Category Archives: 8th Newsletters

Mrs. Murphy Grade 8

By mmurphy | Published: February 23, 2012

Social Studies

We are in the process of competing our study of the Great Depression and should be finished by the end of next week.  It has been such an interesting comparison of times in our country’s history-past and present day circumstances.  We have had many discussions based on analogies between the U.S. economy of eighty years ago and the new millenium.  I will then start the intro to WWII, and move into that era.  We are visiting the Illinois Holocaust Museum on March 8th to supplement this study.

 Language Arts/ Literature

In conjunction with the Holocaust Field Trip the Illinois Holocaust Museum has graciously sent us a learning trunk of wonderful resources, some of which include literature sets of books.  The students have selected a book to read, with responsibilities associated with a literary circle, and they will complete these books within a three week period of time. 

Also, we have nearly finalized our vocabulary series for the year, and have completed seven of ten chapters in our grammar text as well.  This will allow us to move into other necessary areas such as Speech and Debate, as well, of course, the studying of more writing styles .

March 8-Holocaust Field Trip

March 9-8th Grade retreat.

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8th Grade Science

By tdillon | Published: February 10, 2012

Atomic structure and periodic table will be next on our agenda for the 8th grade. The students will break down the atom into its individual parts, look at how they interact with each other and how the periodic table organizes elements based on certain characteristics.

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Mrs. Murphy Grade 8

By mmurphy | Published: February 10, 2012

Newsletter

Social Studies

We have completed two chapters in a four chapter unit on The Great Depression.The students have a test on sections 1/2 on Tuesday with a focus on The Hoover Dam- following that, as well, as discussion on other Alphabet Soup organizations of that era.

LA/LIT

We are completing chapter six in grammar on adjective usage.  I am tying this unit into descriptive writing, which, in fact, will be revisited also at a later date as we discuss and rewrite fairy tales.  That is planned as a culminating activity in May. 

The students did well on their persuasive writing unit and very successfully completed a four option in- class persuasive writing test.  My only criticism would be that they MUST proof all work submitted and “go the extra mile”.

We have further completed our fourth novel this year, and in third quarter will not tackle one, but two novels.  One will read/ shared individually and as a class-The Boy in the Stripped Pajamas, and another Holocaust related book that the students themselves will choose as we form Literature Circles.  This will prepare the students for our field trip to The Illinois Holocaust Museum on March 8th.  The next day the students will also have an 8th Grade retreat, which is a separate subject area than the Confirmation retreat on February 26th.  The Confirmation retreat is specific to that sacrament.

The students need to keep focusing on academics as we head into second semester coursework.  A successful completion to the year is vital!

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Rotunno News 02/10/12

By protunno | Published: February 10, 2012

GENERAL NEWS   We are moving through February at a fast pace and the next couple weeks will be challenging. I am losing days to conference time, teacher inservice and holiday in the next few days.  We will work for completing as much as possible before this long time off. I am looking forward to meeting with all of you and talking about not only the present, but also what the future might hold. I will be happy to address high school placement with you and help with your decisions on the right path to math success in high school. The Confirmation retreat is Sunday, February 26th from noon to 3:15 with Mass  in church at that time. Please join us for Mass if you are able.

REGULAR ALGEBRA  We have begun Chapter 6 on solving inequalities and the students are doing very well. I hope to quiz the first half of the Chapter before the long weekend off and then pick up the second half when we return. Most of the students are working hard to accomplish some wonderful goals. On the other hand a few are not working much at all. Please make sure you check teacher-ease for updates on how your student is doing. They have homework at least 3 times per week and it is posted on line. It is not getting done in school as it takes more time to complete than the little study time available. I am here every Monday, Tuesday and Thursday (not Parent Conference day) for help until 4pm. If your student is not choosing this option, then make it a must if grades warrant such action.

ACCEL ALGEBRA Monday we will take a quiz on sections 9-1 to 9-3 and then I will get as much as I can completed from Chapter 9 before the long weekend.  The chapter test for 9 will be sometime the week after conferences. Many of these students have a math class for next year that is TBA or to be scheduled later. The reason for this is the need to see the second semester score and decide whether to place them at the next level. A few of these accelerated students did not score well on the Explore test and that might preclude their ability to test out of Algebra I.  They need to keep working hard to achieve the next level and for some it will be necessary to repeat Algebra Accel but they will surely be more successsful the next time through.  If you have any questions about placement feel free to contact me.

