November 1, 2024 Newsletter

from the irving office

Irving Merch!! Our store is back open with some classic favorites and some new designs (and colors!). These make great gifts for Irving students as well as family members!

Know any Irving alumni? Pass the link along or just surprise them with a nostalgic gift!

SHOP IRVING MERCH HERE!

counselor (Gothier)

Consistent Attendance is SO important!

In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, one study found that the number of public school students who are chronically absent—meaning they miss at least 10 percent of days in a school year, whether excused or unexcused—has nearly doubled, from about 15 percent in the 2018-2019 school year to around 30 percent in 2021-2022. These large increases in absenteeism are widespread: every state for which data were available in this study saw significant increases in rates of chronic absenteeism between the 2018-2019 and 2021-2022 school years. Disparities in levels of chronic absenteeism across racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic lines also widened.

Research shows that school absences take a toll on grades and performance on standardized tests. Beyond test scores, irregular attendance can be a predictor of high school drop-out, which has been linked to poor labor market prospects, diminished health, and increased involvement in the criminal justice system. Students who are chronically absent are at higher risk for these adverse outcomes. - White House addresses attendance concerns

If you have questions about your student's attendance or need help improving their attendance, please reach out to me at bgothie@lps.org or 402-436-1214. There are several strategies we can use to improve attendance and support your student at school.

Please also see guidance from LPS regarding attendance policies - LPS - Student Services Attendance

We want your student at school and we are here to help!

Mr. G

Humanities

(Jensen, Okamoto, Vaughn, Paulson, & Peterson)

We have begun our next Amplify unit titled: The Chocolate Collection. Here is a link to the introduction letter for the unit.

We are starting to delve into chocolate’s role in humanity’s past and present.

We are working towards a few summative projects during the unit including creating and defending arguments around chocolate’s inclusion in school lunches and a research essay.

Course 1 Math (Hammack, Lawrey, Schafer)

Current Chapter: Chapter 4: Variables and Ratios

Chapter Objectives: In chapter 4, students will use variables to generalize and to represent unknown quantities; write multiple expressions to describe a pattern and recognize whether the expressions are equivalent; find the value of an algebraic expression when the value of the variable is known; enlarge and reduce figures while maintaining their shapes; and use ratios to describe relationships between similar shapes.

Looking Ahead:

Next Assessment: By November 22 (Lawrey, Hammack, Schafer)

Please check gradebook for upcoming assignments and assessments and monitor your child’s progress in class

Resources: Parent/Student Resources (explanation of key ideas, additional practice, and homework help) can be found at: https://home.lps.org/math/secondary/

Course 1D Math (Hammack, Lawrey, Schafer)

Current Chapter: Chapter 5: Multiplying Fractions and Area

Chapter Objectives: In chapter 5, students will learn how to calculate a part of another part, discover how to multiply fractions, mixed numbers, and decimals, find areas of shapes including rectangles, triangles, parallelograms, and trapezoids, as well as break a complex shape into smaller pieces to find the area.

Looking Ahead:

Next Summative Assessment: By November 21 (Hammack, Lawrey, Schafer)

Please check gradebook for upcoming assignments and assessments and to monitor your child’s progress

Resources: Parent/Student Resources (explanation of key ideas, additional practice, and homework help) can be found at: https://home.lps.org/math/secondary/

Science 6 (Brown, Lawrey, Regnier)

Current Unit: Thermal Energy Project - Students will be tasked with applying their knowledge of thermal energy by creating and testing a cup system.

Upcoming Unit: Weather

Unit Objectives: In the weather unit, students will work to answer the driving question: Why does a lot of hail, rain, or snowfall at some times but not others? Students will observe videos of hail events in different locations and investigate weather data specific to these events and the temperature profile of the atmosphere above the Earth’s surface. They will conduct investigations into how sunlight affects the temperature of different surfaces and the air above them, and how this contributes to cloud formation and growth. They will also investigate why air moves the way it does as it is heated and cooled.

Looking Ahead: Thermal Energy will take us through mid-November to complete. Please check ParentVue to monitor your child’s progress in class.

Computer Science 6 (Ebeler, Tobey)

In Computer Science 6, students are beginning a unit on Ozobot Robots, which are small line-following robots that we code using hand-drawn lines and bits of color as blocks of code. The big project for this unit is a storytelling project in which students will retell a popular fairy tale while Ozobot moves along a unique path hand-drawn by pairs of students.

Healthy Living

Students in Healthy Living have started the health part of the class. We use the Second Step program they used in elementary school. We focus on social, emotional, & mental health instead of physical body systems health.

We work on having conversations about transitioning to middle school and what that looks like. How it can be hard making new friends, and maybe finding new ones. We also talk about how to manage stressful situations.

PE (haag, essman, glazier, beyer, hoyt & mohlman)

Students in PE are learning the activity of flag football while developing and reinforcing basic locomotor skills. Skills that are being taught are the correct procedure to grip and hold the football, how to catch a pass, and working on pulling a flag for flag football.

Art (Covey)

In art class, the 6th graders have been learning that artists incorporate pieces of their lives into their artwork. Next, students created a mind map of things they felt connected to relationships, life events, objects, and places. From there, each student will choose a topic meaningful to them and will create a piece of art using any medium of choice!

Orchestra (Hegert)

Class Syllabus (concert dates, procedures, grading lesson schedule)

First after-school orchestra rehearsal- September 16th
- After-school orchestra rehearsals will be every Monday, from 3:10-4:00 pm in the orchestra room.
- Rehearsals are a required part of the 6th grade orchestra curriculum.

Band (Linton)

In the 6th grade band, we are beginning to finish up the review and moving on to new material for students. This week, students will receive their first playing check. Please be sure your student is practicing and home and is ready for their lesson next week!

After school band will begin on Thursday, September 26th. Rehearsal will take place in the band room from 3:10-4 pm. All after-school rehearsals are required and will be graded. If your students will miss a rehearsal, please email me ahead of time so I can excuse them. Excused absences include sickness, doctor's appointments, and other excused absences through the school.

General Information:

6th Grade students will enter the building through Door 19. Door 19 is located at the north end of the front of the building, facing South 22nd Street. Door 1 opens at 7:30am for students eating breakfast at school. Students not attending breakfast will enter Door 19 at 7:53am. 7th and 8th Grade students will not be permitted to enter the 6th Grade door. Supervision begins outside at 7:45am.

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