6th Grade
We have learned the Old Testament songs and can sing them at a moment’s notice!! Pretty good stuff! We have looked at Hebrew (Old Testament) Scripture and will continue to do so as we make our way through Salvation History up to the time of Joshua and entering into the Promised Land. This will take us a good portion of the year, but we will continue to learn, at this point, about Scripture and how important it is – it is the Word of God, and how Scripture is TRUE but not necessarily FACTUAL. We then understand that spiritual truths are where we can learn the most and apply them to our daily living.

7th Grade
I am proud of your students as we have gotten off to a great start this year, singing the New Testament songs. We have looked at the impact of Christ in our lives, and we will move on to how His Church is accessible to us, through Scripture and Tradition. Christian Scripture (the New Testament) takes a huge roll this year, as we come to learn about the Evangelists and their impact on our lives today. We will also cover how the Gospels came to be written, why is Acts of the Apostles so important, and how truth is contained in Scripture even though all of Scripture may not be factual.

8th Grade
We have started off on a wonderfully great foot this year. I am so proud of your children and the work that they have done thus far. We will continue with our study of the Images of the Church, and move on to Respect Life Month, in October with the Hike for Life. Your children do receive 6 hours of Service for this event! They will also help to construct the Tree of Life that will be down the hall outside of the Social Studies, Library and Religion rooms. We will make Trinity rolls, to show how leaven grows and spreads, then we will move on to our roots of Christianity, deeply steeped in the Hebrew Scriptures, and reviewing Abraham, our Father in Faith.

Please feel free to contact me with questions or constructive comments at bbelcher@saintspride.com Looking forward to hearing from you!

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6th Grade
We are currently on Unit 2 which will cover chapters 3-5. Chapter 3 introduces the Civilizations of Ancient Egypt and Nubia. Chapter 4 introduces geography and civilizations of ancient India. Chapter 5 will introduce them to the history of ancient China.

7th Grade
In October the students will be on Unit 3 which deals with the Mexican government attempted to persuade Americans to settle in Texas and live as Mexican citizens. These settlers soon rebelled against Mexico’s authority. Chapter 5 discusses the settlement of Texas under the Empresario system. Chapter 6 examines the breakdown of relations between the Texas settlers and the Mexican government. Chapter 7 describes the events that took place during the first months of the Texas Revolution. Chapter 8 explains how Texas achieved its independence form Mexico.

8th Grade
In October the Students will be on Unit 2 which deals with the revolutionary era of the United States. Chapter 5 deals with Crisis of the Colonies, chapter 6 The American Revolution, chapter 7 Creating a Republic and The Constitution of the United States, and chapter 8 Government, Citizenship, and the Constitution.

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Science Articles are due October 1st and October 15th. Bonus article is due on October 15th. Science Binders are due Tuesday, October 20.

We will discuss science fair topics during the month of October.

7th Grade
Students are studying plant and animal cells. Their edible cell project is due next week. Next we will be studying cell processes and energy. Students will select science fair topics and begin researching their topic. 7th grade will write a science research paper in English with Mrs. Borth. This paper will coincide with their science fair project.

8th Grade
Students will finish up Bones, Muscles and Skin. They did a great job creating a song which incorporated the bones of the body. Next, we will study digestions. Students will be required to keep a food journal in which they record everything they eat. They will then complete an analysis of their eating habits and make recommendations on how they could improve their eating habits. Students will select their science fair topics during the month of October as well.

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6th Grade English
We have just started a unit on nouns. It will include identifying, compound, proper, common, abstract, concrete, singular/plural, gender, nominative case (subject, complement, direct address, appositive), and possessive case. The test is scheduled for October 20. We will then begin a unit on pronouns. Spelling for October includes lessons 7, 8. 9. and 10. Achievement testing is the week of October 12 so no tests or projects will be due that week.

6th Grade Literature
We just finished our first class novel, Walk Two Moons and thoroughly enjoyed it. We are now into a Fiction/Non-Fiction unit from the text book. We will read the stories in class and have comprehension and vocabulary with each story. The students will also learn the two ways to design a plot diagram. The Fiction/Non-Fiction test is scheduled for October 21. We will then begin our second class novel, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. Assignments will include comprehension questions, vocabulary, pop quizzes, and we will thoroughly discuss the Christian symbolism in the novel. Achievement test is the week of October 12 so no tests or projects will be due that week.

8th Grade English
We have begun taking notes on the research paper. Some of the due dates are:

• sources, October 6
• bibliography cards, October 7
• thesis statement, October 8
• typed outline, October 19

Spelling for the month of October includes lessons 7, 8, 9, and 10. Achievement testing is the week of October 12 so no tests or projects will be due that week.

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7th Grade
We are currently reading Ten Little Indians also known as And Then There Were None. This is an Agatha Christie murder mystery which the students really seem to enjoy. Students are also given twenty different vocabulary words every two weeks. These words can be found on my web page. We study these words together in class each day, and students are required to take an on-line quiz over these words – www.vocabtest.com. The test dates for these are also found on my web site.

This year I am combining an ELA research paper with their science project research paper. This paper will take six weeks to write, so students need to be thinking of exactly what they want to do as an experiment. They may still work with a partner, but they will write their papers individually. They will receive a grade in both Science and English for this paper.

8th Grade
We are finishing The Giver. Please check my website or your child’s planner for test dates. We will also have a writing assignment that will be assigned after the novel is finished. Just as a reminder, students still need to take their on-line quizzes this year. They can be found at www.vocabtest.com. We have vocabulary quizzes every two weeks.

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