8th Grade Newsletter
November 2019
Fall has arrived!
Although it is only the first week of November, we are rapidly approaching the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday and I sincerely hope that everyone will have the opportunity to spend quality time with family and friends. Spending time with your middle school student is one of the most important investments that you, as a parent, can make! Take time to enjoy the cooler weather and be sure to take advantage of the beautiful outdoors before the winter season hits!
It is truly a blessing to serve the students and families of CMS!
Wishing you all the very best,
Mrs. Psalmonds, Assistant Principal
8th Grade Administrator
Red Ribbon Week Door Prize Contest Winner!
Math
Math 8 On Level and Advanced classes are currently working on the Geometric Applications of Exponents Unit. Students are demonstrating mastery using the Pythagorean Theorem to find missing side lengths of right triangles, using square roots to solve equations, proving whether triangles are right triangles, and finding the distance between two points on a coordinate grid. We’re also learning how to find the volume of three geometric solids. We use volume formulas for cylinders, cones, and spheres. We’ll soon begin a unit on Transformations, Congruence and Similarity.
Algebra 1 students are beginning Unit 3 which includes a focus on quadratic functions, equations, and applications. Students will learn , apply, and justify the Quadratic Formula. Students will further learn to find the vertex of the graph of any polynomial function and to convert the formula for a quadratic function from standard to vertex form and apply the vertex form of a quadratic function to find real solutions of quadratic equations that cannot be solved by factoring. Lastly, students will explain why the graph of every quadratic function is a translation of the graph of the basic function f (x) = x^2 .
Language Arts
The 8th grade English Language Arts classes (Advanced and On-level) are currently writing an informational (comparison-contrast) essay. Additionally, students are studying non-fiction texts. Students will read Elie Wiesel’s Night as a mentor text, and they will begin book clubs with a focus on memoirs. Throughout the study, students will work on summarizing and analyzing both the point of view and author’s purpose.
The 9th grade Honors Literature and Composition classes have just completed writing their literary analysis of a short story. Classes are beginning a novel study of Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451. Students will focus on the following: symbolism, theme, and the significance of the setting in the book. Additionally, students will analyze how complex characters advance the plot, determine significant plot developments, and analyze the impact of Bradbury’s word choices on meaning and tone in the novel.
Science
On-level science: We began our new unit on Force & Motion during the week of 10/21. Students will investigate such topics as Newton’s Laws of Motion, forces, acceleration, and velocity! We will have the assessment over this unit in early December. Parents are welcome to access their student work in Google Classroom or Class Website for more details.
Honors Science: Unit 2 Chemical Reactions & Properties of Matter is our next unit for this semester. The topics cover nuclear reactions, radioactive decay, half-lives, nuclear energy, phases of matter, behavior of gases in closed systems, solutions, solubility curves, acids and bases, and more! Investigations, labs, projects, and weekly quizzes will be included to further support and expand our student's minds. The Nuclear Power Project is due on November 1, 2019. The Unit 2 Summative Test will be on December 6, 2019. Parents are welcome to access the class website for more detail!
Social Studies
Eighth Grade Social Studies has had a very busy October and look forward to continuing our exploration of Georgia Studies throughout November. We just completed our unit on Government and are helping our students get acclimated to the new Illuminate testing platform as well as Standards Mastery framework. I think we all are adjusting well! After we complete our county project recruiting a business to open an office in one of our 159 Georgia counties, we will then begin exploring Westward Expansion through student choice of a children's book, newspaper or illustrated timeline. As always, we will be very actively learning more about our state!
World Language
During the month of October French 2 was very busy! They studied weather vocabulary, interviewed a classmate about the weather and seasons, and read about famous Parisian gardens and researched some in the Atlanta area. Students learned numbers greater than 100-all the way up to the millions! We practiced these by writing the populations of French-speaking countries. Students have continued reading “Fama va en Californie” and have exercised with French Disco Exercise, in addition to singing “Alouette” and describing themselves in French using zodiac signs. They had their first written PBA, the Unit 3A test, and read about Mona Lisa VR (this is how many people will be viewing the famous painting). Lastly, we had some fun French Halloween activities.
