Hello Middle School Families,
We had a great first week back from spring break!
We jumped right into our final formal Character Based Literacy novel study on Monday and so far, the kids seem to be loving the books! Both novels are historical fiction and tackle issues of social injustices during WWII (the Holocaust and Japanese internment camps). Our overarching theme for this unit is Justice Requires Restraint, and all grades participated in a discussion about our Catholic belief in promoting social justice for all people. Please be willing to talk with your student about these issues. Also, I know many relatives experienced WWII first hand, so please feel free to send along any stories, photos, or items from the time period to give the students a real-life experience with it.
In social studies, Ancient Civilizations learned about the Indian caste system and the arrival of the Aryan people in Ancient India. We have been practicing close reading and annotation strategies with short informational texts.
United States history engaged in a structured academic controversy debate about Louis and Clark. They used historical documents to unravel and debate the the ethical treatment of Native Americans during the Louis and Clark expedition.
8th Grade Updates:
8th graders have a lot on their plate, and a lot of exciting events coming up! As graduation approaches, we commonly see out 8th grade students loosen up with their academics, but students need to remain focused and continue to work hard through the remainder of the school year. We’re in the home stretch! Students should be working on their portfolio components at home as well as school. May Crowning is coming up, so please let me know if you have any questions or concerns about attire. To clarify, young mens’ suits may be black, navy blue, or grey. Young ladies’ dresses must be spring/pastel color. Students received the entire script for the event and should be looking over it to familiarize themselves with it. Young ladies will be writing essays about crowning Mary, and the middle school staff will choose based on these essays. Due to a funeral, we have to postpone the date of the 8th grade retreat (my previous newsletter said it will be on 4/27. It will be a Friday in May instead). Portfolio presentations will be on Friday, 5/25 throughout the day. Students will have 20-minute time slots each.
Reminders:
Wednesday, 4/18 – Early Dismissal
Friday, 4/20 – Mom Prom
Week of 4/23 – STAR reading testing
Wednesday, 4/25 – Progress Reports
Saturday, 4/28 – 2nd Grade First Communion
Thursday, 5/3 – May Crowning
Friday, 5/25 – 8th Grade Portfolio Presentations