December NEWS SHMS PANTHER PRESS • 2015 • VOLUME 1, ISSUE 2
The Synergy Team Day
By: Logan Davoli
On November 24th, team Synergy held a team day in which each homeroom competed for the title of The Champion Home room, (previously held by Mrs. Shepherd’s homeroom) in some Minute to Win It challenges. Along with these activities, the homerooms also did a reflection on the first quarter, and also set goals for the second quarter.
MORNING REFLECTIONS
In the morning, all of team Synergy did a reflection of quarter one. They began by looking at their grades, and asked themselves what their grades revealed about themselves. Then they did the same with comments from teachers, how they contributed to the school community, opportunities they might have missed to be a leader, how the students stayed healthy and balanced, and what students thought were their shining moments and stumbling blocks. They then used this information to set three goals. One goal was private and would help students academically, one goal was public and would help the community at SHMS. The last goal was a personal health goal that would help you stay sharp and healthy. After setting goals, the students held an assembly in which they learned about the Seven Habits of Success.
Using videos made by students (on team Synergy,) all of the team members completed a chart where they figured out what each habit meant to them. These habits are (in order): be proactive, begin with the end in mind, put first things first, think win-win, seek first to understand then to be understood, synergize, and finally sharpen the saw. They used what they learned about the habits to find out which habit will help them the most to complete each individual goal, the steps they could take, and how their homeroom could help them. Team Synergy worked on these goals and habits until 8th period. That was when Minute to Win It began.
AFTERNOON MINUTE TO WIN IT!
That afternoon, all of team Synergy gathered in the aud to compete in Minute to Win It challenges. For each student that completed the challenge within the one minute time frame, one point was awarded to the home room of the student. The challenges were Pink elephant, Defying gravity, Stack attack, Movin' up, Caddy stack, KaBROOM!, Rapid fire, and Suck it up.
At first, Mr. Traverse’s homeroom was in the lead, but Mrs. Ceccato and Mrs. Shepherd made a comeback and ultimately tied with Mr. Traverse. Unfortunately Mr.Ehman’s homeroom fell one point shy of joining the three-way tie. They did bring a good game, especially Josh McGreevy, who set a new record for longest time to keep all three balloons in the air in the challenge Defying Gravity.
Tyler Maloney in Mrs.Ceccato’s homeroom was the first and only student to complete the Caddy Stack challenge in team Synergy history. This is a game where contestants win by stacking three golf balls, one on top of the other, using the little dimples to do so. It then must remain free-standing for three seconds. This all must be done in 60-seconds!
In the end the scores were:
Ehman: 6
Traverse: 7
Ceccato: 7
Shepherd: 7
Overall, a close, fun game.
This team day was a good way to bring the entire team together, reflect and make goals for the upcoming quarter, as well as have fun. Minute to Win It didn't originate on Synergy, it started on the eighth grade team Discover. Synergy started to do Minute to Win it when Mr. Shepherd told his wife, Mrs.Shepherd. And so from Discover to Synergy, Minute to Win It is an exciting way to bring a team together.
Will your team be next to play minute-to-win-it? Or will your team come up with an idea to top that?
If you would like your Team Day or Unity Day activities in the news then contact me at...
davolil@students.sweethomeschools.org
Board Honors Writers
Tuesday, December 15, The Sweet Home Board of Education recognized thirteen talented Middle School writers who have published impressive work this season.
Sixth Grade bloggers were honored at the event for developing their voices outside of their classroom walls while reaching a real-world audience through blog posts. Adam and Julianna wrote posts reviewing and promoting book series; Angela wrote about dancing in a local music video, shared the new video, and explained the meaning of the song; and Gowtham share a poem that he wrote, explaining how an Emily Dickinson poem inspired it. Sixth graders have been busy studying the craft of memoir as they publish their own nonfiction narratives about defining moments in their lives.
The Seventh Grade bunch represented those students whose stories will be published in the "You Don't Even Know Us" Anthology, a collection of realistic-fiction stories that reflect the challenges and lessons of life. Their work was selected by peers during the Third Annual Shortie Awards and will be available for checkout in the Sweet Home Middle School library.
Eighth Grade writers crafted spinoffs inspired by the young adult classic, The Outsiders. Their writing showcased skillful reading as they mimicked S.E. Hinton's style and reimagined her memorable cast of characters. The eighth grade students applied close-reading strategies, comparative viewings of film, and thought-provoking talk to unpack Hinton's famous book.
Are iPads Good or Bad?
By: Samson Kassey
At Sweet Home Middle school we use iPads to help us learn, to make projects, and even do work on. But sometimes people get in trouble because of their iPads. Because of that there are consequences in place. But the big question here is, Should we use iPads or not? Here are some of the pros and the cons of iPad usage.
