IMPORTANT REMINDERS/EVENTS:
8th Grade Eng-of-Year Activities:
Friday, May 23—Schlitterbahn and Post-field trip “Activity Fest”
Wednesday, May 28—Academic Celebration (Awards Ceremony), 6:30
Thursday, May 29—Promotion Ceremony* at Butler Field House; No school for 8th graders, 9 am
*Students received an informational brochure on Thursday, 5/15 about Schlitterbahn and 8th Grade Promotion. Please pay close attention to the dress code expected at the promotion ceremony. We would hate for anyone to have to sit in the stands and watch promotion instead of walk across the stage due to dress code violations. Thank you for your support and attention in advance.
This Friday is the multi-cultural program. Many of our House C students are participating; you are welcome to join us in our celebration of our many cultures at Pin Oak. The talents of our student are amazing and are being showcased in the various performances this week in the fine arts and Pin Oak Idol.
We have learned that Darius Altman received a first place at the FotoFest for his project he did for History Fair on the Space Program.
Caroline Batten, Audrey Einhorn, and Erin Garza learned recently that they are finalists in the Christopher Columbus Contest some of our Dissertation students entered. The girls along with their Mr. Granthum, their dissertation advisor, will be traveling to Disney World to participate in the finals.
This will be the last update for the school year. Our team has truly enjoyed having your children as students this year. We are sad to see them leave, but are confident they will all enjoy high school and have exciting futures in front of them. Thank you for sharing your children with us this year!
Sincerely,
Your 8C Cluster
Ms. Linsley, Ms. Qureshi, Mr. Scott, and Ms. Parchman
English:
We had LTF testing this week, which has put us behind schedule in getting projects presented in class and reading in Mango Street. That is what we will be doing for the last bit of school. Students already have a large number of grades for my class, and there will not be many more.
All late work is due by Wednesday the 21st—no exceptions. Grades are due Friday the 23rd for 8th Grade, but I will be on the field trip to Schlitterbahn and will need to time to grade assignments and enter final grades by the 22nd. It is very possible that students that brought home high grades on progress reports have dropped if they have not turned in some assignments between then and now—especially the IRP, which counts three times. Please encourage students to get missing work in before the deadline.
History:
The big landform project assigned over a month ago was due this week. Some of them are spectacular and will be a wonderful project to keep for geography in ninth grade. I will return the project and the grade on a separate sheet next week. Ask to see the project and the grade. Unfortunately, some of your children did not submit the project. The students will receive a grade for this project in both history and science.
I am sure we are going to hear great things about many of our students in the future as they continue with their academic careers. Please keep us informed; we consider these “our kids” and are interested in their successes. We wish them “the best!”
Science:
Please email Mr. Scott for Science information.
Math:
Algebra I: Final exams are on Wednesday during 1st and 3rd Period.
Students should report to their first period teachers to check in, although all teachers will receive a list of students attending final exams. After checking in, all students in Algebra 1 classes should report to the multi-purpose room with two sharpened number 2 pencils. Students should not bring cell phones, mp3 players, calculators, or calculator-enabled watches to the final exam room. Thus, it is best to leave such items at home to insure their safety.
Students have three assignments due on Tuesday, May 20th (10.5 from the text, Quadratics and Polynomial Test Exam 1 (for practice as homework), and a handout which requires them to graph quadratics. Students can turn in any missing homework by Monday, May 19th. I will not take late work after Monday. Students who will be absent Monday need to find a way to get any missing work to me on Monday.
Carnegie units are due by Wednesday afternoon at 2:00 P.M. The printouts available to students show what unit the student completed, as of the end of the last six weeks. Please add six to this number to determine how many units your child should complete by Wednesday. As the students are fully aware, additional units, beyond the required six, are extra credit. These extra credit units must be completed by the aforementioned deadline. Students finishing all units of the software will receive free geometry software for next year. If your student has finished the units by the day before graduation, please have him or her discuss this with me so that I may submit his/her name.
There will be no homework this week of final exams.
Pre-Algebra:
Final exams for pre-algebra will be given during class time on Monday. The test is comprehensive and contains content from the entire year. Students have been instructed on how to review for the final exam. Students who have missing or late work will need to submit it at the beginning of the class period prior to taking the final. No additional homework will be assigned and no work taken after the final exam. Please ensure that your student has the assignments complete. Students in pre-algebra received printouts during the week of May 11th. These reports show their current grade and what missing work they have. Please ask to see the printout.
On another note: Two weeks ago, students who were in danger of failing for the year signed for and received letters home that stated what they needed this six weeks in order to pass math for the year. These letters were for the parents and students. If you have seen some low report cards come home at any time during the year, please ask your student if he/she received a letter from Mrs. Qureshi. Alternatively, feel free to email me.
There will be no homework this week of final exams.
Thursday, May 15, 2008
Thursday, May 8, 2008
Weekly Update 5/12-5/16
IMPORTANT REMINDERS/EVENTS:
PROGRESS REPORTS GO HOME FRIDAY, MAY 9th.
8th Grade Eng-of-Year Activities:
Friday, May 23—Schlitterbahn and Post-field trip “Activity Fest”
Wednesday, May 28—Academic Celebration (Awards Ceremony)
Thursday, May 29—Promotion Ceremony at Butler Field House; No school for 8th graders
Opportunity for comments on the school accountability laws to your representatives:
JOINT LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEE
NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING
COMMITTEE:
Public School Accountability, Select
TIME & DATE:
12:00 PM, Monday, May 12, 2008
PLACE:
Houston, Texas
CHAIR:
Sen. Florence Shapiro and Rep. Rob Eissler
The Select Committee on Public School Accountability will hold a hearing on Monday, May 12, 2008 at 12:00 p.m. at the M.O. Campbell Educational Center, Room 104, 1865 Aldine Bender Road, Houston, Texas, 77032. The Committee will hear invited and public testimony on issues related to the Public School Accountability system. Public testimony will be limited to 3 minutes per person.
English:
We are continuing Mango Street with the short amount of time left in the year. In addition, we are doing some work with poetry and our last independent book unit. Project are due Monday/Tuesday, May 12-13. Please make sure your child is working on this and turns this in on time.
Laying the Foundation testing will take place this week Monday-Thursday for approximately 45 minutes each class period. This test will occur during normal class periods; we are not on a testing schedule. Monday/Tuesday is multiple choice and Wednesday/Thursday is Free Response (writing). With the time left in each class period, we will present projects. We won’t get through all of them, so we’ll finish up the following week.
Wednesday/Thursday, May 7-8, I sent home individual reports for my class with each student. This should provide you with a breakdown of specific assignments for my class that made-up the progress report grade you’ll see on Friday 5/9; however, the reports I gave are more current than the progress report grade, so please focus on my report for “real-time” status. Missing assignments should be taken care of immediately. There is no extra credit this grading period. Students who were absent for the Boston field trip should get work in ASAP. The work was posted in my room before they left, but only a few picked up the work. After next Tuesday, I will count work late for these students.
Important Dates for Independent Reading Unit 4: FREE CHOICE
Projects Due MAY 12-13. These count three times and there isn’t much time for late projects. Please make sure your child submits a quality project on time to avoid any bad surprises on report cards.
