Friday, December 12, 2025

Weekly Update for Families

— quick updates from our classroom:

It was clear today that students need more time on their Response to Literature essay. We will use the final class day, Monday, December 15, to finish them.

If your student needs extra time beyond that, they may come in before or after school on Monday or Tuesday.

Quiz #2 for The War That Saved My Life (Chapters 5–8) will be given on Monday, December 15.

Reminder: Winter Spirit Week is next week — fun dress-up days are planned. See the schedule below.

The last day of the grading period is Thursday, December 18. Winter break begins Friday, December 19.

Thank you for your support this first semester. Please reach out with any questions or concerns.

Friday, December 5, 2025

Weekly Update for Families

 Happy Friday — please reach out with any questions or concerns as we move through these busy weeks toward Winter Break.

• Walk Two Moons — We finished our class novel, Walk Two Moons. I encourage you to ask your student to summarize the book or have a conversation about it — there were many plot twists and students have strong reactions worth discussing.

• Independent Reading — Students are reading The War That Saved My Life by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley as their independent reading homework. They are expected to read four chapters outside of class each week. Often there is time to read at school, so please have your student keep the book in their backpack so it’s available when needed. If your student is in my strategic reading class, we will also read and do activities with the book occasionally. Our first quiz on this book (chapters 1–4) is scheduled for Monday, December 8.
  Embedded Assessment & Grading Period — Next week, students will complete Unit 2 Embedded Assessment 1: a multi‑paragraph response essay on Walk Two Moons. The grading period ends Thursday, December 18 (just before winter break). If you review your student’s grades and have questions, please contact me.

Thank you for your support. If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to reply to this email.

Friday, November 14, 2025

Weekly Update for Families

It was a great week in sixth grade! Here’s a quick summary and a few reminders to help your student stay on track.

What we did this week

• Continued reading our class novel, Walk Two Moons, and practiced fundamental reading skills tied to comprehension and text analysis.

• Celebrated World Kindness Day: our students painted positive‑message rocks and placed them along the Lake Willastein trail. These rocks will brighten hikers’ days — thank you to the families who brought students to the event and to everyone who donated painted rocks. (Rocks may still be brought to school for community service credit.)

What’s next

• Next week, we will dig deeper into Walk Two Moons and begin a unit on informational writing techniques. The end goal is a response‑to‑literature essay connected to the novel.

• The writing workshop date for the embedded assessment has not yet been scheduled but is expected to take place after Thanksgiving Break.

Assessment reminder

• Monday: open‑note reading test over the two passages distributed in class on Tuesday. Students may use annotated copies during the test.

  • Suggested preparation:

    • Read each passage more than once.

    • Mark the text for the five Ws: who, what, when, where, and why.

    • Look up unfamiliar words and write definitions directly on the passage.

    • Read and annotate with a partner or family member when possible.

  • If your student misplaced the passages, please use this link to access them.

Thank you

I appreciate your support and involvement. If you have questions, suggestions, or need anything, please reach out — we’re stronger together as we help these Falcons grow and succeed.

(Photos from World Kindness Day are posted below.)

Friday, November 7, 2025

Weekly Update for Families

Hello families — here’s a summary of what we did this week and what to expect next.

Testing

We finished our Atlas interim assessments this week.

If your student was absent and still needs to make up a test, campus administration will contact them with the makeup schedule.

Reading — Class Novel

We continued reading our class novel, Walk Two Moons, and students have been making great inferences about how the plot will develop.

Independent Reading

We completed the first round of independent reading this week. Thank you for supporting reading time at home.

There will not be a reading quiz next week.

After the Thanksgiving break, the whole class will read the same independent reading book: The War That Saved My Life by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley.

This historical fiction novel is set in England during World War II and follows the evacuation of children from London as air raids begin.

Honors and awards: 2016 Newbery Honor Book; named to the Bank Street Children's Book Committee’s Best Books of the Year List (Outstanding Merit); winner of the Josette Frank Award for fiction.

Short Independent Reading Assignment (Next Week)

Next week, students will receive a packet of short reading passages and questions. This packet will serve as their independent reading for the week of November 17–21 and will count as the reading grade for that week.

Unit 2: Responding to Literature

Next week, we will continue reading our class novel and begin preparing for Unit 2 Embedded Assessment 1: Responding to Literature (an essay).

We will also review and practice specific reading skills that students need to strengthen.

Kindness Rock Project — Volunteer Opportunity

Next Thursday, November 13, is World Kindness Day, and that's the date I’ve scheduled for a Kindness Rock Project at Lake Willastein Park.

