The sixth grade students continued their study of decimals this past week. They are becoming attuned to the fact that decimal points must be lined up when adding and subtracting decimals, and must be relocated when multiplying and dividing decimals. As they head into the conclusion of this unit, the students learned how to divide one decimal number by another and also how to divide a decimal by a whole number.

The seventh graders completed work on their fourth TILE test of the school year this past week. The students also refined their skills at simplifying expressions. The expressions that the class simplified are longer, and include operations such as parentheses, exponents, and utilizing the distributive property.

The eighth grade students completed work on their fourth TILE test of the school year this past week. They also began a new lesson on how to evaluate expressions when exponents are involved, and how to expand expressions.

Sixth Grade Earth Science is delving into the depths of the planet. Along with the surface of the Earth, there are spheres within the planet that we have never seen. Students learned how seeing does not mean unknown. Seismic waves can travel through the planet and slow, stop, or even bounce off the structure inside the planet. To mimic how the seismic waves travel, a short experiment was done where the class all lined up with stiff arms on one another's back. Just a little tap at the end made the student at the front move.

The Life Science class has continued their learning about the smallest forms of life: cells. From the smallest cells, bacteria, to the cells that make up every organ and tissue of our body, all cells have things in common. This week, the class focused on eukaryotic cells. By diagramming and labeling the cell and its many parts, the students learned of the functions by comparing it to how a restaurant runs.

Physical Science has started the process of building their machine. With all of the supplies, the class started by laying out the design and testing the physical processes that were previously laid out in the concept design. The class is finding the optimum weight, length, and angle, so that all the parts of the eventual machine can work together and provide a final result. Many iterations will be tried. In the end, a final Rube Goldberg machine will be the result.

This week, the 6th grade had the opportunity to explore the new vocabulary app Wordly Wise. This app allows students to examine vocabulary words from multiple angles, including synonyms, antonyms, and how words are used in different sentence structures. The sixth graders also began work on their biographical research project, which introduces them to the research process while they explore the lives of influential individuals.

This week, the 7th grade students continued their poetry unit. They explored the work of powerful poets such as Sonia Sanchez, Maya Angelou, and Langston Hughes. Students also composed their own poems on a range of topics, incorporating literary devices such as figurative language and mood. They are preparing for the Poetry Coffee House Event this Thursday, February 12 at 1:45 PM in the music room. Parents are warmly invited to attend and participate in this expressive and creative event.

This week, the 8th grade completed their study of the play 12 Angry Men. They examined characterization, suspense building, foreshadowing, and other literary elements. Students then watched the film adaptation and compared and contrasted the text and movie to deepen their understanding. The 8th graders were also introduced to the Wordly Wise vocabulary application, which is designed to strengthen their vocabulary development.

This week, the 6th graders engaged in hands-on history while studying the earliest Mesopotamian civilization, the Sumerians. Students visited the school garden to recreate levees, reservoirs, and canals used to support growing city-states. They also plowed garden beds to simulate early agricultural innovations such as the plow. Next week, students will study other Mesopotamian civilizations, including the Babylonians, Assyrians, and Akkadians.

This week, the 7th graders presented impressive projects recreating Moorish inventions and innovations. Their creativity continues to be truly remarkable. Students also studied the earliest West African civilizations, focusing on historic Ghana. They learned how communities were formed by bringing families together to build towns, and how West Africans were among the first to use iron technology to strengthen agriculture and improve defense systems. Additionally, students explored Jenne-Jeno, one of the earliest cities in West Africa and the world.

This week, the 8th graders continued their unit on westward expansion. They examined how resistance by enslaved people in Haiti influenced the Louisiana Purchase, doubling the size of the United States. They also studied how resistance from enslaved Africans and Native Americans contributed to the acquisition of Florida, and discussed the profound impact westward expansion had on the millions of Native Americans already living on the land.

6th Grade
Sixth graders completed a mini project where they used loops and rendering scripts to create sticker art using a variety of digital assets. By repeating patterns and placing elements intentionally, students saw how code can be used as a creative design tool. This project reinforced both efficiency and visual planning while giving students lots of room for personal style.

7th Grade
Seventh graders began using CSS styling to affect an entire group of assets within an HTML flex group. By applying consistent formatting across multiple elements, students learned how flex layouts can keep designs organized while still allowing customization. This lesson helped strengthen their understanding of how CSS controls structure, spacing, and visual balance on a webpage.

8th Grade
Eighth graders learned about the draw loop, an essential first step in creating moving pictures and interactive code scripts. By understanding how the draw loop continuously refreshes what appears on screen, students began to see how animation and interactivity are built in real time. This concept marks a major milestone as they move toward more advanced game design and dynamic programming.

This week, 6th- and 7th-grade students reviewed the content covered in the last three lessons, which included vocabulary related to family, animals, numbers, and colors. Regarding grammar, they reviewed the use of definite articles ("La, El, Las, Los" - The) and indefinite articles ("Una/Un" - a/an), question words, and how to form questions and answers using the vocabulary and grammar they had learned. The students also took a test that summarized all the material covered, and they achieved satisfactory results.

The students also played the interactive Spanish game Jeopardy, in which they reviewed vocabulary related to colors, numbers, days of the week, the alphabet, verbs, and nouns. This game also allowed them to learn additional words such as hablar (to speak), cocinar (to cook), la cocina (the kitchen), las papas fritas (French fries), el pan (bread), el helado (ice cream), la carne (meat), and el jamón (ham).

This week, 8th-grade students began studying subject pronouns (words that take the place of nouns), the difference in the use of "Tú" (you singular - informal way), used with a friend, a family member, or someone younger, and "Usted" (you singular - formal way), used with someone you don't know, someone older, or someone to whom you want to show respect. They also started to learn the use of the verb to be, "Ser," and how to conjugate it in the present tense.

This week in Art, students explored expressive portrait painting inspired by American artist Jean-Michel Basquiat. They painted simple faces in black paint on mixed media paper, then added bold color, pattern, and personality with oil pastels once the paint dried. Basquiat, who began as a street and graffiti artist in New York, used his work to reflect city life and his African-Caribbean background. The project encouraged students to loosen up, paint freely, and enjoy the creative process.

This week in PE, students focused on brushing up on their soccer skills and game play as they continued their review of team sports. Students practiced passing, dribbling, and shooting. It was great to see them working as a team and communicating during our games. All of this practice is setting the stage for the upcoming spring PE sports league, where students will have the chance to put their skills into action in a fun and competitive environment.