Week of March 23-27, 2015

Falcons we are now entering the 4th week of the 5th six weeks.  Time is flying and we are getting closer to the STAAR exam.  We still have lots to do so let's continue to work hard and responsibly.

This week in Honors Literature will begin reading "The Chocolate War" by Robert Cormier.  This novel will help us to better understand the dangers of bullying.

We will be learning about allusion and different organizational patterns in text.  We are going to have a really busy week.  Please be in school everyday. 

This week in Agriculture/Horticulture class we will continue with our outdoor garden and experiment.  Identify seeds' essential parts and functions.  Understand plant inheritance principles, including structure and role of DNA.

Reminders:
Students you need to continue to follow uniform policy. 
Remember that school work and homework must be turned in on time in order to keep up good grades.
Progress reports will be going out this week. 
Students do not forget to pay for your end of the year trip.  Money is due April 3, 2015.  

 

Week of March 16-20, 2015

Welcome back Falcons!  We are now starting the 3rd week of the 5th Six Weeks.  I hope everyone had a restful Spring Break because we still have a lot of work ahead of us. 

This week in Honors Literature we will read a memoir and biography along with a poem.  We will be reviewing tone, fact and opinion, plot summary and figurative language.

We must continue to focus on our studies because STAAR will be administered on April 21-22, 2015. 

This week in Agriculture/Horticulture class we will continue to work outside in our garden. 

This week:
Monday--Starts Brain Awareness Week
Tuesday--St. Patrick's Day http://www.history.com/topics/st-patricks-day
Wednesday--First Space Walk (1965)
Thursday--College T-Shirt Day
Friday--Spirit T-Shirt Day, Spring Begins, Agriculture Day

Reminders:
Students you need to continue to follow uniform policy. 
Remember that school work and homework must be turned in on time in order to keep up good grades.
Progress reports will be going out next week.   Start asking teachers if you need to make up any work. 
On March 17, St. Patrick's Day you will be allowed to wear green but it can only be a bow, bracelet, ribbon, shoe laces etc.
Students do not forget to pay for your end of the year trip.  Money is due April 3, 2015.

Week of March 2-6, 2015

We are now in the second week of the 5th Six Weeks. Thank you students for your good behavior at the Starr County Youth Fair. Everyone had a great time.

Our week was spent learning about the elements of poetry and we will continue this week.  We are also going to enjoy reading another genre--drama.  After spring break we will start with The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier.

This week in Honors Literature:
Monday--Poetry Elements--Imagery and Hyperbole you all can find information about imagery in this website: http://examples.yourdictionary.com/examples-of-imagery.html
Tuesday--Poetry Elements--Line and Stanza
Wednesday--Drama--Act and Scene, Word Play
Thursday--Drama--Paraphrase and Pun
Friday--STAAR Practice

This week in Horticulture/Agriculture:
Monday--Work in vegetable and fruit garden outside.  Prepare garden boxes for planting.
Tuesday--Experiment with plant growth using different kinds of soils, fertilizers and light.
Wednesday--Continue with experiment.
Thursday--Continue with experiment.
Friday--Work in vegetable and fruit garden outside.  Prepare garden boxes for planting.

Reminders:
Students must wear white polo with blue/black jeans or slacks.
Pull over jackets are not allowed.

Money for end of the year trip is due April 3, 2015--$100.00

Monday--Panoramic Picture
Wednesday--Open House--4:00-6:00 P.M.
Thursday--College T-Shirt Day
Friday--Falcon Spirit T-Shirt Day

Spring Break--March 9-13, 2015  Wishing everyone a safe and fun Spring Break!

Week of February 23-27, 2015:

This is the first week of the 5th Six Weeks and we will be working very hard for the approaching STAAR State Exam. Students we are not done yet we have a long way to go so be prepared everyday. I would like to congratulate our students for a great job on their benchmarks but it does not mean that you let your guard down. We still have a lot of work ahead of us.  

My expectations for all students is to succeed at everything you possibly can. It means to accomplish, master, understand, and complete tasks, concepts, and processes at your grade level and beyond—or beyond what you are used to doing.

