Day of School! (11:55am dismissal)

Community Post:

A Midsummer Night’s Dream

Interested in performing in this classic Shakespearean comedy this summer and exploring the wonders of the imagination?

Description: Two weeks of intensive rehearsals from June 26th-July 7th (Mon.-Sat.) and one week of performances (including indoor, evening performances and outdoor, mid-day performances for the community).

Ages: 12-17

Rehearsals: (June 26th-July 7th)-at the Off Center for the Dramatic Arts

         Monday-Friday, 9:00am-3:00pm

         Saturday, 9:00am-1:00pm (optional fun activities from 1-4)

**no rehearsal July 4th**

Performances: (July 7th-15th)

         Evening shows at 7:00pm, July 7th and 8th (possibly 15th) (at the Off Center for the Dramatic Arts)

​          Mid-day shows July 10th, 11th, 13th, and 14th (various time/locations around Chittenden County)

Auditions: Monday, June 12th at 1:00pm in Williston (other arrangements can be made if necessary)

Tuition: $300/participant ($200 for each additional sibling)

Contact: Lauren Palmer at silverclaw3@yahoo.com with any further questions or to enroll as an actor/actress (please also fill out basic registration form below).

Also see hourglassyouththeatre.weebly. com to check out the company’s previous production, for more information about the company, and for an online basic registration form (for actors)

We are also searching for 2-3 crew members to help with lighting (for evening performances), sets, props, and costumes. We are also looking for an assistant director (upper high school). Please enquire by contacting Lauren Palmer at silverclaw3@yahoo.com.

**sponsored by the Off Center for the Dramatic Arts**

Coder Camp for Girls:

New Coder Day Camp for Girls at Vermont Technical College – Williston Campus – July 17th – 21st – is now open to girls 11 years – 16 years of age..  and we have many full scholarships available thanks to the Vermont Women’s Fund!

http://www.vtc.edu/academics/high-school-students/camps/coder-camp-girls

Trout Release Pictures from last week:

The Week in Mr. Merrill’s Room (⅚ Humanities):

Highlights:

• Book Presentations: Students lead a book talk on an independent reading book.
• Trout Reflections:  Students wrote short essays or personal narratives about their trout week experience.
• Current Events: Finding Fake News - students learned how to analyze and evaluate examples of news stories to determine their credibility and accuracy.
• How did the Framers write our Constitution? That is the question we will be focusing on as we study what unfolded with our government during and after the Revolutionary War. Students will keep a notebook to document their participation in this mini unit.

The Week in Ms. O’s Room (⅚ Math & Science):

Math 5:  Students in 5th grade are closing out their first 6th grade Connected Math Book, Prime Time.  Our last investigation, which we worked on this week, was all about Distributive Property.  Although not a new concept, it is the first time this property has been given a name.  The area model of multiplication is a good example of this property and so when students saw the model again, they realized that they had some skills in Distributive Property already.  The focus of our work this week was to understand Distributive Property when dimensions are unknown.  Really it's a dip into algebra and the next time students will see this idea, they will be working with Quadratics (8th grade).  This introduction is essential for us, at this grade level, because it teachers students about equivalent expressions, and Order of Operations.  Final assessment will take place Wednesday.

Math 6:  Every year I realize just how rich Variables and Patterns is, and how I must hold myself back from all of the skills and concepts of 7th grade!  Variables and Patterns launches students into deep discussions about relationships between variables. Students are filling in tables, graphing and the new focus for the last 6 lessons, equation writing.  There is so much to learn and the students are so curious, that there are moments when I just have to say...there is more to a concept and you will learn it next year.  For now, we are muddling our way through how a table, graph and equation are connected.  We learned the simple generalization, y = mx yesterday, so students have a better sense of why all of the data in this unit, has graphed as a line and that the equation is something all the data sets has had in common.  We have another investigation and will be wrapping up this book by the end of next week.

5/6 Science:  Students began investigations in our new unit, Energy, Forces and Motion, on roller coasters.  Who doesn't like the science of roller coasters?  Students tested 12 pipe insulation roller coasters in order to answer the question, why do some roller coasters allow the marble to run from start to finish and others do not?  It was a lively lesson that then led to a roller coaster challenge of building a roller coaster with a certain set of criteria.  Student loved it!  I'll be finding marbles under book shelves for the next four weeks!

