TCA Times
Wayne Central Middle School Newsletter
MAY 2018
Dear Middle School Families,
May is a very busy month here at the Middle School. We will be having a Parent Information Night for Incoming 5th Graders for 2018-2019 on May 14th; the Art Show and Book Fair will take place from 5/14-5/17; don't forget the Annual Budget and Board of Election Votes on 5/15. Our 8th graders will be heading to Washington DC from 5/16-5/18 and our 7th & 8th Grade Band and Chorus Concert is on 5/29, following Memorial Day Weekend!
As the days become lighter for longer periods, and students are involved in sports or other activities, try to keep a consistent HW and bedtime routine.
Please contact us if you have any questions or concerns, and as always, we thank you for your continued support of our school.
Sincerely,
Holly Armitage 5th/6th Grade Principal
Derek DeMass 7th/8th Grade Principal
MAY'S CALENDAR OF EVENTS
5/3: 7PM: BOE Budget Hearing in HS Cafeteria
5/8: 6:30 PM: 8th Grade Washington DC Parent Information Meeting
5/14: 6-7PM: Parent information night for incoming 5th grade parents
5/14-5/17: Art Show and Book Fair
5/15: 9AM-9PM: Budget Vote/Board Of Education Elections--HS Gym
5/16-5/18: 8th Grade Trip to Washington DC
5/21: 6-7PM PTO meeting in Media Center
5/24: 7PM Board of Education Meeting @ District Office
5/28: HOLIDAY: MEMORIAL DAY
5/29: 7PM: 7th & 8th Grade Band & Chorus Concert @ the PAC
Student Council
Wayne Middle School celebrated Earth Day and we hope you did too…
Student Council challenged our faculty, students and their families to go social media free for 23 hours on Earth Day-April 22; enjoying the outside and what the Earth provides. No social media helped us appreciate our environment-thus CELEBRATING EARTH DAY!
Pictured below are a few of the numerous pictures we received of those having fun on this very important day…
5th and 6th Grade Student Recognition: Patience
5TH GRADE ACADEMIC AWARD:
Colin David (Bays); Josh Ford (Coon/Reynolds); Calista Lumb (Dysart); Hayden Hillen (Herendeen); Brian Dennie (Liseno); Gabriella Tyma (Martin); Tommy Duffy (Shoemaker); Parker Holtz (Welch); Samantha Ray (Wells)
5TH GRADE CHARACTER COUNTS:
Anella Frank (Bristol); Sammy Cypressi (Coon/Reynolds); Melina Paprock (Liseno);
Krista Howie (Shoemaker); Roman Malitis (Welch); Evan Fosdick (Wells)
6TH GRADE ACADEMIC STUDENT OF THE MONTH:
Gretchen Whitman (Bussard); Zoe Cook (Clemons); Zoey Brown-Rooney (Eaton); Neveah Crary (Gray); Allie Chimenti (Herrick); Nevin Crane (Martin); Hayley Eaton (Molisani); Cooper Jackson (Shoemaker)
6TH GRADE CHARACTER STUDENT OF THE MONTH:
Braylon Agnello (Bussard); Autumn Wildey (Clemons); Nina James (Eaton); Joe O'Connell (Gray); Lauren Akerley (Herrick); Leah Burke (Martin); Kasey Eaton (Molisani)
7th & 8th Grade Student Recognition: Patience
7TH GRADE STUDENTS:
Elandria Brzezniak: Elandria shows a lot of patience interacting with others. Her personality exudes calmness, mindfulness and being patient. She is a good example to others. She is always respectful and helpful
Kaelin Watson: Kaelin is so sweet and always works nicely. She can work with any partnership or group without complaint; she is a calming influence on others. She is always polite when she needs some help or asks a question.
Danni Pierson: Danni is always so calm, collected and focused in class. She is a great lab partner, who I believe could work with almost anyone and always does a great job.
Jasmine Cole: She is very patient with both teachers and other students.
Aidan Schoene: Aidan is very patient and helpful towards other students, especially with technology. He often will spend an entire class going from student to student patiently explaining how to do something. He is a patient teacher.
8th GRADE STUDENTS:
Leah Vaughn: Leah helps others and has tremendous patience. She is always willing to wait and lend a hand when someone is in need.
