andover entral middle school jag wire newsletter march ... · —rube goldberg machines recently,...

Andover Central

Middle School

Jag-Wire Newsletter

March 2016

have cut in many

operational areas

over the course of

the last 5 years.

During this time,

people and pro-

grams have been

left mostly un-

touched. With

little left to cut, programs and

people would again be on the

discussion table which is simply

bad for kids.

Regardless of what happens in

Topeka, our students will contin-

ue to work hard and our teachers

will be working tirelessly along-

side them to provide a quality

educational experience for our

students. There are great things

happening in our building and we

are proud of what we have ac-

complished this year.

As the we head into the final

chapter of the 2015-2016 school

year, I wanted to thank you par-

ents, for sharing your most

prized possession with us and

for your continued support of

ACMS. ACMS is a special place

and you play a big role in our

success. Thanks for all you do to

make our school a great place

for students and staff and have a

great Spring Break!

It is hard to believe that the third

quarter is already near its end

and spring break is nearly upon

us. The third quarter has been

filled with outstanding accom-

plishments by both our students

and staff. From exceptional art

exhibits and spelling bee cham-

pions to athletic championships

and teachers being recognized

at the state level for their

achievements, the third quarter

has been one to remember.

I am extremely proud of the ac-

complishments of our students

and staff for helping to make this

such a great year.

As we head into the 4th quarter,

students will again be busy with

numerous activities, state as-

sessments, and unique opportu-

nities to participate in grade level

specific experiences that are

once a year events. The fourth

quarter should bring more oppor-

tunities for creating memories

our students will never forget.

Enrollment for our 6th and 7th

graders will begin on March 7th.

Students will be selecting and

ranking their elective choices for

the next school year. We do

have four new Project Lead the

Way courses that students may

find intriguing for next year!

Sure to be a big topic of discus-

sion over the course of the next

few months is the states financial

discussions regarding education.

A block funding grant was estab-

lished last year guaranteeing

schools would have the same

operating budgets for next

school year as they do for this

school year. That plan works

great if your enrollment stays the

same, but for schools whose

population goes up, they are un-

able to hire additional staff to off-

set the growth. For those who

lose students, staff may be

transferred or moved to offset

growth in other schools. The bot-

tom line is that the states ex-

pected tax generated revenue is

80 million dollars short of esti-

mated predictions. What this

means is that education funding

will again be in the cross hairs of

legislators this spring.

What does this mean for stu-

dents? Since 2009, the ACMS

building budget has been cut by

more than $50,000, class sizes

are much higher than what we

know is ideal for student learning

and educational opportunities

that once existed for students

are now unobtainable due to

cost. The district and building

From the Principal’s Desk

Tim Hayden,

Principal

2

March Calendar of Events

Jag-Wire Newsletter Andover Central Middle School March Newsletter

1 ASL Club Room 403 3:10-4:10PM State Testing-MDPT-DeGarmo, Hopper, Leedom & Tyner Wrestling @ Maize South/Derby Maize South 4:30PM 2 State Testing-MDPT-Stenholm, Kennedy, & Hopper 3 Spring Individual Pictures Gym All Day State Testing-MDPT-Stenholm, Kennedy, Hopper 5 Wrestling Pioneer League Tournament @ Valley Center Valley Center 9:00AM 7 PAWS Meeting FACS Room 2:00PM 7 Driver’s Ed Meeting for interested 8th graders Commons 11:00AM 7-11 Counselor Meeting with 6th & 7th Graders in SS Classes SS Class All Day 8 Math Relays Pioneer League @ ACMS ACMS 3:30PM 9 GENIUS FACS Room 3:00PM 8th Grade Opt Out Computer Applications Quiz ACHS Room 412 6:00PM 10 8th Grade Opt Out Computer Applications Quiz AHS Room 504 6:00PM 1 End of 3rd Quarter 11 No School—Teacher In-Service 13 Daylight-Saving Time Begins 14-18 No School—Spring Break 21 Skating Unit in PE Starts 6th & 7th Grade Pre-Enrollment forms due to the Counselor State Testing-Social Studies-Charbonneau, Holmgren, McDonald, & Smith 22 ASL Club Room 403 3:10-4:10 State Testing-Social Studies-Charbonneau, Holmgren, McDonald, & Smith 23 State Testing-Science-Eggleston, Nickelson, & Lock 24 State Testing-Science-Eggleston, Nickelson, & Lock 25 4.0 Student Recognition Commons 8:00AM 28 State Testing-ELA-Bookout, Ehrstein, Leedom, Stenholm, & Tyner 29 State Testing-ELA-Bookout, Ehrstein, Leedom, Stenholm, & Tyner Boys Tennis vs Maize ACHS Courts 3:30PM 29 State Testing-ELA-Bookout, Ehrstein, Leedom, Stenholm, & Tyner 31 Spring Sports Pictures State Testing-ELA-Bookout, Ehrstein, Leedom, Stenholm, & Tyner TRACK—If you want test messages for communication-Text 81010 and enter acmsstra To order T-shirts go to Http://eflyerorder.com/acmstracknfield Closes March 9

Congratulations Kate Paulsen!!

