Posted 4-25-12
TRIP TO EUROPE OPPORTUNITY!!!

Hello Everyone,

     I am writing to you to make one last pitch for the tour of Europe next summer. This truly is a once in a lifetime opportunity to see three countries, several cities and create memories for a lifetime. I have some information from the meeting last night, in case you wanted to go but missed it. I know the cost may seem like a burden but to do this same trip on your own would be more than double for just one person. I was lucky enough to do something like this when I was in middle school and it had a positive and lasting effect on me and who I became. I encourage you to look into making this work for your child because I know what an amazing time they will have.

Posted 3-21-12

Hello Everyone,
     I wanted to remind you that the Benchmark III test is this Monday, March 26th. The students have a review for the test that they should be working on both here and at school. Please help the students by ensuring they do not just copy the answers from the friend and that they review the answers once they are done. Due to MAP testing the Benchmark III grade will be added to the fourth nine weeks grades. This means the first grade going into the grade book for the fourth nine weeks will be a major assessment that cannot be corrected, it is vital the students do well. As I always tell the students it is much easier to maintain a good grade than it is to bring up a bad one. 
     I also wanted to share with you some data points I came up with for the third nine weeks. There was a slight decline in grades following the last data collection when we finished the Medieval Europe unit. That being said, the overall performance of the students improved upon the progress they made in the second nine weeks. 53% of students earned an A, that is a 5% increase over the second nine weeks and 9% over the first nine weeks! (This data also reflects the grades BEFORE the MAP incentive, so the results will actually improve from here before the grades are officially sent to the district) I am very proud of my students and I thought you should know just how incredibly well they are doing. I have attached (link) the full data report to this e-mail if you would like to see more information.
     Based on this information I have no doubt the students are going to do an EXCELLENT job on the Benchmark III test, but just to be sure, please encourage your children to study hard and try hard on the test. Have a fantastic rest of the week, please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or concerns.

Posted 2-5-12

Hello Parents and Guardians,
    My wife and I will be checking into the hospital today (Sunday) at 5pm so that she can be induced into labor. I will be out for two weeks, returning Tuesday February 21st (due to presidents day on the 20th). To prepare for my absence I made a short project for the students to work on with the sub while I am out. Attached are the various options the students have as well as rubrics for the project (.doc on the instructions and two .doc rubrics). You can also find these items, as well as additional resources for the project, are located on my website under the tab "Medieval Europe Research." The project its self will be due Tuesday February 21st. The students will receive the same project information in class, but I wanted to make sure you all were aware of the project since I will be out and it will be worth five major assessments. I will not be able to update my website while I am out but after the first few days I will check my e-mail periodically. Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or concerns, but please understand I may not be able to respond as quickly as I usually do.

Posted 1-31-12

Hello Everyone!
     I apologize for not updating my website recently. I have not had a computer for the last two days due to the system refresh so I could not update the grade book or the website. I have entered in all of the grades that I have taken since last Friday, so you should see those now. Make up work was turned in I also collected the daily questions from last week. You should also see assignment # 8 up. Most students finished today (they had the entire class yesterday and today to work on it) as they finished I checked their work and put their grade in. If their is no grade then it was not finished in class and it is now homework (that is why it is not an NHI, technically it is not due until tomorrow, if it is not turned in tomorrow the blank will become an NHI). I have attached the assignment to this e-mail. I will update the website after I send this e-mail out to you all. Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns.

Posted 1-18-12

Hello again everyone!
     Earlier in the week I sent home the numbers on class performance overall. Again, the students did a fantastic job the second nine weeks, especially those students who received Ds in the first nine week, many of whom raised their grade to a C or a B in the second nine weeks. Below you will see the layout of the class performance. While, as I pointed out, the second nine weeks saw overall improvement from the students, closer analysis shows that there was a drop in the second half of the nine weeks. The averages were better following the Greece unit, but dropped back down by the time we finished Rome. Part of the blame, I am sure, lays on it being the holiday season and the excitement that comes with that for sixth graders. The biggest culprit, however, is a drop in students turning in assignments. I want to emphasize that overall the second nine weeks saw improvement from the majority of students and they should be very proud of themselves, deserving your praise! I also wanted to make you aware of the trend that began in the second half of the nine weeks so we can keep an eye on student progress and ensure they get peak performance and the best possible grade to reflect that performance. I would love to see the third nine weeks end with the numbers we saw at the end of the Greece unit. Please let me know if you ever have any questions or concerns, keep an eye on the calendar to help the students keep up with the class. Have a great day!

