Fusion Communication: June 3

Hi all,

It’s getting closer! The final weeks begin. There are many moving parts over these final two weeks - please check in with your child about their schedule and final assessments.

8th Grade - Buy a Chromebook for $25!

The district is offering for students and families to buy their Chromebook for $25.  

8th Grade Great Escape Field Trip Update - Wed, June 5th

Please make arrangements to drop your child off at BRMS by 6:45 am on Wednesday, and to pick them up from BRMS around 7 pm.  We will ask students to call or text with a more precise arrival time on the way home. Lunch is included, but students will definitely need snacks for the drive there and back!  Please direct any questions to lisa.windhausen@cesuvt.org.   

8th Grade Boat Trip - June 12

The day of Recognition Night (June 12), 8th graders have the opportunity to join their classmates and select staff for a cruise aboard the Spirit of Ethan Allen III.  Students would be transported to the Burlington waterfront after the annual awards ceremony and back to school to take buses home.

7th Grade Jourasionville Economics Simulation

7th grade students will practice entrepreneurial, community and personal finance skills June 11th during the annual Jourasionville economics simulation. Students can choose from three options:

• Business Owner (CANNOT spend more than $20 on materials for the project; that is for the entire business EVEN IF there are three owners)
• Employee
• Town Council, Police Chief and Mayor (Only )

Laptops stay at school over long weekend

Calendar:

June 3: Official Move-up Day - 8th Graders to MMU

June 4: 8th Grade French Final

June 5: Great Escape Field Trip for 8th Grade

June 11: 8th Grade Laptops are audited by no later than this day

June 12: Official! Recognition Night for 8th Grade; last “official” day of middle school for 8th grade

  Boat Trip for 8th Graders - Permission form attached

June 11: Changed Date! 7th Grade Jourasionville economics simulation (more information to come)

  All Laptops turned in and audited by this day!

June 13: Changed Date! 7th Grade Fusion/Journey joint field trip to Waterbury Center State Park (9ish-1:15ish)

June 14: Official!

June 17: Mostly Official Last day of school for grades 5-7

Curriculum Updates

LA

8 *** Assessments for LA are done! *** Students now are working on creating their own picture books -- some are working on their own, others decided to work in small groups. Participation in this unit will be reflected in their PD scores.

7 *** Assessments for LA are done! *** Students will be listening to a read aloud of I Will Always Write Back by Caitlin Alifirenka and Martin Ganda. There will be some light notebook work and we hope to be able to do some reading outside. Participation in this unit will be reflected in their PD scores.

Math

7th - Student continued with their probability unit by investigating how experimental probability can be used to determine the fairness of a game.  The culmination of this unit will be over the next two weeks as we introduce and complete a project in which students will design, create, and analyze their own probability game.  

8th - Students continued their work with combining expressions and extending this work to combining and solving equations.  We will continue our work with solving equations as the schedule allows next week and finish with a quiz on the topic.

Science

7th - Students created and analyzed models of food webs and energy pyramids of ecosystems.  This week, they made a claim of which species impacts a marsh food web the most, and supported their claim with evidence and reasoning.  They are currently preparing for our river study next week, with the goal of determining if the Brown’s River is healthy enough to release our brook trout!  Please note that students must plan to be outside at the river - Group C on Thursday, Group D on Friday.

8th - After considering the balanced and unbalanced forces involved in falling objects, students are now exploring the transfer of energy and momentum when objects collide!  They will use information on car crash safety designs to engineer a safety cage for their car crash dummy (egg) which I will drop from the top of the school someday soon! Please review the Great Escape info above to prepare your child for this field trip on Wednesday!

SS

7 - Students are putting the finishing touches on the last assessment called Perspectives: Past, Present and Future; the unit is current events based and requires students to research a topic affecting the world today.  Then, students explain how the development of the issues in this topic have affected culture in the past, the present and possible impacts on the future.  Students were allowed to choose from a variety of topics revolving around the theme of climate change. In addition, the focus of the class is now shifting to the final activity of the year: Jourasionville! If you have not heard much about this activity, please check in with your child - depending on their plans, family participation will be essential.

8 - Students are in the final stages of a unit entitled Causes of the Civil War. After completing the last current events unit Memorials: Why are Civil War monuments controversial?, students are researching three, self-selected causes of the Civil War to prepare for the district assessment. Because of scheduling and field trips, some 8th graders have only THREE hours of social studies left in the year:) This week is a very good time to check in about those last assignments.

Enjoy your weekend.

The Fusion Team

Fusion Communication: May 17

Hi all,

So it feels like spring - in so many ways. Weather is warm(er), there are glimpses of the sun, and students are dreaming of unstructured days. As we approach the last few weeks of school, it’s a good time to check in with your child about assignments, field trips and family plans for the last few days. There will be assessments in June:)

8th Grade Great Escape Field Trip Update -
Thank you for supporting this year’s trip to the Great Escape! All permission forms are in! More details of the trip will follow. Please direct any questions to lisa.windhausen@cesuvt.org.

