Friday, November 18th Updates
Cluster 5
Cluster Announcements
11/22 Civics - Structure of Government Unit Test
11/22 Algebra 1 Chapter 2 test retake
11/23 Early Release
11/24-11/25 No School
Star Students of the Week
English/Language Arts
Nov 21st- Dec.5th-
We are more than halfway done with our first whole-class novel, Warcross by Marie Lu. The students are using the book, along with their nightly reading expectation to track character/character interactions (on post-it notes), to practice the skills of using strong direct evidence to support claims. This is in line with their practicing writing persuasive arguments in the form of CER paragraphs. Their hard work will help with the preparation for MCAS writing, along with writing argumentative writing in high school. We hope to be done with Warcross (but still continuing our paragraph writing) within the next few weeks.
I wanted to take a moment to post the ELA policy regarding the method by which grades are tracked through the semester. All assignments are assigned through google classroom. Each student is a member of a specific (class color) ELA roster in the classroom. The assignments are all graded on a scale of 0-4 and the grades are represented as follows in GOOGLE CLASSROOM:
4.0= Mastery/Exceeds Expectations
3.0= Proficient/ Meets Expectations
2.0= Approaching Proficiency/Partially Meets Expectations
1.0= Developing/ Some Understanding (with support)
0 Not Meeting Expectation (often an assignment that hasn’t been completed).
-When the grades are transferred into the powerschool portal and calculated into an overall grade, the “Marzano” grade conversion is used to turn the 0- 4 into a percentage. This is not simply changing the fraction into a decimal (not ¾= .75), but rather assigning a percentage to each number. The conversions are as follows: 4.0= 100%, 3.5= 95%, 3.0= 90%, 2.5= 80%, 2.0= 70%, 1.5= 65%, 1.0=60%, 0= 50%.
***In this grading policy, a student will not receive a grade less than a 50% on any assignment- thus making the grade ranges more level in value.
-As always, if you have any questions or concerns about your 8th grader in ELA, please initiate a conversation by emailing me at daniel.skop@watertown.k12.ma.us
I wish you all a wonderful end-of-November and here’s to hoping we finish 2022 STRONG!
Take care.
Science
November 18, 2022
As we begin Term 2, we also begin our study of life science, specifically reproduction and genetics. The objectives for this unit are listed below. Students are working on proving their statements from the “Reproduction Test of Truth” either true or false and then are creating posters to demonstrate their understanding. The posters are due on Tuesday, November 21 and can be used for the assessment (quiz) on that day.
Learning Objectives for Unit 2: Reproduction and Genetics
2.1 Biology Review
Characteristics of Life:
I can identify the common set of characteristics shared by all living things.
I can classify things as living or nonliving.
Cells & Organelles:
I can identify specific parts of the cell, known as organelles.
I can explain the function of specific organelles.
2.2 Reproduction:
I can explain the differences between asexual and sexual reproduction.
I can classify specific reproductive methods as asexual or sexual.
I can describe the advantages and disadvantages of each type of reproduction.
2.3 Types of Cell Division:
I can compare and contrast the phases and products of mitosis and meiosis in eukaryotic cells.
I can describe when organisms use mitosis and when they use meiosis .
2.4 What is Cancer?
I can explain the scientific importance of Henrietta Lacks.
I can describe how mutations in DNA can cause cells to turn cancerous.
3.1 Mendel’s Work
I can describe how Mendel’s experiments with pea plants demonstrated patterns in heredity.
I can compare and contrast genotypes and phenotypes for a variety of traits.
I can show that many traits have dominant and recessive alleles that lead to different phenotypes for individuals.
3.2 Probability and Heredity
I can use Punnett Squares to predict the probability of offspring having a particular genotype and phenotype.
I can understand that there are multiple patterns of inheritance.
3.3 The Cell and Inheritance
I can explain that offspring receive genetic information from their parents in the form of chromosomes.
I can understand that genes are segments of chromosomes and code for proteins that affect traits.
3.4 The DNA Connection
I can describe how DNA is a molecule that is shaped like a double helix and contains the blueprints for life.
I can communicate how cells use the code stored in DNA to create proteins that are needed to grow and function..
I can connect the idea that mutations are changes in DNA that can cause changes in genes and changes in traits.
