Faculty Notes

Greetings!

As we approach the end of the work week, I would like to give you a couple of pats on the back as well as remind you of some important items.

First, I can't tell you how much I am enjoying visiting your classes each day!  It is exciting to see the many different things going on across our middle school program, and it is obvious that you care about what you do and pour yourselves into it each and every day.  Thank you!

Also, I am grateful for the way you are using 21st Century communication tools to connect with your students and parents.  This continues to pay big dividends, and ultimately benefits the children we are called to teach.  Way to go!

Please help us with a couple of items:

We continue to have students who are trying to eat their snacks each day in places other than Willett Hall.  Help us remind everyone that snacks are to be eaten in Willett Hall only, and that students are expected to clean up after themselves.

Along that line, when you have lunch duty, please help us get the tables clean on top and below.  Randy and I are going to begin announcements at 12:20pm each day in order to allow for more clean-up time.  Students should not be dismissed from the lunchroom until their areas are completely clean.  Thanks for your help with this.

Homecoming is next week!  Let's all encourage our students to get into the Trinity Wildcat spirit!  Talk up the themes each day and encourage their participation.  It looks like it is going to be a fun-filled week!

Here is some interesting reading that I hope will get us all thinking less about tests and grades, and more about teaching and learning.  Enjoy!

Have a great weekend!

Faculty Notes

Happy Friday!

I have thoroughly enjoyed visiting your classes this week.  It is nice to see so many exciting and innovative things going on in our middle school.  Keep up the good work!

Here are some important announcements and resources as we head into the weekend:

Student Council Election Results

Thanks so much to Whittington McLemore for putting together and running our student council election process this week.  The kids did an outstanding job on their speeches, and we have elected a fine slate of officers for this school year.

Student Council 2010-2011

President - Carter Vance

Vice President - Jarrett Moseley

Secretary - Betsy Byrne

Treasurer - Anna Lee Curles

8th Grade Representative - Madison Cornett

7th Grade Representative - Wilson Shanahan

6th Grade Representative - Will Windham

Congratulations Stan Milton!

Congratulations to Stan and Misty Milton on the birth this week of their daughter, Mary Mason.  She weighed in at 7 lbs. 2 oz. and was 19 1/2" long.  Mother and baby are both doing well.

Techie Tuesdays

Ever get frustrated with all of this new technology?  Remember that we have "Techie Tuesdays" after school each Tuesday afternoon in Willett Hall.  Pete McCoy has but together a blog which includes answers to his most frequently asked questions.  The blog may be found here, and will also be displayed on the sidebar of this blog for easy reference.  Be sure to check out the "Labels" section on the upper right-hand corner of Pete's blog for categories such as SmartBoards, MacBooks, etc.

Project-Based Learning

Many of you are exploring the exciting world of project-based learning in your classrooms.  Tech and Learning provides a great resource of ten project-based learning websites that are full of great ideas that you can put to use right away.  You may access the link by clicking here.

Faculty Blogs and Wikis

Thanks so much for the great job you have done in getting your blogs and wikis out there for the parents and students to view.  I spoke with our 7th grade parents at a luncheon Wednesday, and they were blown away by the wonderful job you are doing.  Keep up the good work!

Remember, you may look at any of our blogs by checking out the tab on my parent blog.  It may be found by clicking here.  If you don't see your site on the list, or if your link is broken, please send me the correct url in an email and I will post it.

Thanks for who you are and what you do each and every day.  You are deeply appreciated!

Have a great weekend!

Faculty Notes

Happy Friday!

I hope you have enjoyed a great, four-day week!

Here are some important reminders as we head into the weekend:

I hope you can make plans to attend the Middle School Blast this coming Monday immediately following the Trinity vs. Montgomery Academy middle school football game.  Our PTO has put this social event together and we are hoping you can drop by even if for just a few minutes.  Pizza and cake will be served from 6:00-7:00pm.  Hope to see you there!

We are going to have a very brief division meeting right after carpool Monday in Whittington McLemore's room.  I will send an agenda via email so you will know what to expect at the meeting.

Please remember that we are scheduled to have a chapel next Wednesday for Common Ground Ministries.  We will be on activity schedule that day.

You might want to check out these great resources on formulating critical thinking questions.  Some of our teachers have used these products in the past with excellent results.

If you have some time this weekend, you might want to read this brief blog article outlining the top 10 social networks for educators.  There is a great deal of sharing and collaboration going on among educators and you might want to get in on the conversation.

Thanks for the outstanding job you are doing each day.  I hope you have a fabulous weekend!

Faculty Notes

Happy Labor Day!

I hope everyone has enjoyed a relaxing three-day weekend!  You certainly deserve the break.

Here are a few announcements as we move into a new week:

Requests for PTO funds are due to Mr. Neu by this Friday.

Please remember that requests for assistance with technology should be addressed to Jackson-Thornton via the information given to you earlier. If you do not have one of their cards, please see me.  Additionally, maintenance requests should be made by using the maintenance email.

It is most important that tests for the following week are posted on the board in the teacher workroom by noon each Friday.  I publish these to parents on my middle school blog, and the information needs to accurate.

Please continue to help us with dress code issues.  Questions about uniform items (such as shoes) should be addressed to Randy Ragsdale.  Sensitive issues regarding our young ladies and their uniform attire should be addressed to Becky Shepherd.  Becky handles such matters discretely, and parents have told us how much they appreciate such discretion in potentially embarrassing situations involving their children.

We are using a rotation system for administering make-up tests once again this year.  This rotation was communicated to parents Friday, and is as follows:

Monday - Electives/Bible

Tuesday - English

Wednesday - Science

Thursday - Social Studies

Friday - Math

Check out these alternatives to YouTube for use in the classroom.  These suggestions come courtesy of Free Technology for Teachers, a fantastic blog worthy of inclusion on your subscription list.

See you Tuesday!