Maple Avenue Middle School
December 2018 Newsletter
Student of the Month: 6th Grader, Ava Bentzel
Sixth grade and Maple Avenue are proud to present Ava Bentzel as our Student of the Month!
Ava is respectful, responsible, and kind to her classmates and everyone she meets. She strives to do her best at all endeavors, in and out of school . Ava recently participated in the STEAM presentation held at Maple Avenue Middle School for the LIU. She presented her experience in the STEM Challenge Class and demonstrated her 3D printed ArtBot. Her favorite classes are Math and Reading, and her goal is to become an Art teacher one day. Ava is involved in soccer and enjoys playing with her cats, Golden, Smoky, and Orange, and her dog, Apollo.
Congratulations, Ava! Keep up the great work!
Grandparents' Day is Just around the Corner!
Grandparents, please join us at Maple Avenue on Friday, December 14, 2018 for our annual Grandparents’ Day!
We will begin the event with a concert performed by our chorus and band, followed by refreshments.
Stay a little while longer to visit your grandchild's classroom, and stop by the book fair!
6th Grade visitation begins at 8:30 AM
7th and 8th Grade visitation begins at 12:00 PM
*Students will not be released to depart with grandparents without written consent from parent/guardian.
Team Bolts: 6th Grade
Core 1-
Mrs. Raubenstine’s and Mrs. Koontz’s Core I math class currently working through Rational Numbers and Operations: Part 2, which focuses on percents, integers, and graphing integers on both horizontal and vertical number lines. Math homework is assigned each week, and it is important that students are continuing to complete their homework as well as check their answers each day it is due. Homework should be a thoughtful practice of the big, new ideas as well as a review of previous content. Remember--homework can always be turned in for late credit! Students also have thirty minutes of Edgenuity to work on each week for math.
Core 2-
Mrs. Koontz’s Core 2 math class has just reached the halfway point of unit two. We will continue to explore algebra tiles as we transition into solving equations, as well as inequalities. Our knowledge of expressions will be beneficial as we move into solving equations. Students will be reasoning abstractly in order to make sense of problems and persevere in solving them. Reminder that math homework is assigned each week as well as Edgenuity.
ELA-
In Mr. Baumgardner’s ELA classes, the students are reading the novel Peak by Roland Smith. While we are reading, we are learning about the different conflicts that Peak is going through while also analyzing characterization. We will finish the novel with a comprehension test after the Holiday break. In Geography class, we just finished up learning about Europe and have moved to Russia and Central Asia. Here we have explored the geography of these locations and are getting into learning about how valuable resources are for countries. Since our textbook is online (www.discoveryeducation.com), the students are able to access it at home via their Chromebooks.
In Miss Collins’ ELA classes, the students are reading the novel Wonder by R.J. Palacio. While we are reading, we are analyzing characterization and we will complete ongoing analysis of daily precepts. In Geography class, we are finishing our unit on Europe. We have explored the physical and cultural geography of this region and discussed the aspects of European life that have filtered into life in America. Next, we will be learning about Russia and Central Asia. It is highly encouraged that students access our Geography textbook online (www.discoveryeducation.com), to review information covered during class.
Ms. Willet’s ELA classes are reading the novel Wonder by R.J. Palacio. Students are completing daily reading and writing assignments and analyzing the many characters in this story about friendship, kindness, and acceptance. In Geography, students are learning about Europe, specifically how its location has affected life there and whether the culture is more unified or divided. Our next unit is Russia and Central Asia. Students can access the Geography textbook online (www.discoveryeducation.com).
Science-
Mrs. Becker and Mr. Urey’s Science classes are moving into chapter 4: Earth's Dynamic Surface. It is encouraged that students access at home their ebook and related resources for each lesson within this chapter at connectED. There is much there to reinforce and review what is covered in class each day. A few of the topics covered in this chapter will include Earth's moving surface and the theory of plate tectonics, the shaping of Earth's surface, and the changing of Earth's surface through weathering and erosion.
Team Aviators: 7th Grade
Math: In the second half of Unit 2, students are learning all the “legal moves” to solve algebraic equations. Students are learning how to use algebra tiles to represent equations and will eventually be able to solve equations without the aid of the tiles. At the end of the unit, students will also learn how to solve and graph linear inequalities. Students should continue to complete 30 minutes on Edgenuity each week as well as their weekly homework assignment.
