MS Newsletter
Here's what's happening in MS this week!
October 30, 2017
Dear parents,
Parent/Teacher conferences are on November 3rd from 4-7 and November 4th from 1-4. You can register for a specific time with a specific teacher by clicking on the link “Parent Teacher conferences” at the ECS website.
ENGLISH
6th Grade: On Monday, we will get new spelling words. Our first spelling test of the new marking period will be on Friday, November 10th. Having learned about and practiced summary writing in the first marking period, we will shift our focus this marking period on narrative writing as we read part two of The Graveyard Book. Our grammar focus will be homophones, parts of speech, and everyone’s favorite “flying comma”--apostrophes!
7th Grade: On Monday, we will get new spelling words. Our first spelling test of the new marking period will be on Friday, November 10th. Our writing focus this marking period will be on argumentative writing; as we read the second half of Touching Spirit Bear, we will learn about claims, evidence, and warrants, and we will write an argument of fact for the changes our main character is encountering. Our grammar focus will be the glorious world of commas and other punctuation!
SOCIAL STUDIES
6th Grade: We have been exploring how elevation affects physical conditions at different latitudes. We are looking at conditions in South America such as the Andes Mountains and the Amazon Rainforest. This week, we will be learning about how the Inca Civilization was able to develop and flourish in the high elevations of the Andes Mountains.
7th Grade: We have been exploring how elevation affects physical conditions at different latitudes. We are looking at conditions in South America such as the Andes Mountains and the Amazon Rainforest. This week, we will be learning about how the Inca Civilization was able to develop and flourish in the high elevations of the Andes Mountains.
8th Grade: We have been studying the Bill of Rights and the students just started delving into the other Amendments to our Constitution. We will be wrapping up this unit learning about our tricky Electoral College system and looking over the complete Constitution. The unit test will be Thursday and projects are due Monday the 6th of November.
MATH
6th Grade: Students had a quiz on Friday that covered writing decimals as fractions and fractions to decimals as well as ordering them from least to greatest. Corrections can be made any time this week and retakes as long as all prior homework is finished. We will have a chapter test on Tuesday, November 7.
7th Grade: 7th graders had a quiz on Thursday that covered adding, subtracting and multiplying decimals and fractions. Corrections can be made any time this week and retakes as long as all prior homework is finished. We will now be reviewing division of decimals and fractions and will have a chapter test on Tuesday, November 7..
8th Grade: 8th graders had a quiz on Friday. Corrections can be made any time this week and retakes as long as all prior homework is finished. We will have a test on Thursday’s half day this week covering slope and unit rates.
SCIENCE
6th Grade: We have been wrapping up our ecosystem presentations. You can see your student’s presentation during conferences. Hope to see you there. This week we will be exploring more about energy in food webs with a hands on activity.
7th Grade: The students are extremely engaged in RAFT RALLY! Their budget is $1,000. They have to build a raft that can hold the greatest number of pennies before it will sink. Using their knowledge of density, it is an engineering design challenge! We will conclude the physical and chemical properties unit next week. Hope to see you at conferences.
8th Grade: We have been reviewing aspects of the Earth’s atmosphere including layers of the atmosphere, how thermal energy moves through the atmosphere, and how the atmosphere influences climate and weather. We will be wrapping it up this week by looking at air quality.
SINCERELY,
The Middle School Team
6-7th English: Nic Dziadosz ndziadosz@ellsworth.k12.mi.us
8 English: Amanda Terryberry aterryberry@ellsworth.k12.mi.us
6&8th Sci, 6-7th SS: Sue Goslee sgoslee@ellsworth.k12.mi.us
8th SS: Michele Hinkle mhinkle@ellsworth.k12.mi.us
6-8 Math: Erica Stuck estuck@ellsworth.k12.mi.us
7th Science: Clayton Faivor cfaivor@ellsworth.k12.mi.us