From the Principal 

this issue From the Principal & Events  P.1 

 Social Studies Department  P.2 

Art & Music/Chess Club/Track & Field  P.3 

PBS & Sweetheart Dance  P.4 

 Spring Musical & Spotlight Reader P.5 

Counselor’s Corner  P.6 

Event  Dates  

February   

2     7th Grade Parent and Student   Scheduling Meeting 6:00pm  

3      PBS Jersey Day  

16  All‐School Dance 7:00‐9:00pm  

17  No School: President’s Day  

24     IGRs Mailed Home  

24       PBS Cabin Fever Day  

24  9th Grade Sweetheart Dance    7:00‐9:00pm  

March  

2  Spring Parent/Teacher Conferences   4:30‐8:30pm       

3  No School  

3    Spring Musical:    Singing in the Rain  Jr. 7:00pm  

4    Spring Musical:    Singing in the Rain  Jr. 7:00pm     

     

         

I S S U E

F e b r u a r y 2 0 1 7

4 AAJHSAltoona Area Junior High School

Parents/Guardians:  It is time for a mid‐year grade assessment.  Winter break and the first semester have just ended.  This is a good time to look back on the first half of the school year to see what worked and what did not.  Homework is a key area to assess.  Here are some key points to check:  

Homework habits.  Did he spend the first semester scrambling to get his assignments finished each night?  Help your child turn over a new leaf this semester.  Set aside a specific time for studying each night and remind him to stay with it. 

Setting goals.  Discuss what your child would still like to accomplish before the school year is over.  Does she want to bring her science grade up to a B?  Help her make a plan to reach her goal. 

Weekends.  Does he stay up late every Friday and Saturday and then snooze away much of the next day?  Does that make waking up for school a major struggle on Monday morning?  Have your child stick to a more reasonable bedtime on weekends.  It will help him start the school week more alert and ready to learn. 

Test Prep.  Cramming for exams is a bad idea.  If this is your child’s preferred way to study, something needs to change.  This semester, have her study material some each night in the week leading up to a test.  She will likely see a payoff in her grades! 

 Additionally, Parent‐Teacher Conferences are coming please put them on your calendar.  This too is a good way to see how your son/daughter is doing in all classes by talking to teachers face‐to‐face.  We hope to see you on Thursday, March 2, 2017 from 4:30 – 8:30 PM.  As al‐ways, working together we can make junior high a great experience for your child!  Sincerely,  Lori H. Mangan Principal 

Recently, the social studies teachers at the Junior High reviewed close reading and Text dependent analysis ques‐tions in Social Studies.  Teachers have been asked to include close reading activities and text dependent analysis questions in their lessons.  It is unique to have these in social studies as students are asked to manipulate many different kinds of texts. Here is a little background on what close reading is:  Close reading includes:  Using short passages and excerpts  Diving right into the text with limited pre‐reading activities  Focusing on the text itself  Rereading deliberately  Reading with a pencil  Noticing things that are confusing  Discussing the text with others or Think‐Write‐Pair‐Share, Talk with Your Neighbor, etc.  Responding to Text Dependent Questions  

As a part of the close reading routine, students are then asked to take the information from the source and answer a text dependent question.  It is important to note that text dependent analysis questions need to have the sup‐port of the information in the article.  Students need to support whatever stance they take on the information and support it with evidence. After an initial reading, students are encouraged to go back to the text to find details in the text to support their answers. Reread the text several times over several days.  First Read—focus on most important elements of a text  Second Read—focus on how the text works  Third Read—focus on what the text means to the reader and how it connects to other experiences  

Here are some Text Dependent Question Tips for Students in Social Studies  Use textual evidence to support your ideas.  Use words and phrases from the text to prove your answer.  Include specific evidence from the text to support your ideas.  Include words/phrases from the text to support your opinions.  Use specific words and details from the text to support your ideas.  Inferences should be supported by text.  What in the text helped you to know?  What words/phrases did the author use that led you to your answer?  

Ask your students about the strategies they are using in social studies!  Ask what artifacts they are investigating!  

Hopefully this will engage the students into a deeper thought process and get them to appreciate the realm of so‐

cial studies even more. 

Art & Music @ The Library Come enjoy the sound of the AAJHS String Quartet and the sights of artwork created by AAJHS students.

Stop by the library from 4:30 – 6:00 on March 2nd during parent / teacher

conferences!

There will be a Parent meeting for all boys and girls interested in participating in 7th & 8th Grade Track & Field this spring on Monday, February 13th in the AAJHS Auditorium at 6:00 pm.  All parents should 

please attend if their child is planning on               participating in track & field this spring.  Information      concerning the upcoming season will be presented 

at the meeting.  

Congratulations to the winners of the Chess Club Winter Tournament: 1st place: Milo Wilkins (7th Grade) 2nd place: Tyler Long (9th Grade) 3rd place: Joey Hallinan (7th Grade) 4th place: Baylon Casteel (8th Grade) 5th place: Simon Chen (7th Grade) Everyone who participated did a great job. Remember, Chess Club meets every Monday from 3-3:45 in room 301. The club is open to all students in grades 7-9. For more information about the club, please contact Mr. Rogers at wrogers@altoonasd.com.

