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andrew lewis middle school 2011-2012 newsletter october/november www.salem.k12.va.us/alms 1

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dear parents i would like to thank you all for your support as we opened school for the 2011-12 school year we began the year with 887 students in our school our staff has worked extremely hard to help students be successful in middle school with your continued support the students will have a great year i would like to welcome the following new teachers to our staff for 2011-12 wendy shupe-special education katie lucot-language arts please welcome these new staff members to the andrew lewis family thank you and please contact us if you have any questions or concerns forest i jones principal 2

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a note from our pta president happy fall from the alms pta i trust you had a great summer and a smooth start to the 2011-2012 school year as we settle into the routine of middle school i want to encourage you to include the pta in your routine the simplest way to include the pta is to join at only $3 per member it s quite a cost efficient way to be involved there are great discounts available to pta members from the salem merchants association the national and state pta websites offer parenting tips and discounts to businesses for pta members membership is not limited to parents and teachers grandparents aunts/uncles and friends are also welcome to join membership forms are located in the main office we just wrapped up a very successful back to school night the pta board joined the alms administration to host this year s back to school night with the help of many volunteers our faculty staff and families enjoyed a hot dog dinner grade level assemblies and an open house a huge thanks to all those who helped and attended our next scheduled event is the football tailgate on thursday october 13 for more info check out at the end of the newsletter don t miss the exciting pep-rally celebrating alms fall sports and homerooms with 100 membership at the end of the school day on october 13 3

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the reflections program is in full swing i encourage your students to participate there are 6 categories they can enter photography dance video/film music composition literature and visual arts entry forms are available in the main office additional information can be located on the va pta web page http www.vapta.org/statecommittees/arts-in-educationhomepage.html or by contacting jaime johnson participation in the reflections program strengthens the pta s legislative voice requesting no cuts or reductions to arts in education funding entry deadline is friday october 21 for more information go to end of newsletter during red ribbon week alms will host the annual joint shs/alms ptsa/pta meeting on tuesday october 25 the shs drama department will be performing a drama during the evening you won t want to miss this evening many valuable door prizes will be given away new this year find us on facebook andrew lewis middle school pta best wishes for a year full of fun friendships learning and successes amy young 2011-2013 alms pta president alms library news october/november 2011 the library is now open for business every morning at 8:00 am for students who may want a new book a place to study or just a quiet area to read before school mornings present an excellent opportunity for students to browse the shelves for books students need a signed agenda or note from 4

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a parent in order to visit either the computer lab or library before school students are expected to remain in the library until the dismissal tone the computer lab opens at 7:25am each school morning until 8:25am as of friday september 16th every student at alms has been in the library with their language arts classes students are scheduled to visit the library regularly once every two weeks with their l.a classes regularly scheduled classes began their rotation on tuesday september 20th the year has gotten off to a good start with our new circulation software called destiny since it is an online-based program anyone can look at the electronic catalog from anywhere even at home all you do is click on this link and then you can bookmark it to your computer http library.salem.k12.va.us if you double click on andrew lewis middle school then double click on the catalog tab at the top you can access our catalog it is very user-friendly and there is also a visual search feature while you re there check out the other links you ll find to the left destiny quest and webpath express webpath express is a feature of the new software that delivers credible safe and relevant web search results to both students and teachers it s a great tool for students to have easy access to the world of information resources the internet has to offer we all know how important it is that students searching experience on the web be as safe as possible as well as relevant to their search and discovery process webpath express is an educational search tool that provides today s k-12 kids with a safe fun search tool that integrates trustworthy relevant websites into the library catalog while filtering out questionable content after you have finished looking at the catalog section click on the home tab and find links to many useful resources such as an interactive quizlist interactive list of all books for which andrew lewis has accelerated reader quizzes as well as insight into the ar program in general the alms website list of parental permission books available in the library portals to a wealth of research resources 5

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students should exhaust the bona fide reference resources found on this site also remember to use the new webpath express before they search the web you will need usernames and passwords to access these reference databases at home you can find this information on page 26 of the student agenda located in the front section by using these sites students are assured that they are accessing the most current and reliable information available the library sponsors a fundraising event each year-a picture shoot in the spring we appreciate everyone s support for this event and hope that you will look for more information about how you can be involved in upcoming months our library houses a special collection of books that we have identified as parental permission books that may contain more mature themes or language than normally found in our collection students must have a permission form signed by their parent or guardian in order to browse through or check out these books forms are available in the library contact mrs mcguire if you have questions or concerns to volunteer to help in the library to suggest titles for the ar quiz bank or book collection or for posing questions or concerns please email the librarian mrs sherri mcguire at smcguire@salem.k12.va.us 6

