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WELCOME TO BENCHMARK'S MIDDLE SCHOOL!
WELCOME TO BENCHMARK'S MIDDLE SCHOOL!
Dear Parents -
We realize that transitioning to middle school can be an anxious time for many parents. Your child is becoming an adolescent and may not be as forthcoming with you as they once were about their daily routines. Also, as we adhere to our health and safety protocols, parents are unfortunately no longer permitted into the building, cutting off that sense of belonging many parents are missing. These circumstances make it challenging for invested parents to feel connected to what is happening each day while your child is with us.
In order to give you a better sense of what happens at school, we have created this photo-journal of a day in the life of a sixth-grader at Benchmark. We hope it gives you a glimpse into the classroom, the curriculum, the technology, the blended-learning, and the health protocols we are implementing to make learning safe, engaging, and meaningful for each child. We have organized our pictures according to a typical schedule for most sixth-graders. Your child may have a different schedule, teacher, or routine, but the following pictures portray what happens generally for most students throughout the course of a day.
As always, thank you for your dedication to your child's learning and to Benchmark !
The Sixth-Grade Team
MORNING CHECK-IN
8:00 - 8:20
Students Jayson Blum and Porter Shaw can make choices in completing "morning work" as Mr. Canney circulates and welcomes arriving students.
LANGUAGE ARTS
8:24 - 9:28
All sixth graders start off their days with a double period of Language Arts.
In these pictures, Mrs. Savage is leading the class as remote learner Parker Caruso receives feedback from in-person learner Nick Michener about her descriptive writing piece, "The View from My Bedroom Window" as part of building skills needed for the Memoir unit.
Miss Carrington leads a discussion of Chapter 19 in Fish in a Tree with in-person learner Nicole Semerjian, and remote learners Anwar Quadir and Hunter Lankford.
In these pictures, Mrs. Savage is leading the class as remote learner Parker Caruso receives feedback from in-person learner Nick Michener about her descriptive writing piece, "The View from My Bedroom Window" as part of building skills needed for the Memoir unit.
Miss Carrington leads a discussion of Chapter 19 in Fish in a Tree with in-person learner Nicole Semerjian, and remote learners Anwar Quadir and Hunter Lankford.
SOCIAL STUDIES
9:32 - 10:02
Mrs. Scali has each student demonstrate their understanding of the five themes of geography (location, place, interaction, movement, and region) by dragging examples (in yellow on the right) to the theme section each example fits best (boxes on the left).
Here she is checking on the progress of Zev Levin before beginning the whole class discussion.
Here she is checking on the progress of Zev Levin before beginning the whole class discussion.
SCIENCE
10:06 - 10:36
In Science class, students are learning about the earth, its ecosystems and biomes.
In these pictures, Mrs. Adami is checking on Aidan Greenberg's notes while Scarlet Richards and Paul Youngblood work independently, using a split-screen to read information from the educational site, Ducksters, and then take notes on a class Google Slide.
In these pictures, Mrs. Adami is checking on Aidan Greenberg's notes while Scarlet Richards and Paul Youngblood work independently, using a split-screen to read information from the educational site, Ducksters, and then take notes on a class Google Slide.
MATH
10:40 - 11:10
Every student has two periods of math each day. In this class, Mrs. Sheerer begins the class by welcoming remote learner Anwar Quadir while Raine Kelsall and Joshua Fulmer log on to their Google Classroom to begin their daily math practice.
Once all students get started, Miss Sheerer circulates and checks in with Laz Scheibe.
Once all students get started, Miss Sheerer circulates and checks in with Laz Scheibe.
MID-DAY
CHECK-IN
11:15 - 11:40
Mid-day check-in is a great time to offer students a variety of activities. In this picture we can see Nick Fulmer, Nicole Semerjian, and Raine Kelsall working on an IXL diagnostic while Frankie Polizzi, who has finished his diagnostic for the day, is able to read a book of his choice.
