BFMS Newsletter

June 2014 Volume 6, Issue 1 Bellows Falls Bellows Middle SchoolMiddle School Falls 15 School Street 15Bellows Falls, Vermont 05101 School Street 802-463-4366 Terrier News Bellows Falls, Vermont 05101 www.bfmiddleschool.org 802-463-4366 www.bfmiddleschool.org Upcoming Events: What’s Happening in 5th & 6th Grade with Mrs. Farnsworth  June 9th—Terrier Night for The 5th and 6th grade students will be taking a trip to Somerville, MA (just outside of Boston) to visit the newly opened LegoLand Discovery Center. This trip was planned with science, and of course fun, in mind. Mr. Ferenc knows first hand that the use of Lego's, in conjunction with science, helps students to incorporate problem solving and technical skills. While at the discovery center, students will participate in the race car workshop. This workshop is designed to give students the opportunity to use their math and physics skills to design, build, and test a race car. Specifically, students will collect data to calculate their car's performance, learn about the forces that affect their car, and how they can use physics to adapt their car to perform better. Students and teachers are very excited! The trip will take place on Thursday, June 12.  June 10th—8th Graders to 5/6 Math: As the end of the school year approaches, students are no longer required to do a weekly math log. In addition, POW's have been completed for the year. This is a great opportunity for students to get caught up on any missing assignments. Athletes Whales Tale  June 12th—5th & 6th Graders to LegoLand  June 13th—Third Trimester Grades Close  June 15th—Alumni Parade  June 16th—8th Grade Recognition Ceremony  June 17th—Last day of school. Trip to Echo Lake 5th Grade: 5th graders are completing a unit on fractions. Students have learned to order and compare fractions, convert among improper fractions and mixed numbers, and add, subtract, and multiply fractions. Our final weeks will be spent exploring some geometry concepts. Specifically, we will be working with triangles and quadrilaterals, sorting them by their attributes, and calculating area and perimeter. 6th Grade Math: 6th graders are completing a unit on ratios. Their unit test will take place during the last week of May. Our final weeks will be spent working on 3D geometry concepts. Student will work with nets to construct 3D shapes and calculate surface area and volume. An optional take-home project will be coming home during the 1st week in June. **YEARBOOK NEWS** There are still a limited number of yearbooks left for sale. The price is $25.00. Please send in the money to Ms. Graves in the library if you are interested in purchasing one. Inside this issue: My Easy-Bake Solar Oven Where the Wild Things Spring has Sprung in 5th/6th Grade Physical Education With Mrs. Smith It has been a busy spring for 5th and 6th graders! We began the new trimester with the spring activity of jump rope skills. Students were introduced to and advanced jumping skills. Some were solo skills, some were partner skills. We then moved on to our first of many striking skills, which was volleyball. Volleyball is a recreational activity that can be enjoyed by both students and adults throughout their lifetime. Students learned the skills necessary to play the game as well as the rules. They also gained additional information through a reading and writing assignment. We have recently completed our spring round of physical fitness assessments, and in general, students demonstrated the greatest improvement in the area of cardiovascular endurance. Areas that need improvement continue to be core strength and endurance, and upper body strength. Flexibility continues to remain adequate. Upcoming activities will include wiffleball, floor hockey, long jump rope skills, tennis, and cooperative games. Are 2 2 Quick Reads 3 deCordova 4 On The Rise 5 WHAT?? WE HAVE 6 RIGHTS?? Electrifying 7