Hall Middle School Teacher Newsletters 2025-26

November 7, 2025

Science

This week ends our unit on photosynthesis and cellular respiration. Many new concepts were introduced and used in labs and subsequent scientific writings. We dismantled the corn and radish plants that were growing for nearly a month and then calculated to see how much carbon the plants sequestered. The final government report will be written in class with their team next week. Ask these questions about this week and next week's activities:

Which plant sample sequestered the most carbon?
What part of the government report did you write?
How are photosynthesis and cellular respiration similar?

Our next unit is Ecosystems and students will focus on an endangered species! So much to do!

Spanish 1

Those of us who speak English and Spanish know that one of the big differences between them is that the conjugation of verbs in English are much easier than in Spanish.
But, what is a conjugation, you might ask?
"A verb conjugation is the process of changing a verb's form to show its tense, mood, voice, person and number".

In our current chapter 2A we are finally going to begin the journey of learning to conjugate verbs in Spanish. This journey is long and bumpy and takes time to master. You might see your child practicing the verbs at home over and over, but "practice makes perfect" and I know that by the end of the year our kids will be ready for the challenges of Spanish-2.
FYI, in Spanish-1 we will specifically focus on the Present Tense and in Spanish-2 we'll focus on the Paste Tenses.

Math 7

Please follow up with Mr. Watenpool for more information.

Pre-Algebra

Please follow up with Mr. Watenpool for more information.

PE 7

Corbolotti: It has been great seeing students develop their volleyball skills over the past few weeks. As we wrap up that unit, we’re transitioning into a Health and Nutrition project-based assignment where students will explore how healthy eating and exercise work together for overall fitness. Alongside this classroom work, we’ll be heading back outside for some basketball on the blacktop

PE with Mr. Rembrandt: We are continuing our Track and Field activities for another week with some in class competitions, along with a fun field game or two. After our short week on the field we will then move into the gym for some indoor activities the week before Thanksgiving break, and beging gymnastics activities after the holiday break.

7th Grade Medieval and Early Modern World History

Golden Age of India:

Essential Question

What changes and accomplishments defined India’s Golden Age?

In this concept, we will learn about the rise of various cultures on the Indian subcontinent between 300 and 1200 CE. We will also learn about the influence of these cultures on the development of the medieval world beyond India and the rest of South Asia.

Intermediate Band

The kids are super pumped to be playing, "Jurassic Park." I've seen better focus and effort as of late, which really makes teaching them much more enjoyable. Int Jazz Band has an upcoming gig on Dec 15 at Marin Country Mart in Larkspur at 11AM. Looking forward to hopefully seeing you there.

Language Arts

Current Unit Focus: Writing to Inform

Students have been working informational writing through our continued study of "The Lost Children of Sudan." We're currently finishing Unit 2 of Module 1, exploring this powerful topic through our anchor text, *A Long Walk to Water*, along with supporting articles and film excerpts.

Our scholars have been developing their analytical thinking skills by:

Identifying central and main ideas in informational sources
Conducting research on our module topic
Practicing compare and contrast analysis between different texts and media

Between now and Thanksgiving break, we'll focus on synthesizing learning as students work on compare and contrast essays before the Thanksgiving break.

Important Trimester Reminders

- All trimester work due: Friday, November 14th

- Trimester ends: Friday, November 15th

November Extra Credit Opportunity: Gratitude Project

Students have an exciting opportunity to earn extra credit through a gratitude-themed project! Here are the important dates:

- Turn in by Wednesday, November 12th → Points count for current trimester

- Turn in by Friday, November 21st → Points count for next trimester

i-Ready & Independent Reading

Please remind your student to complete two i-Ready lessons per week. This personalized learning platform helps reinforce skills we're building in class.

Students should continue reading their chosen books for approximately 20 minutes daily. This consistent practice strengthens reading fluency and comprehension skills that support all their academic work.

ART

In art class, students have been working on a drawing, painting, or mixed-media project inspired by a famous work of art. Not copying, but putting their own spin on it. They researched the original artwork (artist, style, materials, time period), filled out a worksheet and cited their sources. Then they created their piece and wrote an artist statement explaining how they were inspired and what their work meant.

STEM

Skimmer competitions are done and we had 3 winners in our skimmer design challenge! Students used hands-on skills to create their projectile and then showed off their CAD design skills to make an electronic rendering. We are moving on to our next project which is how to disburse the Kinetic Energy of a spring (mouse trap) to power a car. Students will take 2 weeks to design and create a car out of wood and plastic pieces to make decisions on how best to allocate the energy for speed and distance. A real design challenge!

Page updated

Report abuse