Hello, Cooper Family! As we move into the fall season, we are also falling into a routine here at The Cooper School! We have pushed past those first week jitters and are feeling comfortable with the school year and have adapted to the school year routines. With that being said, here are some quotes to help you stay motivated as we dive deeper into the different contents and challenges in the classroom:

“We can all dance when we find music that we love.”
“I think I can, I know I can.”
“Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.”
“Make each day your masterpiece.”
“No one is perfect – that’s why pencils have erasers.”

Let us take on the school year with positive energy and ready to take on challenges!

Here’s a look at what is happening in each of the classes:


What’s happening in Social Studies?
Eighth grade had an exciting week finishing up learning about the World in the 1750s. We talked about Asian Empires and African States and even the Pacific Region! Students created their own empires that they shared with the class based on what they learned about the others! Be sure to look in the hallways during Curriculum Night for all of the different Empires!

Next week, the students will begin tackling the different Revolutions that were taking place around the world between 1775 and 1825. The students will begin mastering their vocabulary by doing another teaching lesson since they loved it so much!

What’s happening in ELA?
This week in grammar, your Eighth Graders worked on identifying types of adjectives and who/which clauses. They also studied when to use quotation marks. The students also reviewed grammar concepts covered in previous lessons. In reading, we discussed ways to track their reading and also worked on sustained silent reading without distractions. Eighth Graders have also completed their “one page book report projects”. Feedback will be sent home next Friday to be signed and returned to school the following Monday. Next week, your students will begin their new writing unit “Investigative Journalism”.

What’s happening in Science?
This week, Eighth Graders explored Newton’s Second Law. They compared and contrasted the mass and weight on different planets by calculating how acceleration of gravity changes an object’s force. They experimented with spring scales to see how the weight of marbles compares to the force exerted in Newtons. They also started brainstorming ways force and acceleration will be incorporated into their Rube Goldberg projects. Next week, the students will start exploring how potential energy is related to kinetic energy, as well as how the kinetic energy of an object changes with its speed.

What’s happening in Math?
So, the TI-84 graphing calculator has been around a long time and has hardly changed a bit. But it’s still one of the most impressive and coolest tools, and the 8th-graders have begun to work with it this week to make statistical calculations. We used it to measure standard deviation in some of our statistical distributions, and wow, does it ever make life easier! The Eighth Graders have been learning to interpret the statistics they’ve been calculating and plotting, and answering important questions about data: how much does an outlier affect the mean of a data set; is the mean or the median a better measure of center for a data set that is skewed right; what does a lower standard deviation tell us about the variability in our data? They’ve discovered that calculating data is typically not very difficult, but interpreting what it’s telling you can be a real adventure. They’ll be ready for their End-of-Unit Assessment by next Wednesday, and they’ll do great!

Important Dates:

September 21st: Middle School Curriculum Night (5:30-6:30)
September 29th: Parent Coffee (8:00am-8:45am)