Language Arts
Sixth Grade Dual Language: We will continue to develop their language skills in Spanish and English by investigating texts from Into Literature and Achieve 3000 by identifying the author's purpose, making inferences, and creating connections to our own lives.
Sixth Grade Mono-Lingual: We will be working through HMH Into Literature Unit 6 - focusing on Greek Mythology and Fairy Tales (Echo and Narcissus & Prince and the Pauper), paired with Narrative Writing elements.
Seventh Grade Dual Language: We are working on Unit Three. The theme is The Terror and Wonder of Space and the HMH recommended novel study is , "A Wrinkle in Time". The kids always enjoy the sci-fi stories. Students will be learning about the genre of Biography Worthy Inquiry Learning Project.
Seventh Grade Mono-Langual: Students will be enjoying House Arrest or A Wrinkle in Time.
Eighth Grade Dual Language: We will begin reading The Diary of Anne Frank when they return since the books explore a similar theme.
Eighth Grade Mono-Lingual: We will begin with Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie by Jordan Sonnenblick. We will also then be moving on to the Diary of Anne Frank. All students continue to utilize their Notice and Notes strategies and resources provided in our HMH Into Literature series.
Math
Sixth Grade: In the month of January, students will be studying algebra. The focus will be on algebraic expressions. Students will learn to evaluate expressions using the order of operations. They will learn to read, write, and evaluate expressions containing variables.
Sixth Grade Accelerated: In January, students will be studying three-dimensional figures. They will learn how to find the volume and surface area of prisms. At the end of January, students will begin studying algebra, starting with evaluating expressions using the order of operations.
Sixth Grade Advanced: Students will be finishing up operations of rational numbers. They will first learn how to multiply and divide positive and negative numbers. Then they will review all operations of positive and negative numbers.
Seventh Grade: Students will be learning to write, solve, and graph inequalities. At the end of January, they will begin to write, solve, and interpret ratios and proportions.
Seventh Grade Pre-Algebra: Students will be learning about statistics and probability. Students will be finding simple probabilities, working with compound events, and permutations. Students will be working with measures of center and mean absolute deviation to compare populations of data.
7th Grade Algebra: In January, students will be learning the properties of exponents. Students will be able to evaluate radical expressions. Students will be able to graph exponential functions and determine the difference between exponential growth and decay models.
Eighth Grade: In January, students will be learning to solve linear systems through graphing, substitution, and elimination. Students will be able to determine the number of solutions to a linear system.
Eighth Grade Algebra: In January, students will be learning the properties of exponents. Students will be able to evaluate radical expressions. Students will be able to graph exponential functions and determine the difference between exponential growth and decay models.
Eighth Grade Geometry: In January, students will complete their first final exam. We will spend time reviewing all concepts taught in the first half of the school year, and will then move on to chapter 7 which is focused on angles of polygons.
Science
6th grade: Before Winter Break, we started our second unit of study (Earth Science: How Does Water Shape Our World?). In this unit, students are discussing the water cycle, reservoirs, weathering, erosion, and deposition.
7th grade: In January, the students are going to take a deeper look into what’s happening to atoms and molecules during a chemical reaction. We will be wrapping up the unit at the end of January with our chemical reaction assessment.
8th grade: In January, students will begin their introduction to our chemistry unit: How Does Food Provide My Body With Energy? They will use data to construct scientific explanations about what happens to fat molecules and how organisms use food for energy and building blocks. They will also provide evidence for how plants produce food during photosynthesis and how organisms use food during cellular respiration.
Social Science
8th grade: Students will be finishing the 1920s unit. After the 1920s unit, they will be studying the Great Depression unit. Within this unit, they will be learning about the causes of the Great Depression, the Dust Bowl, the Stock Market Crash, the New Deal, and many other topics while analyzing primary sources.
7th: Grade: In the coming weeks, students will be building themselves up and preparing themselves for the big Constitution Test. It will take a lot of hard work and dedication, but we will all be successful in the end!
6th Grade: We will be wrapping up our unit on Ancient China and beginning our unit on Ancient Greece. 6th Grade uses Achieve3000 to assess and monitor students’ reading of informational text, and each reading relates back to current topics being taught in class. Students will also be working on their 2nd Trimester Inquiry Projects, answering the question “Does trade affect culture?”
Exploratory
FACS: During the month of January, FACS students will be learning the basics of hand sewing and embroidery techniques, including threading a needle, the running stitch, the back stitch and the overcast stitch to create two projects. Students will also learn how to mend various items of clothing including sewing on a button. They will start with a pin cushion to hold their sewing pins. 6th graders will then construct a felt coaster and 7th and 8th graders will construct a pillow for their final project. They will get to use their creativity and pick their designs for both projects!
Art: Ms. McAllister’s art classes will start their first project where they can choose the media and topic of their artwork. The choices for our first project will be drawing, painting and collage. Groups will collaborate to create a 2-week plan and contract for their project. Mrs. Pintz’s 7th grade classes will learn about graphic design and word art, and begin their own projects as part of the Design Unit. In Mrs. Pintz’s 8th grade classes, students will learn about value shading and techniques to complete their own grid drawing as part of the Value Shading Unit. Students choose their own subject matter and shading techniques.
STEM: Mr. Enrile’s 6th grade students will be engaged in different activities that explore evidence of life. Students will make a bubble solution to investigate how cell membranes function and then build a DNA model using cardboard, paper plates, and drinking straws. Mr. Enrile’s 7th grade students will learn how vertical and horizontal structures are built. Students will build a vertical structure to be tested with several kilograms of sandbags. Ms. Meyer’s STEM students will begin the quarter by creating treasure chests out of paper and tape and sending them to a favorite staff member. Students will then participate in a national competition kicking off the learning and application of the STEM design process.
Technology: In January, 6th graders will learn and discuss characteristics of a responsible digital citizen, including sending emails using their school email accounts. 7th grade classes begin the quarter creating a battleship game using Google Sheets and will play their game with a partner. The 8th graders will learn about Tinkercad and additive manufacturing starting with a simple design of vocabulary words on a cube before building complex prototypes. Students will print their designs in 3D using our classroom printer.
