Clark Middle School Newsletter
May 1st, 2026
Principal Bennetta Orchitt
CLARK 8TH GRADE RECOGNITION CEREMONIES have been scheduled for May 19th. There are two separate time slots to give each Team personal time to celebrate.
**Balloons are not Allowed at the ceremonies**
Each of the ceremonies will begin promptly at 9:30 am and 1:10 pm in the Gymnasium. There will be adequate space for parking for our families during the ceremonies. Please mark your calendar.
I would like to thank our students, families, and community, who have supported us throughout this entire year. Our success would not have been possible without your positive outlook, support, and commitment to excellence in academics, attendance, and attitude! Without your support and feedback this would not have been possible.
Middle School Schedule Update: 2026–27 School Year
The School Board's adoption of the 7-period day memo is increasing opportunities for students at our school.
The transition to a 6-period schedule will be paused for one year.
Middle schools will continue operating on the current schedule model for the 2026–27 school year.
Course & Elective Updates
These changes are designed to:
Preserve a broad range of student choices where possible
Ensure required core instruction remains fully supported
Looking Ahead for Next Year
Please complete the online registration in ParentConnect, which is now open.
We will finalize schedules based on submitted preferences and updated staffing allocations.
Looking Ahead: Planning for a 6-Period Day
During the 2026–27 school year, families and students will have multiple opportunities to share feedback on:
Elective offerings
Program priorities
Schedule structure preferences
This input will help guide planning for a future transition to a 6-period schedule.
Thank you for your continued partnership and support.
TUESDAY, MAY 19th
CLARK 8TH GRADE RECOGNITION CEREMONIES have been scheduled for two separate time slots to give each Team personal time to celebrate.
The ceremonies will begin promptly at 9:30 AM and 1:10 PM in the Gymnasium. There will be adequate space for parking for our families during the ceremonies. Please mark your calendar.
9:30 AM - 10:55AM
Team Perseverance
Team Unity
1:10 PM - 2:30 PM
Team Resilience
Team Persistence
Students should dress appropriately for the event.
Student Attire
- Students are to come to school dressed for their ceremony. Please come prepared.
- School Dress code will be enforced
No gum, food, or drinks during the ceremony.
**Balloons are not Allowed at the ceremonies*
Does your student need additional help with school work and submitting assignments?
We want to help your student finish the Quarter strong with "ZAP the ZEROES"
On Saturday, May 9th, teachers will help students with tutoring and to complete assignments from 10:00 am - 1:00 pm.
Our goal is to reduce the number of zeros, and help students become more successful.
7th grade Language Arts- Marissa Ridgley
Ms. Ridgley’s English Language Arts class has completed its study of the novel Tangerine and
will now begin a focused unit on literary analysis essays. Students will employ close-reading
strategies and gather textual evidence to construct clear, thesis-driven analyses that explore
character development, thematic complexity, and the author’s craft. Instruction will model and
reinforce essay structure, including introduction and thesis development, textual support and
analysis, transitions, and effective conclusions. Emphasis will be placed on integrating
quotations smoothly, citing evidence accurately, and developing sustained analytical commentary
rather than summary.
After the essay unit, the class will transition to a comprehensive poetry unit. Students will study
a range of poetic forms (including but not limited to sonnet, free verse, and lyrical stanza forms),
analyze figurative language and sound devices (metaphor, simile, imagery, alliteration, rhyme,
rhythm), and examine how form and technique shape meaning. Close analysis tasks will ask
students to trace how a poet’s choices create tone, build imagery, and convey perspective.
Fletcher Tagueshell-Science
Mr. Tague's science class will be introduced to waves this month. We will learn how and why
waves are energy moving through matter. We will then begin working on circuits and electricity.
Students will be making their own circuits!
Thank you!
Math- Brianna Wright:
Hello Parents,
Let’s finish the year strong. We are working with inequalities and will be starting on Working
with Graphs. I-Ready Diagnostics will start on the 4th and I am excited to see how your student
has grown. Please remind them to take their time and do their best. We still have students who
think it is a race and it is not. This is our last month of school and we still have learning to do.
Please remind your child to be responsible, be respectful, and be safe in school.
