Meeting in the Middle
March 2016
Dear Parents/Guardians:
The second trimester will end on Friday, March 11th! Remember to track your child’s grades and assignments on ParentVue. This is an excellent tool for parents to use to stay connected with their child’s progress. Contact the main office at (810) 591-0710 for your activation code.
This spring, all students will again take the M-Step (formally MEAP) standardized tests in mathematics and English/language arts. This series of test is quite involved and will cause changes to our day-to-day academic schedule. For each test, we will have core classes in the morning. For instance, the week of 8th grade testing, all grades will begin the day in 3rd hour and end the day in 2nd hour. I will post the schedule on the Web site soon.
This is the time of the year that eighth graders begin contemplating their move to the high school! Through the Educational Development Planing class, students have (or will) worked on their 4-year plan for high school. April 21st will be the 8th grade high school orientation. To help parents and students with the transition to high school, high school staff will share information about courses, scheduling, and expectations. Scheduling information will be handed out at this meeting. Please make time to attend this important event!
The next parent Koffee Klatch will be held Tuesday, March 18th from 4:00-5:00 PM. We will meet in the media center. We will begin forming the 8th grade Yearbook Signing Party committee. Eighth grade parents are needed to make this event a success for our very, very deserving eighth grade class!
As always, please feel free to contact the main office with any questions you may have! (810) 591-0710.
Sincerely,
Julie Brown
Talented Talons
In Language Arts class, students are finishing up the novel study of Tuck Everlasting. Our Learning Targets have been focusing on how events in a story move the plot and help develop characters, how to find information explicitly and using an inference, and identifying similes and metaphors in text. Next. students will study a grammar unit focused on pronouns and their antecedents. Reminder: Students should be bringing home their reading logs every day to get signed for each day that they read.
In Science we are wrapping up the Periodic Table Unit. This unit brought us full circle to what we were discovering at the beginning of the year. It is a nice way to round out everything we have been talking about within the Physical Science discipline. We made some awesome connections as to why the Periodic Table is arranged the way it is. Next for us is a complete switcheroo! We are going to leave Chemistry behind and focus on the wild world of motion!
The end of February has brought us to the end of our Pizza Performance Task. Look for grades via ParentVue as I finish them. We also celebrated February 29th (Leap Year) with a frog jumping contest. Students folded origami jumping frogs and then completed 3 separate trials within a group of 4 friends. They then calculated mean, median, mode and found the range of all the data. The longest jump was made by Keigen’s frog, “The Great,” in 4th hour. It was a fun day.
We have begun a new unit, “Economics and World Trade.” Each day the students are watching CNN Student News, and writing a reflection on one of the segments from CNN News and applying economics to the article. Eventually, students will be finding their own current events to write about and present to the class. There are a lot of economic terms the students will be learning and how our world is connected together in trade. Students need to have a 3-ring binder for social studies. Some of the binders have been through the ringer. You may want to find out if your child’s binder is still in good condition.
Winged Warriors
In Social Studies, we have completed our study of Canada and are beginning our study of Planet Earth, Chapter 2. In this unit, the students will learn more about how land is formed and changed. The students will learn how we can protect our supply of clean water, air, and precious resources.
In Science, we have started our new unit covering the Periodic Table. We will be revisiting information we covered at the beginning of the year, as well as taking a closer look at the history of the Periodic Table, how it is organized, and the information it tells us. Students will be creating their own square on the Periodic Table in an “Adopt an Element” project, at the end of the Trimester.
In Language Arts, students have finished the Fantasy unit and are completing the ELA Common Assessments. Students will continue to study fiction concepts this month, as well as complete a grammar unit, focusing on pronouns and comma usage.
For the past two topics, math classes have been working with ratios and rates and will continue exploring equivalent rates and ratios in topic 12. In topic 12, we will be looking at graphing ratios, recognizing proportionality, and working with percents. Remember that student grades are found on Digits. Students need to do their homework in order to test well. All tests can be re-taken after school after the student has done the practice test and study plan that goes with it. Please stress the importance of reading the questions carefully and taking their time as they go through each assignment.
Regal Eagles
Thank you to all of the parents that continue to keep updated on your child’s progress through ParentVue. We encourage parents and students to keep track of daily work and academic progress using on-line school resources. If you do not have Internet access at home, we are happy to supply you with grade reports upon request. Students, let’s continue to use your planners, stay organized, and turn in work on time.
Soon your child will be bringing home a permission slip for our field trip to the Lansing Lugnuts game this spring. We would appreciate any volunteers that would be able to join us for this fun event. Our building has been buzzing with fun including our Penny Drive , Boyne Ski Trip, and Leap Day activities. We are looking forward to the annual talent show in March. The Regal Eagles have a lot of talent!
Finally, we would like to mention curriculum topics being covered. In language arts, we just finished our mystery unit and are beginning to study the features of non-fiction and learning about summaries and paraphrasing to prepare for writing our upcoming research papers. The students in Ms. Mazza's classes have been studying the continent of Africa, region by region. For the past few weeks, they have been taking an in-depth look at West Africa to include physical geography, history and culture. The coastal countries of West Africa offer many unique features as well as many challenges to the people of that region. In science, we are finishing up animal and plant behaviors to increase odds of reproduction and will be testing before the end of the trimester. We will begin the new trimester with heredity and how traits are passed from generation to generation.
Classes are in need of Kleenex. Donations would be greatly appreciated.
Soaring Eagles
It’s hard to believe the 3rd Trimester is almost here! In language arts, students are working on a research paper about a city they would like to visit in the future. This might make great dinner table conversation! In math, students are having a blast solving inequalities! In social studies, students are still learning about Africa. We will visit each region and learn about Nelson Mandela and his contributions to the world.
The 2nd Trimester ends March 11, so report cards will go home the following week. Friday, March 25 is Good Friday, which means no school. Please remind your child to stay focused and finish up the trimester on a positive note!
If you have any questions or comments, please contact your child’s teacher as soon as possible. Updated grades are available on StudentVue & ParentVue. If you do not know your child’s log-in information, please contact the main office at 591-0711.
Eighth Grade News
Eighth graders will soon enter the final trimester of the school year! With spring just around the corner, it is more important than ever to keep checking your student’s progress on ParentVue! (Synergy). Also, teachers are posting homework assignments with due dates and upcoming tests/quizzes on ParentVue to keep you informed. If you still cannot access your account, please call the office. It is also important to keep checking your student’s Digits math account. This will help you check for missing assignments!
We are still enjoying very cold days. Please make sure your student is prepared to go outside everyday after lunch! They need coats, hats, gloves, and all winter accessories with them at lunch.
Social Studies is embarking on The Manifest Destiny. Ask your student about this topic!
The atmosphere is continuing to build pressure in Science. Students will soon be wrapping up this topic. Severe weather will be the next unit to study which fits perfectly for Michigan spring! They are doing research and projects to help them learn the impact of our weather!
Language Arts is finishing their journey of biographies. Many have done projects and written papers for a special person they have studied. The third trimester, will start an exploration of Science Fiction!
February Writers of the Month
As part of the Writer of the Month program, each month students will be honored for completing an exceptional piece of writing. These selections will be on display in the Media Center. The Writers of the Month for February are:
Maria Miller
Rohan Edgar-Bauder
Gabrielle White
Nathan Katzenberger