Kate was the ACMS winner and then had to take an online qualifying test.

She has now qualified to compete in the state level competition of the

National Geographic Bee. The Kansas National Geographic Bee will be held

on Friday, April 1 in Abilene, KS. The winner of the state competition will

advance to the national competition, which will be held May 22-25 at the

National Geographic Society headquarters in Washington, D.C. Way to go

Kate and good luck!!

For more information, go to the following website - http://

education.nationalgeographic.org/state-bees/

3


7th Grade Girls Basketball 8th Grade Girls Basketball

7th Grade Boys Basketball 8th Grade Boys Basketball

7th Grade Cheerleaders 8th Grade Cheerleaders

7th and 8th Grade

Wrestlers

4


Strawberry DNA

In Mrs. Eggleston’s Science

Explorations class, students

have been learning about

how genetic engineering is

used in the real world to solve

problems. Through research

and class discussion,

students have gained a

deeper understanding about

genetically modified foods and animals, as well as cloning.

Students learned that DNA extraction is the first step of genetic

engineering. In lab, students learned the procedures from

extracting DNA from strawberries. Strawberries have very large

genomes, which makes them an exceptional fruit for beginning

DNA extraction labs. Using that experience, students are now

designing their own DNA extraction labs. Most students have

chosen to test different fruits or vegetables using the same

procedures as the strawberry.

Jenga—Ratio and Proportion

During the 7th grade unit of

"ratio and proportion," Mrs.

Gunzelman's 3rd and 7th

hour students investigated

the ratio between a "giant

Jenga" game piece and a

regular sized piece. While

reviewing for the test,

students would answer a

question and then get the

chance to pull a game piece

from the giant Jenga game.

5


Author Visit—Stephen Johnson

ACMS was very excited to have Stephen T. Johnson an

author, artist and photographer from Lawrence,

Kansas visit on Thursday, February 4th, He spoke to

all of the 7th and 8th grade art and photography students about his experience using photography and art when

writing and illustrating books such as "Alphabet City", "My Little Blue Robot" and "Hoops". Mr. Johnson also talked about the sculptures, murals and public artworks he has been part of creating. Students were able to ask Mr. Johnson questions on topics such as

his career, influences and his source of ideas. It was a great opportunity for students to learn from a working artist, writer and photographer.

ACMS Students Skype with Tui Sutherland

On Tuesday, January 26th, ACMS students

Skyped with Tui Sutherland author of the

Wings of Fire series. The students found out

that Sutherland also has many pen names

including Erin Hunter author for the Warriors

and Seeker series. The best news was finding

out that the Wings of Fire series will have a

book 9 and 10!

Careers Class

In Careers classes,

students moved into their

new community and

started their new jobs.

They will be creating a

budget based on their

monthly incomes.

6


7th Grade ELP—Rube Goldberg Machines

Recently, Mrs.

Holmgren’s 7th grade ELP class did “Rube

Goldberg Machines” as a big project. The kids

loved it!

Jack Gentry and Liam Hayes Perform in the 2016 KMEA All-State Middle Level

On Friday, February 26, 2016, ACMS 7th graders Jack

Gentry and Liam Hayes, performed with the All-State Middle Level Honor Choir in the Century II Concert Hall at the Kansas Music Educators Association convention. The All-State Middle Level honor choir is an audition only ensemble composed of the best 7

th-9

th grade singers in the

state. There were over 800 auditions sent in from Kansas 1A-6A schools for this year’s 2016 All-State middle level KMEA honor choir. Of those 800+ auditions, only 150 are selected to sing in the middle level honor choir. These auditions are highly competitive and each school only sends in auditions of their best singers. Liam Hayes and Jack Gentry of ACMS were 2 of the 38

tenors from across the state selected to be in this choir. As a result, they got to spend all day Friday working with renowned conductor Jeremy Manternach from the University of Iowa in the Century II Concert Hall. Fridays all day event, ended with a concert in the evening featuring high school repertoire like “How Can I Keep From Singing” by Ellingboe, “I Loved All Lovely Things” by Ramsey, and “Tres Cantos Nativos” by Liete. This is a huge honor for our school and these boys. Liam and Jack are the first students ever from ACMS to be selected to sing at KMEA in this schools history. Congratulations Liam & Jack!

Jack and Liam before the concert

7


Girls and Boys Basketball Teams Help Support Numana

Every year the ACMS Lady

Jags participate in a service

activity. This year the Lady

Jags choose to help Numana,

a non-profit charity formed to

help with International hunger

relief. Also the Lady Jags sold

baked goodies to sell at two of

their home basketball games

and sponsored a Free Throw

Shooting Challenge. The team

worked hard to raise $400, which they proudly

gave to Numana.

