Lunch boxes, jackets and sweatshirts are piling up!

Is your child missing that brand new lunch box? Or are you wondering where that brand new North Face jacket may have gone? Or the gym shoes? Try the back of the cafe!

We have a lot of clothes and assorted items piling up already. If your child is missing something, encourage him or her to look in the back of the cafe.

Solar ovens teach conduction, convection, and radiation

Today was the culmination of an 8th grade science project where students built solar ovens. The goal was to use conduction, convection, and radiation heat transfer to cook a S'more.

Groups of 4-5 students worked collaboratively using limited materials (including black paper, tin foil, cardboard boxes, and a few other items you will see in the photos below). The project is part of a Weather and Atmosphere Unit and is assessed using a rubric (that is education jargon the criteria that are used to measure the project). The project requirements include a written description, a data table, and construction criteria:

• Oven must cook two s’mores at the same time. 
• Oven must be no larger than 40 cm x 40 cm. 
• Temperature inside the box must increase by 15oC in 10 minutes. 
• Food may not touch the bottom of the oven directly. 
• The two s’mores must cook at two different heights. 

  Today was a great day for cooking--the ovens in this group were able to go up 24 degrees!
                                         

Ovens were made of a limited number of materials

The temperature of the oven needed to increase by 15 degrees

Sally Leety Civil Rights Collection

Sally Leety will be retiring in a few days. Ms. Leety has been a member of the Nock team since 1982. In her many years as a middle school teacher, Sally has remained a curious and engaged learner and a passionate advocate for the role of schools in creating a healthy democracy. In honor of her commitment to the development of an 8th grade civics and citizenship curriculum, and her dedication to teaching the many stories and lessons of Civil Rights Movements in the US, a collection has been established in our library. Please join us in wishing Ms. Leety many more years of learning and historical adventures!

Ms. Leety with her civic hero John Lewis

Learning that the right words make a difference

7 Crimson students in Mr. Pirollo's room have been working on their writing. This writing wall bulletin board is being used to collect and recognize quotes from student authors. Each day a few new quotes appear on the board. It's nice to watch students try out new words and think about creative ways to express themselves.

Skipper--One super-cute way to address anxiety!

Below is a picture of Skipper, the Nock Therapy Dog. Skipper is a natural with middle school students and staff! He knows just how to bring a smile to even the most grumpy person. Schools across the country are noticing an increase in student anxiety, and many, like the Nock, are working to help students learn strategies to manage anxiety. Skipper is a part of a larger approach that includes anxiety reduction classes during Flex, fidget tools in the classroom, and "mindful moments" embedded in the school day.

"How do I know what to do?"

Students often feel like there is too much information for them to manage. They have to remember what to bring to class, where to find the class, what to do for homework, and what resources to bring home to name just a few. So our teachers use a variety of methods to help students build up their "executive function" skills.

Students will bring home their "Middle Unmuddle" (MUM) assignment book today. Students in 6th grade (and at the start of 7th grade) will be required to write down their assignments daily. I would recommend you ask your child to show you the MUM assignment book and encourage him or her to use it as an organizational tool.

Each classroom has the daily agenda and homework assignment posted. In addition, every team has a hallway whiteboard similar to the one below where the assignments are listed.

In addition to these two tools, each team will be working on a variety of strategies to help students manage information and papers. We will keep you posted as the year progresses!

Welcome back to school!

Dear Nock students and families,

I hope you are looking forward to the start of school on Wednesday! Teachers, support staff and custodians have been hard at work readying the building for your arrival. Below is a little sneak peak at the bulletin board Mrs. Buchmayr created--just one of many fun projects created while students were gone.

Students will begin the school day in the cafeteria. We gather there every morning until 7:20 AM. At 7:20, students go to their homerooms. For the first few days of school, sixth grade teachers will be in the cafeteria to escort their students to the correct rooms.

Homeroom teachers will be distributing schedules and helping students find their way through the day. Each grade level may have a slightly modified schedule on the first two days of school, but students will start Explore classes (art, PE, music, engineering, Spanish, wellness) on the first day.

In case you are wondering about eating, here is the lunch schedule: 6th grade-10:30, 7th grade-11:00, 8th grade-11:30.

As always, please let us know if you have any questions or concerns about the start of the school year.

See you soon!

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