Plan: place newly painted rocks and straighten/clean up around previously placed rocks so our “Rock Snake” is easy for hikers to read and enjoy.

Time: I planned to be at the park: 3:30–5:30 PM. A meeting has come up that might make me arrive a little late; I still expect to be there by 3:30, but I wanted to give you a heads-up in case I’m delayed.

If you arrive before I do and have another adult to supervise, please feel free to begin the cleanup. Otherwise, please wait until I arrive.

Families are welcome to join — it’s a great way for students to practice community service and kindness.

If you have any questions or need additional information, please reach out. I hope everyone has a restful weekend!

Friday, October 31, 2025

Weekly Update for Families

What a fantastic week we've had! Our 6th graders have been making great progress as we continue reading our class novel and sharpening our sentence structure skills. The students also had a blast during our Halloween party and dress-up days for Red Ribbon Week — lots of fun and creativity all around!

Looking ahead to next week, we'll be administering our first interim ATLAS test, which means our usual class schedule will be adjusted. However, students will still need to complete Reading Quiz #10. The quiz day will vary depending on each student's ELA class schedule, so please remind your child to complete their reading by Monday as usual.

Wishing everyone a Happy Halloween and a safe, enjoyable weekend!Friday, October 17, 2025

Weekly Update for Families

What a fantastic week we’ve had in class! Even though the students are eagerly counting down the minutes until fall break, they have continued to work hard and stay engaged.

We also had our student-led parent conferences this week, and they went wonderfully! The students did a fantastic job presenting their work and were fully engaged throughout. I am so proud of how confidently and thoughtfully they handled themselves during these important meetings.

We are still diving into our class novel, Walk Two Moons. I’m thrilled to see how invested the students are in the story and its many intriguing subplots. If you haven’t had a chance to chat with your student about Salamanca Tree Hiddle and her cross-country adventure with Gram and Gramps, you’re missing out on some great conversations!

Please note that our next reading quiz, Quiz #9 is scheduled for Tuesday, October 28. The chapters covered for this quiz are listed below. I am giving students an extra day to prepare because of fall break.

A big thank you to all parents and guardians for your continued support in encouraging reading at home—it truly makes a difference.

Wishing everyone a safe and happy fall break!

Kindness Rock Project

We’re excited to launch the Kindness Rock Project! Students can earn community service hours by painting rocks with uplifting words or messages. These rocks will be added to the rock snake at Lake Willastein Park. Students can turn in their painted rocks to me anytime. Each painted rock earns one hour of community service, and students can paint up to four rocks.

Additionally, for an extra hour of service, students can join me at the park on Thursday, November 13 (World Kindness Day) from 3:30 to 5:30 PM. We will place the rocks and help clean up around the existing rock snake. I hope many of you will consider participating!

Friday, October 10, 2025

Weekly Update for Families

We had a fantastic week in 6th grade! Our students have been enjoying the highlighted spooky stories during morning announcements and are enthusiastically sharing their own stories in class. This week, we also watched part of the film Up and explored how internal and external forces impact the characters.

Today, we kicked off our novel study with Sharon Creech's Walk Two Moons. This 1995 Newbery Medal winner is celebrated for its emotional journey, complex characters, interwoven storylines, beautiful storytelling, and meaningful life lessons.

If you have a conference scheduled next week, I look forward to connecting with you! Please remind your student to bring their ELA Reader/Writer Binder, as these conferences are designed to be student-led. Our students have been preparing to take the spotlight!

Also, don’t forget—the Halloween Dance is tonight from 6 to 8 PM. Wishing everyone a fun and safe weekend!

Reading Quiz #8 is scheduled for Monday, October 13. See the list of assigned chapters below.

Heads Up: Students are expected to continue reading over fall break. However, Quiz #9 is scheduled for Tuesday, October 28—just in case they don’t! Here is a link to the chapter scheduleFriday, October 3, 2025

Weekly Update for Families

We've had another great week in 6-grade! We wrapped up Unit 1 by completing our spooky stories. Who knew that diving into suspense and scary tales would bring out the true writers in our 6th graders? These middle schoolers really surprised me with their creativity and hard work!

Each morning throughout October, some of our chosen student spooky stories will be read aloud on the intercom during morning announcements. Plus, select longer stories will soon be posted on our school’s social media channels for friends and families to vote on—stay tuned for more details! We’ll also be sharing and reading some of these stories in class later this month to celebrate these amazing writers and their talent for keeping listeners on the edge of their seats.

