Middle School Matters - Mar 08, 2018

General Announcements:

Dates for your calendar:

Mar 22 & 23 Dessert Theatre performances
Mar 28 - Last day of school before Spring Break
Apr 09 - School resumes
May 04 - Grand Friends Day
May 07 - No School - Prof. Dev Day
May 17 - 5-8 Spring Concert
May 23-25 - 5th Grade OE Camp
May 30-Jun 01 8th Grade Class Trip
Jun 07 - 8th Grade Graduation at Thornapple Covenant Church
Jun 08 - Last day of school (half day)

Fifth Grade:

Goat Care - 5th grade families will be in charge of goat care only. There won’t be a need to coordinate with another family on time, but you’re welcome to do so if you’d like! Please click here to sign up. Revised instructions are linked here and also on the sign up. Thanks to all of you for your help!

SEED update: Thank you for supporting our 5th and 6th grade SEED Market! Students raised about $2,000! Students are working to determine which organizations will be receiving donations. Stay tuned.

PowerSchool: During the final trimester of 5th grade, students and parents have access to student grades on PowerSchool. Click this link for instructions and more information.

Art: 5th grade continues to work on pointillism and painting with this pointistic dots sure takes time.

Band: We are working on pages 29 and 30 now - lots of new notes, advanced techniques and great songs on our new pages!

Bible: We made it through our Parable Plays! Thanks to all who attended--the kids appreciated having an audience. We will continue to learn about the life of Jesus by discussing his parables, miracles, and disciples. 5S should continue working on Bible memory. 20 points are due by Spring Break, which is around the corner. 5HW continues to the Jesus project curriculum (wait, this is more than just “curriculum”....more like “life studies”) as well. Memory work will be handed out prior to this weekend.

Language Arts: This week we wrote business letters to our nonprofit organizations. We hope to hear back from some of them! Ask your fifth grader if they can say all the parts of a letter with motions! We made new spelling lists (narrow gold sheets) for a spelling quiz next Fri Mar 02. On Friday we will start our biography unit by picking a famous American to research and write about. This unit will take place over several weeks and culminate with a wax museum after Spring Break. Much of the work will be done at school. Details will be sent out next week.

Math: We have conquered adding and subtracting fractions and now we are moving on to multiplying and dividing fractions! Students have been focusing on cumulative review through ALEKS over the last two weeks. They will continue to work towards completing their 5th grade pie.

Orchestra: We are working on pages 39 and 41 with new notes F natural and C natural and new finger placements for these low notes. We are using some of our new notes in our sheet music. Continue handing in 60 minutes of practice per week!

PE: We finished our floor hockey unit with exciting and well-played games! We will begin our badminton unit next.

Science: This past week we have been wrapping up our study on food chains and food webs. Starting on Friday, we will begin learning together about nature’s natural recycling and nutrient systems.

Social Studies: LATINO!!!! Our study of Latin America continues.

Sixth Grade:

Chicken Checkup - 6th grade families will be in charge of chickens only. There won’t be a need to coordinate with another family on time, but you’re welcome to do so if you’d like! Please click here to sign up. Revised instructions are linked here and also on the sign up. Thanks to all of you for your help!

Devotions: Please sign up to lead our class in devotions on a Wednesday this year. Click this link for details and an opportunity to sign up.

Art: Next week is the last week to work on the torn watercolor landscapes. The sketchbook assignment for next week is requiring the 6th grade student to prepare and write an artist statement about the torn watercolor landscape they are creating. Instructions can be found on the sketchbook assignment paper, moodle, and the document emailed to the students. Please review their statements checking spelling, grammar, and content.

Band: We continue to work in our method books and also on other sheet music as well. Lots of great music is being played - we enjoy hearing your students! Encourage practice at home - practice records due EVERY THURSDAY. Thank you!

Bible: Students have learned Psalm 8! We will be sharing our interpretive version of this Psalm in our middle school chapel next week. We now switch from a focus on God the creator to a study of Jesus’s life and actions before Easter, from the Triumphal Entry to the Passover. We will see how Jesus fulfilled the OT prophecies and we will take a look at the symbolism of the last events before his crucifixion. Next memory work is 1 Corinthians 11:23-26. Due Monday, March 19. These are Jesus’s words to the disciples at the Last Supper.

History: This week students became experts of a specific era within Greek history. After making a timeline, we began walking through the narrative of Greek history as a class. Students should expect to receive their culture webs within the next week. Changes may need to be made before they print their final product.

