Amboy Middle School
October 2021 Newsletter
COVID ABSENCES
- Initial contact with the student/family will be made by the homeroom teacher.
- 5th grade students will have paper packets and books that need to be picked up from school.
- 6th-8th grades will primarily work through Google Classroom but may also have assignments that need to be picked up (depending on subject)
- Students should check their school email and/or Google Classroom daily for additional information and assignments
- Encourage your student to contact their teachers with questions
- If you do not have access to the internet, please let the teacher know so assignments can be adjusted
- If you have questions or concerns, please reach out to the school administration
SMARTER BALANCED ASSESSMENT
Smarter Balanced Assessments will be Monday, October 4, and Tuesday, October 5 for all students. They should be well rested, have a good breakfast, and be on time each testing day. They need to bring their own ear buds or headphones if they have them and a healthy snack. STUDENTS CANNOT USE A WIRELESS MOUSE OR EAR BUDS!!! All electronic devices, including cell phones and smartwatches, must be silenced and stored away from student access during testing periods. As always, we encourage students to be well prepared and do their best!
SCHOLASTIC BOOK FAIR
Amboy MS Online Scholastic Book Fair - Fall 2021
Discover new books, favorite characters, and more! Every purchase earns our school rewards for much needed resources. Plus, shipping is free on book-only purchases over $25.
Thank you for instilling a love of reading and supporting our Book Fair!
YACOLT/AMBOY PTO IS BACK!
We are very excited to be able to get back into the schools and do some fundraising, but we can't do it without the help and support of parents and staff. Please join us for our first meeting on October 4th at 4:30 in the Amboy Middle School library. Membership forms will be coming home soon. We are in need of a Treasurer - if you are interested please email yacoltamboypto@gmail.com.
5TH GRADE FOCUS
SCIENCE
In science we are currently working on the Mixtures and Solutions unit. Most of our time is spent doing lab work, so attendance is important.
READING
In reading we will be working on using evidence from the text to support answers. We are also focusing on building vocabulary skills, reading fluency, and comprehension. Near the end of the month students will begin writing their first persuasive/argumentative essay. Please encourage your student to read 20 minutes each day.
LANGUAGE ARTS
In language arts we are working on writing paragraphs. We will study the parts of paragraphs (topic sentence, details, explanations) and parts of speech (nouns, verbs, pronouns, adjectives, adverbs). We are also working in Google Classrooms to practice online skills.
MATH
In math we will be finishing up a unit on volume and multiplication strategies and then moving on to adding and subtracting fractions. Multiplication facts 0-12 are vitally important for math success. Please encourage your student to practice their facts anytime they can. Try practicing facts in the car, on the bus, or online. There are lots of free apps and websites to practice math facts.
6TH GRADE STATUS
The school year is off to a great start, and the sixth grade team has enjoyed getting to know students and establishing routines in the classroom. Here are some things to keep in mind in the coming days. The first week of October, sixth graders will be participating in the state Smarter Balanced Assessment. It is important that Chromebooks are charged before school each day and that students have hard-wired headphones.
Keep your eyes open for grade reports. Student awareness of current classroom standing is important for every student to achieve his or her best. The final Friday of each month there will be a study hall for students to get additional help on any missing assignments or redo assignments. For students that do not have any work to complete there will be an alternate activity.
Please make sure that students have a reusable water bottle at school. Because of current safety protocols, the water fountains in the building are turned off. It is important that students have a way to get a drink of water throughout the day if needed.
As we move into fall, help your student to remember to dress appropriately. Dressing in layers is usually a good idea because of the fluctuation in weather and temperature.
We are excited to continue learning and also look forward to parent-teacher conferences upcoming at the end of the month. Be on the lookout for conference scheduling information.
7TH GRADE SCOOP
The Advanced Math is finishing up Unit 1 and will be starting Unit 2 on the 27th. The Regular Math classes will finish their First Unit during the first week of October. The next workbook for both classes will be Introducing Proportional Relationships.
