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Inside Billings
March 13, 2025
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🎒 What's Happening at Billings? 📚 | |
The school is buzzing as we prepare for our production of The Nut-Brown Girl next week! Make sure your student is aware of the schedule for afterschool practices in the coming days. Our opening night will be Friday, March 21st at 7:00pm, with the matinee showing Saturday, March 22nd at 2:00pm and the closing night show at 6:30pm. Let us know when to expect you by RSVPing at the link below! There's no fee, but we offer the option to donate if you'd like to help support the arts department here at Billings! | |
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Mike on the Mic 🎤
Thank you to all of you who have re-enrolled your children at Billings next year - we are thrilled to continue to partner with you! Billings has seen excellent re-enrollment this year, along with enthusiastic interest from new families. Special appreciation to Stephanie, our faculty and staff, and our parent ambassadors and Board volunteers for their incredible work throughout our Admissions season.
I also wanted to express my gratitude to our Trustees, who have been instrumental in several key financial and strategic initiatives this year. Our Board Chair and Billings Alum, Amelia Marckworth, would love to invite you to engage in Board Committee work. This critical volunteer service is vital to our success. If you would like to talk more about our Committee work such as Finance, Governance, Advancement and more, please email Amelia.
We are excited that Maya will be returning to Billings for Spring Term to resume 7th Grade Advisory, Science, and Design Lab! Maya’s first day back will be our in-service day on March 24. Maya will also support some GO/PE Classes with climbing instruction and other 7th grade spring trip preparation.
This does mean that Amira will be winding down her long-term substitute position at Billings, but she will continue to be with us through Spring Break as a supportive substitute and as a chaperone for our 7th grade climbing trip. Amira will be writing progress report comments to update 7th grade families about Winter Term. We are thankful for Amira’s great care for her students, her creative Design Lab projects and experiments in science and her enthusiasm for field trips and experiential learning.
I also wanted to share that Emma recently let us know that she will not be returning to Billings next year. Emma joined Billings in the middle of last school year and has gifted us with her kindness and connection with students. Though you are certainly familiar with her passion and expertise in Language Arts, you may not know that Emma also enthusiastically supported the formation of our Magic after school club and is joyfully leading our yearbook club. Please join me in wishing her the best as she explores teaching in public school after the end of this school year.
We will be posting a Language Arts position shortly and will keep you informed as we move through the hiring process.
Thank you for your support,
Mike
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🌻Spring Schedule🌷
Following our teacher in-service day on Monday, March 24th, we will be starting our Spring Term Schedule on Tuesday, March 25th. Please click the buttons below to view each grade’s daily schedule.
Some important highlights:
· For 8th grade, the schedule will look identical to Fall Term.
· For 7th grade, there are some modifications to best support Maya’s return and the two spring 7th grade trips, including climbing preparation. Students will have the same number of classes in all subjects as Fall Term, but there will be a different configuration each day.
· For 6th grade, we are splitting the classes into two sections for this Spring Term. Students will have the same number of classes in each subject and almost an identical schedule as Fall Term. Teachers are working on creating section groups and will announce them to students at the appropriate time.
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🌱 Philanthropy at Billings🪴 | |
This is your last chance to purchase your tickets to the Billings Base Camp Celebration and Fundraising Dinner. It’s an event you won’t want to miss!
Thank you to everyone who has already purchased your tickets! I am thrilled to share that we will have over 100 attendees already. Ticket sales will close tomorrow, March 14th, so don’t wait!
Billings’ fabulous faculty are offering amazing buy-in and silent auction experiences. You’ll want to snag a spot in teachers Emma and Gillian’s May 16th student karaoke party for students, or Dean Rob and teacher Nathan’s Basketball Bash on June 6th. If your student is a big fan of dogs, or just a fan of the fabulous Becca, then they will be absolutely thrilled to join in on the Puppy Playdate and Picnic hosted by Becca and her adorable doggo Frankie on June 7th. Or, treat yourself and sign up for the Donuts and Mimosas Pajama Party hosted by Laurie Alexander and Molly Countryman!
