|
Inside Billings
November 21, 2024
| |
🎒 What's Happening at Billings? 📚 | |
We hope everyone has a fantastic Fall Break next week! Be sure to have your student look through the Lost and Found sometime in the next two days, as we will be donating whatever is left over to local clothing donation organizations. | |
|
Mike on the Mic 🎤
I hope that all of you have a restful and restorative Fall Break next week and take the time to share gratitude with loved ones. In that spirit, I have a few important appreciations:
Last Saturday was a Billings Event Trifecta! Special thanks to our teachers, parents, and student ambassadors for an enthusiastic Open House and others who supported both the Pinehurst Craft Fair and the Alumni Reunion immediately afterwards. It was wonderful to welcome over 25 alumni to return for s’mores and hot chocolate. Even with the rain, the events were very positive and helped us to continue to build relationships with our community and our alumni.
|  | |
Thank you to the many families who came to Rob’s Family Education Night on 11/7 about The World of Middle Schoolers. I enjoyed getting to chat parent-to-parent too! Later this year, we will have another session focused on technology. As advertised in the BFA Section of the iNews, last night Dr. Delaney Ruston presented Raising Digital Natives: Solutions for Healthy Screen Time Habits as part of the ParentMap Parent Education series.
There were a few things Dr. Ruston talked about that raised my eyebrows. Perhaps the most impactful one was the impact of sleep deprivation due to devices in teens’ bedrooms at nighttime. She shared research that 82% of young teenagers have a phone, computer, or tablet device in their bedroom when they are supposed to be sleeping. The impact of sleep deprivation alone on brain function and learning mirrors the symptoms of depression and substance abuse.
Please know that you have our support in expecting that any homework will be completed in a common area, like the kitchen table, so you can see what your child is working on. I hope you can get a break from screens next week!
Enjoy the break,
Mike
| |
|
✒️ Deans on the Scene 🎓
It’s cold outside! Just a 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. If your student's jacket, coat, or sweater might be lost, encourage them to check the lost and found before break for it.
| |
|
Break Camps at Billings - Steve & Kate's Camp
With Thanksgiving and Winter Breaks quickly approaching, we wanted you to know that Billings will be hosting Steve & Kate’s Camp on our campus for Fall, Winter, Mid-Winter, and Spring Breaks this year.
| |
|
Mike had the pleasure of touring a Steve & Kate’s Camp location this summer and it was a joyful experience where children planned their own days with all kinds of activities. As soon as we put up a flyer outside the main office this week, we immediately had staff and student interest and excitement about it!
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 Fall Break Flyer and Winter Break Flyer.
| |
|
Upcoming Events: 📅
-
[NO SCHOOL] Fall Break 🍁 Monday, 11/25 - Friday, 11/29
- Friday, 12/6 - BFA Meeting, 8:30am
- [NO SCHOOL] Winter Break ❄️ Friday, 12/20 - Monday, 1/6
- POCIS Community Skate - 1/11, 7:15pm-8:45pm at Kraken Ice Complex
| |
6th grade is practicing writing formal emails in advisory, while 8th grade is working on their leadership goals within Billings and the greater community. 8th graders had the opportunity to make a list of leadership ideas and a work session to put those plans into action. Students will be working towards these goals with advisory groups in upcoming weeks. | |
|
6th grade students wrapped up their graphic novel book clubs this week by hosting their final book club discussion and completing their quiz on different elements of fiction. Students are starting a before-the-break mini-project to design their own page out of a graphic novel.
7th grade students completed their research projects last Friday, presenting their art along with their research. From Rorschach tests to string-and-thumbtack conspiracy boards to demonstrative performances of metamorphosing Expo markers, the students put on a great show. Be sure to ask them about their research project!
In math, 6th graders are practicing fraction division with proper, improper, and mixed-number values. We’re also learning to convert fractional values to decimals and percentages. Quizzing your child about percentage values in real-world contexts is helpful, relevant practice! If a basketball player made 8 of 17 shots, what is her approximate shot percentage? If our order at a restaurant costs $55 and we tip 20%, approximately how much will we tip? Asking these types of questions and discussing students’ predictions and calculations is a great way to reinforce these concepts outside of school.
8th graders capped off the final phase of their linear relationships unit this past Tuesday. The classroom transformed into a marketplace where the students sold their phone case designs to classmates and staff at Billings. To finish the unit, the students will calculate net profit and reflect on their phone case company.
|  | |
|
7th grade is wrapping up their science units for fall term this week with their final exam on Thursday! This exam will cover lab safety, basic chemistry, and plant biology. Students will be spending class time this week reviewing material and practicing test-taking strategies. Many students are going for the honors option and condensing all of their notes down to a single piece of paper! Please send 7th graders lots of support on Thursday before their first major test in science!
Returning from break, 7th grade will be starting their first health unit with an intro to health, body image, and culture!
7th grade DLab last Friday was a SMASH! Students have spent the past three weeks designing and building egg carriers to protect a raw egg falling from a high height. Egg carriers were scored based on creativity with recycled materials, condition of the egg after drop, and rakishness (how dashing & stylish)! Congratulations to the winning teams from each section: Cash & Henry in 7B and Wila, Clara & Ian in 7A.
|  | |
6th graders got to travel to the UW Planetarium in order to see an immersive show all about our place in the universe. The show was conducted by UW astronomy graduate students. The class also got to see a small tour of campus and see the location of several science buildings, the quad, and the university library. | |
|
From the BFA:
Neurodiversity Affinity Group Meeting on 11/25
The group’s next virtual meeting will be Monday 11/25 at 7:30pm. The group is open to all parents and caregivers of neurodiverse students. To sign up for the group, register here.
-
Not sure if you’ve already signed up? View your google group memberships here.
-
Signed up but not receiving messages? Let us know.
BFA Meeting on Friday 12/6
The December BFA meeting will be Friday 12/6 from 8:30-9:30am. You can preview the agenda here. Come learn about upcoming events, meet fellow parents, and get involved!
| |
Stop by Hangar 30 in Magnuson Park on November 23rd-24th for the Renegade Seattle Craft Fair! Over 180 artists will be displaying their work from 11am-3pm! Stop by booth 134 to say hi to Amira and her friend, who will be showcasing their hand-sewn designs made from recycled textiles! | |
|
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. Pop into our Holiday Open House on Saturday, 12/1, 12-3pm. All ages welcome.
More at www.squirrellyworkshop.com
| |
|
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
| |
|
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.
|  | |
|
Click the icons to follow us on Social Media!
Looking for old issues of iNews?
Visit the archive.
| | | | |