In the spirit of the holidays, we asked students to be especially aware of their efforts to show their ROAR this December. We asked teachers to be on the lookout for students who are showing respect, taking ownership for their actions, making smart choices, and taking responsibility at their school. As a reward, the PBS committee teamed up with the Student Council to wrap up the calendar year with a whole week of festivities in December. Students earned Lion Loot by participating in the following theme days (Dec. 19th – 22nd): Mad Plaid Monday, Red and Green Tuesday, Winter White Wednesday, and Tacky Holiday Sweater Thursday. On Thursday the 22nd, we also picked six winners for our December drawing and sent each of them home with a new Kindle Fire. In January, our theme day was “Spaced Out” to celebrate the new Stars Wars movie. Students had the opportunity to dress in favorite Star Wars, alien, outer space, astronaut, or galaxy gear, all while earning lion loot for participating! The prize for our monthly drawing was three $25.00 Tilt gift certificates for the mall: one for each grade level. On February 3rd, students can “show their love” for their favorite sports team by participating in Ultimate Fan Day. If they wear a tee shirt, hoodie, or jersey of their favorite sports team, they will earn Lion Loot from their teachers. Keep showing your ROAR AAJHS!!!

The  Lion  Pledge   

I have the ROAR of a  

Mountain Lion.  

  

To RESPECT myself , others, 

and the communities to which  

I belong.   

 

To take OWNERSHIP in being 

prepared, being organized, and 

putting forth 100% effort in all 

that I do. 

 

To take ACTIONS to maintain a 

clean work environment, and 

an “I will achieve” attitude.   

 

To hold my RELATIONSHIPS 

with peers, teachers, and  

parents as valuable in order for 

me to  

succeed in school and life. 

The ninth grade class committee will be hosting the 

Sweetheart Dance on February 24 from 7:00 to  

9:00 PM.   

The dance is open to the ninth graders who are not 

on discipline probation. The $5.00 cost will cover 

admission to the dance as well as soda and snacks.   

Tickets will be on sale the week of the dance.      

Students should contact Mrs. McAleer or Mrs.  

Gardner with questions.  

Come Sing in the Rain!

It’s time to tap your toes and sing along with the AAJHS Drama Club! This year’s spring musical is Singin’ in the Rain, Jr. The "Greatest Movie Musical of All Time" has been faithfully and lovingly adapted by Broadway legends Betty Comden and Adolph Green. Hilarious situations, snappy dialogue and a hit-parade score of Hollywood standards make Singin' in the Rain, Jr. a guaranteed good time! In silent movies, Don Lockwood and Lina Lamont are a hot item, but behind the scenes, things aren't always as they appear on the big screen! Meanwhile, Lina's squeaky voice might be the end of her career in "talking pictures" without the help of talented young actress, Kathy Selden, to do the talking and singing for her. Come be a part of the fun. Performances will be held on Friday, March 3rd and Saturday, March 4th at 7:00pm with a special Senior Citizen Preview Night on Wednesday, March 1st at 6:00pm. Tickets can be purchased ahead of time at Thompson’s Pharmacy on Chestnut Avenue starting on February 17th or at the door on performance nights. We look forward to making a splash with you!

Our February Spotlight Reader is 7th grader Travis Carr‐Keefe.  Travis’s favorite type of book is suspense.  He likes suspense because it keeps him interested and focused while he’s reading.  If Travis becomes an   author, he will write these types of stories.    Other than reading, Travis enjoys drawing, playing sports, and doing    different things with his family.  One piece of advice Travis would give  struggling readers is that you shouldn’t skip chapters or pages.  Skipping around in a book will cause confusion and you really won’t be able to comprehend what you’ve read.  Good advice, Travis!    Travis often checks out adventure / fantasy titles.  His favorite book is Percy Jackson and the Sea of Monsters.  Stop by the library and check out the Percy Jackson series!  If you love mythology and adventure, this     series is for you!  

 

Social Media and Your Student So often, the school receives phone calls, reports, or visits from students, parents, or police officers because of something that was posted on the internet. Whether it is a picture, message, or post; if the intent is to harm, harass, threaten, embarrass, or target another person, it is wrong and most likely will be reported. Parents, because we see concerns with social media on almost a daily basis, we ask you to please monitor your stu-dent’s Facebook page or other social media. In our experience, students sometimes have more than one Facebook page where they keep one to show parents and create another for friends and other activity. Sometimes that activity consists of inappropriate posts and messages to others that they do not like; students may make inappropriate com-ments that they would not normally say face-to-face. Often, these interactions lead to problems during the school day. These actions may violate school codes or even break anti-discrimination or sexual harassment laws, so serious legal trouble may be given as a consequence. If your student is being harassed and threatened, the following tips can help your child handle the situation.

Tell Someone. Encourage your child that if they are having problems, the first thing to do is tell an adult that they trust. That adult can be you, a teacher, a principal, a counselor, etc. If they do not tell someone, the help they need will not happen.

Walk Away. Just like in the real world, walking away from that person in the cyber world works, as well. If

something typed is upsetting, tell your child to step away from the computer or turn off the phone for awhile. Don't respond (or forward the message to someone else).

Resist the urge to retaliate or respond. Responding when we're upset can make things worse. Again, the

ability to block a person on Facebook is at the click of a mouse. Although it's not a good idea to respond, it is a good idea to save evidence of the conflict if you can. It can help you prove your case, if needed.

Report the inappropriate comments to your service provider. If users report abuse, the site administrator

may block the person from using the site in future. Block the Person. The ability to block a person on Facebook is just a click of a mouse. Be safe online. Don’t allow your student to post anything online that is revealing or exposes personal infor-

mation about you or your child. This includes photos and videos, as well as text. In addition, remind your student to never share their password with anyone other than you. Encourage your child to change their passwords often.

The above information was taken from http://kidshealth.org/teen/