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Rising 9th grade STEM School students and families,

Welcome to STEM School Chattanooga! I wanted to share some information about Summer Reading in preparation for starting 9th grade at STEM in the fall. My summer reading goals for you are two-fold: guiding you towards a personal love of reading and easing your transition to high school and the STEM School itself. With these goals in mind, I am asking you to read 2 books this summer:

One (1) nonfiction book of your choice
This should be on a school appropriate topic of interest to the student
Examples: Biography, autobiography, scientific, historical, sports, memoir, etc.
Ms. Britt is going to read a memoir: Abuela, Don’t Forget Me by Rex Ogle

Choose one (1) book from the list below:
These books will be used in the first unit of the year, and will be used for book clubs during the first weeks of school. Students will be put into groups based on their selected text. Parents please review the books below to help your student make the best selection for with your student.

HCS Book choices:
*The Hunger Games – Suzanne Collins
*Lord of the Flies – William Golding
*Ender’s Game – Orson Scott Card
*The Poet X – Elizabeth Acevado
*American Street – Ibi Zoboi

Students will share their summer reading with their classmates during the first few weeks of school. If you need book ideas, access to books, or to search the reading level of a book, I have provided some helpful websites below:

Chattanooga Public Library Summer Reading Picks
List of Popular Young Adult Book Titles
Book Levels and “Find A Book” Search
Archive.Org Online Free Digital ebook Library
Project Gutenberg Online Free Digital ebook Library

The Chattanooga Public Library is a great place to find fiction books to read over the summer, and McKay’s and other used book/thrift stores have low prices on books if you prefer to have your own print copy. Please contact the STEM School at 423-531-6270 or Ms. Amy in the front office at robinson_amy@hcde.org if your student needs to borrow a print cop of their fiction choice book  – books would need to be requested and picked up from the STEM School front office no later than Thursday, May 23.

Happy summer reading, and I look forward to seeing you in August!

Ms. Stephani Britt
English I Teacher
STEM School Chattanooga
britt_s@hcde.org

Welcome to STEM!

We are excited that you will be joining us in the fall and look forward to a great school year. In order for you to be best prepared to meet the challenges of your 9th grade math class, we ask that you complete  an online assignment that will allow you to review important math concepts taught in prior classes and a computational assignment that will help you brush up on the basic arithmetic skills needed to be most successful in your math class. The directions to access each assignment are below.

 

 

Assignment #1 – Delta Math

 

Directions to create Delta Math account and get started

 If you expect to take Geometry or a higher math course in 9th Grade, enter: 

https://www.deltamath.com/students?code=8U8L-U24W

 

If you expect to take Algebra 1 in 9th Grade, enter:

https://www.deltamath.com/students?code=CR59-B367

To Complete: Achieve 100% mastery by August 16, 2024. Hint: Use the available videos and examples on the website to help you as needed.

 

Watch the introductory video from Delta Math to learn your way around the site.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wyk2jjEvs4U

 

 

Assignment #2 – Computational Skills

 

Students will be assessed on computational math skills in addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. Students are expected to complete the computations without pen, pencil, paper or calculators.

 

Summer Practice: Go to the website Arithmetic Game (https://arithmetic.zetamac.com) to practice.

 

Grade Assigned – September 1st: Students will be assessed as follows in their 9th grade math course using the following guidelines. Students should use the Arithmetic Game to practice.

Addition/subtraction – must use range of –100 to 100, students will be graded as follows:

50 – Below Basic (BB): Less than 5 correct in 60 seconds

80 – Proficient (PR): 5 to 9 correct in 60 seconds

100 – Advanced (AD): 10 or more correct in 60 seconds

Multiplication/division – must use range of –10 to 10, students will be graded as follows:

50 – Below Basic (BB): Less than 20 correct in 60 seconds

80 – Proficient (PR): 20 to 29 correct in 60 seconds

100 – Advanced (AD): 30 or more correct in 60 seconds

Have a wonderful summer, I look forward to seeing you in the fall,

 

Dr. Sue Williamson

9th Grade Mathematics

I am excited to be a part of your next chapter (#englishteacherjoke) at STEM School. One of my goals as an English teacher is to help students develop a love of reading and literature. With this in mind, I want to keep summer reading simple:

Choose two books, fiction or literary nonfiction (basically, something that tells a story about a real person, place, thing, or event – as opposed to a technical manual), to read over the summer. We’ll share a bit about our summer reading in the fall. That’s it. No test, no questions to answer, no paper to write. Just get lost in your books.

I know the rabid readers out there likely have a list of books at the ready, and for them, this will be a breeze. And I know my reluctant readers may look at this with trepidation and have no idea where to start. Don’t worry! I have ideas and recommendations to get you started. My first recommendation is the Chattanooga Public Library’s 2023 Summer Reading Picks. It has a little something for just about any interest. If nothing gets you excited, there are many other lists out there. If you need some help, let me know.

Here are some places to get great books:

• The Chattanooga Public Library – All Hamilton County Schools students are eligible for a free library card, but if you don’t have one already. Get in touch, and we’ll help you get access. The library has a great selection of books and media that can be accessed online.
• Amazon’s Best Seller lists include the Top 100 free kindle books: Top 100 free Teen & Young Adult eBooks. You can also change categories for additional titles.
• Amazon Prime members have access to an extensive library of books included with their Prime membership. All you need is the kindle app.
• Project Gutenberg includes thousands of free ebooks, mostly classics, that are in the public domain.
• Riveted by Simon Teen offers several free young adult titles each month, including new and recent releases.
• SYNC is a free summer audiobook program for teens 13+.

As a parent, I know it’s sometimes difficult to know what’s appropriate for my kids. One of the resources I use to make informed decisions is Common Sense Media. But I also encourage you to read along with your students. You might be surprised at the rich discussions that a good book can lead to. If you have no idea where to begin, or if you would like some personalized recommendations, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with Mr. Kubisak (KUBISAK_G@HCDE.ORG).