4/14/23
Upcoming Dates:
There is a half day of school on Friday, April 21st. Students will be dismissed at 11:10 AM.
There is an early release on Tuesday, April 25th. Students will be dismissed at 1:30 PM.
There is an early release on Tuesday, May 23rd. Students will be dismissed at 1:30 PM.
There is a half day of school on Friday, May 26th. Students will be dismissed at 11:10 AM.
The last day of school for 8th graders will be Friday, May 26th.
There is no school on Monday, May 29th.
8th Grade Graduation will be at 8 PM on Tuesday, May 30th. More information to follow.
The last day of school for the 6th and 7th graders will be Friday, June 2nd. This is a half day and students will be dismissed at 11:10 AM.
Graduation Information
Attention 8th Grade families....Please look out for important information about Graduation and 8th Grade end-of-the-year activities. A School Messenger will be sent out to 8th-grade families on Monday, April 17th.
Calling all 8th Graders
Attention Parents/Guardians, please sign up your 8th Grader for the 8th-Grade mixer at Twin Groves! SIGN UP
Tickets are limited to one per person.
This event is for current 8th Grade students at Twin Groves.
When: Wednesday, May 24th from 7:00 PM-8:30 PM
What: Food, friends, and fun for all!
Where: Twin Groves
More surprises to come, so respond by April 28, to ensure your ticket to the party.
Please note there is a minimum of 80 student sign-ups needed to hold the party.
What’s Happening at Twin Groves?
6th Grade
Pre-Algebra Survey: 6PAS is continuing its unit on Algebraic Equations. We will be solving one-step and two-step equations involving addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. The students will be learning about isolating the variable and keeping the equation balanced. The unit will end with an introduction to inequalities. The unit will end with a brief study on independent and dependent variables and solving inequalities. Last month, we talked about modeling with mathematics. This skill will continue to be important this month because students will be modeling verbal models as Algebraic equations. This month, we’d like to focus on attending to precision. This might mean being careful to define your variables to make your work more understandable, labeling measurements, or making sure your answer is represented in the correct format.
The students have access to these apps that they should be using regularly:
Math Facts Ninja - For students who need extra practice with their math facts.
IXL - This app covers topics in line with the Common Core Curriculum which the students are covering this year. This program is designed to develop critical thinking skills.
Pre-Algebra: 6PA will be finishing their second unit on geometry, focused on angle relationships and the Pythagorean theorem. The focus for the third and final unit of geometry is on transformations. Students will be reflecting, translating, rotating, and dilating shapes around the coordinate plane. Last month, we talked about modeling with mathematics. This skill will continue to be important this month because students will be modeling verbal models as Algebraic equations. This month, we’d like to focus on attending to precision. This might mean being careful to define your variables to make your work more understandable, labeling measurements, or making sure your answer is represented in the correct format.
The students have access to these apps that they should be using regularly:
Math Facts Ninja - For students who need extra practice with their math facts.
IXL - This app covers topics in line with the Common Core Curriculum which the students are covering this year. This program is designed to develop critical thinking skills.
Language Arts: In Advanced LA, students are about to start reading the classic novel The Outsiders which is sure to engage students and prompt much deep discussion. In LA, students will be reading Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus which is a story about a girl born without arms who overcomes obstacles and faces her fears with the help of a friend who also has a unique challenge in his life. Students are sure to be inspired!
Science: 6th-grade scientists are wrapping up Unit 5 on Natural Hazards and recently completed a mini-research project on a Natural Hazard. Our last and final unit of the year is Unit 6: Cells & Systems. Our essential question is “How do living things heal?” We’ll start the unit with a look at how bones, muscles, and skin heals and end the unit by looking at cells under the microscope. It’s amazing how big our world is when we look at tiny things.
SS: In our culture unit for social studies, we will learn all about a wide variety of topics from a diverse range of perspectives. We will be spending time studying music, food, dance, art, games, and sports from throughout history, while also helping students connect these ideas to their own lives. Some of the cultures that we will be focusing on in this unit include indigenous groups such as the Pima, Aztecs, and Maya while continuing to learn more about groups from Mesopotamia, Rome, and Greece.
7th Grade
Pre-Algebra: We are just finishing our first unit on geometry, which focused on circles, surface area, and volume. There was a lot of vocabulary and many formulas that the students had to remember as well as apply them. They will then move on to the second geometry unit, which includes angle relationships. Many of the problems the students have been working on include rigorous, deep-thinking problems, and the students worked very hard to complete them.