RELIGION  Monday we will take a test on session 5 of the Confirmation series and then we have 3 more left before March 18th. The Confirmation retreat is February 26th fron 12 to 3:15 with Mass at that time and it is mandatory for all Confirmation candidates. This sacred time of receiving a sacrament requires special preparation that can’t be book learned at times.  If you get a chance ask your students about the process and what they have learned about themselves along the way. We will be writing letters to Fr. Bob requesting Confirmation for us and letting him know that we think we really want this and are worthy. Be sure to attend Mass weekly to help your student on his or her faith journey.

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Mrs. Murphy Grade 8

By mmurphy | Published: January 30, 2012

SOCIAL STUDIES

We have completed #24 on The Roaring 20′s and will be starting the introduction the The Depression Era later in the week.  Previous to that, we are finalizing Oral History Presentations on people/ events from the 1920′s.  The students as well as myself are critiquing these two minute presentations.

Lang Arts/Literature

We are two thirds of the the way toward completion of our fourth novel, Swallowing Stones.  It is a wonderfully engaging novel that deals with a random gun shooting in which an innocent man is killed.  Upon conclusion, we are receiving a trunk set of books from the Illinois H0locaust Museum on February 15th to utilize in our social studies unit on WWII.  The students will then choose their literary circle books, read and discuss them.

In grammar we have completed five chapters and will finish #6 on adjective usage this month. 

In vocabulary we are completing #12 of a #15 chapter text.  The students have incorporated the wording into their writing on a weekly basis.

We have also spent two weeks discussing  persuasive writing techniques which encompass a myraid of different strategies.  Look for their personalized Person of the Year papers in the middle school hallway.

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8th Grade Science

By tdillon | Published: January 29, 2012

We will be completing our look at Boyle’s Law, Gay-Lussac’s Law and Charles’s Law in the next week or so and then move on to the elements and the periodic table.  Our first step will be to look at the structure of the atom as depicted throughout history from Dalton to the present day model.

Science Fair

Congratulations to all the students for completing their science fair projects.  All of you deserve a big round of applause for all of your hard work. This year’s winner was Ian Farnan with second and third place going to Keith Lenz and Emma Decker respectively. Congratulations!

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Rotunno News 01/30/12

By protunno | Published: January 29, 2012

GENERAL NEWS We had a great open house and as always it was great to meet up with many of you that day. The high school placements are gearing up so if I can be of any assistance with your choice please contact me. You know your children better than anybody so I’m sure you will know what the best soil will be for your child to grow. Some are good when pushed and others are not. There is always a window for change after the school year begins so that’s an option too.  This week is Catholic School’s Week and lots of activities are planned.  It will be fun to culminate the week with our traditional red & white day. Please get your conference forms back to me so scheduling can begin. That date is Feb. 19th. This week Thursday I am going with Ms. Wollensak to the 7th grade Scholastic Bowl at Naz, therefore, math help sessions are only Monday & Tuesday this week.

REGULAR ALGEBRA  We are closing up the chapter on writing a linear equation this week. We will have that Chapter 5 test next week. I am ahead of last year at this time and that speaks to the hard work of these students this quarter. They have really stepped to the plate and mastered some difficult topics and homework is being completed in a more timely fashion. It is very difficult to succeed in math without doing assignments as it creates holes in the learning process. Then it makes it difficult to build on those holes. I think the students are getting that fact so they are working better than before. The more we can cover this year, the easier it will be next year.

ACCEL ALGEBRA We are testing Chapter 8 at the end of this week and will begin Chapter 9 next week.  Before the year is out we need to complete chapters 9 and 10 completely along with portions of Chapters 11, 12 and 13.  We are on track to do that but can’t waste one minute along the way.  I am disappointed in the fact that I am getting more dedication and a better work ethic from the regular group than the accel group overall. Many are working well and hard but many are not. On a recent quiz grades were very low despite 100′s on homework. There’s something amiss here.  I’m not sure what it is specifically, but I do know it tells me that homework isn’t being learned while it’s being done. Working in groups, copying, rushing, taking my work as your own during class explanations are all contributing factors. There is no substitute for hard work and knowing what you need to know for the next level.  Many thanks to those who are already there!