History:
All students have due next week the big project on Landforms. This is a grade for history and science. It is a grade for one of the first projects for those attending Bellaire in Pre AP Geography. The students may inquire of their teachers in other schools if those teachers do a similar project or if they can receive credit for the project. The students received this assignment a month ago. Since it takes some time to grade these, we cannot take them late. I have told the students not to tell me at the last minute that computers did not work or they left it at home. Mr. Scott and I expect the students to have this assignment on time. I am including the assignment again on this Update.
Our last history test was this week and the grades, hopefully, will be on the grade reports the students should have either May 9 or the following Monday. Please ask your student for both the grade report and the progress report. There will be some geography tests or quizzes so students should not assume they have no more work to do.
Science:
Please email Mr. Scott for information about Science.
Math:
Please email Ms. Qureshi for information about Math.
Foreign Language Department BLOG: See link below
http://pomsfl.wordpress.com
PROGRESS REPORTS GO HOME FRIDAY, MAY 9th.
8th Grade Eng-of-Year Activities:
Friday, May 23—Schlitterbahn and Post-field trip “Activity Fest”
Wednesday, May 28—Academic Celebration (Awards Ceremony)
Thursday, May 29—Promotion Ceremony at Butler Field House; No school for 8th graders
Opportunity for comments on the school accountability laws to your representatives:
JOINT LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEE
NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING
COMMITTEE:
Public School Accountability, Select
TIME & DATE:
12:00 PM, Monday, May 12, 2008
PLACE:
Houston, Texas
CHAIR:
Sen. Florence Shapiro and Rep. Rob Eissler
The Select Committee on Public School Accountability will hold a hearing on Monday, May 12, 2008 at 12:00 p.m. at the M.O. Campbell Educational Center, Room 104, 1865 Aldine Bender Road, Houston, Texas, 77032. The Committee will hear invited and public testimony on issues related to the Public School Accountability system. Public testimony will be limited to 3 minutes per person.
English:
We are continuing Mango Street with the short amount of time left in the year. In addition, we are doing some work with poetry and our last independent book unit. Project are due Monday/Tuesday, May 12-13. Please make sure your child is working on this and turns this in on time.
Laying the Foundation testing will take place this week Monday-Thursday for approximately 45 minutes each class period. This test will occur during normal class periods; we are not on a testing schedule. Monday/Tuesday is multiple choice and Wednesday/Thursday is Free Response (writing). With the time left in each class period, we will present projects. We won’t get through all of them, so we’ll finish up the following week.
Wednesday/Thursday, May 7-8, I sent home individual reports for my class with each student. This should provide you with a breakdown of specific assignments for my class that made-up the progress report grade you’ll see on Friday 5/9; however, the reports I gave are more current than the progress report grade, so please focus on my report for “real-time” status. Missing assignments should be taken care of immediately. There is no extra credit this grading period. Students who were absent for the Boston field trip should get work in ASAP. The work was posted in my room before they left, but only a few picked up the work. After next Tuesday, I will count work late for these students.
Important Dates for Independent Reading Unit 4: FREE CHOICE
Projects Due MAY 12-13. These count three times and there isn’t much time for late projects. Please make sure your child submits a quality project on time to avoid any bad surprises on report cards.
History:
All students have due next week the big project on Landforms. This is a grade for history and science. It is a grade for one of the first projects for those attending Bellaire in Pre AP Geography. The students may inquire of their teachers in other schools if those teachers do a similar project or if they can receive credit for the project. The students received this assignment a month ago. Since it takes some time to grade these, we cannot take them late. I have told the students not to tell me at the last minute that computers did not work or they left it at home. Mr. Scott and I expect the students to have this assignment on time. I am including the assignment again on this Update.
Our last history test was this week and the grades, hopefully, will be on the grade reports the students should have either May 9 or the following Monday. Please ask your student for both the grade report and the progress report. There will be some geography tests or quizzes so students should not assume they have no more work to do.
Science:
Please email Mr. Scott for information about Science.
Math:
Please email Ms. Qureshi for information about Math.
Foreign Language Department BLOG: See link below
http://pomsfl.wordpress.com
Thursday, May 1, 2008
Weekly Update 5/5-9
IMPORTANT REMINDERS/EVENTS:
PROGRESS REPORTS GO HOME FRIDAY, MAY 9th.
8th Grade Eng-of-Year Activities:
Friday, May 23—Schlitterbahn and Activity Fest
Wednesday, May 28—Academic Celebration
Thursday, May 29—Promotion Ceremony at Butler Field House
English:
We are continuing to read The House on Mango Street. There is a quiz on Monday and Tuesday, May 5-6 over the first 4 vignettes. We are also beginning our poetry unit this week. Students will write bio-poems. Friday brings our second literature circle discussion group—students should be completely done with the book by now. Testing week should have given them ample time to catch up. I still have students without a parent approval from on file. They will not receive credit for book-related assignments until I receive the form or a note signed by a parent approving their book choice. No emails or phone calls will count; I need a hard copy with your signature on it please.
I will send home class-specific reports before or on the day of progress reports for you to review. This is a break-down of what you’ll see on the school-generated report. Please look at it and encourage your child to remedy missing assignments and low grades by turning in missing work, and by staying on top of assignments and due dates. I will not offer extra credit this grading period.
Important Dates for Independent Reading Unit 4: FREE CHOICE
Literature Circle #2 (over the second half of the book)-Friday, May 9
Projects Due MAY 12-13 (these dates may get shifted due to LTF testing…TBA. Until then, students should count on projects being due on these dates)
History:
TAKS is over! It seems as it has gone on for months with students taking tests at different times. We now hope for improvement in all the scores. The students will test this next week over the Civil War and Reconstruction. All Civil War Battles maps and Chapter 16 study guide are now past due and need to be submitted immediately. These will be included in the Progress Report grade. All students should be working on the Landforms project assigned last month. This project is due May 12/13. Students will receive a grade in science and history; it may be one of their early project grades in Bellaire High School PreAP classes this next fall. However, in order to receive an acceptable grade in all of these classes, the students must follow the directions very carefully, the work must be of very high quality, and the assignment cannot be late.
Science:
Please email Mr. Scott for information about Science.
Math:
Algebra 1:
LTF Testing will be next week between the 5th and the 9th of May. The final date is pending. We are shooting for May 8th, but this has not yet be confirmed. Students will learn the exact date on Friday May 2nd. The Chapter 9 exam is temporarily cancelled. With TAKs and LTF testing, students need a break. The test for Chapter 10 will include Chapter 9 material. We will begin Chapter 10 this week.
Students are diligently working through Chapter 9 and will begin Chapter 10 on Tuesday. Sections to be covered are 9.6, 9.7, 9.8, 10.1, and 10.2. We are continuing the study of factoring, finding intercepts of quadratics, and graphing them. Because of the upcoming Boston trip, the assignments have already been given to the students. Please confirm that your student has written down the assignments.
Pre-algebra:
Students will begin Chapter 10: Equations and Inequalities. Students will focus on sections 10-1 & 10-2. Vocabulary for Chapter 9 is due on Wednesday, May 7th. Students should also begin learning the vocabulary for Chapter 10. The Chapter 9 test is cancelled. The Chapter 10 test will include questions from Chapter 9. I think the students have had quite a few tests in the past week, and that they need a break.
Foreign Language Department BLOG: See link below
http://pomsfl.wordpress.com
PROGRESS REPORTS GO HOME FRIDAY, MAY 9th.