Posted 12-12-11
Hello Everyone,
    I wanted to pass along some information about this week that I also shared with my students. As of right now I have scheduled to watch a video on the Roman Empire on Thursday and Friday. This is due in part to the fact that we are finishing up Rome and will review then have the benchmark test for the second nine weeks when we come back. I do not want to over test the students so I am forgoing a final test on Rome and rolling it into the second Benchmark.
     I do not, however, want to wait until the Benchmark to find out students did not adequately learn the materials. Rome is an especially important subject, especially with how much we got from them. If the students do not do well on the benchmark then it is too late to go back, review, re-teach or make corrections because the nine weeks will be over. If students are getting their assignments (both future and missing) turned in, then I will have a good handle on what the students are learning and can adjust my lessons accordingly. If students are NOT doing their work then there is no way to determine how much they are learning or how well they are comprehending the information. If the students are not turning in their work then Thursday I will have a review, and on Friday there will be a test. That will show me what I need to go back over when we get back to ensure they are learning the materials.
     I want to emphasize that a test is not a penalty, simply a way of measuring the students progress, it also gives the students a chance to make corrections and learn from mistakes. If students do not do their work then I have to use a test  to evaluate their progress. If they are getting their work turned in and I have a sufficient read on what they understand and what to review before the Benchmark, then I will forgo the test, allowing the students fewer tests to contend with.
    I graded any and all make-up work I had as of this evening (12/12/11 @ 6:33 pm) as well as the daily questions for last week (12/5-12/9) so the grade book is currently up to date as much as it can be. Please take a look and see if your child is missing anything and visit my website to help them catch up. Please also encourage your child to get a BUG pass or ask for help if they need any assignments and cannot get them at home, or if there is anything they do not understand.
    Thank you for taking the time to read this lengthy e-mail, please let me know if you have any further questions or concerns. If not please have a wonderful and safe break, a Merry Christmas and a happy holiday!



Posted 11-29-11

Hello Everyone!
     Below you will see a chart showing the students growth over the unit for Ancient Greece. The students all did a great job! As you may recall, I told the classes that the class with the most improvement over the first nine weeks will get doughnuts! After a lot of hard work from a lot of students, SEVENTH PERIOD improved the most with an increase of their average by 2% and the number of As by 32%!!! That is phenomenal, but all the students deserve our praise for doing such a good job. At the end of the nine weeks, I will do doughnuts for the class that has the highest overall average. Second period is in the lead now but both first and seventh periods are close behind! Sixth period also did well, please note that there are two students who pulled the average down, the true average of sixth period (without the two lowest grades) would be an 89%, which is an improvement of 1%. Again great job by all!!!
     Please note that we spent the last two days working on a textbook assignment that is due tomorrow. I have attached the assignment to this e-mail in case it is missing. Please help me ensure the students are keeping up this phenomenal work through this next unit on Rome. Keep an eye on the calendar, daily questions, and table of contents on my website to help your child succeed! Great job again, if you have any questions feel free to e-mail me. Again, see below for the overall performance of the classes.

Posted 11-28-11

Hello Parents and Guardians,
     Today we started a new unit on Rome. I cleaned out the students social studies section so they no longer should have any papers pertaining to Greece in their notebook. 
     Last Tuesday I threw away over 70 papers with no name on them. It breaks my heart to throw away the hard work of the students, but if no one claims the paper by the end of a unit, I throw it away, after all, they cannot turn in work on Greece after the unit test.
     In an effort to help the students track their papers and notice if they don't get one back, I am going to be pushing hard on organization. Over the next three weeks I will periodically do notebook checks to ensure they are staying organized and keeping up with their papers. They will either get a 100 or a zero, as they are either keeping organized or not. The good news is that if they get a zero, and then on the next check they get a 100, the previous zero will be raised to a 100. Hopefully this will encourage the students to stay organized which will then help their grades as there will be fewer missing, lost, or unclaimed papers. If you want to know how things should look, just visit my website and see the table of contents page. 
     I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving break! As always, please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or concerns.