8th Grade Boat Trip - June 12The day of Recognition Night (June 12), 8th graders have the opportunity to join their classmates and select staff for a cruise aboard the Spirit of Ethan Allen III. Students would be transported to the Burlington waterfront after the annual awards ceremony and back to school to take buses home. For more information, please see the permission form from the email.

Calendar:
May 27: No School - Memorial Day
June 3: Official Move-up Day - 8th Graders to MMU
June 5: Great Escape Field Trip for 8th Grade
June 11: 8th Grade Laptops are audited by no later than this day
June 12: Official! Recognition Night for 8th Grade; last “official” day of middle school for 8th grade
Boat Trip for 8th Graders - Permission form attached
June 11: Changed Date! 7th Grade Jourasionville economics simulation (more information to come)
All Laptops turned in and audited by this day!
June 14: NEW!7th Grade Fusion/Journey joint field trip to Waterbury Center State Park (9ish-1:15ish)
June 17: Mostly Official Last day of school for grades 5-7

Curriculum Updates
LA
*** All students should be reading 30 minutes each day outside of class (either at home or in study halls). ***

7 Students have been working in class on their pre assessment for our last reading unit (Tapping the Power of Nonfiction). The unit will focus on identifying central ideas as well as tracking/analyzing them across a text.

8 This week, students have been working on a graphic organizer to plan their investigative journalism process piece. Completed graphic organizers are due today, 5/17. Next week students create and submit their final draft (due on Friday 5/24) using the graphic organizer as a guide.

Math
7: This week we started our last unit of the year, What Do You Expect, by exploring different probability activities and finding the experimental probability involved in each of the activities. We finished the week by introducing theoretical probability and comparing it to experimental probabilty. Next week, we will continue our work with theoretical probability by introducing compound events.

8: We wrapped up our current unit on transformation geometry, Butterflies, Pinwheels, and Wallpaper, this week with review and a unit test. Next week, we will begin our last unit of the year that will be a mixture of algebraic expression, solving equations, systems of equations, and quadratics depending on students’ readiness levels.

Science
7: Our final unit on Ecology began with a study of relationships among different species - predator-prey, competition, mutualism, parasitism, and commensalism. Students are now creating models of food webs and energy pyramids to track the flow of energy and cycling of matter within ecosystems.

8: Students will end the year with a mini-unit on Force, Motion & Energy. This week, they explored mathematical relationships between mass, energy, speed, and distance traveled using ramps and rolling cars, as well as a computer simulation. Next week, they’ll make the connection that as the distance between objects changes, potential energy changes.

SS
7 - Students are in the initial stages of the last unit, which is current event based and called Past, Present and Future. They have created population pyramids for different countries and linked historical events to changes in the population, used the population percentages to identify whether a country is Youthful, Ageing or Gaed, and experiencing Rapid, Slow or Zero/Negative growth. Finally, students have looked at the causes of instability within a country.

8 - The focus has been on the current debate about how the Civil War should be memorialized or remembered, with a focus on Confederate monuments and Robert E. Lee’s legacy. Students have also decided what causes of the Civil War they want to research and develop a project for to demonstrate proficiency for the unit.

Almost 80 degrees by Monday… is it really here to stay? Have a great weekend!

The Fusion Team

Fusion Communication: May 3

Hi all,

The last weeks have begun! So have SBAC assessments… please check ahead on calendars for appointments to see potential conflicts with SBACs - all assessments will take place in the morning from 8-10:30am (except Wednesday - no SBACs Wednesday due to delayed start).

8th Grade Great Escape Field Trip Update -
Please return the permission form ASAP! Great Escape would like our payment this week! Please direct any questions to lisa.windhausen@cesuvt.org.

SBAC Reminders:

1. Very Important - All laptops MUST remain at school over the weekend. Students will be testing for SBAC starting Monday so those laptops need to be fully charged.
2. Laptops will remain at school each night next week - so no homework will be assigned next week (students are VERY sad about this adjustment).
3. Earbuds or headphones - needs to have a 3.5mm jack to plug into laptops/Chromeboxes (school has a VERY limited # to share).
4. Food - NOT candy.
5. Reading material - high interest (teachers will provide alternatives).

Calendar:
May 6, 7, 9, 10 - Math/LA SBAC Assessments
May 8: Last Delayed Start
June 3: Official Move-up Day - 8th Graders to MMU
June 5: Great Escape Field Trip for 8th Grade
June 11: 8th Grade Laptops are audited by no later than this day
June 12: Official! Recognition Night for 8th Grade; last “official” day of middle school for 8th grade
June 13: 7th Grade Foursionville economics simulation (more information to come)
              All Laptops turned in and audited by this day!
June 14: NEW!7th Grade Fusion/Journey joint field trip to Waterbury Center State Park (9ish-1:15ish)
June 17: Mostly Official Last day of school for grades 5-7

Curriculum UpdatesLA
*** All students should be reading 30 minutes each day outside of class (either at home or in study halls). ***

7 Students handed in their process piece, an argument essay about competitive sports, on Wednesday. We have been making book covers and watching the film Christopher Robin to celebrate the end of our writing unit. Up next: nonfiction reading.

