General Announcements
Important Dates:
Apr 28 – Fine Arts Night
May 06 – GrandFriends Day - details to come
May 12 – 5-8 Spring Concert at ACS
May 25 & 26 – 8th Grade Exams - ½ Days
May 25-27 – 5th Grade Spring Camp
May 30 – Memorial Day - No School
May 31 – Graduation Practice - last day for 8th Graders (½ Day)
June 01-03 – 8th Grade Class Trip
June 02-03 – 7th Grade Class Trip
June 07 – 8th grade Graduation
June 08 – Last ½ day
Friday, May 6 - Grand Friend's Day: Please help your student to dress extra nicely on this special day. We won’t be wearing our black/white/theme shirts - just dress nicely.
Thursday, May 12 - Middle School Spring Concert: We are so excited to be able to have our Spring Concert coming up in a couple of weeks for all 5th-8th grade students. Here are a couple of details that you will need to know before the big night.
What to wear
56: Theme T Shirt and khakis, or dark slacks/skirts
78: White on the Top, Black on the bottom (no blue jeans), with a pop of color.
Time
56: Please arrive at 5:45
6:00 - 6:45: - 56 in South Gym
78: Please arrive at 6:45
7:00 - 7:45: 78 Concert
Walk-a-thon
Our annual spring Walk-a-thon is coming on Fri, May 13, with the new twist of a color fun run for middle school! Check out our volunteer signup to help put on this fun event!
Envelopes are due back by Wed, May 11. We have a fundraising goal of $25,000, which we can reach if each student gathers $50 in donations.
Don’t care to write checks for each of your kids? Give online! Online donations will be split equally among siblings listed.
Check out the great prizes students can earn:
- The top-earning middle school homeroom will get to douse their teacher in color powder.
- The grade with the most school spirit will earn a popcorn party.
- Classes with 100% participation in collecting donations will earn an ice cream party.
- The top fundraiser from each grade earns a $20 gift card.
- For every $50 brought in, students will have their name entered in a drawing for the top prize of a Big Joe Imperial Lounger bean bag chair. (Thank you, Jung family!)
Thank you for your generosity, which allows the PTO to sponsor the following:
PTO-Sponsored Events: Christmas Gift Shop, Daddy-Daughter Dance, Mother-Son Event, Staff and Bus Driver Appreciation.
PTO-Sponsored Programs: Staff funds, middle school class funds, elementary class funds (room parents), preschool funds, Covenant Care funds, yearbooks, 3rd grade Bibles, 4th grade zoo school, 5th grade camp, spelling/geography bees, field trip funds, media center support, music boosters, curriculum enhancement, and Moms in Prayer. Also, any extra funds enable us to grant teacher wish list items!
5th Grade
Art: 5th graders are learning about artist Wayne Thiebaud and will be creating some sweet pieces of cake in their next project.
Bible: This week in Bible we finished our Journey through the Life of Jesus and began auditions for Gospel Theatre. Gospel Theatre is taking place June 7 - more details to follow.
Language Arts: This week we finished revising and editing our biography speeches. We also practiced some speech giving skills to prepare for our speech videos. Next week we will continue reviewing these skills to prepare for our videos, and we will also start our novel study on The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe along with Bible class. Finally, students will be taking the LA MAP test in Bible at the beginning of next week.
Math: We wrapped up our Chapter on Multiplying and Dividing Fractions earlier in the week, and finished the week by learning how to find Mean, Median, Mode, and Range. Next week we will begin our chapter on Geometry.
Music - Band and Choir: May 12 we are giving a concert - students should wear the ACS Theme shirt and khakis or dark bottoms. 56 call time is 5:45pm for a 6:00 start, 6:45 finish. Wear school Theme T shirts and khakis or black pants/skirts. Need another shirt? Check in the office. Ask for a concert from your 5th grader BEFORE the big event. We have so many things we can play and sing for you!
Music - Orchestra: We were able to rock out this week in orchestra with Hope College rep Ingrid Dykeman! It was a blast!
We are getting closer to our spring program which is Thurs, May 12. Make sure you are still practicing and have the right uniform (ACS Theme shirt and black or khaki bottoms).
Practice records due Monday and a Google Video was due on Thurs, Apr 28.
PE: We have been working on our striking skills through various baseball/softball games. Next week we will work on frisbee skills and begin our ultimate frisbee unit.
Science: This week, students learned how yeast activate and release carbon dioxide. From there, we moved on to learned how plants “eat” food also.
Social Studies: In social studies we have been learning about and acting out the major battles of the American Revolution. We are nearing the end of the fighting and will soon start looking at the important people who played a role in the Revolution.
6th Grade
Art: 6th grade students are working on building chicken bowls in class. We will work on these ceramic projects for two more classes. Students might be coming to a noon recess if they end up being behind because of the tight timeline with the end of the school year approaching. 6th grade students should learn another 4 ceramic terms this coming week in preparation for their ceramic terms quiz. Please check the homework calendar for sketchbook and project due dates.
Bible: This week we wrapped up our Psalms unit by writing a creation psalm and psalm of thanksgiving. Ask your child to show you their work - they did a phenomenal job.
Language Arts: This week we officially published our World Fair websites and created posters with QR codes to link us to the sites! Our posters and websites were available for Fine Arts Nights visitors to view. On Thurs, May 5, we will have our World Fair Class Party celebrations, so if your student wants to bring in food to share, please fill out this form. We will also have some fun presenting our websites to our Grandfriends on Fri, May 6! Finally, next week we will also be taking the LA MAP test.
Math: This week we continued our study on Volume and Surface Area. The test was moved to next Monday. Students have a notecard with formulas and examples that they can use on the test. Next week we will begin learning about Statistical Measures and Displays.
