October 7th - October 11th

NO SCHOOL ON WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 9TH

Hancock Day School will be closed to observe Yom Kippur.  Classes will resume on Thursday, October 10th. 

MIDDLE SCHOOL INSTRUCTIONAL MAKE UP - NO T1 EXAMS!

Dorian marked the third year in a row that Savannah life has been disrupted by a hurricane.  At the Middle School level we feel it is important to capture the lost instructional time. To do this we are cancelling the T1 exams scheduled for October 29th and 30th.  Those dates will now be FULL DAYS.  A new exam schedule for T2 and T3 will be posted at a later date.

HIGH SCHOOL ADMISSIONS
Click HERE to find the letter detailing the steps for selecting a high school.  Click HERE for the Hancock Guide to applying to high school.  Our next scheduled high school visit is October 17th - BC and SVA.

PLEASE SAVE THE DATE - HANCOCK DAY SCHOOL’S GOT TALENT
Talent Show Audition Sign Ups:  Please complete with a parent at your side.  Students must audition for the show during one of the time slots listed. Students who do not audition will not be considered for the show. SIGN UPS CLOSE TODAY - October 4th. Once sign-ups have closed, parents will receive an email with the Talent Show Contract and the time slot available for their child. Students must bring the signed contract to the audition. We will only be accepting 15 acts for this year's performance.

PLEASE SAVE THE DATE - SPRING PERFORMANCE

DRIVER’S EDUCATION...ALREADY?

We recently received an announcement detailing a driving school opportunity for teens older than 15.  While this does not include any of our middle schoolers, it might be of interest to an older sibling. This national organization, Tire Rack Street Survival School is sponsored by the BMW Car Club Foundation, Michelin Tires and Enterprise Car Rental.  The one-day school is being held at the track on Henderson Island at the Club at Savannah Harbor (Westin) on either Saturday, October 19 or Sunday, October 20 from 8:30 - 4:00. Click HERE for more information.

THE VAPE TALK

Click HERE for more information.

ASSESSMENTS CALENDAR

We are very excited to introduce a new easy way for parents and students to look at upcoming assessments.  THIS LINK leads to a Google Sheet that will have the next 2 weeks of assessments.  The link below will lead to the 6th grade assessments, but by using the tabs in the lower left corner (shown below), you can navigate to 7th grade and 8th grade assessments, as well.

Different subjects will appear in different colors:

History is black, Science is green, ELA is blue, Spanish is red, and Math is pink.

Please bear in mind that Middle School Assessments may be added, removed, or changed at any time.  This Sheet will always be up to date, however - once a teacher assigns or adjusts an assessment, this Sheet will reflect that change.

CONGRATS TO HDS ALUMNUS, HUNTER DUNN!

Each middle school student is required to complete ten hours of community service over the course of the school year.  Please remember to list hours worked on a daily basis, do not log total sum of hours worked over an extended period of time.  See below for a few upcoming service opportunities. Click HERE for a log form.

HDS Extended Day Care needs volunteers to help out after school.  We are currently limiting this opportunity to 8th graders, with a possibility of opening it up to 6th and 7th graders later on.  If a student is interested in earning some community service hours, they will need to sign up a week in advance using THIS LINK.  Please contact Mrs. Mannarino with any questions.

The Old Savannah City Mission needs volunteers for various positions.  The mission provides food, shelter, and clothing to the homeless.  For more information, contact Connell Stiles at 912-232-1979 or stiles@oscm.org.

America’s Second Harvest needs volunteers to help prepare monthly bags of food for senior citizens in our community.  Volunteers should arrive by 7:45 and must wear closed-toe shoes. Contact Bryce Seuntjens at bryce@helpendhunger.org for more information.

As we enter the month of October, the Virtue of the Month is Cooperation.  Working together involves multiple skills, with negotiation often being one of the most challenging for middle school students.  In “Lunch Bunch” we will be working to identify the roles of group members and what makes up an effective group. We will also talk through some of the challenges that groups run into.

-Allison Maher, School Counselor

Algebra 1 - Mr. Cargile

Next week in Algebra 1 we will continue our study of Properties of Real Numbers. Students will learn to approximate imperfect squares, we will do our preview assessment, and on Friday we will have our Chapter 2 test.

