CTMS ASPIRE Academy News
August 2021
Welcome
Science
Welcome to 6th ASPIRE Accelerated Science! I am excited to get to know you all this year! I am starting my 16th year at CTMS and 7th with the ASPIRE Academy. I live in the Grapevine with my husband Jordan, daughter Emery (2.5 years old), dog Oliver, and cat Pumpkin.
6th grade ASPIRE science is an accelerated science course that will focus on Physical & Space Science. We will begin the year exploring Energy & Electricity. Followed by Chemistry, Space & then Force & Motion. Throughout the year we will be learning standards from 6th, 7th, & 8th grade along with standards from Integrated Physics and Chemistry(IPC), a high school level course. By the end of 7th grade ASPIRE accelerated science students will have completed 6th, 7th, & 8th-grade science along with IPC.
Our first few weeks of learning will include forms of energy, energy transformations, waves, electrical force, magnetic force, electrical current, and circuits.
7th ACC
Welcome to 7th ASPIRE Accelerated Science! I am excited to see everyone this year! I am starting my 16th year at CTMS and 7th with the ASPIRE Academy. I live in the Grapevine with my husband Jordan, daughter Emery (2.5 years old), dog Oliver, and cat Pumpkin.
7th grade ASPIRE science is an accelerated science course that will focus on Life & Earth Science. We will begin the year exploring Classification, Microscopes, and cells. Followed by Plant systems, Biomes, Animal systems, Heredity, Natural Resources, Earth Systems, Thermal Energy, and Weather. Throughout the year we will be learning standards from 6th, 7th, & 8th grade along with standards from Integrated Physics and Chemistry(IPC), a high school level course. By the end of this year, students will have completed 6th, 7th, & 8th-grade science along with IPC. They will end the year by taking the 8th grade Science STAAR.
Our first few weeks of learning will include classification, taxonomy, microscopes, and introduction to cells.
Biology
Welcome to ASPIRE Pre-AP Biology! I am thrilled to have you in my class this year. I am starting my second year at CTMS and the ASPIRE Academy. I enjoy the outdoors, spending time with friends and family, traveling, and playing with my dog Annie.
This course overviews topics in biology such as plant and animal systems, cells, biomolecules, genetics, biodiversity, and ecology! We will begin by defining biological life and learning about plant and animal systems. Throughout the year we will be learning the Biology science standards, preparing for your future success in AP Biology, and taking a deep dive into this year’s material! At the end of this year, you will have completed a Biology Advanced, a high school level course. We will end the year taking the Biology EOC (end-of-course) exam.
TEA recently provided new guidance to districts regarding accelerated students and federally required testing. This guidance states that in order be in compliance with federal law as outlined by the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), accelerated students (defined as students who successfully completed an EOC in Algebra, English, and/or Biology prior to grade 9) must take a corresponding subject area SAT or ACT while in high school. You can read more information about this issue in the text of this Texas Administrative Code and in this pdf of information from TEA. In light of this guidance, we are encouraging our students who complete or have completed Biology in middle school to take an ACT prior to high school graduation.
Math
Students began the year committed to “Embrace the Struggle”! Our brains are powerful and grow when there is challenge and struggle involved. We are starting the year with a review from last year before diving into their Integer Unit of study. Students will be able to compare, order, add, subtract, multiply and divide integers fluently at the conclusion of this unit. They are all very excited to finally get to explore and tackle negative numbers!
7th ACC
Students began the year committed to “Embrace the Struggle”! Our brains are powerful and grow when there is challenge and struggle involved. We are starting the year with a review from last year before we explore perfect squares and atypical squares with the intent of familiarizing ourselves with irrational numbers. Unit 1 is over real numbers and a student’s ability to classify, convert, compare and order within this system.
Algebra 1
Welcome to Algebra 1! This course is arguably the most important math class your student will take. What we learn this year will set the foundations for Geometry, Algebra 2, Precalculus, and Calculus. It will also play a major role in student success on standardized tests such as the PSAT, SAT, and ACT. I’m so excited to take on this critical learning opportunity with my students!
Algebra 1 covers linearity in-depth during the first semester: solving linear equations, graphing/writing linear functions, and analyzing systems of linear equations. In the second semester, we will dive into quadratic and exponential relationships, as well as the properties of exponents and basic statistical analysis.
