December 6th Grade Newsletter

Butler Middle School

Dear Families,

As we approach the bustling month of December, we want to ensure that our focus on academics remains strong. While the holidays may be around the corner, it's essential that we keep our students engaged and prepared for their upcoming assessments.

Mid-Year iReady Testing:

We will be conducting mid-year iReady testing for Math during the first week of December and for ELA in the second week. These assessments are crucial in tracking your child's progress and identifying areas where they may need additional support. Please encourage your student to put forth their best effort!

Supporting Our Students' Health:

December also tends to bring about seasonal illnesses, making it a challenging time for many families. To help keep our classrooms healthy, we would greatly appreciate any donations of the following items: Tissues, Clorox wipes and Paper towels.

Your generosity will make a significant difference in maintaining a clean learning environment for everyone.

Reviewing Routines:

On our Early Release day, December 4th, students will have the opportunity to review hallway, classroom, and school routines. We encourage you to take this time to discuss these important guidelines at home as well. Reinforcing these expectations can help your child feel more confident and secure in their school environment. Please find the slideshow here.

Thank you for your continued support in making this an enriching month for our students! Together we can ensure they stay focused on their academic goals while also feeling their best.

Warm regards,

6th Grade Team

Join Us on REMIND

Teachers will be communicating with parents/families through the Remind app, which you can download at the app store on your smartphone.

Please find the codes below for each homeroom.

Through Remind, teachers can send messages to parents and parents can send messages to parents. Teachers will also use Remind to post announcements.

Students of the Month

November/December Students of the Month will be announced in the January Newsletter.

November PBIS

Math News

For the month of December, our students will extend and finalize their understanding of ratios among percentages. We'll end our Unit 2 with percentages, and then move on into number sense, specifically division of fractions.

Percentages

Students use their understanding of “rates per 1” to find percentages, which we can think of as “rates per 100.” Double number lines and tables continue to support their thinking. A sample question will state: Let’s say 440 people attended a school fundraiser last year. If 330 people were adults, what percentage of people were adults? If it’s expected that the attendance this year will be 125% of last year, how many attendees are expected this year? A double number line can be used to reason about these questions.

Video Link

Understanding Percentage - https://youtu.be/sOsthZueIN4 Solving Percentage Problems - https://youtu.be/4DyoPXpUOwc

Division of Fractions

Students will use their understanding of division to prepare to learn about division of fraction. At this point students have learned that to divide a fraction, we “invert and multiply.” Eventually your student will learn why this works by studying a series of division statements and diagrams.

Video Link

Meaning of Division - https://youtu.be/9iciMh9E5yU Using Diagrams to Divide Fractions - https://youtu.be/ZAknNfwvyZw Using Algorithm to Divide Fractions - https://youtu.be/LYuEDdRN8hE Area and Volume with Fractions - https://youtu.be/_5yht39OXrE

ELA News

Students had a productive month in ELA, and we are excited to share some highlights from our classes!

Students recently participated in their first Socratic Seminar, a structured discussion method where they explored ideas and asked thoughtful questions about the main character in The Lightning Thief. They started in small groups and worked their way up to a whole-class discussion, noticing the character’s challenges and character traits. This was a great opportunity for them to work collaboratively by sharing ideas, listening to others, and supporting their thoughts with evidence from the text.

As we wrap up Unit 1, students are completing an assessment that includes a short writing piece combined with a small group discussion. These activities let them demonstrate their understanding of the book and the discussion skills they’ve developed over the term.

Also in November, we focused on identifying themes in The Lightning Thief. Students wrote short essays with theme statements using text evidence from specific chapters. They’ve also been working on strategies to find the gist or main ideas of chapters and continue to improve their vocabulary skills. Coming up, we’ll begin writing summaries based on chapters in the book and writing compare-and-contrast essays.

For homework, students will continue to have a packet to complete each week that connects to their reading in class. The packet may ask students to read a chapter or two along with other reading to support their understanding of the text or may include a review of grammar skills.