Bridge to Algebra 1: We are just beginning our unit on Radicals, Irrational Numbers, and the Pythagorean Theorem. Students will be responsible for knowing perfect squares up to 225 and perfect cubes up to 125. Using the Pythagorean theorem, students will find the missing side lengths of triangles. They will also be using the converse of the Pythagorean theorem to prove if a triangle is a right triangle.
Algebra 1: We are about to begin delving into solving quadratic equations using square roots, factoring, and the quadratic formula. To prepare us to do so, we must first learn about simplifying radical expressions. Some of the problems we will encounter will even have us multiplying by the conjugate and rationalizing the denominator.
Language Arts: Both levels of LA are beginning new book clubs next week. Parents were asked last week to sign the permission slip indicating their approval of the books the students are being asked to choose from. This next week, the new books will be assigned! Although some time will be allotted in class to read some of the pages assigned each day, you should expect to see your student reading at home most nights as well in order to finish ¼ of the book each week. We don’t have too many weeks left! Besides book clubs, we’re also looking at multiple articles written on the same topic from different perspectives. It is important that students see how authors present their opinions and support the points they are trying to make. By examining the evidence presented and discussed by different authors on the same topic, students learn to think critically about the relevance and substance of an argument.
Science: We are wrapping up the 5th unit of the year which focuses on how the use of palm oil in everyday products negatively affects the wildlife in Indonesia. Students have learned about the economic, social, and scientific impacts of palm oil and now have a great understanding of how small changes to ecosystems can have big effects! Looking ahead, students will be starting our sixth and final unit which covers the idea of how climate impacts ecosystems. Students will also be building and coding their own robots to wrap up our STEM adventures this year!
SS: As we continue with Trimester 3, we are following our new nation coming out of the Revolutionary War, Constitutional Convention, and first Presidents. We will analyze historically significant individuals, documents, events, places, and innovations during our remaining weeks. George Washington’s farewell address is just as relevant today as it was back in 1796! We will then examine our nation’s growth and westward expansion to include outstanding achievements and unfortunate setbacks as we completed our “Manifest Destiny”. While America grows and expands, the Industrial Revolution is taking shape… industrial North and agricultural / plantation South. So many great innovations enter life… which ones are most influential? However, what “price” or “cost” do certain segments of the population face during these growing and expanding years… Native Americans, slaves, immigrant workers, etc. There will be a second conflict against Great Britain, which will provide us with our National Anthem. We continue to examine a variety of primary and secondary sources using inquiry, argumentation, implementing questioning and questions, critical literacy skills, and source evaluation for reliability and credibility.
8th Grade
Algebra 1: In Algebra 1, we are in the middle of our Quadratic Equations unit. This unit continues to be essential for the students to understand in order to be successful in Algebra 2. Students have been learning how to solve quadratic equations by graphing, factoring, the square root method, and the quadratic formula. If your child is struggling with this unit, please encourage them to seek help and use outside resources!
Geometry: In Geometry, we just began our unit on Area. We are learning about finding areas of quadrilaterals, regular polygons, circles, and sectors. We will be discovering all the different formulas that can be used for each given shape and applying these formulas to solve complex problems. If your child is struggling with this unit, please encourage them to seek help and use outside resources!
Language Arts: In Language Arts, students have been introduced to the world of Shakespeare! They have been learning how to read his sonnets and plays and have spent a lot of time preparing to read Romeo and Juliet. We are excited to introduce this play to our students and examine how this 400-year play can still relate to our times today. Students have also begun to analyze how modern works of fiction draw on themes, patterns of events or character types of traditional stories and are describing how those aspects create new meaning in the modern story.
Science: In Science, the students have been exploring Genetics topics revolving around Cattle that have a mutation causing their physique to be overly muscular. The unit started out with students noticing and wondering about photos of two cattle, one of whom has significantly more muscle than the other. The students then observed photos of other animals with similar differences in musculature: dogs, fish, rabbits, and mice. Students used videos, photos, data sets, and readings to investigate what causes an animal to get extra-big muscles. They have now figured out how muscles typically develop as a result of environmental factors such as exercise and diet. Then, students worked with cattle pedigrees, including data about chromosomes and proteins, to figure out genetic factors that influence the heavily muscled phenotype and explore selective breeding in cattle. We are now focusing on using what they’ve learned from explaining cattle musculature to help them explain other trait variations they’ve seen. They will investigate potential offspring using probability and punnett squares, comparing and contrasting selective breeding and asexual reproduction (in plants and other organisms), and describe other examples of traits that are influenced by genetic and environmental factors. Students will soon figure out that environmental and genetic factors together play a role in the differences we see among living things.
