Electives/SSP/Newcomer April Newsletter
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8th Grade:
Our 8th graders are stepping up for the most significant artistic challenge of the semester. Taking a break from the cardboard city, they are now pouring their energy into their 2D Midterm Masterpiece. The Goal: This is a fully independent artwork intended to be the best art effort of their middle school careers, showcasing the height of their technical skill and conceptual maturity before they head toward high school.
6th & 7th Grade:
Both 6th and 7th grade are taking a strategic break from their scale and proportion of 3D cardboard cities for a brief 2D demonstration. Students are currently crafting 5"x5" 2D compositions designed to demonstrate their technical and conceptual growth. These individual micro compositions will be curated into a collective symbolic self-portrait. It’s an effective way to see how our individual identities are collections of many separate and unique components.
The weeks following Spring Break will move fast. Once we return, the studio will pivot back to our 3D construction. In April, students will have access to a "menu" of art choices and adventures to keep the creative momentum high while working on their primary pieces.
Soul Night Prep: Our focus will sharpen on art gallery display techniques and the completion of our large-scale dioramas for the upcoming Soul Night experience.
Bonus Studio Time: If students continue to manage the "independent studio" environment with respect and diligence, we are hoping to squeeze in a quick clay run in May, depending on how well the students continue to run the art studio.
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Mr. Fairbairn’s ELD -
Last week, we engaged in CMAS preparation lessons and completed some practice tests in Reading and Writing. Currently, we are reviewing our last unit writing test and reteaching/relearning content and skills that were not mastered.
After Spring Break, we will be working on a Project-Based Learning assignment where students create a presentation about their native country. Through this project students will practice using explanation language to communicate information about their personal and cultural history.
Ms. Richards’ ELD Classes
Our Early English ELD class is currently working on a Project-Based Learning (PBL) assignment in which students are creating presentation slides about their home countries. They are practicing using explanatory language to share interesting and meaningful facts. These presentations will be showcased during our upcoming International Festival.
Building strong reading skills remains a top priority. Please ensure your child is completing and passing all required i-Ready lessons each week (a minimum of four lessons). We recommend students spend about 30 minutes on i-Ready each evening to support their progress.
Our Advanced English ELD class is putting the finishing touches on their WeVideo projects for the International Festival. In addition, students are developing their skills in summary writing, explanatory writing, and using cause-and-effect language, while continuing to expand their academic vocabulary.
Closing the reading gap is also a key focus in Advanced ELD. Our goal is to support students in reaching grade-level proficiency, which will help prepare them for redesignation out of ELD.
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6th Grade- Our 6th graders are currently working on their graphic novel unit or their diverse point of view book. No matter what they are reading students are also composing their short stories while also learning about the Hero’s Journey as well as the components of a character arc. What will their tale’s hold? Ask your GT kiddo and maybe they’ll let you have a peak at their story.
7th Grade- Our 7th graders are either reading non-fiction narrative texts or they are having an adventure with a sci fi dystopian book. Either way these students are also writing original short stories. How do the concepts of Goal/Lie/Truth interact to help a character grow? Ask your GT kiddo and hopefully they will explain the G/L/T of their own short stories and maybe their lives as well.
8th Grade- Welcome to your financial future 8th graders. At this point students are studying salaries and taxes to help determine ultimately what their big financial decision is going to be at the age of 29. Will they apply for their very own mortgage or do they want to borrow money to start a business? Ask your 8th grader to find out!! As the quarter goes on students will continue to make decisions on behalf of their financial avatar and keep a real time running budget to make informed financial decisions on their behalf.
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Students have completed a lacrosse unit where they became familiar with the fundamentals of passing, catching, and shooting with long-handled implement! From their grip to executing accurate passes and shots, our students have built confidence and skill with this dynamic sport. Now, get ready for Part 2 of our implements exploration—we're bringing the same techniques to floor hockey and badminton, where students will discover how these core skills transfer across different games. This progression helps our learners become versatile humans who can adapt their abilities to new challenges! Students will also embark on a game-creation project near mid-April!
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We're thrilled to launch our floor hockey unit with a focus on creativity, inclusion, and safety! Our class will explore innovative ways to modify the game so that every student can participate fully and experience success. From adjusting equipment and rules to reimagining positions and scoring, we're discovering that the best games are the ones designed with everyone in mind. This class has built a supportive community where all learners are having fun, developing skills, and are feeling valued.
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For April happenings in Health please reach out to Stephanie Graves- Stephanie_graves@dpsk12.net |
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6th Grade: This month, we will continue working on language acquisition by focusing on Unit 11 of the Somos program. Students will learn about sports vocabulary, including the following key terms: juega al (plays), quiere jugar (wants to play), and eres (you are). By the end of the month, students will take the district world language assessment, which will evaluate their language acquisition progress in writing, reading, and listening.
Spain Trip 2028: If your current 6th grade student is interested in attending the Spain trip in the summer of 2028, our first informational meeting will be Tuesday, April 7 at 5:00pm in the library. Live ‘N Learn, the company that organizes the trip, will be on hand to tell you all about our fantastic trip for 8th grade Spanish students! Come and learn more about the itinerary, pricing, and get answers to any questions you may have! This meeting is primarily for parents to attend and find out more about the program.
7th Grade: This month, seventh-grade students will read our second book, Robo en la noche by Kristy Placido, through which we will learn about Costa Rica, its national parks, and how the country developed ecotourism to protect its natural resources. Additionally, students will begin the introduction to our PBL project on natural parks in Latin American countries. By the end of the month, students will take the district world language assessment, which will evaluate their language acquisition progress in writing, reading, and listening.