8th Grade Eng-of-Year Activities:
Friday, May 23—Schlitterbahn and Activity Fest
Wednesday, May 28—Academic Celebration
Thursday, May 29—Promotion Ceremony at Butler Field House
English:
We are continuing to read The House on Mango Street. There is a quiz on Monday and Tuesday, May 5-6 over the first 4 vignettes. We are also beginning our poetry unit this week. Students will write bio-poems. Friday brings our second literature circle discussion group—students should be completely done with the book by now. Testing week should have given them ample time to catch up. I still have students without a parent approval from on file. They will not receive credit for book-related assignments until I receive the form or a note signed by a parent approving their book choice. No emails or phone calls will count; I need a hard copy with your signature on it please.
I will send home class-specific reports before or on the day of progress reports for you to review. This is a break-down of what you’ll see on the school-generated report. Please look at it and encourage your child to remedy missing assignments and low grades by turning in missing work, and by staying on top of assignments and due dates. I will not offer extra credit this grading period.
Important Dates for Independent Reading Unit 4: FREE CHOICE
Literature Circle #2 (over the second half of the book)-Friday, May 9
Projects Due MAY 12-13 (these dates may get shifted due to LTF testing…TBA. Until then, students should count on projects being due on these dates)
History:
TAKS is over! It seems as it has gone on for months with students taking tests at different times. We now hope for improvement in all the scores. The students will test this next week over the Civil War and Reconstruction. All Civil War Battles maps and Chapter 16 study guide are now past due and need to be submitted immediately. These will be included in the Progress Report grade. All students should be working on the Landforms project assigned last month. This project is due May 12/13. Students will receive a grade in science and history; it may be one of their early project grades in Bellaire High School PreAP classes this next fall. However, in order to receive an acceptable grade in all of these classes, the students must follow the directions very carefully, the work must be of very high quality, and the assignment cannot be late.
Science:
Please email Mr. Scott for information about Science.
Math:
Algebra 1:
LTF Testing will be next week between the 5th and the 9th of May. The final date is pending. We are shooting for May 8th, but this has not yet be confirmed. Students will learn the exact date on Friday May 2nd. The Chapter 9 exam is temporarily cancelled. With TAKs and LTF testing, students need a break. The test for Chapter 10 will include Chapter 9 material. We will begin Chapter 10 this week.
Students are diligently working through Chapter 9 and will begin Chapter 10 on Tuesday. Sections to be covered are 9.6, 9.7, 9.8, 10.1, and 10.2. We are continuing the study of factoring, finding intercepts of quadratics, and graphing them. Because of the upcoming Boston trip, the assignments have already been given to the students. Please confirm that your student has written down the assignments.
Pre-algebra:
Students will begin Chapter 10: Equations and Inequalities. Students will focus on sections 10-1 & 10-2. Vocabulary for Chapter 9 is due on Wednesday, May 7th. Students should also begin learning the vocabulary for Chapter 10. The Chapter 9 test is cancelled. The Chapter 10 test will include questions from Chapter 9. I think the students have had quite a few tests in the past week, and that they need a break.
Foreign Language Department BLOG: See link below
http://pomsfl.wordpress.com
Friday, April 25, 2008
Weekly Update 4/28-5/4
IMPORTANT REMINDERS/EVENTS:
Report Cards went home on April 23rd.
Next week is a testing week. Monday is a Charger Day, Tuesday-Friday will be testing schedules in the morning, and then shortened classes the rest of each day. Please encourage your child to get some rest, eat a good breakfast, and bring pencils/books.
8th Grade Eng-of-Year Activities:
Friday, May 23—Schlitterbahn and Activity Fest
Wednesday, May 28—Academic Celebration
Thursday, May 29—Promotion Ceremony at Butler Field House
Chaperones for the Schlitterbahn trip and volunteers to help set up/decorate/chaperone other events are needed. If you are an HISD approved volunteer and are interested in chaperoning, please let any of us know and we will pass on your offer to the appropriate people. If you are not an HISD approved volunteer but want to become one, please email Ms. Deitra Kendrick a dkendric@houstonisd.org or call her at 713-295-6500 x 326 for detail.
English:
We are reading The House on Mango Street in class. The novel is a great backdrop to teaching many “Laying the Foundation” concepts, which students will be tested on in May. We will also begin a short poetry unit to be done in conjunction with The House on Mango Street. We will look at lyrical poetry, which I feel the students will particularly enjoy.
With the testing on campus next week, our schedule will be a compressed one. Please encourage your child to bring their independent reading book with them every day to read after testing. Books should be completed and literature circle questions should be answered by Friday, May 9th (see below). Using any free time after testing will allow extra reading opportunities to catch up or get ahead on their reading schedule. Some students have still not returned a parent approval form for their book. Until I receive it, no full credit will be given for any book-related assignments, so please speak to your child about their status.
Important Dates for Independent Reading Unit 4: FREE CHOICE
Literature Circle #2 (over the second half of the book)-Friday, May 9
Projects Due MAY 12-13
History:
All the students now have packets for review for TAKS. Some have been attending the after-school reviews which also will help them.
The packets are a series of questions for each objective covered on the TAKS. The District Social Studies Department provided this information to us to help the students in the review. Parents can help by going over this material with the students. Our TAKS is on Friday, May 2. The students’ grades on this test will be a part of their final averages for this six weeks grading period.
This test is important for class placement next year in high school. Also, some magnet programs may revoke transfers for students who do not pass all the TAKS. In addition, this course is a major part of the 10th grade TAKS and the exit exam from high school. The students should keep all the review material for use for those tests.
We basically are through with the Civil War and Reconstruction this week. Those who need to complete work on maps and other materials still need to complete them.
The Landforms project is due May 13/14. Please encourage your student to keep working on it.
We wish great success to Darius Altman, Drew McMillian, and Scott Shelton who will be participating in the State History Fair May 3. This is a great honor for our school to have so many entries and we appreciate greatly the work these young men have done.
Science:
All Classes:
Well, this is where the rubber meets the road, push comes to shove, crunch time, and the going gets tough and the tough get going ……
Your child should have finished teaching you all of the nine lessons last week; I am asking you to sign the log verifying that your child taught you the weekly lesson and I will take this for a weekly grades.
DUE DATES FOR WORK
This week your child has final grades relating to;
1. The homework packet all five objectives done.
2. Parent signing log for all nine lessons taught.
3. Study guide (highlighted and summarized).
4. 30 index cards summarizing homework packet.
Have you signed the log stating that you have been taught the lessons? This is a major grade for your kids. I have also given the students a home work packet that is separated by objectives. I am also here every day after school except Friday for tutorials, I have not had a very good response and would hope the kids I have asked to come will be here Monday 28th – Wednesday 30th so if your child is struggling through a lesson please have them stay for help.
Thanks so much for all you support this year, let’s all pull together and make for one last real effort to push our kids to the greatest heights. Jamie Scott
Math:
Please contact Ms. Qureshi for information about Math.
Foreign Language Department BLOG: See link below
http://pomsfl.wordpress.com
Report Cards went home on April 23rd.
Next week is a testing week. Monday is a Charger Day, Tuesday-Friday will be testing schedules in the morning, and then shortened classes the rest of each day. Please encourage your child to get some rest, eat a good breakfast, and bring pencils/books.