Science News

Dear Families,

We are embarking on an exciting journey in science to uncover the mysteries of sound—how it’s created, how it moves, and how we perceive it. Through engaging experiments, data analysis, and collaborative discussions, students will explore the following:

How Sound Causes Movement

Develop models to explain how a sound source causes objects to move.
Ask questions about patterns in observations to understand how sound travels and interacts with other objects.

Forces and Vibrations

Analyze data to identify how applying a force to an instrument causes it to vibrate.
Develop models showing how a force changes an instrument’s shape, creating vibrations that lead to sound, and predict how forces will affect other instruments.

Do All Objects Vibrate When They Produce Sound?

Argue from evidence to support or refute the idea that all solid objects vibrate when making sounds, even if the vibrations are invisible.

Graphing Sound Waves

Use position versus time graphs to describe wave patterns, connecting them to the loudness (amplitude) and pitch (frequency) of sounds.
Use these graphs to support scientific conclusions about how objects move when creating sounds.

Frequency and Amplitude of Sounds

Construct arguments using evidence from graphs to explain which wave patterns indicate attributes like pitch and volume.

Modeling Vibrations

Use models to explain how a force applied to an instrument causes vibrations and sound, even when the vibrations cannot be seen.

These activities will challenge students to think critically, apply mathematical tools, and deepen their understanding of the science behind sound. I’m thrilled to see their curiosity grow as they connect these ideas to the world around them.

Thank you for your support, and I can’t wait to share updates on their progress!

Best regards,

Mr. Pacheco

Social Studies News

In December we are going to be continuing to learn about West Asia, the Middle East and North Africa ancient civilizations. We will be midway through Unit 2. In this next portion of learning students will trace the early development of societies along the Nile Valley, with specific emphasis on the ways that natural geography affected social organization, religious practices, and daily lives. They learn about the social structure of ancient Egypt, and the role of the divine pharaoh at the top of the hierarchy. The lessons then focus more deeply on religion, investigating Egypt’s and Nubia’s shared polytheistic religion, with its positive outlook and central value of Ma’at, the idea of rightful balance, order, harmony, justice and truth.

School Updates

Please partner with us by talking with your child about bringing nutritious snacks, which will help them make the most of their learning experience. For clarity, the following items will be confiscated & discarded if brought to school:

Oversized bags of chips
Bags of candy
Large, sugary drinks (e.g., Arizona tea, soda)
Any share-sized portions of unhealthy snacks

Thank you for your support in helping us create a healthier school environment for all students.

Upcoming Events

December 4th - Early Release

December 8th - Principal Coffee Hour

December 15th - Last Day of 1st Session For After School

December 23rd - January 1st No School: Winter Break

Social Worker News

The Butler School Social Workers have opportunities through the school year to assist parents with providing food for their families. Such as, Friday afternoon groceries sent home with the children, holiday meals and other opportunities that develop over the year. If this would be helpful to your family please email or call.

Kadeen Healy

Butler School Social Worker

Khealy@lowell.k12.ma.us

978-937-8973 ext. 46817

Attendance Update:

The grade level Social Workers are responsible for ALL attendance matters. Please make sure to call to report your student absent each time they are not in school. Grades 5 & 6 should call Ms. Healy x46817 and Grades 7 & 8 Ms. Casey x46866. There are no quarantine requirements for COVID anymore. This is treated like all other illnesses now. Once the student is fever free for 24 hours and not vomiting, they should return to school. Dental appointments will not excuse a full day absence, unless it is dental surgery. Please call ahead if you are planning to take a family vacation during the school year. Also, please inform us if you are moving. We need to confirm enrollment in the new school before we remove your student from our school.

Students that have had 10% or more unexcused absences will be expected to attend our Saturday School attendance recovery program to make up the missed time on learning. Students will receive a formal letter inviting them to this program.