Please the document below for the final exam study guide.

final_exam_study_guide_spring_050312

Hello families!  Below are some recent activities and assignments from the Middle School Spanish classes.

Eighth grade students are completing their grammar and vocabulary two year series of VOCES Y VISTAS in preparation for High School placement tests later this month. With great excitement, they are in preparation for their roles in the full length culminating episode/play of ENSALADA Total Physical Response Storytelling. This will conclude a three year curriculum of fun episodes of mayhem in this fictional town of fruits and veggies. We are also gearing up for our annual 8th grade visit to the Defense Language Institute later this month. This is a full day of language and culture from around the globe.  Full steam ahead onto graduation!

Seventh graders had great fun creating their Salad Towns and bringing them to class for storytelling of past and present episodes and the most fun was had with the invention of their own whacky (and scandalous) episodes.  These hard working students put their all into their work and assignments on a daily basis. They will end the year with some skits of an original nature.

Sixth graders continue their work in the DIME series with practice at reading, writing, listening and speaking common everyday situations and vocabulary use. They now have a greater appreciation of the time and dedication it takes for second language mastery. These are the skills that they will take into the two year High School level program next year and the following here at Gateway. This has been a year of much growth for them in terms of study habits and work ethic.  We will conclude the year with an in depth study of the two verbs of ‘being’ in Spanish and a tragic conclusion to the sixth grade curriculum of the Saladtown Total Physical Response Storytelling series that is sure to shock one and all!

Stay tuned for May’s final blog installment and enjoy this lovely Central Coast spring time weather!

Saludos,

Patricia

April 25, 2012
Dear Families,
Today the Middle School and campus in general is very quiet: the sixth graders are in San Francisco
visiting the Asian Art Museum, and the Fifth Graders are off to the Marin Headlands.
Today from 3:15 to 5:15 the Middle School faculty will be participating in a seminar with Gina Biegel,
author of The Stress Reduction Workbook for Teens: Mindfulness Skills to Help You Deal with Stress.
Ms. Biegel is working with us to help incorporate Gateway’s recent work on Mindfulness in a way that
is age-appropriate for teenagers; this is the second of her two meetings with our faculty. We look
forward to learning more about how to use these stress-reduction techniques with our middle
schoolers.
We encourage you to check our faculty web pages every month for class-by-class curricular updates,
and hope you enjoy the rest of your week!
Read more…

Dear Families,

We invite you to join us TONIGHT for the Middle School Wine Social with Percy and the Middle School teachers, from 5:15-6:15, upstairs in the Lower School building. As a special treat, Gateway parent Naomi Gardner will be displaying some of her photographs and talking about her work. That event will be followed by Percy’s Town Hall Meeting at 6:30 in the West Cliff room, where Percy will speak to us about the state of our school, and what lies ahead for next year. We encourage you to check our faculty web pages every month for class-by-class curricular updates, and enjoy the beautiful weather!

Advisory
Today’s advisory activities varied by group, but included continued reading of the novel Flipped, games, a review of the students’ “highs and lows” for the week, and some off-campus excursions (including a walk to the Lighthouse in Johaan’s eighth-grade advisory group). Activities and Announcements Eighth Graders at the Steinbeck Center on April 13th

Read more…

Dear Families,

Welcome back from spring break! We hope you enjoyed the beautiful weather, and for those of you
celebrating Easter or Passover, we hope you were able to spend some meaningful time with your
families.

A reminder that finalized Quarter 3 grades will be ready for you to view in Blackbaud by Friday
afternoon; please feel free to contact your son or daughter’s teachers if you have any questions. It’s
hard to believe that we’re now in the last quarter of the school year!

Read more…

Gateway alumna, Sierra Tobin, Class of 2009, returned to Gateway today to speak to the 7th and 8th graders about her trans-formative community service trip to Costa Rica. Sierra spoke eloquently about her experience – ALL in Spanish (very impressive!) and the students had to use their Spanish to ask Sierra about the trip. Muchas Gracias Sierra! What a fun way to practice our language skills.

December 14, 2011

Dear Families,

Since we have only three days of school next week, this is the last Middle School Update before we leave for winter break. Please remember that Wednesday, December 21^st is a full day of instruction.

Please note that the sixth graders’ annual Second Harvest Food Drive ends next Tuesday, December 20^th, and we still need to collect 3,000 pounds of food in order to meet our goal of 7,000 pounds. Please encourage your son or daughter to bring in more donations this week and next so that we can meet our goal.

Also, we are in need of judges for this year’s Science Fair. If you or someone you know are interested in judging, please contact LeighAnn as soon as possible. There is more information available in the attached letter, and a brief description in the “Activities and Announcements” section below.

We encourage you to check our faculty web pages every month for class-by-class curricular updates, and we’ll see you next year!

