1/10/25
Upcoming Dates:
1/14- Early Release- Students dismissed at 1:30 PM
1/20- No School
2/14- Half Day- Students dismissed at 11:10 AM
2/17- No School
2/18- Early Release- Students dismissed at 1:30 PM
2/28- No School
3/3- No School
3/20- Early Release- Students dismissed at 1:30 PM and Conferences from 5:00 PM- 8:30 PM
3/21- No School- Conferences from 10:00 AM- 1:30 PM
3/24-3/28- No School- Spring Break
What’s Happening at Twin Groves?
6th Grade
Core 6/7 Math: We just began the expressions unit, which involves understanding variables, combining like terms, and writing mathematical expressions. A big focus will be on using mathematical properties to create equivalent expressions. This is the foundation of so much of their future math work, so it is great to see how hard the students are working. Last month we talked about encouraging the students to be precise in their work. This has been evident as they showed their work properly and labeled with units. This month the focus will be on modeling with mathematics. It is an integral part of Algebraic, numeric, and ratio reasoning and will truly show understanding. Thanks for all your support!
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.
Core 7 Math: We are starting a unit on ratios and proportions. The students will learn how to describe ratio relationships, solve problems, and work with percents. Last month we talked about encouraging the students to be precise in the work. This has been evident as they showed their work properly and labeling with units. This month the focus will be on modeling with mathematics. It is an integral part of Algebraic, numeric, and ratio reasoning and will truly show understanding. Thanks for all your support!
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 ArtThis month, we are starting a unit on Greek and Latin roots, prefixes, and suffixes. Students will be able to break words into roots, prefixes, and suffixes to figure out their meanings, and extend their thinking by explaining how the addition of new prefixes or suffixes changes or impacts the meaning of the original word. We will also continue to develop our reading skills by focusing on how an author’s craft shapes a text, with a specific focus on nonfiction texts. Students will investigate how word choice and tone can show an author’s perspective, as well as how writers organize and structure their claims, evidence, and analysis.
Science: 6th-grade student scientists are beginning unit 4 titled Plate Tectonics and Rocks. Our essential question is What causes Earth’s surface to change? Students will dive into activities, research evidence, and analyze data to discover how the plates move. This unit will take us to the end of Trimester 2. We are “rock’in our way through this school year!
SS: In social studies this month, students will be learning more about the pillars of civilization and how leadership can impact a community. We will be looking at examples of political, economic, and social leaders throughout history, and then even investigating how students themselves can lead in modern times.
7th Grade
Language Arts: We are wrapping up our perspective unit by reading “All Summer in a Day” by Ray Bradbury. We will look at how the classmates’ perspectives change throughout the story and use that perspective change to create theme statements. Next week we will begin to analyze how authors of fiction and authors of nonfiction create different representations of the same historical event. This will lead to our next novel, The Outsiders, where we will use nonfiction articles to compare and contrast the 1960s to the fictional portrayal in the novel.
Language Arts Advanced: In LA, the students are completing a short unit on satire. They have already studied satirical video clips and images; we are now moving on to the short story “Harrison Bergeron”. We will analyze satirical strategies and discuss how the author uses satire to make their point. Next week we will begin to analyze how authors of fiction and authors of nonfiction create different representations of the same historical event. This will lead to our next novel, The Book Thief, where we will use nonfiction articles to compare and contrast events of the Holocaust to the fictional portrayal in the novel.
Science: Coming back from Winter Break we are finishing up an engineering project using robotics. Our upcoming unit 4 focuses on photosynthesis and matter cycling. Throughout the Unit, students will also learn about the carbon and nitrogen cycles. During the unit, students will learn how to use microscopes and other functional science skills.
Social Studies” We continue to explore and investigate civics and government. A critical aspect of civics is how to take informed action. The U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights being established after the failed Articles of Confederation is a focus of attention. Three branches of government check and balance each other. Is there one branch that is more vital than the others? We dig into government at the national, state, and local levels. The growth and development of political factions and parties begins around this time… all starting with the Federalists and the Anti-Federalists clashing during the Great Ratification Debates. Have political disagreements changed all that much since 1787? We compare and contrast government systems and structures in the United States and other nations around the world. It’s important to note that we continue to practice and implement essential Literacy Skills including highlighting, annotating, and various approaches to note-taking to help with comprehension and analysis. “Democracy is never a final achievement. It is a call to an untiring effort.” — John F. Kennedy
Math Core 7: In Core 7 we are just starting our Ratios & Proportions Unit, with our first Formative next week! This unit is a great one for real-world applications. Students are practicing skills that they can heavily apply to cooking/baking recipes, sports, shopping, finance, art, and science. Important Vocab and Topics: Parts, Whole, Ratio, Proportionate, Fractions, Multiplication Facts, Factors, Multiples, Unit Rate, and Cross-Multiplication.