For the first several weeks, our class will practice the essential skill of solving algebraic equations. We will build on student knowledge of solving two-step equations and introduce more rigorous equations such as proportions, equations with no solution, infinite solutions, and literal equations.
Geometry
Welcome to Geometry! I thoroughly enjoy teaching Geometry, because it is so different from any other math course. Students enter my class thinking they are going to just find the areas of shapes all year, but by the end of the year they are filled with knowledge about logic, proofs, theorems, trigonometry, and more proofs! The main thing I tell students at the beginning of the year is that this class is not anything close to the Algebra 1 they took last year. We will challenge their bias about what math is, and have fun along the way!
To start the year, we will need to build a strong foundation of logic and geometric vocabulary. This first unit really sets the tone for the entire year and will set students up for success in the rest of the course!
A2PC
Welcome to Algebra 2/Precalculus (A2PC)! We are so fortunate to be able to offer this course on the CTMS campus. It is very unique to have such an advanced course live on a middle school campus and I could not be more excited to teach it.
A2PC combines 2 curricula into one year. They are not separated by semesters but instead are intertwined throughout the entire year. My goal for my A2PC students is to challenge my students every day. Most A2PC students have never felt challenged in math! Math is usually too slow and not rigorous enough, even at the ASPIRE level. With such a small class of mathematically exceptional students, we will be able to cover a large amount of content, as well as extremely demanding problems. By doing this, we hope to show students the joy of persevering in problem-solving and how there are no limits to what they can accomplish. The ultimate mission of A2PC is to prepare students for AP Calculus AB next year.
For the first several weeks, students will dive into the foundations of functions. Building off of what they learned in Algebra 1, students will analyze a wide variety of parent functions (such as logarithmic and step functions), function transformations, and behaviors of functions (such as even/odd functions, end behavior, and increasing/decreasing intervals). This first unit will help ease students into the fast pace of this course by reviewing some previous Algebra 1 material throughout the unit.
English Language Arts
Welcome to 6th Grade ASPIRE ELA! I am excited to begin my 17th year in education and my 5th year with CTMS ASPIRE!
Throughout our first ELA unit of study, we will read and discuss various literary texts, including short stories and memoirs. As we look through the lens of identity, we will focus on these essential questions. What creates and shapes one's identity? How does identity shape perspective? How do writer's/author's voices reveal their identities and reflect their personality, time, culture, and so forth? How does an author's voice reflect and shape culture? We will also begin our independent reading time, lessons in grammar/mechanics, and incorporate various writing activities, which will include introducing and completing dialectical journal responses.
7th
Hello and welcome to 7th-grade ASPIRE ELA! I am so excited to begin this year with our amazing 7th-grade students!
Our year will begin with a study on archetypes and how they are used in literature, film, etc. Students will end their study of archetypes with a group project where they identify past and current myths that utilize an archetype of their choice. Finally, We will wrap up this unit by reading N. Scott Momaday’s The Way to Rainy Mountain. In addition to our literature selections, students will be reviewing basic grammar concepts these first few weeks before moving on to new topics, including sentence types and structure.
8th
Welcome to 8th-grade ASPIRE ELA! I’m looking forward to working with all of my returning (and new) students, and I hope you all had an amazing summer!
For our first unit, students will be participating in a variety of literature groups as we read and watch a variety of sources focusing on the American experience, including interviews, short stories, speeches, and videos. We will then focus on an introduction to analyzing rhetoric, a skill that they will focus on heavily in high school. Finally, we will also be reviewing and expanding upon their knowledge of academic writing from last year before diving into analytical written responses.
History
We will begin the school year learning about ourselves as individuals and thinking more in-depth about our role in the world. Our first Social Studies unit will begin by taking a closer look at our global world through the seven pillars of social studies. This will then lead us into our second unit of study where we will look at the relationship between humans and their environment and explore the following essential questions. How does examining geography help us understand how and why places are connected with one another? What is the relationship between humans and their environment? How do human beings interact with the natural environment to survive, thrive, or fail? What do past societies tell/teach us about our modern-day society?
7th
Meanwhile, in 7th grade, students will be examining the mystique that is Texas and how that has formed our own particular “Texas identity”. However, we will first start off by looking at historical writing and how it is different from other genres of writing, and what it means to be a biased or objective writer. From there we will jump into the “way back” machine and investigate the origins of the first Texans to the Texas we know and love today.