Geometry - Mr. Lanfear

Next week, Mr. Lanfear will be away, but Mrs. Reardon will be back and subbing for him!  We will begin Chapter 4 by reviewing classifying triangles and their properties including the interior and exterior angles theorems (4.1) and learning how to prove congruence of polygons (4.2).  We will also learn our first “shortcut” to proving triangles are congruent by using the Side-Side-Side Postulate (4.3). There will be a short quiz on Friday covering sections 4.1-4.2.

Advanced Algebra - Mr. Lanfear

Next week, Mr. Lanfear will be away, but Mrs. Reardon will be back and subbing for him!  We will begin Chapter 11 by learning how to graph square root functions and find their domain and range (11.1).  We will also begin learning how to simplify radical expressions with and without variables (11.2). There will be a short quiz on Friday covering 11.1 and part of 11.2.  We will also have our Chapter 10.4-10.7 test on Tuesday.

Physical Science - Ms. Hoffman

 This week, after a quiz on Tuesday, the 8th graders worked on an in-class project to create a mini-version of the Periodic Table of Elements by researching one specific element each for a total of forty-two elements.  They looked at things like physical properties, uses, and other interesting facts to go along with basic information, including the atomic number, atomic mass, symbol for their element and also if their element was a metal, nonmetal or metalloid. These are displayed in the middle school hallway outside the science lab. (See photos in next week’s blog.)  Next week we will continue our chemistry unit with chemical bonding (ionic, covalent and metallic) and reaction types. The students will also participate in a chemistry lab. Our unit test on all of this material will be on Friday, 10/25.

Our next science fair project check will be on Wednesday 10/16.  This will be for a rough draft of the background information that will be included in the formal report. It should be approximately one to two pages long written in paragraph essay form.  This rough draft can be printed and turned in OR shared with me on a google document. (The actual formal report, with all its’ components -see the science fair packet- is due on 12/4 and counts as a test grade.)  Our next official log book check is not until Wednesday, 10/23, but students are welcome to ask me to look over anything they are including before then. (Please note: If chemicals or other potentially hazardous materials are to be utilized there will be an additional form(s) to be completed and I have given these to each student who needs this completed before they begin their experiment or project construction.)  Finally, limited lab equipment is also available for students to borrow from the school. Parents should not be spending large amounts of money to purchase materials for this project. Students will, however, need to be providing their own large cardboard triptych display board for their final completed project due on 12/11/19.

Remember, the log book should contain all their thoughts, ideas and information about their projects and each page is numbered and dated.  Below is the list of all the due dates for our project. I am available for specific project questions by email, during the 8th grade independant time 1 - 1:30pm each day and  each morning (especially on Tuesdays and Thursdays) from 7:30am until 8am.  

Science Fair Project Dates

(* Indicate Homework Grades)

Monday                       8/26/19                        Science Fair Packets Home

Friday                           8/30/19                        *Signed Science Fair Proposal Form AND Parent

   Approval Form (1B) Due

Wednesday                9/4/19                          *Log Book Check/ Science Fair Topic and

   Question or Problem Due

Wednesday                9/18/19                        *Log Book Check with detailed Science Fair

                                                                               Materials and Procedures Due

Wednesday                10/02/19                     *Log Book Check with Research Notes Due

Wednesday                10/16/19                     *Rough Draft of Background Information Due

                                                                               (email or share document)

Wednesday                10/23/19                     *Log Book Check with Updates/ Revisions Due

Wednesday                11/6/19                        *Final Draft of Background Information Due

                                                                               (email or share document)

Wednesday                11/20/19                     *Log Book Check with Data/ Results OR

   Prototype/Solution Due

Wednesday                12/4/19                        *Log Book Check/ Updated Results or Solution AND

                                                                               Sketch of Triptych

 Completed Formal Report (printed) Due

Wednesday                12/11/19                     All Completed Projects Due

(Triptych, Log Book and completed Abstract Form)

            Complete abstract on-line or use form in the packet 

                                                                     Project presentations will also occur this week

                              

English Language Arts - Mrs. Boyer

Students will be embarking on their reading of To Kill a Mockingbird (TKAM). This novel will address some hard-hitting issues, so look forward to some engaging dinner conversations! I have sent out a reading schedule with your students, but it can also be found in the TKAM Topic in GC. Students should be on Chapter 20 by the end of this week. The majority of their reading should be completed at home and during their free time. In class we will be interacting with activities based on this reading. 

