Flight 93 Virtual Field Trip

Students in the 8th grade watch and participate in the Flight 93 virtual field trip made possible by the National Parks Service. 

How Do They Grow?

Many parents ask why we start the year out with the Patterns Unit in math class.  Many parents remember their elementary math students using very similar problems.  Using patterns provides an engaging way to strengthen algebraic reasoning skills and structural algebra.  This week, we will finish this unit with a problem solving lab titled Stacking Cups.  Read more about the benefits of using patterns in the classroom! 

Patterns using stacking cups. 

The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards Program

Click here to read more about the program
and application process.

The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards Program

Click here to read more about the program
and application process.

Reminder: AMS 8 Curriculum Night

TONIGHT
Thursday, September 8, 2016

6:30 - 8:30 PM

Middle / High School Auditorium

The 8th grade team would like to welcome our parents and guardians to curriculum night, Thursday, September 8, 2016! The night will begin at 6:30 PM in the auditorium. The curriculum night will allow parents and guardians to hear about the important events and activities the students will be involved in this school year. 

School Picture Day 9/13

Tuesday, 9/13, is AMS school portrait day! 

Wear your outfit and a smile for your picture!

Forms were sent home today (9/8/16).

Join the newspaper club!

Join the middle school newspaper club! We will meet in room 110 after school until 4PM on Tuesday, September 13, 2016. The Herd needs cartoonists, writers, layout and graphic designers, and social media promoters! If you have questions, see Mrs Abate room 201 or Mr. Haskins room 110.

Happy Labor Day - September 5

Read more about Labor Day!

Monday, September 5
School is Closed

You're Invited! AMS 8 Curriculum Night

Thursday, September 8, 2016

6:30 - 8:30 PM

Middle / High School Auditorium

The 8th grade team would like to welcome our parents and guardians to curriculum night, Thursday, September 8, 2016! The night will begin at 6:30 PM in the auditorium. The curriculum night will allow parents and guardians to hear about the important events and activities the students will be involved in this school year. 

Parent Resource AR Renaissance Home Connect

What parents need to know about Home Connect:

• Use your student's AR login information. Your child's AR login information is included in the letter sent home today. 
• You can sign up for email alerts about AR quiz results.
• View the"Bookshelf" and see all the books your student read in middle school.
• View your student's progress towards reaching an AR point goal.

Click on the button below and check out Accelerated Reader Renaissance Home Connect, a terrific parent resource for monitoring your child's AR progress.

Flight 93 Memorial Virtual Field Trip

On Friday, September 9, 8th Grade students will participate with other schools in a virtual field trip of the Flight 93 Memorial.  The program will broadcast live from Shanksville, PA and is hosted by the National Park Service.  Students will be able to interact with the hosts via Twitter using the #actiontohonor

Collaboration and Innovation in Math Class

After multiple days of collaboration, innovative thinking, and problem solving, we will begin our Patterns unit tomorrow, which encourages mathematical thinking through expression, equations, tables, graphs, and using mathematical models.  We are off to a great school year! (A few pics from today's activity).

Welcome!

Email to parents 8/25/2016

Dear parent/guardian,

On behalf of the 8th grade team, I want to welcome you to another great year at Avonworth Middle School! For our students and your son/daughter, this is an important year. It is our goal to help prepare our students for the challenges and demands of high school. Hopefully, your son/daughter will find the eighth grade to be an exciting experience.

Sincerely,

Doug Haskins and the 8^th Grade Team

• Supplies (as found on Edline)
• Read the expectations and complete the form here 

Contact Us

• Mrs. Abate, learning support teacher, sabate@avonworth.k12.pa.us
• Miss Raitano, English teacher, jraitano@avonworth.k12.pa.us
• Mrs. Galecki, reading teacher, kgalecki@avonworth.k12.pa.us
• Ms. Costantiono-Poruben, mathematics teacher, mcostantino-Poruben@avonworth.k12.pa.us
• Mr. Haskins, science teacher, dhaskins@avonworth.k12.pa.us
• Mr. Smith, social studies teacher, jsmith@avonworth.k12.pa.us

Staying In Touch (Three helpful AMS 8 communication tools)

• Remind - AMS Grade 8 text messages (for students)

Students can receive a reminder of important information through the Remind text message service. The service is free and students can choose to receive text messages, notifications through the Remind App or an email. Click here to enroll!

