Our Final Week of School! Week of June 4-8

Hello everyone!

I CAN'T BELIEVE we're at the end of the school year!!!

This week is a strange one with the timing because Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday are all half days; students will be dismissed at 11:45 am all three days. Tuesday and Thursday are AM schedules, Wednesday is a PM schedule. Monday is a full day of school! The Honors Breakfast will be held Monday morning at 7:00 AM. Wednesday at 10:30 we will head to Discovery Idol. Thursday at 10:30 is the Awards Assembly. Friday is Graduation Day!!!

Here are a few messages from the Administration:

HONORS BREAKFAST – Parents and Teachers of students in Grades 6-12 who were on the Honor Roll during the first three quarters of this school year are invited to attend the Honors Breakfast to recognize these students on Monday, June 5, at 7:00 a.m.

 
CHOIR FUNDRAISING END-OF-THE-YEAR CARNIVAL: The Choir Parents are organizing an end-of-the-year Carnival and Bingo for Saturday, June 9, from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. There will be games, food, and of course the exciting Bingo. Please come bid the school year good bye with our family and friends while supporting the Choir in their last effort to raise fund for their upcoming San Francisco trip in July.

UNCLAIMED ART SALE - Yes! It is time for the annual Unclaimed Art Sale!  Parents, if your students have not brought their portfolios home from the art room you may find them up for sale in the art room.  All unclaimed art work will go on sale Monday June 4,5,6,7 from 7.30 am to 3:30.

All pieces are reasonable priced (10-20-50 Lempira) and families will get a huge discount (free). All proceeds from the sale of student work will be used to help pay for the framing of students’ works for the permanent collection. 

2011-2012 YEARBOOK IS COMING!– The ‘Year of the Wolf’ – The Discovery School yearbook is being printed and will be ready for distribution on Friday, June 8, according to the publisher. We are currently offering pre-sales to guarantee that you get a copy. Although the book is larger than last year, we have been able to arrange for no increase in the cost over last year. Therefore, our school memories are reflected in an 80-page, hard cover yearbook for the price of L. 650 each. You can reserve your copy by seeing Belgica in the Finance Office and paying the L. 650. We know these will sell out quickly, so be sure and reserve yours now! The school offices will be open throughout the summer so you will still have a chance to buy a yearbook as long as they last. 

MOZART’S ‘COSI FAN TUTTE OPERA COMES TO TEGUCIGALPA! – For the first time in Honduras, the National Philharmonic Association, with the support of Maestro Jorge Mejia, has arranged for a professional opera company from Texas to come to Tegucigalpa and perform Mozart’s famous opera, ‘Cosi Fan Tutte’.  Premiere  will be held on Thursday, June 7, at 7:00 p.m., with a repeat performance on Friday, June 8, at 7:00 p.m. Tickets are on sale at the Discovery School Finance Office.

Don't forget to sign up for the Summer Course, Great Writing!

Even though it's a short week of school, we will still be learning in Room #4!

6th grade: Monday you will finish up the Little House on the Prairie Pilot episode movie. Tuesday there is no class. Wednesday we will watch a section of the History Channel show America: The Story of US about Westward movement. Thursday there is no class. Have a great summer!

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7th grade: Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday you will watch How the States Got their Shapes, which will show how geography affects the creation of state boundaries. Wednesday there is no class. Have a great summer!

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8th grade: Monday you will watch the movie Mill Times. Wednesday you will attend the Discovery Idol show. Tuesday and Thursday you have no class. Have a great summer!

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9th grade: Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday you will watch sections of the History Channel show America: The Story of US about World War II and the world after the war.

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On a personal note, I have truly enjoyed being your teacher for the past two years, and am incredibly sad to be leaving Discovery School this summer. Here are a few of my favorite moments from the past two years:

(Last years') 8th Grade Play

Thanks again for the birthday cake, 8B!

Wasn't cricket fun, 9th graders?

Model UN Unite! :)

Looking spiffy at the Chronicles of Discovery event, 6th graders!

Another shot of last years' 8th graders on UN Day!

 I hope you all will keep in touch and let me know how everything is going! I will miss you all!

 KF

A Week of Exams! Week of May 29-June 1

Well hello again everyone!