Ellie Wambold: Ellie displays patience everyday by being respectful, calm and understanding of the challenges that class may bring. She loves helping her classmates on assignments and she always maintains a positive attitude.
Dan Rook: Dan shows kindness and patience to his classmates. He works well with anyone and is accepting and consistent with assisting his peers.
Nicolena Treasure: Leena goes out of her way to help others. She appreciates any kindness and patience shown to her and reciprocates in a variety of ways.
John Featherly: John is always well prepared for class and helps guide his classmates when they may have fallen behind. He never appears frustrated during group work and genuinely wants to help everyone be successful.
5th Grade News
ELA: In Mrs. Herendeen’s classes, we have been focusing on narrative writing and the topic of human rights. We are learning about the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and its importance to people all around the world. We also continue to work on grammar skills, such as prepositions/prepositional phrases, suffixes and proofreading.
SOCIAL STUDIES: Students continue to learn about current events and how history pertains to the present. We have begun to explore Canada’s government, geography, history, and resources. Looking ahead, fifth graders will travel south with their studies to: Mexico and the Caribbean, Central America, and South America - places with fascinating histories of peoples and cultures, climates that support rainforest ecosystems; and that offer a wide range of economies and political systems for us to compare and contrast. We look forward to taking our studies south of the border!
SCIENCE (Martin): Students did a great job working to uncover who patient zero was in their infectious disease case study. Now we are studying the human body. Students have built and labeled bones for the human body and created a hand replicating hinge joints and how bones and tendons work together to flex the fingers in the hand. We will continue to study the tissues that work with the bones in the human body. Then we will look at the circulatory and respiratory systems.
Math: Students are just finishing up with Unit 8 which was a difficult one. Conversions and fractions are skills the kids should continue to work on. We are now moving into review. This gives the kids a great opportunity to slow down, go back, and polish up on their previous skills learned. We will then move on to Unit 6 and focus on multi step word problems. Students will be able to underline, draw pictures and problem solve to answer these difficult problems. Keep working hard!
6TH GRADE NEWS
This is it! The last marking quarter of 6th grade! For 6th graders this time is significant because the work they encounter in the next 8 weeks will be challenging and will require greater responsibility and organization. They will get a glimpse of 7th grade expectations instead of winding down. Of course there is the challenge of “spring fever”. 6th grade teachers encourage parents to still monitor your children’s homework completion and test/quiz preparation encouraging responsible time management and self-advocacy skills. Know that students who are failing one or more classes and/or having trouble completing homework assignments will be “restricted” from intramural and club participation until the specific class/work is at an acceptable level. We want students to understand that academics is a priority...even in the 4th quarter.
Social Studies: Our 6th grade Egyptologists are just finishing up their Valley of the Kings research packet. The students enjoyed getting to explore tombs that are over 3,000 years old. The treasures of ancient Egypt are such a valuable glimpse into this ancient civilization’s culture, government, economy, and religion.
ELA: Recently, 6th graders took the New York State ELA Exam. We are very proud of the effort that they put forth in order to complete the exam. They used their strategies and knowledge of reading and writing that they have learned through the years and applied it to each of the questions.
In class, we are reading the novel Flush by Carl Hiaasen. It’s about a boy named Noah who lives in the Florida Keys. His dad has been arrested for sinking the Coral Queen because he believes the owner is illegally dumping raw sewage into the water. Nobody seems to believe Noah’s dad, so Noah, along with the help of his sister Abbey, sets out to find the truth to stop the people who are polluting the water.
In addition, we are also working on writing an argumentative essay using controversial topics from our readings and discussions. Students are learning how to use evidence from the text to support their claim. It is great to see the growth in our students’ writing.
Science: Science students have just started a new unit on rocks. We will begin this unit by learning about Earth’s structure, earthquakes, and volcanoes. Students will also learn about mineral properties, and then using different mineral tests, try to identify several different mystery minerals. Other topics include the three different types of rocks, and the rock cycle. Students will get hands-on experience in identifying several different kinds or rock samples.
Health: Molisani:
For the last several weeks, students have been researching a variety of health-related topics and preparing group Google Slide presentations. The final Personal Health and Safety group projects will be presented Monday, April 30th. The topics included: sun safety, water safety, gun safety, sports & recreation safety, fire safety,babysitting basics, first aid, child abuse, internet safety - digital footprint and abduction prevention. Besides the knowledge gained, students are harnessing important communication and presentation skills. Our next several classes will focus on sleep, nutrition and fitness.