• Google Calendar - AMS Grade 8 Homework & Event Calendar (for students)

The 8th grade calendar with homework reminders and other information can be seen on Edline under middle school teaching teams. Students may choose to add this calendar to their Google Account, a mobile device, or another digital calendar such as Outlook. Learn more about using the calendar from the AMS Parent Academy (Information).

• Stay Connected - AMS Grade 8 Blog & Weekly Newsletter (for parents)

To help parents and guardians stay informed, the 8th grade team provides a blog about the projects, events, and activities happening at school! You can see the blog on our site amsgrade8.blogspot.com or you can enroll in our weekly newsletter by submitting your email address. The newsletter will be sent after school each Thursday starting the first week of September.

8th Grade Expectations

Click here to review the student expectations for the 8th grade.

Daily Homework on the Google Calendar

Students:

Be sure to check the AMS 8 Google Calendar on the website. Each teacher posts the homework each night on the team's calendar. Also, you can find important dates and events.

Welcome back!

Welcome back!

Sign-up to Receive the 8th Grade Weekly Newsletter

Stay Connected. blog and weekly email

Stay Connected. is a communication tool used by the 8th grade team to send parents, students, and interested community members information about our classes. The posts are updated and submitted every Thursday starting 9/1/16. If you subscribe by email, you will receive the newsletter in your inbox!

amsgrade8.blogspot.com

* indicates required

Email Address *

First Name

Last Name

Back-To-School Supply List

Last Day of School

Freshman Expectations

On Wednesday, June 1 ninth graders visited AMS 8 to discuss student expectations in the high school. Students were given the sheet linked below to help them transition to the high school. 

Click here to download a copy of the ninth grade expectations.

Memorial Day - Monday, May 30 - No School

Monday, May 30

The 8th Grade Team honors the sacrifices of the men and women of the Armed Forces of the United States of America. It's because of their bravery and dedication we commemorate this day.

Read more about Memorial Day: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Memorial_Day

Bridge Exposition held Today

8th grade students tested their bridges today during the Bridge Exposition, part of the Bridges to STEM Careers project. Twenty-nine bridges were tested by adding weight to the span until it collapsed. The winner, yet to be determined, is the one that holds the most weight and costs the least to build! In math and science class, students will be creating graphs, analyzing ratios of bridge cost to live load weight, and attempting to conclude which bridge was the winner of the competition. 

A special thanks to our guest experts, bridge engineers and architects from the Pittsburgh Region. Representatives from HDR, Inc. and Michael Baker International used their insight and expertise to help enrich this learning activity. Bridge designs, results, pictures, and videos can be seen on the classroom website.

Videos on YouTube:   TEAM FF and TEAM CC 

Bridge Data and Results

Update! End of the School Year

Library

All books are due back to the library by Tuesday, May 31

Civics Final Exam

June 1

Textbook Return

• Algebra – past due 

• English & Reading - June 2 

• Science – past due

•  Social Studies - June 2

Click here to read more about the end of the school year.

Reminder! Grade 8 Commencement Wednesday

GRADE 8 COMMENCEMENT

June 1, 2015

7:00 PM

Middle School Auditorium

Students must be at school no earlier than 6:20 PM, but no later than 6:40 PM. Students must be dressed in formal attire:

Boys:

- Must wear a shirt with a collar and a tie- Must wear dress slacks - no blue jeans

Girls:

- Must wear dress, skirt, or dress pants- Must wear appropriate footwear - no flip flops

Students must follow the directions of the teachers during the rehearsal and the night of the ceremony.
 

Pool Social

Sunday, June 5th

7:30p.m.-9:00p.m.

Avonworth Community Pool

• $5.00, pizza and concessions will be available at an additional cost
• All middle school students and upcoming 6^th graders are invited

Middle School Olympics

Friday, 5/27 is the Middle School Olympics! Some important reminders! 

Tie-Dye  (read more)

• White T-shirt
• 1 gallon zip-lock bag  

Outside Events

• Be sure to bring sunscreen and water! 
• Wear clothes for athletic events! 
• Be sure to wear athletic shoes! 
• Bring a sweatshirt to school (cool in the AM) 
• A hat for in the afternoon is suggested (sunny and high in the upper 80's) 

Tonight is Bump Up Night!