Science: After starting in Unit 3 we are headed backwards to Unit 1: LIfe Structure and Function. We are entering the “living world” of science. Students will be able to compare and contrast different types of cells that make up our branch of science called Biology. This is always a favorite unit for 7th graders. They will be able to look at their own cells and compare them to those from an onion root! Students need to continue each night reviewing vocabulary and connections to each day’s notes.
Social Studies: In social studies, students are currently learning about the Jewish history and religious traditions. Students are learning about major figures of the Hebrew tradition. Students are also working on a project that is due on December 17th. The project is about the winter celebrations of the ancient world. Aspects of the project must be done at home. If students bring the project in on the 14th, they will receive bonus points!
English: We have just started reading our next class novel, Black Ships Before Troy. As we battle through the Trojan War, students will be exploring the many stories of Greek Mythology. Students will be reading paired nonfiction text that fit our essential question of “Why do people act heroically?” In addition to reading these various texts, students will be reading and creating their own poetic pieces. Students have an opportunity to create or analyze a poetic piece that fits their identity. Students will be working closely with their MAP skills goals through various texts. Reminder that independent novel projects are due January 11th. Students can find rubrics to these projects on schoology.
Team Lightning: 7th & 8th Grades
SCIENCE Mr. Decker and Ms. Enoff
7th Grade: 7th grade classes have started the study of genetics, during which they will learn how traits are passed from parents to children. Students will be using Punnett squares to predict the probability of offspring having certain traits. Once students have an understanding of how alleles interact and control the expression of traits we will make paper babies by combining traits of two different students.
8th Grade: 8th grade classes are finishing their study of sound and light. Once we complete this unit we will be moving onto thermal energy. During this unit we will understand how thermal energy is transferred and how it relates to the states of matter. To help us understand these concepts we will be interacting with dry ice and liquid nitrogen. Our end result will be making ice cream to sample using dry ice and liquid nitrogen.
MATHEMATICS Mr. Heller and Ms. Enoff
7th Grade: As the holidays approach we cannot stress enough the importance of PRACTICE in math. Whether homework problems, class work, or station practice, we encourage students to take every opportunity to learn and practice the skills they need to build a solid math foundation. Parents are reminded to check grades often looking for missing work or low scores. Please contact your child’s teachers whenever there is a problem or concern. Wishing a Happy Holiday to all!!
8th Grade: Core Connections 3 Students recently finished chapter 3, and should be able to tell the difference between equations that have one solution, all solutions, or no solution at all. During this chapter we also explored the connections between generating rules and equations from tables of data. Through the next chapter we will continue to strengthen these graph-table-rule connections as we introduce the slope-intercept equation. Student have already seen this equation but will finally be able to express it in terms of slope and y-intercept rather than the elementary language we have been using, growth and starting point. Be sure to check Sapphire regularly to see how you are doing. It is also important to get the weekly homework submitted on time. This practice will improve your content knowledge of what we are covering in class as well as improve your grade. If you haven’t done so well with homework completion, it’s not too late to start turning in assignments this week!
Algebra: The Algebra students just finished their systems of equations unit, which involved them finding the point where two lines intersect on a graph. They should be able to now solve these systems of equations three different ways: by graphing, by substitution, and by using the elimination method. It is important we retain the information we learned about systems because we will be revisiting systems of inequalities in a later chapter. The next topic of study is data, and how to read, use, and analyze different types of graphs including scatter plots, pie charts, and box plots. Students will also revisit the topics of central tendency which should be a review for them. As always, keep asking questions to check for understanding!
ENGLISH: Mr. Peglow and Mrs. Trout
7th Grade:
Peglow: In class, students will continue working on improving their writing with ACE responses and text analysis. The primary focus is on citing evidence and explaining/elaborating. Students will use leveled articles, poems, and short stories to use for their analysis. Vocabulary and grammar will also be part of the week’s tasks. In addition to this, Mr. Peglow’s students will begin reading their literary group novels and meeting with their group to have guided literary analysis discussions based on what they read. Look for the student contract to come home that will explain their novel, reading assignments, and writing responsibilities for this novel.
