Duck Dollars
By: Jonathan
Back in the day (A.k.a. a few months ago) we used Duck Dollars in my classroom for a few reasons. One reason why we used Duck Dollars was to earn as much as we could because our awesome teacher, Mrs.Dessert, said there would be a prize at the end. It was not easy earning Duck Dollars because if we were not following the rules we could lose a lot. I think having fun earning the Duck Dollars was the last reason why we used them (J.K) the real reason why we used Duck Dollars was to have them for when the Ducks win. So that is why we had Duck Dollars and how we enjoyed having them.
DIVIDING FRACTIONS
By: Alexis
One interesting thing we do during math is (DIVIDING FRACTIONS)!!! When you are dividing fractions if you divide a larger fraction by a smaller one, your answer would be more than one. If you divide a smaller fraction by a larger fraction, you get an answer that is less than one. What I did in one of my math problems with my group had to divide 9 pieces of licorice between 5 kids.We first saw that each kid could get one whole piece.There were 4 pieces left and we cut them into fifths.Then each kid got ⅘ of the pieces and at the end each kid got 1 ⅘ or on a calculator 1 8/10.
Portland Gear Visits
(Aka Mrs Dessert's Brother)
By: Radimir
Have you ever wondered what we do in sixth grade? Well one thing we did in sixth grade a couple of months ago was Marcus (Mrs.Dessert's brother) came in and told us about his graphic designs, t shirt company, and how he tries to sell them in stores.This is what he did was he gave us a paper with a shirt drawing of the front and the back of the shirt. He also told us to think about who would you want to wear our shirt, for example like famous people. Then we added color to our shirts to make our own design, and also put some words on the shirt. Then when we were done we could volunteer to show it to the class. When everybody was done he had a surprise for us.Do you know what it was? Well let me tell you, it was a free shirt he designed that says Mahalo, for Marcus Mariota from the Ducks. So that is one thing we did in sixth grade.
LEARNING ABOUT THE
HOLOCAUST
HOLOCAUST
by the one and only Jerry
Since Winter break we have learned about a lot of things that may be interesting or may not. One thing I am sure that will interest you, because it interested me, is learning about the Holocaust. We learned that the Nazis and the Japanese both had the same goal, ruling a larger area. The Nazis were probably the biggest threat to the world though. They believed that Jews and non blonde and blue eyed people were insignificant to the human race along with people that had handicaps or were troubled. As soon as they were in control of a country fully, they would start to take those people. Where do you ask? To death camps and other work camps to be brutally beaten for no reason with very little food. Then when they were too old or too weak they would kill them in various different ways I care not to mention in this writing.
Number the Stars
By: Ricardo
We did many things before Winter break like bridges and presentations, but after Winter break we also did many things. One thing we did after Winter break was we read Number the Stars and answered questions about each chapter in a packet when we were done reading it. Also, we occasionally did a group discussion about the book and about what was happening in it so far. The book was about a girl in the Holocaust who was not a Jew, but was helping her friend who was a Jew try to escape. Sometimes we read all together or listened to it a followed along, but usually kids read the book by themselves or listened to it with headphones. When we were done with each packet, we turned it in and got a new one that had different questions for the next few chapters. If you weren't done with the packet you would take it home or finish it in class. Some kids found it fun and interesting but others might not have. But altogether it was a fun way to learn about the Holocaust and I wouldn't mind doing something like that again.
Alter Wiener's Story
By: Laura
By: Laura
Alter Weiner is a Holocaust survivor! It’s incredible that we got to hear his amazing story about how he survived in Poland. He taught us about his struggle, how he couldn’t eat, was forced to work, and how hard it was for him to not have a family anymore. But it wasn’t always like this.
It began in Poland when he was just a boy. His family would have people who didn’t have a home and people who weren't as fortunate as they were over for dinner and they would celebrate the Sabbath dinner. Alter and his family even walked on the streets and fed people!
But that joy and happiness didn’t last so long ,because on September 1, 1939 the Germans invaded Poland. Alter went on to explain that things would never be the same again. The Germans (Nazis) broke into people's stores. But not just any people it seemed like at the time, hating everyone would have been less of a struggle. But no, the Germans strictly hated the Jews, bisexuals, Catholics, gypsies, and the disabled. The Jews seemed like they had it worse.
It wasn’t long until Alter was taken away from his own family. He had to work in a concentration camp but some hope was still in him and he knew he was going to get out. Maybe not today, tomorrow, or even next week, but someday.