8th Grade Eng-of-Year Activities:
Friday, May 23—Schlitterbahn and Activity Fest
Wednesday, May 28—Academic Celebration
Thursday, May 29—Promotion Ceremony at Butler Field House
Chaperones for the Schlitterbahn trip and volunteers to help set up/decorate/chaperone other events are needed. If you are an HISD approved volunteer and are interested in chaperoning, please let any of us know and we will pass on your offer to the appropriate people. If you are not an HISD approved volunteer but want to become one, please email Ms. Deitra Kendrick a dkendric@houstonisd.org or call her at 713-295-6500 x 326 for detail.
English:
We are reading The House on Mango Street in class. The novel is a great backdrop to teaching many “Laying the Foundation” concepts, which students will be tested on in May. We will also begin a short poetry unit to be done in conjunction with The House on Mango Street. We will look at lyrical poetry, which I feel the students will particularly enjoy.
With the testing on campus next week, our schedule will be a compressed one. Please encourage your child to bring their independent reading book with them every day to read after testing. Books should be completed and literature circle questions should be answered by Friday, May 9th (see below). Using any free time after testing will allow extra reading opportunities to catch up or get ahead on their reading schedule. Some students have still not returned a parent approval form for their book. Until I receive it, no full credit will be given for any book-related assignments, so please speak to your child about their status.
Important Dates for Independent Reading Unit 4: FREE CHOICE
Literature Circle #2 (over the second half of the book)-Friday, May 9
Projects Due MAY 12-13
History:
All the students now have packets for review for TAKS. Some have been attending the after-school reviews which also will help them.
The packets are a series of questions for each objective covered on the TAKS. The District Social Studies Department provided this information to us to help the students in the review. Parents can help by going over this material with the students. Our TAKS is on Friday, May 2. The students’ grades on this test will be a part of their final averages for this six weeks grading period.
This test is important for class placement next year in high school. Also, some magnet programs may revoke transfers for students who do not pass all the TAKS. In addition, this course is a major part of the 10th grade TAKS and the exit exam from high school. The students should keep all the review material for use for those tests.
We basically are through with the Civil War and Reconstruction this week. Those who need to complete work on maps and other materials still need to complete them.
The Landforms project is due May 13/14. Please encourage your student to keep working on it.
We wish great success to Darius Altman, Drew McMillian, and Scott Shelton who will be participating in the State History Fair May 3. This is a great honor for our school to have so many entries and we appreciate greatly the work these young men have done.
Science:
All Classes:
Well, this is where the rubber meets the road, push comes to shove, crunch time, and the going gets tough and the tough get going ……
Your child should have finished teaching you all of the nine lessons last week; I am asking you to sign the log verifying that your child taught you the weekly lesson and I will take this for a weekly grades.
DUE DATES FOR WORK
This week your child has final grades relating to;
1. The homework packet all five objectives done.
2. Parent signing log for all nine lessons taught.
3. Study guide (highlighted and summarized).
4. 30 index cards summarizing homework packet.
Have you signed the log stating that you have been taught the lessons? This is a major grade for your kids. I have also given the students a home work packet that is separated by objectives. I am also here every day after school except Friday for tutorials, I have not had a very good response and would hope the kids I have asked to come will be here Monday 28th – Wednesday 30th so if your child is struggling through a lesson please have them stay for help.
Thanks so much for all you support this year, let’s all pull together and make for one last real effort to push our kids to the greatest heights. Jamie Scott
Math:
Please contact Ms. Qureshi for information about Math.
Foreign Language Department BLOG: See link below
http://pomsfl.wordpress.com
Thursday, April 17, 2008
Weekly Update 4/21-25
IMPORTANT REMINDERS/EVENTS:
Report Cards will be going home on April 23rd.
8th Grade Eng-of-Year Activities:
Friday, May 23—Schlitterbahn and Activity Fest
Wednesday, May 28—Academic Celebration
Thursday, May 29—Promotion Ceremony at Butler Field House
Chaperones for the Schlitterbahn trip and volunteers to help set up/decorate/chaperone other events are needed. If you are an HISD approved volunteer and are interested in chaperoning, please let any of us know and we will pass on your offer to the appropriate people. If you are not an HISD approved volunteer but want to become one, please email Ms. Deitra Kendrick a dkendric@houstonisd.org or call her at 713-295-6500 x 326 for detail.
English:
We will be working on “Laying the Foundations” activities. The Laying the Foundations assessment is in May; exact date, TBA. Soon, we will begin reading The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros in class. No purchase of the book will be necessary. We have started on pre-reading activities this week.
“The Kindness Quilt” is in the process of being made. Upon its completion, we will have a revealing party for the 8th grade participants. The quilt will hang in the library. Be sure to check it out before the end of the year!
Important Dates for Independent Reading Unit 4: FREE CHOICE
Literature Circle #2 (over the second half of the book)-Friday, May 9
Projects Due MAY 12-13
History:
This past week and next week the students are working on material for TAKS and over the Civil War and Reconstruction. They will test on the Civil War and Reconstruction late next week. We then will continue with TAKS review.
TAKS is important because the scores may determine the level of classes for which the students will qualify in high school. The students should keep all the review materials because these materials will help the students when they take their exit exam from high school in the eleventh grade. Currently, thirty-five percent of the exit exam is from this eighth grade course.
The rest of the year will be spent on geography. These assignments are very important for preparation for ninth grade geography and for their grades this next six weeks. At this time of the year, it seems as if eighth graders often slack off and their grades fall. They need to be reminded that transfers can be revoked for failing grades. Also, students need to prepare for using technology in high school. Many teachers accept assignments online or, at least, require all assignments to be printed so it is important students have access to computers and printers. All public libraries have these facilities so if you do not have the computers readily available for student use at home, please make arrangements for your child to use a public library. Following is the assignment for the last project. I will show the students examples of how to do this project on Friday.
Landforms and Water Bodies
In chart form, provide
A. definition
B. process of origin
C. a hand-drawn illustration and a
d. “real world” example of each of the following
physical features.
Sources you may wish to consult:
http://www.geology.com/
http://www.uwsp.edu/geo/gaculty/ritter/glossary/glossary_A.html
The project must be bound neatly.
Due: No later than May 14/15. You cannot expect to print these at school because they must be in color.
Water-Formed Features:
Aquifer Arroyo
Bay Beach Canyon Cape
Coral Reef Delta Estuary Fjord
Geyser Glacier Gorge Gulf
Hanging Valley Lagoon Lake Oxbow Lake
Point Bar River Sea Sinkhole
Shoreline Springs Strait Stream
Tarn Valley Wadi Yazoo
Land-Formed Features:
Alluvial Fan Archipelago Atoll Caldera
Cirque Continental Divide Delta
Drumlin Dunes Ergs Graben
Hogback Horst Island (2 types)
Isthmus Kame Karst Kettle
Levee Mesa Moraine Mountains (2)
Buttes Peninsula Plateau Plains
Volcano
Science:
All Classes
Well, this is where the rubber meets the road, push comes to shove, crunch time, and the going gets tough and the tough get going …….
What I will be asking from you is to let your child teach you two lessons a week; these will be 5 minute explanations of the lessons covered in class. I will also ask you to sign a log verifying that your child taught you the weekly lesson and I will take this for a weekly grade.