RELIGION  We are beginning sesion 5 out of 8 toward Confirmation and I am enjoying the process. I hope the students are also. Test scores in the second quarter were low in spite of the whole test being mapped out ahead of time. I tell the students exactly what to know and even share the essay questions prior to the test date.  Those who prepare as I outline do well, and those who don’t prepare have those low scores. We will have 4 more tests in the Confirmation series and then return to our study of Morality to finish out the year. Discussions are good and projects are well done, now let’s get those test scores up where they belong.  We will attend Mass on Tuesday this week for Catholic School’s Week. Let’s appreciate the fact that we can worship together during our school day!

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8th Gr. Science

By tdillon | Published: January 13, 2012

Thanks to students, families and FSA for the generous Christmas gifts.

The students recently completed a week of oral presentations in preparation for the upcoming science fair. In the following two weeks we will complete our look at phase changes and begin taking an in-depth examination at how we measure gases and their behavior under certain conditions. We will be exploring Boyle’s Law, Gay-Lussacs Law, and Charles’s Law.

 Science Fair

As mentioned above, the students just completed a week of oral presentation in preparation for the science fair which will be held on Thursday Jan. 26th between 3:00 and 5:30pm. At that time only students and judges will be allowed in Morrissey Hall. All projects will be on display during our Open House Sunday January 29th.

 Students are to bring their display board to school the morning of Thursday Jan. 26th. They will be stored in their homerooms until it is time to move them to the gym. Upon completing of the science fair the boards will remain at school until they are displayed again during our Open House. The students will be required to taken them home Monday January 31st.

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Rotunno News 1/13/12

By protunno | Published: January 11, 2012

GENERAL NEWS  Happy New Year! Looking forward to the rest of the quarter winding down and meeting with you again in February at our conferences.  I have had students coming to math help in droves this week. I guess the end of the quarter is looming and folks are a little worried.  Some of them surely need to worry since the work ethic this quarter has been so far under par. I still have my achievers as usual, but in general, the level of work has been very poor throughout December and into the New Year. Some of the reasons for this are working too fast, working distracted, not turning in work in a timely fashion, poor computation, skipping problems (not doing them), and wanting to be done more than wanting to be correct. Unfortunately, it’s too late now to affect much of a change in the level at present.  Hopefully, some disappointment will settle in after report cards prompting students to “kick it up a notch.”  I hope your holidays were happy and restful. Mine were fantastic with my little Joey and the closets I was able to clean!

ACCEL ALGEBRA The semester exam took place this week and I will share the results with the students next week. I feel we had plenty of time to review and prepare, but I don’t think the students took full advantage of that. The cumulative review I collected on Monday after the break was some of the poorest work I’ve seen to date. I asked the students to have that document signed so you can see the level of time and effort put into it.  Of course, some were fantastic, but others were very poor. Daily I am trying to instill strong work policies in these young people so they can be successful in the future, but they seem not willing to invest the time it takes to be successful. Those who do choose to invest the time are very successful at this point and I thank them for that.  We will proceed with Chapter 8 starting next week and that is about exponents and exponential functions. I must say the work will become more difficult now so it will be imperative to stay on task and keep up with the daily expectations. The week of 1/16/12 we are off Monday and the rest of the week we will cover 8-1 & 8-2 with a quiz, then on to 8-3 & 8-4 and a quiz. I’m not sure of the dates yet. Probably 8-3 & 8-4 will be the week of 1/23/12 with the rest of Chapter 8 completing that week. 

REGULAR ALGEBRA  The Christmas break came before we could test Chapter 4 so that happened this week.  I will return them to the students as soon as possible and then next week we will start Chapter 5. This is about writing the equation of a line, which isn’t difficult but requires a few steps so it will be important to take notes and use them to process homework.  The week of 1/16/12 we will cover sections 5-1 to 5-3 and review them. We will take a quiz on those sections then the week of 1/23/12.  We will continue in Chapter 5 with sections 5-5 & 5-6 with a quiz on those two also. I will go back then and pick up section 5-4 to join with 5-7 and get ready for Chapter test.  This will all be in the third quarter as time won’t permit too much getting finished before next week is over.  Most of the students are working hard in this group and I am really proud of the progress many have made. As always we have our challenges, but I think most of them understand the work it takes to keep up in this class.  I thank them for working hard most of the time.  Those who have chosen not to work hard and keep up  are are well aware of the cost.    As always taking class notes is a must for success. 