Math:
Students will be taking the NYS math tests on May 1 and 2. In sixth grade, students will be allowed to use their calculators for day two of the testing only. Following those assessments, we take some time to wrap up our geometry unit. From there, we will focus on statistics. See the images below for specifics.
7th Grade News
Social Studies- We have completed our unit on Westward Expansion and will turn our focus to reform movements and the road to the Civil War.
Math 7 - Our current unit is Probability and Statistics. Students can expect an open-note assessment during the second or third week in May. We are also reviewing for the Math state test, which is scheduled for May 1st and 2nd. Students need to bring their own scientific calculator and pencils. Please encourage your child to get at least 8 hours of uninterrupted sleep and a healthy breakfast, so they are able to do their best.
Math 7 Accelerated- Students are currently studying Probability of simple and compound events.
NYS Math testing is May 1st and May 2nd during the first 2 hours of the school day. Students are expected to be on time, prepared with several # 2 pencils, and a scientific calculator.
Health- This week we are going to be cooking! The kids are really excited and you might be hearing about how that went. We have just completed the sexually transmitted infection part of the sexuality unit including important information on HIV/AIDS. We are moving onto healthy/unhealthy relationships and then our unit project. The students have also completed their 5 week SMART goal and will be completing a reflection on how they did on classroom.
Band- Students are preparing for their end-of-year solo assessment. They need to be practicing their solo, seven major scales, and will also have a sight-reading task to complete in Smartmusic. Don’t forget our Red Wings anthem performance on May 15th and our Spring Concert on May 29th!
Spanish 7: Since the last newsletter, students completed the school unit during which they learned a variety of vocabulary relevant to the school day. Overall, the students were very successful on the unit assessments, however, some could benefit from practicing the questions and responses more. Practicing questions is also essential because testing for the speaking portion of the final exam takes place in late May and early June. That will cover questions that we’ve practiced since September. Because the Spanish 7 final exam is worth 20% of the grade for the year, it’s essential that students prepare well. There is a speaking review set in Quizlet that they have been assigned to practice for a few minutes every day in order to prepare effectively. See Google Classroom for more detailed information.
In addition to final exam preparation, we’re working on the sports unit. Students are enjoying learning how to talk about their favorite and least favorite sports. It’s also providing them time to practice the life skill of agreeing to disagree. As you can imagine, the students can get very passionate when talking about the sports they prefer.
7th Grade Life Science -
Students will begin to explore how scientist utilize a system of classification to determine relationships between different organisms. By the end of the month, students will be able to create their own classification system to organize a group of living things based on their physical characteristics. Students will also be able to utilize a dichotomous key to determine the scientific name of a given organism.
German 7: Students recently completed a unit on 48 Reading Texts Towards Fluency. Students really enjoyed the mini stories and corresponding pictures. The cumulative assessment proved to be very successful. Students learned a new approach to help them retain the learned material over longer periods of time. Students mastered over a 144 sentences! Currently students have been learning about two cornerstone verbs. These have been embedded in comprehension and speaking tasks. At the 7th grade level students are immersed in a comprehensible approach to language learning. This has worked well with the current 7th grade class. Additional fun songs and station work have been part of student learning.
8th Grade News
ELA 8 Smith:
In English, students are working through the Holocaust unit. In preparation for the Holocaust Museum, students are learning about the Holocaust and WWII. In the classroom, students selected either Night or Someone Named Eva for their novel. From there, students have a different role each day during class. They work through their role and share their thoughts about the text. This is a self-directed unit and students come prepared each day.
Algebra: Students in Algebra will be wrapping up the curriculum learning about sequences and series. Since New York State has opted all Algebra students out of the NYS Math 8 assessment, all students will be taking a mock regents exam on May 1st and 2nd. This will allow them to experience the length and rigor of the regents exam as well as allow us to utilize that data to prepare review for the regents exam which will occur on June 12th.
Social Studies: Students have been learning about the events leading up to WWII. They learned about the Hitler, Stalin, Mussolini and Tojo and the tactics they used to stay in control. We watched and discussed videos on the Holocaust and the forced starvation of the Ukrainian people by Stalin. In the next few weeks, we will learn about Pearl Harbor and America’s role in WWII.
