8th Grade Grizzlies

Hello Grizzlies-

This is going to be a short week.  On Wednesday we will take a few minutes at the end of 4th period to recognize our fellow Grizzlies for their 1st semester achievements.  Let’s have a great week!

LUTHMAN Science

Tuesday – What are mixtures and how do they differ?
- Samples, notes/reading, Dilution activity
Wednesday – What factors affect the rate of dissolving?
- Review mixtures, pre-lab, Sugar Cube Race lab
Thursday – How can a mixture be separated?
- Review mixtures, pre-lab, Mixture Separation lab
Friday – To review mixtures, compounds, and elements.
- Wkst., Movie: Elements and Periodic Table

BRUNGARDT Lang Arts

Greetings all…this is going to be a fast, short week.  During the week, we will be working on a multi-paragraph essay answering the question, Does one’s race shape his/her perspective of the world around them?  The final paper will be due by the end of the period on March 2, 2012.  I will outline more specifics in class on Thursday (2/23/12).  We will do a lot of the work for this paper in class.  However, as the due date approaches next week, needing to work on it at home might be necessary.  Because of this, bringing your USB drive to class will be important.  Let’s have a productive week!

Hey Grizzlies…we’re going to have a short week because of parent/teacher conferences.  Conferences will be run in a drop-in, first-come-first-served format.  The times are as follows:

• Wednesday February 15 = 1:30-4:30; 5:00-7:00 (please honor our dinner break from 4:30-5:00); Thursday February 16 = 8:30-12:00; 12:30-4:30; 5:00-7:00 (please honor our meal breaks from 12:00-12:30 & 4:30-5:00).

• NO SCHOOL FOR STUDENTS ON THURSDAY FEBRUARY 16, FRIDAY FEBRUARY 17 & MONDAY FEBRUARY 20

THIS WEEK’S CLASSES

BRUNGARDT Language Arts

Hello…it’s going to be a short week.  This week we are going to complete our current Learning Stations.  We will spend some time reviewing each of them as well.  All work from the Learning Stations is due in class on Wednesday, February 15.  Next week we will begin to work on a piece of writing related to our work in the stations.  Don’t forget that due to Parent/Teacher Conferences we do not have school on Thursday (2/16), Friday (2/17), and Monday (2/20; President’s Day).

HOMEWORK:

1. All Learning Station work is due in class Wednesday, February 15.
2. Email Assignment 3Q3 = Create a 10 – 12 sentence paragraph using the 6 vocabulary words from our most recent stations.  The goal is to state a topic or idea, and then provide details or a story about the topic or idea.  The sentences containing the vocabulary words should reflect the meaning of each word.  A random assortment of thrown together sentences will lose points.  Please write this paragraph and send it in an email to Mr. Brungardt by 7:15am on Tuesday, February 21. (logic, implications, assumptions, fallacies, coherence, precision)

KING/COCHRAN Language Arts

Due to parent teacher conferences, this week is very short. Monday and Tuesday we will be working on defining culture and continuing with our poetry journals. The students will be asking you about your family history and background information about their names. Mrs. Cochran will be teaching testing skills on Wednesday.

LUTHMAN Science

Monday – What are elements and how do they differ?
- finish Boiling point lab, Periodic Table Chart, Reading/notes
Tuesday – What are compounds and what kind of properties do they have?
- Demo. samples, notes/reading, Prep Flame test lab, Lab
Wednesday – How do compounds differ from elements?
- finish lab, Chart of comparison
Thursday – CONFERENCES (8:30 – 7:00 PM)

LAUDERBACK Math

Mrs. Lauderback will be available for parent – teacher conferences at the following times:
Wednesday, February 15:  1:30 – 3:00
Thursday, February 16    :   8:30 – 4:00
If you are unable to see Mrs. Lauderback at these times there will be a sign-in sheet for you to leave your name and phone number for her to contact you.

BITNER U.S. History

This week in History:
We will continue our study of the developing Colonies and the increasing friction with the British.  Parents, students are reporting to me that they are running out of paper and pencils.  Please check with your student and replace the needed supplies.  Thank you!