LUNCH &
RECESS
11:45 - 12:30
While the weather remains beautiful, we get outside as much as possible for both lunch and recess. We are grateful for our BPA parents who have donated baskets of equipment for each cohort to use at recess. Here's a picture of some of our students learning how to safely play at recess with a game of catch.
SPECIAL
(Health & Gym)
12:35 - 1:05
For the first trimester this year, sixth graders have Health as well as Gym during their special period.
The content in Health right now focuses on technology responsibility, digital citizenship, and how to interact with others wisely and kindly online as well as how to set healthy limits for screen time use. Here Taylor Dyson finishes answering the "Question of the Day" while Myles Silber shares, in his own words, a review of the last lesson on social media "red alerts."
In Gym, Mr. Reichart and Mr. Milby take the students outside as much as weather permits. In this picture, some of the students in Cohort 34 are getting outside to play hockey on the greentop.
The content in Health right now focuses on technology responsibility, digital citizenship, and how to interact with others wisely and kindly online as well as how to set healthy limits for screen time use. Here Taylor Dyson finishes answering the "Question of the Day" while Myles Silber shares, in his own words, a review of the last lesson on social media "red alerts."
In Gym, Mr. Reichart and Mr. Milby take the students outside as much as weather permits. In this picture, some of the students in Cohort 34 are getting outside to play hockey on the greentop.
AFTERNOON
MATH
1:10 - 1:40
Depending on the schedule, all students will have a content-area class in the afternoon that could either be Science or their second math class. As with Language Arts, all students have a two periods of Math each day.
In this photo we can see Mrs. Savage encouraging students like Jayden McHugh in an exciting and interactive math game as part of reviewing concepts from earlier in the day.
In this photo we can see Mrs. Savage encouraging students like Jayden McHugh in an exciting and interactive math game as part of reviewing concepts from earlier in the day.
AFTERNOON
L.A.
1:45 - 2:15
Knowing that by the end of the day, our sixth-graders are growing fatigued, the sixth grade team plans together to create learning opportunities that are fun as well as instructional.
Here, students in two different classes watch the same video clip that illustrates the "Misfit Toys" chapter in their reading book, Fish in a Tree.
Here, students in two different classes watch the same video clip that illustrates the "Misfit Toys" chapter in their reading book, Fish in a Tree.
AFTERNOON
CHECK-IN
2:20 - 2:50
Afternoon check-in is a great time for teachers to coach students in reflecting on the day or week, and in setting some goals, such as remembering to charge laptops at home, trying a new homework strategy, or celebrating progress towards a goal.
Most days end with students packed up so they can relax and enjoy the simple pleasure of listening to their teacher read a book aloud.
Most days end with students packed up so they can relax and enjoy the simple pleasure of listening to their teacher read a book aloud.
DISMISSAL
2:50 - 3:10
Has your child come home these first few weeks feeling tired, easily frustrated, tearful, or hungry? That's probably normal for now. As we hope you can see from our pictures, your child is actively engaged in learning new academic content as well as relearning how to do things in school that used to be familiar, like recess.
They are working hard when they are with us, so they have probably drained some of their inner resources of resilience by the time they come home. Our sixth grade teachers have responded by modifying homework requirements to focus more on thinking and reading and less on writing answers on a laptop while our students continue to adjust to school and build new habits and routines.
We're in this together as we build our blended learning community. Always, if you believe your child is having an especially difficult time transitioning back to school, please reach out. We've included a link to a document in case you're not sure who to contact.
They are working hard when they are with us, so they have probably drained some of their inner resources of resilience by the time they come home. Our sixth grade teachers have responded by modifying homework requirements to focus more on thinking and reading and less on writing answers on a laptop while our students continue to adjust to school and build new habits and routines.
We're in this together as we build our blended learning community. Always, if you believe your child is having an especially difficult time transitioning back to school, please reach out. We've included a link to a document in case you're not sure who to contact.
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