World Geography/ History- David Holmes:
Mr. Holmes's Social Studies classes are completing their study of the Early Explorers and the
Columbian Exchange and will soon move on to their study of Asia, Australia, and Oceania.
Additionally, students are gearing up to begin their Spring semester individual presentation
projects.
Mr. Holmes's English Language Arts class is completing their study of the novel, Tangerine,
and are beginning their literary analysis essays, and will be moving on to their poetry study.
Team Valor:
Mr. Tague Shell - Science: tagueshell_fletcher@asdk12.org
Ms. Wright - Wright: wright_brianne@asdk12.org
Mr. Holmes - Social Studies: holmes_david@asdk12.org
Ms. Ridgley - Language Arts: ridgley_marissa@asdk12.org
Powerful Pride
Getting from here to There, together by Discovering Who We Are
Exciting News for November 2026
“Tenacity is more than twice the weight of intelligence.”
Springboard, Language Arts 6: Ms. M. Smith & Ms. Ridgley:
Through independent research projects, students investigate the historical, cultural, and social contexts that shape the poetry of various eras and regions. They will examine the lives and legacies of poets and notable figures, uncovering the narratives behind their renowned poems and significant contributions. By engaging in personal reflections and comprehensive biographical research, students illuminate the experiences and influences that contribute to the distinctive and inspiring voices of these poets and figures, as well as their poetic visions and actions.
SCIENCE: Ms. Olsen:
In science for the last month of the school year, we will finish off our unit on energy then we will be exploring the engineering design process. We will learn what that process is then use it to complete several small activities. Our final project for the year is designing, constructing, and testing a bridge built with popsicle sticks and glue!
SOCIAL STUDIES: Mr. Moran:
In this unit, students will look at how human actions modify or influence the physical environment, to what extent the physical environment influence human actions, how does Africa’s unique physical geography influence food and resource distribution and impact the social, economic and political condition, and how does Africa represent a diverse cultural mosaic and the enduring legacy of colonization and migration within this continent.
ELL Math/SCIENCE: Ms. Mohammad:
We will continue to work on ratios and proportions, part-to-part ratios, and ratios that characterize the parts of a whole in Ms. Afshan Mohammad's IReady Math 6 classes. We'll attempt to delve in and discover more about percentages and rates. Investigate and find a solution for the unknown in word problems requiring multiplicative comparisons; differentiate between multiplicative and addictive comparisons; and express word problems involving multiplicative comparisons with drawings and symbols.
Vocabulary list:
• Symbol
• Equivalent ratios
• Unknown
• Coordinate planes
• Divide
• Ordered pair
• Division
• x - axis
• Equation
• x - coordinate
• Factor
• y - axis
• Multiplication
• y – coordinate
• Multiplicative comparisons
• Graph (Noun)
• Multiply Graph (Verb)
The 6th through 8th grade NCC/ELL Integrated Science students demonstrated their talent and skills by placing first, second, and third in the State Kids Windmills Challenge/Olympics 2024. Currently we are building cupcake-making solar ovens. Sunrises and sunsets heat and light the world. That bright spot in the sky is so normal we rarely see it. We couldn't survive without it! The sun's core fuses hydrogen atoms unclearly. Energy from them travels 186,000 miles per second in all directions. Earth receives 93 million kilometers of energy in eight minutes. Earth uses several energy sources, but the sun provides most, including thermal and light energy! Energy conservation states that energy can change forms but never runs out. Solar energy has several forms. Plants use photosynthesis to convert sunlight into food. Animals use plantprovided chemical energy for everything. Solar heat causes weather patterns, which generate wind. Wind turbines convert wind energy into electricity. Hydroelectricity is generated by solar heat from evaporation keeping water moving through the water cycle. Many human activities now use fossil fuels like natural gas, coal, and oil. Through photosynthesis, ancient plants and animals get their energy from the sun. Over very long periods, various energy sources are produced.
