Ballenger Creek Middle School

Dear Ballenger Creek Middle Families,

I hope that you and your loved ones are well. As I write this, the weather feels like spring and we are inching closer to spring break, which starts for students on Friday, March 29th. What are your spring break plans? Whether we’re traveling or staying close to home, our smartphones and other devices are often useful and always close at hand.

While our cell phones have become part of everyday life, a new report from the Pew Research Center indicates that the majority of teens surveyed (72%) report that they sometimes or often feel peaceful when they don’t have access to their smartphone. While teens obviously see value in their smartphones--69% also indicate phones make it easier for them to pursue their hobbies and interests--more teens (42%) than not (30%) think that their phones make it more difficult for them to learn good social skills.

This information reinforces what I think many of us have observed or suspected in terms of how smartphones affect our children. I’m going to extend the challenge to you that my family and I are going to attempt over break--to spend less time on devices and engage in more analog activities. To help with this worthwhile effort, I personally think this resource (not endorsed by FCPS) has some very useful suggestions for how to successfully approach this topic with our teens.

If you have questions or need support with this or other ways to help your child, please don’t hesitate to reach out to your child’s school counselor or me.

Take care,

Jay Schill

Principal, BCMS

6th Grade:

Students in 6th grade are wrapping up Cycle 6 and preparing to take the second ELA Benchmark of the year. This benchmark assesses their ability to write an argumentative essay. After the benchmark, they will move to Cycle 7. The Cycle 7 focuses on the essential question, “How do people respond to their own/others’ weaknesses/character flaws?”

7th Grade:

In 7th grade, we are currently working through curriculum cycle six. This cycle asks the essential question “What can we learn from tragedies?” Over the past few weeks, we have been learning about the sinking of the Titanic and reading two primary sources about the sinking. While reading these texts, we have been looking at how authors create tone through their word choice. Students are now working on a written response where they explain how the authors of the primary sources do this in their texts. Next week, students will be taking ELA Benchmark two, focused on argument writing.

8th Grade:

8th Grade Students have recently wrapped up Cycle 6 which focused on how individuals overcome adversity. They will be completing their second benchmark of the year which assesses their argumentative writing skills. After the completion of the benchmark, students will begin Cycle 7. The unit essential question for this cycle is “How do people decide between what is right and wrong?”. Students will read several literary texts and analyze character actions, motivations, and text structure.

During the month of March, 8th grade students will also be able to participate in the Annual March Madness Poetry Tournament. Students will have the opportunity to read various poems and vote for their favorite.

6th Grade: Moving into Module 5: Numerical and Algebraic Expressions (exponents; evaluating algebraic expressions; factors/multiples; distributive property)

7th Grade: Module 5: Simplify Algebraic Expressions (like terms, constants, coefficients, linear expressions)

8th Grade: Module 7: Triangles and Pythagorean Theorem (angle relationships; using Pythagorean theorem and its converse)

Algebra: Finishing Module 10: Polynomials (identifying/classifying; adding and subtracting; multiplying) and moving into Module 11: Quadratic Functions (solving and graphing)

In order to prepare for the upcoming MCAP Tests in April, students can access practice tests here and select their grade level.

6th Grade:

Students have finished our unit on Ancient China and are now moving into Ancient Greece. We will begin by exploring how the geography of Ancient Greece affected their development and then move onto the legacy and achievements of the Ancient Greeks. We will end by examining the impact Ancient Greece had on Modern American Society.

7th Grade:

Students are working through Unit 6, which looks at medieval Europe. Students learned about the feudal system and how Europe began to recover from the loss of the Roman Empire. Afterwards, major developments and events, such as the Crusades, Bubonic Plague, Hundred Years’ War and the Magna Carta will be discussed. At the end of the unit, students will complete their last county benchmark regarding the decline of the feudal system in Europe. Afterwards, Unit 7 will look at the European Renaissance along with the Protestant Reformation and the Scientific Revolution.

8th Grade:

American Studies 1, we are moving on to the first half of Unit 6 on the Civil War. This unit will end in a research project on a Civil War topic of choice that students will complete in the last week before Spring Break. When we come back from break, we will be learning about Reconstruction.

We welcome our families to contact us with questions or support that may be needed.

• 6th Grade: Rebecca Schimel and Emily Pemrick

• 7th Grade: Elissa Grimm

• 8th Grade: Athena Fream and Tyler Britt

• Speech and Language Pathologist: Kellee Byun

• School Psychologist: Julie Kaufhold

• Program Assistant: Nancy Suray

• Volunteer - Join one of our many community activities to improve our city and the lives of others. Https://volunteermatch.org is a great resource.

• Listen to music in ENGLISH and learn the lyrics. This is a great way to pass the time when you are out for a walk, working out or riding in the car.

Smile Maryland

SMILE MARYLAND is coming to Ballenger Creek Middle School on Friday, May 17th.

Get in school dental care at no cost to you. This is for parents covered by Medicaid or Maryland Healthy Smiles.

If interested in your child receiving dental care through Smile Maryland, the form can be found in the front office, the guidance office, or by contacting Ms. Rogers at kathleen.rogers@fcps.org. You may also sign up for your child to participate by visiting www.MySchoolDentist.com.