MEET THE TEACHER

Dear Sixth Grade Students and Parents,                                                 9/2025                                      

Welcome to sixth grade! My name is Christine Balagtas, and I am extremely excited that you will be an active learner in my homeroom. This year marks my twenty-ninth year of teaching; I taught sixth grade for 25 years and fifth grade for three years.   I have a master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction with specialization in middle school core curriculum. In addition to my thirst for learning, I like to spend my time on faith, family, exercise, and Chicago sports! I am thrilled you will be part of the "Balagtas craze" this year!!!   

In order for this year to be a successful journey, I will need your assistance. First, I challenge you to find different ways to learn and expand the way you think. Whether it is persevering through your hardest subject, studying a new topic, or dealing with peer issues, pay attention to the number of times you succeed and especially to the times that you do not. As you begin to take charge of your own learning, you will begin to recognize what makes you a strong student, thus find ways to reach success in school and in life.  If you refer to the top of my WEBSITE, you will find important links such as  “Surveys,” “Biweekly Classroom Feature,” “Daily Homework,” etc. Under SURVEYS, you will find the PARENT and STUDENT survey link. I ask that you complete the survey to help maximize learning this year. 

I communicate classroom news in various ways, so please be sure to consistently check classroom e-mail and web-sites. To find out more about our year, I encourage parents to attend Curriculum Night on Tuesday, September 9 at 6p.m.  On this date, Mr. Dennis and I will be sharing the year with you and all our expectations.  I can't wait to meet you all!  

Sincerely,

Ms. Balagtas

                                    IMPORTANT DATES:

Curriculum Night Times per grade level:  September 9 at 6:00 p.m.

Picture Day:  September 10