Posted 11-14-11

Hello Parents and Guardians,
     After finishing the research project, the students grades were through the roof, and they continue to be high. As a result, I think some students felt that they were doing so well, they could scoot by without doing some of the work that has followed. There has been a precipitous drop in the number of students turning in work, and a large increase in incomplete and inaccurate work. Second and sixth periods actually have lower averages than the final grades after the first nine weeks and first and seventh period are coming close, this despite a reward for the class that improves the most. I know these students are capable of doing a great job, but they are making the choice not to. Please keep an eye on the parent portal and your child's grade to ensure they are keeping up. Remember, the unit test is just a week away and after Tuesday November 22nd, no missing assignments from the unit on Greece will be accepted. Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns.

Posted 11-14-11 (Research Class)

Hello Parents,
     This is Mr. Irvin, your child's research class teacher. Since the start of the second nine weeks we have been doing research for a Model UN project. Tomorrow the students will start presenting their country. For the project the students have done a remarkable job creating a tri-fold as a visual aid for their presentations. In addition the students are giving three minute speeches for each country. There are three people per group and each group is giving three speeches. One speech will be general information about their country, the second will be the major problem facing their country, and the third will address what they would do to fix their problem if the UN voted to give their country aid. The students are doing a great job, but to ensure everyone is ready I am asking for your help. If you could ask your child about their speech tonight, maybe even ask to hear it, just to ensure all the students do well and are ready to present. some students also struggle speaking in front of their peers and it may do them a lot of good to practice in front of you first. There will be three presentations a day for the rest of the week, with just one presentation on Friday. Some students will also be brining in food from their country to share with the class for extra credit. These students have been working really hard and thus far I have been very impressed. Have a great week, and please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or concerns.

Posted 11-4-11

Hello Everyone!!!
     I have some great news to start off your weekend. The projects were all just AWESOME! I cannot wait to see the papers they write in English with all this great research they now have. The grades are up for you to see on the Portal. After entering the project grades and today's video notes the averages in each class are as follows; 1st: 99%, 2nd: 98%, 6th: 96%, and 7th: 102%. This is absolutely PHENOMENAL!!! Especially when you consider there are only five grades in the grade book which makes averages a bit shaky since one poor grade can have such an adverse affect on the average. I am SO proud of these students for doing such a great job on what is a really difficult skill to master. Have an excellent weekend everyone, your children definitely deserve some praise this weekend.

Posted 11-3-11

Hello Everyone!
     The students have done a fantastic job on the research project. A few students did not quite finish the outlines for the project and I wanted to make sure that you knew, so you could check your child's work to make sure they are done. The purpose of the outline is to get their facts in order so there is a sense of flow and logic to the information they found. The outline will also act as a rough draft for their paper in English. I cannot accept late work on this project because in reality, they are not actually done, they have only finished the research portion. I must grade the social studies portion of the project this weekend and pass on the folders to the English teachers so they can begin with writing the paper. The students cannot be late because then they would not be able to participate in the English portion of the project. Please help me ensure we get 100% of the projects done this evening and handed in today. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me. Have a great evening!

Posted 10-24-11

Hello Parents and Guardians,
     Congratulations on surviving the first nine weeks of sixth grade! Your students have done a fantastic job so far and I only see improvements from here. Below you will see the final tally of the students performance in each class, and overall. If you visit the PowerSchools website you can see your child's individual performance, or wait until the report cards go home.