November 4-8 is National French Week! French 2 Honors has compared French and American fashion through readings and fashion show clips. They also have learned classic French poems, some of which are being presented on the CMS news this week. À plus tard!
Spanish Level 2: Students took their lesson 7 Exam on the 29th and speaking PBA on the 30th. They also completed a cultural project on a country that we will be studying this year.Students also spent the rest of the week learning about the legend of "La Llorana" and talking about El Dia de los Muertos. Students decorated pumpkins with images that represented El Dia de los Muertos. We will be starting lesson 8 and students will learn about foods. Please make sure your child is studying their vocabulary on a nightly basis.
Spanish Level 2H: Students took their lesson 7 Exam on the 29th and speaking PBA on the 30th. They also completed a cultural project on a country that we will be studying this year. During lesson 7, we learned about Peru. Students had the opportunity to taste some Inka Cola (Peru's soft drink) and taste some alfajores (cookies with dulce de leche straight from Peru!) Students also spent the rest of the week learning about the legend of "La Llorana" and talking about El Dia de los Muertos. Students decorated pumpkins with images that represented El Dia de los Muertos. We will be starting lesson 8 and students will learn about foods. Please make sure your child is studying their vocabulary on a nightly basis.
German I students are beginning a unit on free-time activities. They will learn vocabulary related to their hobbies and interests. German 2 students are learning vocabulary about clothing and fashion. Students have been doing an amazing job on their speaking and writing assessments. Frau Davy is so proud of how they are able to express themselves in German. Students should practice vocabulary 20 minutes per night using Frau Davy's Quizlet site. The next German Club meeting will be Monday, November 18.
CMS Basketball Tryouts!
Attention 7th and 8th grade boys and girls interested in CMS Basketball.
Girls tryouts will be held Nov. 18-21. Boys tryouts will be held Dec. 3-5.
Both tryouts will occur immediately after school until 5:15 in the CMS gym. Students should be picked up in the carpool lane.
In order to tryout students must have all forms from the following link completed and signed including a physical performed by a physician https://school.fultonschools.org/ms/crabapple/Pages/Athletics.aspx. No students will be allowed to tryout without all paperwork completed and turned in. Please turn in paperwork to Coach Thomas.
If you have any questions please contact Coach Thomas (Extramural Director) thomasj4@fultonschools.org, Coach Dupree (Boys Coach) dupreer@fultonschools.org, or Coach Lee (Girls Coach) leed2@fultonschools.org.
Grandparent's Coffee
Please join us for the Annual CMS Grandparents Coffee on
Thursday, November 21, 2019 at 9:15am.
Grandparents will gather in the cafeteria to be greeted by their grandchild for light refreshments and entertainment!
Please refer to information in the November 1st, 2019 Husky Happenings Newsletter on how to sign up for this event!
From the Counseling Corner!
The Importance of Attendance
Being in school all day, every day, helps your child get the most out of middle school. Encourage good attendance with these ideas:
Point out that there is no substitute for being in class. Your child needs to be present to hear teachers explain concepts, to participate in group projects and class discussions and to ask questions. Please let them know that we miss them when they are not here!
Schedule doctor appointments, etc. for before or after school hours whenever possible.
It will be easier for your child to get up on time for school if they have had at least eight to nine hours of sleep. Set a reasonable bedtime and make sure they put away electronic devices so they aren’t tempted to stay awake to answer messages or play games. Turning off and putting away these devices an hour before bed can also help to relax their minds before sleeping.
In general, you should keep your child home from school when they have any of the following symptoms or illnesses: fever, diarrhea, vomiting and certain illnesses and rashes. A health care provider or school nurse can help you distinguish those illnesses and when your child is no longer contagious.
Please support your child’s education by having them in school and available to learn. Thank you!
8th Grade Academy
Our 8th Grade Academy "Houses" engaged in several friendly competitions this past month that included "TUG OF WAR!" Students who chose to participate were able to join in and each house "cheered" as their team members tried to win points for their "House!"
DELIBERATUS (Blue)
Currently in 1st place with the MOST "House" POINTS!
November 5th, 2019: Professional Development Day (No School for Students)
November 22nd, 2019: RFF Day (No School for Students)
November 25th-29th, 2019: Thanksgiving Break (Schools Closed)