8 We have been exploring different types of journalism in class. This week, students have been listening to the podcast This American Life, specifically segments focusing on the middle school experience. Each time we examine a new story / form of journalism we discuss how the journalist delivered information and why the topic is considered newsworthy. Next week students will begin research for their process piece.

Math
7: This week, we have balanced our time wrapping up this year’s work with Moving Straight Ahead (we will continue it at the beginning of next year) while also orienting ourselves to the format of the upcoming SBACs and some of the types of questions students might see. Next week, in the spaces in between testing, we will be doing some small group work concentrating on past concepts where students could use some more work.

8: This week, we have continued our work with Transformation Geometry applying our understanding of reflections, rotations, and translations to transformations on a coordinate grid. We have have also spent time orienting ourselves to the format of the upcoming SBACs and some of the types of questions students might see. Next week, in the spaces in between testing, we will continue our work with our current unit extending our work to parallel lines and transversals as well as dilations.

Science
7: Students analyzed case studies and data to explore how species change over long periods of time in response to environmental changes. They are wrapping up this unit by revisiting bacteria and the evolution of resistance to antibiotics. In between SBAC testing next week, students will begin the final unit on Ecology.

8: The focus this week was on the Vermont Science Assessment (VTSA), or, as some people call it, Science SBAC’s. This is the first official year administering this test in Vermont; you should receive individual reports of your child’s performance in the mail. The test includes topics addressed throughout their middle school years, and emphasizes science and engineering practices. In between SBAC testing next week, students will wrap up the unit on chemical reactions by considering what to do with the copper waste they produced when making circuit boards.

SS
7 - Students completed assessments related to the economics unit before the break and are now exploring how Population Pyramids demonstrate past events - and potentially predict future needs. Students analyzed two countries population pyramids with a focus on birth and death/mortality rates - and the factors that may affect both.

8 - The focus was to finish the Industrial Revolution assessment. Students read an article about the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire and watched a documentary detailing the remarkable factory reform efforts that occurred afterwards. The last unit of study will start next week - Causes of the Civil War.

Sunday looks to be the better weather day - here’s to longer days in the sun and watching spring sports (or maybe a hike?).

The Fusion Team

Fusion Communication: March 31

Hi all,

It’s getting really muddy out there. We are in that middling week period where the light at the end of the tunnel is not yet in view but students continue to make progress, and move forward.

Dance Success - Glow-in-the-Dark! (So many black lights!)We made about $50 after costs - thank you to all who donated. It was amazing!

8th Grade Career Unit UpdateStudents began developing budgets for the salary of their job shadow, and are beginning to create materials for the posters and the presentations. 

 PLEASE NOTE: any appointments or absences the morning of April 16 should be communicated to the team as soon as possible - that is the official morning of presentations for the career unit.

**Trifold posters can be purchased from Mr. Pless for $4 (which is a very good price).

Team blog link:
https://teamfusion78.blogspot.com/

All laptops should remain at school over the weekend.
Calendar:April 10: Delayed Start
April 16: 8th Grade Career Presentations (during school day in team area)
April 18: Change! 8th grade Career Fair - 5:30-6:30pm
April 20-28: Spring Break (no school)
May 8: Last Delayed Start
June 3: Tentative Move-up Day - 8th Graders to MMU
June 5: Tentative Great Escape Field Trip for 8th Grade
June 12: Very Tentative Recognition Night for 8th Grade; last day of middle school for 8th grade
June 17: Very Tentative Last day of school for grades 5-7

Curriculum Updates
LA
Will return next week.

Math
7: This week, we combined our understanding of circles and prisms and developed strategies for calculating surface area and volume of cylinders. Next week, we will be doing some review in preparation for a unit test on Thursday or Friday as well as some extension work for students are ready for it.

8: This week, we have been developing rules for working with exponents as well as strategies for operations with Scientific Notation. Next week, we will be reviewing and assessing the learning from the unit. We will assess students understanding of exponent rules and Scientific Notation on Tuesday, with an assessment on exponential vs. linear functions on Thursday or Friday.

Science
7: Students focused on patterns of inheritance by reading about Gregor Mendel’s experiments with pea plants, by creating Punnett Squares to predict the probability of certain traits in offspring, and by modeling the inheritance of dominant/recessive, co-dominant, and incomplete dominance pattern of traits in fictional critters. (Students created their final critter offspring using styrofoam balls, push pins, colored straws, and pipe cleaners! Of course, they now all have names!)

8: Students began a new set of investigations focused on chemical reactions this week! They explored how chemical processes are used to create circuit boards; in small groups, they designed a circuit board pattern, etched their sample circuit board overnight, and tested their designs to see if it could create a circuit and light a bulb! They are now exploring several different chemical reactions to clarify which pieces of evidence can be used to suggest a chemical reaction is taking place.

SS
7 - Students continue to build background knowledge about the major economic systems/theories and collect evidence to support those ideas. One activity asked students to compare findings from the World Happiness Report to economic systems, and then World Population to “Happiness”. Many questions arose when they made those comparisons….

8 - Students delved into a deeper exploration of the Industrial Revolution through note taking activities, comparisons of inventions and a survey of artwork produced from the time period. Ask them about the interpretation and meaning of the Experiment on Bird in Air Pump, Joseph Wright, 1768.