8th Grade: This month, students will work through Somos 2, Unit 12, where they'll learn important past tense vocabulary including sonó (sounded), informó (informed), and entregó (delivered), while exploring the rich cultural tradition of Spanish legends, including the enchanting Legend of the Enchanted and general information about how legends reflect cultural identity. By the end of April, students will take the district world language assessment, which will evaluate their language acquisition progress in writing, reading, and listening skills. Additionally, students will begin the introduction phase of their final Project-Based Learning (PBL) project, where they'll apply their Spanish skills in a creative, real-world context.
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Literacy Intervention with Whitehurst: |
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6th Grade: 6th grade is moving out of nonfiction work into fictional texts. We will be working on identifying the theme, identifying and comparing/contrasting characters and setting, summarizing, and supporting inferences with details.
7th Grade: 7th grade is moving into fictional text for Quarter 4. We will be reading short stories written by Gary Soto and improving our ability to analyze elements of fictional text. Many of Gary Soto’s stories are written based on his personal experiences so the students will end this unit by writing their own short story inspired by their lives.
8th Grade: 8th grade students are going to spend the last quarter reading the memoir Bad Boy by Walter Dean Myers. We have been building background knowledge on Walter Dean Myers by reading texts related to the Harlem Renaissance and Civil Rights Movement. Students will analyze how these historical events influenced his writing and the unit will end with students writing their own memoir.
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6th: 6th grade is wrapping up their graphic design unit. They came up with their own business and applied graphic design concepts to design their logo. After receiving feedback from 8th grade students, they revised their final versions. They will be moving onto a mini unit on AI (each Monday) as we continue to work on typing proficiency each Friday. Our next project (worked on Tuesdays-Thursdays) will include investigating mold!
7th: 7th grade is wrapping up their 3D car unit. First, they had to learn how to use the 3D modeling program. Then, they were given criteria & constraints to follow as they designed their car. Our next unit is the “Solutions Project”. Each student is tasked with trying to solve a problem using their newly developed skill of 3D modeling, following criteria & constraints and engineer designing.
8th: 8th grade will begin a science research podcast when we return from spring break. They will work in pairs or individually to research any science topic of their choosing. After extensive research, they will write a script and co-host a podcast as they talk about what they researched and what they found. If a student is working individually it is their responsibility to find a “guest” or co-host to feature on their podcast. Stay tuned!
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We are in the final stretch to our last concert. Students have been rehearsing their pieces and fine tuning technical skills on their instruments. We are studying the difference between practice and rehearsal, and improving our rehearsal skills to create the best performance we can. Students will also explore composition techniques of writing introductions or codas, by taking themes from the main music and arranging them in a new way.
All students will perform at Merrill on Wednesday, May 13th.
7th and 8th graders are invited to perform at the Wash Park Festival Tuesday, May 5th. More details coming soon!
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Our students are hard at work with their group dance that they will present to our peers. We are also super excited to help the BSA with their Black history presentation. |
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On April 3rd we will broadcast our April Fools Day show. Students got to come up with fun school appropriate ways to laugh and prank peers in a television format to ease the tension as we head into the testing season.
This month students will start to focus again on our end of year project “MeVideos.” Students will continue to produce mini-autobiographical documentaries to capture who they are right now. These short films will be a time capsule and gift for parents on soul night.
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AVID students will continue strengthening their literacy and math skills through the tutorial process. Each grade level also has exciting, grade-specific activities planned. Our 8th graders will begin registering for high school classes, finalize their future research projects, and participate in a hands-on financial simulation game called “Rat Race.” In 7th grade, students will wrap up their research projects focused on college majors, building awareness of future academic and career pathways. Meanwhile, 6th graders will dive into financial literacy lessons, gaining important skills for managing money and making informed financial decisions.
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Newcomer Math and Conversation |
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Math
Level 1 students created amazing videos for their PBL project, My Schedule. Please take a moment to watch their videos and ask them how to tell time in English. This week, they were briefly introduced to fractions. After spring break, they will begin learning how to partition shapes into equal parts.
Level 2 newcomer students have just completed their unit on fraction division. After returning from spring break, they will begin exploring the coordinate plane.
Conversation
This month, Level 1 students will be starting unit 4 where they will practice describing their day at school and outside of school using time. They will continue working and practicing their English in listening, speaking, reading, and writing.
As for level 2 students, they will start working on describing different people and places using adjectives and comparatives. They will also start working on their PBL where each group will create videos about the unit’s language for future Newcomer classes.
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Student Supports Providers (SSP) |
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April 7th, 5:15 PM: Student Safety Summit | A free workshop designed to support families in preventing substance use and learning how to talk with children about fentanyl safety. Giveaways and food included!
On April 28 and 29th 6th and 7th grade students will be meeting with school counselors Jeff Bayard and Hilary O’Kelly to make their elective and enrichment course selections. Please make sure your student is here so we can know what they would like. The elective and enrichment course descriptions will be sent in the Jaguar Journal in April.
BESS is a social emotional screener that gives us some insight to how our students are doing emotionally. The screener looks at Internalizing (worry, sadness, anxiousness), Self-Regulation (attention difficulties, hyperactivity, trouble organizing and problems focusing), andPersonal Adjustment (struggles getting along with others, social relationships and/or self acceptance. We appreciate any insight you can share with us on how your student is doing and how we can best support our students. Please follow the link below to the Parent Survey to share your insights.
BESS Parent Link Here
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