     I feel that most grades will go up in the second nine weeks as most students who were in the B range just below A were there because of mistakes made during the first unit as they learned what it means to be a middle schooler. That being said, the pace will also begin to pick up as we move into the second nine weeks. You will start to hear less from me as the responsibility moves more to the students. As always, everything we do will also be posted on my website if you or your child ever needs help catching up or keeping up. 
     The research project continues to go exceptionally well, I may even have to move up the due date as many students are well beyond the minimum requirements of two facts a day. I must say I am extremely impressed with the progress on the research project, though after seeing the first nine weeks grades, perhaps I should not be surprised. You have sent us some truly remarkable students and I cannot wait to see how they improve through out the year. Have a great week, and please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any further questions or concerns.

Posted 10-20-11

Hello Everyone,
     All I can say is WOW! The first day of research has gone wonderfully, I do not think there has ever been such a smooth start to this project. What I saw today was some really great work by the students. 
     I also want to remind you, and if you could remind your child as well, that there are ten days set aside to find the information needed for this project. That means they have ten days to find sixteen facts. So if the students average two facts a day in class, they are doing an excellent job. Doing research and finding GOOD information (as opposed to just 16 random facts) takes time and a lot of reading, so it is okay if they only found one fact today since we only had half the period by the time I finished with directions. Please help me monitor the students progress by checking their folders each evening. The students should have an average of about two facts a day after today if they are staying focused, though some may do much better than that. I will not necessarily be able to tell if a student is struggling or is not completing the work if they do not ask for help. If you would please check their folders to let them know that while I will not see their folder until the end, they will be checked on at home. If your child is having a hard time, but may be shy about asking for help, please let me know and I will make sure to give them some one on one attention in class. 
     Again, this was definitely the smoothest start to the project I have ever experienced, I think we are going to have some of the best research papers yet from this years batch of students. Please pass on my congratulations to the students, they deserve to be proud of their work, and know that you and I are both proud of them too!

Posted 10-19-11

Dear Parents & Guardians,
     We are writing you today because we have begun working on a very important project. For the next four weeks we will be working on a research project on Ancient Greece. Research is not always an easy thing to do, especially when citations and proper writing format is thrown into the mix. The research portion of the project will be done through social studies, and the writing portion of the project will be completed in English with Mrs. Woody (all English classes will do this so if your child is cross-teamed they will still do this paper).
     In order to ensure that the students get all of the work done, and done correctly, we have set aside a large amount of time to do the work in class. That way Mr. Irvin will be there to ensure that students are finding facts pertinent to the subject at hand (in this case, Ancient Greece) and that they are able to properly cite their work. Mrs. Woody will be there to ensure the students are writing the paper properly and utilizing the writing skills they have learned in English. We need your help to ensure that 100% of the students turn in the research folder which will be due Thursday, November 3^rd. Please check your child’s folder each evening to ensure that your student is getting new information each day. By 11-4-10 your child will have to have their research folder completed with four envelopes containing at least for facts on each topic and a citation from where they found their information (at least two sources will have to be from a book, at least two will have to be web-based sources).
     On 11-3-10 the students will create an outline, using their research folders, to help them organize their thoughts and prepare for their paper. The outline should be completed by the end of class on the 4^th at which time the folder, and outline will be collected.
     Then during the week of the 7th through the 10^th the students will work on the rough draft of the research paper in English class. Then students will type their papers up in the computer lab from the 11^th through the 21^st. We highly recommend buying a flash drive for the students to save their work on. There are folders for the students to save their material, but students will not be exempt from the project if their paper is lost, as has happened in the past, saving the paper on a flash drive will help prevent this from happening. The final draft and research paper will be due on November 21st.
     The minimum requirement is that the students get at least four facts about each category in their research folder. We recommend that students record more than that in their folder, so that they do not limit their ability to write a coherent paper.
     The students all have a Rubric that should be attached to their folder. The rubric was also attached to this e-mail so you will have it for reference. If students complete all of the requirements of the rubric there is no reason any student should not receive a 100% on their project. Using the rubric, you and your child should be able to determine what their grade will be before it is even turned in and graded. It is extremely important that all aspects of the rubric are completed as each category of the rubric will be recorded as a major assessment in the grade book making this project worth six major assessments. The first three categories on the rubric will be recorded as major (equal to a test) in social studies and the second three categories on the rubric will be recorded as major in English. Your child created his/her research folder today and have a copy of the rubric attached.