Advisory

Today’s advisory groups were involved in many different activities. Some took off-campus trips (to places including Betty Burgers, Las Palmas and the miniature golf course, and Lighthouse Field); some played games (like telephone Pictionary); some read together (the novel Flipped); some watched an inspirational video that encompasses themes of perspective taking and gratitude (you can view it at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gc4HGQHgeFE); and other groups discussed gift giving, and developed holiday wish lists of non-tangible gifts that they would like from family and friends (like patience, love, understanding, etc.). Today’s activities were a great example of how our advisory time allows us to engage in fun and meaningful ways with our students, and help keep them focused on the larger picture of what it means to be an engaged, kind, and generous person in the world.

Activities and Announcements

 

Student Government News

• Both our Coat Drive and Bake Sale were successful! We collected around 200 coats and KION came out to interview two of our Student Council Officers. We will be sending “Smile Train” a check in the amount of $265 (the amount of money raised in the Bake Sale). Thanks to all who helped with these events.
• Next Spirit Day: January 18 (Crazy Hair Day)
• Next Student Council Meeting: January 20 @ 12:30

 

 

Second Harvest Food Drive Ends Tuesday, Dec. 20^th

The Second Harvest Annual Food Drive is still underway, and ends next Tuesday, December 20^th. The 6th grade is working diligently towards their goal of 7,000 pounds. Great work Lucy and Hanna for hosting a hot chocolate stand over the weekend!

Science Fair Judges Needed! Who: Gateway community adults looking for a way to support the science program What: Gateway Middle School Science Fair Where: In the Gateway Middle School classrooms When: Wednesday, February 8^th: 12:30-3:00 pm (lunch provided) How: Contact LeighAnn Work at leighann.work@gatewaysc.org or 423-0341 X 313

If you would like to be a judge for the Science Fair, or if you know someone that would, please let us know. We look forward to hearing from you!

John Hopkins Center for Talented Youth (CTY)

Johns Hopkins Center for Talented Youth offers summer programs designed to promote opportunities for student learning and growth. Students who have scored in the 95^th percentile (or higher) on one or more of the Fall 2010 ERB subtests listed below are eligible to participate.

• Verbal Reasoning
• Vocabulary
• Reading Comprehension
• Quantitative Reasoning
• Mathematics 1&2

 

If your child scored at or above the 95^th percentile on ANY of the subtests listed above, it’s not too late to participate in the Talent Search, and apply for the summer programs. After participating in our Talent Search, qualifying students will have access to CTY Summer programs, CTYOnline-Distance Education courses, and Family Academic conferences. Financial aid is available for qualifying students. You can learn more at: http://www.cty.jhu.edu/ts/ctyinsights.html

Since 1979, Johns Hopkins University Center for Talented Youth (CTY) has been deeply committed to inspiring gifted students by providing distinctive educational opportunities that nurture intellectual abilities, advance achievement, and enhance personal development. Our mission is to find students with high academic abilities, who will benefit from what we have to offer. We have been able to identify over 1 million students since the inception of the CTY and we have helped over 100,000 in our programs.

After School Sports

The 7th/8th Boys Basketball team got a great overtime win at Wavecrest last week and endured a hard fought loss at San Lorenzo Valley. Before the break begins they will travel to play B40 on Monday.

The 6th Grade Boys Basketball team had the gym rocking last Wednesday in a thrilling overtime win versus Salesian. On Friday they played at San Lorenzo Valley, enduring a loss but playing a strong game.

5th Grade Boys Basketball played last Wednesday in a doubleheader against Salesian with the 6th graders and will be traveling to Salesian to complete the home and away series on Tuesday.

 

Gateway was well represented at the Dad’s Club basketball tournament over the weekend at the Civic Below: 1^st Place winner Center. Participating in the Junior High School Boys & Sonja Girls “Hot Shot Competition” were 7^th graders Jason and Sonja, and 8^th graders Alysha and Brendan. Big congratulations to them all for an exemplary performance and to Sonja who came away with first place! Thank you to all the Gateway fans in attendance.

GO SHARKS!

Assignments

Please note that dates are subject to change depending on how the class is progressing. If there is no posted information for a class, no major projects or tests are coming up this week. For Math, we provide information in this letter about upcoming math quizzes, tests, or projects. Math homework is posted in the classroom each day, and students must write it down in their assignment books.

 

6^th Grade

Humanities

History:

Ancient Egypt Test:

6A – Th 12/15 Introduce Hebrew Kingdoms History textbook questions: p. 329 #1, 3-5 due T 12/20

 

Literature:

Choice Novel Reading Assignment

Please refer to class blog for details Traditions Poem

To be assigned F 12/16, due W 12/21

Grammar & Vocabulary:

• Vocabulary homework due (unit 6) and quiz (unit 6) on Thursday, 12/15 (6B)/ Friday, 12/16 (6A)

6^th Grade Math

• We are finishing up Ch. 6, which will culminate with a project that we will start on Thursday in class and complete next week. This week students shouldn’t have homework unless they need to finish their project at home.