The Week in Mr. G’s Room (⅞ Humanities):

This week in Humanities, we presented our skits portraying important aspects of life between the World Wars. Some students focused on the unresolved issues from seeds First World War that planted the seeds for the second. Others focused on economic conditions or changes in culture and technology. Students researched their topics in groups and then presented their finding to the class via their skits. We also made time in the week for the DRP reading test and the On-Demand writing prompt for 7th graders. In both classes we are opening space up for independent reading. In seventh grade we are reading The Boy in the Striped Pajamas together.

The Week from Ms. Q’s Room (⅞ Math & Science):

CMP8

This week students have been investigating systems of linear equations.  We learned to find the solution of our systems by means of graphing and by creating equivalent linear expressions in the y= mx + b format.  Students were given baggies of 60 m&m’s and jelly beans.  They were tasked with finding out how many of each kind of candy they had based on the mass of the bag, the mass of m&m’s and jelly beans.  This information was used to create two linear equations.  Once we graphed them we were able to find their intersection point and find out exactly how many m&m’s and jelly beans were in the bag.  It was a sweet system of equations.

CMP7

The 7th graders experienced activity-based learning this week.  We divided the class into groups of 4 and had five stations that posed hands-on problems related to finding slope from tables, creating linear patterns with blocks, utilizing online graphing programs to match lines to equations, creating tables from linear equations and played a card game that looked at unit rate.  We finished the week with reteaching ratios and proportions and unit rates. Students took the Comparing and Scaling retake on Friday.

Science 7th/8th

Students completed their science model games.  They created study guides for our end of unit assessment on the flow of energy through the ecosystem.  Although the weather was quite hot, we were able to get out and play different games that modeled photosynthesis, the food web and the Carbon Cycle.  

Week of May 8th - 12th

TA’s Notes:

***Please do not send in any food to be shared among Voyager students***

A HUGE thank you to all families and students who helped make the Voyager Dance & Activity Night a big success!!  

Voyager made $1,269.30 which is what we needed for the entire house to go on the Camp Abnaki overnight, plus a little more!  (The more will pay for lunch the 2nd day at Abnaki- yay!)

We are so happy to have such supportive families who really stepped up and helped make this a great night for dance attendees and the younger grade school kids.  We had many concessions to sell (the leftovers are being saved for snacks at Abnaki), the dance had a great Cinco de Mayo flare with the decorations and the chaperones were key in providing supervision, entertainment & doing the work to raise the money for our house.  Students stepped up as leaders and everyone pulled together.  THANK YOU!

Important Dates

May 25th- 7:30 - 8:10am: Open House for 8th Grade Challenge (parents invited)

May 29th : No school (Memorial Day)

June 1st : 5th & 6th grade field trip to Fort Ticonderoga

June 1st - 2nd : 8th grade overnight to Ridin-Hy Ranch

June 7th : ⅚ 10 - 11am Learning Exhibition Open House (parents welcome!)

June 8th - 9th : Voyager House overnight to Camp Abnaki

June 15th- 8th grade Graduation 6:30pm (8th grade dance follows pick-up at 9:45pm)

June 16th: Last Day of School! (11:55am dismissal)

Voyager House would like to thank the families who made Teacher Appreciation Week a special time in the school this week.  The treats we enjoyed and went home with Friday were especially sweet!!

The Week in Mr. Merrill’s Room (⅚ Humanities):

Trout Week Highlights

• Read alouds and short stories about trout and fishing.
• Fish Art - Japanese Fish Printing, Wire Fish Cultures, Stained Glass Fish, Fish Bone Collage
• Fishing Ethics - A Scavenger Hunt for Laws and Regulations in the VT Fishing Guide
• Videos on Vermont Fish Hatcheries and the Fish Lift at the Salmon Hole
• A SImulation and Role Play on a city council meeting decision to build a dam on a local river
• Lure Making
• Fly and Spin Casting
• Field Trip - Fish Release, Nature Hike, Fishing, and Water Chemistry
• 
  

Many  thanks to Bryan Davis and Paul Zuchowski for teaching our fly casting sessions!

Thanks to Erika White for leading our trout art activities!

