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Inside Billings
December 5, 2024
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🎒 What's Happening at Billings? 📚 | |
Students have been working hard during Fall Term and we’re bringing their learning to life with several experiential culminating December field trips. We are encouraging our students to have a strong finish to Fall Term, and we’re looking forward to exciting new opportunities and experiences in Winter Term! | |
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Mike on the Mic 🎤
Over summer in-service, our whole staff focused on our primary goal of providing an excellent experience this year for students. We briefly defined an excellent year at Billings as joyful and challenging, with clear academic and behavioral expectations, and personalized feedback.
As we returned from Fall Break, it was wonderful to reflect on that goal and the amazing things happening in and out of the classroom. 6th graders are bringing in their beautiful artwork to Christine and showing off their language arts graphic novels with pride. They’re also learning how to study for quizzes! They had a fabulous field trip to the Pacific Science Center yesterday, integrating joyful exploration and tinkering with connections to PE/GO classes and astronomy. It was great to see 7th graders learn about the “good stress” of performing on their first big science test before break as well as on the basketball court in a hard-fought game last night. 8th graders had a hugely successful Marketplace Day in Math class, talking excitedly about the House on Mango Street in Language Arts, and cheering for successful programs in LEGO Robotics Design Lab. We’re excited for a number of upcoming 8th grade field trips to visit houses of worship, like our neighboring IFGF Church and Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church. They will also be visiting MOHAI to explore artifacts and get inspiration for their capstone 8th Grade Projects. In Arts, we’re hearing beautiful three-part harmonies in vocals and celebrating students taking risks with spoken roles in the upcoming Winter Performance.
Though I know sometimes you may only get a “school was fine” response at home from middle school students, we are seeing great joy and challenge here! To make sure you are getting personalized feedback about your child, teachers are also starting to work on the progress reports for Fall Term. Each student will get an Academic Assessment about their demonstration of mastery in a content area as well as a Learning Skills Assessment about their approach to learning and executive functioning behaviors. Finally, all core classes will provide a Personalized Narrative highlighting successes and suggestions for improvement, growth, or enrichment. Teachers will finish these right after Fall Term ends on December 19th and they will be shared with families as soon as they are compiled in our database.
Finally, please join us tomorrow for Friday coffee and tea at drop off, followed by the Billings Family Association Meeting at 8:30.
Thank you for your support,
Mike
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The deans truly are on the scene this week! Rob and April are currently attending the NAIS People of Color Convention in Denver, CO. They're excited to bring back what they've learned to Billings!
Another reminder that we have lunch outside everyday unless it is actively raining. Please help your students remember to pack warm, weather-appropriate clothing so that they are comfortable for lunch.
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Break Camps at Billings - Steve & Kate's Camp
With Winter Break quickly approaching, we wanted you to know that Billings will be hosting Steve & Kate’s Camp on our campus for Winter, Mid-Winter, and Spring Breaks this year.
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Steve & Kate’s Camp is very flexible - families can buy any number of days to use whenever and drop off and pick up any time between 8 am and 6 pm. Many large companies like Microsoft provide Bright Horizons Enhanced Family Supports benefits that can be applied directly to Steve & Kate’s Camp.
For more information or to help spread the word, please visit their website and check out their Winter Break Flyer.
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Upcoming Events: 📅
- Friday, 12/6 - BFA Meeting, 8:30am
- Wednesday, 12/11 - Open House, 5:30pm - 7:30pm
- [NO SCHOOL] Winter Break ❄️ Friday, 12/20 - Monday, 1/6
- POCIS Community Skate - 1/11, 7:15pm-8:45pm at Kraken Ice Complex
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6th grade advisory recently enjoyed their third field trip this fall! Students explored the Pacific Science Center all day, studying exhibits related to outer space, physics, butterflies, dinosaurs, and tinkering with makerspace materials. The highlight was our viewing of Deep Sky, an IMAX film about the James Webb Space Telescope project. | |
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7th grade advisees successfully completed “The Ultimate Trust Fall”. They were tasked with holding onto a rope, tied in a circle, and had to lean back while holding onto the rope. The challenge is everyone must lean back at the same time to stay upright without falling down.
8th grade advisees are planning to host an all school breakfast before the December Break. Stay tuned for information about this community event!
In Math, 7th graders reengaged with the subject by playing “On A Scale From 1 to T-Rex,” a game where students were given actions and an intensity level to perform that action, while their classmates tried to predict intensity levels based off the performances. This game led us into answering the question, how much of a chosen action could you perform for any given amount of time. Students built multiple representations to present their thinking and shared their findings with the class.
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Students are easing back into ELA this week with new novel study units in both 6th and 7th grade. 6th grade students will begin reading Amal Unbound this week after spending some time building up their background knowledge of the story’s setting: Pakistan! After performing a reader’s theatre play inspired by the stories of Sherlock Holmes, 7th grade students will begin building their background knowledge for their whole class novel, My Name Is Not Easy. This book intersects with the indigenous history lessons they’re learning in social studies this year.
6th grade Social Studies students are studying the beginnings of organized societies, specifically Ancient Mesopotamia.
7th grade students were asked to “interview an Elder” in their lives and write up important life lessons and strategies about coping with challenges or setbacks. In addition, students have been researching and will be presenting about a social justice issue impacting Native people in Washington State.