The Lady Jags, along with the boys basketball

team took a day off practice to visit the Nu-

mana facility in El Dorado. In one hour’s time,

they were able to help package 20,000 meals

that will be sent to those in need in Haiti. The

cost for each meal is only 30 cents and con-

sists of rice, soy protein, freeze-dried pinto

beans, and a blend of vitamins and minerals. Wal-Mart provided the

funding for the 20,000 meals packaged. ACMS was excited to get the

opportunity to work together off the court for such a wonderful cause.

Ship Skype

6th grade students Skyped with the Boston Tea Party Ships and

Museum to learn about an 18th century ship. The novel that the

students are reading in class, The True Confessions of Charlotte

Doyle by Avi is set on a ship. This Skype was scheduled in

hopes that the setting of the novel could be visualized and come

to life. Students were given a virtual tour of all decks of the ship

and learned about the captain’s quarters, the food served on a

ship, and equipment needed while sailing.

8


Mrs. Holmgren’s 2nd Hour 7th Grade Class

Mrs. Holmgren’s second hour class

created a real-life water cycle

demonstration using hot and cold

water. This created condensation

and “raining”.

Wingnuts Honor Teacher of the Month Mrs. Ehrstein

On Friday, February 26, Cindy Ehrstein was recognized

by the Wichita Wingnuts as part of their teacher of the

month program. In conjunction with Security Benefits

and The National Teachers Hall of Fame, Cindy was

nominated by a former student, Chase Johnson, for the

Wingnuts February teacher of the month. In addition,

Chase also participated in nominating Cindy for the

National Teachers Hall of Fame. As teachers, you

never truly know the impact you might have on a

student. It might be years later when you get that

special thank you, a Christmas card, or a former

student nominating you for an award like this.

Congratulations Cindy on your Teacher of the Month

and nomination for the National Teachers Hall of Fame!

Band/Jazz Band Concert

The 6th, 7th, and 8th grade band and 7th & 8th grade

Jazz band had a wonderful spring concert. Each grade

preformed three pieces at ACHS. Congratulations for a

job well done!

9


February Cat Class Award Winners!

Cat Class Awards are given by department monthly, recognizing students who continuously strive

to be their best, show continued growth academically as well as socially, and are positive

contributors to Andover Central Middle School. Cat Class recipients are nominated by teaching

staff, with recipients receiving a certificate and Atomic Fire Ball for their accomplishments! February

recipients include Tim McLemore, Gavin Reeves, Maddi Terrell, Kamden Wilson, Jaden Lyons,

Trey DeGarmo, Ellie Stearns, Brittany Harshaw, Jill Duncan, Mia Kitsleman, Kaleb Holder, Joe

Little, Jenna Lambertz, Hillary Tallman, Faith Kotkin, Brandon Bumgarner, Abby Rounbehler, Rylea

Birch, Lindsey Kane, Jenny Fast, Joe Little, Gracie Hett, PJ Damico

Jaguar Pride Award Winners!

In an effort to recognize students for exhibiting positive character and citizenship on a daily basis,

the Andover Central Middle School leadership team is proud to recognize spring recipients of the

Jaguar Pride awards. The Jaguar Pride awards, driven by the Character Counts Initiative,

recognizes students who consistently demonstrate the six pillars of positive character

including trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring and citizenship. Students must

also be on a blue or green conduct card, have passing grades and maintain good

attendance. Recipients are nominated for the award by ACMS teaching staff, with winners

receiving a certificate of recognition, Principal’s Award Pin, and Jag-Pride treat.

Jag Pride winners for February include: Leo Wurth, Ozan Uner, Elizabeth Engle, Abby Hoglen,

Ali Hickerson, Joe Little, Amit Bhosale, Maya Sanchez, Alexis Rankin, Kate Cailteux, Raddek

Thomas & Gage Terrell.

10


ACMS CLIMATE SURVRY RESULTS Students, staff and parents participated in taking our annual climate survey early in the third quarter.

With a new format and revised questions, the feedback received from our stakeholders, including helpful

comments and suggestions for improvement are appreciated by the leadership at Andover Central Middle

School. While we are doing many positive things here at ACMS, there is always room for improvement

and we utilize our data to not only celebrate the things we are doing well, but to learn and grow in areas

in which we can improve. We certainly appreciate you taking the time to participate in our climate survey

project and encourage you to review our overall results by visiting our ACMS webpage and clicking cli-

mate survey results under resources or by visiting the following link at Climate Survey Results Thank you

again for your participation in the ACMS climate survey and please don’t hesitate to contact building ad-

ministration for additional details or inquires.

http://acms.usd385.org/77874_2

andover entral middle school jag wire newsletter march ... · —rube goldberg machines recently,...

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