Looks Spring has sprung… with the usual mud and rain. Just three more weeks until the next break.

The Fusion Team

Fusion Communication: March 16

Hi all,

We fought our way through the time change and wild temperature swings. As was reported by Mr. Hamilton in an email yesterday, there are changes coming next year for the school, and Fusion 7 specifically. Fusion 7 families - please check your inboxes for that message and contact Kevin Hamilton if you have questions.

8th Grade Career Unit UpdateStudents have begun an assignment called Roadtrip Nation, where they compare careers they research on a website called Naviance they can access through their school account. March 25 is the due date for career shadows to be complete. Please check with your child about their plans - Fusion has leads but some kind of general idea from your child is necessary to line up a job shadow.

Spring Conference Sign-upsConference times are full! If you are interested in speaking with the team about your child’s progress, please contact Mr. Pless.

8th Grade End-of-Year Field TripsWe are in the early stages of planning the 8th grade end-of-year field trip to the Great Escape in Lake George, NY! We have reserved coach buses and the Great Escape Park for Wednesday, June 5th. Because the class size is larger than previous years, we will need to take 3 buses, which raises the per person cost for this trip to approximately $85. Both teams, Vivace and Fusion, are actively fundraising and hope to bring the per student fee down. We will offer scholarships to ensure everyone has the opportunity to attend. Please know there is also another celebratory field trip tradition of taking a mid-day cruise on Lake Champlain aboard the Spirit of Ethan Allen from Burlington; last year’s fee for this trip was $21. Please feel free to email me if you have any questions about these trips! lisa.windhausen@cesuvt.org

All laptops should remain at school over the weekend.
Calendar:
Next few days: Report Card arrival is imminent!March 25: 8th grade Job Shadowing should be completed
March 29: 7/8 Dance - Fusion Field Trip Fundraiser! We will be asking families to donate food items to sell
April 10: Delayed Start
April 14: Tentative 8th Grade Career Presentations
April 16: 8th grade Career Fair - 5:30-6:30pm
April 20-28: Spring Break (no school)
May 8: Last Delayed Start
June 3: Tentative Move-up Day - 8th Graders to MMU
June 5: Tentative Great Escape Field Trip for 8th Grade

Curriculum Updates
LA
7 To prepare for our argument writing unit (research based essays), we will be doing debates in class for a few days. Students will practice gathering information, making a claim, gathering evidence and addressing counterclaims. Students should still be reading 30 minutes each day outside of class using a book of their choice.

8 Students began reading their narrative nonfiction books yesterday. These books should stay in the classroom so that they are available for our mini lesson work. Students can use choice books for their nightly 30 minutes. Today in class we talked about (and explored) how themes, central ideas and social issues could be presented in the first few pages of their books.

Math
7: We are well into our unit, Filling and Wrapping. This unit focuses on surface area and volume of prisms and cylinders. We have done some initial explorations involving surface area and volume and what happens to the surface area and volume when we scale up a prism. On Pi Day we explored the relationship between circumference, radius, and pi using different circular objects. This was to help towards building foundational knowledge for finding surface area and volume for a cylinder.

8: This week we focused on exponential functions with non whole number growth factors. We also introduced the concept of exponential decay where students completed a simulated experiment where they found the half-life of a radioactive isotope. On Pi Day we did some fun puzzles solving for area of a combination of circles and squares.

Science
7: The family trees are coming in; thank you for supporting your child’s efforts with this project! Some students may be working on this project over the weekend. Hopefully, they will all arrive early next week, so we can begin sharing and celebrating their work! In class, we are creating models of inheritance and are beginning to make the connections between cell structures, traits, reproduction, and patterns of inheritance.

8: We are currently transitioning from describing the structure and behavior of matter to understanding how substances interact during chemical reactions. Students completed a mini-research project on one element and produced an informational brochure, as well as a 3-D model of one atom of their element. These models are now decorating the classroom ceiling! Thank you for supporting your child’s effort with this project!

SS
7 - As the economics unit starts to unfold, students are exploring some of the foundational concepts such as needs, wants and resources. We spent the first part of the week reading a story written in 1971 called 2011: Living in the Future. Students spent time looking at the Jeffrey Hoyle’s vision of our time (his future), comparing what he thought would be our wants and needs. The second part of the week featured the game Electrocity, developed by the electric company of New Zealand, which challenges students to manage resources to grow businesses and keep “citizens” happy.

8 - Students spent time breaking down the language in their Bill Project, which is the major current assessment for the year. They wrote emails to “experts” and bill sponsors and are anxiously awaiting replies. In addition, students started to explore the fabulous NPR website called Planet Money Makes a T-Shirt, which details how a humble t-shirt is created, from the fields of Mississippi to Indonesia to the factories of Bangladesh.

Hope everyone has a restful weekend and is ready for the next 5 weeks.

The Fusion Team

Fusion Communication: March 8

Hi all,
We have returned - bet your children are tired. These short weeks lead to a lot of “compressed” social engagement. Report cards are being finalized and there are few assignments at the beginning of the trimester so it’s a good time to take stock of what comes next (the handy calendar could be of help).