8th graders are continuing to explore Colonial America with a dive into Puritanism and the Salem Witchcraft Trials of 1692. In order to help understand this time period in a deeper and more meaningful way, students are learning about Christianity and will be visiting a Catholic church next week.
All grades have recently finished learning about adjectives and colors in Spanish and have begun learning about verbs ser and estar.
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7th graders have begun their first Health unit of the year with an Intro to Health, Body Image & Culture. Students will be learning about the impacts that different cultures and pop media have on the various expressions of body images that appear historically and presently in our society. Students spent the first health class reviewing and creating class norms and expectations based on their 3Rs (Respect, Responsibility, and Resilience) as well as non-negotiables to create a safe and brave space in Health class. | |
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This was a big week for the Arts Department–casting information for actors and singers was shared with individual students on Monday. Just as in professional theatres, individual performers learned their role first and were given the opportunity to accept or decline their role privately. Now that all roles have been confirmed, the full cast list has been released and our community is able to discuss the upcoming production with all artists in mind! Please read the following links to learn how each student is involved in our production of The Nut-Brown Girl:
Rehearsal, tech, and performance dates are on the community calendar, but can also be found here:
We can’t wait to get going on this show! As per Christine's email, please donate any large cardboard boxes you no longer need to be used in the creation of our sets and props.
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From the BFA:
Join Us for BFA Meeting Tomorrow 12/6
The December BFA meeting will be tomorrow Friday 12/6 from 8:30-9:30am. You can check out the agenda here. Come learn about upcoming events, meet fellow parents and caregivers, and get involved!
ExpEd & Athletics Help Wanted!
Experiential Learning Coordinator Melissa Bernstein is looking for our help with upcoming outdoor and athletic activities. Contact Melissa if you can help with any of the following:
- Donating old pairs of skis of any type (poor condition is ok)
- Helping students build ski contraptions for Design Build Day on January 24
- Coaching or co-coaching track or ultimate frisbee in the spring
- Connecting Billings to facilities that may be available for after-school athletic practices
- Sharing your passion for a sport or outdoor activity with the students
Kick-off Meeting for Mid-Winter Faculty Appreciation Event Team
The event team planning Mid-Winter Faculty Appreciation activities will hold a kick-off meeting next Friday 12/13 from 8:30-9:30am at the school. If you can’t make the meeting but would like to help out with this event, just let us know.
Registration Now Open for UW Bowling Night on 1/25
Billings’ annual take-over of UW’s bowling alley is happening Saturday, January 25th from 5-7pm. Bring the whole family, including non-Billings siblings, for bowling and pizza. Suggested donation per person is $15. Please register here.
Snackulty Faculty Signup
We are looking for parents/caregivers to bring snacks and treats for the staff meeting on January 8th and other dates in 2025. You can sign up and view additional slots here.
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SQUIRRELLY WORKSHOP
After-School Art & Holiday Gift Making
Squirrelly Workshop is an art studio in Sand Point Village (5414 Sand Point Way NE), hosting a wide array of art classes for kids and adults. Monday through Friday, we offer After-School Art Classes for kids, and would love to have yours join us! Their upcoming four-week series is their favorite:❤️ Surprise Holiday Gift Making!
Adults can also join in the fun! Learn collage, glass painting or wreath making in a weekend family class, or join for an adult night out creating pottery, mosaics, watercolors, or beaded jewelry.
More at www.squirrellyworkshop.com
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Check out these ParentMap articles:
For more support and resources surrounding the youth mental health crisis, screen time and social media, and the importance of play, visit ParentMap’s Antidote for the Anxious Generation page.
Speaker links
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Billings is proud to sponsor the 2025 Diversity Career Fairs hosted by POCIS Northwest on February 9 and March 8. Please help us spread the word! | |
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Hello 8th grade families,
If your student will be considering private high school applications, click this link (English & Español) to learn about the test prep sessions Billings will be offering from September 9th through December 19th.
Executive Function Workout!
💡 FEEL THE BURN! 💡
Join me (Greg: Director of The Learning Center at Billings) for a regular Tuesday morning EF workout from 8:30am to 9:30am starting Tuesday, September 10th. Developing EF, or Executive Function, requires the exercise of the brain in specific ways. Drop in on any Monday morning, to share stories and explore strategies for strengthening our EF muscles and by extension, that of our students.
Think of Executive Function as the CEO of the brain, helping us improve our self-regulation and aid our ability to make both short and long-term plans that enhance our performance in many aspects of our life. At a middle school pragmatic level this includes things like, doing your nightly HW, working on long term projects, or doing chores around the house. This is not a class. This is an opportunity to share collective wisdom. While 30 plus years as a middle school educator has certainly allowed me to garner some wisdom, I am really a facilitator on Tuesday mornings. Regular attendance is not a prerequisite. I don't need advanced notice. Drop in any Tuesday morning.
We will be meeting in person in Mercury, during advisory and the beginning of first period. Check-in at the front desk before heading down to Nadia. If you do not want to attend in person and prefer Zoom, let me know and I will send you a recurring Zoom link. Masks are not required but can be provided upon request.
And if Tuesday mornings are not a viable option for you, but you want to learn more, don't hesitate to e-mail me, and let's find time to chat 1-1.
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