Folder, Citations, and Outline must be completed by November 4^th to Mr. Irvin

Final Draft MUST Introduction/Conclusion, Body, and Works cited must be completed by November 21^st to Ms. Woody 

If you have any questions or concerns please do not hesitate to contact us at; mirvin@greenville.k12.sc.us, 355-5835, or visit our websites at http://teachers.greenville.k12.sc.us/sites/mirvin/default.aspx OR lwoody@greenville.k12.sc.us, 355-5837, or visit http://teachers.greenville.k12.sc.us/sites/lwoody@greenville.k12.sc.us for more information.

 Thank you for all of your help and support at home! 

Sincerely,
Mr. Irvin & Mrs. Woody

Posted 10-4-11

Hello Everyone! 
     Tomorrow progress reports will be going home. Look for one from each of your child's teachers. I must say last week's opportunity to make-up work and the opportunity for a reward really paid off! I am extremely proud of the students, and they seem to have caught on to the importance of getting work done and success, not only with their grades, but with what they learn. You will notice that the number of A's and the number of students with everything turned in does not quite match up. That is due to the fact that some students had dug a pretty big hole after the first unit. Those students who have everything in but do not have an A, ALL of them now have a B, and if they keep this work up most of them will have an A by the end of the nine weeks, and all of them will have an A next nine weeks, if they keep up this work. I am so happy with these students, they just keep blowing me away with how well they are performing, and how smart they all are! See the improvement compared to my last report by looking below, also use this to see how your child is doing as compared to his or her peers in their class or overall...

     Please also refer to the calendar on my website. As you can see the rest of the nine weeks, as well as the rest of October, is planned out. There will not be any test over India and China. Instead they will be in corporated into the Benchmark I test. The Benchmark tests are given each nine weeks and serve as a measure of how much was learned in the first nine weeks. They also show any weak points or materials that should be revisited by me. The Social Studies benchmark will be given on the 17th. This is also the deadline for any missing assignments. The Benchmark indicates the end of the first quarter and no corrections or NHI's will be accepted (no exceptions!) The grades must be turned in and I will not have the ability to make any adjustments after the nine weeks ends. That leaves a few days for absent student to get work in. But no corrections NHI's will be accepted after the 17th. Students will also not be able to make corrections to the Benchmark because there will be no opportunity to do so before grades must be turned in, so make sure your child studies. A review will be coming home next week.
     As always, if you have any questions or concerns please do not hesitate to contact me! Have a great week!

Posted 9-27-11

Hello Parents and Guardians,
    I wanted to pass on some information to you that I also shared with the students. The test has been moved back to Thursday. I have added a day for a review game on Wednesday. In addition the review (#13) is due on Thursday, the day of the test. 
     I also met with each student and told them what they were missing, if anything. Each student missing any assignments was given a list of the assignments for the unit up to this point. Each student who has all assignments for this unit turned in by Thursday will receive a reward on Friday. Below is a chart I showed the students today that outlines how important it is to get the work turned in to succeed in this class. I do not give a lot of work in my assignments, but every assignment is crucial to learning the lessons in this class. The chart below shows this quite clearly. Many students have already turned in some of the missing assignments, however I am unable to enter the grades this evening because the server used by the grade book for the district is under repair this evening. I will be coming in early tomorrow to try to compensate for this and get #12 graded and back to the students in a timely manner, but it all depends on the server being back up. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me. Have a great evening! (see chart below) 

Posted 9-27-11


(Research AND Social Studies) Posted 9-19-11

Hello Everyone,
     This e-mail applies to both my research class AND my social studies class. Today your child will bring home a progress report. This report is based on grades submitted at the end of the day on Tuesday 9-13-11. Since that time MULTIPLE grades have been entered in both my social studies AND research classes. The social studies class had a major assessment (test over Mesopotamia) and two minor assessments (#5 and the DQ from last week). The Research class had TWO major assessments added (the research folder facts and citation information). Both classes had the open house participation extra credit as well. This means  that if you are an avid user of the Parent Portal and PowerSchools to monitor your child's progress, the grades may not line up. The Parent Portal grade in PowerSchools is the grade that is most current, follow that grade. Technology has made the progress reports a little antiquated, but for those behind the digital divide, this still allows us contact with those parents. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me. Have a GREAT week!