To succeed just follow the list below on a daily basis:

1. Be prepared. Do your work.

2. Do your work well. Do all your work.

3. Do your work on time. Take homework seriously.

4. Turn in your homework. Try hard.

5. Put forth effort. Bring all your supplies to class.

6. Be ready to learn. Study for tests. Listen.

7. Participate. Listen and learn from others.

8. Share your ideas. Finish what you start.

9. Reflect on your work. Make good decisions.

10. Push yourself beyond the easy. Don’t settle for mediocre work.

11. Try new things. Ask for help.

Honors Literature:

This week we will be learning the elements of poetry.  Students will learn to analyze a poem for better understanding.  On Wednesday we will be writing an essay for TELPAS--Prompt--Past Event-Reflective Writing-Narrative about something that happened or that you did that was disappointing, unforgettable, surprising, interesting, unexpected, funny, unfair, etc.

Agriculture/Horticulture

This week we will be designing our garden boxes for our vegetables and fruits.  

Reminders:

Mon--5th Six Weeks Begins, Panoramic Picture, Book Fair

Tues--Book Fair

Wed--Book Fair

Thur--Book Fair Ends, University T-Shirt Day

Fri--Starr County Youth Fair Field Trip, Spirit T-Shirt Day

Week of February 16-20, 2015

District Benchmark #2 This Week

We had a great week continuing with activities on The Giver and reviewing for our reading benchmark. Students received a reading review packet that should help with the benchmark.  Students should be studying this review daily.  This week will be very busy so we need to rest, sleep and eat well.  Please be sure to attend school every day and be on time. This is the last week of the six weeks and our students will be taking a reading and math benchmark. 

Horticulture students enjoyed watering their plants.  Our plants are growing like weeds.  We are planning to build some garden boxes for our plants.

Reminders:
Students need to pay $2.00 for Youth Fair we are scheduled to go on Feb. 27
We are collecting money for the end-of-year trip. Students should be paying for the

Monday  02/16/2015 7th wk of the 6Weeks     TELPAS testing begins  Book Fair Begins President's Day

Tuesday  02/17/2015  6th & 7th Gr. Math  District Benchmark 8th Gr. Social Studies Book Fair

Wednesday  02/18/2015  6th & 7th Gr. Reading  District Benchmark 8th Gr. Science Ash Wednesday Book Fair

Thursday  02/19/2015 College T-Shirt Day Book Fair

Friday  02/20/2015 4th Six Weeks Ends Regional Science Fair @ UTB Book Fair

Saturday  02/21/2015 Regional Science Fair @ UTB

trip.

Week of February 9-13, 2015

We have finished reading The Giver.  Jonas escapes the community with Gabriel after he finds out that his father will be releasing Gabariel in the morning.  Jonas along with Gabriel face starvation, freezing temperatures and the unknown while escaping the community.  They finally get to a hill where he sees a sled and hears music.  He feels that he has finally arrived to Elsewhere.  The question here is has he arrived to Elsewhere or is it just a dream?

Honors Literature:
Monday--Final Exam on The Giver
Tuesday--Reading Review
Wednesday--Math Review
Thursday--Drama, Analyze Diction
Friday--STAAR Practice Passage

Agriculture/Horticulture:
Interpret biotechnology's use in plant science.

Reminders:
Feb. 13--Student Dance
Feb. 17-18--District Benchmarks--Reading and Math (6th Grade)
Feb. 23--Panoramic Group Picture
Feb. 27--Starr County Youth Fair (fee $2.00 due Monday Feb. 9)

April 3--Fee Due for Final of the Year Trip $100.00

Week of Feb. 2-6, 2015

We have arrived to the climax of The Giver.  We are now going to find out what happens to Jonas, the Giver and Gabriel.  So many questions: If Jonas is giving Gabriel the memories will Gabriel remember them as he gets older?  Who can Jonas really trust in his community? If his father lied about the actual meaning of being released, who else has lied to him? We will find out all.

Honors Literature Class:
Mon.--Analyze Plot Climax(Turning Point), Falling Action
Tues.--Analyze Test Structure Compare and Contrast
Wed.--Metaphors, Analyze Poetry
Thurs.--Drama, Analyze Diction
Fri.--STAAR Review

Agriculture/Horticulture:
Mon.--Explain agriculture plants and their uses.
Tues.--Classify plants as annuals, biennials or perennials.
Wed.--Identify common and noxious weeds. Classify growth characteristics of weeds.
Thurs.--Photosynthesis, Respiration and Transpiration process.
Fri.--Exam

Students have finished their Topiaries.  We are now working on our vegetable and fruit garden.

Reminders:
Mon.--Groundhog Day
Thurs.--University T-Shirt
Fri.--Spirit T-Shirt and National Wear Red Day

Upcoming Events:
Feb. 10 and 11--District Benchmarks
Feb. 13--Student Dance
Feb. 14--Valentine's Day
Feb. 17 and 18--District Benchmarks