DUE DATES FOR WORK
This week you should be taught by your child the third set of lessons in the series; Lesson # 5 Atomic Structures, Chemistry, and Lesson # 6 Astronomy. Have you signed the log stating that you have been taught the lessons? This is a major grade for your kids. I have also given the students a home work packet that is separated by objectives and each Friday another objective is due. Next Friday, the sheets from the homework packet relating to objective # 4 are due for a major grade. I am also here every Tuesday after school for tutorials, so if your child is struggling through a lesson please have them stay for help. I can also stay other days if given advance notice.
Thanks so much for all you support this year, let’s all pull together and make for one last real effort to push our kids to the greatest heights.
Jamie Scott
Math:
Algebra 1:
Last week, we worked on Chapter 8 material. We finished exponential functions, including exponential growth and decay. We began the study of Chapter 8, with adding and subtracting, then dividing polynomials. Students began studying factoring and how it pertains to x-intercepts on a graph. Students will continue factoring, learning about special cases. Sections in Chapter 8 that will be covered include: 9.4, solving polynomials in factored form & 9.5 Factoring quadratics; this week’s topics are essential for success on the end of year exam. Please insure your student completes the homework assignments as assigned. Students should be diligent regarding attendance as well. Brand new topics they have not seen before will be presented.
Pre-Algebra:
Last week, students finished sections in Chapter 7 and covered relevant sections in Chapter 8. Students have 8-4 & 8-5 due on Monday. Please check to see that your student has completed the assignment. Vocabulary for Chapter 8 is also due on Monday. Students will turn their attention to Chapter 9. In preparation for TAKS, we have studied topics covered in 7, 8, and 9. There will not be a test covering 7 & 8, but there will be for Chapter 9. We begin this week with sections in Chapter 9: Statistics. Making a table and histograms will be the topic for Monday (9-1 & 9-2). Circle graphs and measures of central tendency will be Wednesday’s topic (9-3 & 9-4). Friday brings the beginning of Section 9-5: Measures of Variation.
We will complete Chapter 9 next week, a test will follow the following week, then we will turn our attention to Chapter 10: Linear and Non-Linear Functions. We will review linear patterning in preparation for this task.
Foreign Language Department BLOG: See link below
http://pomsfl.wordpress.com/
Report Cards will be going home on April 23rd.
8th Grade Eng-of-Year Activities:
Friday, May 23—Schlitterbahn and Activity Fest
Wednesday, May 28—Academic Celebration
Thursday, May 29—Promotion Ceremony at Butler Field House
Chaperones for the Schlitterbahn trip and volunteers to help set up/decorate/chaperone other events are needed. If you are an HISD approved volunteer and are interested in chaperoning, please let any of us know and we will pass on your offer to the appropriate people. If you are not an HISD approved volunteer but want to become one, please email Ms. Deitra Kendrick a dkendric@houstonisd.org or call her at 713-295-6500 x 326 for detail.
English:
We will be working on “Laying the Foundations” activities. The Laying the Foundations assessment is in May; exact date, TBA. Soon, we will begin reading The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros in class. No purchase of the book will be necessary. We have started on pre-reading activities this week.
“The Kindness Quilt” is in the process of being made. Upon its completion, we will have a revealing party for the 8th grade participants. The quilt will hang in the library. Be sure to check it out before the end of the year!
Important Dates for Independent Reading Unit 4: FREE CHOICE
Literature Circle #2 (over the second half of the book)-Friday, May 9
Projects Due MAY 12-13
History:
This past week and next week the students are working on material for TAKS and over the Civil War and Reconstruction. They will test on the Civil War and Reconstruction late next week. We then will continue with TAKS review.
TAKS is important because the scores may determine the level of classes for which the students will qualify in high school. The students should keep all the review materials because these materials will help the students when they take their exit exam from high school in the eleventh grade. Currently, thirty-five percent of the exit exam is from this eighth grade course.
The rest of the year will be spent on geography. These assignments are very important for preparation for ninth grade geography and for their grades this next six weeks. At this time of the year, it seems as if eighth graders often slack off and their grades fall. They need to be reminded that transfers can be revoked for failing grades. Also, students need to prepare for using technology in high school. Many teachers accept assignments online or, at least, require all assignments to be printed so it is important students have access to computers and printers. All public libraries have these facilities so if you do not have the computers readily available for student use at home, please make arrangements for your child to use a public library. Following is the assignment for the last project. I will show the students examples of how to do this project on Friday.
Landforms and Water Bodies
In chart form, provide
A. definition
B. process of origin
C. a hand-drawn illustration and a
d. “real world” example of each of the following
physical features.
Sources you may wish to consult:
http://www.geology.com/
http://www.uwsp.edu/geo/gaculty/ritter/glossary/glossary_A.html
The project must be bound neatly.
Due: No later than May 14/15. You cannot expect to print these at school because they must be in color.
Water-Formed Features:
Aquifer Arroyo
Bay Beach Canyon Cape
Coral Reef Delta Estuary Fjord
Geyser Glacier Gorge Gulf
Hanging Valley Lagoon Lake Oxbow Lake
Point Bar River Sea Sinkhole
Shoreline Springs Strait Stream
Tarn Valley Wadi Yazoo
Land-Formed Features:
Alluvial Fan Archipelago Atoll Caldera
Cirque Continental Divide Delta
Drumlin Dunes Ergs Graben
Hogback Horst Island (2 types)
Isthmus Kame Karst Kettle
Levee Mesa Moraine Mountains (2)
Buttes Peninsula Plateau Plains
Volcano
Science:
All Classes
Well, this is where the rubber meets the road, push comes to shove, crunch time, and the going gets tough and the tough get going …….
What I will be asking from you is to let your child teach you two lessons a week; these will be 5 minute explanations of the lessons covered in class. I will also ask you to sign a log verifying that your child taught you the weekly lesson and I will take this for a weekly grade.
DUE DATES FOR WORK
This week you should be taught by your child the third set of lessons in the series; Lesson # 5 Atomic Structures, Chemistry, and Lesson # 6 Astronomy. Have you signed the log stating that you have been taught the lessons? This is a major grade for your kids. I have also given the students a home work packet that is separated by objectives and each Friday another objective is due. Next Friday, the sheets from the homework packet relating to objective # 4 are due for a major grade. I am also here every Tuesday after school for tutorials, so if your child is struggling through a lesson please have them stay for help. I can also stay other days if given advance notice.
Thanks so much for all you support this year, let’s all pull together and make for one last real effort to push our kids to the greatest heights.
Jamie Scott
Math:
Algebra 1:
Last week, we worked on Chapter 8 material. We finished exponential functions, including exponential growth and decay. We began the study of Chapter 8, with adding and subtracting, then dividing polynomials. Students began studying factoring and how it pertains to x-intercepts on a graph. Students will continue factoring, learning about special cases. Sections in Chapter 8 that will be covered include: 9.4, solving polynomials in factored form & 9.5 Factoring quadratics; this week’s topics are essential for success on the end of year exam. Please insure your student completes the homework assignments as assigned. Students should be diligent regarding attendance as well. Brand new topics they have not seen before will be presented.