Solar energy exceeds the world's annual consumption in one hour. It would be great to quickly capture and use that energy to power our homes, cities, and cars! Many scientists worldwide are optimizing solar energy. Water and air can be heated using solar thermal panels. Solar cells, or photovoltaic (PV) cells, turn sunlight into electricity. A "photovoltaic" converts light into electricity. Silicon collects solar energy in photovoltaic cells. When exposed to sunlight, cell silicon atoms emit electrons. The solar cell structure drives electrons to one side, where they generate a negative charge and leave a positive charge. Like a battery, a wired cell moves electrons from negative to positive. Electricity powers connected devices like lightbulbs and motors. Photovoltaic cells capture little solar radiation. They need lots of room to capture enough sunlight to generate enough power. Significant scientific study is needed to minimize size and improve quality. Despite these challenges, solar panels power school crossing lights and emergency sirens. Solar panels on roofs will power many homes as technology advances.
Math: Ms. Cleopas: This May, we will do statistical thinking, we will explore data distributions by organizing and analyzing data sets to identify patterns and trends. We will also learn about measures of center, like mean and median, and measures of variability, such as range and interquartile range, to describe and compare data more effectively.
As this school year comes to an end, we’d like to thank you once again for your continued support and positive contributions that led to our students’ success. Our students, families, and staff have put forth great effort to make this school year great! There is much to be proud of this school year.
The Team would like to recognize all the heroes here at Clark supporting students and their learning:
School Lunch Hero Appreciation
When we say school nutrition professionals are heroes, we mean it! That’s why we celebrate them every spring with the annual School Lunch Hero Day. Let us recognize the difference these team members make for every child who comes through our cafeteria.
School Nurse Appreciation
Since 1972, National School Nurse Day has been set aside to recognize school nurses. National School Nurse Day was established to foster a better understanding of the role of school nurses in the educational setting.
What Is Teacher Appreciation Week?
Teacher Appreciation Week is a time set aside in May for honoring educators. The week-long celebration is the culmination of a 40-year push to establish a national Teacher Appreciation Day. According to the National Education Association (NEA), a Wisconsin teacher named Ryan Krug began writing to political leaders around 1944 about the need for a national day to recognize teachers for their hard work and dedication to students. Arkansas teacher Mattie Whyte Woodridge took up the cause. She wrote to Eleanor Roosevelt, who in 1953 convinced Congress to proclaim a National Teachers Day.
“I have always felt that we did not give an honorable enough place in our communities to the teachers,” Roosevelt wrote in her newspaper column, “My Day,” after Congress designated the first Tuesday of March as National Teachers Day. “Next to parents, they are the most important people in our communities.”
In 1985, the National PTA established Teacher Appreciation Week. The NEA then voted to mark National Teachers Day on the Tuesday that marks the beginning of Appreciation Week.
Of course, we all know that every day is a great day to show appreciation for educators. But since 1985, the official celebration of teachers has taken place during the first full week of May every year, with National Teacher Day on the Tuesday of that week. Teacher Appreciation Week 2026 runs from Monday, May 4, to Friday, May 8.
We are so excited to celebrate our phenomenal Clark teachers, who are the BEST! This is always such a fun week for students and teachers. We love you, Clark teachers, this week and EVERY WEEK!
Ashshanta Swisher, Special Education Resources
Team Resilience is looking forward to a strong conclusion for this year and to send you off to be successful in high school next year.
In Science, we will have many genetics-based activities where students will come up with a claim, show evidence, and describe their reasoning. Students will know about DNA, genes, protein synthesis, inheritance, embryology, and other topics.
In Social Studies we will have our last current events assessment and begin exploring how Colonial America transitioned into the United States of America.
English Language Arts will finish up its exploration of comedy with Shakespeare’s Midsummer Night’s Dream.
In Math we will be finishing our unit on the Pythagorean Theorem and volume of 3D shapes. If we have time at the end of the month we will cover functions and two-way tables.
Feel free to let us know if you have any questions or concerns:
Science: Jason Patterson patterson_jason@asdk12.org
Social Studies: Michael Moberly moberly_michael@asdk12.org
English Language Arts: Scott Macdonald macdonald_scott@asdk12.org
Math: John Weaver weaver_john@asdk12.org
Greetings, Parent/Guardian!
Team Pizzazz is excited to participate in Outdoor Science Week with your student in May. As a reminder, any students with behavior enrollments (RIC, ISS, or OSS) are not eligible to attend. We will be going to the Campbell Creek Science Center on Friday, May 15th. Please message Ms. Pfisterer for more information.
