Greetings TMSA 8th Grade Parents:
We would like to begin by thanking you (our amazing parents) and all of our 8th grade students for your unfaltering support during these different times. We have enjoyed working with you throughout the school year to provide the best educational experience possible for our students. We will use the newsletter to provide you with an update on what is going on in the classroom and what will be coming up in the future. Thank you as always for your support
Social Studies – Mr. Lotfy
We are currently finishing our unit on Georgia in the American Revolution (SS8H6: Analyze the impact of Reconstruction on Georgia. Students will take their exams from March 29th to the March 31st. If students can spend 20-30 minutes a day going over their study guide, they will be successful on the exam. Once the students complete their exam, we will begin our unit on Georgia during the New South Era. (SS8H7: political, social, and economic changes in Georgia during the New South Era). The students have been provided with the study guide for their upcoming exam. The study guides will always be posted in OTUS under the bookshelf tab. Please feel free to reach out if you have any questions. I hope everybody has a safe and wonderful week.
Math – Ms. Asekere
Math 8: We are currently working on chapter 5, "Analyze and Solve Systems of Linear Equations". We have reached the mid-level within the chapter, and students will have to complete the mid-chapter checkpoint. We have two more lessons within the chapter to complete it.
ALG.1: We are working with solving LINEAR INEQUALITIES. Students have reached the middle of Chapter 5, with 3 more lessons to learn.
REMEDIATION: TUTORIAL IS STILL OFFERED FOR YOUR CHILDREN EVERY TUESDAY AND THURSDAY FROM 3-5:30PM VIA TEAMS.
ELA – Ms. Griffith
ELA 8/9 Ms. Griffith
During the upcoming last 9 weeks of school, students in 8th and 9th grade will spend time revisiting and reviewing ELA standards. This week, we reviewed the Elements of Fiction and we finished our Language standards (verbals, moods/tenses of verbs). We will have some quizzes over these items to ensure that the students know the content.
All ELA standards have been taught, but some students have not yet mastered them. I encourage your children to complete IReady lessons, participate and ask questions in class, and do the work that I assign. Additionally, it is a good time for them to start reviewing the study guide for the Georgia Milestone. Even if they opt-out, they will be expected to demonstrate their understanding of the standards for this grade level. To this end, we will be administering practice Milestone tests to identify weaknesses and using the data we collect to structure our instruction for the last few weeks.
A copy of the Georgia Milestone study guide for (9th grade) Algebra 1 EOC, (9th grade) Physical Science EOC, and Grade 8 EOG for Math, Science, ELA, and Social Studies can be accessed here:
The students in 9th Grade ELA, while finishing up the Grade 8 review of fiction and language standards as well, are nearing the end of their unit of The Odyssey. We studied the characteristics of the epic, allusions to mythology, the archetypal hero journey, and the cultural and historical values expressed by the characters in the text. We will start a study of drama/poetry after Spring Break, utilizing Romeo and Juliet as our anchor text!
Writing Strategies’- Ms. Griffith
7 Habits of Good Writers:
- They read a lot!
- They write every day.
- They try out new ideas and strategies that they see in books they read.
- They do not edit their writing until they are finished getting their thoughts down.
- They get ideas from books, from others, and by noticing the world around them.
- They identify their audience, purpose, organization, style, flow, and presentation before they write.
- They complete the writing process in its entirety: prewrite/brainstorm, research (if needed), draft, revise, edit/proofread, and publish.
Science – Ms. Stepp
For science, your students are currently learning about matter and the chemistry behind everything! 🧪 We will get deeper into the concepts surrounding atoms and how they bond to create compounds. Students will them learn about the physical and chemical changes that occur in our everyday life and how they can point those out. They will be involved in watching a plethora of demos I do in camera and even conducting activities at home for themselves. Please look out for a post soon on Class Dojo(Parents/Guardians) and Otus (Students) for a list of materials students can gather to conduct these activities at home along with me. Assignments are given on OTUS and STEMscopes, check them daily to make sure you are caught up on your assignments!
Check out this activity that you and your family can do at home to practice some Chemistry concepts: https://sciencebob.com/fantastic-foamy-fountain/