6^thGrade Pre-Algebra

• Friday, Dec. 16th quiz on lessons 4:1-4-4
• • Tuesday, Dec 20th Test on chapter 4: lessons 4:1-4:6 Science
• Parents, please review the Science Fair Timeline with your kids. Things are getting faster now, and they need to be following up at home if they are falling behind. This week, we will begin discussing the Experimental Design. The rough draft of the experimental design is due Monday, 12/19, and the final draft is due Wednesday 12/21. They need to have their design OK’ed by Allison before they can officially start on their experiment.
• • Start thinking about materials now, as their results are due by 1/16 at the latest, and it might be helpful to do some or all of the actual experiment over break if they have time. Spanish
• For Wed. 12/14: Chap. 2 DIME vocab test (nouns and verbs-Eng>Span)
• For Mon. 12/19 and Tues. 12/20: Final Geography project due for turn in/presentation
• No homework over break

 

Physical Education As we finish the volleyball unit, students are focused on controlling the ball in order to execute a pass, set and hit. In the last week, noticeable progress has been made with consistent serving and accurate passing.

On Friday, December 16th 6B is scheduled to run the mile and on Monday, December 19th 6A is scheduled to run the mile. (Please note that over the course of the school year, students will run the mile 4 times.) Both classes will be rewarded with a “choice” day after the mile run.

 

7^th Grade

Humanities Vocabulary Workshop

• Units 1-6: Workbook Pages, 72-83 M 12/19
• Units 1-6: Cumulative Quiz T 12/20

 

Haroun and the Sea of Stories

• Chapter 8 TH 12/15
• Chapter 9 T 12/20
• Chapter 10-12 Packet M 1/9/12

 

The Growth of Islam

• Map: The City of Baghdad TH 12/ 15
• History Makers: Abd al-Rahman III F 12/16
• Chapter 4 Test – The Rise of Muslim States M 12/19

 

• Islam Unit Exam – The Growth of Islam W 12/21 *Extra Credit: ••• Page typed on Jihad or Shari’ah Pre-Alg

• Friday, Dec. 16th quiz on lessons 4:4-4-5
• • Tuesday, Dec 20th Test on chapter 4: lessons 4:1-4:6 Algebra 1a
• We are finishing up Chapter 4, with review on Thursday and a test on Friday for sections 4-1 to 4-6. Next week, we will be working on arithmetic sequences.

 

Algebra

• Due Thurs 12/15: 7.1, p. 372 # 15021 odd + 23-29 EOO + 41-43
• Due Fri 12/16: 7.2, p 379 # 11-23 odd + 27, 31, 33
• Due Mon 12/19: 7.3 p. 385 # 13-35 EOO + 35, 36
• Due Tues 12/20: Practice problems due (will be given in class on Tuesday)
• Also Tues 12/20: Big Quiz, 7.1 – 7.3
• In class on Wed 12/21-Holiday Graphing Project

 

Science

• Due Wed. 12/14: RD Materials and Methods + rough sketch in SF lab book of your data table
• Due Fri 12/16: FD Materials and Methods
• Due Tues 12/20: Outline of Introduction (typed)
• Due Wed 12/21: RD Introduction

 

Spanish

• For Tues. 12/13 Complete packet for Chap. 3
• For Th. 12/15 & Fri. 12/17: Chap. 3 test -Includes all vocab/interrogatives/verbs
• For Tues. 12/20 Final “Ropa” project done, ready for turn in or presentation
• No homework over break

 

Physical Education As we finish the volleyball unit, students are focused on controlling the ball in order to execute a pass, set and hit. In the last week, noticeable progress has been made with consistent serving and accurate passing. The unit wraps up with a test on basic rules and fundamental techniques on Wednesday, December 14th (7B) and Thursday, December 15th (7A).

On Tuesday, December 20th 7B is scheduled to run the mile and on Wednesday, December 21st 7A is scheduled to run the mile. (Please note that over the course of the school year, students will run the mile 4 times.) Both classes will be rewarded with a “choice” day before the winter break.

 

8^th Grade

Humanities Wednesday: History chapter 9 (reading and worksheets due); quiz Thursday: Literary Analysis: Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass (ch. 7); reading quiz Friday: “Twentieth-Century Tyrants” placards due: vocab. quiz (unit 6) Monday: First half of history reading due (chapter 10); in-class reading; history exam

corrections due (unit 2)

Tuesday: Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass (ch. 8 & 9) Wednesday: History reading and worksheets due (chapter 10); quiz

Algebra 1a

• We are finishing up Chapter 4, with review on Thursday and a test on Friday for sections 4-1 to 4-6. Next week, we will be working on arithmetic sequences.

