Throughout the day in Humanities, scholars are given the opportunity to teach their peers in a small group setting. Research shows that when young brains learn something new, they will remember 90% of that new knowledge if they get to teach it after they learn it. This shared leadership also holds all scholars accountable for the success of their group. Recently, we began our unit study on Ancient Greece and the causes of the Trojan War. Scholars were asked to research and present one part of the sequence of the Trojan War. They embraced the assignment with so much enthusiasm. I was happy to see so many scholars presenting as if they were an expert on the subject. Teachers in training! 

Recently the sixth grade class visited the California Science Center in Los Angeles. At the California Science Center our 6th graders were able to engineer roller coasters and rockets! It was a day of learning, discovery, problem solving and teamwork! 

In Humanities it's all about the culture of growing academically and socially together. Throughout the day, scholars are experiencing the benefit of this research based method of teaching. The benefits of being a member of a cooperative and collaborative group are numerous. Whether it's pairs, trios or groups, scholars are improving in critical thinking,  problem solving, communication, and social skills. Scholars are constantly engaged and look forward to this time in class. Recently, scholars have worked together to answer important questions like "How did the Nile River shape Ancient Egypt?" and "As writers, why is Informative writing necessary for academic life and real life?" Scholars have been working together to create online assessments that can be used by anyone around the world. They have participated in group challenges as a way to understand and implement Figurative Language in their writing, and they even take part in cooperative learning activities that challenge their listening and direction giving skills. Each day in Humanities, scholars are accessing rigorous content, but doing it with others who help, support, and encourage them. We are a learning community ready for 2020! 

Fifth grade scholars finished their unit on the American Revolution with a lively and interactive competition. The Walk Through the American Revolution competition brought out the best in these scholars. They each reinacted an important character during colonial and revolutionary times. They performed famous battle scenes like The Battle at Yorktown and The Battle of Trenton. They competed in head to head knowledge speed rounds, and they showed their expertise in historical concepts. 
I want to give a huge thank you to all of the families that came out to support their scholar and those who worked so hard to make sure their scholar came to the competition dressed to compete! Congratulations to you all! 

In celebration of this year's Winter Elective Festival, each classroom across the Scholarship Prep campus, fantastically decorated their doors in hopes of capturing first prize. UCLA scholars got in touch with their inner elves and created one amazing Elf on the Shelf themed door! They did such a wonderful job creating every detail, from the tiny elf mittens, to the three dimensional tree, to the custom, elective themed tree ornaments. I'm so proud of them for their creativity and winning first place! 

Today we celebrated our fabulous scholars who demonstrated exemplar attendance, citizenship, character traits, and academics. A huge thank you to the families who help guide and encourage these future leaders to be the best they can be!
We are so excited to see the same scholars, plus many more earning awards next semester. We will continue to reach higher and dream bigger! 

A big congratulations to these to exemplary scholars!
Ashley Mijangos shows her fellow classmates what COOPERATION looks like every day. She is able to take on any challenge given to her. She is always ready to help others and can be counted on to volunteer for projects and cooperative learning leader.
Jorge Hernandez has shown so much growth in his ability to show self control. He is an engaged and focused learner in Humanities. I'm so excited to see his success this year! 

In preparation for our role as Historical Detectives answering DBQs, (Data Based Questioning), we spent part of the week learning about Primary and Secondary Sources. One activity scholars participated in was a team building board game where scholars had to decide what was a Primary and what was a Secondary source. By the end of our time together, every scholar could correctly identify each source with 100% accuracy.

Rubrics provide scholars with valuable information about the degree of which a specific learning outcome has been achieved. They provide students with concrete feedback that displays areas of strength and areas in need of improvement. Scholars can use this feedback as a tool to further develop their abilities.
This week scholars worked in cooperative pairs to unpack their Narrative writing rubric before the Narrative Writing Assessment. Scholars looked at each category and highlighted areas of improvement to their writing, and areas they have mastered in their writing. 
The rubric conversations were both enlightening and powerful as pairs spent time discussing how to use them to improve their writing. 

Over the last four weeks, all 6th grade scholars have been diving into three major ancient civilizations: Egypt, Greece and Rome. Each scholar was given an important character from those civilizations to portray, as well as expert words to know. The scholars were put into civilization teams where they created original skits that educated an audience on Daily Life during their civilization. 
This week they brought their best and took part in a 3 hour interactive competition. I was blown away by their costumes, reinactments,  and commitment to their teams. Thank you parents for your help at home and for coming to root your child on. It was a day for the history books!