Greetings Grizzlies!  There is a lot of stuff going on this week…first up, a few announcements:

IMPORTANT DATES:

• HIGH SCHOOL REGISTRATION = February 8 is high school registration night.  This is a MANDATORY event for 8th graders and parents.  Please plan on attending at the high school you will be enrolled in next fall.  Registration form pick-up will be on February 15  at CBMS.

• PARENT TEACHER CONFERENCES = CBMS will be hosting conferences in a couple of weeks.  The 8th grade team is running conferences in a “drop-in”  format.  Wednesday February 15 = 1:30-4:30; 5:00-7:00 (please honor our dinner break from 4:30-5:00); Thursday February 16 = 8:30-12:00; 12:30-4:30; 5:00-7:00 (please honor our meal breaks from 12:00-12:30 & 4:30-5:00).

• NO SCHOOL FRIDAY FEBRUARY 17 & MONDAY FEBRUARY 20

Next up, a look at this week’s classes….

BITNER U.S. History

This week we will finish up our study of the Plymouth Colony and then move on to a study of the three Colonial Regions. (New England, Middle, Southern Colonies) From this starting point we will begin looking at issues which led up to the beginnings of the American Revolution.

LUTHMAN Science

Monday – To be able to determine whether a reaction is a physical or chemical change.
-  Review of changes, Prep lab, Lab and analysis
Tuesday – To be able to compare solids, liquids and gases based on properties and behavior.
- Demo., Reading/notes, wkst
Wednesday – To examine factors that affect the behavior of gases and compare Boyle’s Law and Charles Law.
- Demos., Notes, chart of comparison, wkst.
Thursday – To examine different ways that states of matter can change in regards to energy and  molecular movement.
- Demos., Reading/journal, Chart, wkst.
Friday -  To examine what boiling point is and what a graph of it looks like.
- Notes, lab prep., Lab, graph data, analysis

KING Lang Arts

Hello parents, thank you for signing the parent letter! We started a unit on perspective and argument. This week we will continue working on the importance of seeing all perspectives when making an argument. The students will be writing argumentative paragraphs from a different perspective than their own, and they will also learn how to deconstruct an argument and counter it. Mrs. Cochran will be teaching some test prep grammar on Wednesday and I will also be reviewing the parts of speech as well as sentence structure. Thanks! ~Ms King

BRUNGARDT Lang Arts

Hello all!  This week we are going to transition into our next set of Learning Stations.  Our essential question for the quarter is, “What influences people’s perspective?”.  Our next set of stations will begin on Thursday and be centered on race/ethnicity and perspective.  Prior to getting to the stations we will be taking Acuity C on Monday and Tuesday and visiting the library on Wednesday for book check-out and for the Book Fair preview.   On Monday and Tuesday we will also view a video called “Free at Last” to gain some BK on the Civil Rights movement of the 1950′s-60′s.  We will prep our INb’s in class on Wednesday and Thursday and then get into the stations Thursday – Monday.  All work from the stations will be due by Wednesday next week.  CURRENT HOMEWORK = email assignment 3Q2 due by 7:15 am on Friday 2/10/12.

Hello Grizzlies!  We have lot going on this week…here is a look:

IMPORTANT DATES:

• HIGH SCHOOL REGISTRATION = February 8 is high school registration night.  This is a mandatory event for 8th graders and parents.  Please plan on attending at the high school you will be enrolled in next fall.  Registration form pick-up will be on February 15  at CBMS.

• PARENT TEACHER CONFERENCES = CBMS will be hosting conferences in a couple of weeks.  The 8th grade team is running conferences in a “drop-in”  format.  Wednesday February 15 = 1:30-4:30; 5:00-7:00 (please honor our dinner break from 4:30-5:00); Thursday February 16 = 8:30-12:00; 12:30-4:30; 5:00-7:00 (please honor our meal breaks from 12:00-12:30 & 4:30-5:00).

