General Announcements
Dates:
Sept 03-06 - No School (Labor Day Weekend)
Fifth Grade
Ms. Gerig’s Chapel: Ms. Gerig’s chapel is taking place Wed, Sept 08. Please talk to your child in preparation for the chapel. Here is the outline of what will be shared.
Survival Camp Information: Our Survival Camp information packet was sent home at parent night. Please read through the information and return the completed form to your student's teacher by Wed, Sept 08.
Camp (Chaperone) Interest Form: If you are interested in being a chaperone at either one of our camps, please fill out the Camp Interest Form by Wed, Sept 08. Thanks!
Camp Fundraiser: In order to keep Spring Camp costs low we need to raise money. Our goal is to raise $5,000. Please encourage your child to collect cans so we can reach our goal. Bring the money to the office by Tues, Oct 19.
Goat Duty: After reading over the 5th Grade Goat Duty info sheet, please complete the goat duty commitment form. If you have any questions, please contact Miss Leah. Thank you!
Art: In art we will be glazing our sgraffito pinch bowls in class next week.
Bible: This week students received a “Who Am I?” book, which is due Fri. Sept. 10. We also talked about having a growth mindset and put that into practice through an escape room.
Language Arts: This week students finished creating a small project that focused on building our classroom community. We also enjoyed an introduction to our first book, Hatchet, and took the first spelling achievement test. This test does not count as a letter grade; instead it gives me a starting point for helping your child with spelling this year. Next week we will continue to read Hatchet.
Math: We looked at decimals this week and understanding place value through thousandths. Next week we will be comparing and ordering whole numbers and decimals. There will be a test next week Thursday. A review sheet can be found in google classroom but students will also receive a hard copy next week.
Music - Band: We are off to a fine start! Have your band student read in the band books up to page 3 or 3b, then play the notes on pages 4 and 5 as best as they can, then work on the songs for the Full Band on page 6 as well.
Schedule:
Sep 07 - Brasses and Percussion (trumpet, trombone, baritone, tuba, percussion)
Sep 09 - ALL
Sep 13 - Woodwinds (flute, clarinet, saxophone)
Sep 14 - Brasses and Percussion
Sep 16 - ALL
Music - Choir: We are learning our clefs and notes, and singing and learning songs from the school theme, and also learning a few partner songs and Barbadian songs.
Music - Orchestra: Keep working in your work book through page 9. No bow needed yet, just stay pizzicato! The Pink Handbook form is due on Fri, Sept10.
Schedule for the next two weeks:
Monday 6th (Labor Day): OFF
Tuesday 7th: Cello/ Bass
Thursday 9th- All
Monday 13th- Violin/ Viola
Tuesday 14th- Cello/ Bass
Thursday 16th- All
PE: This week we covered basic rules and expectations for Middle School PE and worked on our teamwork skills in a game. PE uniforms for all 5th grade students will be arriving soon! In the meantime, students should be bringing extra “athletic” clothes to change into for class.
Science: This week we took time to experience and learn about collaboration and its importance in science! In addition, we started working with important scientific tools and measurements.
Social Studies: We learned about various landforms and bodies of water! Next week we will take a closer look at geographic features in the U.S.
Spanish: Here we go! We started our first story this week called “Bebé Malo” or “Bad Baby.” This silly story is fun to act and reviews some of our foundational vocabulary.
6th Grade
Looking Ahead:
Service Project and Sleepover (Sept 23 & 24): See your parent packet from our parent night - if you were not able to attend, we sent the packet home with your child today.
We need some help to find viable outdoor service activities OR things we could do to help on campus (help with a mass mailing?) We also will need a lot of tents/hammocks for the sleepover portion, (since we cannot share tents) and parents to stay overnight with us. Please fill out this form to see some opportunities to help us!
Ms. Gerig’s Chapel: Ms. Gerig’s chapel is taking place Wed, Sept 08. Please talk to your child in preparation for the chapel. Here is the outline of what will be shared.
Art: In art class we are working on self-portraits in the next class we will be starting this project. On Sept 10 the sketchbook covers are due.
Bible: This week we talked about our identity and the lies we tend to believe. The Outside Inside brainstorm sheet is due Fri, Sept. 10. There is also an optional poem quiz Fri, Sept. 10 that students can take for 100 auction points.
Language Arts: This week we presented our Symbol Projects. I enjoyed learning more about our fabulous group of sixth graders! We also had an introduction to our first book, Tuck Everlasting, and we learned about the different jobs for Chicken Duty! Next week, we will continue reading Tuck Everlasting, and we will learn how to write applications for our desired Chicken Duty jobs!
Math: We learned about multiplying decimals this week and will focus on dividing next week. There will be a test the week of Sept 13.
Music - Band: Note review, new notes - new books: Concert Time - we will start these soon as well. First practice assignment is due Sept 30.
Music - Choir: Lots of singing, note review, songs from other countries, etc.
Music - Orchestra: Keep practicing in your work book through page 9. Also work on Baroque Fugue. The Pink Handbook form is due on Fri, Sept 10.