Pre-Algebra:
Last week, students finished sections in Chapter 7 and covered relevant sections in Chapter 8. Students have 8-4 & 8-5 due on Monday. Please check to see that your student has completed the assignment. Vocabulary for Chapter 8 is also due on Monday. Students will turn their attention to Chapter 9. In preparation for TAKS, we have studied topics covered in 7, 8, and 9. There will not be a test covering 7 & 8, but there will be for Chapter 9. We begin this week with sections in Chapter 9: Statistics. Making a table and histograms will be the topic for Monday (9-1 & 9-2). Circle graphs and measures of central tendency will be Wednesday’s topic (9-3 & 9-4). Friday brings the beginning of Section 9-5: Measures of Variation.
We will complete Chapter 9 next week, a test will follow the following week, then we will turn our attention to Chapter 10: Linear and Non-Linear Functions. We will review linear patterning in preparation for this task.
Foreign Language Department BLOG: See link below
http://pomsfl.wordpress.com/
Thursday, April 10, 2008
Weekly Update 4/14-18
IMPORTANT REMINDERS/EVENTS:
Report Cards will be going home on April 23rd.
8th Grade Eng-of-Year Activities:
Friday, May 23—Schlitterbahn and Activity Fest
Wednesday, May 28—Academic Celebration
Thursday, May 29—Promotion Ceremony at Butler Field House
Chaperones for the Schlitterbahn trip and volunteers to help set up/decorate/chaperone other events are needed. If you are an HISD approved volunteer and are interested in chaperoning, please let any of us know and we will pass on your offer to the appropriate people. If you are not an HISD approved volunteer but want to become one, please email Ms. Deitra Kendrick a dkendric@houstonisd.org or call her at 713-295-6500 x 326 for detail.
From PTO:
PIN OAK IDOL:
We are having our third & final meeting for "Pin Oak Idol". I would like to get everyone together for this final planning secession. We need your help & guidance with this event. I'm hopeful that some of you have worked this event in the past & have ideas, knowledge or suggestions that we can use to make this a successful project. The event is currently scheduled for Friday May 16th. Auditions will be held on April 9th & 10th at 4:00 - 5:15 at the school.
English:
We will be working on “Laying the Foundations” activities. The Laying the Foundations assessment is in May; exact date, TBA. Soon, we will begin reading The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros in class. No purchase of the book will be necessary.
All work for Cycle 5 was due by Wed. 4/9.
Important Dates for Independent Reading Unit 4: FREE CHOICE
Book Checks-M/T 3/31-4/1 (Parent Approval forms due)
Literature Circle # 1 (over the first half of the book)-Friday, April 18
Literature Circle #2 (over the second half of the book)-Friday, May 9
Projects Due MAY 12-13
*No assignments related to this unit will be accepted without a parent approval form on file.
History:
The students have study guides for the chapters on the Civil War (Chapters 15 and 16) which must be completed by Monday/Tuesday. In addition, the map of the battles is due on the same days.The test over the Civil War will be in another week.
We are covering some TAKS review during the discussion over this material. Intensive TAKS review will begin later next week. All the students have a packet now on the objectives TAKS covers; they need to know the terms and be able to answer questions relating to these objectives.
Several of our Dissertation teams have been invited to present their community service projects at the Global Issues Conference at Texas A&M on April 17. During various breakout sessions the students will be leading discussions on their projects and participating in sessions on other significant global issues presented by other students.
We still parent/adult volunteers to help chaperone the students going Schlitterbahn in May.
Science:
All Classes
I have started preparations for the end of course exams, including the IPC Final, the Laying the Foundations Pre-AP exam and the TAKS. Our children have been given study guides that cover every thing they should have learned since 6th grade. This guide is very comprehensive and I have put a great deal of effort to assure that what is in the packet meets all of the state and national standards our kids will be tested over. I have built into my curriculum opportunities for us to work with these guides during the course of the next month, and my goal is to have our kids process the material in the packet at least 7 times.One opportunity is to simply go over the packet, and then another is to have the students create a lesson plan to teach the class, so on like that. What I will be asking from you is to let your child teach you two lessons a week; these will be 5 minute explanations of the lessons covered in class. I will also ask you to sign a log verifying that your child taught you the weekly lesson and I will take this for a weekly grade.
DUE DATES FOR WORK
This week you should be taught by your child the second two lessons in the series;Lesson # 3 Food webs, weather, and earth systems. Lesson # 4 Metric measurements, Life science and Genetics. Have you signed the log stating that you have been taught the lessons? This is a major grade for your kids.
I have also given the students a home work packet that is separated by objectives and each Friday another objective is due. Next Friday the sheets from the homework packet relating to objective #2 and3 are due for a major grade. I am also here every Tuesday after school for tutorials, so if your child is struggling through a lesson please have them stay for help. I can also stay other days if given advance notice.
Thanks so much for all you support this year, let’s all pull together and make for one last real effort to push our kids to the greatest heights.
Jamie Scott
Math:
Email Ms. Qureshi for info about Math
Foreign Language Department BLOG: See link below
http://pomsfl.wordpress.com/
Report Cards will be going home on April 23rd.
8th Grade Eng-of-Year Activities:
Friday, May 23—Schlitterbahn and Activity Fest
Wednesday, May 28—Academic Celebration
Thursday, May 29—Promotion Ceremony at Butler Field House
Chaperones for the Schlitterbahn trip and volunteers to help set up/decorate/chaperone other events are needed. If you are an HISD approved volunteer and are interested in chaperoning, please let any of us know and we will pass on your offer to the appropriate people. If you are not an HISD approved volunteer but want to become one, please email Ms. Deitra Kendrick a dkendric@houstonisd.org or call her at 713-295-6500 x 326 for detail.
From PTO:
PIN OAK IDOL:
We are having our third & final meeting for "Pin Oak Idol". I would like to get everyone together for this final planning secession. We need your help & guidance with this event. I'm hopeful that some of you have worked this event in the past & have ideas, knowledge or suggestions that we can use to make this a successful project. The event is currently scheduled for Friday May 16th. Auditions will be held on April 9th & 10th at 4:00 - 5:15 at the school.
English:
We will be working on “Laying the Foundations” activities. The Laying the Foundations assessment is in May; exact date, TBA. Soon, we will begin reading The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros in class. No purchase of the book will be necessary.
All work for Cycle 5 was due by Wed. 4/9.
Important Dates for Independent Reading Unit 4: FREE CHOICE
Book Checks-M/T 3/31-4/1 (Parent Approval forms due)
Literature Circle # 1 (over the first half of the book)-Friday, April 18
Literature Circle #2 (over the second half of the book)-Friday, May 9
Projects Due MAY 12-13
*No assignments related to this unit will be accepted without a parent approval form on file.
History:
The students have study guides for the chapters on the Civil War (Chapters 15 and 16) which must be completed by Monday/Tuesday. In addition, the map of the battles is due on the same days.The test over the Civil War will be in another week.
We are covering some TAKS review during the discussion over this material. Intensive TAKS review will begin later next week. All the students have a packet now on the objectives TAKS covers; they need to know the terms and be able to answer questions relating to these objectives.
Several of our Dissertation teams have been invited to present their community service projects at the Global Issues Conference at Texas A&M on April 17. During various breakout sessions the students will be leading discussions on their projects and participating in sessions on other significant global issues presented by other students.
We still parent/adult volunteers to help chaperone the students going Schlitterbahn in May.
