~ Class of 2022 ~

8th Grade Newsletter

Homeroom Update:

In the blink of an eye, we find ourselves entering our final month of 8th grade! To say that  the Middle School staff are proud of these ‘almost graduates’ would be a vast understatement. We are so excited for these St. Leander Gaels to go forward into their new school communities and continue to make positive impacts on the world around them. Let’s take a look at some key dates to add to your May calendar:

• May 6th: Special Person’s Day 
• May 7th: Springfest! 1-6pm, Movie Night at 8pm
• May 9th: STAR Reading test 
• May 10th: STAR Math test
• May 13th: 12pm dismissal for 8th only

       Dinner Dance “Final Fiesta” at 6pm (on the Big School yard/ auditorium)

• May 20th: Talent Show
• May 20th: All missing assignments/ make up work/ redos are due no later than Friday, 5/20. No extensions will be granted. Please be sure to triple check PowerSchool as we close the school year strong!
• May 30th: Memorial Day (no school)
• June 2nd: Last Day of Middle School for 8th graders! 

     Baccalaureate Mass at 9am (in the Church)

    Graduation at 6pm (in the Church)

Social Studies & Religion:

 As we enter our final month of 8th grade, our 8th graders will be learning about American life during and post- Civil War. We will read about the ideals that inspired Reconstruction and the policies that were enacted in the North and the South. Our students will study the impact of these policies on various ethnic, socio-economic, and geographic subgroups that make up our American brethren.  In Religion class, our 8th graders have wrapped up our third unit “The Age of Faith and Beauty”, where they learned all about the similarities and differences in mass around the world and the different devotions that Catholics worldwide participate in. This coming month, we will be completing our final unit “Reason, Rebellion, and Reform” by looking at the practice of Penance and Reconciliation and the changes to the Church made during the Renaissance, as well as wrapping up our Family Life lessons.

Math & Science:

For Math, 8th grade students are reviewing of Geometry in Common Core Textbooks, and we are now moving on to newer and more advanced concepts in Geometry. We will be learning concepts like “Pythagorean Theorem”, “Solving for X for Triangles”, and “Volume of 3d Objects”. This section serves as a preview of what your students will encounter during high school geometry and is important to note that all formulas for geometry problems can be found by an easy google search. We will spend the month of May engaging with geometry and upon completion begin our introduction to Data and Statistics

For Science, 8th grade students have just finished chapter 10 on ‘Forces'' where we learned about scientific ways to define how things move in our universe. Now we are working on Chapter 11 “Forces in Fluids'' where we have begun to look at the fundamentals of Newtonian Physics as they pertain to air and water. Students will learn the basics of aerodynamics, buoyancy, and hydraulics, and upon completion of this chapter we will begin chapter 12 “Earth, Sun, and Moon” . 

ELA:

Students have begun their novel study for To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee.  Your student will be expected to complete reading/homework nightly for this novel study.  Students should plan to spend at least half an hour to an hour on homework for my class going forward.  I will be expecting your student to step up to the challenge and really dive into their critical analysis of this novel before entering high school.  Since they were gone two weeks in a row, I will utilize both Literature and Language Arts class periods to focus on our novel study.  Students will also work on reviewing grammar lessons via Noredink.com as well.  Overall, it has been a joy teaching your children these past three years and I am so proud of how far they have all grown as readers and writers.