Thank you 7th Graders for the lovely Teacher Appreciation gift!

I hope you have all enjoyed your long Memorial Day Weekend. (And I hope you spent at least some of your time studying!)

The school year is quickly winding down but there is still A LOT to do at Discovery School in the next two weeks!

YEARBOOK: We are hard at work on the Discovery School Yearbook! Details and pricing to come!

GENERAL ASSEMBLY: Thank you to all who attended the General Assembly meeting last week! Your time and votes are truly appreciated!

DPTO GARAGE SALE: Come one come all to the DPTO Garage Sale this Saturday, June 2, starting at 9:00 AM! If you would like a table to sell items please contact Maikel Ryan or Carolina Villareal.

CHOIR FUNDRAISING END-OF-THE-YEAR CARNIVAL: The Choir Parents are organizing an end-of-the-year Carnival and Bingo for Saturday, June 9, from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. at the school There will be games, food, and of course the exciting Bingo. Please come and celebrate the end of the school year with our family and friends while supporting the Choir in their last effort to raise fund for their upcoming San Francisco trip in July.

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT WEDNESDAY: This Wednesday will be a half-day, AM schedule, due to Discovery teacher professional development. Please plan to have your child picked up by 11:45 AM.

SUMMER WRITING COURSE!

This class is for anyone who wants to work on their writing skills over the summer! Letters were sent home to some students last week, but all middle school students are invited to attend. Please let me know if you have any questions, or if you want your student to join the class! It is going to be FUN! :)

Here's the plan for my classes this week:
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6th grade: Remember we had to change the schedule last week due to bootcamp. And, go figure, I'm going to have to tweak it again this week, because I totally forgot about the half day this Wednesday! Oops! So, in class on Tuesday we will finish the book by reading chapters 24-26 and you will have page 20 (and any other part of the packet you have not completed) as homework that night (don't panic--it's 2 questions!) THE PACKET IS STILL DUE ON WEDNESDAY, MAY 30! There are no exceptions! I will come to your first period class to collect the packets or you may turn them in to me at any time before you leave school on Wednesday. If you plan to be sick that day, please send it to school so I can get it checked and have your final grade entered before June 1.
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7th grade: Tuesday and Wednesday you will have time in the computer lab to practice for your Whole World Map Quiz, which will be in class on Thursday and Friday. Remember, you will start the quiz in class on Thursday, and Thursday night I will check the countries you ID'd. Then on Friday you will have the opportunity to identify any countries you left blank on Thursday. I will add together your two scores and give you a score out of 100%. That will be divided by two and you will receive two grades out of 50 in the gradebook. (So, for example, if you score 83% on the test, I will divide that by two and you will have 41.5/50 on both quiz scores in the gradebook.) Be sure to use the maps packet I provided you last week, this information, and the country games to study study study!
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8th grade and 9th grade: I hope you studied hard over the weekend, because your World History final exam is Tuesday, May 29 from 10:30-12:30. I will be wandering in and out of the rooms if you have questions during the test, but if you have any lingering content questions, I'd ask them now...
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Have a wonderful rest of your weekend and enjoy the short 4-day week ahead!
KF

6th Grade: "Little House on the Prairie" Schedule Change

Hey 6th graders:

As I'm sure you're aware, the schedule I gave you for the reading/activities of Little House on the Prairie has now become a little outdated due to some last-minute changes in the school schedule.

Therefore, please take note of the following changes:

Wednesday, May 23
In class: Read Chapters 22-23
Homework: Chapter 22-23 Reading Questions

Thursday, May 24
In class: Activity pages 18-19
Homework: Finish activity if don't finish in class

Friday, May 25
No class! Bootcamp! Have fun! (Students not attending bootcamp will watch an episode of the Little House on the Prairie TV show!)

Monday, May 28
No class! Memorial Day! (Study study study for your Himno Nacional exam!)

Tuesday, May 29
In class: Read Chapters 24-25
Homework: Chapter 24-25 Reading Questions

Wednesday, May 30
In class: Read Chapter 26, Chapter 26 Reading Questions, Activity page 20

PACKET (with chapter 22-26 reading questions) IS BE DUE BY THE END OF THE SCHOOL DAY! PACKETS NOT TURNED IN ON MAY 30 WILL BE GIVEN A GRADE OF ZERO!