(Research Class E-mail) Posted 9-12-11

Hello Parents and Guardians,
     I have attached the Rubric that will be used to grade the students research folders. Each category will be a separate major assessment (test) grade. The students will then get a new rubric for their PowerPoint presentations that I will also send you. Should you misplace this e-mail I also linked the rubric to the calendar on my website. The students and you should know exactly what grades they will get on the folder before they are even turned in. Please take a moment this week to check your child's research folder to ensure they are getting their work done. I am monitoring the students work but until I sit down with each folder I will not know for certain how much work they have gotten done. Please assist me by looking at your child's folder to ensure they are getting the research done that is required. I also wanted to inform you that the students will have an opportunity for extra credit. If your child uses a public library or the school library, on their own time, to get a book resource for their project, I will give them 10% extra credit added to their research grade. Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any further questions or concerns. Have a great week!

Posted 9-9-11

Hello Parents and Guardians,
     We have officially finished one unit and are moving on to the second. All make-up work and corrections have been graded and entered into the grade book if you would like to visit PowerSchool and see your child's grade. The tests have been entered and handed back as well. I allow corrections for half credit. In order to receive points for corrections students must restate the question and incorporate the correct answer into a complete sentence. I have posted the test on my website, both on the calendar and on the table of contents. 
     We have cleaned out our notebooks and the students should only have two items in their social studies section, in addition to the new TOC. They should have the Daily Questions and #2, the Mesopotamia partner activity we did in class today. The students are doing a great jobs so far!
     I wanted to include some information I have had a lot of parents ask me about. If you want to access the PowerSchools website but are not sure how, you must visit the front office of GMS in person. For security reasons, the district requires that we only give out the username and password to parents, in person, with a valid photo ID. They will also give you instructions on how to access and use the PowerSchools website so you can see your child's grade live for each of their teachers as grades are entered. I also had a few parents get confused about a blank grade in the grade book. Sometimes I will create an assignment but not get it graded due to meetings during or after school. If there is ever a blank grade it is because that assignment has not been graded. If it is a test score then I have not received a finished test from your child. That is the only time a grade will be blank. If a child ever fails to turn in an assignment there will be a grade of NHI. So if you see a blank, it is not because your child did not turn something in. 
    As always, if you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact me! I look forward to seeing you at the open house on Tuesday. Have a wonderful weekend, hard not to do with football starting up!

Posted 9-7-11

Hello Parents and Guardians, 
    As you look at your child's grades tonight on their progress reports please keep this in mind. All assignments with INC or NHI must be completed or corrected and turned in tomorrow (Thursday, 9-8-11). No assignments from this unit will be collected after tomorrow (Thursday, 9-8-11). 
     I am very proud of how well the students are doing but things could change drastically after the test tomorrow. This is the first major test so far this year and after that grade is entered it could have a major impact on students grades as major assessments are 50% of the grade as per the district regulations for social studies. I encourage you to check out the PowerSchools website on Friday or this weekend to see how your child did and if the grade changed much. Please remember that all assignments are listed on my website if you need to print out anything to help your child complete any NHI or INC he or she may have. Have a great evening!

Posted 9-2-11

Hello Parents and Guardians,
     I hope you all have a fantastic Labor Day weekend! I wanted to give you a heads up that there will be a test over early man on September 8th. This is a Unit test, so the 8th will be the last day I will collect any missing or incomplete assignments from the first unit. Please continue to check the PowerSchools site to make sure your child does not have any missing or incomplete work. I have had a few students turn in make-up work and corrections but I have not yet checked that work. When I collect #9 and last weeks SQ on Tuesday, I will enter those grades as well as any corrections or make-up work that has been turned in since Thursday. I also wanted to let you know that I will not be able to answer any e-mails over labor day weekend. I will be on the Appalachian Trail along the Tennessee/North Carolina border and unable to access any electronic device during that time. I am not expecting to get back until late Monday night so I will not be able to answer any e-mails until Tuesday. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me, but I will not be able to respond until some point on Tuesday. If you need any assignments for make-up or corrections, please visit my calendar or table of contents on my website. Again, have a great and safe Labor Day weekend everyone!

