The Spillway

Sixth grade students are allowed to check out their Chromebooks from their fourth academic class and take them home up to two days a week. The Chromebook checkout form can be found in the Sixth Grade Essentials Google Classroom. Students are not allowed to bring their ACS chromebook charger home, however, they are able to charge it with any USB-C charger.

ELA:

This week, students read chapters 7-9 of The Giver and wrote their first ToSEEC paragraphs!

Next week, students will be reading chapters 10-12 and practicing quote sandwiches as they revise their writing. Also, each day after reading homework, students are answering comprehension questions over that chapter, so make sure they are reading the chapters, and encourage them to take additional notes as they read because they are able to use any notes they take on their comprehension questions!

Important dates:

Chapters 10-12 Homework Questions due: Thursday 9/12

Unit 3 Vocab Vocab Quiz: Friday 9/13

One I-Ready lesson due: Friday 9/13

Math:

This week our Math students continued working with algebraic expressions by translating and evaluating them. Students also continued to identify parts of expressions such as terms, variables, coefficients and constants. Next week students will build on this and begin to write and evaluate expressions with exponents. We also plan to have an assessment over these skills, but are not sure of the exact day.

Mrs. Grisham’s students received their diagnostic reports today along with a parent/guardian letter. Please review this with your child. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Mrs. Grisham at ngrisham@acs.ac.

Students will continue to work on their iReady Path in Senator Time. The expectation is that students will pass two iReady Path lessons with grades above a 67 each week. If they are unable to complete these during Senator Time, they will need to check their chromebook out and take them home to finish. Homework Hall is also available daily from 7:20-7:55.

Important Dates:

Two I-Ready Lessons due: Friday 9/13

Assessment over expressions

Social Studies:

We continued our study of the first known civilization, and took a quiz over the geography of ancient Mesopotamia. Next week we will focus on Mesopotamian innovations and government styles. We will also review our most missed standards from our previous unit. Students should use their Bellwork Weeks 4-5 to help them review the most missed standards from Unit 1.

Important SS Dates:

Unit 1 Standards Recheck: 9/11

Unit 2 Mesopotamia Exam: 9/17

Science:

Our sixth grade scientists have been continuing to construct a scientific explanation of the energy transformation between kinetic and potential energy. They have observed falling tennis balls, skateboarders on halfpipes, and swinging pendulums. Ask your student to make a pendulum out of something at your house and to explain at which points potential energy and kinetic energy are present!

Next week students will use a digital simulation of sleds knocking down snowmen to analyze the relationship between kinetic energy, mass, and speed.

Important Science Dates:

Energy Transformations Quiz Corrections due Friday, September 13.

Tentative Energy Unit Exam date: Tuesday, September 24.

ELA:

This week students will be taking a midterm exam for ELA to see what standards students are mastering in class. Students are also learning about figurative language and how to identify figurative language in poetry and literature. Next week, students will be learning testing strategies to prepare for the TCAP. They will also start collecting evidence for an upcoming essay on adolescence. Students will also read and analyze a story titled, “First Day Fly” about a teenage boy who has a rough start to his first day back to school.

Social Studies:

This week we began with examining the cultural and technological contributions of the Muslim world in the Middle Ages by finishing up a scavenger hunt. Then we moved into looking at the rise of the Ottoman Empire with the overthrow of Constantinople, the changing of the name of the city to Istanbul, the collapse of the Byzantine Empire, and the beginning of Islamic influence in eastern Europe. We examined two great Ottoman emperors, Mehmed II the Conqueror and Suleiman the Magnificent, both of which had great impacts on the expansion and success of the Ottoman Empire. Students were asked “Who’s the G.O.A.T (Greatest Ottoman of All Time)?” while doing a comparison of these two legends of medieval history. We finished the week by looking at the trade routes of Southwest Asia and North Africa and exploring the expanding role of merchants. Next week we will wrap up the unit with a study guide, review of MasteryConnects, and Quizizz review games. The unit test will most likely be on Wednesday.

