Middle School Weekly Bulletin

Volume 9 Number 10

October 19 , 2009

CALENDAR:

Classroom Without Walls (CWW) Trips 2009: Preparations are complete and the planes have lifted off for Cusco, Iquitos and Trujillo! Once the flights have reached their destinations, trip coordinators will call school to confirm their safe arrival. The MS Office will then send emails to all parents. Parents are asked to check email daily to get updates of the trips. Itineraries are on the web page. From the Middle School page, go to MS Grades on the tab at the top, your child’s grade level, then CWW. Pictures from grades 6 and 8 will be updated and posted daily. In case of a real emergency, you can contact the MS Office (8:00 a.m.- 4:30 p.m.) or your child through the emergency contact or hotel numbers listed in the emails /information sheets that were sent home. On Fri., Oct. 23rd, the trip coordinator will call the MS Office upon arrival. Pickup times for each grade level were included in the emails/information packets. Students not participating in trips are expected to attend school, where classes and activities have been planned.

Aprenda Testing: In order to collect information on our students' Spanish language proficiency, all sixth and eighth graders in Comunicacion classes will be taking Aprenda tests on Tues., Wed., and Thurs., Oct. 27-29 from 8:00-9:50. These tests are similar to the language portion of the Iowas. Please help your child do his/her best by making sure they are well-rested and eat a good breakfast. Sixth and eighth graders who are enrolled in Spanish as a Second Language classes will have alternative activities at that time.

Halloween Parade and Rec Night: In keeping with the theme, “Think Green, Act Green,” MS students are encouraged to wear homemade costumes from recycled materials on Oct. 30th. The Student Body Government is organizing the parade and will award prizes for most creative costumes. The MS Rec Night starts at 7:00 p.m. Entrance is s/5 and there will be games, food and dancing. No student should be on campus between the end of afterschool activities at 5:30 and 7:00. Students who attend Rec Night must remain at school until the end of the activity at 10:00 p.m.

MS Math: Students and parents can access online math resources via the MS math pages on Moodle: http://courses.amersol.edu.pe/course/category.php?id=3&perpage=20&page=2.

Parent may log in as a guest to their child’s Math class to view assignments and Connected Math resources, including video tutorials and online resources.

MathCounts, a program designed to build math skills, promote logical thinking, and sharpen analytical abilities through challenging and exciting activities, is being offered on Fridays during lunch in MS108. It also fosters teamwork and a competitive spirit among students. If this is something you think your child would enjoy, please encourage him/her to participate.

MS Sponsored Run: The Sponsored Run on September 30th was a great success – students participated enthusiastically and many students completed more than 16 laps! Many thanks to parents who donated fruit or turned out to cheer their child on or to help tally laps. The next part of this process is for students to collect their pledges and turn them in to their advisers. Some pledges have been trickling in; during the week of Oct. 26th, any student who has not yet done so will need to collect and turn in his/her pledges, which will support MS community service projects throughout the year. Please remind and help your child to follow through on his/her pledge!

First Quarter Reports: Reports on students’ academic progress to date were sent home on Friday, Oct. 16th. In Middle School, these reports include grades for Habits and Attitudes to Learning (HAL) and Overall Level of Achievement (OLA) for each subject, both scored on a scale of 1-7. The OLA grades are derived from the criteria scores, which help identify your child’s strengths and areas for improvement in each subject area. Rubrics for OLA, HAL and subject area criteria can be found in the MS Student Handbook (http://www.amersol.edu.pe/ms/info/handbook/middle_school_HB_2009.pdf).

MS Parents’ Book Club:  The first meeting of the MS Parents’ Book Club will be held on Nov. 11th at 11:00 in the Media Center. Librarian John Kurtenbach will be leading the discussion of this year’s first selection, Joey Pigza Swallowed the Key by Jack Gantos, who was a smash hit with students and teachers during his visit to the school in Sept. Copies of the book are available in the library and through some level parent representatives. We’d love to see you there!

CONDOR CORNER - FDR ATHLETICS

First, I would like to thank you all for your patience concerning emails... We have tried very hard to get as much information to you as possible. THE GOOD NEWS!: The ATHLETICS and ACTIVITIES web-page is up and running (THANK YOU Brad Kurtz and TEAM!!). You will see Athletic and Activity information on this page. Also, game schedules, results, relevant forms etc. Please take a moment to check it out. We will also continue to use the MONDAY MESSENGER to send new information.

SAAC SOCCER for high school girls and boys!! The tournament will be on campus at FDR November 12-14. Teams arrive on Wednesday the 11th. WE NEED HOSTS! If you would like to help us by hosting to athletes for 3 nights (Chile, Argentina, Ecuador) or 4 nights (Uruguay) please contact Steve LeBoo (sleboo@amersol.edu.pe) or Laurie Alba (lalba@amersol.edu.pe).

BEGINNING ON SATURDAYS! BIKES WILL BE ALLOWED ON CAMPUS from 8am - 3pm. PARENTS MUST BE WITH THEIR CHILDREN (no nannies please). Please check in with Carmen Pinillos in the HS Gym. Kids and parents may ride their bikes on the track and side walk areas. All persons riding bikes must wear helmets. Cyclist ride at their own risk. NO SKATEBOARDS or SCOOTERS. Bikes only please.

To go the Monday Messenger go to:

http://www.amersol.edu.pe/fdr/news/messenger/index.asp