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7th Grade 1st Quarter Newsletter

September 6, 2024

7th Grade 1st QuarterNewsletterSeptember 6, 2024

Stay Up-to-Date with our Classrooms!

Staying connected to our families is important to our teachers. In addition to the front page of our Canvas courses, we are excited to share this quarterly newsletter with our families to keep you aware of upcoming events, activities, lessons, units, and materials from our classes! We are transitioning to a quarterly update to keep you in the loop on content we anticipate covering this quarter. The 7th Grade Team has compiled this newsletter to share some of the upcoming experiences your student will be having with us. As always, if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact your child's teachers!

7th Grade Exploratory Classes

Art

Art students are currently making abstract artworks inspired by artist Wassily Kandinsky. They are tasked with creating an artwork that is pleasing to the eye, but also is devoid of any recognizable things. Essentially, they are using only the elements of art (lines, shapes, colors, values, etc.) to make an image that looks cool! It’s a change of pace, using pure creativity, and students are doing great so far!

Band

This nine weeks in band we are focused on developing routine and structure within our full ensemble rehearsal setting. Students have begun to learn their new warm-up routine, as well as reading new band repertoire. We will use this music to develop our fundamental ensemble skills. Students will also be working with our Fall Student Teacher, Ms. Willardson, from Wright State University. She will be working with our band class for part of her lesson planning and teaching requirements for her student teaching experience. There will be more information sent home about this in the future.

Choir

The first nine weeks in choir we are focusing on beginner performing skills: reviewing how to read music and how to build our voices. The students have sung quite a few songs already including “Flee Fla Flo” which is a Cuban folk song/Tiktok trend, various rounds such as “Gagne Petit” a French song, and “Say Something” by Great Big World. Over the next week, we will be learning how to sight-read music, building our musical vocabulary, utlizing music theory in practice, and performance etiquette. We are building towards singing a strong 2-part harmonies with our eventual concert music around the winter concert.

Engineering

During the first 9 weeks in engineering class, we will be doing lots of small-scale projects and learning some basics about what engineering is. Projects include: Spaghetti towers (already completed), K’nex builds, Amazon build-boxes, and egg drop. Note that each of these projects will have a reflection assignment following its completion. (These reflections determine the student’s grade for the project.) We will likely be completing two units during these 9 weeks as well: “Types of Engineers” and “The Design Process”. Each of these units will conclude with an in-class assessment.

PE and Wellness

This month in wellness, we will focus on nutrition and how it relates back to our overall mental and physical well-being. In PE we will be playing baseball, mini games, and volleyball.

Technology

In technology, students are currently working through a Photoshop-esque program in order to learn professional image modification techniques. This month, they’ll also be learning about how to find reliable websites to do research for a creative project and do some light video editing to create a commercial for the school.

Discovery and Design

Discovery and Design started this year off with learning about the Engineering Design Process. We were able to practice a basic understanding of the process through our first lab- Paper Airplanes! Students learned how to create a question, research/brainstorm, and make changes to their design based on their data. As we head into the rest of the quarter, we will continue creating with the design process, experimenting with science principles and learning about careers within the STEM field.

7th Grade Core Classes

ELA

Mrs. Danner's and Mrs. Kline's Classes:

Mrs. Danner and Mrs. Kline’s ELA classes have been exploring writing and improving our skills as we make our way into our first reading of the term. In addition to working with our new Amplify curriculum to read Red Scarf Girl by Ji Li Jiang, students will explore Narrative Nonfiction through their own, self-chosen text. We’ve already visited the school library to explore with Mrs. Conley and register for Plain City Library student cards. Your students are working hard at setting goals and are already growing and learning. We are excited to see what unfolds as we embark on this year’s adventures.


Mrs. Heinig's Classes

During the first week in Mrs. Heinig’s ELA 7, we concentrated on building community and getting to know each other. We’ve talked extensively about respect and integrity as the foundation for life, much as Reading and Writing are the foundations for all school subjects. We’ve also worked in our class to establish habits of good readers and writers and improve our organizational skills as a foundation for continued learning. We’ve started the year with our Biography, Autobiography, and Memoir unit for reading and writing. We have chosen people who give us hope, help us find our way, and show us what real GRIT looks like. After we have read to be inspired by someone else's life, we will write our own memoirs. Please talk with your students about their book choices and encourage them to continue reading at home for at least 20 minutes a day, 5 days a week. Looking forward, Unit #2 is Realistic Fiction. Your kids will be finding independent RF novels of their own choosing. We will take a deep dive into characterization, plot analysis, and elements of story--learning to read it and write it. In addition, we are becoming Word Wizards who enjoy learning new words through Greek and Latin roots and figurative language. We will also be exploring our new online curriculum Amplify.



Mrs. Huber's and Mrs. Lawson's Classes:

In the first few days of school, Mrs. Huber’s classes focused on building a strong classroom community. We had a blast with puzzles, games, scavenger hunts, and other fun “get to know you” activities. As we move into the first quarter, we’re diving into our narrative writing unit. This unit aims to boost writing skills and production with engaging topics like unusual foods, personal achievements, and perfect days. We’ll emphasize crafting vivid, sensory details and using figurative language to bring our stories to life. Alongside our narrative writing adventures, we’ll explore Red Scarf Girl by Ji-li Jiang, a memoir that offers a glimpse into growing up in China during the Cultural Revolution. Students have also visited the library and chosen a novel of their choice to read during silent reading time in class. Please ask your child about their book choice and encourage them to share their thoughts and progress with you. During vocabulary time, students have gotten their first list of six words. They will be bringing these lists home biweekly and are encouraged to not only learn the definitions but be able to use them in their writing.


Math

Math 7

In 7th grade math, we are diving into our “Proportional Relationships” module. Students will learn what proportional relationships look like in tables, graphs, equations, etc. As of now, our module assessment will be on September 13. Later this quarter, we will also explore our “Solve Percent Problems” module with percent changes such as: sales tax, discounts, tip, commissions, and more. We end the quarter with module 3 on “Integer Operations.” These modules are critical for 7th grade and full of real-life connections.
Math 7+

In 7th grade math accelerated, we are diving into our “Proportional Relationships” module. Students will learn what proportional relationships look like in tables, graphs, equations, etc. As of now, our module assessment will be on September 13. Later this quarter, we will also explore our “Solve Percent Problems” module with percent changes such as: sales tax, discounts, tip, commissions, and more. We end the quarter with module 3 on “Rational Number Operations.” These modules are critical for 7th grade and full of real-life connections. We look forward to sprinkling in some 8th grade standards with scientific notations and exponent rules!

Science

Mr. Whitt and Mr. Woolley’s seventh grade science classes are starting the year with ecology. In the next couple of weeks, students will be attempting to “Capture the Wild Bead” in a lab dealing with estimating populations. They will make a biome poster. They will also be using microscopes to discover an unseen world in a drop of pond water.

Social Studies

Mrs. Brar's and Mrs. Huber’s social studies classes will be starting off the year with some review of important geography and economic topics. We are already in the midst of our first project, which requires students to apply some economic concepts they learned in class as they build their own small business. In September, we will move on to studying our first ancient civilization, the Ancient Greeks. This first true unit is full of hands-on activities that will have students out of their seats and engaging in the content. We’re looking forward to diving into the past!

Common Sense Media

Common Sense Media is an online tool that can help parents and students make informed decisions regarding media use. This tool can be used for many types of media, including books, movies, video games, and apps. Additionally, the “Parent Tips and FAQ” section can provide families with valuable support on facilitating social media, cell phone, and screen time use with their child.

Ryan Malany
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