2025-2026
DMS Sixth/Seventh Grade Students & Parents,
This will be my 9th year as an educator, and 4th year at Dillon Middle School. I grew up and attended school (K-12) in Thompson Falls, MT, where I was raised by two exceptional teachers. After high school, I stayed in the family business of education and attained a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education from the University of Montana- Western, with a minor in K-12 Literacy. After several years of teaching, I earned a Master of Science in Curriculum & Instruction from Western Governors University.
I teach 6th grade Earth & Space Science and 7th grade Life Science. For more information about topics and standards covered at each grade level, please read the units listed below, our class syllabus, or my weekly lesson plans. I also teach Science Extension to 7th grade students, which is not a study hall. It's an experiential learning class where we'll be raising rainbow trout using the Trout in the Classroom Curriculum provided by Trout Unlimited.
Units planned for 6th Grade Earth & Space Science:
Unit 0: Scientific Tools and Practices
Unit 1: Natural Resources
Unit 2: Earth’s Structure
Unit 3: Rocks and Minerals
Unit 4: Erosion and Deposition
Unit 5: Plate Tectonics
Unit 6: Clues to Earth’s Past and Geologic Time
Unit 7: Weather
Unit 8: Climate
Unit 9: The Sun-Earth-Moon System
Unit 10: The Solar System
Units planned for 7th Grade Life Science:
Unit 0: Scientific Tools and Practices
Unit 1: Matter and the Environment
Unit 2: Populations and Communities
Unit 3: Cell Structure and Function
Unit 4: From a Cell to an Organism
Unit 5: Animal Structure and Function
Unit 6: Animal Behavior and Reproduction
Unit 7: Genetics
Unit 8: The Environment and Change Over Time
Unit 9: Plant Processes and Reproduction
Unit 10: Classification of Organisms
Students should expect to read and take notes several days each week, an assignment or lab each week, and summative assessments (tests or projects) every few weeks upon completing units. Each Thursday, I will be posting students’ grades on Infinite Campus. Do NOT use Google Classroom to check grades and missing work. Infinite Campus has all missing work and grades on each assignment. Also, this class website provides a link to my weekly lesson plans and Google Classroom, which is useful for staying informed about what we're doing in class, due dates, etc.
Please feel free to contact me with any concerns or questions via email or voicemail at:
DMS Phone: (406) 683-2368 (ext. 214)
E-Mail: jlaws@dillonschools.org OR jlaws@dillonelem.k12.mt.us
Thank you,
Mr. Jaron Laws