Music - Band and Choir: May 12 we are giving a concert - students should wear the ACS Theme shirt and khakis or dark bottoms. 56 call time is 5:45pm for a 6:00 start, 6:45 finish. Wear school Theme T shirts and khakis or black pants/skirts. Need another shirt? Check in the office. A Google Video is due by May 19. Ask for a personal concert before the big event!
We are getting closer to our spring program which is Thurs, May 12. Make sure you are still practicing and have the right uniform (ACS Theme shirt and black or khaki bottoms).
A Google Video was due on Thurs, Apr 28.
PE: We have been working on our striking skills through various baseball/softball games. Next week we will work on frisbee skills and begin our ultimate frisbee unit.
Science: This week students worked on applying their knowledge on forces and movement by creating a project about forces that occur in their favorite sport or activity!
Social Studies: This week we have been talking about the Punic Wars between Ancient Rome and Carthage, and discussed some of the tactics of each empire to try to destroy each other. We are now talking about Julius Caesar and the transition from the Roman Republic to the Roman Empire ruled by emperors.
7th Grade
Art: 7th grader continue to work with form, shadow, repetition, rhythm, and unity as their build assemblage wood sculptures in a box. The 7th graders are drawing their inspiration for the artist Louise Nevelson. Please check the homework calendar for sketchbook and project due dates.
Bible: We are spending our days enjoying the outdoors for the rest of our time together. Seventh graders are learning about the life of Jesus and how it can relate to us today. Bible Memory is on Colossians 15-17 is due Thurs, May 5.
History: We are finishing up the Civil War. The test is next week. Review Guides, Essay Questions, and materials list are on Google Classroom as well as in students’ hands. Wednesday students will write their essays then continue studying for the objective portion which they’ll take on Thursday.
Language Arts: 7th graders are in the final stage of the ProCon research project - writing their paper! The final paper is due May 10. Next week we will continue writing while also continuing our study of The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin. MAPs Language test for spring will be on May 2 and 3.
Math - 7th Math: We are learning about probability. Next week, we will look specifically at the counting principle and independent and dependent events. Students can expect a quiz next week Wednesday and a test the following week.
Math - Algebra: In Algebra we will begin learning about data analysis and displays. Students will also complete their MAP tests on Wednesday and Thursday.
Math - Pre-Algebra: Pre-Algebra students are doing so well on statistics and Probability. We will be starting a new unit on angle relationships this week; it will be a short and sweet couple of lessons. We will be MAP testing Wednesday and Thurs, May 4-5.
Music - Band: May 12 we are giving our spring concert - Students should wear white on top and black on the bottom. 78 call time is 6:45pm for a 7:00 start, 7:45ish finish.
Music - Choir: we are working on a music project right now that connects Nearer My God to Thee and the sinking of the Titanic.
Music - Orchestra: We were able to rock out this week in orchestra with Hope College rep Ingrid Dykeman! It was a blast!
We are getting closer to our spring program which is Thurs, May 12. Make sure you are still practicing and have the right uniform (White top and black or khaki bottoms).
A Google Video was due on Thurs, Apr 28.
PE: We have been working on our striking skills through various baseball/softball games. Next week we will work on frisbee skills and begin our ultimate frisbee unit.
Science: This week we spent some time with worms learning about decomposers. We will be releasing our salmon next week Wed, May 4.
8th Grade
Art: 8th graders continue to work on their Milestone painting project. Next up we will work to learn about and consider street art. Please check the homework calendar for sketchbook and project due dates.
Bible: Amazing projects that connect our Plumb Bob verses to an art project were due this past week. There are some wonderful, thoughtful works. We hope to hang them up after Fine Arts Night and before the May 12 concert so you can see them. We are now working on our Plumb Bob speeches.
History: We’re finishing up our study of World War II, looking at the effects of the war early next week (the Holocaust and the atomic bomb). The test is Thursday.
Language Arts: The 8th graders will be completing their Rites of Passage projects this coming week. We will also begin our final literature unit on Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy by Gary Schmidt. From there on out, we will simultaneously be preparing for the LA exam! MAPs Language test for spring will be on May 2 and 3.
Math - Algebra: We just started our final chapter on solving quadratic equations and began the topic by learning how to simplify radical expressions. Students can expect a quiz next week Tuesday. We also have an exam review; currently working on chapters 5-6.
Math - Geometry: We are wrapping up the course and learning about perimeter, area and volume. Students will also be completing their MAP testing.
Math - Pre-Algebra: Pre-Algebra students are doing so well on statistics and Probability. We will be starting a new unit on angle relationships this week; it will be a short and sweet couple of lessons. Math test on Mon, May 1. We will be MAP testing Wednesday and Thursday, May 4-5.
Music - Band: May 12 we are giving our spring concert - Students should wear white on top and black on the bottom. 78 call time is 6:45pm for a 7:00 start, 7:45ish finish. Band exams are due soon - all the info is on Google Classroom.
Music - Choir: We will be singing at graduation it’s coming so quickly.
Music - Orchestra: We were able to rock out this week in orchestra with Hope College rep Ingrid Dykeman! It was a blast!
We are getting closer to our spring program which is Thursday, May 12. Make sure you are still practicing and have the right uniform (White top and black or khaki bottoms).
A Google Video was due on Thurs, Apr 28.
PE: We have been working on our striking skills through various baseball/softball games. Next week we will work on frisbee skills and begin our ultimate frisbee unit.
Science: We finished our human systems unit. Next week we will be starting our final unit: Heredity and Genetics. Students currently have their 2nd exam review- waves. They will be receiving their third one midweek next week.