Posted 8-25-11

Hello Parents and Guardians,
    I must say that I am extremely impressed by your children, I do not think I have ever experienced a start to the year this smooth, you all truly deserve a round of applause. I hope the year has started as smoothly for you at home and I am looking forward to a full year with such great students!!! 
    By now your child should have brought home a social studies textbook called "Journey Across Time." Please know that they should leave this book at home and they should not bring it back until the end of the year. I have a class set in my room in addition to the one that was checked out to your child. That way the students do not have to worry about forgetting their book and not being able to get work done either at home, or school, and it saves wear and tear on the book. Today the students had their first assignment that may need to be finished at home. The assignment helps them get acquainted with their new book and the resources therein. I want to remind you that I never collect an assignment until the next day or later due date. That will allow you to always be able to see the students work and make sure they are keeping up. Any time an assignment goes missing please visit my website and you can download the assignment from there. 
    My goal is to have every student in my class, not only do well, but excel in my class. You are my greatest ally in that goal. You will often notice slipping grades, stressed students, and any signs of struggling before I do. Catching a student who is starting to slip is much easier than helping a student who has already fallen. Please do not hesitate to contact me if you feel your child is struggling, or if you have any questions or concerns of any kind about my class or assignments. Have a great evening!

IF YOU DID NOT GET THE E-MAIL POSTED BELOW ON THE EVENING OF THE 18th, (and your child is in my research class) PLEASE E-MAIL ME AND LET ME KNOW SO I CAN ADD OR CORRECT YOUR E-MAIL ADDRESS IN MY DISTRIBUTION LIST!

(Research Class) Posted 8-22-11
Hello Parents and Guardians,
     I would like to thank you for returning your contact forms to me. I am e-mailing you to give you a heads up about what my research class will be like.
     Nearly every assignment will be done in class. I will try to keep as much work in the classroom, so as not to interfere with their academic classes. That being said, please help me monitor the students progress as the class progresses. While they will not have homework, they should still be able to show you their completed agendas as well as progress on the work in class. 
     The class will begin with lesson that resemble an English class. I need to lay the groundwork for the skill necessary to adequately complete research classes. Again, this work will be done primarily in class, but make sure everything is getting completed. I do not collect any assignments until the next day, at a minimum, so your child should always be able to show you what they did in class that day.
     Once we get to the projects in this class, this will get a bit more complicated. I will be giving the students a participation grade, each student will get a 100% for working and lose 10% that day every time I catch them off subject (talking about something else, daydreaming, not helping their group etc.). I would also ask you your help. Please keep an eye on the calendar, my e-mails, and the PowerSchools portal to make sure your child is working. Once we start projects please check periodically with your child to make sure they are getting new information for their project every day. Students can sometimes seem like they are working but not be getting that much done, with us working together we can minimize their ability to do that. You, as their parents or guardians, are my greatest ally in getting the students to succeed in my class. 
     Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or concerns. Thank you so much for your time, have a great evening.

IF YOU DID NOT GET THE E-MAIL POSTED BELOW ON THE EVENING OF THE 18th, (and your child is in my social studies class) PLEASE E-MAIL ME AND LET ME KNOW SO I CAN ADD OR CORRECT YOUR E-MAIL ADDRESS IN MY DISTRIBUTION LIST!