8th
Hello, ASPIRE Parents! My name is Andy Tucker and this will be my 4th Year with the ASPIRE team. I’m so glad to get to work with the same group I had in 7th grade. Students in 8th grade will be studying American history from colonization through Reconstruction, but we will spend a lot of time analyzing our present and how the events of the past have shaped today’s conflicts and struggles. We will actually start our year with the American Civil War and then spend the bulk of the school year examining the events that led to Americans in open bloody conflict with one another.
ASPIRE News
Scantron
Scantron Performance Series is a nationally normed adaptive web-based test that measures students' yearly growth regardless of grade level. The ASPIRE program uses the Scantron test in place of the AIMS web test that other students in the district complete. The students take the Scantron test in ELA, Reading Math, and Science three times a year. After each administration students' scores are sent home so parents can see their growth throughout the year.
Students will complete the BOY Scantron on the following days.
Reading - Thursday/Friday 8/26-8/27 during their history class
ELA - Monday 8/23 during their English class
Math - Tuesday/Wednesday 8/31-9/1 during their math class
Science - Tuesday/Wednesday 8/24-8/25 during their science class
Canvas
We will still use Canvas as a learning management system this year. However, we will also be implementing paper-based assignments as well. Each course will use Canvas at various levels.
Becoming a Parent Observer - We highly encourage all parents to become observers in Canvas. The link provided discusses what you can see as an observer and how to become one.
Some teachers will post grades in Canvas before transferring them over to Skyward and some teachers will post grades directly into Skyward. Skyward is the official grade book, so please use that for the most up-to-date information about your student's current average.
Pack Time
- All ASPIRE students will have an ASPIRE teacher for Pack time.
- Pack time is a 15 minute period on Silver & Black days between 2nd & 3rd Period.
- Pack time will function as a homeroom. We will use the time to get to know each other better, work on organization skills, and have opportunities to learn and grow.
- Pack time will be Technology free except for Tuesdays when we check planners & grades.
Upcoming Events
CTMS Mini-School Night
- Tuesday, August 31
- 5:30 pm
- Please watch for more details in The Wolf Weekly that Dr. Halliburton sends out on Sundays.
Monday, September 6
Monday, September 20
Scantron BOY
Monday, August 23 - English Assessment
Tuesday/Wednesday, August 24/25 - Science Assessment
Thursday/Friday, August 26/27 - Reading Assessment through History Class
Tuesday/Wednesday, August 31/September 1 - Math Assessment
SAGE
Jennifer Edwards
CTMS ASPIRE Department Learning Leader
Email: jennifer.edwards@gcisd.net
Website: https://ctms.gcisd.net/cms/one.aspx?portalId=99122&pageId=382997
Phone: 817-251-5320
Twitter: @CTMSEdwardsSci
Kameron Jones-Balsley
Email: kameron.jonesbalsley@gcisd.net
Website: https://ctms.gcisd.net/cms/one.aspx?portalId=99122&pageId=383044
Phone: 817-251-5320
Twitter: @kameronbalsley
Garrett Barnard
Email: garrett.barnard@gcisd.net
Website: https://ctms.gcisd.net/directory/garrett_barnard
Phone: 817-251-5320
Erin Bereuter
Email: erin.bereuter@gcisd.net
Website: https://ctms.gcisd.net/cms/one.aspx?portalId=99122&pageId=366994
Phone: 817-251-5320
Twitter: @ErinBereuter
Kris Gremillion
Email: kris.gremillion@gcisd.net
Website: https://ctms.gcisd.net/cms/One.aspx?portalId=99122&pageId=30743592
Phone: 817-251-5320
Twitter: @kgremillion_ela
Michelle Marinangel
Email: michelle.marinangel@gcisd.net
Website: https://ctms.gcisd.net/cms/One.aspx?portalId=99122&pageId=30743579
Phone: 817-251-5320
Twitter: @msmarinangel
Andy Tucker
Email: andy.tucker@gcisd.net
Website: https://ctms.gcisd.net/cms/One.aspx?portalId=99122&pageId=388779
Phone: 817-251-5320
Twitter: @theTuckerCTMS