8th Grade Career Unit Update
Students are lining up job shadows. Have a conversation with your 8th grader this weekend about what career/job they may be interested in for the unit. Please remember - the intention of the career is not to “pick” a path but to have students explore what a life could be like for an adult “them”. There are many materials located in a Schoology folder labeled Career/PLP that was shared with your child. Family letter is here.

Spring Conference Sign-upsWe are providing the link below to sign up for spring conferences. Due to the shorter allotted time-frame for spring conferences, offering times to to meet with all Fusion families within the conference window is not possible. We have often focused this time of the year on meeting with 8th grade families to support the transition to high school, however we want to make sure that we make time for all the families both 8th and 7th that feel the need to meet. When deciding whether to sign up for a conference, please keep in mind whether you have met with us recently or have a meeting scheduled with us in the near future in order to be fair to other families. Also, if you do not feel the need for a conference, but would like an email update about your student please feel free to email us and we would be happy to accommodate this. The link to sign-up for a conference is below:

Spring 2019 Fusion Conference Link

8th Grade End-of-Year Field Trips
We are in the early stages of planning the 8th grade end-of-year field trip to the Great Escape in Lake George, NY! We have reserved coach buses and the Great Escape Park for Wednesday, June 5th. Because the class size is larger than previous years, we will need to take 3 buses, which raises the per person cost for this trip to approximately $85. Both teams, Vivace and Fusion, are actively fundraising and hope to bring the per student fee down. We will offer scholarships to ensure everyone has the opportunity to attend. Please know there is also another celebratory field trip tradition of taking a mid-day cruise on Lake Champlain aboard the Spirit of Ethan Allen from Burlington; last year’s fee for this trip was $21. Please feel free to email me if you have any questions about these trips! lisa.windhausen@cesuvt.org


All laptops should remain at school over the weekend.

Calendar:
Week of March 11: Report Cards sent home
March 25: 8th grade Job Shadowing should be completed
March 29: 7/8 Dance - Fusion Field Trip Fundraiser! We will be asking families to donate food items                                        to sell
April 10: Delayed Start
April 14: Tentative 8th Grade Career Presentations
April 16: 8th grade Career Fair - 5:30-6:30pm
April 20-28: Spring Break (no school)
May 8: Last Delayed Start
June 3: Tentative Move-up Day - 8th Graders to MMU
June 5: Tentative Great Escape Field Trip for 8th Grade

Curriculum Updates will return March 15
Looks like the last really cold weekend. Fast forward those clocks and we’ll see everyone bright and early Monday.

The Fusion Team

Fusion Communication: February 15

Hi all,

It’s certainly been an entertaining week with regards to the weather; if it’s not one thing, it’s another. Team Fusion cruises into the final weekend before the final week before break. The coming week always has assessments in every class, so let us know if your child will be missing any time.

Career Panel: looking for Volunteers - Wednesday, February 20, 8-9am (Date Change!)
Team Fusion is looking for 2 more parents/community members (AND the perspectives of women!) willing to spend an hour discussing their career choices with our 8th grade students as part of the Career Unit/PLP kick-off week. We will provide you with questions to prepare answers for, and also keep the panel to one hour so you can meet your other commitments for the day. Team Fusion is looking for a wide range of career options, pathways and education backgrounds; the panel is a much richer experience with a greater diversity of professions and life experiences.
Please contact Mr. Pless if interested: bryant.pless@cesuvt.org

PLP/Career Unit Kick-off
Grade 7 - The 7th grade Personalized Learning Plan process began this week with an introduction to the concept of matching personal interests to career goals. Over the next several weeks, students will take a variety of surveys to strengthen their ability to “know thyself” and to inform their future goal-setting.

Grade 8 - The students are embarking on a traditional career unit, with a visit to a job site encouraged. But the unit also covers personal finance, as well as discussions about the needs and wants everyone has for careers. Please see the letter for more information about specific dates and requirements for this unit of study.

We had a great day at Bowling… and the food was quite good as well:) Thanks to our chaperones.
All laptops should remain at school over the weekend.
Calendar:

• Week of February 11: Kick-off for the 8th Grade Career Unit/7th Grade PLP Process
• February 15: 8th grade recommendation forms WERE due BACK to BRMS. If not turned in to BRMS by this time, families will need to deliver the forms to the high school. 
• (Date change!) February 20: 8-9am Career Panel (looking for two more adult volunteers to speak with students about their careers)
• February 22: Student-Faculty (Read and White) Basketball Game (1:20ish to 2:20ish) *Only 8th Grade basketball players can play*
• Last Day before Break
• February 23-March 5: Winter Break (no school)
• March 29: 7/8 Dance - Fusion Field Trip Fundraiser! We will be asking families to donate food items to sell
• April 10: Delayed Start
• April 20-28: Spring Break (no school)
• May 8: Last Delayed Start
• June 3: Tentative Move-up Day - 8th Graders to MMU

Curriculum Updates
LA
*** All students should still be reading 30 minutes each day, outside of class. ***

7- Graphic organizers for information writing are due on Monday, 2/18. This is a large portion of the writing process score on the report card. Use of class time and students ability to take and apply feedback factors in as well. We have spent an extensive amount of time working on this in class and students were also encourage to work on it at home or during study hall. There are tools and a checklist in the writing toolkit folder on Schoology to support this work. Students who need more time to work on this assignment should do so at home or during study hall.

