February 3rd - February 7th
8th Grade Washington, D.C. Meeting
Dear 8th Grade Families,
We would like to invite you to our last important meeting regarding the upcoming 8th-grade trip to Washington, D.C. This meeting is for both parents and students, and it will cover important trip details, expectations, and logistics.
Meeting Details:
Date: Monday, February 10th
Time: 6:00 PM
Location: Hancock Hall
In addition to our school staff, Kelly Tours will also be present to answer any questions you may have about the trip. This is a great opportunity to get the latest information on the itinerary, packing guidelines, medical forms, and more, as well as any specific details from the tour company.
If you have not done so already, please visit the Kelly Tours website at https://tourstore.kellytours.com/ and use trip #19150 to complete any remaining registrations or payments. Please note that the final balance for the trip is due by February 15th.
We encourage all parents and students to attend so you're fully prepared for this exciting experience!
Deadline for PVSA Community Service Hours – Don't Miss Out!
If your 8th grader would like to receive a Presidential Volunteer Service Award (PVSA) at this year’s Honors Assembly on Monday, May 19th at 8:30 AM, please make sure all community service hours are completed and submitted to the middle school office by Monday, March 24th.
Here are the PVSA levels based on the number of hours completed:
Bronze Level: 50 – 74 hours
Silver Level: 75 – 99 hours
Gold Level: 100+ hours
We’re excited to recognize our students for their outstanding service to the community, so encourage your child to get their hours in on time! If you have any questions, feel free to reach out.
Attention 7th Grade Families
We are excited to continue the beloved tradition of having 7th grade families host the reception following the 8th grade graduation ceremony on May 22. This special event is a wonderful way to show our support for the 8th graders as they celebrate the end of their middle school journey and prepare to transition to high school.
Please click here to sign up and be part of this meaningful occasion!
** Graduating families who helped with last year’s reception: Albert. Cheshire, Lake, Lapp, Mitchell, Mobley, Moody, Phillips, Richter, Stegall, Tanner, Thomas, Wilson, Wilkes, and Zeigler! **
Share Your Memories!
Click the QR code below to upload your photos for our school yearbook. Share your memories from school events, sports, or special moments in the classroom! Help us capture the moments that matter most!
Parents and students have an easy way to look at upcoming assessments and projects. 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.
What an incredible basketball season it’s been! We’re heading into the SPAL Tournament with an impressive 5 of our 8 teams in contention for a #1 seed! The excitement is building, and we’re looking forward to some thrilling matchups.
Tournament Schedule
Here’s what you need to know about the upcoming tournament:
5th, 6th, and Development Divisions:
Feb 5 – 1st Round
Feb 6 – Semi-Finals
Feb 10 – Finals
7th and 8th Grade Divisions:
Feb 10 – 1st Round
Feb 12 – Semi-Finals
Feb 13 – Finals
Special Shout-Outs!
Huge congratulations to our 8th graders for their amazing dedication and performance throughout the season! You’ve truly been an inspiration.
A big thank you to all our faculty and staff who joined us for Faculty Staff Appreciation Night! With around 40 teachers and staff in attendance, it was a fantastic evening of basketball and fun.
Spring Sports Pictures
Tentative Date: Feb 27th, 2:45–4:00 PM
Carpool Info: Students will start carpooling at 4:00 PM.
Let’s finish the season strong! I’m so proud of all our athletes and can’t wait to see what the tournament brings.
Tip #13 Utilizing School Tools
When I took a poll in my EF Seminar class last week, I was disappointed to see how many students indicated they did not look at Google Classroom each day or the MS Blog each week. Not only are their assignments posted in Google Classroom in the to-do list and calendar, they may access the MS Blog there (or via email each Friday) which includes the assessment calendar and lets them know what is coming up in each class the next week. Taking responsibility for checking GC and the Blog will boost their success, whether it is completing assignments in a timely manner, bringing all materials to class each day, or preparing for assessments. Now is the time to build good habits!
