CMS Book Club: The Hunger Games

Several Spartan students participated in the first CMS Book Club meeting on Wednesday, January 19, 2011. Students tested their knowledge of the book THE HUNGER GAMES and participated in survival activities. Congratulations to Spencer, winner of the 2011 CMS Hunger Games! Now the only thing the Spartans are HUNGRY for is more Book Club fun!

Winter Fun in Sparta!

Spartan students stayed warm in the January cold by attending the 7th Grade Fun Night, held on Friday, January 14, 2011. Activities included swimming, dodge ball, and basketball.

Persuasive Writing Unit

On Monday, January 24, Spartan students will begin their persuasive writing unit. This unit will begin with explanation and instruction on persuasive writing. Three types of persuasion will be covered in depth. Students will then work in small groups to create a persuasive letter, which will be presented to the class.

Then, we will continue on with persuasion by beginning an editorial about the gods and goddesses. We will research topics in the library and use our new powers of persuasion to create five paragraph essays.

We will also be writing two other five paragraph essays that focus on persuasion. One will require students to persuade the reader that a law should be enforced, and another that will allow students to showcase their favorite vacation spot (real or imaginary) through the creation of a travel brochure and essay.

Microbiologist Speaks to Spartans

Mr. Cochenour, a microbiologist, gave a special presentation to Spartans on Friday, January 14th. Students learned about medical careers in the cell-research field and examined slides using several microscopes. Check out these pictures from the event!

Language Arts: Mythology

Spartan students are reading the myths of ancient Greece to finish the second nine weeks. We will read "In the Beginning" and "After the Earth Appeared," two origin myths that provide important background information on the gods and goddesses. Then, we will read "The Palace of Olympus," to learn all about the personalities and spheres of influence of the Olympian gods. Here are some famous images of the gods. Can you guess who is depicted in each image?

English - Agreement Unit

Spartan students have just started their unit on subject-verb and pronoun-antecedent agreement. This unit will stretch throughout this week, and the test is planned for Tuesday, January 18th.

This will hopefully help the students with their writing, as it will make it clear to them how to construct sentences with proper agreement.

Spartans of the Month: December

Congratulations to Taylor and Randy, our Spartans of the Month for December. Keep up the great work!

Holiday Fun

Spartans enjoyed a festive holiday assembly on December 23rd. With a chill in the air and an exciting basketball game, Spartans said goodbye to 2010.