In this post...
- MS Academic Honesty Policy
- What we are learning...
- Things To Do in our Community
MS Academic Honesty Policy
This week, Advisory groups reviewed the Middle School Academic Honesty Policy - not in response to an uptick in academic dishonesty, but in an effort for teachers and students to continually refresh and deepen our understanding of the parameters, expectations, and characteristics of our community. The policy, embedded in our broader MS Handbook, was developed last year as part of our efforts toward MYP authorization, but nothing new or radical was introduced with this policy. Instead, it's a clear, succinct summary of our practices in supporting students as they develop their academic and ethical participation in the community. In a digital age, paying attention to where ideas are gleaned requires considered effort. Please take a moment to review the policy and to engage your student in a conversation about it. To prompt a conversation, you might ask your student whether it's difficult to understand what constitutes plagiarism, collusion, or unethical use of materials, or what is challenging about maintaining academic integrity.
What we are learning...
The sixth grade Chinese finished the Unit “My Family” and then continues on the Unit “Chinese Calligraphy and Painting”. The seventh grade Chinese finished the Unit “Chinese Money and Chinese Food” and then continues on the Unit “Free Market”. The eighth grade Chinese finished a part of the Unit “Chinese New Year and Vacation” and then continues on the Unit “City Dwelling”. We had fun and educational activities to celebrate Chinese New Year. Students watched Chinese New Year program, cooked and ate Chinese food, wrote calligraphy, made paper craft, and danced Chinese dance. We are learning Chinese following our MYP unit plan and preparing for MYP visit in April.
This month, our AW 8th graders are embarking on what could be considered a capstone project of their middle school experience: The Oral History Project (OHP). An interdisciplinary project encompassing Language and Literature, Individuals and Societies, and Design, they start by considering historical events they would like to learn more about, and then once they have decided upon a general topic, they reach out to those in their community with the goal of finding someone to interview who has firsthand experience in their area of interest. Right now, they are beginning to craft their guiding question for their research - and that will drive all future steps in the project. Some guiding questions of current 8th graders include:
- How did the experience of fighting in the Vietnam War affect soldiers when they returned home?
- What is the process that soldiers go through to make it possible for them to learn to pull the trigger?
- What is it like to be an immigrant forced to leave his/her country due to political unrest?
- What did it truly mean to be a prisoner of war in Vietnam?
- What was the effect of WWII on the homefront? How did life change for women?
- How did surviving the Holocaust shape survivors’ lives after the war?
The OHP gives students the opportunity to demonstrate all they have learned about public speaking, writing, the research process, and the design cycle, and it gives them some incredible opportunities to interview those of a different generation, learn about history from the stories of those who experienced it firsthand, and share the stories of those who helped them answer their guiding question as they create their own podcasts. We can’t wait to celebrate their accomplishments with you on June 13th at the OHP Expo in the Great Hall.
6th grade Science wrapped up their Chemistry unit last week and this week, they dived into our ecosystems units, where we will focus on how relationships impact our environment. Students particularly enjoyed learning about parasitic relationships and they will be working on a mini-project to examine one type of symbiotic relationship over the weekend.
In 7th grade Science we’ve taken a “timeout” from our Chemistry unit to dive into our interdisciplinary Milk Boat unit on Density and Buoyancy before Spring Break. Students are learning about these concepts through a number of hands-on activities and hopefully will be apply to apply their understanding to make progress on their Milk Boat designs. Next week we’ll test styrofoam boat models in the school pool so if you have any sheets or blocks of styrofoam at home please send them to school with your student on Monday. Thanks!
The 8th graders have been working intensely on their rate of reaction design lab over the past few weeks. Each student investigated a factor that changes the rate of the reaction when an effervescent tablet is dropped in water. Ask your student about their results and what improvements they would make to their methods if they repeated their experiment. We’ll wrap up our Chemical Reaction unit next week and begin the Tropical Ecology unit for the Journey just before Spring Break. Expect to see to two summative assessment grades and two formative assessment grades added to the gradebook prior to conferences.
Things To Do in our Community...
- Looking for a family volunteer opportunity? Join “Pitch In For Parks” on Saturday, March 11, from 10:00am-12:00pm at Spanaway Park. See this flyer for more information.
- Looking for ways to explore Tacoma and Seattle? Stay up to date with the events calendar on The Tacoma Weekly and Visit Seattle.