HISTORY
We will be finishing our Native American and moving into the road to statehood. We will look at how Washington had cultures meet and impact the state.
ELA
This month students will be reading informational texts and practicing their note-taking skills, as well as their writing about their reading skills. Also for this month, students will be taking SBA state test for reading and math in early October
SCIENCE
We continue to learn the scientific process and Chemistry. We have talked to the young scientists about the stricter COVID requirements and students have agreed to "up" their behaviors and effort so that we can continue to do labs creatively while staying 3 feet away from each other. The current plan is to take turns, rotate, and make hands-on learning happen. Thank you for your continued support as we make this transition.
8TH GRADE UPDATE
We're off to a great start! Our i-Ready math and reading scores are in, and now the students can start using the i-Ready individualized lessons that are tailored to their needs based on the their scores. These lessons will increase their knowledge and help them to advance from one or more grade levels higher. I-Ready suggests 2-3 lessons per week for students, but we can only do one lesson per week during school hours. You could help your child by scheduling some time after school (or weekends) to do 1-2 of those lessons in both math and reading throughout the week. As a parent you can check on their progress; ask your student to log into i-Ready so you can view the lesson and their progress.
Through this year many of us will be using EdPuzzle and Flipgrids and other instructional ways that may require earbuds. Please have a pair of earbuds in their backpacks for when they have a lesson plan in EdPuzzle. EdPuzzle is a way to watch informative videos where teachers can insert questions/comments as they progress through the video. Sometimes we may have students present their work using Flipgrid, creating a video with their voice, versus having to stand up in class to present. Earbuds will help them record and make sure video sound is good.
Conferences will be the last week of October by Zoom or phone conference. About two weeks prior to the conferences, we will send out an invite for a Zoom conference. Please pick a time slot that works. If you want a phone conference, still pick a day/time slot that works best for you, but send an email to your child's homeroom teacher that you prefer a phone conference and leave the number you would like us to call. We will go over their i-Ready score and how they are doing currently in their academics. Please watch for emails coming through the Skyward system.
Please help us with mask issues. We are unable to keep the students three feet or more apart from each other; they really want to be close to each other. We can stop the spread of germs if they are wearing their masks correctly, meaning over the nose. We have given plenty of warnings, but we will now be writing minor/major referrals for not being Safe or Responsible or Respectful in wearing their masks correctly. Please remember we are a community here with students who have/had cancers and auto-immune deficiencies, plus some students go home to other younger children or older adults or those family members suffering from cancer or auto-immune deficiencies. The mask, worn over the nose and mouth, is the only protection we all can reliably do. We mostly breathe through our noses, so wearing the masks incorrectly with the nose showing is not Safe for self or others, it is not Responsible to others, nor is it Respectful to students with unknown health issues. Please help us protect all children.
MS. GATZ'S GALLERY
HEALTHY YOUTH SURVEY
PBIS DRAWINGS
Our PBIS Leadership mission is to support positive behaviors in our Eagle community to improve academic learning. Every student at Amboy is taught the same classroom and school-wide expectations. There are posters with stated rules throughout the school to help remind students of what is expected behavior in a particular location. To help reinforce these expectations, we give students Eagle Bucks. These can be used to enter our monthly prize drawings.
How can my student earn Eagle Bucks?
- Be respectful
- Be responsible
- Be safe
- Follow all expectations on campus
- Show kindness
- Help others
What can I do to help the store?
If you have the ability to donate, feel free to bring donations to our front office. The following items have been requested by students:
- $5 gift cards
- Candy, pop (especially Mt. Dew), chips, gum, etc.
- Larger donations such as headphones, tablets, etc.
- Donate to our PTO account with Cash App at $yacambpta or $ptoyacoltamboy with the memo Amboy PBIS
- Contact Mr. Krause for more ideas!