Algebra

• Due Thurs 12/15: 7.1, p. 372 # 15021 odd + 23-29 EOO + 41-43
• Due Fri 12/16: 7.2, p 379 # 11-23 odd + 27, 31, 33
• Due Mon 12/19: 7.3 p. 385 # 13-35 EOO + 35, 36
• Due Tues 12/20: Practice problems due (will be given in class on Tuesday)
• Also Tues 12/20: Big Quiz, 7.1 – 7.3
• In class on Wed 12/21-Holiday Graphing Project

 

8^th Grade Advanced Algebra & Geometry

• Quadratic and Exponential Functions
• Test Monday 12/19 – Wednesday 12/21 *Please refer to the class blog for daily assignments.

 

Science

• Due Wed. 12/14: RD Materials and Methods + rough sketch in SF lab book of your data table
• Due Fri 12/16: FD Materials and Methods
• Due Tues 12/20: Outline of Introduction (typed)
• Due Wed 12/21: RD Introduction

 

Spanish

• For Tues. 12/13 Chap. 11 packet complete and ready to turn in
• For Th. 12/16 and Fri. 12/17 Test -chap. 11 (all vocab. and stem change verbs)
• No homework over break

 

Physical Education As we finish the volleyball unit, students are focused on controlling the ball in order to execute a pass, set and hit. In the last week, noticeable progress has been made with consistent serving and accurate passing. The unit wraps up with a test on basic rules and fundamental techniques on Thursday, December 15th.

On Tuesday, December 20th 8th grade is scheduled to run the mile. (Please note that over the course of the school year, students will run the mile 4 times.)

Look for another Middle School Update in January, and Happy Holidays!

Best, The Middle School Team

December 7, 2011

Dear Families,

It’s hard to believe we have only two weeks to go until winter break. The students are working hard on their Science Fair projects, and finishing up unit projects and lessons in several classes. Please take the time to have a conversation with your son or daughter about his or her academic progress, and encourage him or her to check in with teachers in advance of the break. We’ll be doing the same thing.

A reminder that the sixth graders will be visiting the Rosicrucian Museum tomorrow, and they will need to bring a sack lunch with them. They’ll be back in time for fifth period.

We encourage you to check our faculty web pages every month for class-by-class curricular updates. Have a great week!

Advisory

Today’s advisory time was dedicated to a Town Hall meeting, and afterwards we played a Middle School-wide game of capture the flag. With the few minutes we had remaining, we reconvened in our individual advisory groups to plan for our last two advisory meetings before the winter break.

Activities and Announcements

 

Student Government News

• The next student council meeting is Friday, Dec. 9^th.
• Congratulations to Student Council for collecting more than 200 coats for the coat drive! Thanks to all the students and families who helped them meet their goal.

 

 

 

Second Harvest Food Drive

The 6th grade annual community service project is underway. Each year Gateway School contributes thousands of pounds of food to the Santa Cruz County Second Harvest Food Bank. Your continued support of this project is appreciated by the 6th grade students, the food bank, and the people it serves. Many thanks to Jonah, Zane, and Tomás for hosting a hot chocolate stand at the Lighted Boat Parade over the weekend, and to Wyatt for holding a bake sale. Together these students raised nearly 600 pounds of food for their communities!

 

After-School Sports Update:

The 7th/8th Boys Basketball team traveled to Watsonville over the weekend, taking part in the inaugural Bishop’s Classic at St. Francis High School. The Sharks went 1-2 on the weekend in a very competitive tournament. Congratulations to Brendan Hanlon on his All-Tournament selection. Next up is Wavecrest Wednesday in Aptos and San Lorenzo Valley Friday night.

The 6th Grade Boys Basketball team played outstanding team basketball on Friday against Spring Hill and rewarded all the fans that came out for the Blue/Gold game with a win. Next up is Salesian Wedensday at home and traveling to San Lorenzo Valley on Friday.

After suffering a loss to an experienced Good Shepherd team last Friday, the 5th Grade Boys Basketball team traveled to Green Valley Monday and rebouned with a

19-10 win. They play next Wednesday in a doubleheader against Salesian with the 6th graders.

The Dad’s Club basketball tournament is this weekend at the Civic Center downtown, hosted by Santa Cruz High. The Junior High School Boys & Girls “Hot Shot Competition” will be held Saturday at approximately 5:45p.m. after the 2^nd game of the evening and representing Gateway will be 7^th graders Jason and Sonja, and 8^th graders Alysha and Brendan. This tournament is a great tradition (56 years!) and we urge the students to come out to see some great basketball and support their classmates. For more information and list of participating teams go to the SCHS website.

