Join the 6th Grade

Join the 6th Grade at a new blog! 

6th Grade studied what life is like in South Sudan. Each student created a day in the life of an imagined girl living in South Sudan, and detailed the day in a series of posts. Check them out at:

A Day in My Life in South Sudan

8th Grade studied US expansion overseas from the 1850s to the 1940s. We created annotated Timelines by researching the date, location and manner of acquisition. We also investigated whether the inhabitants of occupied territories are US citizens. Then we mapped the locations on the classroom pull-down world map, and together made observations and drew conclusions based on our Timelines and the labeled map. 

Next up, we will conduct in depth examinations about how we acquired Hawaii, territories from the Spanish-American War, and the Panama Canal Zone, and consider the lasting positive and negative effects of American expansion for our country today.

8th Grade + 4th Grade = Cooperative Learning

8th Grade studied the tragic Triangle Shirtwaist Fire of March 25, 1911. After learning about the unsafe conditions in the factory, the fire department's unpreparedness, and the reforms that were inspired by the tragedy, students wrote books aimed at a 4th Grade audience. 

They shared the books with 4th Grade, and then 8th Grade presented a collaboratively-created kahoot interactive quiz with the girls.

Check out 2 video Voter Education Guides produced by Grade 7, on the VIDEO tab at Visitation's Office 365 site...

Clinton-Trump Rap

3-Way Voter Guide Rap

This is it----Election Day (finally!)

The great British Prime Minister, Winston Churchill said...

And, it is true, our democracy is far from perfect. So, We the People must continue to demand the best of our elected leaders. To do that, we have to vote...

And...as John F. Kennedy said, "The efforts of the government alone will never be enough. In the end, the people must choose, and the people must help themselves."

So, when it is your turn, at age 18, I hope you will say...

because...

8th Grade has been in high school prep and testing mode since September, and now is preparing hard for the upcoming TACHS test.

All of the Visitation community's prayers go with you on November 5! Just remember, girls...

Presidential Election 2016

Grade 7 has been examining the issues most important to Americans this election season. They are producing Voter Education Guides--booklet, song, rap, or poem--that laser in on the presidential candidates' stand on 3 selected issues.

10/14

• HW
• Qs 1-7, in 3:1

Grade 5

• We've just begun our study of colonies and colonial life in the Americas. We will look into the actions of Spanish, English, Dutch and French colonists to discover how they settled the land, what they achieved, and how they got along with their Indian neighbors.
  

• Anticipate a Chapter 3 Test on Thursday 10/27

Grades 7 & 8

Candidates and Elections: Making the Choice

Use the following websites to explore the candidates' positions on a variety of issues

• Hillary Clinton
• Donald Trump
• Gary Johnson
• CNN
• New York Times
• Wall Street Journal 
• Washington Post
• USA Today
• Huffington Post

10/3 Grade 5 HW

• Qs, p. 59-60

Grade 5
9/30 HW

• Create a timeline of your life, including at least 4 important events
• model your timeline on the ones found on pp. 42-43, or on the examples below
• use copy/computer paper (no large or poster-sized paper, please)

HW:
9/28

• finish reading 2:2
• Qs 3-9

Gr 5 HW:
TFK due Monday, October 3

Parents and Students,
I can be reached at:

• csantangelo@visitationacademy.net

This is especially useful for 8th Grade families: if you have any questions regarding high school applications, shooting me an email is a great way to get a quick answer. You can also send in a note with your daughter, or leave a message with the office requesting a callback.

The high school admissions process is off to a grand start. Several students have submitted recommendation forms to me, and they have been distributed to their recommenders. Many students have signed up for the TACHS exam, and others have indicated their intention to sit for the SHSAT (specialized public high schools) exam and/or audition. A good idea is to post a calendar, in a handy location in your house, on which you can note down in one place all open houses, exams, and application due dates. 

Eyes on the Prize

There is still plenty of time to get things done... but we all know how quickly due dates creep up on us, so I encourage you to do what needs done now rather than later!

A Renewed Welcome!

I am DELIGHTED to return to my blog, VA Destinations 2, and through it, to welcome students and families back to Visitation Academy. I look forward to getting to know my new students, and their families, too! The classroom is open and ready to go...

Topics begun today include:

• Grade 8: Settling the American West--Whose Land Is It Anyway? 
  
  
  

  

  The same view of The Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, Wyoming, seen in a painting by Thomas Moran, 1872, and a personal photo, taken during Summer 2016

• Grade 7: Locations of Native Groups: in preparation for the study of the early colonists and their relations with the original occupants of the land, we viewed a map locating the major Indian groups (again, the essential question to ask is "Whose Land Is It Anyway?").
  

• Grade 6: Basics of Geography: Elements of the Globe, using hands-on mini globes