Announcements & Upcoming Events:
Tues., 5/27-Fri., 5/30: MS Trip (Check Resources on MyFWM for trip details)
Week of 6/2: Spirit Week (see below)
Monday, 6/2: Field Day
Tuesday, 6/3: Sports Day (Wear your favorite sports jersey/team shirt/uniform/medal)
Wednesday, 6/4: Beach Day (Beach-themed clothing and accessories)
**Weather permitting, we will also have water fun at the end of the day. Swim suits, towels, water squirters will all be permitted!**
Thursday, 6/5: Pajama Day
Friday, 6/6: Red Carpet Day (Time to dress up for the end of school)
Wed., 6/4 @ 5pm: Farewell to the Class of 2025 An event hosted by 6th and 7th grade students to honor their graduating classmates. Please plan on attending with your student(s)
Thurs., 6/5 @ 5pm: 8th Grade Graduation For 8th grade families and friends at the Newtown Meetinghouse
Fri., 6/6: Last Day of School/Dismissal @ 11:30 am
We are off this week on our MS Trip! You will be contacted on Tuesday to take part in our shared photo album to check out all the fun we are having. In the meantime, here is our weekly review:
Humanities
6th grade Humanities class worked hard to complete their final class novel, Shooting Kabul. Students had daily discussions (both small group and full-class) and used their homework to guide them. Students had the choice this week of developing discussion questions or answering questions provided for them based on their reading. They will complete the last few chapters of the novel over the weekend, for when we return to classes in June.
7th grade students completed their final class novel of the year, Four Perfect Pebbles, a memoir written by Marion Blumenthal Lazan about her and her family’s experience in concentration camps during the Holocaust and after liberation. Classes discussed the atrocities against the Jewish people during the Holocaust as well as Marion’s personal experience. Finally, 7th-grade students worked on an important secret mission this week.
8th-grade soon-to-be graduates composed their graduation speech drafts this week. From brainstorming to writing and meeting with Mrs. Lamb, the students are ready for final edits and practice before delivering their last message to the FWM community. Also, the 8th grade worked on reading and annotating their final class text, She Came to Slay.
6th grade:
This last week of formal class was spent preparing students for the format of next year’s science class. Students worked with partners to complete a study guide in order to prepare for a test on their Environmental Science unit. They took the test on Friday, and all students came prepared. Ms. Pickard was very impressed with the amount of work and dedication each student put into this final unit. This includes their level of work throughout the unit and especially in this final week leading up to the test. Students were nervous about this new format, but worked to overcome the challenge, and everyone agreed they could adapt to this new change for next year.
7th grade:
Students completed their unit on Chemical Bonding this week. They concluded class lessons on ionic and covalent bonding with a test given on Friday. This last week, students worked diligently in order to prepare for the test. This included going over previous Google Slides presentations and reviewing notes in order to fill out the current study guide. All students came to the test prepared and ready to work. They did an excellent job and should be really proud of themselves for all of the difficult work they accomplished this school year.
8th grade:
This week, students began work on a unit covering Evolution. They discussed new vocabulary for the unit, then moved into different types of adaptations, discussed the importance of genetic diversity in order for a population to survive, spoke about tolerance range and environmental stressors, discussed various mechanisms of genetic change in terms of frequency, talked about natural selection and the mechanisms required for it to occur, compared natural selection to artificial selection, and rounded out the week discussing evidence for evolution. Students did a fantastic job buckling down this week in order to accomplish what they needed to. Ms. Pickard was really proud of them for working right up through the last day of formal classes!
Pre-Transition: This Monday, the Pre-Transition class took their last Chapter Test of the school year—woohoo! With testing behind them, they’ve jumped into a super fun end-of-year project: building their own 3-D shape cities. Everyone is using shape nets to create different buildings and structures, then calculating the surface area to see how much “material” they’d need in real life. On top of that, they’re using linear equations to design roads that connect their buildings together. It’s been awesome seeing their creativity and math skills come together. Can’t wait to see how these cities turn out!
Transition: After wrapping up their final unit test on Monday, this class has been diving into an exciting end-of-year project: designing and building their own mini cities! Students are using templates to fold and form 3-D buildings and calculating how much space each structure would take up by finding surface area. They’re also plotting out roads using linear equations to connect different parts of their cities. It’s been a great way to bring math to life and see how it all fits together outside the textbook.
Algebra: On Monday, Algebra students tackled their final Chapter Test of the year—hard to believe they’ve made it to the end! They’ve kicked off a super creative and challenging end-of-year project: designing their own escape rooms. Each room in the escape challenge reviews a different concept from throughout the year, from solving equations to graphing, systems, functions, and more. Students are working in teams to build puzzles, craft clues, and make sure everything ties back to the Algebra skills they’ve mastered. Best part? On the last day of class, they’ll swap rooms and try to “escape” each other’s creations. It’s been an awesome mix of review, teamwork, and fun—and a great way to wrap up a fantastic year of Algebra!
Geometry: On Monday, the Geometry class completed their final Chapter Test of the school year! To celebrate and apply everything they’ve learned, students are now working on a hands-on, end-of-year project: designing and building mini models of miniature golf holes. They’re diving into the world of angles and reflections, calculating the path a golf ball would take after bouncing off one, two, or even three walls. Using their knowledge of angle measurements, parallel lines, and geometric reasoning, students are predicting trajectories and testing their designs. It’s been a fun and engaging way to wrap up the year.