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math department welcome back i hope everyone had a great summer and is rested for a busy and exciting year please remind your son or daughter to utilize the math labs if he or she needs extra help math lab schedules are posted throughout the building and in my classroom in addition i stay after school every thursday from 3:25-4:25 to provide extra help to students struggling again welcome back and i am excited to have everyone in my class 6th grade news sharpies team announcements and assignments for the sharpies team can be accessed at http sites.google.com/a/salem.k12.va.us/sharpies if for any reason parents or students need to contact teachers with questions/concerns mrs blankenship can be reached at tblankenship@salem.k12.va.us mrs bull can be reached at dbull@salem.k12.va.us mrs petersen can be reached at lpetersen@salem.k12.va.us and mrs lucot can be reached at klucot@salem.k12.va.us additionally teachers may be reached via telephone at 387-2513 during school hours students in 6th grade language arts math and social studies will take an sol test in may exact dates to be determined later in the year students struggling with content will be pulled during tutorial or asked to come before/after school for additional help 7

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resources if at any time throughout the year a student has questions about an assignment and cannot reach mrs lucot or just wants a quiet place to read he/she may attend the language arts lab in the library computer lab which is open monday through friday from 7:30-8:25 and staffed by an english teacher from alms if at any time throughout the year a student has questions about a math assignment and cannot reach mrs petersen he/she may attend the math lab in room 131 which is open monday through friday from 7:30-8:25 and staffed by a math teacher from alms finally if at any time throughout the year a student is assigned something which requires computer access and is unable to complete it at home the computer lab in the back of the alms library is available every morning monday through friday from 7:30-8:30 and staffed by a teacher reminders english just like any other skill becoming a good reader takes practice students are expected to be reading at home on a daily basis from books of their choosing the students have reading logs that should be signed a parent or guardian on a regular basis social studies ­ textbooks are online this year ms bull hopes that you enjoy your study of american history part two math ­ in addition to math lab mrs petersen is also available to help most mornings at about 8:00 in her room expect homework almost every day for math 6 students and every day and almost every weekend for advanced math/pre-algebra students assignments should be written in the agenda daily and can be checked online on the team website science we cover many sol s in sixth grade science although we do not have a test at the end of the year we will be reviewing all material that we learn throughout the year because students will be tested on it at the end of the eighth grade 8

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the twisters team mrs brown ­ language arts mr manning science mr secor ­ social studies mrs smythers math mrs wallace ­ collaborative teacher welcome to the twister team we are off to a great start please log on to our website at www.salem.k12.va.us/staff/pmanning for more team information you will find links for homework resources for each subject as well as team celebrations language arts this year is a combination of spelling english and reading students will receive one grade on their report card as an average of all three subjects we are reading the other side of dark by joan lowery nixon working with vowel sounds in spelling and will shortly begin working on fundamentals in the sentence writing strategy this year the language arts lab is in the computer lab next to the library and is open from 7:25 ­ 8:25 a.m each morning there will always be a language arts teacher there to give students help students can also take ar tests in the lab this year is off to a great start in science with an eager group of future scientists we will be enjoying a safe experience with matter and experimental design during the first six weeks we will be venturing into a study of environmental sciences energy and space science as the year continues in addition we will be growing brook trout as a part of the virginia game and inland fisheries stocking program the eggs will arrive in late september and we will release the fry in early spring in social studies the sixth grade course is u.s history 1865 to the present students begin the school year with the study of the regional map of the united states the first unit is reconstruction followed by westward expansion 9

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in pre-algebra we dived right into decimals these pointy little numbers kept our brain busy busy next came the positive and negative world of integers we have compared ordered added subtracted multiplied and divided to our hearts content exponents order of operations and some statistics will keep us flowing right along in math 6 we jumped in head first with properties and then moved on to order of operations math 6 will soon get their chance to point at some decimals and do a little statistics of their own reminder the math lab is open every morning 7:25am 8:25am in room 131 across from the office feel free to drop in for a little extra help the regal eagle team welcome to the regal eagle team our students are fantastic we are still getting to know each one of these fine young people and learning more about them every day math ­ we are starting off in a great way completing our bell ringers when we come into class each day i will have taken up the first round of bell ringers when this newsletter comes out students know what is required of them in this area math 6 students are making a foldable and studying all operations of integers study study study pre-algebra students have taken a decimal test and are working on absolute value and algebraic concepts don t wait until there is a problem to visit math lab math lab i meets daily in room 131 front hall students should go whenever they feel they need extra help 10

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language arts ­ reading is the key to academic success we encourage reading through reading tutorials and daily reading at home in their ar book literature book or subject related materials class library visits are every other thursday but your child may visit the library before school daily as needed the andrew lewis english department requires all 6th graders to accumulate 10 or more ar points per six weeks special recognition is given to students who acquire 100 ar points or more before may 1 2012 social studies ­ welcome to us history from 1877 to the present we have some exciting days ahead of us as we look at the stories of our nation s past our students will not have a copy of the textbook to bring home for study purposes but they will have plenty of classroom practice and copies of the sols and content notes there will be a text online a password and user number will be assigned soon science ­ students have learned about laboratory safety and equipment and spent some time on the scientific method our students are eagerly awaiting our study of chemistry and all the experiments that will entail the regal eagle team hopes the 2011 2012 school year will be the best yet for your child mrs nester mrs budd mrs gilpin mrs turner 7th grade news akins simmons shupe and penn team our team really hit the ground running in route to another exciting school year we hope that you all had a great summer and are eager to meet you if 11