8- Graphic organizers for the comparative essay were due on Thursday 2/14. Due to the snow day, I allowed students to work on these at home and submit Thursday evening on Schoology if needed. We spent several class periods working on this task and students were encouraged to use study halls or evenings if needed. Students also know it will impact their process score if this work was handed in late of incomplete. Use of class time and students ability to take and apply feedback factors in as well. Students had access to planning tools on Schoology as well as sample writing and notes in their journals. The post assessment will be next Wednesday and Thursday, 2/20 and 2/21.


Math: Due to changes in my personal schedule, Math extra help sessions will be changing from Thursday afternoons, to Monday afternoons. They will continue to be from 2:45 - 3:25. If your student is planning to attend, please just let me know by noon on that Monday.

7 - We have wrapped up all the investigations in our current unit and while I was hoping to have a unit test this week, our schedule got a little interrupted this week with the YRBS survey, a snow day, and the field trip. We will plan to do some more review on Monday and Tuesday and have the test next Wednesday.

8 - We have finished the first investigation in Growing, Growing, Growing looking at several different exponential growth patterns and comparing them to linear patterns. This unit has several 9th grade pieces to it, so over the next few weeks we will be differentiating by breaking up into small groups giving students who are ready the opportunity to work on these.

Science

7 - Students continue to monitor the brook trout population by measuring their sizes, making sketches of their structures, and counting the population size. Meanwhile, they researched several animal behaviors that increase the chances for successful reproduction, such as nest-building and courtship displays. They are now analyzing population graphs and making inferences related to factors that affect populations.

8 - Students are nearly finished with their engineering design projects! The atmosphere in the class this week was filled with a high level of engagement, creativity and unexpected learning opportunities! Students will do their final evaluations and presentations of their devices to the class this coming week.

SS

7 - Students practiced using the direct standards on the district assessment, using text examples from Culturegrams to defend the United States as a functioning government. The district assessment will be due next week on Wednesday.

8 - Students concluded the vaping trial of “The State vs Susan” - in both classes she was found guilty of possession but not of intention to distribute vaping materials. An introduction of the Bill of Rights and a conclusion of the Constitution Video project were also on the docket. The second installment of the district assessment will happen next Tuesday. Wednesday of next week will feature the Career Panel from 8-9am… please try to have students to school on time.

One more week to go - here’s hoping for a restful weekend.

The Fusion Team

Fusion Communication: February 8

Hi all,

With the weather being all squirrelly, it will be important for students to get enough rest. There are two weeks left and the team is looking forward to finishing strong for the trimester.

Career Panel: looking for Volunteers - Thursday, February 21, 8-9am
Team Fusion is looking for 6-8 parents/community members willing to spend an hour discussing their career choices with our 8th grade students as part of the Career Unit/PLP kick-off week. We will provide you with questions to prepare answers for, and also keep the panel to one hour so you can meet your other commitments for the day. Team Fusion is looking for a wide range of career options, pathways and education backgrounds; the panel is a much richer experience with a greater diversity of professions and life experiences.
Please contact Mr. Pless if interested: bryant.pless@cesuvt.org

Annual Bowling, Chinese, Pizza Day!Team will take February 15 to celebrate us with a field trip to Spare Time Bowling, then return to school for the annual Chinese/Pizza Buffet. $20 and permission form required - see attached form. Form was due Friday, Feb 8th.

Congratulations Penguin PlungersThe following students from Team Fusion participated in the Penguin Plunge this year - kudos to them!
Riya Sawyer
Allie Fullem
Kaia Sleeper-Spady
Celia Polli
Erin Robillard - Staff
Kevin Hamilton - Administrator
Nicole Thompson - Staff
Bryant Pless - Staff

Power Cords should NOT be coming home with students
It has come to our attention that students are taking power cords out of the computer carts and bringing them home; sometimes these cords are not assigned to that student. We ask families to keep an eye out for Chromebook cords at home and return any that your family did not purchase for themselves - no questions will be asked, we just need the cords back. Thanks.

All laptops should remain at school over the weekend.
Calendar:
Week of February 11: Kick-off for the 8th Grade Career Unit/7th Grade PLP Process
February 13: Delayed Start
February 15: The annual bowling and Chinese/Pizza buffett - Confirmed date
                      8th grade recommendation forms are due BACK to BRMS. If not turned in to BRMS 

                      by this time, families will need to deliver the forms to the high school.
February 21: 8-9am Career Panel (looking for six adult volunteers to speak with students about their 

                      careers)
February 22: Student-Faculty (Read and White) Basketball Game (1:20ish to 2:20ish)
                      *Only 8th Grade basketball players can play*

                      Last Day before Break
February 23-March 5: Winter Break (no school)
March 29: 7/8 Dance - Fusion Field Trip Fundraiser! We will be asking families to donate food items                                                                                         to sell
April 10: Delayed Start
April 20-28: Spring Break (no school)
May 8: Last Delayed Start
June 3: Tentative Move-up Day - 8th Graders to MMU

Curriculum Updates
LA
*** All students should still be reading 30 minutes each day, outside of class. ***

Math: Due to changes in my personal schedule, Math extra help sessions will be changing from Thursday afternoons, to Monday afternoons. They will continue to be from 2:45 - 3:25. If your student is planning to attend, please just let me know by noon on that Monday.

