Specialists News
November 2025
Visual Art and Design / Mr. Novetsky:
It has been a productive month in my 7th and 8th grade art classes. 7th graders have been busy making either wire sculptures or perspectival drawings of rooms using the Italian Renaissance technique called “One Point Perspective”. Next, both classes devoured a giant pile of scrap cardboard as they designed and crafted architectural models. These are on display in the library for anyone who happens to visit the school!
The 8th graders either worked on relief prints that use a technique called “reduction printing” which allows a multicolored image to be printed from a single block or clay sculptures using two hand building techniques (pinch pots and slab construction (soon to be glazed!)). One class then moved on to tower drawings that combine randomly arranged objects in an improbable balancing act! This deceptively simple assignment, challenges students to find the core properties of these items to facilitate both the convincing drawing of each object as well as the realistic interplay of the various elements.
Ms. Lawson's 7th grade classes have been working in clay, creating beautiful sets of windchimes, are currently glazing the pieces, and soon we will begin assembly. Seventh graders have also been working with glue and paint to Batik 'dye' the fabric design for the front of their future pillows! (If Parents or Guardians have any fabric or old pillows they'd care to donate to aid in our pillow-making, please feel free to drop them off at the main office, or send these donations in with your student!)
Ms. Lawson's 8th grade classes have been working in clay, creating thematic boxes that open, and students will be able to store keepsakes inside for years to come. Students are currently glazing these pieces, and then they'll be finished with a second firing. Eighth graders are also working on a series of three needle felted creations, at three levels of difficulty: beginner, moderate, and challenge levels. Students first create the form with pillow stuffing and a needle, then cover these forms in colorful wool.
The Automation & Robotics classes were back on the job creating prototypes for their clients! This past week saw them complete their first Project, Purposeful Design. Student teams were tasked with selecting from three options to help a client solve a problem.
The Animal Entertainment System allowed pets awaiting adoption at the local animal shelter to receive playful interaction, the Spinning Sign gave students a chance to help a potentially dangerous road crossing become safer and the Dragster time trials in the hallway outside our classroom demonstrated some excellent choices in gear ratios meant to create speed!
Our students had a great time decorating and placing the finishing touches on their designs before we did a Showcase Walk around the classroom to review each creation’s Design Requirements which included a demonstration.
Our 7th and 8th grade Literacy Workshop classes have been diving into The Crossover by Kwame Alexander! As we read, we’ve been exploring how Alexander uses poetry to tell a powerful story, paying close attention to character development, figurative language, and the rhythm of his words. Inspired by his writing style, students have also been experimenting with different poem structures to create their own poems that reflect who they are.
Alongside our reading and writing work, we’ve been engaging in RTI mini lessons and targeted activities to strengthen individualized, standards-based skills. We continue to apply our learned reading strategies during our independent Read and WRAP routine at the start of each class. Students are making great progress as they grow into engaged, confident, lifelong readers!
7th graders worked on measurement in 3 dimensions. Students focused on measuring accurately and precisely. They used this knowledge to follow blueprints and create paper floor skimmers (Lesson 1.3). They collected data to see the distances these skimmers traveled. Students then used this class data to complete statistical analysis (Lesson 1.4) and use technology to create box-and-whiskers plots. They will use all of this information in an upcoming project. To end the month, students used dial calipers to measure more accurately than with a ruler and added accurate dimensions to their multiview sketches (Lesson 1.5). As always, students can preview or review sections of PLTW on the website with their Clever logins.
In October, students learned how to code, wire and test our various inputs and outputs such as LEDs, pressure sensors, and actuators. Students worked on debugging codes in an organized way and have been exploring ways to make flow charts and wiring diagrams using online programs such as Tinkercad. Students will start to explore how to combine multiple sensors and outputs into more complex programs as we enter November.
Health classes have been working on the physical, mental/emotional, and social dimensions. Students created their own physical activity game, explored the purpose of emotions, and identified how media influence can have an impact on well being. In PE students continued to explore group activities of Football, Cooperative Games, Goal Games, and Rugby.