Science:
All Classes
I have started preparations for the end of course exams, including the IPC Final, the Laying the Foundations Pre-AP exam and the TAKS. Our children have been given study guides that cover every thing they should have learned since 6th grade. This guide is very comprehensive and I have put a great deal of effort to assure that what is in the packet meets all of the state and national standards our kids will be tested over. I have built into my curriculum opportunities for us to work with these guides during the course of the next month, and my goal is to have our kids process the material in the packet at least 7 times.One opportunity is to simply go over the packet, and then another is to have the students create a lesson plan to teach the class, so on like that. What I will be asking from you is to let your child teach you two lessons a week; these will be 5 minute explanations of the lessons covered in class. I will also ask you to sign a log verifying that your child taught you the weekly lesson and I will take this for a weekly grade.
DUE DATES FOR WORK
This week you should be taught by your child the second two lessons in the series;Lesson # 3 Food webs, weather, and earth systems. Lesson # 4 Metric measurements, Life science and Genetics. Have you signed the log stating that you have been taught the lessons? This is a major grade for your kids.
I have also given the students a home work packet that is separated by objectives and each Friday another objective is due. Next Friday the sheets from the homework packet relating to objective #2 and3 are due for a major grade. I am also here every Tuesday after school for tutorials, so if your child is struggling through a lesson please have them stay for help. I can also stay other days if given advance notice.
Thanks so much for all you support this year, let’s all pull together and make for one last real effort to push our kids to the greatest heights.
Jamie Scott
Math:
Email Ms. Qureshi for info about Math
Foreign Language Department BLOG: See link below
http://pomsfl.wordpress.com/
Thursday, April 3, 2008
Weekly Update 4/7-11
IMPORTANT REMINDERS/EVENTS:
The end of the grading period is April 11; please encourage your children to pay close attention to individual teacher deadlines. Report Cards will be sent home April 23rd.
8th Grade End-of-Year activities are approaching in the coming months, most notably our 8th Grade trip to Schlitterbahn-Galveston and our 8th grade Promotion Ceremony. Information packets were sent home this week. Please read over the material and be aware of money/form deadlines to ensure your child can attend/participate in everything we have planned. It is a memorable time for our students.
Friday, May 23—Schlitterbahn and Activity Fest
Wednesday, May 28—Academic Celebration
Thursday, May 29—Promotion Ceremony at Butler Field House
Chaperones for the Schlitterbahn trip and volunteers to help set up/decorate/chaperone other events are needed. If you are an HISD approved volunteer and are interested in chaperoning, please let any of us know and we will pass on your offer to the appropriate people. If you are not an HISD approved volunteer but want to become one, please email Ms. Deitra Kendrick a dkendric@houstonisd.org or call her at 713-295-6500 x 326 for detail.
From PTO:
Tuesday, April 8, 6:30 pm
Pin Oak PTO General Meeting: Preparing for College
The Pin Oak MS PTO invites all parents to a General Meeting on April 8, 2008. The meeting starts at 6:30 pm with presentations by Pin Oak PTO President, Ann Nichols, and Pin Oak Principal, Michael McDonough. They will speak about school and PTO accomplishments this year.
At 7 pm, we welcome speaker Paula Fendley, HISD College and Career Readiness Coordinator. Ms. Fendley will speak to parents about preparing for college. This program is appropriate for 6th through 8th grade parents. We hope to see you there!
PIN OAK IDOL:
We are having our third & final meeting for "Pin Oak Idol". I would like to get everyone together for this final planning secession. We need your help & guidance with this event. I'm hopeful that some of you have worked this event in the past & have ideas, knowledge or suggestions that we can use to make this a successful project. The event is currently scheduled for Friday May 16th. Auditions will be held on April 9th & 10th at 4:00 - 5:15 at the school.
English:
We will be working on “Laying the Foundations” activities. The Laying the Foundations assessment is in May; exact date, TBA. Soon, we will begin reading The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros in class. No purchase of the book will be necessary.
EXTRA CREDIT—I have an extra credit assignment that has been posted in my room. If your child would like to take advantage of it, please note the deadline of April 4. In addition to this opportunity, I will be giving some extra credit points for any student who decides to participate in our 8th Grade Class Project, “The Kindness Quilt.” A handout was sent home before Spring Break. The personal narrative that accompanies this optional activity is mandatory and is worth a grade. The due date for the 1-page (1 page only), typed paper is Monday/Tuesday, April 7-8. That Tuesday is the TAKS Math Test, so students can drop by any time to turn in their paper after testing, even if they do not have my class that day.
All work for Cycle 5 is due for my class by Wed. 4/9.
Important Dates for Independent Reading Unit 4: FREE CHOICE
Book Checks-M/T 3/31-4/1 (Parent Approval forms due)
Literature Circle # 1 (over the first half of the book)-Friday, April 18
Literature Circle #2 (over the second half of the book)-Friday, May 9
Projects Due MAY 12-13
History:
This week probably has been a week of excitement and possibly disappointment with the notification from the various high schools to which your student applied. If you have any question about high schools, programs or courses, please ask or have your student inquire of us.
On Tuesday night, April 8, at 7:00 P.M., there will be a PTO Meeting at which one of the HISD counselors will speak about high school credits and college. We certainly encourage you to attend.
If your student is in PreAP classes this year, I certainly will encourage you to be sure he/she is enrolled in PreAP classes next year. It is difficult to go from regular classes to PreAP, but the student can move to regular classes from the PreAP.
History: We now are on the Civil War. With the film Glory the students have had a good introduction to horrors of this war. We have been studying the causes leading to the war and the resources of both the North and the South. We have started class discussion on Chapter 15 and will continue with Chapter 16 next week. The map of the Civil War was due this past week.
During all this time, we are reviewing for TAKS and will have an intensive review for a few days prior to the exam. Much of the TAKS exam for history is content so reading their books and reviewing the tests they have taken during the year will help them. I am encouraging the students to keep all the review materials for high school because 50% of the test they take in 10th grade is from this eighth grade course and 35% of the exit exam for high school is from this course.
Science:
All Classes
I have started preparations for the end of course exams, including the IPC Final, the Laying the Foundations Pre-AP exam and the TAKS.Our children have been given study guides that cover every thing they should have learned since 6th grade. This guide is very comprehensive and I have put a great deal of effort to assure that what is in the packet meets all of the state and national standards our kids will be tested over. I have built into my curriculum opportunities for us to work with these guides during the course of the next month, and my goal is to have our kids process the material in the packet at least 7 times.
One opportunity is to simply go over the packet, and then another is to have the students create a lesson plan to teach the class, so on like that. What I will be asking from you is to let your child teach you two lessons a week; these will be 5 minute explanations of the lesson covered in class. I will also ask you to sign a log verifying that your child taught you the weekly lesson and I will take this for a weekly grade.
DUE DATES FOR WORK
This week you should be taught the first two lessons in the series;
Lesson # 1 Continental Drift and Plate Tectonics. Lesson #2 Maps, Rock cycle and minerals.
Please be sure to sign the log stating that you have been taught the lessons.
I have also given the students a home work packet that is separated by objectives and each Friday another objective is due.
Next Friday the sheets from the homework packet relating to objective #1 are due for a major grade.
I am also here every Tuesday after school for tutorials, so if your child is struggling through a lesson please have them stay for help. I can also stay other days if given advance notice.
Math:
All Classes:
Students will take the Math TAKS on Tuesday, April 8th. Please ensure your child gets a good night’s rest on Monday.