 

GO SHARKS!

Assignments

Please note that dates are subject to change depending on how the class is progressing. If there is no posted information for a class, no major projects or tests are coming up this week. For Math, we provide information in this letter about upcoming math quizzes, tests, or projects. Math homework is posted in the classroom each day, and students must write it down in their assignment books.

6^th Grade

Humanities

History:

Ch. 5: Ancient Egypt Study Ch. 5 Notes daily.

Ancient Egypt Test: 6B –T 12/13 6A – Th 12/15

Ancient Egypt Reports:

(Please refer to class blog for details)

Part I: Essay Final Draft: due F 12/9 Part II: Project Final Presentation: due Th 12/8

Literature:

Choice Novel Reading Assignment To be assigned M 12/12 Traditions Poem To be assigned F 12/16, due W 12/21

Grammar & Vocabulary:

• Vocabulary homework due (unit 5) and quiz (unit 5) on Thursday, 12/8 (6B)/ Friday, 12/9 (6A)

FIELD TRIP Thursday, 12/8 to Rosicrucian Museum. Bring a sack lunch.

6^th Grade Math

• We are moving into Chapter 6, working with fractions. On Friday, we have a quiz on sections 6-1, 6-2, and 6-3. Next week we will continue with Chapter 6.

6^thGrade Pre-Algebra

• Wednesday, Dec 14: Quiz on lessons 4:1-4:4
• Friday, Dec 16: Quiz on lessons 4:5 & 4:6
• • Tuesday, Dec. 20: Test on chapter 4 lessons 1-6 Science
• • We are taking notes and creating our Works Cited this week. The rough draft is due Thursday at the end of class, and the final draft is due Monday. Spanish
• Rough drafts due for Geography book pages due 12/9 (this Friday)
• Final project due 12/19
• Chap. 2 DIME test is Wed. 12/14

 

Physical Education Students are diligently working to improve their volleyball skills on the court. This week the focus is on setting and breaking down the complicated mechanics of hitting. Every class will end with scrimmage type play to give students an opportunity to test their developing skills.

7^th Grade

Humanities Vocabulary Workshop

• Unit 6 Workbook Pages TH 12/8
• Unit 6 Quiz F 12/9

 

Haroun and the Sea of Stories

• Chapter 6 TH 12/8
• Chapter 7 M 12/12

 

The Growth of Islam

• Flashcards 21-39 M 12/12
• Chapter 4 Packet – The Rise of Muslim States W 12/14

 

Pre-Alg

• Wednesday, Dec 14: Quiz on lessons 4:1-4:4
• Friday, Dec 16: Quiz on lessons 4:5 & 4:6
• • Tuesday, Dec. 20: Test on chapter 4 lessons 1-6 Algebra 1a
• We are beginning our work with graphing relations and functions. On Friday, we have a quiz on sections 4-1, 4-3, and 4-4. Next week we will continue with Chapter 4.

 

Algebra

• Due Wed 12/7: Notes on section 6.4 + p. 342 # 15-25 odd
• Due Thurs. 12/8: Notes on section 6.5, examples 1-4 + concept summary
• Due Fri. 12/9: 6.5, p. 349-# 15-39 EOO + 41, 43, 45 + 49-51
• Due Mon 12/12: 6.6, p. 355 # 13-37 odd + 38-41
• Due Tuesday 12/13: Test Review Sheet
• Also Tuesday-Chapter 6 Test, sections 6.1 through 6.6

 

Science

• Due Wed. 12/7: Rough Draft References
• Due Friday 12/9: Final Draft References
• Due Monday 12/12: Hypothesis worksheet due (p. 25 of science fair instruction booklet). This must be stapled or glued into you lab book. Alternatively, the student can write the information into their book neatly and clearly.
• Due Wed 12/14: Rough Draft Materials and Methods Due

 

Spanish

• Rough drafts for Clothing project due Fri,12/9
• Final project due: Tues., 12/20
• Chap. 3 test (vocab., verbs, question words and finished Chap. 3 packet) DUE: Th., 12/15

 

Physical Education Students are diligently working to improve their volleyball skills on the court. This week the focus is on setting and breaking down the complicated mechanics of hitting. Every class will end with scrimmage type play to give students an opportunity to test their developing skills.

8^th Grade

Humanities Wednesday: Review for history exam (over chapters 6, 7, and “The Constitution Handbook”) Thursday: Literary Analysis: Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass (ch. 1-3); reading quiz Friday: History Exam; begin work on “Twentieth-Century Tyrants” placards Monday: Vocab. quiz (unit 6); in-class reading (Fever) Tuesday: Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass (ch. 4,5, &6) Wednesday: History reading and worksheets due (chapter 9); quiz

Algebra 1a

• We are beginning our work with graphing relations and functions. On Friday, we have a quiz on sections 4-1, 4-3, and 4-4. Next week we will continue with Chapter 4.