Parents/guaridans and students are invited to the 8th grade Bump-Up night tonight at 6 PM in the MS/HS Auditorium. Students will be given a copy of their 9th grade schedule (subject to change) and an opportunity to visit their 9th grade classes and teachers.

Readmore about events for high scheduling!

Strip District Field Trip - Tomorrow

Tomorrow is the Strip District field trip. Students will be visiting the Heinz History Center and having lunch at restaurants in the Strip District. Students should bring a packed lunch or money for the field trip. School district policies including the dress code apply to students on the trip.

Kennywood Field Trip Guidelines (Tuesday)

May 24, 2016

Field Trip Guidelines  School district policies including the dress code apply to students on the trip.Read more... - Bring money for lunch or pack a lunch. - Wear sunscreen if we have a sunny day. - Important alerts and information will be sent to students through Remind. Be sure you are signed up.     Text  @amsgrade8 to   81010 - Don’t be a lone wolf!  Stay with your Avonworth group! Check-In With Your Chaperone 1st Check-In - 11:30 – 11:45 Meet at the George Washington statue in front of the Kangaroo near the Carousel and Johnny Rockets. Final Check-In - 1:40 in front of the Sky Rocket by the tunnel. Emergencies in the park In the event of a medical emergency or problem, go to the nearest First Aid Station and have a teacher paged. In the event of another problem or concern, you can text the teachers using the Remind app. Two-way communication will be turned on for the field trip. Read more: https://www.remind.com/join/amsgrade8 Remind - Terms of Service:  IMPORTANT! AS WITH ALL CONTRACTS, IF YOU ARE UNDER THE AGE OF 18, YOU MUST HAVE YOUR PARENT OR GUARDIAN READ THE AGREEMENT BELOW AND AGREE TO IT FOR YOU. IF YOU DON'T GET YOUR PARENT OR GUARDIAN TO READ AND AGREE TO THIS, YOU DON'T HAVE PERMISSION TO USE THIS SERVICE. ALWAYS GET AN ADULT'S PERMISSION BEFORE GOING ONLINE. Terms of Service

Reminder! AR due Wednesday!

AR Points are due Wednesday, May 25!

Parents, you can check your child's reading progress!  Click on the link below and login with your child's login information.  

https://hosted321.renlearn.com/24471/HomeConnect/

Yearbooks to be Delivered May 25!

The 2015-2016 AMS Yearbook 

will be delivered on 

Wednesday, May 25!

Thinking Outside the Box

Reminder! Commencement RSVP

Parents and students should have received an invite for the 8th grade commencement. 

Click here to read more...

Holocaust Survivor visits AMS 8

Making history come alive! Holocaust Survivor Shulamit Bastacky speaks to the 8th grade students.

Pre-Season Cross Country

Even if you haven't attended the previous Pre-season Cross country practices, you can still join us!  No previous running experience necessary.  All 8th grade boys & girls are welcome!

Pre-season Cross Country practices continue next week:   Monday, May 23 and Thursday, May 26 from 3:00 to 4:00

Any parents who were not able to attend the informational meeting last week and would like to sign-up their child for the team, should visit this website to complete the registration info and sign up for Team emails over the Summer:  http://tinyurl.com/zfyd3e3 

All of the informational forms are also available to download on that website too.  

If you have any questions, email Coach Smith:  jsmith@avonworth.k12.pa.us

End of the School Year Information

THIS WEEK:

 - Science and algebra textbook return

 - Final days for library book checkout

Read more about end-of-the-year information from the 8^th grade blog

Keystone Exams to be taken Next Week!

The 8th graders who are enrolled in Integrated Math I (Algebra), will take the Keystone Exams.

On May 17 & 19 (Periods A through D) each of the 2 modules have 23 multiple choice questions and 4 constructive response questions. Students may use a graphing or scientific calculators on this test. For more information on the Keystone Exams, please go to www.pde.state.pa.us.

Nicky's Family

The Grade 8 team would like to thank JFilm Pittsburgh for inviting our students  to the viewing of Nicky's Family today. 

Pancake Breakfast Tomorrow

Parent Network will be sponsoring a Pancake Breakfast this Friday, 5/13/16, that includes great toppings and a drink for $3.

Read about the pancake breakfast on Edline.