• NO SCHOOL FRIDAY FEBRUARY 17 & MONDAY FEBRUARY 20

This week’s classes at a glance:

BRUNGARDT Lang. Arts

This week in Language Arts we will be reviewing the work we did with the sub last week.  Additionally, we will prep for our next set of learning stations and get those rolling.  We will visit the library on Friday to get back on a regular Friday rotation and to view the book fair video.  Please look for the new email assignment on my web page on Wednesday.

BABB Math

Algebra I – We will continue to work on solving systems of equations and will have a quiz this week as well.

Accelerated – We will address the zero prouct property this week and review the quadratic formula.

LAUDERBACK Math

This week we will continue to study triangle relationships with an emphasis on the Pythagorean Theorem.  Continue to refresh math facts, multiplication and addition, at home.

BITNER U.S. History

This week in History we will investigate the Pilgrim and Puritan arrival.  Students will be studying Primary Source materials to discover who these people really were and why they came to these shores.  We will then begin a comparison of the Jamestown settlers and the Plymouth settlers.

LUTHMAN Science

Monday – Which metals can I identify by the physical property of density?
- Demos., review, Density Lab
Tuesday -  What are several chemical properties of matter?  How are physcial and chemical changes different?
- Demos., reading notes, wkst.
Wednesday – What are 4 signs of a chemical reaction?
- Demo. with sugar and acid, Poster of Physical and Chemical changes.
Thursday – To determine whether a reaction is a physical or chemical change?
- Review changes/posters, White Matter Lab
Friday – To compare solids with liquids, and gases.
- Reading, demos., movie, wkst.

WILLIAMS Math

This week in math we will be starting volume two of our Algebra Connections book. Begginning with the seventh chapter, we will go more in depth with equations, such as y=mx+b that we have previously learned about. We will discuss properties of the equations and their lines.

KING (Cochran) Lang Arts

Hello! This Ms King, I am a student teacher from CSU and will be taking over Mrs. Cochran’s class this week. I will be sending a letter home today (Monday) to formally introduce myself, and I am asking you to sign it and have it returned for five citizenship points. This week in class we will be going over my expectations as well as doing some “getting to know you” type activities. We will be starting a unit on perspective and argumentation on Thursday. We will also continue writing poetry in the duct tape journals.

Hello Grizzlies!  This is shaping up to be a very busy week as we are getting into the full swing of the 3rd Quarter.  Here is some important information as we begin this week:

• PARENT TEACHER CONFERENCES = Parent Teacher Conferences are coming up in a few weeks.  The 8th Grade Team is not having scheduled conferences.  Instead, we will be having a “drop-in” format.  All 8th grade teachers will be set-up in the auditeria and you can just stop by and chat with your teachers on a first-come-first-served basis.  Conferences will be held on Wednesday, February 15 from 1:30pm-7:00pm (DINNER BREAK = 4:30-5:00; we ask that you please honor this time) and on Thursday, February 16 from 8:30am-7:00pm (LUNCH BREAK = 12:00-12:30; DINNER BREAK = 4:30-5:00).  There will be no school on Friday, February 17 and Monday, February 20.
• HIGH SCHOOL REGISTRATION = February 8th is High School Registration Night at 6:00pm.  This is MANDATORY for all 8th graders planning on going to high school in the Thompson District next year.  Registration pick-up at CBMS is on February 15.

Here is a glance at individual classes this week:

BRUNGARDT Lang. Arts

Howdy! This week in Language Arts we will be wrapping up and reviewing our first set of Learning Stations that we participated in last week.  All work from the Learning Stations is due in class on Wednesday, January 25.  We will also be getting back into some SSR and Reading Logs this week, so make sure you are bringing SSR material to class DAILY.  This week we will also take a brief look into poetry so we can incorporate it in our work periodically for the rest of the school year.

We will be going to the library on Wednesday this week instead of Friday.

HOMEWORK

1. Email Assignment #1 (DUE = BY 7:15am on MONDAY, JAN. 30th) = For this week’s assignment, you will be writing two paragraphs in an email and sending them to Mr. Brungardt.  Both paragraphs must be 5 – 8 sentences in length.  The first paragraph needs to explain your perspective on school spirit at CBMS.   The second paragraph needs to be created using all 5 of the vocabulary words from last week’s stations.
2. Learning Station work is due in class on Wednesday, January 25th.

