"Eagle Updates @ 5"
Colin Powell Middle School Monthly Community Newsletter
October 2023 Edition
Principal's Message
Greetings, Eagle Families!
As we “Fall” into October and head toward the end of the first quarter, so many great things are happening at Colin Powell. As you read, please take note of all the important dates and activities for this month.
In partnership,
Dr. Jason Black Streeter
Principal
The Colin Powell Middle School
Spotlight on Eagle Academics
Spotlight on SEL:
Our scholars continue to work through the Second Step curriculum each day. Each grade level is currently working on Unit 1: Mindset and Goals, where students learn to develop a growth mindset and apply research-based goal-setting strategies to their social and academic lives.
The goals of this unit include students being able to:
Recognize that social challenges are common during adolescence and often get better in time with support from others
Try new things and take on difficult tasks
Determine how to adjust, persist, or change course after making a mistake
Identify roadblocks to achieving goals and generate If-Then Plans that include appropriate strategies for responding to them
A Peek into the Classrooms:
6th grade:
- Science: In science class, we are now using our STEMscopes curriculum, an online curriculum with all the resources available. Each student received a Student Notebook that has all worksheets/handouts available. We are currently in Bundle 1 - Scope 1: Cells. Students are also expected to continue to work on their science fair/engineering projects at home.
- Math: Ms. Dawson and Mrs. Kipp's classes continue to learn about ratios and equivalent ratios using visual models to demonstrate the relationship between two quantities. These models are bar models, ratio tables, double number lines, and graphs.
Encourage your child to have a positive, growth-oriented attitude towards mathematics and their learning.
Encourage them to ask questions – both at home and in class. Sometimes, an answer to a question will generate more questions. That’s how you know they are learning!
Encourage your child to embrace challenges and remind them that every challenge is an opportunity to learn something new.
Celebrate successes – both small and large.
- SS: 6th-grade social studies has begun to dive into the new curriculum, TCi. Unit 1 is all about the foundations of history and getting a better understanding of what and how historians study. Students will go back hundreds and thousands of years to learn how we have evolved as humans and how history has been written.
ELA/Lit: In literature, scholars finished their first reading on "Selfies," and students created their own selfies. We have some talented students in 6th grade! We are moving on to another story in our HMH books focusing on Humor. In a few weeks, students will dive into their first novel read. We are excited for this!!! Just a reminder, students should work on Edmentum daily at home for 15 minutes.
7th grade:
Science: This month, we are learning how biotic and abiotic factors interact with each other within their given ecosystems.
Math: The 7th Grade Math Department will teach students how to use Proportional Equations to solve Real-World problems.
Social Studies: This month, 7th graders will begin our new History Alive Social Studies Curriculum. Some of the topics we will be exploring are the inquiry process, key themes in U.S. History, Indigenous People of North America, and European Colonization.
- ELA/Lit: It was great talking with parents during conferences! As a reminder, the NOVEL PROJECT due date was October 3, 2023! Please make sure that your scholar is working on their projects. Students may submit projects early!! 7th grade ELA is working on paragraph writing and vocabulary.
8th grade:
- Science: The focus of 8th-grade science is Newton's third law of motion and how it affects everyday life. Students will be doing an egg drop activity to model Newton's law.
- Math: The 8th grade math team is finishing up their unit on Exponents and Scientific Notation. For this extended weekend, students will have a take-home exam to work on that will be due Tuesday, October 10th, upon their return.
- Social Studies: Students have now completed the Unit on United States Geography, and we are familiarizing ourselves with the new TCI online Curriculum as we learn about Americans in the Mid-1800s. We will also begin research on Notable Hispanic Americans to celebrate National Hispanic Month.
- ELA/Lit: The 8th grade ELA and LIT classes prepare students for the upcoming Horror unit in October. Students will be learning about the horror genre and reading suspenseful short stories in their HMH Intro to Literature textbook while enjoying a novel, A Monster Calls, by Patrick Ness. Students continue to learn and memorize critical literary terms to recognize and apply them as they read. Students will have the opportunity to create an informative brochure researching the Stages of Grief experienced by the main character in the novel while also analyzing lyrics to songs and writing poems.
Explore Team:
Art: Art Class at CPMS is delving into the world of painting and learning how colors interact with each other and affect our moods.
Music: The students finished their listening presentations, and we learned a lot about which songs inspire us and why. This month, we are focusing on lyrics and why words are so crucial to our lives and choices, and ultimately, how we are influenced by the things we hear and sing. The students are learning to write their own lyrics that will culminate in a rap or a song. I see some beautiful beginnings to these songs, and we will be excited to share the final results.
Band: Happy October, Band Members! After-school rehearsals have started already with sectionals for Cadet Band- please check Ms. Perry's Remind for the schedule. Weekly Concert Band rehearsals, held every Thursday, will be starting soon on Thursday, October 5th, starting right after school and ending at 4:00 pm - an activity bus is available. Concert Band has three selections we are working on, so you should hear plenty of fun things at home. Concert Band also has Essential Elements videos and playing videos that are assigned weekly. Cadet Band has three selections at the moment, and you should be hearing the songs being practiced at home as well. Weekly Cadet Band practice for all 6th grade Band members will start on Tuesday, October 17th, and continue every Tuesday until after the Winter Concert on December 14th. The videos that are submitted are an excellent way for us to provide one-on-one assessments and be able to move the band forward. At this time in the year, we must set aside individual practice time AT HOME for Band. Please discuss it with your band member and set a specific date and time they will practice at home. Set a timer so the end is in sight. Have your child play something old out of the book, maybe even a scale or time how long they can hold a note!! Any positive encouragement can mean the world to them, and it will make the entire group grow. Please let us know if we can help in any way!
P.E.: As the quarter ends, we will finish our soccer unit with our skills and rules tests. We are also completing the FitnessGram assessments for the 1st Quarter. Looking ahead to the start of 2nd Quarter, we will continue our Fitness unit and start Basketball.
Health: Last week, we wrapped up the Nutrition Unit with a PowerPoint slide presentation on a specific vitamin and or mineral and how this vitamin/mineral helps body processes for optimal body performance when added to a balanced diet. This week, we are using the internet to research various medicines and drugs, how they impact the body in the short and long term, and possible withdrawal symptoms and use. This lesson and previous lessons about making healthy decisions for a happier lifestyle will be observed and embraced.
Spanish: We are wrapping up the Hispanic Heritage Project for the 7th and 8th. We will begin reviewing everything we have learned so far for a final exam for Spanish class for all grade levels.
- STEM Tech: The STEM TECH class has a new curriculum for the 2023 - 2024 school year called Project STEM. Project STEM is a collaboration with Amazon Future Engineers. This month, the 6th and 7th Graders are programming in SCRATCH, learning about using events and responses in programming. At the same time, the 8th graders' program is in JavaScript.