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we haven t done so already we encourage you to visit our team webpage to see the everyday happenings in our classes to reach our website click on the team s link and then on the words atkins team at present time our team is looking forward to many activities mr penn was encouraged that some of his students participated in the marine mud run on september 17th it was a dirty way to raise money for a good cause other opportunities to continue with the sack project include clean valley day on october 1st and the heartwalk on october 29th also we hope we had an opportunity to meet you at our back to school night on september 27 we are going to have a great school year and we have high hopes for each student we teach please remember to check the website and parent portal regularly and help out aspiring scholars when they need it also we hope our refrigerator magnet has been a useful tool for all of our families we look forward to working with you and your child and hope to be of assistance whenever possible gallion benson simpson and romano team romano we have had a strong start this year and the students have already completed chapter 1 successfully they know what life science is and who can be a life scientist plus being able to apply the scientific method performing labs it is important that they study each evening and to especially focus on their notes from the powerpoint presentations their quizzes and tests are based on the material covered in these we will study microscopes and have labs to give the students opportunities in using the microscopes we are looking forward to a good year in science 12

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benson students in mr benson s language arts classes are off to a great start the students came to class well-prepared and ready to begin their seventh grade year the students have become well acclimated with their schedules and classroom routine students are currently reading middle school blues by lou kassem this book is a lighthearted favorite which tells of the trials and tribulations of cindy cunningham as she enters her seventh grade year in middle school students are encouraged to read ar books regularly and to take tests regularly also in order to accumulate the 15 points required each six weeks being organized and ready for class every day is one of the best things students can do in order to be successful and so far every student is doing just that keep up the good work it looks as if this is going to be a very successful year for all the students and mr benson is looking forward to teaching and getting to know the students well nuts and bolts team mr blankenship eblankenship@salem.k12.va.us mrs cook mcook@salem.k12.va.us mr hairston chairston@salem.k12.va.us mrs kubik jkubik@salem.k12.va.us welcome to the team of mr blankenship science mrs cook math mr hairston civics and ms kubik english we look forward to working with your child this year and anticipate a year filled with much learning and maturity it is important for you to keep the lines of communication open this year and there are several ways you can stay connected first email us if you have any questions or concerns the email addresses are located on the 13

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andrew lewis site also we recommend that you frequently log on to the parent portal with your son or daughter and access the grade book for all of his or her classes this keeps you abreast of all of the class averages and you can see how well he or she performed on given assignments you can also see if there is missing work to attend to late work and comments from the teacher about certain grades you can also check the agenda every night and you can call the school and leave a voice message for us the last thing we want you to do is sign up for a conference on conference day especially if your child is not performing as he or she should be in english class this year we are starting the year off with learning the elements of literature and applying them to the dozen short stories that we will be reading we will also be working on improving comprehension with numerous novels of fiction and nonfiction writing papers with elaborate structures delving into the structures of sentences recognizing common patterns of roots and affixes writing research papers learning about the lives and works of poets and writing our own poems whew that s a lot to address in fifty minutes a day blankenship the students have concentrated learning what life science is and applying the scientific method in their labs we will next study the characteristics of living things and apply these in determining if something is living or not please encourage at least 15 minutes of review each evening of the material we have covered in class it is important that they study their powerpoint notes for all quizzes and tests we look forward to a great year in science cook welcome back we are all in for a great year remember that math labs are open in the mornings and/or afternoons for all students check the paper in my room for times and places and visit my website for class information and homework https sites.google.com/a/salem.k12.va.us/mcook i look forward to a great year 14

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in pre-algebra we began the year with integers students have learned several neat visuals to help with integers so ask them to show you next we will review fractions decimals and percents and then identify the properties of real numbers and evaluate expressions we are moving fast so please visit the math lab or myself if you need help don t delay start today in algebra 1 part 1 we also began the year with integers as a review of sixth grade we are now into the language of algebra where we are learning how to translate and evaluate algebraic expressions next we will get to see how interesting our real number system is as we classify numbers and apply properties in algebra we began the year with the language of algebra we have learned how to translate and evaluate algebraic expressions and we have learned just how interesting our real number system is after our test on the language of algebra we will evaluate and simplify expressions with square roots and cube roots and there is more to come so stay tuned 8th grade news riddile wirt and hodges team welcome back students our team is looking forward to working with you this school year now that you ve had some time off for the summer it s time to get back into action with your academic classes in science mr wirt has students exploring physical science through handson labs please remember to attend morning study sessions the morning of his tests if you have any questions you can email him at twirt@salem.k12.va.us mr wirt s website www.salem.k12.vaus/staff/twirt 15

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