RELIGION  We tested session 3 at the end of this week and now we have session 4 titled “Empowered by the Spirit”. We will learn the gifts of the Holy Spirit and how Confirmation will enhance our lives.  We will ask how we intend to use the gifts of the Holy Spirit. We will devote about a week and a half to this session with a test during the week of 1/23/12.  Confirmation is March 18th at 2:00 so it is closer than we think. We have four more sessions to study and about 7 weeks.  We will spend about one and a half weeks on each session to be completed just before Confirmation. Then we will return to the Morality series for the rest of the 8th grade Religion curriculum. Please be sure to attend Mass as a family, especially now as we embark upon this beautiful sacrament.    

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Mrs. Murphy Grade 8

By mmurphy | Published: January 10, 2012

Social Studies

We have completed our first unit in our Social Studies text due to our previous Constitution curriculum.  We have now started #24 in the text which deals with the Roaring 20′s.  We will then move immediately into the Depreession Era.  The Roaring 20′s unit is a brief glimpse into this decade while the 1930′s is much more involved as far as coursework.

Language Arts

As is usual, the next quarter’s work will be divided among  grammar, vocabulary, and various styles of writing.  We are now completing #10 in our vocabulary series and will easily complete the text  next quarter .  We are also in the midst of studying pronoun usage, and next week we will focus on persuasive writing.

Literature

We have completed three novels thus far this year and have started preliminary work on our fourth novel, Swallowing Stones.  This will be augmented with supplemental resources that I will generate.

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8th Gr. Science

By tdillon | Published: December 9, 2011

We just completed our introductory examination of the properties and characteristics of solids, liquids, and gases. Next we will look at phase changes and complete an in-depth look at exactly how much energy is required to go from a solid to liquid and liquid to a gas. In doing so the students will gain a complete understanding of how molecules react when energy is added or taken away from a substance.

Science Fair

 The students have work extremely hard and have completed approximately 80% of their projects. The next due date is January 10th (the date was originally Jan. 9th but has been changed). At that time the students will be handing in their completed project in a binder for grading. During the second and third weeks of January students will be presenting their experiment to the class. They will be required to put together either a PowerPoint or Prezi presentation explaining their experiment. More information will be given to the students next week.

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Rotunno news (11-21-11)

By protunno | Published: November 22, 2011

 

8th ACCEL ALGEBRA We are right on target with half of Chapter 6 accomplished and time to finish up before too much of December passes.  We will head for Chapter 7 and some review before the holidays and be ready to take our semester exam at the end of the week we return.  I plan to test Chapter 7 before the holiday break and then review upon our return. These students have done a great job participating in all the contests we’ve entered. We competed in Academic Bowls at St. Ignatius (4th) and Nazareth (1st). We also competed in Math contests at Nazareth (3rd) and Fenwick. I thank the students for their time and talents. I am very proud of each one.

ALGEBRA We are finally finished with Chapter 3 which was a long process. It was worth the time though as the students did master balancing equations pretty well.  We will study linear functions next with graphing and solving for ordered pairs. This is a staple of Algebra I and encompasses the next 2 Chapters. I hope to finish Chapter 4 before the Christmas break so we can relax and focus on Chapter 5 in January. Most of the students are working hard, but it will take focus and dedication to keep on top of things over these 2 chapters.  I do ask that all work be shown so I can help those who are struggling. You should definitely see math work being done at home. It is too long of a process for them to say they did it in school unless they stay after with me for help.

RELIGION We have begun the work toward Confirmation with the red book and the series entitled Call to Celebrate Confirmation. Each session is divided into sections named celebrate, remember, live, and journey together. In the celebrate section we do a prayer service together, in the remember section we study some Bible history or Church tradition, in the live section we learn about people who have lived their faith and ask how we will live ours, and in the journey together section we will have some feedback on what we plan to do to move forward in our faith. I will be asking the students to access their sponsors via phone or email to do some interviews and collaborative work. I will allow plenty of time for this to happen before something needs to be turned in about the exchange. Hopefully this will serve to strengthen their relationship and create a lasting bond of faith for them.  If you have any questions please email me. The commitment forms and sponsor forms should have been completed and turned in by now.  If your child has not done so, please be sure to get those turned in.

