Litchfield Middle School
October 2015 Monthly Memo
Fall Conferences
5th grade had 78% attendance
6th grade had 66% attendance.
7th grade had 68% attendance.
8th grade had 58% attendance.
We truly appreciate all you do to support your student/s and their success!
Upcoming Events...
- October 19 - 23 Digital Citizenship Week
- October 19 - Erin Walsh Digital Citizenship Parent Meeting at 7:00 PM in the LHS Theater
- October 29 - DARE Graduation from 1:00 - 3:00 PM in the LMS gym
- October 30 - End of Term 1, FCCLA Dance for students in grades 6-8 in the LMS cafeteria from 7:00 - 9:00 PM
- November 2 - Teacher In-Service- No school for students
- November 3 - Picture Retake Day
- November 17 - Fall Concert (6-8 Choir and 7-8 Band)
- November 26-27 - Thanksgiving Break
Litchfield Middle School
Email: bsimenson@isd465.org
Website: www.litchfield.k12.mn.us
Location: 340 East 10th Street, Litchfield, MN, United States
Phone: 320-693-2441
Grade 5 News...
- Fifth grade is finishing up lessons with officer Nelson on Drug and Violence prevention, and are finishing up their reports for DARE Graduation on Oct 29th.
- 5th grade science students are learning about how to conduct an experiment. We are studying how to build the highest flying alka seltzer rocket. We will then analzye our data to see how reliable our experiments were.
FIfth graders have recently finished Unit 1 Finding a Way in Reading. The theme focused on stories of how the main character faced challenges, and so do all of us in our lives. Theme 2 will focus on stories of Common Goals and how we all need to work together to accomplish great things!
- Mr. Sussner's 5th grade PE classes are fitness testing.
- Mr. McKechney's PE students will be starting Badminton where they will learn the rules and play in a tournament. Ice skating will also be coming up soon which is a great learning experience for the students. Remember to dress warm!!
Grade 6 News...
- 6th grade Industrial Tech students are finishing up their final two STEM module rotations before the end of the quarter.
- 6th Grade Band students are making excellent progress--next week they'll learn their sixth note! But October can be a tough month for beginners, so keep after them to play at home every day. Try our new script which they learned last week: when you say "go practice", do they reply with, "right away"?
In sixth grade social studies we continue learning about early Minnesota and the fur trade. Our trip to Fort Snelling gave us a sneak peek into the lives of people during those times.
In language arts, we just finished writing a story, and we will be publishing it digitally to present it to our classmates. This presentation will also serve as practice for our speaking skills.
- Mr. McKechney's PE students will be starting Badminton where they will learn the rules and play in a tournament. Ice skating will also be coming up soon which is a great learning experience for the students. Remember to dress warm!!
- Mr. Carlson's students are transitioning to units like Swimming, Ice Skating, Badminton and Team Handball in PE.
- Computer 6: We continue to do a variety of word processing, formatting, and editing tasks using Google Docs.
In reading, students are finishing the quarter with the short stories "The King of Mazy May" and "The Circuit" from our literature series. We will also be working on our book reviews during the last weeks of quarter one.
Grade 7 News...
In 7th grade math, students are mastering how to calculate rational numbers. We are off to a great start with accelerated math and setting high goals.
- Junior Dragonaires has started and 7th and 8th graders in choir are welcome to come on Monday and Thursday mornings at 7:30 in the choir room.
English 7 students have been working through a punctuation unit. They have also continued to read their 3 novels per quarter.
Mr. Sussner's 7th grade PE classes are fitness testing.
Mr. Carlson's students are transitioning to units like Swimming, Ice Skating, Badminton and Team Handball in PE.
7th grade Industrial Tech students are finishing up their final two STEM module rotations before the end of the quarter.
In 7th grade science we are just about to start our unit on cells! This will give us an opportunity to once again use the new digital microscopes! Info: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DR-kUGIKhIg
Mr. Sussner's 7th grade Health class is exploring dental health and will be starting a research project next week.
7th Grade Band is preparing for our concert next month on Tuesday, November 17, and the dinosaurs are on the loose! Ask your child which movement of "Prehistoric Suite" is their favorite so far: the majestic Stegosaurus? The thunderous Brontosaurus? The soaring Pterodactyl? Or the frightening battle between the T-Rex and the Triceratops?
Mr. McKechney's PE students will be starting Badminton where they will learn the rules and play in a tournament. Ice skating will also be coming up soon which is a great learning experience for the students. Remember to dress warm!!
Grade 8 News...
- Junior Dragonaires has started and 7th and 8th graders in choir are welcome to come on Monday and Thursday mornings at 7:30 in the choir room.
- 8th grade Earth Science -We are studying the stars and our Sun. Students will also be learning a few of the more common constellations in our sky. Please get outside and share your knowledge of the night sky.
Mr. Sussner's 8th grade PE classes are fitness testing.
Mr. McKechney's PE students will be starting Badminton where they will learn the rules and play in a tournament. Ice skating will also be coming up soon which is a great learning experience for the students. Remember to dress warm!!
Mr. Carlson's students are transitioning to units like Swimming, Ice Skating, Badminton and Team Handball in PE.
Computer 8: We are finishing our Spreadsheet Unit by creating a variety of charts and graphs using Google Sheets.
It is so hard to believe that we are in October and our first band concert of the year is coming up quickly. Mark your calendar for Nov. 17th. Your students are doing AWESOME and hopefully having fun at the same time. The High School is having the Annual Indoor Marching Concert on Nov. 13 & 14. Your students will get a free ticket in the mail. Please let them see one of these concerts as it will give them a glimpse of what is coming for them next year.
8th grade Industrial Tech students are beginning assembly of their projects and looking forward to staining, finishing and taking them home!
Eighth grade English students just finished the novel The Outsiders and will soon be studying short stories.
Mr. Sussner's 8th grade Health classes are beginning a fitness unit. During this unit, we will develop a plan to live an active lifestyle well into adulthood. Also, students will perform fitness skill tests in Health class as a way of measuring current athletic ability.