MR. BRUNGARDT’s EMAIL = matthew.brungardt@thompsonschools.org

That is all!

BITNER U.S. History

We will begin our study of the English colonies in the New World with a one wek investigation of Jamestown Colony.  Students will be learning about life in the colony by looking at maps, journal entries and artifacts.  From these primary sources students will be drawing their own conclusions and then comparing them with those of the “experts.”

BABB Math

Accelerated – We will continue to work on factoring polynomials and begin to relate factors to the graphs of quadratic equations and their factors.

Algebra – This week we will continue to work with word problems and converting them into mathematical equations.  We will also look at new and different techniques to solve systems of equations.

LUTHMAN Science

Monday – What is density and how do we measure it?
-  Wkst on metrics, Intro. to Density, Density Problems, Measuring Density.
Tuesday – What are several factors of density?
- Demos. of density, Marble lab
Wednesday – To assess metric measurement, scientific process.
- review measurement, Quiz
Thursday – What is matter? How does mass and inertia differ?
- Demo., Notes (volume, mass, inertia,) Volume lab
Friday – What are 9-10 physical properties of matter?
- 20 questions, Demos., Reading Wkst.

LAUDERBACK Math

4th Period 8th Grade Math:
We will continue to study tables and graphs in preparation to write equations and to study triangle relationships.  Practice with the multiplication facts through 10 x 10 would help students step into more challenging math as our topics lead into Algebra.  Some students are “rusty” with these facts and practice at home will make their transition into Algebra easier.

COCHRAN Lang. Arts

This week we will be examining types of evidence people use to persuade others. We will also be completing our papers which are due by the end of class on Friday.  We do have the computer lab for last minute typing, revision, and editing.  If at all possible, I would like a typed copy of your rough draft in class on Wednesday!!

LET’S HAVE A GREAT WEEK!

We hope you had a great 3 day weekend.  This is going to be a short week for us.

LUTHMAN Science

Tuesday – What is volume and what are three ways to measure it?
- Wkst. and measureing activity
Wednesday – How to measure mass and convert to other units?
- Wkst. and measuring activity
Thursday – How do scientists solve problems?
- Big Cube activity, Small Cube activity Wkst.
Friday – How to set up an experiment using variables and constants?
- Practice wkst, Alka-Seltzer activity.

COCHRAN Lang Arts

This week in language arts we will be starting our conspiracy theory papers and continuing to work on our poetry books.  Students should expect to have homework on Tuesday, Thursday and possibly Friday.

BABB Lang Arts

Accelerated – This week we will be summing up our understanding of Chapter 7 by creating line designs and then we will start Chapter 8 in which we begin factoring quadratics.

Algebra I – We are currently working on writing equations from word problems and we will begin to work with more strategies for solving systems of equations.

BRUNGARDT Lang Arts

We will be revisiting class expectations and beginning to work in Learning stations this week.

Hello Grizzlies…welcome back from break!  We hope that you had a restful and fulfilling 17 days off.  This week all of your teachers are getting things warmed up and running for the 3rd Quarter and the 2nd Semester. The beginning of a new quarter is your chance to start from scratch and SOAR….

SOME IMPORTANT DATES:

• Wednesday, January 11, 2012 = Explore Night at CBMS (6-7 pm); All 8th graders and their parents should attend…see the Counselors for more details.
• Monday, January 16, 2012 = NO SCHOOL (Martin Luther King Jr. Day)

COCHRAN Lang. Arts

This week in Language Arts we will be starting on creating our own poetry books and continuing our work with figurative language.  We will also start a very short unit reading about conspiracy theories.  With the conspiracy theories we will be working on some research techniques and writing a research paper by the end of the month. We will also be welcoming Ms. King to our classroom – she is a student who will be student teaching with us this semester.

LUTHMAN Science

Monday – What is Physical Science?
Tuesday – What safety should I be aware of in Physical Science?
Wednesday – What are the seven parts of a graph and how do you set one up?
Thursday – What is Mass and how is it measured?  What is Volume and how is it measured?
Friday – What is density and how is it measured?