Algebra

• Due Wed 12/7: Notes on section 6.4 + p. 342 # 15-25 odd
• Due Thurs. 12/8: Notes on section 6.5, examples 1-4 + concept summary
• Due Fri. 12/9: 6.5, p. 349-# 15-39 EOO + 41, 43, 45 + 49-51
• Due Mon 12/12: 6.6, p. 355 # 13-37 odd + 38-41
• Due Tuesday 12/13: Test Review Sheet
• Also Tuesday-Chapter 6 Test, sections 6.1 through 6.6

 

8^th Grade Advanced Algebra & Geometry

• Quadratic and Exponential Functions Review *Please refer to the class blog for daily assignments.

Science

• Due Wed. 12/7: Rough Draft References
• Due Friday 12/9: Final Draft References
• Due Monday 12/12: Hypothesis worksheet due (p. 25 of science fair instruction booklet). This must be stapled or glued into you lab book. Alternatively, the student can write the information into their book neatly and clearly.
• Due Wed 12/14: Rough Draft Materials and Methods Due

 

Spanish

• Chap. 11 test and packets all due TBD by end of week
• Nightly study of shoe verbs and vocab. for upcoming test

 

Physical Education Students are diligently working to improve their volleyball skills on the court. This week the focus is on setting and breaking down the complicated mechanics of hitting. Every class will end with scrimmage type play to give students an opportunity to test their developing skills.

Look for another Middle School Update next week.

Best, The Middle School Team

November 30, 2011

Dear Families,

Welcome back from Thanksgiving break! We hope your holiday and time with friends and family was relaxing.

Please note that Friday is a big day this week: the Christmas Wreaths sold by the eighth graders as part of their fundraising for Washington D.C. will be available for pick-up; 6^th-Grade Boys’ Basketball has a Blue/Gold game at 4:00 against Spring Hill (Go Sharks!); and we have our Middle School Dance from 7:00-10:00 at First United Methodist Church. See below for more details.

We encourage you to check our faculty web pages every month for class-by-class curricular updates. Have a great week!

Advisory

Today we met in individual advisory groups, and activities varied. Some groups discussed their Thanksgiving holidays, others talked about how their academic work is progressing this quarter, and some of the seventh-grade advisories made plans for off-campus outings (they’re allowed two advisory group trips per year). All of the groups continue to bring in food to share from week to week, and we look forward to these last few weeks together before the winter break.

Activities and Announcements

 

The Wreaths are Arriving This Friday at 3:00!

The Eighth Graders will be distributing Christmas wreaths for those who pre-ordered them after school this Friday at 3:00. They’ll have a table set up on the black top, and you’re welcome to pick up your wreath at that time. Otherwise, students will contact you to find out the best way to get your wreath to you.

If you did not order a wreath (or would like to purchase more), there will be additional items available for purchase on Friday. Thank you for supporting our eighth graders’ fundraising efforts for their trip to Washington D.C.!

 

 

Middle School Dance: Friday, Dec. 2^nd

The Fall Middle School Dance is this Friday from 7:00-10:00 at the First United Methodist Church on California Street. The theme is Neon, and admission is $10 (part of the proceeds will benefit a local charity). Students (and any outside guests) must have a signed permission slip to attend.

 

School Photos Have Arrived; Re-Takes on Tuesday, Dec. 6th

School photos are available for students or their parents to pick up in the front office beginning today. If the envelopes have not been picked up by Friday, we’ll send them home with students on Monday afternoon (we’re trying to keep the photos out of the bottoms of backpacks!).

Photo re-takes are scheduled for Tuesday, Dec. 6^th, beginning at 9:00 a.m. If you’re unhappy with your child’s photo, or your child was absent, please plan on Tuesday as their opportunity to have new photos taken.

 

Student Government News

The next student council meeting is Dec. 9^th.

The annual coat drive in conjunction with Classic Cleaners has begun, and runs through Dec.

 

₂nd

. Classic Cleaners will clean and distribute new or barely used coats/sweaters to children in need in Santa Cruz County. Students can bring their coats/sweaters to their classrooms for donation.

Thank You for Helping with Middle School Information Night! Congratulations to Karen McCormick for winning the iPad drawing! And a big thanks to all the families that brought outside families to the event. Thanks to the Middle School students who were ambassadors for the evening: Colby Morrison, Kate Whitley, Lucy Zicarelli, Blake Smith, Sam Lucas, Lucia Fox-Shapiro, Audrey Bennett, Emma Laurits, and Mikayla Dumont. Thanks to parent volunteers, Debra Sloss and Christy Brandt who helped to greet and shepherd groups to their sessions. And thanks to Doug Morrison and Ross Clark for greeting and helping with videotaping. And of course, thanks to all the members of the Glee Club elective for performing at the event!