Thanks to all of our chaperons who attended our fish release field trip!

The Week in Mr. G’s Room (⅞ Humanities):

This week in Humanities we worked on our Historical Skits. We reviewed plot diagrams and brainstormed how to fit an exciting story about a real event into 3 to 7 minutes. We began reading The Boy in the Striped Pajamas together, and discussed as a group ways that we can make reading fun and exciting for the incoming 7th graders. Some ideas that came up were expanding the classroom library and getting more bean bag chairs. Students also mentioned that it’s easier to read after lunch. Eighth grade students worked on writing their memories of other students, and 7th graders worked on a secret project that will be revealed at the class camping trip.

The Week from Ms. Q’s Room (⅞ Math & Science):

CMP8

We began the week exploring the difference between Standard and Slope-Intercept form of linear equations.  We practiced moving from one form to the other.  We also began exploring how to graph Standard Form equations and what each point represents.  Our work was abridged due to Science NECAP testing.

CMP7

This week 7th graders had a fairly abridged math class due to the 8th grade Science NECAP testing.  We began the week looking at tables to discern whether it was linear or non-linear. We investigated negative slope and played a matching game with tables, graphs and rules.  We finished out the week with completing investigation 1 in, “Moving Straight Ahead”.

Science 7th/8th

Science class was also abridged this week due to NECAPS. Teams worked to complete their “Flow through the Energy” models and we had the opportunity to go out and play games that represent concepts like “predator/prey, food webs, the “Carbon Cycle”, symbiosis, photosynthesis, flow of energy and mass through the ecosystem. 

Week of May 1st - 5th

TA’s Notes:

***Please do not send in any food to be shared among Voyager students***

May 5th : Voyager Dance & Activity Night Fundraiser

Spread the WORD!!!!

May 9th and 10th: 8th Grade Science NECAP testing.

May 12th : 5th & 6th grade Trout Release @ Lewis Creek and Fishing @ Lake Iroquois

May 29th : No school (Memorial Day)

June 1st : 5th & 6th grade field trip to Fort Ticonderoga

June 1st - 2nd : 8th grade overnight to Ridin-Hy Ranch

June 7th : ⅚ 10 - 11am Learning Exhibition Open House (parents welcome!)

June 8th - 9th : Voyager House overnight to Camp Abnaki

June 16th: Last Day of School!

Planning to attend at least one Lake Monsters game this summer?  Purchase a ticket through the FAP fundraiser for $7 each and attend any game all season!

Lake Monster Game Order Form

Info for all 8th graders!!

Save the Date: FRIDAY May 26th, 2017

With cooperation from all the CSSU middle schools, CVU is proud to announce the 3rd Annual “Spring Social,” an event meant to bring together the CVU Class of 2021 before the end of eighth grade.

Who: All incoming 9th graders from the towns of Hinesburg, Williston, St. George, Shelburne and Charlotte

What: A DJ’d DANCE and an opportunity to get to know your fellow students of the CVU Class of 2021! This as a fantastic way for you to foster relationships with peers from other sending schools in the district before starting the 9th grade together in the Fall of 2017!

When: Friday, May 26, from  6:30pm → 9:30 pm

Where: CVU “Mini-gym” (upstairs)

Why:  Because you KNOW you want to see who will be joining you at CVU for the next four years. And,  its a great opportunity to make some connections before the start of summer vacation! And, it's a fundraiser for the CVU Senior Class Council. Be there!

Cost: $8 Admission

Snacks and drinks will also  be available for purchase

Casual (but classy!) dress→ this is not a “formal”

Questions? Please contact Michelle Fongemie at mfongemie@cssu..org

BREAKOUT!!!

The Friday before April break, students participated in “LockBox Challenges” and had a lot of fun!  One group was able to break out! A big shout out to Ms. Sherman and Ms. Fieldsend for all their hard work putting together this whole-house activity! What a fun and challenging way to be sent off on vacation.