BRUNGARDT Lang. Arts

This week in Language Arts we will be warming up for the 3rd Quarter.  Our focus this quarter will be on “PERSPECTIVE”.  We will revisit classroom expectations, take a look at the quarter’s big ideas and essential question, and then knock the cobwebs off by participating in some reading and writing activities.  We will also set up our new INb’s and get prepared to participate in Learning Stations next week.

Ho! Ho! Ho! It’s going to be a short week for the Grizzlies….

All of the 8th grade teachers are planning on doing academic work this week.  Please make sure you have all of your work in…grades will be posted when you are on break.

REMINDER…REMINDER…REMINDER = There is a homework packet that is to be completed over break.  It includes work from all of your core classes.  This is not intended to be just busy work…17 days is a long time during the middle of a school year to go without engaging your mind.  Please complete the packet and return it on Monday, January 9, 2012.  The packet will be your first grade for each class in the 3rd Quarter.

THE 8TH GRADE TEAM IS WORKING UNDER THE GUIDANCE OF THURSDAY DECEMBER 22 @2:45 PM AS BEING THE OFFICIAL START OF WINTER BREAK AND THE END OF THE 2ND QUARTER…IF YOU PLAN ON MISSING ANY DAYS THIS WEEK PLEASE MAKE SURE YOU CHECK WITH ALL TEACHERS TO SEE IF YOUR WORK IS COMPLETE.  ALSO, DO NOT FORGET TO GET A WINTER BREAK HOMEWORK PACKET BEFORE YOU LEAVE.

Have a safe break and we look forward to seeing you in 2012!

Some notes for this week….

Don’t forget to turn in your green slip for the Jinglebird to your SSR/Advisory teacher.

Brungardt Lang Arts

Hi Grizzlies!  A reminder for you…as we continue working on “Exposition” this week, please remember that your compare-and-contrast assignment is due on Monday, December 5th.  You should do your planning on INb pg. 23 (right side), and you should write the essay on page 24.  If you use a computer to type the assignment, make sure you print it off and tape it in your INb on pg. 24.  THANKS!

Williams Math

Monday: Multiplying Algebraic Expressions
HW: p.192 4, 5, 6, 7
Tuesday: Binomials with the Distributive Property
HW: p. 194 15, 16, 17, 18
Wednesday: Review Expressions and the Distributive Property

Thursday: Generic Rectangles to Multiply
HW: p. 199 27, 28, 30, 31
Friday: Quiz and Tables, Graphs, Rules, Figures

Here’s a look at the Grizzly class schedules this week:

BRUNGARDT (Lang Arts)

Hello and welcome to the third week of the 2nd Quarter.  This week we will be continuing to look at EXPOSITION in reading and in writing.  Our essential question this quarter is: What is true? To continue this work we will have a busy week in our INb’s as we complete pages 19, 20, and 21.  Pages 17-21 of the INb will be due for a grade on Friday 11/11. We will also have a quiz on Friday over the information from INb pages 16-21.  This quiz will include the Words of the Day from 10/31 – 11/8 and the new spelling words on INb pg. 20. In addition to our scheduled classwork that will be focused on exposition, we will also be completing Acuity Test B this week on Wednesday and Thursday.

Mr. Brungardt will do his best to have his gradebook up-to-date by the beginning of next week.

BABB (math)

In accelerated math this week we will be finishing up Chapter 4 (connections between different representations and writing equations) and also will be taking acuity.

In Algebra I this week we will be finishing up Chapter 3 (solving for x and starting to make connections) and also will be taking acuity.

LUTHMAN (science)

Monday and Tuesday we will explore Newton’s 2nd law of motion involving mass, force and acceleration.  Tuesday will include the ‘Mass Movement Lab.  On Wednesday we will finish with his 3rd Law involving ‘Action and Reaction’   We will do a pendulum lab on Thursday and discus myths about Gravity on Friday.
The students have begun their Balloon Car Project.  They had a work day on Friday and learned quite a bit about what works and what doesn’t.  The ‘Cars’ are due Nov. 17, a Thursday.