The 7th/8th Boys Basketball opened up their season with a win versus a very tough Spring Hill/Waldorf combined team on the Friday before break. While they did lead the whole game, the boys were definitely tested by an athletic and aggressive bunch. This past Monday they scored their second win of the season as they topped Good Shepherd. After a sluggish, post-Thanksgiving start, the boys eventually got it rolling and cruised to a comfortable win. Next up is the Bishop’s Classic at St. Francis High School in Watsonville where the Sharks will play the host team Salesian on Friday and two games on Saturday.

The 6th Grade Boys Basketball team had it’s first game on Monday at Good Shepherd. The Sharks looked great in their debut, as they were executing their plays and running the fast break. Their next game is this Friday versus Spring Hill at 4PM.

The 5th Grade Boys Basketball team knotched a win in their first game of the season against Santa Cruz Montessori and endured a loss to Spring Hill…all before the Thanksgiving Break. They look to get back to their winning ways this Friday at Good Shepherd at 4:30PM.

All Fall Sports athletes must return their laundered jerseys to the appropriate people listed below. Those who do not return jerseys will be billed so please get them in.

5/6 Flag Football: Coach Kurt 7/8 Flag Football: Johaan 6^th Girls Basketball: Coach Johaan 7/8 Girls Basketball: Coach LeighAnn

Volunteers are needed to keep the scorebook and scoreboard at the boy’s basketball games. Students in the 7^th and 8^th grade are encouraged to come help out AND get community service hours. Come see Johaan if interested.

Hope you had a great Thanksgiving Break, and be sure to come out and support our teams.

 

GO SHARKS!

Assignments

Please note that dates are subject to change depending on how the class is progressing. If there is no posted information for a class, no major projects or tests are coming up this week. For Math, we provide information in this letter about upcoming math quizzes, tests, or projects. Math homework is posted in the classroom each day, and students must write it down in their assignment books.

6^th Grade

Humanities

History:

Ch. 5: Ancient Egypt Study Ch. 5 Notes daily.

Ancient Egypt Test: 6B –T 12/13 6A – Th 12/15

FIELD TRIP Thursday, 12/8 to Rosicrucian Museum– Drivers Needed!

Ancient Egypt Reports:

(Please refer to class blog for details)

Part I: Essay Topics due Th 11/10 Outlines & Bibliography due Th 11/17 Introductions: due M 11/28 Body Paragraph 1: due W 11/30 Body Paragraph 2: due Th 12/1

Body Paragraph 3: due F 12/2 Conclusion / Rough Draft: due M 12/5 Final Draft: due F 12/9

Part II: Project Groups, Topics & Formats: F 11/18 Rough “Draft”: due F 12/2 Final Presentation: due Th 12/8

Literature:

The Reluctant God

In class writing assignment & Test: 6B T 11/29, 6A Th 12/1

Choice Novel Reading Assignment: To be assigned M 12/12

Grammar & Vocabulary:

• Grammar homework due, and quiz over run-on sentences and capitalization on Thursday, 11/10 (6B)/ Friday, 11/11 (6A)—students have two handouts in their folders (these two sheets are their homework, and they should use them to study for the quiz).

6^th Grade Math

• We are finishing up Ch. 5, and have a quiz on 5-7 and 5-8 on Friday.
• • We are starting into Ch. 6, Applying Fractions, next week.
• 6^thGrade Pre-Algebra
• Friday, Dec. 2nd quiz on Lessons 3:6 and 3:7
• Tuesday, Dec 6th will be the Chapter 3 test

 

Science The Science Fair is in full swing! By the end of this week, students will have picked their question for their science fair project! Next week, we will begin talking about taking notes and APA format. Please make sure you have a copy of the science fair timeline handy to keep on task and on time!

Spanish

• Due Wednesday, 11/30: All research “bullets” for personal Geography book (10 pages x 3-4 facts each=30-40 facts)
• Nightly study of Unit 2 DIME (green sheet) Test date TBD
• By week’s end nightly drafting of Spanish text for Geography book. Use the writing guide provided; Geography book rough draft text for all pages due Monday, 12/9.

 

Physical Education Our new unit on Volleyball is underway! This week students will focus primarily on improving their passing and serving skills. Volleyball is my passion and I hope the students enjoy it as much as I do.