IT IS IMPERATIVE THAT YOUR CHILD STAY ON TRACK WITH THEIR READING SCHEDULE. If students are not keeping up with the reading, then they will not be able to participate in projects, discussions, and activities. I am always in my room by 7:45 am if your child wants to hop on my couch or comfy chair and read for 15-20 minutes!! :)

TKAM Assessments

Ch. 1-14 Test 10/8

All class materials have been scanned into GC for students to use as study aids. :)

We will be engaging in Units 13 & 14 on for the next few weeks; the quiz will be on 10/16. 

History & Gov’t II - Mrs. Robinson

Next week in American History and Government Part II, we will continue our study of Reconstruction. Students will spend the beginning of the week focusing on the positives that occurred during Reconstruction. We will be looking into how equality did find footing and worked in some places as new policies were implemented. We will spend the second half of the week looking at decisions the Supreme Court made during Reconstruction that shaped racial relations and policies for the next century. The Unit Two test on Reconstruction will be on Tuesday Oct 22nd.

8th grade Spanish - Ms. Hill

National Hispanic/Latino Heritage Month is in full effect. Continued learning about notable Hispanics and Latinos. Vocabulary and grammar: Posted on Google Classroom Describing yourself and others. ¿Cómo eres? Vocabulary Quiz on Friday, October 11th

Algebra 1 - Mr. Cargile

Next week in Algebra 1 we will continue our study of Properties of Real Numbers. Students will learn to approximate imperfect squares, we will do our preview assessment, and on Friday we will have our Chapter 2 test.

Pre-Algebra - Mr. Lanfear

Next week, Mr. Lanfear will be away, but Mrs. Reardon will be back and subbing for him!  Next week, we will continue Chapter 3 by learning how to solve equations that have either all numbers as solutions or no solutions (3.3).  We will also begin to learn how to solve inequalities, which are solved almost exactly the same as equations are solved (3.4). There will be a quiz on Thursday covering sections 3.1-3.3.

History & Gov’t I - Mrs. Robinson

Next week in American History & Government Part I, students will be presenting their explorer projects! We have been working on them for a few weeks now and the presentations are finally here. Students will need to be prepared to present on Monday Oct 7th with their google slides presentation, artifact, and artifact explanation paragraph. This will wrap up our Unit Two study of the Age of Exploration. We will begin our Unit on English Colonies in the following week. 

7th grade Spanish - Ms. Hill

Hispanic Heritage Month is in full effect. We will continue to learn about notable members of society that are of Hispanic or Latino heritage. Vocabulary: Posted on Google Classroom - Describing what you like to do or do not like to do using the verb Gustar. ¿Qué te gusta hacer? Vocabulary Quiz on Tuesday, October 8th.

ELA - Mrs. Boyer

Literature: Students will be embarking on their reading of The Hobbit. This novel is a part of the fantasy genre, so look forward to some interesting dinner conversations! I have sent out a reading schedule with your students, but it can also be found in the The Hobbit Topic in GC. Students have received their novels and should be on Chapter 11-15 by this week. The majority of their reading should be completed at home and during their free time. In class we will be interacting with activities based on this reading. 

IT IS IMPERATIVE THAT YOUR CHILD STAY ON TRACK WITH THEIR READING SCHEDULE. If students are not keeping up with the reading, then they will not be able to participate in projects, discussions, and activities. I am always in my room by 7:45 am if your child wants to hop on my couch or comfy chair and read for 15-20 minutes!! :)

Usually Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays are Literature Days. 

Students will have a test on Ch. 1-11 on 10/11. There will be a test on Indirect and Direct Objects/Transitive & Intransitive/Predicate Nominative and Predicate Adjectives on 10/24, and a final novel test on 10/30. 

Vocabulary: Students will begin Unit 3; the quiz is TBA. Students have their vocabulary workbooks; this workbook will be collected in May and used during their 8th grade year as well.

Grammar: Our grammar units will begin this week; therefore, please send your child in for morning help if needed. Also, I always post extra resources in GC such as practice sheets, IXL links, Youtube videos, etc. Grammar is a difficult concept to grasp which means your child needs to identify their learning style and use that to succeed in regards to these concepts. 

Usually Tuesdays and Thursdays are Grammar and Vocabulary Days. 