Language Arts: Research! Research! Research! We will be spending a lot of time understanding the location, land, and climate of our country. Once we have the information, we will work towards writing an informational paragraph about it.

Math: Our Ch 9a Geometry Test is scheduled for Friday, March 16. A study guide and practice test will be handed out to students on Tuesday. Wednesday (3.14) we will also celebrate pi day. Please sign up if you are able to send in a pie with your student.

PE: We finished our floor hockey unit with exciting and well-played games! We will begin our badminton unit next.

Orchestra: We worked on several brand new pieces with flats this week .We learned the melody as well as the harmony lines! Continue the good practice habits and always bring in the practice record each Tuesday or Thursday.

Science: We’ve been investigating the concept of density. Ask your student to share about the “mysterious golf ball” or why Mrs. Westrate wore a lifejacket in class. We also got a chance to get out to the hoophouse to prep soil and do some planting this week.

Seventh Grade:

Algebra (7th): We will continue working through Chapter 9, problem solving through quadratic equations and functions. Chapter 9 Test is scheduled for Mon March 19.

Art: With inspiration for Louise Nevelson the 7th graders have begun sculpting sculptures from cast off wood pieces. Please check the homework calendar for project due dates and sketchbook assignments.

Band: Dessert Theatre is Mar 22 and 23. All band students will perform - cannot wait to play for you!

Bible(Huttenga): Continuing to learn about gratitude, its effect on our lives and others’, and how to express it.

Bible(Wanner): 7th grade has a Bible Memory quiz tomorrow on Heidelberg Catechism Question and Answer 117. In class we are learning about persistent prayer through the story of Jacob wrestling with God.

History: We are studying Latin American history this coming week focusing on the empire Spain built and then the stories of revolution. We continue to read the book Refugee in class. This is a great book that weaves together three unique refugee stories from Nazi Germany, Communist Cuba, and civil war torn Syria.

Language Arts: We’ll be getting closer to the end of our unit on The Westing Game.

PE: We finished our floor hockey unit with exciting and well-played games! We will begin our badminton unit next.

Math: We have started a new unit on geometry. We will also be celebrating pi day! Students will sign-up in class to bring pie.

Pre-Algebra: Ch 8 Equations and Inequalities Test will be Mon, March 12. Wednesday we will celebrate Pi Day with pie and activities. Students are signing up to bring in pie.

Orchestra: Dessert Theatre is Mar 22 and 23 and all 7th graders will perform. Orchestra performers will tune up and play first on Thursday, Mar 22. Come to hear solos, duets and our 7th ensemble!

Science: Investigations 7-9 I-Check on Mon March 12. We will begin investigating landforms and rocks later in the week.

Eighth Grade:

Algebra: We will be taking a test on Chapter 9 on Tuesday.

Art: 8th graders need to have their ceramic pots glazed/completed by Friday, March 16. Please check the homework calendar for project due dates and sketchbook assignments.

Band: We gave a concert today for KW - I is for Instrument. Yay band! :)

Bible: The 8th grade has begun the Plumb Bob project. They will be choosing, preparing a presentation and sharing a special verse for the class. Ask them about it!

Geometry: We will be celebrating pi day! Students are signing up to bring pie and we will also do pi activities! We will also begin a new unit.

History: We will be working on a chapter 14 project this week that focuses on the events that led into the U.S. Civil War. We will also begin our study of the Civil War where we will be using several sources, including the Ken Burns documentary called The Civil War. This documentary does a fantastic job of teaching the details of the war and showing some of the horrors of the war. I will be showing several episodes that help us understand the strategies that went into many of these battles and the impact they had on both the North and the South. We will also follow the story of how the war went from focusing on union to finally answering the slavery question once and for all.

Language Arts: We’ll be continuing our work through our novel study of The Giver. Meanwhile, the 8th graders will continue to work on their ongoing Book of Memories creative nonfiction project.

PE: We finished our floor hockey unit with exciting and well-played games! We will begin our badminton unit next.

Pre-Algebra: Ch 8 Equations and Inequalities Test will be Tue, Mar 13. Wednesday we will celebrate Pi Day with pie and activities. Students are signing up to bring in pie.

Orchestra: The 8th grade orchestra is working on some very difficult music. We are also giving concerts to some of our young friends who are learning that O is for orchestra!

Science: Waves Unit I-Check is scheduled for Thu Mar 14. We will then begin investigating human systems.

Athletics:

Basketball uniforms need to be returned to Mrs. O’Brien as soon as possible.

Spring sport practices begin next week! Check out the Wildcats Athletics website for practice days/times.