7^th Grade

Humanities Vocabulary Workshop

 

• Unit 6 Workbook Pages TH 12/8
• Unit 6 Quiz F 12/9

 

Haroun and the Sea of Stories

• Chapter 4 W 11/30
• Chapters 5 & 6 M 12/5

 

The Growth of Islam

• Chapter 3 Packet F 12/2
• Water Resources of the Arabian Peninsula F 12/2
• History Maker: Umar M 12/5
• Primary Source: The Sunnah M 12/5
• Chapter 3 Test W 12/7

 

Pre-Alg

• Friday, Dec. 2nd quiz on Lessons 3:6 and 3:7
• Tuesday, Dec 6th will be the Chapter 3 test

 

Algebra 1a

• We are finishing up Ch. 3, to conclude with a quiz on sections 3-6 to 3-8 on Friday.
• • We will move into linear equations after the quiz starting with the Coordinate Plane and playing a game early next week! Algebra
• Due Thurs 12/1: 6.1, p. 321, # 15-35 EOO + 41-51 odd (Check 1^st six problems of the assignment)
• Due Fri 12/2: 6.2, p. 329, # 13-41 EOO (must check all) + 45-51 odd
• Due Mon 12/5: 6.3, p. 335, # 11-37 odd + 43-46 (no need to check)
• Also Mon 12/5: Quiz on 6.1 – 6.3
• Due Tues 12/6: Take notes on section 6.4 (compound inequalities, “And”, “Or”, Intersection and Union. Spend NO MORE than 30 min.
• • Due Wednesday 12/6: 6.5, p. 349 # 15-39 EOO + 41, 43, 45 + 49-51 all Science
• Due Thursday 12/1: Final Science Fair Proposal Due (p. 20 in your Science Fair Booklet)
• Due Monday 12/5: Notes from 3 sources
• Due Tues 12/6: Notes from 5 sources
• • Due Wed 12/7: Rough Draft of References page due Spanish
• Clothing project: choose 10-15 articles of clothing or jewelry to describe in great detail using the “Student Information Sheet” from your packet (Chap.3). Determine your final format for the project to work with those clothes. Due Thursday, 12/1
• Clothing project rough draft text (complete!) due Monday, 12/12
• Nightly study of Chap. 3 vocab. Test date TBD/Study AR/ER/IR verb conjugations

 

Physical Education Our new unit on Volleyball is underway! This week students will focus primarily on improving their passing and serving skills. Volleyball is my passion and I hope the students enjoy it as much as I do.

8^th Grade

Humanities Wednesday: History reading and worksheets due (“Constitution Handbook”); quiz Thursday: Literary Analysis: Animal Farm (concluding conversations and writing) Friday: Grammar lesson; creative writing (alternative ending to Animal Farm); study guide

distributed for History exam (unit 2) Monday: Review for History unit 2 exam; in-class reading (Fever) Tuesday: Final conversation on Animal Farm; introduction to Frederick Douglass Wednesday: Continued review for history exam (unit 2)

N.B. The History Unit 2 exam will be on Friday, 12/9.

Algebra 1a

• We are finishing up Ch. 3, to conclude with a quiz on sections 3-6 to 3-8 on Friday.
• • We will move into linear equations after the quiz starting with the Coordinate Plane and playing a game early next week! Algebra
• Due Thurs 12/1: 6.1, p. 321, # 15-35 EOO + 41-51 odd (Check 1^st six problems of the assignment)
• Due Fri 12/2: 6.2, p. 329, # 13-41 EOO (must check all) + 45-51 odd
• Due Mon 12/5: 6.3, p. 335, # 11-37 odd + 43-46 (no need to check)
• Also Mon 12/5: Quiz on 6.1 – 6.3
• Due Tues 12/6: Take notes on section 6.4 (compound inequalities, “And”, “Or”, Intersection and Union. Spend NO MORE than 30 min.
• Due Wednesday 12/6: 6.5, p. 349 # 15-39 EOO + 41, 43, 45 + 49-51 all

 

8^th Grade Advanced Algebra & Geometry

• Quadratic and Exponential Functions Review *Please refer to the class blog for daily assignments.

Science

• Due Thursday 12/1: Final Science Fair Proposal Due (p. 20 in your Science Fair Booklet)
• Due Monday 12/5: Notes from 3 sources
• Due Tues 12/6: Notes from 5 sources
• • Due Wed 12/7: Rough Draft of References page due Spanish
• For Thursday, Dec. 1: Educational Inquiry -Chap. 11
• For Mon, Dec. 5: 30 Shoe Verb Cards due
• Due Friday, Dec. 2 -ongoing Pruebas Chap. 11

 

Physical Education Our new unit on Volleyball is underway! This week students will focus primarily on improving their passing and serving skills. Volleyball is my passion and I hope the students enjoy it as much as I do.

Look for another Middle School Update next week.

Best, The Middle School Team