Cluster 6 Newsletter
January 8th, 2023
Hello families and caregivers!
Best,
Cluster 6 Team
English
We started our “New Year” at WMS by having the students take school-wide midyear I-Ready assessments. These assessments help to monitor growth (and skill deficit) for individual students in both Math and Reading. For the reading assessments, the data helps to plan lessons of instructions that will benefit students in their ELA classes. Students took the assessment in September as a baseline and will take it again in the spring to continue to monitor their growth. Ask your child to see their results- it is very easy to access online.
This week students began their second novel- focused on Dystopian (Speculative) fiction. For this round of reading, students will choose their novel from a selection presented in class- in a sort of “Book Shopping” experience, and placed into book groups based on their choices. Students will be required to work collectively AND independently throughout their novel. We will be stressing the importance of group membership and teamwork with the hopes that ALL students will remain actively engaged and participating in their book groups. Please encourage your child to read their novel each evening at home- these units are most successful when the student is prepared and caught-up with the reading.
Please have a successful and stress-free start to 2023!
Civics
It was a pleasure to read your students’ writing for the Martin Luther King, Jr. essay contest! Students wrote strong, thoughtful, and well-researched pieces. There were many strong contenders, and we look forward to announcing the winners in the next couple of weeks.
This week, students are practicing their persuasive speaking and writing skills by engaging each other in our first class debate. Each student learned about a person, era, or document that influenced our American democracy, and is arguing that their topic had the most significant impact. Students spoke persuasively about Enlightenment philosophers, the Scientific Revolution and even Ancient Greece and Rome.
Next week, we’ll be starting a new unit on our founding documents, including the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights. Students will be learning about colonial America, the American Revolution, and the Founding Fathers (and Mothers!) of our country.
Current Learning Targets:
- I can write and present a speech to advertise a particular idea about democracy that influenced American colonial government and the Constitution.
Math
The 8th Grade Math and Algebra classes are both wrapping up their i-Ready diagnostics this week. During class, the 8th Grade Math class is beginning Unit 4 of our curriculum, which covers solving, evaluating, and writing equations.
The Algebra class is finishing Chapter 3, which covered graphs of all types including linear, quadratic, absolute value, exponential, square root, and direct/inverse variation. When we head into Chapter 4 in around a week, we will work with complicated equations and learn how to use equations to solve real-world problems. We will also work on manipulating equations to a form that answers a question such as “if I know mass, what’s the density?” vs. “if I know volume, what’s the mass?”
Science
We are wrapping up our study of genetics in the next few weeks and are covering the last of the new content now. Our final quiz will be on sections 3.5 Pedigrees and will take place for all classes on Wednesday, January 11. To help review all of the content from the term, students will be completing a short project about dragon genetics. This will help them prepare for the cumulative unit test, scheduled for Monday, January 23. Please remind and encourage your child to continue reviewing and studying over the weekend before the test.
Current Learning Objectives:
3.5 Pedigrees
- I can explain how genetic disorders are caused by DNA mutations and can be passed to offspring.
- I can use and create pedigrees to follow the inheritance of a trait through a family.
Links to other Smores
Specialist Smore
Use this link to see updates from your students' specialist teachers on their classes!
Reading Smore
Use this link to see updates from the reading teachers on their classes!
Wilson Reading Smore
Here is the link for the Wilson Reading Smore with Ms. Sorenson
English Learner Smore
Check here for updates from our English Language Development teachers Ms. Rix, Ms. Gilmartin, Ms. Campos, and Ms. Schoenbeck.
Contact Info
Mr Cloherty, Guidance: thomas.cloherty@watertown.k12.ma.us
Ms Kiernan, Special Education: kathleen.kiernan@watertown.k12.ma.us
Mr Manoukian, Math: aram.manoukian@watertown.k12.ma.us
Ms P-K, Science: katherine.poulinkerstien@watertown.k12.ma.us
Ms Rix, English Language Development: zara.rix@watertown.k12.ma.us
Ms Shock, Civics: laura.shock@watertown.k12.ma.us