Good luck to all 6th grade students on their Himno Nacional exam on Thursday, May 31! :)

KF

7th Grade: Countries of the World

Hey 7th Grade:

Just FYI, here are the numbers of countries you will need to be able to identify in each area of the world:


North America (including Central America but not the Caribbean): 10
Caribbean (islands only: not including Central America): 13
South America (not including Central America or the Caribbean): 13
Europe (not including Russia or Turkey): 47
Asia (including Russia, Turkey, all of the Middle East and Southeast Asia): 45
Africa (don't forget the islands!): 51
Australia and Oceania (hint: use the map quiz to help you study!!!):14

Total of countries = 193! (Remember that you will not be quizzed on any countries that are "owned" by other countries (ie: Guam, the Virgin Islands, etc)

Happy Studying! :)

KF

Believe it or Not...There's only Three Weeks Left • Week of May 21-25

Hello again:

I hope you are all having a pleasant weekend, recharging from the past week and gearing up for the next. We had a tragedy in the Discovery School family last week, but I have been very proud of how our students have pulled together during this hard time. My thoughts continue to go out to the families and friends affected.

GENERAL ASSEMBLY: Thank you to all parents who attended the General Assembly last Thursday. However, a quorum (33% of parents) was not reached at this meeting, so a second summons has been sent out for a second meeting on Thursday, May 24. PLEASE make room in your schedule for this important meeting where next years' budget and calendar will be voted on and the next two years' board members will be elected.

ENROLLMENT DRIVE BACK BY POPULAR DEMAND!  The Enrollment Drive  has begun again! Information was emailed to all parents last Friday and more will be explained at the General Assembly on May 17. This enrollment drive applies to teachers as well as parents—please see Paola for a copy of the guidelines if you are interested.

MAP TESTING: Map testing will wrap up this week. Here's the middle school schedule:

Tuesday, May 22
8:30-9:45 6th grade (Language Usage)
10:05-11:20 7th grade (Language Usage)
11:40-12:55 8th A (Language Usage) **Please bring a big snack on this day as you will not eat lunch until after ALL students are finished with the test. You WILL get lunch, just later than normal.**
1:15-2:30 8th B (Language Usage)

Wednesday, May 23
8:30-9:45 9th Grade (Language Usage)

Make-up tests have been scheduled in the afternoon of May 23 and all day May 24-25. Please be ready to be pulled from class to complete any tests you may have missed over the past three weeks.

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Here's the schedule in my room this week--it's REVIEW TIME!

6th grade: You will continue to follow the schedule for your Little House on the Prairie reading. Remember that the deadlines will still be applicable if you miss class! Your African Doctors book is due Monday, May 21. That day we will also read chapters 18-20 in class. Tuesday you will have a reading assignment and will look at the treaty the US Government made with the Osage Indians just a few years before the Ingalls family moved to Kansas. Wednesday you will read and complete a Venn Diagram about the Osage. Thursday you will have a reading assignment, and Friday most of you will be absent enjoying bootcamp!
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7th grade: You will be working with enlargement techniques in order to better understand how that big, cool, painted map on my wall was made. Each day in class you will have a one-page worksheet to complete, and then will have time to work in your maps packets to study for your Whole World Map Quiz, which will be held next week, May 31-June 1. You will have no class on Thursday due to a PE Field Trip, and Friday most of you will be absent enjoying bootcamp!
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8th grade: Remember that your World History I Semester Exam will be Tuesday, May 29, from 10:30-12:30. This next week you will spend each class reviewing for this exam. I will have a study guide for you on Monday and you will have class time to organize your notes and complete the study guide. Later in the week we may have some review activities if you have completed your study guides. Friday most of you will be absent enjoying bootcamp!
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9th grade: Remember that your World History II Semester Exam will be Tuesday, May 29, from 10:30-12:30. This next week you will spend each class reviewing for this exam. I will have a study guide for you on Monday and you will have class time to organize your notes and complete the study guide. Later in the week we may have some review activities if you have completed your study guides.You will only have about 25 minutes of class on Tuesday due to MAP testing.
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The next three weeks will go very quickly, especially if you stay focused and sprint to the finish!
KF