8B - Mrs. Przybojewski

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Mrs. Przybojewski and Henry are excited about sauntering a new school year with you.  It will be a year filled with great writing!

"How vain it is to sit down and write when you have not stood up to live."   Henry David Thoreau










Henry David Thoreau Resident Author October News
 
Henry David Thoreau made his return to St. Benedict Catholic School by being Mrs. Przybojewski’s substitute.  He was greeted warmly by all the students and enjoyed preparing the junior high for the work that they will be involved in about his writings.  He reviewed his life and importance to the students and was able to answer their questions.  Since the eighth grades respond in writing in their journals about statements that he wrote in his own journal, Henry was able to expand a bit more on their significance.
Grade eight students are looking forward to the visit by another great American writer Ralph Waldo Emerson, who was Henry’s mentor and first encourage him to keep a journal.  Emerson will speak to the students about his life and will talk about the art of journaling.  He and Henry will speak to the students about their literary influence upon each other and the rift that separated them.











Grade 8 English and Religion October News
 
In English, the eighth graders have been working on descriptive compositions and learning how to describe using their senses.  They just completed one based on their nature observation journals.  Students have been analyzing three poems to introduce them to the first chapter in Walden, which is “Economy.”  They read and discussed “House on Pooh Corner”, “Fern Hill” by Dylan Thomas, and “Sic Vita” by Thoreau.  All three have the theme based on leaving childhood behind while still retaining child-like qualities of being awake, aware, and alive.  They did critical thinking responses in groups as they analyzed these poems.  Presently, they are writing a poem that expresses their emotions of leaving childhood behind as they prepare for young adulthood.  Henry David Thoreau substituted for Mrs. Przybojewski and introduced the students to “Economy”.  They discussed his words and he guided them in their critical thinking questions.
In Religion, 8B is studying about the mystery of the Church and learning various models of it.  Father Haren comes in once a week to teach both classes about the faith.  Students especially like the stories he tells them and the way he is so receptive to their questions.  The eighth grade had a wonderful spiritual time with the Trinity High School “Got Prayer” retreat at Camp Christopher.  They learned various methods of prayer and especially found Eucharistic Adoration very meaningful.  The retreat culminated with the celebration of liturgy with Father Haren as the celebrant.
Grade eight students are also in the process of shadowing various high schools to narrow their Catholic high school selection, which will take place in January.  Students shadowed Trinity High School and Cleveland Central Catholic High School as a group.










Grade 8 students spent a spiritual day at Camp Christopher in Bath, Ohio on September 27.  They attended the Got Prayer Retreat sponsored by Trinity High School.  It was a day where the students grew in relationship to God and each other.  The day concluded with the celebration of liturgy with Father Haren.





























                             HENRY DAVID THOREAU RESIDENT AUTHOR
IDuring July of 2018, junior high teacher, Mrs. Donna Przybojewski, attended the Thoreau Society gathering in Concord, MA.  She gave a two and a half hour presentation explaining the continuing study of Henry David Thoreau during the second year of sauntering with him.  She had eighteen tri-fold poster displays, which highlighted the students’ Thoreau activities as well as giving a power point and reading students’ creative works.  Everyone was amazed that St. Benedict School displayed such high academic standards by encouraging students to write, critically think, and celebrate their own unique qualities.  St. Benedict Catholic School and Mrs. Przybojewski received a standing ovation for the work done in promoting the legacy of Thoreau through all classes and disciplines.
Also, Mrs. Przybojewski had two art displays of her oil and mixed media illustrations of her illustrations from her Thoreau children’s books.  She had a month long display in June at the Cleveland Heights Library Art Gallery and one in July at First Parish in Concord, where she also gave a lecture on her role as an artist and writer of children’s books on this American author.  This was an honor because First Parish is the church that Thoreau received his Baptism and had his burial service.
Another highlight for Mrs. Przybojewski occurred at Walden Pond State Reservation where her book Henry David Thoreau Loved the Seasons of the Year was used as a story walk throughout the summer.   Her fifth book on Henry David Thoreau If Henry David Thoreau Traveled the Southwest was published in June.

                                                 GRADE 8 SEPTEMBER NEWS

We had a wonderful beginning to the eighth grade year at St. Benedict Catholic School.  The students have been very busy and are ready to learn so that they are prepared for the rigors of high school.
In English, the eighth graders have been reviewing the writing process and basic grammar and punctuation.  They are writing journal entries based on the words of Henry David Thoreau at least three times a week and are keeping an observation journal throughout the year to train themselves to be observant.
Since we have a beautiful prayer space in the school now, a small chapel, the students celebrated a liturgy together with their classmates.  They are focused on using their gifts and talents for others this school year.  We also began the year with a prayer service in the chapel.  In Religion class, we are learning about the characteristics of the Catholic faith and also examining the Catholic Social Justice Principles as well as the Creed.  Students are looking forward to a  retreat sponsored by Trinity High School at Camp Christopher on September 27.
In addition, students are in the process of discerning high school selections.  They will shadow Trinity High School as a group on October 8 as well as Cleveland Central Catholic High School on October 26.
Students are very excited because they will be going to Washington, D.C. in May for three days as their culminating field trip as eighth graders.  Many fund raising projects are being planned.
This year math works a little bit different for junior high students. They have two math classes every day except for one day. Also, they get both math teachers at once for one of those days to allow for more individualized attention. Currently the 8th grade students are finishing up learning about real numbers including working with exponents, square roots, cube roots, and scientific notation. The majority of what they are doing does not need a calculator.
Students in the 8th grade have also been closely studying the topic of real numbers and all the numbers that exist in that system:  (1) rational numbers; natural numbers, whole numbers, and integers; and (2) the irrational numbers.  We have just completed a quiz on the real number system, and are beginning to explore the properties of exponents.  They are also spending time studying perfect squares.  There have been reviews of topics studied in previous years; this will be ongoing throughout the year.  Practice, practice, practice! Throughout the study of these many topics, the eighth graders have been doing a very good job of being attentive and actively participating in their learning. 
 
In social studies, we began the year by doing a class flag project that included a writing and a presentation portion. We were able to put the democratic process into action and now we have an official 8A and 8B class flag.

Since then we have been exploring the earliest part of American history. We learned how our ancestors crossed over the Bering Land Bridge and eventually formed great societies such as the Inca and Aztec, that rivaled the great civilizations of Europe.
 In eighth grade Reading, students learned that when you make inferences while reading, you use clues from the story and your own knowledge to guess about things the author doesn't say.  The 8th grade put this Reading skill into practice as we read the story "Raymond's Run" as we discussed the main character's feelings, thoughts, and ideas.
In Science, the first few days into the new school year involved science lab safety and the scientific method. The students have not only been learning facts, but more importantly understanding the process of science.  Our initial inquiry involved understanding how the earth transformed from being a super continent Pangaea, to seven unique separate ones.  We learned about each layer of our earth, and their specific characteristics.  Lastly, the students enjoyed making models of the earth by using Play Do.  The students’ precision and design were amazing.