Report Cards go home this Friday, January 11, 2008.
Upcoming school holiday is Monday, January 21, 2008—Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.
The Pin Oak PTO is asking for help in putting together gift baskets for Family Game Night beginning in February. Each cluster is responsible for one basket. These will be made possible by donations from students and parents. We will collect donations at school and any/all help is greatly appreciated!! Our cluster’s theme is MUSIC. Possible donation ideas: iTunes gift cards, MP3 players, CD’s, Best Buy gift cards, ear buds/head phones, concert tickets, music lessons, Brook May’s gift cards, sheet music, guitar picks, etc.—anything you can think of that goes along with the MUSIC theme. We will begin collecting your donations immediately. Thank you so much for your support!!
Stanford Testing is next week Tuesday-Friday. Stanford is a national assessment that tests our students in 10 areas and gives us scores in comparison to other students on a national basis. It is considered a snapshot test, so besides our already rigorous curriculum, there is no “preparation.” Students should do their best to get restful sleep, layer clothing, and eat a good breakfast during testing to aid in their success. Here is the schedule next week:
STANFORD TESTING SCHEDULE:
Monday-Charger Day
Tuesday & Thursday – Funky Blue
8:30 – 11:30 Testing
11:35-1:45 5th period (kids eat at their normal lunch times)
1:50 – 2:25 1st period
2:30 – 3:05 3rd period
3:10 – 3:45 7th period
Wednesday & Friday – Funky Green
8:30 – 11:30 Testing
11:35-1:45 6th period (kids eat at their normal lunch times)
1:50 – 2:25 2nd period
2:30 – 3:05 4th period
3:10 – 3:45 8th period
TESTING SUBJECTS/DAYS:
Tuesday – Science & Social Science
Wednesday – Reading Vocab & Reading Comprehension
Thursday – Math Problem Solving & Math Procedures
Friday – Language, Spelling, & Listening
English:
Next week, we will continue studying verbs and doing related activities. Students should expect a QUIZ at some point after Stanford testing next week. On the horizon: we will be reading 12 Angry Men in class. We will begin with the movie (as it is originally a play and meant to be seen) and then assign roles and read it in class. We will do related activities including vocabulary, quizzes, character analysis, etc. When students miss class, they will miss the reading. If this happens, it is vital that they stay after school the day they return so they can catch up and/or purchase their own copy to keep up at home.
Independent Books/Projects: Our new unit is over biographies/autobiographies/memoirs. Students received a list of books on the first day back and have already given me their choices (and should have already had you sign their parent approval form as well, so this information shouldn’t be new). Parent approval forms are due Thursday/Friday 1/10-11. Book Checks (students bring their books to school to receive a grade) are January 23-24. I highly encourage getting books sooner than that to get a head start on the reading, especially for students involved in many extra-curricular activities or who take more time reading. This time, we will have 2 literature circle discussion groups: 1st (half the book should be read at this point) on Feb. 9 and the 2nd (book should be completely read) on Feb. 23. PROJECTS are due March 28-29 (this is AFTER TAKS and SPRING BREAK) and will be presented in class.
NEW POLICY: With our 8th graders entering high school in the near future, I like to transition them into str
icter policies in the spring semester to hopefully acclimate them to their future high school environments. That said, I have implemented a new late policy. In the past, there were three strikes (1st day=20 point off, 2nd day=40 points off, 3rd day=50 points off). Now, students who turn in work late (late being anytime after I pick up the assignment in class) will receive a 50, or a 0 if they never turn the assignment in. I am hoping this will deter procrastination and the frequency of late work I receive. The only exception to this policy is if they did the work, but left it in their locker. It is still late, but I will give them a 70 instead, if they get the work right after class and bring it to me before the next period begins. In addition, the extra credit opportunities offered this semester will be limited. The emphasis should be on regularly assigned work, and no extra credit may be done until the student has cleared all zeroes in my class first. Please speak with your child about this policy and encourage them to do all work on time.History:
Next week, the students will have the Stanford tests so we will have a different schedule. However, their Constitution Projects are due on January 18 regardless if they have history class that day. This project must be bound, not in a notebook. The students may bind them themselves or take them to a center. I expect complete, scholarly, and quality work.
We are completing our study of the Constitution and Bill of Rights this week and will have a test over this material next week. The textbook assignment and packet previously given are due the day the students have their test.
All students should have a spiral notebook this semester for the history work. Many are not taking notes nor keeping their returned work. Hopefully, using the spiral will help the students in their study of history. I will be grading these notebooks each six weeks for a major grade. The spiral notebooks are available in the school store.
Science:
Please email Mr. Scott for Science Info
Math:
Algebra 1 (meeting Monday, Wednesday, and Friday):
Last week, students worked to finish a few sections in Chapter 5. The main topics were fitting a line to data and parallel/perpendicular lines. This week, due to testing, there will not be homework until the last class period of the week (for the weekend). Students will begin Chapter 6, “Solving and Graphing Linear Inequalities”, starting on page 354 of the text. Students will begin to solve inequalities using the four operations. Sections 6.1-6.3 are on the agenda for next week.
Pre-Algebra (meeting Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday):
Students have begun working in Chapter 5, “Percents”. We will continue in Chapter 5 during the week. Due to Stanford Testing, students will have no homework until the last class period of the week. Students have a quiz on Monday covering TAKS Objective 2. The TAKS Objective 3 Packet is due on Monday as well. Students are well aware of these dates and class time has been given to answer any questions they may have on these two topics.
Foreign Language Department BLOG: See link below
http://pomsfl.wordpress.com