We are also working hard to ensure your student finishes Quarter 4 on a strong note. The end of Q4 is Thursday, May 21st at 10:00 pm. If you have any questions about your student’s academic progress on Team Pizzazz, please contact their subject teacher. The most accurate grade-check website is QStudent/ParentConnect. We have several fun activities planned for the last few days of school, but student attendance at these events is based on passing grades (excluding the field trip). Please let us know with any questions, comments, or concerns.
Best,
Team Pizzazz
Ms. Cash (Language Arts) --> cash_ellie@asdk12.org
Ms. Pfisterer (Science) --> pfisterer_abigail@asdk12.org
Ms. Nault (Social Studies) --> nault_tanya@asdk12.org
Ms. Nourollahi (Writing) nourollahi_parvaneh@asdk12.org
Social Studies 7, Mr. Rover
Social Studies students will complete the production of their podcast series on historical civilizations and existing modern systems. Final podcasts focus on students resolving problems that impact them directly.
Computer Technology 7, Mr. Rover
Students in this class support the technical needs of the student body and the school’s Chromebook fleet. They are continuing to increase their knowledge of and abilities in Chromebook troubleshooting and functionality.
Science, Ms. Apgar-Kurtz
In the final few weeks of school, we will be exploring light and sound waves through labs, games, and other activities.
ELA, Mr. Gordon
Students will be finishing their final projects for their novel studies. After these projects are completed we will be engaging in a brief but fun poetry exploration before wrapping up the year!
We have so enjoyed getting to know and teach these 8th graders! May is going to be full of wrapping up content and then celebrating these 8th graders before they head off to high school!
We are focusing our conversation and work this quarter on Artificial Intelligence and its impacts on all of us. A culmination of this is going to be our field trip on May 15th to Bear Tooth Theater to watch Ready Player One and get pizza! Permission slips have already gone out, so if you need another one let us know!
Lastly, we will be having our Promotion Ceremony on May 19th at 9:30. Come celebrate these student’s achievements with us!
If you have any questions or concerns, please don't hesitate to let us know.
Science - Chelsea Fullman fullman_chelsea@asdk12.org
Social Studies - Ryan Ripollone ripollone_ryan@asdk12.org
Language Arts - Bethany Bean bean_bethany@asdk12.org
Math - Bryan Maxwell maxwell_ryan@asdk12.org
National Junior Honor Society.
What a fabulous Wednesday Evening on April 22, 2026, to honor and celebrate this year's outstanding inductees into the National Junior Honor Society! It was a truly special occasion filled with pride, joy, and recognition of exceptional achievement. The National Junior Honor Society is a prestigious organization that recognizes 6th and 7th-grade students who exemplify excellence in Scholarship, Service, Leadership, Character, and Citizenship throughout their school years.
This year, our current members welcomed several newly inducted 6th and 7th-graders into the Aurora Chapter of the National Junior Honor Society. We are immensely proud of each and every one of our inductees for their remarkable dedication and commitment to these values.
A heartfelt thank you goes out to Mrs. Swisher for her exceptional leadership within the Clark Middle School’s chapter of the NJHS. Her unwavering dedication and mentorship have been instrumental in guiding our students toward success and personal growth. We are truly grateful for her tireless efforts and commitment to excellence.
To our inductees: Congratulations on this well-deserved recognition! Your achievements serve as a testament to your hard work and determination. We are excited to see the positive impact you will continue to make in our community and beyond.
MARK YOUR CALENDAR:
May
May 7th - NJHS Ceremony @ 5 pm
May 9th - Zap the Zeros 10 am - 1 pm
May 11th - Choir Concert @ 5pm / Orchestra Concert @ 6pm
May 12th - Band Concert @ 6pm
May 15th - Locker Clean -Out
May 19th - 8th Grade Recognition Ceremony - 9:30-10:55(Team Perseverance & Team Unity), 1:10-2:30 (Team Resilience & Persistence)
May 21st - End of Quarter 4 / Student's Last Day
May 22nd - Teacher's Last Day
May 25th - Memorial Day