8th Grade: This month we will begin our focus on poetry. We will read, analyze, and write poems paying specific attention to figurative language, what it looks like when used by others, and how to use it in their own poems and writing. Students will create an anthology of personal poems as well as favorite poems from famous poets. The culminating activity will be to perform an original or a favorite in the form of a SLAM poetry session. We will continue working on Text Dependent Analysis writings as well as they use these to analyze the poems. In addition to this, students will begin reading their literary group novels and meeting with their group to have guided literary analysis discussions based on what they read. Look for the student contract to come home that will explain their novel, reading assignments, and writing responsibilities for this novel.
SOCIAL STUDIES Mr. Popoff and Mrs. Trout
7th Grade Ancient Civilizations:
Students just completed their final stop through Asia’s ancient civilizations with Japan. Major religions will be the primary focus throughout December and much of January. Earlier in the year students examined the religions of Hinduism and Buddhism. Now students will begin analyzing the religions of Judaism and Islam. Judaism will probably seem very familiar to many students because it had a tremendous influence on another religion they may have some knowledge of, Christianity.
8th Grade U.S. History:
Students in 8th grade are currently in the process of signing the Treaty of Ghent which will officially end America’s second war for independence (War of 1812). Throughout December students will begin to truly see America’s goal of Manifest Destiny come into focus. Western expansion will not come easy though; American will encounter several challenges from some familiar foes along the way including the Spanish, British, and Native Americans.Team Sky Pilots: 8th Grade
December’s Growth Mindset Theme is “We Love a Challenge”
Core 3 students will begin and complete chapter 4 Multiple Representations. The chapter will focus on connections between the four representations of data: patterns, tables graphs, and equations (also referred to as “rules’ ) Several traditional textbook lessons will be replaced with online interactive experiences which challenge students to learn through their efforts and mistakes.
Geometry students will begin and complete chapter 4 Trigonometry and Probability. Student will discover side ratios in a right triangle can serve as a powerful tool which allows them to find missing side lengths and missing angle measures for any right triangle.
All math students who score as non-proficient on any assessed Grade 8 Math PSSA assessment anchor or Geometry anchor will be required to complete remediation activities and alternate assessments. Students are required to email me when they complete the activities and assessment. Activities and assignments will be posted in Schoology in the same chapter as the test. A majority of the assignments will be online activities. Students are expect to see me or email if they have any questions about any activity. Additional math help is available before and after school as well as during ACE Period.
Science is moving through Energy, Work and Simple Machines. We will be testing Levers and Pulleys in lab investigations. Later we will be discussioning Sound and Light and then moving into Chemistry: the Periodic Table of Elements, Atoms and Chemical Reactions.
English classes are completing a unit where we are practicing critical thinking as we analyze the triangle of rhetoric. Students should be able to identify the use of pathos, ethos, and logos in speech and writing after this unit. You can test them on it as they watch commercials on TV. This unit will wrap up in time for us to begin our next novel before the holiday break.
History classes are looking at the launch of a new nation following the writing of the U.S. Constitution. Following this, we will discuss the age of Andrew Jackson as president and westward expansion. We will also be looking at the root causes of the Civil War in the third marking period and will be looking forward to the Civil War traveling trunk and Gettysburg field trip in May.
A Music Minute
In 6th grade General Music class, students are working on learning rhythms and performing them on various instruments. They are also learning the notes of the major scale. In 7th and 8th grade General Music, students are working on performing songs in major and minor modes and recognizing and performing songs in compound meter. 8th Graders have just begun learning to play Ukulele and have learned four chords and some basic strumming patterns.
Band and Chorus students at MAMS are working hard to prepare for their winter concert. The concert will be held on December 18th in the MAMS auditorium at 7pm. The Concert will feature 6th Grade Band and Chorus, 7th and 8th Grade Band and Chorus, Honor Band, and Boys Chorus. Selections will include a variety of Holiday and Winter pieces.
Students Interested in Joining Chorus
Students interested in joining chorus please use this link to sign up. https://goo.gl/forms/OxfdgIXafi5cnVR13
Students who were in chorus in the Fall need not resign-up. If you have questions, please contact Miss Iati at iatim@lasd.k12.pa.us
Reminders for Band/Chorus students
The Winter Concert is on Tuesday, December 18th @ 7pm
The concert is mandatory for all chorus/band students. If your student cannot attend the concert, Mr. Bish or Miss Iati need a written note/email from a parent or guardian ASAP. Excused absences include emergency, illness, or death of a family member.