GENERAL NEWS Time is really flying by and here it is Thanksgiving already.  I know we are all reflecting on what we’re thankful for and offering prayers for being among the fortunate.  I am thankful for you, the sacrificing families of St. Cletus who share their time and talents readily every day.  I am thankful for the students who enrich me everyday and with whom I am overjoyed to work and play.  I am thankful for supportive colleagues who make the work day so fun. I am thankful for the expert guidance of administration, staff,  and priests. I am so very grateful for our loving God who continues to bless us and keep us in His care.  I’m sure we all can’t wait for the fabulous dinner with family and friends, too, not to mention a little time off from the routine.  I wish all of God’s blessings to you and yours this wonderful Thanksgiving!

If you are looking for something fun to do over the holidays, I am performing with the Choral-Aires on 2 Christmas shows. The first one is Dec. 10th at Hemmens Cultural Center  in Elgin with the Elgin symphony. I am singing on the afternoon show (3:30) but not on the evening show (8:00). The second is on Saturday, Dec. 17th at the Harper College Performing Arts Center in Palatine at 3:00pm. We are singing with the men’s chorus The Brotherhood of Harmony. Tickets are available through me if you’re interested for $20/$18 (different sections) with $3 discount for seniors or students.

 

 

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Technology Extra Credit Opportunity: (gr. 6-8)

By tflickinger | Published: November 18, 2011

click to enlarge this photo- retrieved from wikispaces.com

Since the world of technology is constantly changing and more and more technology applications are based in the cloud; students are encouraged to explore Web 2.0 tools and teach the class how the Web 2.0 tool of their choice works.

Technology tools provide oppurtunities for learning to go beyond the walls of the classroom. St. Cletus recognizes that technology integration can and will make learning more exciting while meeting the needs of diverse (visual, auditory, etc.) learners. 

Web 2.0 extra credit is offered all year long. Your child will be given 10 minutes to teach the class about something they learned independently online. If your child is interested in showcasing a Web 2.0 tool they can access this Web 2.0 wiki site or Google “Web 2.0″. Click here for the extra credit rubric and see how their presentation will be scored. For more information on Web 2.0 and their impact in schools read A day in the Life of Web 2.0

Please contact me with any questions, and happy surfing!     ~Mrs. Flickinger

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Mrs. Murphy Grade 8

By mmurphy | Published: November 15, 2011

8th grade Newsletter

Social Studies

The Class of 2012 have all successfully completed the Federal and Illinois State Constitution tests-yeah!!!

In this new quarter we are starting our study of American History.  We are beginning with WWI and then continuing chronologically through history.  The students will be required to take notes  as part of the class.

Further, the students have due on Monday, November 21st their first essay on “America’s Contitutional Freedoms“.  the length is 250 words/ typed with correct format followed.They are also asked/ required to bring in a xeroxed copy of a WWI poster torecreate for this study by Friday.

Language Arts/Literature

We have completed our second novel, Animal Farm, and have started orally reading The Giver.  As is the theme this year all novels reflect the study of “perfect worlds” that are not.  This current book is a wondeful resource in an eighth grade classroom.  I would encourage parents to read it as well-please do not give the ending away, however.

We have also completed three chapters in our grammar text and are now studying/ memorizing the correct forms for verb conjugation.  This fourth chapter will be completed after Thanksgiving. 

In our Vocabulary series we have completed six chapters.  There will be no assignment due next week, however, the cumulative review for chapters 4, 5, 6 is due Thursday, and the Mastery test on the same chapters is due Friday of this week.

Additional Information

The students will be taking the Explore Test next Monday and Tuesday.  Please make sure they are in attendance.

The class is also coordinating the school Giving Tree/ Food donations project.  Also, the class will celebrate an advent liturgy with their buddies on Dec. 22nd at 9:00 am.

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend-enjoy family and friends and thank you for all you do!!

 

 

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8th Gr. Science

By tdillon | Published: October 28, 2011

We are continuing our examination of the physical and chemical changes in matter.  The student’s will be observing and participating in numerous lab activities, which demonstrate exothermic and endothermic reactions.  We will also integrate physics into our study of chemistry by looking at forms of energy that are related to changes in matter and describing how chemical energy is related to chemical change.

Science Fair Due Dates

Nov. 10 – Review of Literature

Nov. 17th – Completed data table.

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