Ballenger Creek Middle School
Community Newsletter - January 2024
Dear Ballenger Creek Middle Families,
I hope that you and your loved ones are well. In some ways it’s hard to believe that we’re ready to start the second half of the school year. It’s a good time to acknowledge all of the work that you, your students, and our staff have done to get to this point--thank you for all of your efforts to help lead your children towards success!
Along that path to success is struggle. We know you’re very aware of when your students experience difficulties related to school--whether it’s academic or social. It’s important that we as a parent-school team offer just the right amount of support--not too little, but not too much either. If a situation is a matter of student safety, the adults of course need to intervene right away--please contact us immediately. In many situations, however, a manageable amount of struggle actually builds strength, perseverance, and confidence in our children.
If you’re not sure which type of challenge your student is facing and want to talk through what possible next steps or support we can collectively offer, please don’t hesitate to reach out to your child’s counselor, assistant principal, or me--we’re all here to help!
Take care,
Jay Schill
Principal, BCMS
6th Grade Updates
7th Grade Updates
Happy New Year, everyone! We hope you had a relaxing and enjoyable break! We are looking forward to a great second half of the year. Please remember to check your student’s grades on Schoology. Term two ended on January 12th. Please remind your student that they can request to be pulled during homebase time for additional help by their teachers. They can also get additional support through the TutorMe program, accessed online through the Clever portal. Thank you for all your support. We wish you all the best in 2024!
8th Grade Updates
Happy New Year, 8th grade families! We hope you had a great break. Please continue to remind your child to come to school with their Chromebook fully charged, their charger, and any other supplies they need for class (ex: pencil, folders, etc.). We recommend checking your child’s grades frequently on Schoology. If your child needs additional support, they should reach out to their teacher to ask to be pulled for tutoring. Thank you for your support!
ELA Department
6th Grade:
Mrs. Giacco's classes are finishing up with their informational text unit and learning how authors of informational text use situational impacts to reveal central ideas. Mrs. Zumbar's classes are ending Term 2 with a look at folktales focusing on common themes developed through characters' point of view and responses. We are working with the short story "The Wise Old Woman," examining how one character's perspective toward others develops the theme of a story.
As we move forward to Cycle 5, we will be analyzing memoirs and literary texts to answer the essential question, How can someone’s family identity influence how they view themselves and others? Students will compare and contrast how point of view reveals theme and central idea. Students will then compose a narrative to write a continuation of one of the texts from this cycle.
7th Grade:
For the remainder of term 2, seventh grade is doing a written response and a project on the civil rights leaders we have studied to answer the essential question from this unit, which is "How have human rights been challenged and defended?"
To start term 3, we will be returning to fiction with a focus on how people become who they are. We will read several short stories and also read a novel.
8th Grade:
8th Grade Students recently finished their Cycle 4 Sweater Projects, researching individuals who challenged the status quo. Term 3 will start with students analyzing character responses, reactions, and motivations as they read various poems, short stories, and other literary texts. Students will work to answer the Cycle essential question, “How are people changed by love?”. Some of the texts from this cycle include Edgar Allan Poe’s “Annabel Lee,” William Shakespeare’s “Sonnet 18,” and Grace Chua’s “(love song, with two goldfish).”
Mrs. Nuckols and Mrs. Weller would like to remind students that they are encouraged to pass 2 i-Ready Reading Lessons each week. Students can access the i-Ready Reading Lessons through the Clever Portal.
Math Department
6th Grade:
Moving into Module 4: Integers and Comparing Rational Numbers (positive and negative numbers, comparing whole numbers, fractions, and decimals)
7th Grade:
Module 4: Rational Number Operations (adding, subtracting, multiplying and dividing in expressions where fractions and decimals are present)
8th Grade:
Module 5: Functions (identifying functions, linear vs. nonlinear functions, comparing functions)
Algebra:
Module 5: Creating Linear Equations (slope-intercept form, point slope form, and standard form equations)
Students should be completing weekly ALEKS topic goals in Math. Students should be checking their Math Schoology pages to see their specific weekly goal. Students can monitor their own progress by checking their topic reports in ALEKS. A step-by-step “how to” for checking their reports can be found here. For questions about ALEKS topic goals, please reach out to your student’s grade level math teacher, our school Math Specialist, Ms. Boyer (laura.boyer@fcps.org), or our school Math Department Chair, Ms. Dickson (ashley.dickson@fcps.org).
