Team Kathmandu: Week 38

Thurs. June 11: Field Trip to Air & Space Museum (see Science section below for more info.)

Mon. June 15: Cameron Run Water Park 6th Grade Field Trip

Tues. June 16: NO SCHOOL, Election Day

Thurs. June 18: NEW LAST DAY OF SCHOOL

On Tuesday, 6/9, we will clean out lockers—please make sure that students have a bag to carry anything extra from their lockers home. They should begin to empty their lockers now. We will collect locks on 6/12 during 1st period. Students will turn in their yonder pouches to be in a secure space during the day and will receive them at 3:00 of the school day for the remaining days of school.

Thank you to all who donated t-shirts, markers, and flavor ices! We will definitely be ready to celebrate and commemorate our 6th grade year. Our celebration will be during 4th and 5th periods on Friday, June 12. Students who have a white t-shirt should bring one, as it stands we have t-shirts for approximately half of the team, (adult sizes small to large). Thank you!

This week in Geography(and science!) we worked on our interdisciplinary project! Ask your geographers about their resolution! They have been amazing as they learn how to write a resolution, the parts and language of a resolution, and writing collaboratively. Students will present their projects together in combined geography and sciences classes next week, starting on Monday. Students must have their resolution finished by the start of class on Monday. Canvas has a soft copy of the packet we have been working on, as well as the slides from class, as well as reminders—check it out!

CEA #30 will be due on Friday, 6/12 for periods 1 and 7. It will be the last CEA of the year.

Thank you for the awesome postcards—both virtual and via snail mail! We are continuing to read them and post them on our map! So fun and impressive! Thank you for sharing the project with your family and friends and bringing the world to us!

Pictures that are on our Kathmandu Can Do Attitude board can also be found here.

Amy Trenkle

amy.trenkle@k12.dc.gov

Classroom Wishlist

This week 6th grade students worked on representing and comparing proportional relationships with graphs and equations and calculating circumference in completing an RCT Assessment. Seventh graders worked on calculating missing angles and angle relationships to create equations and solve real world problems and finding volume and the surface area of 3-dimensional shapes in completing their RCT Assessment. This week students will preview Mathematical concepts in preparation for closing out the year and preparing for next year’s Math class. Plesase encourage students to see Mr Brown to make up any outstanding or work needing to be retaken.

Summer Math Acceleration Camp (SMAC)

As you may know, Deal offers an in-person math acceleration program each year for students who are currently taking Math 6 or Math 7. Students who demonstrate mastery of standards on the Middle of Year (MOY) i-Ready and the End of Year i-Ready (EOY) i-Ready by earning the required score will be invited to participate in SMAC 2026.

This week (Tuesday) parents were emailed SMAC invitations for students deemed eligible based on iReady EOY Results.

We will also offer a summer online asynchronous opportunity for students who will not be available for SMAC. To be invited to participate in the online asynchronous acceleration program students must earn the required score on the MOY i-Ready assessment and share the reason why they are not available for SMAC.

• SMAC Boost | June 22 - 25; 9:00 - 12:00 noon (must attend all dates)

• SMAC Dates | June 29 - July 23; 9:00 - 12:00 noon (must attend all dates)

• Asynchronous Math Acceleration Program (Zearn) | June 22 - July 23

Please direct all questions to DealSummerMath@k12.dc.gov.
Attached is Deal’s Math Acceleration Policy

Thank you for your support

-Mr. Brown marcus.brown@k12.dc.gov

This will be updated weekly:

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1dlKT87dltchVgOxxhaxD9eaRYbNpu2isofxLnvk3opA/edit?usp=sharing

Hello scientists!

Wow, what a great week of incredible research about Oceania! I am so impressed with all of your abilities to connect your knowledge of climate, disaster readiness, extreme weather mitigation, and conservation to real actionable change on a government level, and Geography teacher and I are thrilled to see you present your resolutions and solutions next week.

As we wrap up our interdisciplinary unit and finish the presentation portion, the team and I are so excited to be heading to the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum on Thursday, June 11.

Field trip: Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum

We are so excited to be heading to the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum for our field trip on Thursday June 11, 2026! Permission slips have been sent out in class, and also you can find it here in English, and in Spanish.

Please ensure that your students bring

• A string backpack or tote bag
• A bagged lunch
• Sunscreen
• Water bottle
• A pencil
• Kids Ride Free card if they have it

• Comfy walking shoes (this is not the day for their most breakable flip flops)
• Appropriate attire (it’s still too far out to forecast the weather, but the museum is air conditioned)

Students are NOT ALLOWED to bring:

• Money

• Their phone or watches

• A giant backpack

Shanishka.Johnson@k12.dc.gov

Ms. Johnson's list SY25-26

Book time to meet with me

This week, students learned about the many benefits of recess and also had a chance to take a peek at how recess looks around the world. Students also completed the End of Year MAP reading assessment. And to remind students that reading can be FUN, most students shared their Term 4 Book Project slides.

Next week, we will wrap up our Common Lit. work and take some time to reflect on the past year.

As the year comes to a close, please encourage your child to check around their room, under their bed, in the car etc. for any classroom books they might have. I do not need their annotated copies of The Giver but do want any books that have my name written them (black sharpie on the back by the barcode). Thank you for your help with this!

Katy Byrns

katy.byrns2@k12.dc.gov

This week we continued to learn about proportional relationships and we learned how to calculate the circumference of circles. We also took our last RCT summative assessment for the year!

