August 30, 2024 Newsletter

7th Grade REquirements

You can begin to schedule PHYSICALS (including VISION and HEARING EXAMS) and at that time receive the required TDap VACCINE

DENTAL EXAMS are also required for all 7th grade students

We highly recommend that the physicals, immunizations, and dental exams be completed as soon as possible and turned in as soon as possible. Students who are not compliant with immunizations on the first day of school are subject to exclusion.

If you have questions, please contact Courtney in the Health Office at cehmke@lps.org or call (402) 436-1214.

Algebra diff - davenport & loshbaugh

We have been learning about various types of functions: properties, graphs, notations, etc. We have explored linear, exponential, square root, cube root, absolute value, and quadratic functions. We have used function machines to learn the properties of function notation.
Upcoming tests:
Chapter 1 Test is Sept 6
Math MAP testing is Sept 9-11

art - covey

In Mrs. Covey’s art class we have been learning about the art history of the mandala. We have also been studying the work of contemporary artists Gabriel Shama, Shona Wilson and Kristin Farr and how they incorporate modern Mandalas in their work. This week we are starting to draw our very own Mandala designs incorporating pattern, radial symmetry and math!

computer science 7 - tobey & ebeler

Students in Computer Science 7 are engaged in the Web Development Unit. During this unit, students are taught about HTML and CSS coding in order to build a website on code.org. Students have autonomy to choose the topic of their website and are asked to code headings, subheadings, images, lists, and links. In the end, student should include all of those items onto two linked web pages.

Contemporary communications - kroenke

Our big picture for the next two weeks: We are finishing partner presentations which are going GREAT! Then, we will reflect on the objectives (below) for Unit 1 by demonstrating what we have learned in our Visual Thinking Journals. Finally, we’ll celebrate the end of the unit with some group games.

Objectives for Partner Interview Project (skills students will learn)

*Greeting others. Introducing self and others.

*Ask relevant questions (open-ended questions and probing questions) to build on ideas, clarify own ideas, or acquire or confirm information.

*Demonstrate interpretation of verbal and non-verbal messages in a conversation.

*Demonstrate active and attentive listening skills (e.g., eye contact, nonverbal cues, taking notes, summarizing, questioning).

*Complete a task following multi-step directions.

*Write a well-constructed paragraph.

***On Wednesday, September 4th, I’ll send out an email to all families to talk about how to look at grades and other feedback on student work to see how they are doing on the skills listed above.

counselor - fiero

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me at jfiero@lps.org or call (402) 436-1214.

Coming in September...

Counselor visits to English classrooms: Bullying Lesson & Climate Survey

english 7/7d - johnson

Both English 7 and 7D classes have spent the last two weeks learning signpost strategies that will help them engage with the various texts we will read throughout the year. Students have also spent several days this past week undergoing MAP testing.

Looking ahead to the next two weeks, students will begin applying signpost strategies to assigned readings and begin to examine plot charts and elements of fiction.

Further out, students will continue to build on signpost strategies as they begin reading their first class novel of the year. Students will also apply what they know about plot charts and elements of fiction to write their own personal narrative.

english 7/7d - rischling

In both classes, we will be finishing up MAP testing and moving onto the elements of literature. We will focus on the plot chart and participate in group activities to generate plots for nonfiction prompts to share with the class. We will ultimately build on the plot chart later in the quarter by using it to draft our own personal narratives.
Please encourage your students to look at their missing work on Synergy and come speak with me if they are unsure how to move forward, I’m here to help!!

Mrs. Rischling rrischli@lps.org

Family & consumer science/healthy living - Pieper

In healthy living class we are starting our sewing unit. We will be first learning about all the sewing room expectations and routines. After that students will learn about the parts of the sewing machine and how it works.
Students will have the opportunity to practice running the sewing machine by sewing on paper.

health - beyer & ms. hoyt

We have been spending time getting to know our classmates. Students started Unit 1: Mental and Emotional Health this week.