SS: Students have now written their third DBQ formative assessment, helping them continue to develop the analytical skills necessary for high school. We will have one more writing opportunity before the year ends! Since Spring Break, students have focused their learning on various groups of people that have been working for social justice throughout the years. Students worked in teams to create presentations intended to inform their peers about the struggles, successes, and current goals of the movement of their choosing. Up next, students will be investigating Presidents Nixon-Obama to prove which one deserves the title Mr. President and which president deserves the title Mr. Disappointment. They will incorporate their analytical writing strategies as the presidents face off in our April Madness Elite Eight Competition.
New Tardy Procedures
The TG Staff ask that all students adhere to the schedule and do their best to arrive on time for each of their classes. It is important that they are on time for class and have the supplies, (including a charged iPad and a writing utensil) necessary to accomplish all the expected class tasks. We want to maximize instructional time and having all students ready for class is a big part of their success.
Today in Flex, Twin Groves Staff rolled out the new Tardy Procedures with the students. The Tardy Procedures will be monitored and tracked in each individual class.
The new procedures will begin on Monday, April 17th.
Procedures:
Each time a student is tardy that is unexcused, the student will scan the teacher’s individual QR code. The QR code prompts students to complete a form explaining why they are tardy. If students are tardy and it is excused, the students will have a pass and they will not need to scan the QR Code.
1st and 2nd Tardy- The student will have a warning and a conversation with the teacher, reiterating expectations.
3rd Tardy- The student will be given a formal warning that includes an email home.
4th Tardy- The student will have a private conversation with the teacher to identify the reason for the tardy. The teacher will send a 2nd email home. The administration will be notified that the student will be serving lunch detention. The student will complete a Tardy Reflection Sheet during lunch detention.
5th Tardy- The student will meet with the teacher to complete a Tardy Intervention Plan. After a plan is developed, the teacher will meet with the necessary stakeholders to finalize the plan. A 3rd email will be sent home that details the plan.
Tardies beyond the 5th- The teacher and the student will revisit the Tardy Intervention Plan. Parents and administration will be notified. Individualized plans and next steps will be taken as necessary.
NEW *Illinois Science Assessment (ISA)*
Students in grades 5 and 8 take the Illinois Science Assessment (ISA) each spring. This year the district will be administering the ISA to students in grades 5 and 8 in the mornings on Tuesday, April 18th through Thursday, April 20th.
Proof of Dental Exam
Dear Parents/Guardians of District 96 Kindergarteners, 2nd, and 6th Grade Students:
Please note that your child’s completed dental examination is now due, per Illinois school law. The deadline for the dental examination is due no later than May 15 of the current school year. Proof of this required dental examination must have been completed within eighteen months prior to the May 15 deadline.
If you haven’t already done so, please make an appointment with your child’s dentist for a dental examination, have him and/or her complete the required form and return it to your child’s school nurse. This examination can be as old as November 15, 2021.
State of Illinois Proof of Dental Examination Form
In the event that you are unable to fulfill this requirement, the state of Illinois does permit a waiver of the examination.
State of Illinois Dental Waiver Form
Dental examination forms, as well as dental waiver forms, can be downloaded from the District’s website.
Thank you for your prompt cooperation.
SHS Cheerleading
Tryouts for cheerleading at Stevenson are approaching this April. Tryouts are open to all students and incoming students for the 2023-2024 school year. We are currently looking to build and expand our program and would love for anyone interested to attend our upcoming clinic and tryouts.
Parent/Athlete Meeting: April 17th, 5:30pm in room 5132. Come learn more about the Stevenson Cheerleading Program.
Stevenson Cheerleading Clinic (Open to students currently in grades 8-11): April 19th from 4:00pm - 6:00pm in the wood commons. All interested must register at the link provided here: SHS Cheerleading Tryout Clinic
Our tryouts will then be April 24th, 25th and 26th beginning at 4:00pm. Anyone interested in trying out must be registered with the athletics office.
A Message from SHS Student Council
Hello incoming Stevenson Patriots,
Student Council is an organization that works to improve the school's culture and the climate of the school where we all live, work, and learn. We are looking for individuals who are passionate about being a part of improving the overall experience of each student as well as the faculty here at Stevenson. Student Council is open to all students regardless of previous involvement in Student Council.
Are you interested in joining the Student Council next year? If so, please fill out the application here: https://forms.gle/X6eGgY8psXV8USTR8
The deadline for the application is May 1st.
If you have any questions, please reach out to [email protected].
Go, Patriots!
PTO INFO
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Twin Groves Athletics
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This site will be updated frequently.
Daily Announcements
Please see the Twin Groves website for up-to-date school announcements. The announcements let you know what exciting activities and clubs are going on at Twin Groves. Please click HERE to access the Daily Announcements.