I can explain how the structure of DNA was discovered.
3.5 Pedigrees
I can explain how genetic disorders are caused by DNA mutations and can be passed to offspring.
I can use and create pedigrees to follow the inheritance of a trait through a family.
Civics
November 18, 2022
We’ve just wrapped up our unit on the 2022 Election. Students completed a Candidate Report Card where they graded Maura Healey and Geoff Diehl, the candidates for governor of Massachusetts, on their policies and ideas about important issues. We’ll learn much more about local and state government later this year.
We’ve now returned to our unit on the Structure of Government, and are reviewing what we already learned about the legislative and executive branches of government. Students will also start to study about the judicial branch and our court system, which we’ll return to in our Justice in Action unit at the end of the year. Heads up: students will have a unit test on the three branches and three levels of government on Tuesday, November 22nd. There’s a lot to know, so we’ll be doing a choice board of review options to get ready! After the November break, we’ll start our next unit on the Origins of Democracy.
Current learning targets:
I can understand the powers of the judicial branch.
I can understand how the different branches of government check and balance each other.
I can name the levels and branches of government, and identify people who work in them.
Math - 11/18/22
During this week the students have been learning about the difference between similar and congruent figures. The students should know that congruent means the same and that figures that are congruent are exactly the same. This means that their angles, sides and shape is the same. When figures are similar they have to fit three separate criteria. They have to have the same shape, same angles but their sides can be bigger or smaller as long as they are increasing by the same amount. In addition, we have started discussing slope and how we can find it in a table, graph or between two points. The students should know that slope measures the steepness of a line and can be found by dividing the height(y) by the base(x).
Next week, I will be introducing equations and what each part of an equation is and how it can be used to make a graph. We will also be continuing or conversation about slope and making sure that we know how to find it.
In my Algebra 1 class the students have received their grades for their chapter 2 test. These grades are currently posted in PowerSchool. Retakes for the chapter two assessment will be taking place on Tuesday next week before break. In order to be eligible to retake an assessment the students must complete test corrections prior to Tuesday. Test corrections must be completed on a separate sheet of paper and must include the question the student got wrong and the correct answer with the correct work.
In addition, students in my Algebra 1 class have been learning about solving 1-step equations, two-step equations, multi-step equations, equations that have variables on both sides, two variable equations and absolute value equations. We have covered a great deal of material and will continue to as the year goes on. My hope is that if students are feeling like they need extra time on a topic that they are completed their homework. Reminder: Homework is given everyday for students to complete. Not every homework assignment is graded, but students do have plenty of work they could be doing outside of school to practice the skills that are introduced in school.
As always if you have any questions or concerns please let me know
English Language Development classes
Developing (ELD 3)
Over the past week we worked on prepositional phrases and how they act to connect ideas in a story. We also read fables together working in pairs while practicing making summaries of what was read. We learned about using the past tense to convey meaning and practiced irregular verbs. For next week, we look forward to beginning work on comparing and contrasting the structure and meaning of a work of fiction across texts.
Expanding (ELD 4)
After giving kind, specific, and helpful feedback to their fellow poets, students are working on their second drafts of their Where I’m From poems. Next week they will explore Kwame Alexander’s poem Here’s What I Remember to practice making observations and inferences–vocabulary and skills which they use in science and social studies. By the end of next week, students will finalize their poems and publish them in Book Creator, a multimedia digital book-making tool. We hope to be able to share them with you during conferences!
Laser cut continents in science
Laser cut continents in science
Laser cut continents in science
Contact staff directly
Edward.Cafua@watertown.k12.ma.us - MATH
Karen.Kline@watertown.k12.ma.us - CIVICS
Sheila.Gilmartin@watertown.k12.ma.us - EL
Brian.Donato@watertown.k12.ma.us - SPECIAL EDUCATION / MATH
Daniel.Skop@watertown.k12.ma.us - ENGLISH
Christine.Sorenson@watertown.k12.ma.us - READING
Elissa.Willoughby@watertown.k12.ma.us - SCIENCE
Thomas.Cloherty@watertown.k12.ma.us - GUIDANCE COUNSELOR
Website: https://wms.watertown.k12.ma.us/