Students should be checking their grade reports on Schoology weekly to see updates regarding missing/re-do work. If there are any questions regarding student grades, please reach out to your student’s grade level math teacher
Articulation season is beginning for our 6th and 7th grade students for middle school courses for next year. The county has made some changes to how the math courses will be structured for next year. Please be on the lookout for information regarding updates and recommendations for next year’s courses.
The high school will be sending current 8th graders information regarding high school math class options for next year. If you have any questions regarding the recommendations that are given please reach out to your child’s math teacher or the math specialist, Laura Boyer.
History Department
6th Grade:
6th grade students will be finishing the Unit on India by the end of the term. Afterwards, students will be learning about ancient China. Students will be examining how geography will impact ancient china and learn about the isolation that occurred between China and the world during this time. Otherwise, students will learn about the growth of the empire and technological developments. Your teachers would also like to remind students to pay close attention to deadlines in Term 3, due to the lack of days off of school, deadlines might be approaching quicker than in the prior terms.
7th Grade:
7th grade students are currently Unit 4: Medieval Asia. Students will be completing a DBQ (4 paragraph essay) and the benchmark near the end of Term 2. In Term 3, students will begin Unit 5 which will look at Central and South America before the arrival of Christopher Columbus. Specifically, students will learn about the Mayans, Aztecs, and Inca. Students will examine how geography impacted each civilization as well as their culture and society. Your teachers would also like to remind students to pay close attention to deadlines in Term 3, due to the lack of days off of school, deadlines might be approaching quicker than in the prior terms.
8th Grade:
8th grade students are starting Unit 4 on Westward Expansion. During this unit, students will learn about key events and policies that led to the expansion of the United States. We will end this unit with our final Benchmark, which will be a DBQ (5 paragraph essay).
Science Department
6th Grade:
Students are studying factors that determine weather. This study includes the behavior of air masses and the types of fronts that result when air masses of different pressure and temperatures meet.
7th Grade:
Students are completing the chemistry and matter unit by designing and building incubators for reptile eggs (simulated). Students are using their understanding of endothermic and exothermic reactions to create the optimal temperature range for survival of the eggs.
8th Grade:
Students are learning about DNA and the role it plays in genetics with specific attention paid to the various types of mutations that can arise and how these mutations may impact protein production.
Fine & Practical Arts Department
We hope you had a very rest-filled break.
Please remember to check your student’s schedule for the upcoming term and semester. Some classes in P.E. will be going to health in term 3, while some other students will be heading back to the gym.
** P.E. is an interactive class which includes making sure you have the proper footwear to fully participate. We strongly advise that students should not be wearing boots, Crocs, heels, sandals, or slippers for P.E. Sneakers are the preferred option. Students should come prepared to be fully engaged.
Also, some students will be switching their semester classes coming up shortly. Please run through the schedule and map out the best route to get to and from your new classes. We look forward to meeting our new students in semester 2!
Special Education Department
Happy New Year! We welcome our families to contact us with questions or support that may be needed.
6th Grade: Rebecca Schimel and Emily Pemrick
7th Grade: Elissa Grimm
8th Grade: Athena Fream and Tyler Britt
Speech and Language Pathologist: Kellee Byun
School Psychologist: Julie Kaufhold
Program Assistant: Nancy Suray
Multilingual Learners
Multilingual students are preparing for their annual English progress assessment. Students will have time in their home base and in their classes for review and practice. Ms. Webb and Ms. Birmanns are available to help and answer questions so don't hesitate to reach out to us. Students can prepare at home using links from their classes to various online practice platforms and by using English as much as possible in school and out of school. What benefit do students get from doing their best on the test? First, It is always a good idea to demonstrate your knowledge. Second, seeing how far they have come in a year is really inspirational. Finally, students may be able to exit the ML program and have more time for electives in the future!
Please reach out to Ms. Birmanns or Ms. Webb for any support that is needed. Both can be reached via email or phone.
Ms. Birmanns - sarah.birmanns@fcps.org
Ms. Webb - claudine.webb@fcps.org
5 Star Service Award
The 5-Star Service Award is for community use in recognizing FCPS employees who show excellence in one of the 5 FCPS goals. Community members are welcome to nominate any worthy FCPS employees. You can nominate here.