Dear Students/Parents/Guardians

Welcome to the 2024-2025 school year. I am looking forward to a rewarding and productive experience for all of our students. We will work together toward meeting our yearly goals. I truly believe this will be a fabulous year that will be productive and meaningful for all students.

Grade 6

Topics Taught:

• Understanding and applying the concepts of ratios and unit rates, and using the correct language to describe them (for example, the ratio of wings to beaks in a flock of birds is 2 to 1, because for every 2 wings there is 1 beak)

• Building on knowledge of multiplication and division to divide fractions by fractions

• Understanding that positive and negative numbers are located on opposite sides of 0 on a number line

• Using pairs of numbers, including negative numbers, as coordinates for locating or placing a point on a graph

• Writing and determining the value of expressions with whole-number exponents (such as 15+32 )

• Identifying and writing equivalent mathematical expressions by applying the properties of operations. For example, recognizing that 2 (3+x) is the same as 6+2x

• Understanding that solving an equation such as 2+x = 12 means answering the question, “What number does x have to be to make this statement true?”

• Representing and analyzing the relationships between independent and dependent variables

• Solving problems involving area and volume

Grade 7 Learning Targets: The goal this year is that students will focus on four critical areas:  (1) developing understanding of and applying proportional relationships; (2) developing understanding of operations with rational numbers and working with expressions and linear equations; (3) solving problems involving scale drawings and informal geometric constructions, and working with two- and three-dimensional shapes to solve problems involving area, surface area, and volume; and (4) drawing inferences about populations based on samples.

Topics Taught:

• Rates, ratios, proportions, and percentages to solve multi-step problems

• Identifying the unit rate of change in tables, graphs, equations, and verbal descriptions

• Calculating the unit rates associated with ratios of fractions, including quantities measured in different units

• Solving problems using equations to find the value of one missing variable

• Applying the properties of operations to generate equivalent mathematical expressions

• Solving multi-step word problems by adding, subtracting, multiplying, and dividing positive and negative rational numbers in any form (including whole numbers, fractions, or decimals)

• Understanding that numbers cannot be divided by 0

• Converting rational numbers to decimals using long division

• Describing situations in which positive and negative quantities combine to make 0

• Finding the area of two-dimensional objects and the volume and surface area of three-dimensional objects

Grade 8 Learning Targets: The goal this year is that students will focus on three critical areas: (1) formulating and reasoning about expressions and equations, including modeling an association in bivariate data with a linear equation, and solving linear equations and systems of linear equations; (2) grasping the concept of a function and using functions to describe quantitative relationships; (3) analyzing two- and three-dimensional space and figures using distance, angle, similarity, and congruence, and understanding and applying the Pythagorean Theorem.

Topics Taught

• Understanding that every rational number (such as ½, 0.3, 2, or -2) can be written as a decimal, but that the decimal form of an irrational number (such as 2 ) is both non-repeating and infinite

• Applying the properties of exponents to generate equivalent numerical expressions

• Determining the value of square roots of small perfect squares (such as 49= 7) and cube roots of small perfect cubes (such as 3 64=4)

• Graphing proportional relationships and interpreting the unit rate as the slope (how steep or flat a line is)

• Solving and graphing one- and two-variable linear equations

• Understanding that a function is a rule that assigns to each value of x exactly one value of y, such as y=2x, a rule that would yield such ordered pairs as (-2,-4), (3,6), and (4,8)

• Comparing the properties of two functions represented in different ways (in a table, graph, equation, or description)

• Determining congruence (when shapes are of equal size and shape) and similarity (same shape but different sizes)

• Learning and applying the Pythagorean Theorem (an equation relating the lengths of the sides of a right triangle: a2 + b2 = c2 )

• Solving problems involving the volume of cylinders, cones, and spheres

Homework:  

You will have an assignment every day.  Any work not completed in class is homework and due the next day. It is your responsibility to attempt every problem and seek help if you need it.  It is to your advantage to do all of the problems you can. Math students should spend no more than 15-30 minutes on Math homework each night. If you are struggling with your homework assignment, we provide numerous opportunities to help.…there is NO excuse to not get help if you need it!!!  I want you to do well and understand!  

Late Assignments: 

If you choose to turn in an assignment late 50% credit will be deducted from your total score for the first 7 days it is late. After 7 days it will no longer be accepted for credit. If late work becomes an issue, this policy is subject to change at Mr. Britt’s discretion!   

Grade:  Classwork, test/quizzes, and Warmups are each important components of the final grade.  The final grade is weighted as follows:

Grading Policy

30% - Daily Homework

25% - Independent Class Work, Warmups, Class Notes, Number Talks, Stations 

25% - NEXT GEN Math

20% - Tests/Quizzes

Late assignments will incur a 50% penalty and will be accepted no later than one week after the due date.