7 - This week we finished the remainder of the investigations in our current unit, Comparing and Scaling. Next week will be doing some review work to prepare for a unit assessment towards the end of the week.

8 - This week we wrapped up the Looking for Pythagoras unit with a unit assessment and have started our next unit, Growing, Growing, Growing. This is unit investigates exponential growth and decay as well as exponent rules.

Science
7 - Students completed their investigation of the effects of salt and genetics on plant germination and growth. They summarized their findings using a Claim-Evidence-Reasoning structure, which we use often for science writing. Students also examined the structures of flowers, learned about the diversity of plant structures that match specific pollinators, and reviewed the variety of animal behaviors that increase their chances for successful reproduction. We watched several entertaining videos of bird courtship displays!

8 - Students are designing their own investigations and engineering projects related to thermal energy transfer this week! They are in the midst of the final engineering challenge, working in design teams, to maximize thermal energy transfer from either a heat lamp or electric burner to a model of a cookie or a hot tub. They are in the process of selecting materials which will aid in the transfer of energy to their model. Next week, they will build, test, evaluate and present their devices, all before Friday’s field trip!

SS

7 - Students continued to develop a flow chart of their representative government. There was a deeper look at US representative democracy by watching Ted-ed videos of important concepts in American democracy:

Separation of Powers, Checks and Balances
What gives the dollar its value?
Fight for the Right to Vote
Equality, Sports and Title IX (9)

Students will be finishing their Flowcharts next week and working to create propaganda for their Sovereign State countries.

8 - Students have been working to research standards related to the Constitution - a video project about these standards is due early next week. A deeper dive into US court system was started in the middle of the week, with a mock trial of Marcus Brutus used to introduce the basic procedures, and now the students are engaged in another mock trial involving a student caught with vaping items. Some of the research Mr. Pless used to produce the trial was obtained from the Vaping Workshop held at BRMS last week - if interested, there is a link to a video of that workshop below. The video is appropriate for adult audiences, and should be used as an informational source to open discussion with your child about the growing use of vaping devices in all Vermont schools.
Link to Vaping Workshop Video

Hope everyone has a good weekend.

The Fusion Team

Fusion Communication: February 4

Hi all,

While it might not have been THE polar vortex, it sure was cold this week; frequent indoor recesses for everyone. It will be nice to see the temps rise for a few days so students can get outside during the day. The team is in the throes of planning February 15ths Bowling/Pizza/Chinese day - please get those permission forms in! Also, 8th grade transition continues with the recommendation forms due February 15th.



Annual Bowling, Chinese, Pizza Day!
Team will take February 15 to celebrate us with a field trip to Spare Time Bowling, then return to school for the annual Chinese/Pizza Buffet. $20 and permission form required - see attached form. Form is due Friday, Feb 8th.

Congratulations Penguin Plungers
The following students from Team Fusion participated in the Penguin Plunge this year - kudos to them!

Riya Sawyer

Allie Fullem

Kaia Sleeper-Spady

Erin Robillard - Staff

Kevin Hamilton - Administrator

Nicole Thompson - Staff

Bryant Pless - Staff

Power Cords should NOT be coming home with students
It has come to our attention that students are taking power cords out of the computer carts and bringing them home; sometimes these cords are not assigned to that student. We ask families to keep an eye out for Chromebook cords at home and return any that your family did not purchase for themselves - no questions will be asked, we just need the cords back. Thanks.

Calendar:
Week of February 11: Kick-off for the 8th Grade Career Unit/PLP Process for 7th Grade

February 13: Delayed Start

February 15: The annual bowling and Chinese/Pizza buffett - Confirmed date (see attached     permission slip)

8th grade recommendation forms are due BACK to BRMS

February 22: Student-Faculty Basketball Game (1:20ish to 2:20ish)

*Only 8th Grade basketball players can play*

Last Day before Break

February 23-March 5: Winter Break (no school)

March 29: 7/8 Dance - Fusion Field Trip Fundraiser!

April 10: Delayed Start

April 20-28: Spring Break (no school)

May 8: Last Delayed Start

June 3: Tentative Move-up Day - 8th Graders to MMU


Curriculum Updates
LA
*** All students should still be reading 30 minutes each day, outside of class. ***

7 Students started work on the graphic organizer for their information writing piece: companion books. Mini lessons will focus on ways to use multiple text structures to convey meaning to the reader and highlight important ideas.

8 Students have been working on some shared writing around theme in our mentor text. Next week we will dig into author's craft, followed by the start of our process piece — a comparative essay in which students will write about two short stories of their choice. The graphic organizer for this writing piece will be on schoology soon.

