2025-2026

The purpose of this communication is to keep parents informed about what their students are working on in their classes and events happening at PVC Middle School.

SPLIT TEAM TEACHERS:

Eric Schmidt- Math/AIS

Sarah Wellman- Social Studies

Amanda (Mandy) Birdsall- Science

Halona Bartley- ELA/AIS

IMPORTANT DATES:

ELA STATE TEST 4/14 & 4/15
MATH STATE TEST 4/21 & 4/22 (7th grade only)
Algebra 1 Regents Exam - 6/17 (8th grade only)

8th Grade Boat Dance - 6/18

El propósito de esta comunicación es mantener a los padres informados sobre en qué están trabajando sus estudiantes en sus clases y los eventos que suceden en PVC Middle School.

Mandy Birdsall, Science 7 & 8

amanda.birdsall@chufsd.org

Mrs. Birdsall's Website

Please check the gradebook on Infinite Campus for grades and missing assignments. Infinite Campus - Parent Portal
Google Classroom stream has all curriculum materials, homework announcements and student handouts.
If your child has been absent, please encourage them to check in with teachers in a timely manner upon their return to school. This should be done during LaB (learning & behavior) periods.
Extra help is available during lab, Flex, and HW Club on M, T, and Th in the PVC library.

7th Grade

Due dates for 7th Grade: Birdsall Live Doc 7

Welcome to 7th grade Life Science!! As soon as your child enters my classroom, they are a Junior Scientist recruited by the Global Science Agency. They have been selected for a top-secret mission: The Secret Life Project. They will crack the mysteries of what it means to be alive and how life adapts and survives on Earth. We are currently studying Cell Transport & Reproduction. We continue to practice Science & Engineering Practices (SEPs) all year. Please reach out anytime with questions or concerns. If you feel that a team meeting is necessary to discuss your child, please email me or the guidance office. Please check Parent Square for some upcoming field trip information and permission.

8th Grade

Due dates for 8th Grade: Birdsall Live Doc 8

Welcome to 8th grade Earth & Space Science!! As soon as your child enters my classroom, they are a Junior Scientist recruited by the Global Science Agency. Their mission: to uncover the secrets of Earth and space to protect our planet’s future. As guardians of the blue planet, they will embark on 4 training missions to explore astronomy, geology, meteorology and global climate change. We are currently wrapping up our Geology Unit. Please reach out anytime with questions or concerns. If you feel that a team meeting is necessary to discuss your child, please email me or the guidance office.

Halona Bartley

ELA 7 & 8

Students & Parents should check Infinite Campus regularly for grades and missing assignment.
Please review classroom expectations & routines posted on Google Classroom.
All daily tasks, classwork, homework, and resources will be posted daily on Google Classroom.
Complete weekly Achieve 3000 requirements, 2 articles each week @ 75% or higher!

*7th grade students have completed their Personal Narratives! Ask them to share their work with you! Excellent stories!

We have been reading The Outsiders and exploring SE Hinton's use of figurative language and the development of important themes throughout the novel such as empathy, identity & belonging, friendship & loyalty, decisions & consequences. Students will write a theme analysis essay. At the end of the unit will watch the 1983 film.

*8th grade students are currently reading To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee. They have gained background knowledge through exploring The National Art Gallery where they observed artwork created during The Great Depression. They took a virtual tour in the Jim Crow Museum to learn about segregation and the Civil Right Movement. Students discuss stereotyping, the consequences of prejudice & racism, the morals and values that shape who we are, and how we develop empathy for others. We will take on character roles as we read the script of the "Trial Chapters" and spend time analyzing rhetoric in Atticus Finch's closing argument. There will be a unit test and a thematic essay. To conclude our TKAM unit, we will be watching the 1962 film.

Thank you PVC PTA for supporting our Holocaust Museum trip!

Keep in mind The Behaviors That Promote Learning & Wellness: Self-Leadership, Self-Advocacy, & Interpersonal Skills!

halona.bartley@chufsd.org

Thank you PVC PTA!

Eric Schmidt, Math 7 & Algebra 1

Web page

Eric.Schmidt@chufsd.org

Homework will be daily, although sometimes not on Fridays.
All announcements (homework, assessments, etc.) and grades are posted in Google Classroom.
Almost every assignment contains a link or an attachment. Many even include links if your student needs help.
- "When I look at my student's Google Classroom, it show's a lot of "missing" math assignments. Should I be worried?" Take a look at the assignments, most likely they are "ungraded" because they are paper assignments. If the assignment is on paper, student do not need to go into Classroom to click "turn in".
Weekly DeltaMath requirements. A problem set is assigned every week to your student. It is assigned every Monday morning and due the following Monday morning (During shortened weeks, the requirements/due dates are appropriately adjusted.)
Please be checking the Parent Portal - Infinite Campus.
How to check grades in Google Classroom
7th grade math:
- We just finished units on percents and statistics.
- Probability
Algebra 1:
- Various types of functions (exponential, square root, absolute value, etc.)
- Algebra 1 Regents: Wednesday, June 17th

Social Studies: United States History 7 & 8

Sarah Wellman

Web page sarah.wellman@chufsd.org

In 7th grade, we have recently completed the government unit that explores the Constitution and the Principles of the Constitution. We have just finished our analysis of the Bill of Rights by looking at different Supreme Court Cases. We will be starting a thematic unit about American Progress from 1800 to 1850, by studying America's technological, economic, geographic, and political progress. We will end the year with the unit on the Civil War.

Students have been completing written assignments in the second trimester that will be reflected in IC for the 3rd trimester. I will be (and have been) conferencing with students about their Social Studies writing goals for the 3rd trimester. That will be done when we get back from break.

In 8th grade, we have been studying American Expansion overseas, the impact of the media on world events, and the foreign policies of the late 1800s and early 1900s that made America a world power. We are completing the unit on WWI that had us look at the conditions of war and the terrible cost of war. We will explore why and how America joined the war, and study the Treaty of Versailles and its implications for the outbreak of WWII. Students have been completing written assessments and will continue to work on them into the 3rd trimester.

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