One of the great things about having an iPad is all of our work is on our iPad so we don't have an excuse of not doing our work. This means that more students will try to do better in school because most of their work is on their iPad and if you don't turn that in you will have a bad grade.
Another pro of having the iPad is all of our work is digital. This means that we don't have to get another copy of the work that we did in class, and we don't need a writing utensil because we're doing it on our iPads. This also cuts the cost of the school supplies because you don't have to print a lot of papers which helps the school’s budget.
One more pro of having an iPad is you can do projects way easier. This means that we don't always have to write a whole essay just giving boring text examples. We can use videos. We can use PowerPoint and presentation apps such as Prezi, which makes whole process faster and you can get more information faster. And it keeps the class focused instead of reading a bland boring old paper.
On the other had, there are some negatives that come along with the ipads. One of the cons for having iPads is that many people get in trouble for playing games in class. The school does allow us to download games, but we only get to play them at home or when we get permission from a teacher. Most students do this, but some choose to play in class and get in trouble.
Another con of having an iPad is that most of our work needs Wifi to function. This means many students don't have wifi to do their work (since our connection is usually bad) and they will get in trouble which is not fair.
The last con is that you don't think, you just look it up on your iPad. This means we don't learn anything if we're doing our homework and we get nothing from it. Also if you have a project you can copy and paste work without putting in the effort and time.
I interviewed three 7th graders who gave their opinions about iPads
Me: Do you like the iPads?
Adam: No, I don't like them. They make a lot of problems.
Me: Dominic do you like iPads?
Dominic: No, they make a lot of problems.
Me: Tyler what do you think about the iPads?
Tyler: I think that the iPads are good, that you can check your homework on your iPad, and that you can turn in your homework on your iPad.
You can see that iPads have positive and negative sides to them. They serve a lot of purposes. If you're doing something bad, there are rules to the iPad. The iPads are good and bad because they help us to do projects more easily and all digital so we don't have an excuse from doing the work. The cons of the iPad are that sometimes a Wi-Fi doesn't work and you can't do the work on anything so the teacher will be mad that you didn't do it so he or she will give you a bad grade. The iPad will take up a lot of time because many people won't use it correctly.
iPads are good and bad. What do you think? Are they good or bad? Do we need them or not? What do you think about the school giving us free iPads?
Share Your Opinion
Results will be shared next issue.
Interview on Compassion With Mr. Stephans
By: Emma Zimmer
What are some ways that you encourage your students to be compassionate?
“I do my best to lead by example. I let the students know that I love and care for each one of them. I am blessed to be working here at the school and I thank God each morning for that blessing.”
How are you compassionate towards others?
“I’m not sure...I guess you would have to ask the people around me. I just treat others how I want to be treated.”
Do you see compassion in school?
“There are lots of great things that I see at this school. Since I spend most of my time with the students, most of my examples come from them. Be its helping each other with homework, picking up stuff when other kids drop it in the hall, or just opening a door for someone. Lots of times we, as people, focus on the negative. When we look beyond all of that, then we see all the great things that happen each day. The students that I encounter are fun, caring, hard workers and generally good people. I like that!”
Do you see it at home or in your neighborhood?
“Both...I have a great family and wonderful friends. I have a tendency to talk to most people I see in the stores and around town, whether I know them or not. I enjoy hearing about what other people think and feel. It helps to keep me humble. I know that I have a lot to learn in life. Each day is a new adventure.”
Does your team do anything to illustrate this trait?
“We are all teachers and we are all students on the team and in the school. Each day, kids and adults alike show compassion in the ways that they help others around them. When we slow down and listen to each other, stop the competition and put away the 'me monster', then we all have a better chance to experience the goodness in everyone.”
Compassion
By: Emma Zimmer
You see a new student struggling to find her way on her first day. You decide to go over and help the student and show her the school because you remember your first day at a new school. You may not realize it, but this is a great example of the December trait: Compassion.
Compassion means to be sympathetic and concerned towards other people. This means you are motivated into helping others' needs before your own. Habit five of Steven Covey's 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens is a great way to show compassion. Habit five is: “Seek First to Understand, Then be Understood.” In order to understand you have to listen and value what other people have to say. Don't jump to conclusions or make certain judgements right away. Try to “be in their shoes” to understand their situation.
People in this school who I think are very compassionate are Mrs. Israel and Mrs. Aarum. They work in the clinic. They are compassionate because they listen to everyone once they walk through the door. They always put all the students first. We should all be very grateful towards them.