Math: Due to changes in my personal schedule, Math extra help sessions will be changing from Thursday afternoons, to Monday afternoons. They will continue to be from 2:45 - 3:25. If your student is planning to attend, please just let me know by noon on that Monday.

7 - We completed Investigation 2 in Comparing & Scaling. This investigation explored comparison strategies, scaling rates, and unit rates. Next week we will be investigating proportions with percents, measurement conversions, and making connections between ratios, rates, percents, and proportions.

8 - Course placement forms will be going home this coming Monday. I have had the chance to meet with students this week and discuss their placement with them. If there are any questions about this process or my recommendations, please do not hesitate to contact me.

We finished up this week by doing some review and extension work in preparation for the Looking for Pythagoras end of unit assessment. We will be having the assessment on Tuesday of next week. Our next unit of study will be Growing, Growing, Growing which focuses on exponential growth and exponent rules. 

Science

7 - We finished the unit on body systems last week, and are now busy exploring life cycles - how do organisms grow, develop, and reproduce in their suitable environments? We will introduce the idea that both genetics and the environment influence survival and reproduction or organisms. This mini-unit will lead nicely into our heredity unit after the break. Meanwhile, the trout are looking fantastic! All have hatched and are now in the “sac-fry” stage of life!



8 - As we near the end of the Properties of Matter unit, students are busy designing and conducting experiments to discover how different materials transmit, reflect, and absorb thermal energy. They will use these discoveries to design a device that either minimizes or maximizes thermal energy transfer next week! They completed an assessment this week focused on the skill of designing investigations.

SS

7 - Students have been designing a representative democracy for their Sovereign State countries, and continue to explore what it means to be “representative” and “democratic”.

8 - Students began their Constitution Videos this week, using a checklist from the Constitution pre-assessment given at the beginning of the week.


We are at the ½ way point of the trimester(and the academic year) - good time to check in with your child about their school supplies.


The Fusion Team

Fusion Communication: January 4, 2019!

Hi all,

The New Year has started and the first three days were a breeze. It will be a busy few weeks until the next break.

Ugly Mug Contest (and donation)
The winner is…. Santa Mug.

Thanks to the Gautsch family for adding FOUR of these unique mugs to the collection. Donations are welcome any time.

All laptops should remain at school over the weekend.
Calendar:
January 9: Delayed Start
January 18: MMU Counselors meet with 8th graders 1:40-2:40 pm (and so it begins… transition!)
January 21: Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday (Inservice - no school for students)
January 24: 8th Grade parent/Family Night at MMU for rising 9th graders (MMU Class of 2023!) - 7pm
February 13: Delayed Start
February 18-22: *tentative* week for the annual bowling and Chinese/Pizza buffett
February 22: Student-Faculty Basketball Game (1:20ish to 2:20ish)
                     *Only 8th Grade basketball players can play*
                      Last Day before Break
February 23-March 5: Winter Break (no school)
April 10: Delayed Start
April 20-28: Spring Break (no school)
May 8: Last Delayed Start

Curriculum Updates
LA
Both grades are at the tail end of reading units (dystopian - 8 and historical fiction - 7). Both grades will complete a Reading POST assessment next Wednesday. Students can have more time if one class period isn’t enough. We will be preparing in class on Monday and Tuesday. Students should be reviewing unit skills practiced in their notebooks -- they do not need to be jotting at this time.

Up next:
7 - Companion Books (information writing)
8 - Literary Essay (argument writing)

Math
7: We are close to wrapping up our current unit, Stretching & Shrinking. We will finish the last couple of investigations at the beginning of next week and start reviewing for a unit assessment at the beginning of the following week.

8: We have begun our next unit, Looking for Pythagoras. In the unit, students will discover and prove the Pythagorean Theorem, learn to write fractions as repeating or terminating decimals, learn to recognize rational and irrational numbers, learn to locate irrational numbers on a number line, learn to relate the area of a square as well as the volume of a cube to their side lengths, and learn to estimate square roots and cube roots. 

Science
7 - Students did excellent work writing a 5-paragraph essay about body systems before break! We continue to make connections among body systems at all levels of organization. We will be sure all students know the basics of the circulatory, respiratory, muscular, and nervous systems in the next couple of weeks, as we wrap up this unit.

8 - We are continuing our unit on the properties of matter and will relate energy transfer rates to different properties of materials. Students will complete an engineering project later this month, designing a system that keeps an object warm. Some may be asking to bring in materials from home!

SS
7 - Foodarama ended well! What a great experience and we had just the right amount of food. Otherwise, students are beginning a unit about government systems that leads off with an experiential activity in Feudalism. It’s always one of the favorite activities of 7th grade.

8 - While students enjoyed the American Revolution Film Unit (and the excessive amounts of popcorn). It’s time to move on to the creation of the nation - the Constitution era! Students are beginning with a dive into the language within the Declaration of Independence, then will quickly move into an assessment for the first form of government, The Articles of Confederation.

Enjoy the return of snow (or at least easy to remove snow) and have a restful weekend.

The Fusion Team