Math Core 8: In Core 8 we are finishing up Unit 4 - Systems of Equations. The Benchmark is early next week. Later next week we begin Unit 5 - Congruence & Similarity. This unit is very different from the previous units, with its basis in Geometry. Students will practice Transformations of Shapes (Reflections, Rotations, Translations). Important topics for students to retain from last units are: plotting points on a graph, understanding x-axis vs. y-axis, proportions, fraction relationships, and cross multiplication.
Algebra 1: Students will complete their unit on Graphing and Writing Exponential Functions at the beginning of next week. We will begin our long stretch of time where we focus on everything Quadratic. We begin our Quadratic Function stretch by introducing students to polynomials teaching them how to add, subtract, multiply and factor them. Mastering the factoring portion of this unit will be extremely important to students in ensuring their success in mastering the remaining units on Quadratics and even for portions of Geometry next year!
8th Grade
Language Arts: This month in ELA, we are reading The Last Cuentista by Donna Barba Higuera, a futuristic sci-fi novel that explores the power of storytelling and how it shapes our identity, humanity, and legacy. Through this unit, students will engage in meaningful discussions about how stories inspire growth and connection, helping them develop critical thinking and strong reading habits. This experience is also designed to prepare students for Stevenson High School, where analyzing and discussing multiple novels is a key expectation. Staying on top of daily reading assignments will be essential for success in this unit and beyond!
Science: In Science, we just wrapped up our third unit, Contact Forces, and are starting Unit 4: Sound Waves. In this new unit, students develop ideas related to how sounds are produced, how they travel through media, and how they affect objects at a distance. Their investigations are motivated by trying to account for a perplexing anchoring phenomenon — a truck playing loud music in a parking lot causes the windows of a building across the parking lot to visibly shake in response to the music.
Students will then make observations of sound sources to recognize that objects vibrate when they make sounds. They figured out that patterns of differences in these vibrations are tied to differences in the characteristics of the sounds being made. They gather data on how objects vibrate when making different sounds to characterize how a vibrating object's motion is tied to the loudness and pitch of the sounds they make. Students also conduct experiments to support the idea that sound needs matter to travel through, and they use models and simulations to explain how sound travels through matter at the particle level.
Students will also continue working on their engineering skills by designing and building a working scale model of a soundproof room that limits exterior noise by using a sound sensor to measure sound levels.
Social Studies: In Social Studies, we have begun our Cold War unit, helping students understand the multi-faceted competition that took place between the United States and the U.S.S.R., beginning after World War II and lasting until the early 90s. This competition included efforts by both nations to spread capitalism or communism across the world, as well as the Arms and Space Races that highlighted the technological advancements that were made by both nations.
Students will learn why this era was known as the “Cold War,” but also see moments in history where tensions heated up to actual conflict. Next week, we will start learning about the Korean War from a historical perspective, while also making connections to present-day conditions between North and South Korea.
We will continue to work on our analytical thinking skills through document analysis, debates, and writing DBQs.
Algebra 1: In Algebra 1, we just began our Operations on Polynomials and Radicals unit! Students are learning how to simplify and apply all operations to polynomials and radicals. All of these skills will be used in the majority of future math classes so we make sure we work on developing accuracy skills when completing these types of problems. This unit is a very important unit of study for Algebra 1. Please continue to encourage your child to get help and ask questions if needed, complete all homework assignments and utilize IXL/ Khan Academy! Happy 2025!
Geometry: We just completed our Quadrilaterals unit. Students learned about the hierarchy of quadrilaterals and what makes each shape unique. Our knowledge of congruent triangles has helped us discover properties involving diagonals of each shape. After winter break, we began Unit 8: Similarity. Students will be learning about dilations, dilation factors, scale factors, overlapping triangles, similarity statements, and much more! Happy 2025!
Core 8: In Core 8 we are finishing up Unit 4 - Systems of Equations. The Benchmark is next week. Later in the week, we begin Unit 5 - Congruence & Similarity. This unit is very different from the previous units, with its basis in Geometry. Students will practice Transformations of Shapes (Reflections, Rotations, Translations). Important topics for students to retain from the last units are: plotting points on a graph, understanding the x-axis vs. y-axis, proportions, fraction relationships, and cross multiplication.
NEW: Updated Approved Snack List
KCSD96 families, please view the newly updated Approved Snack List. This can be found on our website HERE.
Virtual Backpacks
District Virtual Backpack: https://www.kcsd96.org/about/virtual-backpack
Twin Groves Virtual Backpack: https://www.kcsd96.org/tg/virtual-backpack
Daily Announcements
Please see 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.
Twin Groves Athletics
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