Band: Our musicians are preparing for end of year performances and final solo assessments. Our Red Wings Anthem performance is Tuesday, May 15th. Get your ticket orders in ASAP if you plan to attend. Our ⅞ Spring Concert is Tuesday May 29th. Band students need to be at the High School by 6 pm. Those who are invited to Awards Night will be performing the National Anthem before the presentations begin. Best wishes to our 8th grade band students who will be performing for judges at three different Solo Festivals; Eastman on May 15th, here at Wayne on May 17th, and at Gates-Chili on June 1 & 2.
Math 8: Math state testing is May 1st and 2nd. Go to my website to learn more about the details. In class we concluded our unit on Exponents and Scientific notation. We learned that our world population is growing exponentially. Understanding exponents helps us to make predictions for the future and hopefully discover solutions before they become a problem. Check out http://www.worldometers.info/world-population/ to see how this growth is calculated and modeled. Exponents are used in Scientific Notation as a way to describe very small and very large numbers. Check out http://scaleofuniverse.com/ to learn about the magnitude of our universe and how the powers of 10 helps us to grasp the extremes of our world.
Living Environment Honors: In Living Environment we are completing Genetics, Ecology and Evolution Units. We have just finished up units on cell division and reproduction. Regents review books will be in use this upcoming month to prepare students for the regents exam on June 13th.
Physical Science: Students have been learning about motion, forces, and Isaac Newton’s discoveries. Have your child explain why deceleration is a type of acceleration, what the difference is between speed and velocity, and why it’s necessary to choose one’s reference point carefully. We have also been reviewing and integrating learnings from previous years and other science disciplines in preparation for 9th grade coursework using the Coach book. The Coach work constitutes most of the Q4 grade. Students have a NYS lab the third week of May, and the written exam is June 4th. We will end the year exploring gravity, friction, and kinetic energy by analyzing amusement park physics, designing roller coasters, and engineering models of water slides.
Spanish: We are finishing up our Weekend unit and are starting our final unit of the year: Travel! Students will be able to ask and tell information about vacations plans, including trips by plane or train, hotel reservations and other related travel activities. Formal speaking will occur during this unit. Students will have four conversations with the teacher with a minimum of four exchanges each. Each conversation has a different communicative mode (purpose) including 1) asking and providing information, 2) expressing feelings, 3) persuading, and 4) socializing. The schedules with the students’ speaking dates and locations will be sent out to parents in early May.
German: Students recently completed the modal verbs unit. Students have been practicing their writing and comprehension skills as it relates to the Proficiency exam. Lessons and activities have been student age and interest centered. We are transitioning to more speaking tasks that are specific to meeting the objectives of the Proficiency style final exam.
8th Grade Health Modules
The final required Health assignment for 8th graders is available online and is due May 11th, the Friday before the Washington DC trip. Please encourage your student to not wait until the last minute. The time commitment is approximately one hour. Students will be completing a fill-in-the blank assignment using provided web links. This can be done in Classroom or hand written and handed in to Mrs. Kittleson for approval. Finally, since this unit is about dating and sexual matters, a big part component is family conversation. Parents or guardians should have open discussions about sex and family values, sign that they have had these conversations, and return to Mrs. Kittleson. The handouts have been given to each student at school but are also included here. If you feel that the completed forms may become lost, feel free to mail them to the school or scan and email to: dkittleson@waynecsd.org.
Completion of the 4 modules is mandatory. If you have any questions, please contact Mr. DeMass, Mrs. Mateo, Mr. Molisani, or Mrs. Kittleson.
Counselor's Corner
Spring has sprung and summer is just around the bend... and so is summer vacation! Even though school may be on hold for two months, it does not mean that your child's learning stops. It is amazing how many fun, adventurous, creative, and stimulating opportunities are out there for you, your family and/or your children.
http://www.rocparent.com/search/location/summer-programs is the definitive website to find a comprehensive list of summer camps, programs, and more including direct links and information about each.