Algebra 1:
Students will return to studying algebra with Chapter 8, “Exponents and Exponential Functions”. We will do a final review of TAKS topics on Monday. Tuesday brings the TAKS, and beginning Wednesday, we will cover Chapter 8 material, beginning with where we left off (8.5-8.6). This will complete the chapter. The Chapter 8 test will be next week (the week of April 14th).
Pre-Algebra:
Students will continue working in Chapter 7, “Measuring Area and Volume”. Students have covered this topic in preparation for TAKS, so the plan is to cover the chapter faster than average speed. Students are familiar with area and volume, surface area, both lateral and total, as well as and scale factor changes as the affect area and volume. We will cover sections 7-1 to 7-2 this week.
Foreign Language Department BLOG: See link below
http://pomsfl.wordpress.com
The end of the grading period is April 11; please encourage your children to pay close attention to individual teacher deadlines. Report Cards will be sent home April 23rd.
8th Grade End-of-Year activities are approaching in the coming months, most notably our 8th Grade trip to Schlitterbahn-Galveston and our 8th grade Promotion Ceremony. Information packets were sent home this week. Please read over the material and be aware of money/form deadlines to ensure your child can attend/participate in everything we have planned. It is a memorable time for our students.
Friday, May 23—Schlitterbahn and Activity Fest
Wednesday, May 28—Academic Celebration
Thursday, May 29—Promotion Ceremony at Butler Field House
Chaperones for the Schlitterbahn trip and volunteers to help set up/decorate/chaperone other events are needed. If you are an HISD approved volunteer and are interested in chaperoning, please let any of us know and we will pass on your offer to the appropriate people. If you are not an HISD approved volunteer but want to become one, please email Ms. Deitra Kendrick a dkendric@houstonisd.org or call her at 713-295-6500 x 326 for detail.
From PTO:
Tuesday, April 8, 6:30 pm
Pin Oak PTO General Meeting: Preparing for College
The Pin Oak MS PTO invites all parents to a General Meeting on April 8, 2008. The meeting starts at 6:30 pm with presentations by Pin Oak PTO President, Ann Nichols, and Pin Oak Principal, Michael McDonough. They will speak about school and PTO accomplishments this year.
At 7 pm, we welcome speaker Paula Fendley, HISD College and Career Readiness Coordinator. Ms. Fendley will speak to parents about preparing for college. This program is appropriate for 6th through 8th grade parents. We hope to see you there!
PIN OAK IDOL:
We are having our third & final meeting for "Pin Oak Idol". I would like to get everyone together for this final planning secession. We need your help & guidance with this event. I'm hopeful that some of you have worked this event in the past & have ideas, knowledge or suggestions that we can use to make this a successful project. The event is currently scheduled for Friday May 16th. Auditions will be held on April 9th & 10th at 4:00 - 5:15 at the school.
English:
We will be working on “Laying the Foundations” activities. The Laying the Foundations assessment is in May; exact date, TBA. Soon, we will begin reading The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros in class. No purchase of the book will be necessary.
EXTRA CREDIT—I have an extra credit assignment that has been posted in my room. If your child would like to take advantage of it, please note the deadline of April 4. In addition to this opportunity, I will be giving some extra credit points for any student who decides to participate in our 8th Grade Class Project, “The Kindness Quilt.” A handout was sent home before Spring Break. The personal narrative that accompanies this optional activity is mandatory and is worth a grade. The due date for the 1-page (1 page only), typed paper is Monday/Tuesday, April 7-8. That Tuesday is the TAKS Math Test, so students can drop by any time to turn in their paper after testing, even if they do not have my class that day.
All work for Cycle 5 is due for my class by Wed. 4/9.
Important Dates for Independent Reading Unit 4: FREE CHOICE
Book Checks-M/T 3/31-4/1 (Parent Approval forms due)
Literature Circle # 1 (over the first half of the book)-Friday, April 18
Literature Circle #2 (over the second half of the book)-Friday, May 9
Projects Due MAY 12-13
History:
This week probably has been a week of excitement and possibly disappointment with the notification from the various high schools to which your student applied. If you have any question about high schools, programs or courses, please ask or have your student inquire of us.
On Tuesday night, April 8, at 7:00 P.M., there will be a PTO Meeting at which one of the HISD counselors will speak about high school credits and college. We certainly encourage you to attend.
If your student is in PreAP classes this year, I certainly will encourage you to be sure he/she is enrolled in PreAP classes next year. It is difficult to go from regular classes to PreAP, but the student can move to regular classes from the PreAP.
History: We now are on the Civil War. With the film Glory the students have had a good introduction to horrors of this war. We have been studying the causes leading to the war and the resources of both the North and the South. We have started class discussion on Chapter 15 and will continue with Chapter 16 next week. The map of the Civil War was due this past week.
During all this time, we are reviewing for TAKS and will have an intensive review for a few days prior to the exam. Much of the TAKS exam for history is content so reading their books and reviewing the tests they have taken during the year will help them. I am encouraging the students to keep all the review materials for high school because 50% of the test they take in 10th grade is from this eighth grade course and 35% of the exit exam for high school is from this course.
Science:
All Classes
I have started preparations for the end of course exams, including the IPC Final, the Laying the Foundations Pre-AP exam and the TAKS.Our children have been given study guides that cover every thing they should have learned since 6th grade. This guide is very comprehensive and I have put a great deal of effort to assure that what is in the packet meets all of the state and national standards our kids will be tested over. I have built into my curriculum opportunities for us to work with these guides during the course of the next month, and my goal is to have our kids process the material in the packet at least 7 times.
One opportunity is to simply go over the packet, and then another is to have the students create a lesson plan to teach the class, so on like that. What I will be asking from you is to let your child teach you two lessons a week; these will be 5 minute explanations of the lesson covered in class. I will also ask you to sign a log verifying that your child taught you the weekly lesson and I will take this for a weekly grade.
DUE DATES FOR WORK
This week you should be taught the first two lessons in the series;
Lesson # 1 Continental Drift and Plate Tectonics. Lesson #2 Maps, Rock cycle and minerals.
Please be sure to sign the log stating that you have been taught the lessons.
I have also given the students a home work packet that is separated by objectives and each Friday another objective is due.
Next Friday the sheets from the homework packet relating to objective #1 are due for a major grade.
I am also here every Tuesday after school for tutorials, so if your child is struggling through a lesson please have them stay for help. I can also stay other days if given advance notice.
Math:
All Classes:
Students will take the Math TAKS on Tuesday, April 8th. Please ensure your child gets a good night’s rest on Monday.
Algebra 1:
Students will return to studying algebra with Chapter 8, “Exponents and Exponential Functions”. We will do a final review of TAKS topics on Monday. Tuesday brings the TAKS, and beginning Wednesday, we will cover Chapter 8 material, beginning with where we left off (8.5-8.6). This will complete the chapter. The Chapter 8 test will be next week (the week of April 14th).
Pre-Algebra:
Students will continue working in Chapter 7, “Measuring Area and Volume”. Students have covered this topic in preparation for TAKS, so the plan is to cover the chapter faster than average speed. Students are familiar with area and volume, surface area, both lateral and total, as well as and scale factor changes as the affect area and volume. We will cover sections 7-1 to 7-2 this week.
Foreign Language Department BLOG: See link below
http://pomsfl.wordpress.com
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