PE: This week we reviewed rules and expectations for Middle School PE and worked on our teamwork skills in a game. PE uniforms for students who ordered new ones will be arriving soon! In the meantime, students should be bringing extra “athletic” clothes to change into for class.
Science: This week we took time to experience and learn about collaboration and its importance in science! In addition, we started working with important scientific tools and measurements.
Social Studies: We learned about the 5 themes of geography! Next week we will take a closer look at location and region.
Spanish: This week we covered more of our class routines and started our first unit called “Dice.” This unit is short but reviews some of our foundational vocabulary.
7th Grade
Art: In class we are working with texture and creating abstract texture painting with all different items. Ask your 7th grader what types materials they incorporated into their artwork. Check the homework calendar for sketchbook and project due dates.
Bible: In Bible 7th graders are working on their 6 word memoir project. They each come up with a theme for the year, write a paper on why they picked it, and make a poster for it. The memoirs will be due Tues, Sept 07. We will have Bible memory due every other Thursday. Our first Bible memory Quiz is Thur, Sept 09.
History: This week we studied the first government of the US, the Articles of Confederation, and why they failed. Next week we focus on the second (and successful) government, the Constitution.
Language Arts: This coming week we will discuss “theme” in literature -the “so what?” of a story. Students will be introduced to Reading Inventories, and will start hypothesizing possible themes in the books they read independently. We’ve begun a language study on the basics of sentence structure and will continue to build off of subjects and predicates and move onto fragments and run-ons.
Math - 7th Math: In 7th Math this week we started a chapter on integers and have been learning about absolute value, adding integers, and subtracting integers. This is a short chapter so we are moving through it quickly; the students will have their first quiz on September 8 and their first test on Sept 10.
Math - Algebra: In Algebra we will be wrapping up our Algebra Basics unit and students will be taking a test on Wednesday. We will begin chapter 1 at the end of the week will be mastering our skills on solving algebraic equations.
Math - Pre-Algebra: The Pre-Algebra students have been working through Chapter 1: The Language of Algebra. This chapter is short and sweet so we will have our test on it on Wednesday, September 8. A review guide will be handed out before Labor Day Weekend
Music - Band: We have a new book and are working gradually through each concept. We also have a new concert book to work through as well.
Music - Choir: We are singing, moving, learning songs from the school theme and enjoying being with each other in a large group.
Music - Orchestra: Practice your Eb’s and Bb’s on your printed off sheet and Contradanse! The Pink Handbook form is due on Fri, Sept 10.
PE: This week we reviewed rules and expectations for Middle School PE and worked on our teamwork skills in a game. PE uniforms for students who ordered new ones will be arriving soon! In the meantime, students should be bringing extra “athletic” clothes to change into for class.
Science:
Spanish: Hola! We are off to a bit of a slow start as we have not had many classes due to our schedule. Please look for the Spanish informational handout that went home this week with your student. We will begin our first unit story next week!
8th Grade
Art: Next week we will be moving into step 2 and 3 of our initial printmaking project. Ask your student to describe what and why they are creating for their project. Please check the homework calendar for sketchbook and project due dates
Bible VanNoord: We finished our Rock Project and will begin the book of Matthew next week.
Bible Schaefer: In Bible this week we started our unit on the gospels beginning with Matthew. We will be reading through the book in class chapter by chapter. As we read, we will talk through topics and themes of the book, and students will keep up a summary and reflection of each chapter.
History: This week we learned about the way the new nation of the United States set up its government, focusing on what they were trying to accomplish and how they had to adjust it as they grew. Our study of the Constitution continues next week, culminating in a test on Friday.
Language Arts: In LA, we will continue to learn more about the NHD project. Our goal is to have a list of 5 possible topics picked out by the end of this coming week. Students will be finishing a writing activity/project that introduced them to a format called micro-memoirs. Reading inventories will begin this week.
Math - Algebra: This week in Algebra we have been continuing through our unit on The Basics of Algebra, covering topics which include order of operations and evaluating expressions. Students took their first quiz this week on the real number system, properties, and absolute value. We have our first test scheduled for Sept 15.
Math - Geometry: We are wrapping up our short Algebra Review unit and have also begun our first Geometry chapter. This chapter covers the basics of geometry and is foundational to the rest of the course.
Math - Pre-Algebra: The Pre-Algebra students have been working through Chapter 1: The Language of Algebra. This chapter is short and sweet so we will have our test on it on Thursday, Sept 09. A review guide will be handed out before Labor Day Weekend.
Music - Band: We are learning Marching to Pretoria, working in our new method books and have our first practice assignment going as well - it is due Sep 30.
Music - Choir: 8th Grade Choir begins Sept 10.
Music - Orchestra: Practice Avatar and Ash Grove! The Pink Handbook form is due on Friday Sept 10.
PE: This week we reviewed rules and expectations for Middle School PE and worked on our teamwork skills in a game. PE uniforms for students who ordered new ones will be arriving soon! In the meantime, students should be bringing extra “athletic” clothes to change into for PE class.
Science: This week we studied the shape of the Earth and different scientific studies that point to that. Next week we will discuss how day and night occur and head into seasons.
Spanish: Vamos! This week we began our class readers. Students will be reading from these easy novels for a few minutes each class