They have been learning about:

How various aspects of health are interrelated (physical, mental/emotional, social)
Factors that increase and decrease individual’s health and wellness

In the next few weeks, students will learn about:

Skills for health (goal setting, refusal skills, conflict management, decision -making, etc.)
Learning from mistakes and failures

How emotions and thoughts affect our decision making

irving music updates

band - Linton

Class Syllabus (concert dates, procedures, grading)

7th grade band has learned procedures and structures for our band rehearsals at Irving. Class is really starting to pick up and we are getting more and more done with each full group rehearsal. The four pieces we are currently focused on are:

Shaker Hymn - John O’Reilly
Walkin’ the Dog - Patrick Roszell
Stone Age Stomp - Timothy Loest
Blackbeard - Randall Standridge

orchestra - Hegert

Class Syllabus (concert dates, procedures, grading)

7th grade orchestra has learned procedures and structures for our orchestra rehearsals at Irving. Class is really starting to flow and we are getting more and more done with each full group rehearsal. The three pieces we are currently focused on are:

-”Little Russian March” by Tchaikovsky, arr. Richard Meyer

-”Rosin Eating Zombies From Outer Space” by Richard Meyer

-”Mozart and Company” arr. Douglas Wagner

Policy change: Tardies in orchestra will be given if a student is not in their seat, with their materials and instrument unpacked, ready to tune, 2 minutes after the bell.

MATH 7/7D - GERL & LISS

Math 7: Students are working together in teams to solve problems that involve decimals, percentages and fractions with unlike denominators. We’ve also reviewed how to find the perimeter and area of a variety of polygons. The Chapter 1 Test will take place on Friday, September 6th.

Math 7D: In this unit, students have been introduced to the big ideas of probability, algebra, integers and proportional relationships. The main goal of this chapter is to focus on teams, collaboration, building classroom community and setting the stage for the kind of thinking and learning students will do throughout the school year. The Chapter 1 Test will take place on Friday, August 30th.

PE - haag, essman, glazier, beyer, hoyt & mohlman

Students in PE have been learning about Cooperative Games which involve working as a team to complete a task or game together. Games have included mat ball, deserted island, cone raiders and ultimate tag. As we continue into our semester, we will begin our softball next week. We will learn the rules of softball, the correct technique of throwing and hitting a softball and will end with a softball tournament.

rewards reading - hughes & baker

In Rewards Reading Plus and Secondary we have been giving beginning of the year assessments to see where everyone is at in their learning. We have also been working on reading, writing skills and fluency with sentence practice and fluency reads. Everyone has been doing a great job with expectations and routines!!
When we get back from break, we will be working on many skills and strategies in our reading textbooks and also incorporating a lot of other reading and writing skills practice.

Mrs. Baker (jrbaker@lps.org)

Mrs. Hughes (rhughes3@lps.org)

science 7 - dresden & jung

This week we started our first curriculum unit: Plate Tectonics and Rock Cycling. Mountains move! There are ocean fossils on top of Mt. Everest! In this plate tectonics and rock cycling unit, students come to see that the Earth is very much active and alive. The unit launches with documentation of a 2015 Himalayan earthquake that shifted Mt. Everest suddenly to the southwest direction. Students discover that Mt. Everest is steadily moving to the northeast every year and getting taller as well which leaves us wondering what could cause an entire mountain to move during an earthquake.

Using several GPS data sources, we explore earthquake and landform patterns at several mountain locations. Students develop an Earth model and study mantle convection motion to explain how Earth’s surface could move from processes below the surface. From this, students develop models to explain different ways plates collide and spread apart, ultimately explaining how Mt. Everest could move all the time in one direction, and also suddenly, in a backward motion, during an earthquake. The unit ends with students using what they have figured out about uplift and erosion to explain how a fossil was found at Mt. Everest without having to dig for it.

Science and Engineering Practices

asking questions
defining problems
developing and using models
analyzing and interpreting data
constructing explanations and engaging in argument from evidence.

We will be working on this unit for the rest of 1st Quarter. Follow this LINK for a more information about our unit.

social studies 7/7d - ottley & davison

This week we’ve been working on becoming familiar with historical thinking skills. These will be the foundation of much of our learning this year as students will be challenged to apply these skills while we do a deep dive into all sorts of topics. Our first inquiry will challenge the students to analyze evidence in an attempt to solve the mystery of what happened to the inhabitants of Easter Island.

The 5 historical thinking skills:

Sourcing: Considering the validity of a source to make sure it’s reliable.
Close reading: asking questions of the text; thinking deeper into the information.
Corroboration: cross-checking and weighing the evidence.
Contextualization: considering the time period and surrounding events.
Multiple perspectives: going beyond just one view-point.

world language 7 - zetterman-pickerel

Spanish Unit

El alfabeto
Los numeros 0-30
Introducciones
Animales
Colores
La comida-Food

Next Unit: French

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