Mrs. Whiting

8A homeroom, Algebra, Pre-Algebra, Math 7

email: lwhiting@sainttimothyschool.org

Mrs. Richard's Class Page	Mrs. Ostrander's Class Page
Mrs. McGuigan''s Class Page	Mrs. Cowan's Class Page
Mrs. Weiskopf's SchoolNotes	Mrs. Holloway's Class Page
Mrs. Carraciollo's SchoolNotes

Room Mothers

The room mother for our class is Patti Hahn. She may be contacted via email at: RM8A@sainttimothyschool.org. She will be coordinating volunteers, special classroom activities and field trips and forwarding school-wide emails. To assist her in communicating effectively, please contact her with your current email address.

Eighth Grade Activities Letter
This includes a list of the major classroom activities and the contact for event coordination.

Goals

SPRITUAL GOALS:

To become adult members of the Church through the Sacrament of Confirmation
To understand the meaning of the Church, its mission in the world, and their responsibility to its mission

ACADEMIC GOALS:

To identify problems, make decisions and resolve problems
To organize their work and manage time wisely
To become independent learners
To advance in their knowledge of core subject areas

SOCIAL GOALS:

To accept themselves as unique individuals
To accept others as unique individuals
To treat all people with respect

Academic Subjects

7th GRADE MATH

The mathematics program at St. Timothy School follows the curriculum guidelines provided by the Diocese of Arlington.

Program Objectives:

The student will understand that:

Mathematics is more than computations: it is part of everyday life. Students will learn, practice and apply mathematics to “real life” situations.
In 7th grade special emphasis will be placed on understanding how numbers can be expressed as fractions, decimals or percents.
The concept of negative numbers is extensively covered in middle school math curriculum. As this usually is very new to middle school students, there can be some expected frustration. Manipulatives and guided practice will be included in order to achieve the necessary proficiency.
Homework is paramount. It is assigned on a daily basis to reinforce the concepts learned in the classroom.
Extra help in the form of worksheets, or recess tutoring is available if needed. It is up to the student to request this help

Curriculum Overview:

Number Theory- number lines, negative numbers, estimation, properties of estimation, scientific notation
Fractions, Decimals and Percents
Geometry and Measurement – angles and lines, triangles and quadrangles, three dimensional figures and coordinate geometry
Measurement and Metric conversions, Scientific Notation
Proportions, Rates, Ratios and Scale Drawings
Patterns, Functions and Algebra Concepts – solving multi-step equations, problem solving

Grading:

Grades will be based on tests, quizzes, projects, class participation, homework and warm-ups.
During the 3rd & 4th quarter, no late work is accepted in the 8th grade.

Text
Mathematics-Course 2 by Prentice Hall htttp://www. PHSchool.com

8th GRADE MATH

The mathematics program at St. Timothy School follows the curriculum guidelines provided by the Diocese of Arlington. Students are placed in one of three classes based on their prior mathematics proficiency. These classes are Pre-Algebra 1, Pre-Algebra 2 and Algebra.

PRE-ALGEBRA (Mrs. Ostrander, Mrs. Whiting)

Pre-Algebra is the standard curriculum for 8th grade students. It is a continuation of the math curriculum from seventh grade, and prepares students for high school mathematics, including algebra.

Program Objectives:
The student will understand that:

Mathematics is more than computations: it is part of everyday life. Students will learn, practice and apply mathematics to “real life” situations.
Homework is paramount. It is assigned on a daily basis to reinforce the concepts learned in the classroom.
Extra help in the form of worksheets, or recess tutoring is available if needed. It is up to the student to request this help.

Curriculum Overview:

Number Theory- negative exponents, scientific notation, estimation, square roots, irrational numbers Pythagorean Theorem.
Fractions, Decimals and Percents
Geometry and Measurement – construction of angles and lines, surface area, volume and coordinate geometry.
Proportions, Rates, Ratios and Scale Drawings
Statistics – data analysis, probability
Patterns, Functions and Algebra Concepts – solving linear equations and inequalities slope, radicals, non-linear functions (quadratics)

Grading

Grades will be based on tests, quizzes, projects, class participation, homework and warm-ups.

Text
Pre-Algebra by Prentice Hall Mathematics PHSchool.com

RELIGION: We will cover one religion chapter every one to two weeks with a test for every chapter. Our goals are:

Study and preparation for the Sacrament of Confirmation
Continued encouragement in the practice of daily prayer, in writing petitions for liturgy and in appreciating the Psalms as expressions of our needs
Study of Church History from the first century to the present

LANGUAGE ARTS:

Vocabulary development is through intensive study of word meaning, context, parts of speech, antonyms and synonyms. We cover one unit per week: it must be completed by Monday and tests are on Tuesdays
Spelling tests are every Friday, using the vocabulary unit's wordlist
Writing covers a variety of styles (narrative, descriptive, expository, and persuasive) and assignments. They include a biographical sketch, essays, technical instructions, news, writing, story writing, letter writing, and daily journal writing
Grammar reviews the parts of speech and sentence structure, with emphasis on encouraging use of new grammatical structures in their daily writing

GRADING: Vocabulary, writing and grammar grades together make up the students' English report card grade. Spelling is a separate report card grade.

Homework

Eighth graders may receive up to 80 minutes of homework per night. Assignments received late will be marked down a letter grade for each day late. If your child is absent they should call a friend for homework assignments. Test/quizzes must be made up in a reasonable time (1 day to make up for each day they miss). Students are responsible for arranging make up tests. Any grade 77 or below on returned graded papers should be signed by a parent and returned to class the next day.