Though it is a short week, we are long on expectations for students this week! Highlights include:
S.S. - Review on Tuesday, test will be administered during their final two classes of the week. Be sure to have 4 sets of 5 facts and your map of Africa completed Science - Test on Cell Theory, Cell Organelles, and Osmosis/Diffusion during their final class of the week iMath - SuperMario project underway LA - poetry projects continue. Revision of Narrative poem due Thursday Research - students should have identified research topics and are in the process of finding resources and developing questions to help guide the research process. Other News: Norwich Tech will speak to 8th grade students on Friday. Field trip with Learning Buddies next week. Please send in permission slips by Friday, 10/13!
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In this past week, students wrapped up studying about Central African Republic in social studies, looked at cells under the microscope in science class, wrote poems (and had some interesting discussions about plagiarism by and by) in language arts, and studied the mysterious, irrational number phi (1.618...) in iMath. Students have almost arrived at a finalized research topic to study for their independent research projects. I'll send out a list of topics once they are all decided. There was a high school night and Hot Fudge and Fiction on Thursday evening. We started using out Wednesday's Word folders to get papers home to families. If you didn't see yours yet, please ask to see it and they should all be able to produce it for you easily. They should have all the papers that are supposed to go home for this week. We started allowing the use of personal musical devices during periods of independent work. We'll see how that goes. We've also been discussing the power of words and appropriate language and how to respond when you are presented with a salacious rumor that may or may not be true. You may want to have a conversation about this at home too. The students had a lot to say.
Next week is a four day week. There is no school Monday on account of Indigenous Peoples' Day. In language arts, students will continue to study poetry. In iMath, we will begin discussing geometry in the coordinate plane and how video games are designed. Science will wrap up working on cells and have a cells test. Social studies classes will involve reading and taking notes on African nations. Watch out for the field trip form going home in next week's Wednesday's Word. We're going to the corn maze with our learning buddies Friday October 20 and the cost per person is $6.00. Next week, we will start walking about good resources to use for research projects. We have a lot of events coming up in the not-so-distant future. Here is a list of upcoming high school visits at IDCS. Friday, 10/13 8 AM - Norwich Tech Friday 10/20 8 AM - Ledyard Friday 10/20 2 PM - Marine Science Magnet High School Friday 10/27 8 AM - Science and Tech Magnet High School Friday 10/27 2 PM - Grasso Tech Wednesday 11/8 8 AM - Bacon Academy You are welcome to sit in on any of these if you would like. We have the learning buddies field trip to the corn maze coming up on the 20th and there is much talk and planning about a middle school lock in (sleepover) at IDCS towards the end of November. Planning is still very preliminary but the students are doing a good job of organizing and campaigning to make it happen. We are also trying to get an online portal called PowerSchool up and running so that students and their families can check on scores, completed assignments, etc. via the web. As always, the technology that always makes our lives more interesting and informative can also be frustratingly slow to function. I'll keep you updated on the progress of PowerSchool's implementation. This week, the students studied poetry and music in language arts the Central African Republic in social studies, cells in science, and rational numbers in iMath. We also started the research process.
Coming up next week, students will wrap up with the Central African Republic and start talking about Sudan. In science, they will do a cells lab. In iMath, we will begin talking about irrational numbers and geometric constructions as well as art, music, bunny rabbits, and the mystery of the number PHI. Students will start choosing research topics. Picture day, next Wednesday, September 27th! Please have your child bring their picture forms to their teacher. If you order online, please print out a copy of your order. This makes the process go much faster and is easier for everyone!
We invite you all to join us at the IDEA Potlock Thursday, September 6th at 5:30. Not only will you have a chance to meet all our new faculty and staff, you will have an opportunity to learn a little bit more about what your child will be learning this year.
If you have not yet done so, please sign up for the Middle School Remind Notification System. Click here to join: www.remind.com/join/idcs-ms You can sign up for text and/or e-mail alerts. |
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