The Virtue of the Month for January is “Commitment.” The following resource identifies a strategy for teaching your child to stick with commitments: time+practice+ consistency. Another good tip is teaching children to ask for help when needed.
How do I get my teen to stick with something? There's a formula for that.
Please feel free to reach out with any questions or concerns you may have this year. amaher@hancockdayschool.org
Each middle school student is required to complete ten hours of community service over the course of the school year. Please remember to check this area of the blog for opportunities. Click HERE for a log form or see Mrs. Mannarino in the office.
Algebra I - Mr. Scordato
Students will take a test on Exponents on Wednesday, February 5th. We then move on to classifying polynomials.
Advanced Algebra - Mr. Lanfear
This week in Advanced Algebra, we will begin Chapter 7 by learning about scale factor (7.1), similar figures (7.2), showing triangles are similar by Angle-Angle (AA) (7.3), Side-Side-Side (SSS), and Side-Angle-Side (SAS) (7.4). We will also learn how to use proportions to answer questions about similar triangles (7.4). We will have a day of review on Friday to prepare for the quiz the following Monday.
Geometry - Mr. Lanfear
This week in Geometry, we will complete Chapter 8 by having a quiz covering 8.1-8.4 on Monday. We will then learn about properties of trapezoids and kites (8.5) and how to identify special quadrilaterals (8.6). There will be a day of review on Thursday and the Chapter 8 test on Friday.
Physical Science - Ms. Harmon
Our egg drop projects were a success! We will be starting our lesson on Force next week.
ELA - Ms. Hall
Students have officially started developing their skills in relation to nonfiction and informational readings. Now that we’ve discussed different types of nonfiction, students will be introduced in the next few weeks to the real life happenings of the Holocaust and Elie Wiesel’s harrowing experience he documented in his autobiographical account.
US History - Mr. Saviskas
The Labor Simulation Project has been great! Students are really engaged and love negotiating deals with one another. I am so happy it worked out. Next Tuesday we will have a quiz over our Reconstruction & Gilded Age notes. I will post the slides Friday afternoon so students can review along with their notes. Since it is a quiz I will not be giving a study guide. After Tuesday’s quiz I will be moving onto the Holocaust. We are starting this unit earlier than originally planned to match my curriculum with ELA and give kids a historical context when they are reading Eli Wiesel’s Night. Once again this is a pretty dark and heavy unit.
High School Spanish - Mr. De Cardenas
Next week, given the positive response from students to the material covered in the current unit, we will continue to build on this foundation, with a focus on enhancing speaking skills. We will engage in various activities that provide ample opportunities for students to practice and refine their spoken language abilities.
Additionally, there will be a quiz on Tuesday 02/03 and a test on Friday 02/07 to assess their understanding and mastery of the language so far. These assessments will help gauge individual progress and identify areas for further improvement as we move forward in the course.
Please let me know if you have any questions or suggestions.
Algebra I - Mr. Scordato
Students will take a test on Exponents on Wednesday, February 5th. We then move on to classifying polynomials.
Pre-Algebra - Mr. Lanfear
This week in Pre-Algebra, we will complete Chapter 6 by having a test on 6.1-6.6 on Monday. Then we will learn about probability and odds (6.7) as well as the counting principle (6.8). There will be a day of review on Thursday and a quiz covering 6.7-6.8 on Friday.
Life Science - Ms. Harmon
Next week we will begin our lesson on the musculoskeletal system.
Life Science - Mrs. Swanner
Next week, we will finalize our study of genetics and heredity. We will have a Chapter 5 DNA, Genetics, and Heredity test on Friday, February 7.
ELA - Ms. Ferkol
Next week, we are moving into our last week of new content for this unit. Students will be creating and analyzing claims and counterclaims within their novels which we will later use when it comes time to write this unit’s essay. Additionally, students will circle back to our discussions at the beginning of this unit with Mrs. Nedriga, considering the different perspectives between stereotypes and human stories found in their texts. Lastly, students will dive into conflict/resolution before being introduced to their big unit project.