Dress for the concert is formal. This includes dress pants, button-ups, ties, dresses, skirts, and blouses. No specific color scheme is required, but holiday colors are encouraged.
Students should be in the MAMS Music Room by 6:30pm on Tuesday, December 18th.
Important Dates For Band/Chorus Students
ALL BAND/CHORUS STUDENTS Dress Rehearsal – Thursday, December 13th @1pm-2:18pm (Concert attire not required)
ALL BAND/CHORUS STUDENTS Grandparents Day – Friday, December 14st (Concert attire not required)
7TH/8TH GRADE BAND/CHORUS Dress Rehearsal – Monday, December 17thth @ 1pm-2:18pm (Concert attire not required)
6TH GRADE BAND/CHORUS Dress Rehearsal – Tuesday, December 18thth @ 1pm-2:18pm (Concert attire not required)
ALL STUDENTS CONCERT - Tuesday, December 18th @ 7pm (Concert attire required for all performers
MAMS MUSICAL
Miss Iati and Miss Sabol are proud to announce the 2019 MAMS Spring Musical, Mary Poppins. Students who are interested in auditioning for the musical or being a part of the stage crew should check their email, Schoology, or use the link below for more details. Auditions will be held after school on December 19th and 20th.
Audition Info:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1cAstdDrMf6EnSheHMrEXUi_eD-fFt_TudAd6HHuWNCk/edit?usp=sharing
Jazz Band
Band students interested in being in the MAMS Jazz Band should be on the lookout for announcements for Mr. Bish after Winter Break.
Student Standouts
Congratulations to MAMS 8th grader, Ella Scott, for a fabulous performance as Dorothy in the Wizard of OZ. Ella performed in front of a sold out audience at the Eichelberger Performing Arts Center in Hanover.
Congratulations to Eden Brown (8th Grade) and Peyton Small (7th Grade) for their hours of hard work preparing for District 7 Band auditions. Both students competed against 8th-12th grade students in all the schools in District 7.
Bolt PRIDE focus: CARING
School Counselor's Corner
Help your middle schooler start thinking about the future
College is years away, but that doesn’t mean your child shouldn’t start thinking about it and making plans for it now. Studies show that college graduates are more likely than non-graduates to:
Live healthier, longer lives.
Stay employed.
Enjoy their jobs.
Change jobs more easily.
Earn significantly higher salaries.
To help your child begin focusing on higher education:
Talk about his interests. What does your child like to do? What are his passions? Whether it’s graphic design or physical fitness, there’s surely a college program geared toward it. He won’t be enrolling anytime soon, but it’s OK to “plant the seed” and get him thinking about how he can continue doing what he loves at the university level someday.
Encourage him to set goals. How does your child see himself in 10 years? As a college graduate? A successful executive? Ask him what he envisions and how he plans to get there. Specifically, talk about what he can do now (such as studying harder or taking tougher classes) to help him reach his goals.
Widen his horizons. There are too many careers to count, and odds are your child hasn’t heard of many of them. So go online and research various professions. Get him excited about the different options available to him!
Mark Your Calendar...
December 7: Progress reports posted to Sapphire Portal
December 7: Winter dance at MAMS (5:30 pm- 7:00 pm)
December 10-14: Book Fair
December 14: Grandparents' Day
December 24-31: No school; Christmas break
January 1: No school; New Year's Day
January 17: End of the second marking period
Reminders from the Nurse
- All 6th graders are required by Pennsylvania school health law to have a physical to enter the sixth grade. The school physician will be here in December to provide physicals if you would like your child to receive one. Please return the completed physical form or the choice for the school physician by December 3, 2018.
- All 7th graders are required by Pennsylvania school health law to have a dental exam to enter the seventh grade. If you have not already done so please return completed dental form as soon as possible.
- Mobile dentist will be here the week of January 8, 2019. Completed forms need to be returned as soon as possible.
- Flu season is here. If you have not already gotten your flu shot, now is a good time to get it.
- If your student is running a fever or vomiting please do not send them to school. It is recommended that the student be fever free and not vomiting for 24 hours before returning to school. Have a safe holiday season!