8th Grade Newsletter

It has been a privilege getting to know and interact with this great group of 8th graders we have leading Barry School for the 2020 school year! We look forward to working with you and your children this year. Please do not hesitate to contact any of the eighth grade teachers should you ever have any questions.

Students are beginning to learn about MIT App Inventor and will be creating their first app next week. Don't forget to check Google Classroom on virtual learning days to get assignments.

This week in art students finished their enneagram personality test and presented their This Is Me presentation. Next week we will be discussing the history of Pewabic Tile Co. in Detroit, MI. Afterwards students will create their own tiles in the same style using inspiration from mythical creatures, Kansas City, and nature.

Students will be continuing to access their prior knowledge by reviewing topics from the 7th grade World Language Class throughout the week. Please encourage your child to practice in our class Quizlet when they have some free time.

Review topics include: Colors, Numbers to 30, Days/Months, Classroom Object/Commands and Greetings. Next week we will also be focusing on

pronunciation and how to sound out words in Spanish.

Students have been working towards being able to describe and diagram the structure of atoms, including the masses, electrical charges, and locations of protons, neutrons, and electrons. Ask them to demonstrate their knowledge by telling you about the structure of atoms and/or drawing the atomic structure of one of the first 20 elements of the Periodic Table.

Next week we will be learning how to draw Bohr Diagrams, Lewis Structures, and investigating how Russian chemist, Dmitri Mendeleev, designed the Periodic Table of Elements.

Science is all about questioning the world around us! In the pictures above and the video below, students conduct our Milk Magic experiment--ask them to tell you about it.

Wow! I am so impressed with my students! They have been great kids that are following all directions and completing their classwork! Keep up the great job!

My kids took the United States Map Test this week. I have posted this grade in the gradebook, along with a practice assignment. If a student is unhappy with their test grade, they may re-take it. I will be discussing with them how they can do this next week.

We have begun our first unit over the Age of Exploration. We are taking notes during class, and I am providing them with some helpful tips for successful note taking.

We are continuing our Lacrosse and Golf units and will be outside as much as possible for the coming weeks. If you have not already joined our Google Classroom, please do so by going to the website: t.ly/cFHt (type this into the address bar and make sure to take note of correct capitalization). Then you can navigate to the proper grade level.

8th Grade Math began their unit on real numbers this week. They've gone over rational numbers as decimals and next week will work on understanding irrational numbers and being able to compare and order real numbers.

Algebra worked on reviewing expressions, equations, and inequalities this week in order to move on to new material next week.

Geometry worked on understanding key vocabulary for the upcoming unit and began learning about the fundamentals of Geometry unit that begins our year.

This week in 8th Grade Band we have begun to review technical skills on instruments and are working on ensemble skills during class time. Every remote learning day, students will be given a practice assignment in Google Classroom to complete. This assignment is only meant to take about 30 minutes to complete. Please encourage your student to bring their instrument home on their remote day so they can be fully prepared to participate during our in-person learning days.

Instrument/Bell Covers

This week we have been rehearsing outside in the fresh air to give everyone a chance to get instrument/bell covers. We will be rehearsing inside in the band room next week. Students will need to have their instrument/bell cover on their first in-person day next week. If you have questions about the cover, please let me know!

The STAR reading assessment was not available until today, so this week we took a pre-test on tone, theme, and summarization. We also took our first No Red Ink Diagnostic. Thursday is our library day. In addition to helping students select books, Ms. Stephenson is reading The Outsiders to the 8th graders this semester.

Next week, we will continue with STAR testing and begin our focus on grammar. Please put forth your best effort on all assignments and proofread before you turn in your work. In addition, make sure to meet your deadlines.

Have a great weekend!

Remember to check your 'To Do' and 'To Be' lists each day throughout the week and be ready to reflect on the process and your progress during next week's FPC time.

September 21

• Volleyball @ Paul Kinder Middle School (4:00)

• Cross Country @ Raytown South Middle School (4:00)
  

September 22

• Football Game vs Smithville @ PCHS (4:30)

September 23

• Volleyball vs Walden Middle @ PCMS (4:00)