Science:

Students have helped plan investigations and we have found:

1. Bath bombs in water cause a gas to be formed

2. Ingredients Lab shows us that the culprits are: Citric Acid, Baking Soda and Water

3. Closed system lab tells us we are not making new mass/matter

4. Flame test lab tells us the gas being made is carbon dioxide

Now we will wrap up our explanation by discovering if matter can change forms and if so how.

Math:

Next week we will be learning how to solve problems that involve proportional relationships. We have already learned about different ways to represent a proportional relationship. A proportional relationship can be represented with a verbal description, a graph, an equation, or a diagram.

An example of a problem: Charlotte and Sofia are 66 miles apart. They ride their bikes toward each other. They meet after 3 hours of riding. Each girl rides at a constant rate. Charlotte rides at 10 miles per hour. How far does Sofia ride?

Charlotte rides 30 miles, so Sofia rides 66 miles-30 miles =36 miles. Both ways show that Sofia rides her bike 36 miles.

For all 7th Grade Students: Students need to use their headphones or earbuds to listen to the iReady lessons. Please make sure your student has headphones or earbuds. These can be cheap ones from the dollar store. They do not need to be anything fancy. If you are wishing to donate headphones for us to use in the classroom, we would be appreciative.

8th grade math students have been learning about similarity in geometry. They have learned how to dilate figures using a scale factor to enlarge or reduce the figures, which produces the same shape, but proportionally different sizes. Next week, students will complete a Dilations Comprehension Check quiz in iReady and then begin learning about angle relationships. Be sure to continue to encourage your students to turn in assignments on time, including their weekly iReady My Path lesson.

In science this week we continued our learning with contact and non-contact forces dealing with potential and kinetic energy. Using a variety of hands-on and virtual labs we have discovered how contact and non-contact forces differ and the differences between potential energy compared to kinetic energy. Next week we will end our investigation with forces with a unit test. Following the test we will start a new standard learning about Earthquakes!

Social Studies took their first Unit 1 Exam. We are now beginning to look at the events leading to the American Revolution. Events such as the French and Indian War, Benjamin Franklin's Join or Die Flag, and the Intolerable Acts.

As a part of the Coordinated School Health program established by the State of Tennessee, school systems include mental health education as a part of the Health and Wellness classes of the middle and high schools. The Mental Health Association of East Tennessee will present their Mental Health 101 Program during related arts classes on September 30th and October 1st.

Topics include trauma, stress management, self-injury, signs and symptoms of depression, anxiety disorders, PTSD, and eating disorders; also included are the more sensitive topics of suicide prevention (8th grade and high schools only).

Early intervention is a vital part of success in the treatment of mental illnesses; according to the American Psychiatric Association, 90% of those who develop a mental illness began experiencing symptoms during their adolescent years. Chronic mental health disorders are the leading cause of disability in the United States. By helping students recognize if they may be experiencing a mental health issue, the Mental Health Association of East Tennessee can offer referrals and outline the many options for treatment.

If you agree to this presentation, please do not complete this form. If you DO NOT want your child to participate, please complete the form below by Friday, 09/27/2024.

Opt Out Form: https://forms.gle/SMTzSz7jpwxDeWmx9

This year, there are two mental health counselors available to provide therapy services to NMS students. Their information is below, with additional information available upon request. If you believe your student would benefit from services by either provider, please reach out to me and I’ll put in the referral!

Ashley Rush is a school-based mental health counselor through Cherokee Health Systems. She is at our school every other Tuesday.

Graham Cohen is a school-based mental health counselor through Anderson County Schools. He is at our school every Thursday.

Homecoming Hoedown 9/20 3:30-5:30. $5 entrance fee

We need volunteers to help with the dance and donations of decorations and concessions.

Please contact Michelle West 513-289-7304 with any questions!

Great start to the season for the Norris Senators Cross Country program. The team has finished 3rd in both of their races at Jefferson & Robertsville Middle Schools in Oak Ridge. The Senators race again at Jefferson Middle School next Wednesday.