Middle School Update Week of 10/28/19

Middle School Updates

 

5th Grade

• Religion: Having discussed the various aspects of the sacraments as presented by Saint Thomas Aquinas, we will be delving deep into the sacrament of Baptism. We will explore the signs, symbols, and rituals of Baptism through sacred art and the Bible.
• History: We continue on our journey with the Europeans sailing to the New America. Students created and presented their posters/information on Christopher Columbus, Ferdinand Magellan, and Queen Isabella. We also worked in partners locating facts and highlighting, answering questions, and writing poetry about history.
• Language Arts: We are back into our vocabulary book to continue practicing our word detective skills and practicing context clues. We will also be exploring the fantasy genre and its different elements. We are continuing to practice finding text evidence to support our responses and strengthening our comprehension skills by making connections between the text and our-self, the text and other texts, or the text and the world.
• Science:Students are now beginning studying space and stars.  They will look at how stars are formed and how the Earth, Moon, and Sun interact. 
• Math: We are continuing to strengthen our division skills and our strategies for solving word problems. The word problems continue to have us interpret the quotient or remainder and we will need to round our answer, write the remainder as a fraction, or use either the quotient or remainder. This requires us to pay close attention to detail and we have to logically think about the problem.

 

6th Grade

• Religion:  In the beginning of the week, we spent time reviewing for the Unit 1 test which was on Wednesday.  We also practiced Lectio Divina again which we have added to our routine every week. It is a great time for the 6th graders to sit and pray.
• History:  In geography this week, we learned how to read and interpret a climate graph.  We discussed how you can tell a great deal about a location just by looking at these graphs.  We also began talking about weather and climate.
• Language Arts:  We continue to spend time each day reading in class so the 6th graders get closer to their weekly reading goal.  Please make sure they are reading each night at home so they are able to accomplish their goal. On Thursday, the 6th graders turned in the final drafts of their narratives.  They had a great time writing these! Keep your eyes open for a small project that is due on Wednesday, October 30. In the story that I am reading aloud, Wish Tree, one of the themes is diversity and acceptance.  We began talking about our own cultures and cultural identity this week. For their project, they have to make an Identity Bag that contains 8-10 things that help to describe who they are.  I sent a description with them on Thursday detailing the assignment.
• Science: Students are completing their focus on photosynthesis and cellular respiration, and will be diving into the human body, comparing the different systems. 
• Math: We are continuing to utilize our skills to solve word problems. Some of us are utilizing our understanding of ratios and rates to solve percent proportion situations as well as converting measurements. Students should continue to practice their skills nightly online if they do not have homework from class.

 

7th Grade

• Religion: We are continuing to study Salvation History, reviewing how the Bible has presented us with God’s revelation of his love to humanity and to each student.  We are working through Abraham this week with students researching and presenting each topic.  
• History:  This week, we began and completed the presentations on world religions.  The 7th graders did a great job! I appreciate all of their hard work. Next week, we will continue learning about Central Asia.
• Language Arts:  Our due date for reading is fast approaching. The reading books – Leapholes, Theodore Boone: Kid Lawyer, Chasing Vermeer, and And Then There Were None plus the Literature Guides and projects are due Thursday, October 31. Students presented the Who am I? Questions – plus began writing poetry and entering into Poetic Power – a poetry contest.
• Science: Students are focusing on organelle functions, looking at cell membrane, chloroplasts, and cellular respiration. 
• Math: We are continuing to practice problem-solving skills through various math concepts. Some of us are strengthening our skills through the process of writing and solving various equations or inequalities to represent real world situations. Others of us are exploring the relationship between ratios, rates, and percents and how this is applied to scale drawings and the real world. Students should continue to practice their skills nightly online if they do not have homework from class.

 

8th Grade

• • Religion: We are continuing to study Salvation History, reviewing how the Bible has presented us with God’s revelation of his love to humanity and to each student.  We are working through Abraham this week with students researching and presenting each topic.
  • History: We continue the formation of our government. We are learning about the Continental Convention, Alexander Hamilton, Aaron Burr, Thomas Jefferson, etc. Well ~ Join us on Monday, November 25, 2019, from 1:00 – 3:00 pm in the gym as grades 5th – 8th present a “Historical Showcase.” More details to follow.

 

• Language Arts: Students presented their final Animal Farm posters. What a great job they did and have officially begun Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie. Students are working on their Who am I? Questions – and began writing poetry and entering into Poetic Power – a poetry contest.

 

• Science: Students are looking at relationships of the Sun, Moon, and Earth, creating models to give demonstrations of these relationships.  
• Math: We are continuing to practice problem-solving skills through various math concepts. Some of us are working on identifying different types of transformations (translation, reflection, and rotation) on the coordinate plane. Others of us are still practicing our critical-thinking skills related to solve weighted averages and uniform motion problems. This process relies heavily on paying attention to details. Students should continue to practice their skills nightly online if they do not have homework from class.

 

Important Dates

 

Monday, October 28

First Day of 2nd Marking Period

 

Tuesday, October 29

Homework Club 3:30 – 4:30 pm

 

Wednesday, October 30

No Mass – Adoration 8:30 – 11:00 am

Drama Club 3:30 – 4:30 pm

 

Thursday, October 31

No Homework Club – Happy Trick or Treating!

 

Friday, November 1

Mass 8:45 – 9:30 am – All Saints’ Day

Special Person’s Day 8:30 – 11:00 am

 

Saturday, November 2

Home Basketball Games are at 10am and 12pm, come support your team!