By Monday June 8th students should have passed 39 iReady lessons. Please reach out to me if there is any issue with students completing the iReady lessons at home; students always have the opportunity to work on iReady during their recess. Pears are opened on Mondays and Wednesdays and due Wednesday and Friday. I am able to print out paper copies of Pear assignments. Please encourage students to request a paper copy if they need. Please check Pear to see students’ missing assignments.

brandon.shufelt@k12.dc.gov

Hi all,

We are at that time of year when students need to return library books. Notices will go out to families this week. Students should reach out to Mr. Reichlen about missing, damaged, or any books that may have been checked out by mistake. There are no fines, but students can only have items removed from their accounts if they reach out to Mr. Reichlen. Please reach out with additional questions.

Our local Tenley / Friendship teen librarian will be visiting Deal this week to talk to kids about programming, summer reading, and to checkout/ exchange public library books. Stop at the table in the gallery to say hi to Brandon during lunch/ recess on Tuesday, June 2nd!

Stephen Reichlen

Library Media Specialist

Deal MS – DC Public Schools

stephen.reichlen@k12.dc.gov

https://app.smore.com/n/uxjamz

https://app.smore.com/n/ftm73

Simeon Bien-Aime, MS, CAS

School Psychologist | Alice Deal Middle School

Simeon.Bien-Aime@k12.dc.gov

I did not learn how to do this until my son was in 8th grade, and man I wish I had figured out this trick sooner. You can change your settings on Aspen to send you an email whenever a grade is input for your child below a certain threshold. My husband and I use this function because we don't regularly check Aspen, but we do check email! So every now and then, we can ask our son what happened with a particular assignment or what his plan is for making up missed work. See attached document.

-Ms. Byrns

Beginning this year, families are required to submit excuse notes for students in Aspen GO—the mobile-friendly version of Aspen Parent Portal. The previously existing online system we used has been disabled.

Instructions on how to submit an excuse note are available below.

Submitting an Excuse Note in Aspen GO (Parent Portal).pdf - 443.2 KB (pdf)

Envío de una nota justificativa en Aspen GO (Portal para padres).pdf - 543.4 KB (pdf)

Soumettre une note d'excuse dans Aspen GO (portail parents).pdf - 489.0 KB (pdf)

በ‘Aspen GO’ (የወላጅ ፖርታልParent Portal) ላይ፣ ፈቃድ-ማግኛ ማስታወሻ (Excuse Note)ን ማስገባት.pdf - 504.7 KB (pdf)

在 Aspen GO（家长门户）中提交请假条.pdf - 507.6 KB (pdf)

Nộp Giấy Xin Phép Nghỉ học Trên Aspen GO (Cổng Thông Tin Phụ Huynh).pdf - 315.5 KB (pdf)

Additional information on how to use the Parent Portal can be found at dcps.dc.gov/page/parent-portal.

Congratulations to Ha and Jahir for being named students of the month. In IB, a "Communicator" is a learner who expresses ideas and information effectively and creatively, both in their own language and in at least one other language, across various forms of communication. They are also good listeners and collaborators, understanding and responding to the perspectives of others.

Congratulations to the IB Learner Profile Students of the Month, exemplifying KNOWLEDGEABLE: Oliver Green-Simms and Aloysius Kerr! In the IB Learner Profile, a knowledgeable student actively explores concepts, ideas, and issues with local and global significance, developing a broad and balanced understanding across various disciplines. They strive for in-depth knowledge and understanding, going beyond surface-level learning to make connections between different areas of study.

April students of the month, Olivia and Joaquim, are open minded! The IB Learner Profile states that open-minded students “critically appreciate (their) own cultures and personal histories, as well as the values and traditions of others. (They) seek and evaluate a range of points of view and are willing to grow from the experience.”

Congratulations to our IB Learner Profile Students of the Month, exemplifying THINKER: Natasha & Dane. Thinkers use critical and creative thinking skills to analyze and take responsible action on complex problems. They exercise initiative in making reasoned, ethical decisions.

Chloe & Gregory

As reflective students, they thoughtfully consider the world and their own ideas and experience. They work to understand their strengths and weaknesses in order to support their learning and personal development.

Congratulations to our December IB Learner Profile Students of the Month for Principled: Andrew and True. The IB Learner Profile states that a person who is principled is someone who respects the dignity and feelings of others, is honest and accountable, and accepts both responsibility for their decisions and the consequences that accompany them.

Congratulations to our IB Learner Profile Students of the Month, exemplifying CARING: Diosmar and Max. Students who are caring show empathy, compassion, and respect towards the needs and feelings of others. They have a personal commitment to service, and act to make a positive difference to the lives of others and the world around them. From helping a friend, to picking up garbage after lunch, if you care, it will show!

Congratulations to our IB Learner Profile Students of the Month: Inquirers Amelia and Julian. The IB Learner Profile aims to develop students who are inquirers. Students who are inquirers nurture their curiosity, developing skills for inquiry and research. They know how to learn independently and with others. Inquirers learn with enthusiasm and sustain their love of learning throughout life.

Congratulations to our IB Learner Profile Students of the Month. This month Team Kathmandu teachers are highlighting the RISK TAKER learner profile: Matlida and Jairo. Risk takers approach uncertainty with forethought and determination; they work independently and cooperatively to explore new ideas and innovative strategies. They are resourceful and resilient in the face of challenges and change.