Assessments can be any day Tuesday-Friday! :)

Life Science - Mrs. DuRant 

This week our focus will be on cellular transportation and cellular respiration.  Students will make a cellular transportation booklet where they will research active vs. passive transport. They will also complete an engaging lab demonstrating osmosis.  We will wrap up the week with presentations of their Cell Model Projects which are due on Friday, October 11. I’ve been hearing their ideas for the last couple of weeks and I’m excited to see their models! Instructions and rubric are posted in the google classroom.

Accelerated Math 7 - Mr. Cargile

Next week in Accelerated Math 7 we will continue our study of Decimal  Operations. Students will work with measurement in the Metric system, we will have a preview assessment, and on Friday we will have our Chapter 2 test.

Pre-Algebra - Mr. Lanfear

Next week, Mr. Lanfear will be away, but Mrs. Reardon will be back and subbing for him!  Next week, we will continue Chapter 3 by learning how to solve equations that have either all numbers as solutions or no solutions (3.3).  We will also begin to learn how to solve inequalities, which are solved almost exactly the same as equations are solved (3.4). There will be a quiz on Thursday covering sections 3.1-3.3.

ELA - Mrs. Sasser

Students will have NO vocabulary this week. We will be focusing on digging more in-depth with our DGP (daily grammar practice). For DGP, students will examine parts of speech, sentence types, and proofreading marks. While we’ll be working on these concepts in class throughout the trimester (and year), students should use IXL for additional practice. Students will finish working on their  PSA project connected with the “Monkey’s Paw.” It is important that they use their time diligently in class and complete any unfinished work at home. The project will be due Tuesday, October 8th. The second half of the week, students will listen to the radio play “The Hitchhiker,” analyzing mood, tone, and suspense. 

Earth Science - Mrs. Hoffman

Welcome to the Wonderful World of Weather!  This week we used microscopes to look at our airborne particle collectors that were set up around the school in places like Hancock Hall, outside on the basketball goal and some of the trees, on some of the classroom walls and above the lockers. Some of the things we saw included dust, tree bark, and fuzz from a sweatshirt. (see photos below) This week we also discussed the three types of clouds, air pressure (with a mini-experiment) and the water cycle.  Students also went outside to complete a cloud dichotomous key and look at the wind speed using the Beaufort Wind Scale. (See photos below of these and last weeks weather scavenger hunt.) Our quiz on all this information will be Tuesday, 10/8. Next week we will also discuss weather forecasting and patterns, including air masses and fronts. They will complete a weather log using their own personal observations and also checking our in-class weather station.  Our weather unit test will be Wednesday, 10/16 and the October Science in Comics assignment is due Thursday, 10/31.

Earth Science - Mrs. DuRant

This week in Earth Science we will wrap up the unit with a focus on air currents and air quality. We will have an engaging lab on convection and radiation. We will also conduct a mini-lab on how humans impact air quality. Students will learn how to use the Beaufort Wind Scale. The following week we will review for our unit test which will be on October 16. Then we will begin to explore the exciting world of weather which will include daily monitoring of the school weather station, conducting a weather scavenger hunt and reading weather maps.

Ancient Civ -  Mr. O’Hayer

Monday we will begin our next journey into the fascinating world of ancient Egypt. Here we will study and analyze the social structure with an emphasis on how geography affected the political, economic, and religious structures of the early civilization. We will also look at how the Nile River impacted life in Egypt. We will divide Chapter 4 into two parts. The first will be Lesson 1- more geography based study. We will have a quiz on Lesson 1 on Wednesday. The second part of the chapter will be Lessons 2, 3, and 4. These Lessons deal with the Kingdoms of Ancient Egypt. The Chapter Test will be  , October 17th. 

Spanish - Mr. Alexander

Monday we will review the quiz and continue with ser/estar. We will also learn more about the Spanish speaking countries and sample some music - salsa, meringue, tango, bachata.  Our vocabulary will consist of a review of prepositions/conjunctions, careers, physical traits, and emotions. Quiz will be on Friday as usual.

SPECIALS

Art - Mrs. Cookson

“The only time I feel alive is when I’m painting.” - Vincent Van Gogh

8th: Will nail down ideas for Hidden Details in Architecture and begin a final drawing

7th: Will have an introduction to the design of Hobbit Houses and begin ideation for their own

6th: Will put the finishing touches on the Imaginative, collaborative drawing