Recent Email, In Case You Misplaced Or Didn't Receive

Hello, So much has gone on that I'm excited to share with you. )Week January 10-14th

Firstly, this Friday is optional for 7th graders who have finished taking their fall state tests (math and reading). In order to provide the best testing environment for our students we've rotated which class (6th, 7th, 8th) stays home on a Friday.

In this email you'll find information on
:
* Bike Wheels to Steering Wheels Presentation
* January 28th End of Semester
* Facebook Lesson
* Official no sharing hats week: Lice
* Service Friday

Bike Wheels to Steering Wheels:

We had a guest speaker come to our class and share how important it is to wear a helmet while riding your bike, scooter, or skateboard. She also gave out information for parents. I sent one home with the students.. maybe you found it while you were helping them clean out their backpacks. She encouraged students to contact her if they didn't have a helmet or had family members who did not have a helmet and she could get us discounted helmets. It was an interesting presentation.

January 28th Is the End of the Semester:
January 28th is the end of the semester. The course catalogs for the following semester are presently being worked on. Meanwhile we've been encouraging students to finish strong. We have many students struggling in math and other topics. Advising has been a time of academic support and will be for the next two weeks. It is difficult, however, to help one student with math and encourage 23 others to pull out homework. If there is any way that you might be able to come upstairs at 8:30 and help sit with a student and encourage them to clean out their backpack and look for work, help with fractions, help with science or math homework, or help them study by making and quizing them on Spanish or Japanese flashcards that would be amazing and helpful.

Facebook Lesson:
I was gone on Friday, however spent quite a bit of time creating the best lesson plan EVER. Students engaged in small group, big group, and reflective writing about Facebook and the issues surrounding it. There is a movie, Social Networking, that just came out and I'm encouraging students to join the conversation around the movie and the abuses of Facebook which seem to cause unsafe situations and has gotten a few high school students suspended. In some high schools even expelled! We're educating ourselves on the pluses and minuses of such a phenomenon. Of course you have to be 17 to have an account according to the policies, however, many students have them anyway. We can't stop them from having one, however bullying and harassment policies say that we have to respond if there is student to student harassment or bullying.

Official no sharing hats week. Lice
Before break I had talked to some students and families about lice. Sadly the lice came back from the break... and somehow even I caught it. If you are unsure as to whether it is lice or just dandruff I have a microscope and can help you identify. The main thing is that under the microscope it is possible to see the glue by which the lice attach going all around the hair shaft... which means you can pull the nits off along the hair but not perpendicular to the hair.

Service Friday:
Lastly we have a service Friday on the 21st. Some of us will be going out to pull ivy, others will be going to the homeless shelter. We'll be needing transportation. If anyone can drive us to pulling ivy (which is usually up behind 23rd and Lovejoy) please let me know. There is no obligation to help.