Ellsworth MS Newsletter
Here's what's happening in MS this week!
September 16, 2019
Dear parents,
Here comes week 3!! We hope your student is feeling successful in school. We strive to meet all needs of the students in class and the school. If you or your student ever feels as if some more help would be needed in class or the school, please let us know. Tutoring/after school help starts next week with Tuesdays 3-4 pm in Mrs. Stuck’s room and Wednesdays 3-4 pm in Mrs. Hinkle’s room.
GO LANCERS!
ENGLISH
6th Grade: We’ve been working on getting to know each other, the procedures and expectations of the class and we have mostly finished our NWEA testing. Students were given spelling words last week and the spelling test is for this Friday. Spelling tests will be every two weeks at a level that is reflective of their skills. We are also working on our first writing piece, the personal narrative. This will be due in a few weeks, with plenty of time for the students to work on it in class.
7th Grade: We’ve been working on classroom procedures and expectations while getting to know each other. The students were given spelling words last week and the test is this coming Friday. They have also begun work on their first writing piece which is a memoir. The final product will be due in a few weeks and your student will be given plenty of time to finish it in class.
8th Grade: What a great start to the school year! We are currently working on getting into a routine. We have also been discussing heroes and what makes someone a hero in preparation for our participation in the annual My Personal Michigan Hero essay competition sponsored by Farm Bureau Insurance. More info will follow on the essay competition.
SOCIAL STUDIES
6th Grade: We have been taking a series of pre-tests this week to see what we already know about some topics we are exploring this fall. We also have been learning some geography games and practicing identifying some states. We will be discussing the 5 themes of geography this coming week which will guide us in our study of world geography this year. The 5 themes of geography are place, location, movement, human-environment interaction, and region.
7th Grade: We have been taking a series of pre-tests this week to see what we already know about some topics we are exploring this fall. We will be discussing the 5 themes of geography this coming week which will guide us in our study of world geography this year. The 5 themes of geography are place, location, movement, human-environment interaction, and region.
8th History: What a great 8th grade class! This week we did a lot of review to set the stage and move us forward to jumping into the colonial time period. We talked about the Myans, Aztecs and Incas as well as doing a brief overview of what was learned in 5th grade U.S. History. The kids also spent two days working and discussing the tragedy of 9-11. We are looking forward to a wonderful year together.
MATH
6th Grade: We’ve been practicing all week learning our new Think-Share-Compare routine and they’ve been awesome! Students each have an iReady login to practice their math skills. Every week (Sunday-Sunday) they will be required to practice for 45 minutes at home or school. Next week we will begin discussing and learning about ratios. Our first quiz will be Monday, Sept. 23.
7th Grade: We’ve been practicing all week learning our new Think-Share-Compare routine and they’ve been awesome! Students each have an iReady login to practice their math skills. Every week (Sunday-Sunday) they will be required to practice for 45 minutes at home or school. Next week we will begin discussing and learning about adding and subtracting negative integers.. Our first quiz will be Friday.
8th Grade: We’ve been practicing all week learning our new Think-Share-Compare routine and they’ve been awesome! Students each have an iReady login to practice their math skills. Every week (Sunday-Sunday) they will be required to practice for 45 minutes at home or school. Next week we will begin discussing and learning about the properties of integer exponents. Our first quiz will be Monday, Sept. 23.
SCIENCE
6th Grade: We have been practicing how to make scientific observations which will help us in our scientific investigations. We will be exploring the scientific method this coming week and learning how to create scientific questions we can investigate.
7th Grade: We have been learning about scientific investigation. Science is a process that is a way of doing, which leads to a way of knowing. Students finished testing brands of toilet paper on Friday and will have a quiz on the nature of science on Wednesday. They have a text that I printed out for them and a book-brain notes that they completed in their notebook. They will have worksheets on Monday and Tuesday to work on.
8th Grade: We have been learning about scientific investigation. Science is a process that is a way of doing, which leads to a way of knowing. Students finished testing brands of toilet paper on Thursday and will have a quiz on the nature of science on Wednesday. They have a text that I printed out for them and a book-brain notes that they completed in their notebook. They will have worksheets on Monday and Tuesday to work on.
ART
8th Grade: We have been working on shading and creating the favorite 8th grade project, Celebrity Portraits. During this project, the students learn how to take an image and enlarge it while developing their shading skills. I hope we will finish it at the end of the week.
MUSIC
Hi everyone. Middle school band (7th and 8th) are working on music for the fall concert. You should be seeing an instrument coming home at least 4 times a week. Students are to turn in a practice sheet every Friday including a parent signature. Please be checking for that every week.
6th grade will be starting practice sheets this week.
SINCERELY,
The Middle School Team
8th English: Amanda Terryberry aterryberry@ellsworth.k12.mi.us
6th and 7th English Michele Hinkle mhinkle@ellsworth.k12.mi.us
6th Sci, 6-7th SS: Sue Goslee sgoslee@ellsworth.k12.mi.us
6-8 Math: Erica Stuck estuck@ellsworth.k12.mi.us
7-8th Science: Clayton Faivor cfaivor@ellsworth.k12.mi.us
8th SS: Laurie Yost lyost@ellsworth.k12.mi.us
Art: Kurt Zimmerle kzimmerle@ellsworth.k12.mi.us
Music: Ashley Ford aford@ellsworth.k12.mi.us
PE: Mark Drenth mdrenth@ellsworth.k12.mi.us