Alter suffered through many tons of petrifying experiences like he was beaten badly. But he also explained that there was a woman who gave him food. She wasn't just an ordinary woman, she was a German woman. And what really surprised Alter was that a German woman fed him when both Alter and the woman knew that it was dangerous. Then and there Alter realized the most important lesson that helped him through life. "Not all Germans are Nazis".
Soon, he was free to go. His family was no longer there for him, and he knew he'd never see them again, sadly. He told us how hard it was to get up every single morning and realize that you're all alone. You have no family, cousins, aunts, uncles, brothers, sisters, and parents. He felt like the war had taken everything from him and Alter was all alone. Alter was very specific about how when he took a shower he saw his scars and wasn't proud of them. It haunted him for years, his mind wasn't clear by the terror he'd gone through. But that didn't let that stop him from becoming successful. His reason for writing his books was because this man had asked him to share his extraordinary story. And so he did.
By Mikey
Lately, students have been getting bored of Edmodo. Many students thought Edmodo was too hectic. Everything changed once Mrs.Dessert introduced Schoology to our class. Schoology is basically Edmodo, but more organized. It is easier to check if you have missing work. Schoology also allows you to see your course grade or how good you are doing in certain subjects.
Did I mention you can also take testscon Schoology?!? Schoology allows you not only to check on your progress, it helps you take tests. Everybody has to love computer test more than writing. Our class took the Number the stars test on Schoology. I actually have to admit, It was a FUN test. I’m not the only one who thought that too.
I am going to end this saying...SCHOOLOGY IS AMAZING!!! IT obviously changed our learning in a better and more organized way. It is what we have been using lately and we all enjoy it.
Color-That-Wheel!
by Crystal
Blue and yellow makes green! Red and yellow makes orange! Our class has been learning about where we should get our information from, about types of sources, and if it’s reliable or not. We made color wheels, and we first had only three colors. They were primary colors, red, blue, and yellow. They were pure colors that couldn’t be changed. For example, just like when you have a diary that someone wrote it’s pure information because the writing was from the person and was not copied.
We then mixed yellow and blue paint which made the color green. We also mixed red and yellow and those two colors made the color orange. Lastly, we mixed red and blue which made the color purple. These three colors were not pure anymore because they got mixed up. If we had this kind of information, it would be called a secondary source because for example, when someone writes a textbook they’re getting the information from somewhere else in order to write the book.
The last source is a tertiary source because the information is told differently and not exactly. We mixed the colors we have made into lighter colors and darker colors because they were the same colors but were changed in some way. For example if a friend comes to you and tells you something happened, and the story repeats to other people, the story could change. It’s like when you are in the internet, the information is not always exact.
I loved just collaborating with my inner-creativity, and I’d love to do something like this with my class again. We love to have fun while we learn and we learned a lot.
-Crystal Araujo
College Learning at Free Orchards
Here in Free Orchards the students and I are learning about lots of colleges throughout the year. I think now that we are starting to learn more, and more about colleges, it’s going to help us kids at Free Orchards to know what college is it that us kids might want to go for college. We also have Mrs. A that helps us learn about lots of different colleges and helps us know what they're like by showing us videos or telling us from what she knows. That's why I think it is very important to have Mrs.A in Free Orchards helping us out by telling us why college is important, and also by saying really cool things so we will want to go to college. This is why it's important to have Mrs.A at Free Orchards telling us why 6th graders should go to college when we are older.
-Kristal
6th grader
Free Orchards Elementary School (Hillsboro District)
Kahoots
by: Alyssa
In all of the minds Kahoot is amazing because of many reason that you will find out. One of the reasons is that there is a fun name or nickname you get to put on like Joshie or Phiona. Kahoot is a quiz game that tests the limit of you smart smart brain with questions like, which team won the national championships last year, what is the capital of Germany, or what is the ratio that is shown? There are themes or subjects like math facts or football or many others too. You have to click or top on a square or many other odd shapes on your device. We have a great time when we learn with Kahoot! 
Math for Ice Cream
by Felicia
I think the math was fun, but the ice cream was a lot better. When we did math facts for ice cream it was a lot of fun because the math facts was really easy for every body in my math class.The ice cream was really good I thought. It was fun that we did math facts for ice cream. There was lots to chose from. Math is fun when you do something fun after you're done doing something heard or tough. 
CNN STUDENT NEWS
Our class uses CNN student news to collaborate with our friends at FreEagleUnion. You can find more about that in the FreEagleUnion Paragraph (by Kylee). CNN Student News is a part of our class's day that we look forward to. It is a great responsibility to keep track of all the important information we absorb from it.