Buy your ticket today and check out what other fantastic items await you at the Billings Base Camp Celebration and Fundraising Dinner!
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✒️ Deans on the Scene 🎓
As we wrap up Winter Term, teachers are preparing progress reports. This report is intended to give a brief assessment of academic status, work completion, and suggestions for improvement or challenge before conferences in May and grade reports in June. Students will receive a progress report from all classes, including PE/GO; Design Lab and Winter Performance will not be included in these reports. Please look for Winter Reports in an email from Alma by Friday, March 27.
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Upcoming Events: 📅
- The Nut-Brown Girl: March 21, 7:00 pm
- The Nut-Brown Girl: March 22, 2:00 pm & 6:30pm
- BFA All-Family Meeting: April 4, 8:30am - 9:30am
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Billings Base Camp: Annual Celebration and Fundraising Dinner - Friday, April 4th from 5:30pm - 9:00pm [purchase tickets here]
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Screen-Time Family Event: April 8, 6:00pm - 7:30pm [LINK]
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6th graders went on their final snowshoeing trip of the school year last Friday! Before embarking on our final winter expedition, students discussed what it means to build group morale and what actions students could take to increase morale. Upon arriving at Hyak Sno-Park, students circled up for a land acknowledgement. Students then got to work building a snow snake track, working together to build a multiple yards long track. Afterwards, we played a game of snow snake, tossing the whittled and sanded sticks we made over the week (along with a few skis) to see who could glide their stick the farthest to victory. Students then split up for either a slushy sledding adventure or one final snowshoe trek! Please check out the amazing photos from all our winter trips in the Winter Program SmugMug gallery.
| 7th graders volunteered to represent the grade in next week's All-School Winter Olympics, where they will compete in one of three events - Biathlon, Figure Skating, and Curling. During advisories students continued to complete their personal habit trackers, while we also discussed how everyone uses their planners and when they might become of use in the future. | 8th graders had an alternative schedule last Friday to work on their 8th grade projects in addition to some core class work. We will have students work on their projects again this Friday with the intention of completing their final product. During regular Advisories and our weekly Class Meeting, students are discussing beneficial and productive ways to manage stress. | |
There's still time to sign up for our Summer@Billings program! Please check out the website for all the information and register below.
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7th grade wrapped up their Science units for the winter with their Case Study Presentations in front of the 6th grade science class! Students have spent the past month researching, writing, and creating visual representations about the relationship between their chosen topics and climate change and environmental justice. Topics ranged from Gasworks Park, the Escondida Copper Mine, Standard Oil, wildcat species, and more! Shoutout to the 6th graders for being fantastic audience members!
| On Friday, 7th graders participated in a DLab workshop learning about the science behind natural dyes and the impact of synthetic textile dyes on the environment! Students created their own dyes using various grocery store produce and tie dyed bandanas. Using alum powder as a mordant to help the dyes stick, students created a red dye with beets, red cabbage, and red onion skins, and a yellow dye with fresh turmeric and yellow onion skins. | |
6th grade students are continuing to practice their nonfiction reading skills in ELA. Students are preparing for their upcoming text features, summary writing, and main idea quiz by reading and analyzing nonfiction articles (and playing a game of review Jeopardy!). Ask your student what they learned about the 1918 flu pandemic (“Spanish Flu”) this week!
8th graders are working on their product pieces for the 8th grade project, which is due next week. Works in progress include slide presentations, essays, paintings, and collages that respond to an Essential Question from ELA and Social Studies content. Stay tuned for information about these final products and an opportunity for the Billings community to experience these projects.
Pre-Algebra & Algebra 1 wrapped up their exponential properties unit this week. Algebra 1 will build on these skills as they explore exponential functions, including percent growth & decay. Pre-Algebra students will revisit this topic a year from now, when they too explore exponential functions in a real-world context.