5th & 6th grade parents!  Student Teacher Gifts - Our incredible student teacher, David Maika, is finishing up his internship on Voyager. David has been an asset to our team! If your child would like to give him a small gift for the teacher’s bag we have purchased, they are welcome to bring it in. Mrs. Fieldsend is the collector. Ideas for the bag are items all teachers need in their new classrooms (coffee mug, Starbucks cards, water bottle, mints, cool pens/pencils/markers, post-it notes, chocolate, any organizers and Advil). The small gifts are meant to be fun! Mr. Maika doesn’t know about this bag yet; it will be a surprise that we’ll give him at a celebratory party on Friday, May 19th.  If you are able to help, we are in need of napkins, small plates, cups, forks, drinks, cookies, chips, fruit, or any other treats.

8th Grade Celebration Night

Hosted by: Ms. Sherman

I am continuing a Voyager tradition of sending off the 8th grade class with a classy affair. I have given students two dates: May 19th and June 12th as possible dates for this “secret” event. All students know is that they need to come in somewhat semi-formal attire and I will take care of the rest! The event is only possible and more fun when the entire 8th grade attends. Please encourage your son or daughter to attend. This event will only happen if at least 80% of the 8th grade class is in attendance. This tradition is in its 6th year and I am really looking forward to ending their year on a positive celebratory note. Behavior/permission slips will go out next week, but knowing which date works better for students is key. There is a sign-up in the Voyager Kiva for students.  

The Week in Mr. Merrill’s Room (⅚ Humanities):

SBAC testing took up most of our week, but we did manage to read an interesting Scholastic News magazine celebrating Earth Day. We used an article on Climate Change to learn how to determine how the author’s purpose shapes the content and style of the story. We did this by looking at certain choices the author made and questioning those choices. We also had a lively and fun debate on banning plastic bags.

Next week is Trout Week! A whole week dedicated to the world of trout. Fishing stories, read alouds, fish art, aquatic ecology, habitat management, angler ethics and hands on fishing experience (fly and spin fishing) at school and at Lake Iroquois. We will be releasing our brook trout in Lewis Creek in Starksboro on Friday. Permission slips will be sent home on Monday. Our trout are growing so fast!

The Week in Ms. O’s Room (⅚ Math & Science):

Math 5:  SBAC!

Math 6:  SBAC!

⅚ Science:  Monday, students learned about the difference between physical and chemical change and on Friday, participated in a circus to investigate these changes.  What do you know about physical and chemical changes? Words from students...

The Week in Mr. G’s Room (⅞ Humanities):

We are wrapping up our Social Studies content this year by looking at the period after WWI and leading up to WWII. Students worked in groups on timelines following particular trends they found in between the wars, for example, women’s rights or the rise of fascism. Students are now working on writing and performing short skits to teach their classmates about important events that took place during this time.

The Week from Ms. Q’s Room (⅞ Math & Science):

CMP8

We began the week with a general review of functions and their transformations.  We learned a few new tools in order to graph equations using the vertex form and ways to figure out what the “a” or coefficient of a graphed parabola.  We had a quick game of Jeopardy and took a leveled assessment.  Leveled assessments clearly marks learning targets levels 1-4 on the question.   After completing the tests we began our final unit of the year.....”It’s in the System”.  We learned about solving equations with two unknown variables.  Such as 5x +10y = 50.  We created tables and graphed our results.

CMP7

The week began with students completing their “Comparing and Scaling Unit Test”.  We began “Moving Straight Ahead” a unit on solving linear equations.  We did a walking rate lab where students found their average walking rate for 25 meters.  We then extrapolated our data to find out how long it would take us to walk 1000 meters and then a mile.  We learned how to convert our unit rate of meters per second to miles per hour.  We saw some pretty fancy walking styles!

Science 7th/8th

This week we began with learning about the introduction of gray wolves into Yellowstone Park.  We learned about a term called “Trophic Cascade” and how the wolf population dramatically changed the ecosystem in the park! (For the better)

https://pixabay.com/en/wolf-european-wolf-european-wolves-1384036/

From there we played a simulation/game that showed how the gray wolf population changes when man does and doesn’t interfere.  This dice game allowed us to simulate a year in the life of a gray wolf pack and how different impacts like disease, food shortages and surpluses, and other factors affected the population. This was all done with a roll of the dice.  Playing the game allowed us to see how a simulation/game works to teach a scientific concept.  We then began working on our own modeling games.  Please see Google Classroom for the specifics on our “Flow of Energy” simulations.