After we finish watching the short ten minute video, we write down three facts, two things we learned, and one or more questions. At the end we have a discussion over at least three of our questions, and we could agree, or disagree, on each other’s opinions or theories. So far we have learned about ISIS, Mall Break-ins, Marathon bombers, Rovers, Security robots, mall drills, that Ebola isn't airborne, and so much more, I can’t remember!
In CNN Student News, there is a roll call section of the video. Our teacher, Mrs. Dessert, has been trying her best to get Free Orchards Elementary into the roll call, but we haven’t had so much luck, yet.
We have been using CNN for at least three weeks so far, and it has been so much fun to learn about it! I hope we can continue to do this throughout the year, because we are learning and having fun at the same time. And trust me, that’s all the parents and teachers want for the kids. To learn in a FUN way.
-Aislynn
6th grader
Free Orchards Elementary School (Hillsboro District)
FreEagle Union
By: Kylee
Over the past few weeks our class has been on FreEagle Union. FreEagle Union is like a classroom but on a computer through Google. It allows us to speak to other students without having to get on a bus and drive over to them.
FreEagle Union is a group of three classes from Free Orchards, Eastwood, And West Union. Inside of this virtual classroom we discuss topics from CNN Student News (More Information by Aislynn) and things that have meaning but also interest us. We have a question given to us that is supposed to be answered every week. Its not just a simple answer either, we have requirements that need to be met. In every response we send out it has to have three sentences or more, complete sentences, correct punctuation, and capitalization.
Having FreEagle Union helps us interact with other students and get their opinion on subjects that we feel strongly about. Everything that is typed and sent out stays on there forever, no comments are deleted, and no posts are deleted either. (posts are things you write), so we need to be careful of what we put on the internet. There are no idle chats allowed(hi;) is an idle chat) as well. FreEagle Union is used only for school purposes. We are not allowed to give out any personal information such as phone numbers, email addresses, social media, etc. FreEagle Union is an overall good site and we enjoy learning this way.
Pi Day
By: Blake
The day before Pi Day (March 14- 3.14) was a great day to have some pie. It started out with the students talking and being loud during math time, but then Mrs.Dessert said it would be Pi Day tomorrow. As nice as she is, she brought us pie. But we only got some pie if we did all of our work. The pies she brought us were apple, blueberry, and peach. She also brought whipped cream for the pies.So during math everyone behaved so they could get some pie at the end. At the end everyone got pie and they didn't forget the whipped cream.
So on the actual Pi Day, this year's Pi Day numbers were 3.1491526. This number is special because it will happen again in 100 years from now. That is not the actual Pi Day though because it was a Friday when we celebrated with pie. But on Saturday it was the real Pi Day. To find Pi you need divide a circle's circumference by its diameter.
Class Dojo
By: Adrian
We use a website called Class Dojo. I think it’s a great website for teachers because you get to earn points and if you get certain amount you win a cool prize. But you can also lose points when the person is doing something off task. Parents can also check in to see how their kids behavior.There is a chart to see what percent is good and bad at the end of the day.You can set a goal for a certain amount of points. If they reach it they can have an award.
March Madness
By: Jocelynne
This month we have been having fun with March Madness and are making brackets for who we think is going to be the winner of the championship. So far the only student that has a perfect bracket is Ricardo. For each team that wins the student will get one, two, or no points.Mrs. Dessert will give the person with the best bracket a prize for it.
We are also having a March Madness Challenge the table groups got to choose which college that they want to represent them. The groups are Kentucky, Kansas, Duke, Harvard, Boise St., and Gonzaga. Each group researched their university and created a Google slides presentation together to share with the class. They are competing for a private lunch with Mrs. Dessert, but if they get five fouls and are eliminated from the competition.
During math we are also using March Madness to learn about how math is used in basketball. We have worked on finding winning percentages as fractions, decimals, and percents. Also we have used statistics and probability to try and figure out the chances of certain teams winning. We have also learned how the Davidson University math students helped the basketball team win many of their games. (Check out the article here: Davidson Basketball)
That is the fun that we have been having in 6th grade using basketball to help us learn.
As you can see, we have been very busy and can't wait for the 4th quarter! State testing is starting soon, so please help prepare your child at home by helping them get plenty of rest, a good breakfast in the morning, at least 30 minutes of reading at home every night, and by giving them lots of positive encouragement! :)
- Mrs Dessert