If you haven’t yet heard your student’s spooky story, I highly recommend setting aside some cozy time—lower the lights, put on some spooky music, and get ready for a special treat!

Looking ahead, we will begin Unit 2 on Monday. This is by far my favorite part of the year, and the students usually love it too. We’ll dive into some clips from the animated film Up and start reading Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech in class. Just a heads-up: while we explore this novel together, students will continue reading their independent books at home, and weekly quizzes will keep coming. Our writing focus will shift from short narratives to informative writing, which will be an exciting new challenge for everyone.

A Few Important Dates and Announcements to Keep in Mind:

• The first quarter ends on October 8th.

• Student-led Parent/Teacher conferences will be held on October 14 and 16. If you weren’t able to secure a spot on my sign-up but have requested one, I will be responding soon. (I’m juggling quite a bit during the weeks students complete their embedded assessment writings, as I carefully read and give feedback on every story. Just want to keep you in the loop!)

• Our Halloween-themed dance is planned for Friday, October 10, from 6 to 8 PM.

Thank you for your continued support and encouragement. It’s such a joy to watch these young writers grow and thrive!

Reading Quiz #7 is scheduled for Monday, October 6. See the list of assigned chapters below.

I offer after-school tutoring sessions on Tuesdays and Thursdays until 4:00 PM. If your child would like extra support, please feel free to have them attend.

Friday, September 26, 2025

Weekly Update for Families

What a fantastic week we've had in 6th grade! Our students thoroughly enjoyed wrapping up their Spooky Stories projects. We are excited to announce that select stories will be featured in our campus-wide October announcements—a fun way to celebrate student creativity across the school. Additionally, other outstanding stories will be shared during class on dates to be determined.

Looking ahead, our upcoming embedded assessment, Writing a Short Story, gives students the option to either develop their scary stories further or create an entirely new plot. I’m eager to see the unique directions each student chooses!

Please continue to encourage your students to keep reading throughout the week. Reminder: Quiz #6 is scheduled for Monday, September 29.

Here are a few important dates and announcements to keep in mind:

• The first quarter ends on October 8th.

• Student-led Parent/Teacher conferences will be held on October 14 and 16. I will be sending out sign-up information soon.

• Our Halloween-themed dance is planned for Friday, October 10, from 6 to 8 PM.

A special thank you to all of you for your ongoing support. We truly are better together!

Finally, we had some Friday fun in class with a creative writing activity. Students wrote short 67-word essays in just 6 or 7 minutes about what the number/meme "67" means to them. It was enlightening and entertaining to hear 6 or 7 students share their unique perspectives. Middle school moments like these are priceless!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Important dates and announcements:

Reading Quiz #6 is scheduled for Monday, September 29. See the list of assigned chapters below.

I offer after-school tutoring sessions on Tuesdays and Thursdays until 4:00 PM. If your child would like extra support, please feel free to have them attend.

End of the first quarter is October 8th.

Ghouls Night Out (6-7 dance) is on Friday, October 10, from 6-8 pm in the cafeteria. This is a Halloween-themed dance, and we will have a costume contest with prizes. Tickets are available ONLINE only, and tickets will not be available on the day of the event.

Parent/Teacher conferences will be on Tuesday, October 14, and Thursday, October 16. 6-7 conferences will be student-led, so please bring your student with you to the conference! Sign-ups will be sent out soon.

Friday, September 19, 2025

Dear Families,

This week in our writing journey, students explored the captivating myth of Orpheus and Eurydice alongside some delightful fairy tales. Many found a favorite story in Anansi and the Talking Melon, retold by Eric A. Kimmel and beautifully illustrated by Janet Stevens. It’s a wonderful book that sparked great discussions as we identified key elements of plot together — the kids truly enjoyed it!

Looking ahead, our creative minds are already buzzing about next week’s idiom story challenge. The theme? A spooky tale featuring the idiom “Shaking in My Boots!” We’re all excited to see the imaginative stories the students will craft.

A friendly reminder that parent-teacher conferences are coming up on October 14th and 16th. These will be student-led conferences, so please remember to bring your child along! Keep an eye on your email for the sign-up link, which will be sent out closer to the date.

A big thank you to all the parents who have completed the photo release form and allowed us to share classroom moments. I’ll be posting some snapshots this weekend for you to enjoy!

In grammar this week, we focused on spicing up our writing with a variety of sentence structures and using vivid verbs to bring our stories to life.

Thank you for your continued support and partnership!

Mary Hadley

Book Tasting 2025: Students chose their independent reading book.

Please use the links below for specific information about our daily agenda, upcoming embedded assessments, and classroom expectations.