Did you ever wonder where your pennies go when you toss them in the red kettle for the Salvation Army during the winter holiday season? One service they help to fund is Camp Long Point, a Christian summer camp located on the west side of Seneca Lake. Your donations make it possible for children to be able to attend a week long, overnight camp for free or lower costs - so that every child may experience summer camp in a safe and supportive environment and take a break from stressful family situations. You can complete an application and get all the information at Longpointcamp.org
Locally, your other best resources for what is going on and how to keep your child actively and safely engaged this summer are:
http://www.ontariotown.org/parks_&_recreation.htm
http://www.townofwalworthny.gov/
http://www.walworthlibrary.org/
Remember a happy child is an actively engaged child. If you need help finding an opportunity that fits your child, give your school counselor a call soon as summer programs fill up fast.
More summer opportunities........
Finger Lakes Community College is running 3 STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Mathematics) camps this summer! Due to the past success of our Victor STEAM camp we have decided to expand into our other campus centers, in Newark and Geneva. Each camp has a slightly different theme, but what they all have in common is a week of STEAM fun with FLCC faculty, students, and staff! The camps are geared toward students entering 7th ,8th or 9th grades and we will provide lunch each day.
In Victor July 9-13:
Students will explore different areas of technology and design their own projects. FLCC faculty will present projects in engineering, mechanical technology, instrumentation and control technologies, and architecture. Students will have access to the tech facilities and tools in order to create projects and will compete with them at the Technology Olympics on the final day of camp!
In Newark July 16-20:
Students will explore how science is integrated into agribusiness. Over the week at the FLCC Newark Campus Center, FLCC faculty and staff will teach the science and technology of developing and growing crops. Students will also learn elements of graphic design and will develop marketing materials for an agribusiness. On the last day of camp they will unveil their graphics and learn more about the vital contributions of agriculture to the economy of Wayne County.
In Geneva July 23-27:
Students and FLCC faculty will explore the forensic science of crime scene investigation, learn how to respond in certain health emergencies (and get certified in CPR!), and take part in inquiry into the response of aquatic systems to human manipulation/impact. Students will use technology to develop a tour through the FLCC Campus Center. Throughout the camp they will see how their own wellness is connected to that of the community. On the last day there will be a celebration of all that we learned through the week.
I am attaching our color flyers. Space is limited to 25 students at each site. Register soon (early bird prices end May 1st)! I am happy to answer any questions you or your membership have. Feel free to email me at Kellie.Gauvin@flcc.edu.
More information for each location attached as flyers at the end of the newsletter.
Notes from the Chorus Room
Students in 7th and 8th grade Chorus (and a few band students) enjoyed a field trip to see School of Rock the Musical at Shea's Theater in Buffalo on April 7th.
Many chorus students are putting in the extra effort to prepare a song for Solo Fest at Eastman School of Music on May 15th and at Wayne Central May 18-19. We wish them luck as they perform for a judge for feedback and also possible selection for Junior High Area All-State Chorus!
The students in 7th grade General Music just finished a unit on Musical Theater and looked more in depth at the musical Hamilton. Our next unit of study is on learning to play the keyboard/piano!
TCA Night at the Red Wings
TCA Night at the Red Wings!
May 15th, 2018
7:05 pm game, Redwings vs. Syracuse Sky Chiefs
Attached, at the bottom of this newsletter, is a
flyer and ticket order form. Please get orders in as soon as possible, and if you are planning to sit with another family, send in your orders together. Our 6th, 7th, and 8th grade band students will be performing the National Anthem!
Tuesday, May 15, 2018, 07:00 PM
Frontier Field, Plymouth Avenue North, Rochester, NY, USA
NOTE FROM THE NURSE
To all my 8th Graders attending the Washington, D.C. trip this May please use this medication form attached below to obtain permission from your child's Pediatrician for both Rx and over the counter medication your child may need during this trip.
NO PREVIOUS MEDICATION ORDERS FROM THIS SCHOOL YEAR WILL BE VALID.
Please call me if you have any questions or concerns regarding this matter.
Annie Harris, R.N.
Middle School Nurse
Wayne Central Middle School
315-524-1084
TC Armstrong Middle School
Email: ddemass@waynecsd.org
Website: http://wayne.k12.ny.us/Middle.cfm?subpage=83211
Location: 6076 Ontario Center Road, Ontario, NY, United States
Phone: (315) 524-1080
Twitter: @WayneCentralMS