FTAT is wrapping up their Tri(angles) unit this week. They are able to determine the number of triangles that can be made based on their side lengths and angles. Please ask your students about these topics to check their understanding and see if you may learn something new!
6th grade Spanish is continuing their travel unit. They have been learning vocabulary, and will soon apply it to a travel skit.
7th grade Washington State History is wrapping up our study of the ship canal with student presentations. Students will be reading background and creating timelines for the beginnings of the Washington Territory in the 1850s up to the development of the Grand Coulee Dam in the 1930s.
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Avast! Thar be Billings iNews!
The band for the winter production of Nut Brown Girl has made tremendous progress as a group and has a very cool ensemble sound featuring violin, two flutes, a glockenspiel, two keyboards, drums and bongos. They’ve learned Scottish folk songs like Skye Bonnie Boat and Wild Mountain Thyme, pop songs like Sky of Stars and Runaway by Aurora, and original pirate jams by their instrumental teacher Birch Pereira. They are giddy with anticipation to perform with the actors next week.
-The Art Department
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🥾 ExpEd ⛰️
Spring trip season is just around the corner! On April 9th, our 7th graders will be headed to Central Washington where they will climb at the Feathers, enjoy the spring color hiking at Ancient Lakes, and explore the unique landscape and history of Hanford Reach National Monument. Look out for an email from Melissa this week with trip details including packing list, gear request survey, basic schedule, and link to permission forms.
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From the BFA:
Save the Date: Screen Time Event with Rob
On Tuesday, April 8th from 6-7:30pm, Dean of Students Rob Heavner will lead a parenting event on screen time. The event is open to all Billings parents and guardians, and will include a talk by Rob as well as small group discussion time. Mark your calendar now for this informative event!
Notes from March BFA Meeting
If you weren’t able to make last Friday’s BFA meeting, please check out the meeting notes. BFA meetings are held on the 1st Friday of each month, from 8:30-9:30am. All parents and caregivers are invited to attend in person or online.
Parenting Resources
Harmony at Home: Successfully Navigating Parent-Child Differences, with Dr. Ann-Louise T. Lockhart, pediatric psychologist and parent coach
March 20th, 12–1 pm
Register here for this webinar from ParentMap
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Dreaming of warmer weather? Start planning your garden and get what you need at Tilth Alliance’s spring plant sales! This Saturday, March 15th from 9am-3pm, stop by the Rainier Beach Urban Farm & Wetland to browse more than 150 different varieties of vegetable, herb, and fruit plants, as well as edible flowers! Check out the website for full plant availability lists. Questions? Email Amira or stop by the veggie booth and ask her on Saturday! | |
How to Build Equitable Schools
Join Elena Aguilar, author of the highly acclaimed book Arise: The Art of Transformational Coaching, to discuss the importance of emotional resilience in equity work. Walk away with a number of strategies to cultivate the emotional resilience needed to build equitable schools.
- April 23, 2025
- 5:00-6:15 pm
- Via Zoom
- Free and Open to the Public
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Parents: join our band teacher Birch and the Gin Joints at one of Seattle's oldest dive bars and dance out your blues to some americana, swing and New Orleans rock 'n' roll.
www.theginjointsband.com
Birch Pereira & the Gin Joints
Mar 14th at the Shanty Tavern, $10
9002 Lake City Way NE, Seattle, WA 98115
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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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Executive Function Workout!
💡 New Year, New Day!💡
We are switching to Wednesday mornings for our winter EF Workouts!
Join me (Greg: Director of The Learning Center at Billings) for a regular morning EF workout from 8:30am to 9:30am on Wednesdays. Developing EF, or Executive Function, requires the exercise of the brain in specific ways. Drop in on any Wednesday morning to share stories and explore strategies for strengthening our EF muscles and by extension, that of our students.
Think of EF (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 Wednesday mornings. Regular attendance is not a prerequisite. I don't need advanced notice. Drop in as you are able.
We will be meeting in person in Mercury during advisory and the beginning of first period. 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 Wednesday 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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