**Please note that the entire packet of journals will be due ON FEBRUARY 13TH and taken as a QUIZ GRADE. Students should take care to work on these journals diligently and with care and intention.
ELA - Ms. Hall
Students have continued to develop their reading and writing skills through our various combinations of journals, mini lessons, and independent reading. Next week, we will have a few more foundational discussions before moving into the culminating assessment for the unit.
American History - Mr. O’Hayer
Next week in American History students will continue our examination of the American Government/Economics Unit. Our focus will be on the U.S. Constitution and the three branches of government. This is an essential unit! Students will learn what government is, the origins of the American government systems, the U.S. Constitution, and the Structures of our political systems.
American History - Mr. Saviskas
We have done a lot with understanding the foundations of government and we have had some important lessons on how power is distributed amongst the various parts of the government. Next week we will be finishing up the Constitution with a test on Thursday. Afterwards, if time permits we will either move onto a new project revolving around America’s historical political parties. If time is not on our side we will have to move on to covering Early America post Constitution.
Advanced Spanish - Mr. Jones
We will continue to practice using ALL possessive pronouns in Spanish, singular and plural to express possession of things. We will have an oral quiz over the possessive pronouns on Wednesday, 29 January. Comprehension test over the My Dream Dish short story will be on Friday, 31 January. We will begin learning the expression “to have to…” on 3, February.
X + 1 = Fluency
Advanced Spanish - Mr. De Cardenas
We will continue to practice using ALL possessive pronouns in Spanish, singular and plural to express possession of things. We will have an oral quiz over the possessive pronouns on Wednesday, 29 January. Comprehension test over the My Dream Dish short story will be on Friday, 31 January. We will begin learning the expression “to have to…” on 3, February.
X + 1 = Fluency
Accelerated Math - Mr. Scordato
There will be a quiz on Thursday on writing and graphing functions. We will be taking some detours along the way as the students are loving these dice games I have created to help them learn about Probability.
Pre-Algebra - Mr. Lanfear
This week in Pre-Algebra, we will complete Chapter 6 by having a test on 6.1-6.6 on Monday. Then we will learn about probability and odds (6.7) as well as the counting principle (6.8). There will be a day of review on Thursday and a quiz covering 6.7-6.8 on Friday.
Earth Science - Mrs. Swanner
Next week, we will continue our study of rocks, and we will perform a Rocks and Minerals lab.. We will have a Rocks and Minerals test on Wednesday, February 12.
ELA - Ms. Ferkol
Students have done a wonderful job this unit developing foundational reading skills focused in realistic fiction. Next week, students will have their final book club discussion on Monday (2/3), and their final binder check on Tuesday (2/4). It’s important for students to remember that this will be their last binder check before all three grades will be averaged into a quiz grade for this unit! Once those are completed, students will begin writing their culminating essay for this unit.
World History - Mr. O’Hayer
Next week in World History students will begin preparing for our trip to Junior Achievement’s BizTown. This financial Literacy program will introduce students to the world of finance. This program is a hands-on learning experience that will culminate in a fun field trip to the GSU Armstrong campus where students will explore jobs and see how the money impacts our lives. Keep an eye out for more information and permission slips.
Spanish Fundamentals - Mr. Jones
Families, I apologize for any confusion: we had to postpone our test last week due to the snow and school closure and today, 31 January we are missing many students for the ski trip. Tuesday, 4 February we will take our written & oral test over the possessive adjectives after a review on Monday. We will begin learning the expression “to have to…” and continue moving forward thereafter. We did begin our semester-long book project in which your students will create a story, written in the 3rd person, about fictional characters of their choosing. Please, ensure our students understand the importance of not losing the pages as we add to them here on out.
6th graders kept their heads in the creative cloud with the fantastic shoe project and they will stay up there next week as we study cloud paintings of impressionists.
7th graders will resume treehouse architecture and build small scale sculptures of their tree house illustration.
8th graders will apply the color application to the Comic and Character Illustration project.
Shoes by Sixth!
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