Middleschool

Words to Live By: “What would Jesus do?” This is the question that helps guide my teaching each and every day. Although all educators follow a professional code of ethics, the actions that a Catholic School Teacher needs to demonstrate and model, are those of Jesus. He taught us, among other things, to be compassionate, loving, forgiving, prayerful and committed. Compassion is recognizing that each student has special needs that are addressed in different ways. A teacher shows love every day to students through caring and listening. Although teachers demonstrate forgiveness to others every day, a teacher in a Catholic School goes one step further by reminding students that it is okay to make mistakes because Christ knows that we are human and that we will make mistakes, yet he loves us still. In this busy life, being prayerful can be a challenge. In order to help students be more prayerful, teachers must be continually mindful of their own prayerfulness. Teachers can model commitment through working with students to build a Christian Community within the classroom, the school, the church, and society. Helping students set goals and commit to reaching those goals can be a daunting task, but as Jesus said, “With God all things are possible” (Matthew 19:26). Dr. Withum and her husband (also Dr. Withum), live in Mount Joy and are members of Mary Mother of the Church. They enjoy spending time with their 11 grandchildren, traveling, and volunteering at the Lancaster Liederkranz, where they help promote German culture and traditions.

Present Courses Taught:

Algebra 2 (8^th grade), Algebra 1 (7^th & 8^th grades), Pre-Algebra (6^th grade)

Algebra 2 (8 students) – prepares students to transition into high school Honors Geometry/Trigonometry

Focuses on function analysis (Linear, Quadratic, Polynomial, Square Root, Rational, Exponential, Logarithmic) as well as Probability/Statistics

Algebra 1 (5 – 7^th grade, 14 – 8^th grade) – prepares students to transition into high school Honors Algebra 2/Trigonometry

Focuses on linear and quadratic equations and inequalities, factoring, evaluation of square roots and exponential expressions, rational equations and statistics

Pre-Algebra (12 students) – this is the first whole-class 6^th grade pre-algebra course offered at St. Leo

Prepares students to transition into Algebra 1 in 7^th grade

Focuses on reinforcing middle school math concepts while providing a foundation for Algebra 1 

Mrs. Hemlick enjoys sharing her passion for art with the children. Nothing compares to seeing a kindergartner’s facial expression when they ooh and ahh with delight at the new colors they create when they first begin to mix paint.

Likewise, before doing a chalk drawing of Botticelli’s painting of the Annunciation, she has the fifth-grade students pose like the Virgin Mary and the Angel Gabriel. The students are joyful and excited as they twist and turn to mimic the postures, which helps them to make sense of what they are drawing.

All students are artists when they step into the art room! 

Recently, Mrs. Hemlick has also been teaching math classes. She has kept this nerdy side of her out of the spotlight until now. She enjoys seeing the students learn new concepts and master skills as they solve math problems. Confidence in math is an important skill that she likes to see grow along with math skills. This is especially important in middle school, when some students might begin to question their abilities. It is important for students to keep trying, persevere, and find joy in their successes. To find out more about what we are studying in math, check out the 8th-grade math curriculum. 

Class Objectives:

Together we will learn about the universe that God created (6th Grade Earth Science), building blocks and systems of life from the microscopic to human life (7th Grade Life Science), and the forces, energy, and laws that govern our world (8th Grade Physical Science).

Through each discipline of science we will seek to:

• know, love and understand our God more closely through and investigation of the world that He created
• master knowledge of science concepts and vocabulary
• develop reasoning skills to think critically about evidence and how to test hypotheses
• foster students’ ability to convey their reasoning and understandings both in written and oral form

We reach our goals by:

• Students frequently design up their own experiments and practice carrying them out. 
• Engineering projects where students explore the engineering design process and iterative testing.
• Creating models in various modalities to illustrate and better understand Earth, Life, and Physical Science topics.

Additional Opportunities for Learning:

Science Olympiad – Science Olympiad is an extracurricular activity where students in grades 6-8 together to compete in regional tournaments through different science events including building, forensics, chemistry, and biology. 

Our team has made it to the State Level for the last two years! 

Science Fair – All 6th and 8th Grade students 

The 2022-2023 school year will be the 6th year working at St. Leo the Great. Mrs. Cox has been teaching Social Studies to Middle School students for the last 2 years. She encourages her students to experience history in order to better understand it through analysis, contextualization and research. As 6th graders, students become world explorers as they travel from continent to continent learning about the geography and cultures of different countries. In 7th and 8th grades, students become U.S. Historians as they investigate important historical events like the American Revolution, Westward Expansion, the Civil War, the Great Depression and World War 2. 

As a recipient of 13 years of Catholic education, Mrs. Cox knows the value and impact it can have on a student. She attended St. Leo the Great and is a graduate of Lancaster Catholic. She lives in Lancaster with her husband and 3 children, all of whom benefit from a Catholic education. She enjoys spending time with family and friends and cheering on her children at their sporting events.