Posted 8-18-11

Dear Parents and Guardians,
     Hello, I hope all of you have had a good experience with the first two days of school at Greer Middle School. I am Mr. Irvin, your child’s social studies teacher at GMS. I wanted to touch base with you all and let you know about how some things work in my classroom to better allow our students achieve greatness.
MY WEBSITE, the most helpful tool I have to offer for each of my students’ success: http://teachers.greenville.k12.sc.us/sites/mirvin/default.aspx

      Please make sure that your child is recording assignments in his or her agenda. This is the best way to ensure your child is keeping up in class. If your child ever misses a day recording in the agenda please visit my website and check out the calendar section of the website. There you will find each day’s activities as well as links to work in case your child has forgotten or lost theirs. 
     In order to help each other track our students’ progress I never collect work until the day after we have started the assignment, or a later date if indicated. This is to allow you the ability to see your child’s work BEFORE it is turned in. If your child claims they have finished the work, they should also be able to show you that work. If they claim that I collected it, please know that I NEVER collect homework or class work until the day after it is assigned AT A MINIMUM. 
     You can keep up with my grade book live, as I enter grades. Please come to the school and get your password to the PowerSchools website so that you can monitor your child's progress. You will even get e-mail notifications every time I enter a grade!
     Please never let your child settle for less than 100%. Any time your child gets an answer marked wrong on a minor assessment, they can correct the paper and turn it back in for full credit. People learn from their mistakes, if a child makes a mistake, that is okay, if they learn from it. If a child is wrong and simply accepts it, then they have not learned, thus they have not achieved the goal of this class. Even if a student gets an INC (incomplete) as a grade because more than 30% was incorrect, they can fix their answers for full credit. That being said, all corrections must be completed by the date of the unit test. Corrections will not be accepted after a unit test. By the time a test rolls around they should know all of the information, but even tests can be corrected for half credit. Test corrections must be completed at least five days after the test is handed back. Only benchmark tests cannot be corrected. I'll have more information later about test corrections after we take our first test.
     If you ever have any questions about my class or concerns about your child, please do not hesitate to contact me, I will get back to you by the end of the next school day. I am excited about this year, your children have really impressed me so far this year, and I know it is going to continue getting better this year!

Dear Parents and Guardians,

Today was a great first day of class! This group of sixth-graders is an impressive bunch! I know this is going to be a great year and I look forward to working with you to ensure your child succeeds here at GMS.

I hope that you are visiting this site today because you received the letter I sent home with your child. Please be sure to fill the attached parent information page out, particularly your e-mail address, and have your child bring it back tomorrow. I do a lot of communication through the computer with e-mail newsletters and grades. Ever time I put a new assignment into my grade book I will e-mail grades home so that you can keep up with your child’s progress.

Please also visit my calendar here on this site to see where I will post the daily activities. Any time you see an assignment in red it is homework. Your child should ALWAYS be able to show their homework to you. I will NEVER accept work early so please ask to see the work to ensure it has been completed.

Thank you all for your continued support of GMS. Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or concerns. Have a wonderful day!
ONLINE TEXTBOOK:
To access the ENTIRE book on-line please click on this link... and enter the following user name and password exactly as it is typed here...

USER NAME: JAT2005
PASSWORD: 8hu5rust

To access the "study central" materials with e-flash cards, quizzes and other helpful study materials click on this link. I HIGHLY recommend visiting this site if you or your child is having a hard time.

Parents and Students - Make sure to keep an eye on the Calendar section of my website to keep up with Class Assignments, homework, test dates, and other Social Studies related topics. The Calendar is updated daily with links to assignments.

If you ever want to know something more than we cover in class, or just have a question about history, government, or school in general please visit my blog!

In sixth grade humanities we will travel far and wide to learn about the earth and many of its different people and places. We will journey across time using our textbooks, technology, and each other. We will learn about the start of time, the first civilizations, all the way to the first machines and ideas of flight attributed to Leonardo da Vinci. We will examine the earliest known cultures to learn how their successes and failures have played a roll in shaping our lives today. We will learn about the first people to live on earth, the mysterious pyramids, the amazing Greeks, the mighty Romans, castles and knights of the Middle Ages, and much more!

I am looking forward to an enjoyable and productive year.

Supplies needed:

1. Pencils (two)
2. Blue or black pen (two)
3. Red Pen
4. Plenty of paper
5. colored pencils

See the textbook on-line visit... http://glencoe.mcgraw-hill.com/sites/0078750472/sitemap.html