Middle School Matters

Happy Friday!

I hope you have enjoyed a fantastic week!

Treasure Island

This morning, our 8th grade students enjoyed what has become a tradition around here over the last few years.  As the culminating event of their study of Treasure Island, students participated in a treasure hunt all over our campus for the first two hours of the day today.  They collected prizes if they could correctly guess who certain teachers and administrators were based on some very clever clues.  As you might imagine, we all had great fun!

Here are some pictures of the party we had just before break today:

A Day with the Montgomery Biscuits

Play ball! Our middle school students will be headed out to Riverwalk Stadium to see our very own Montgomery Biscuits play!  We will be taking some time out of school May 11 as a reward for the outstanding cooperation we have received from our kids throughout this year.  The cost of admission is free, and students will only be responsible for paying for whatever they want from the concession stand during the game. More information will follow in the coming days, so stay tuned.

Tests Next Week

6th Grade: None

7th Grade:

Tuesday - Economics, Old Testament

Thursday - Science

8th Grade:

Tuesday - US History (McLemore)

Wednesday - US History (Franklin)

Thursday - Gettysburg Address (Weeks)

Have a Great Weekend!

Middle School Matters

Happy Friday!

I hope this week has been a good one for you!

Social Networking

Liz Carter, a local attorney, will be speaking to our middle school students next week about safety when it comes to social networking.  This is a timely topic, and will be of tremendous benefit to our students.  Our upper school students have already participated in this assembly.

Ms. Carter will be speaking to our students in two separate assemblies with grade-appropriate content.  The assemblies will be held Tuesday, April 12, at the following times:

7th and 8th Grades

9:00 a.m.

Old Gym

5th and 6th Grades

1:30 p.m.

Old Gym

Parents are welcome to attend this event.  Also, we encourage you to speak with your children about the topics covered when they get home from school Tuesday.  As always, we are working hard to partner with you as you navigate the difficult waters we call parenting.

Tests Next Week

6th Grade:

Thursday - Social Studies

7th Grade:

Tuesday - English, Math 7

8th Grade:

Friday - Scavenger Hunt!

Have a Great Weekend!

Middle School Matters

Happy Friday!

I hope everyone is enjoying this beautiful day!  Here are a couple of important announcements as we head into the weekend:

Katherine Wolf

We are so pleased to have Katherine Arnold Wolf here at Trinity on Wednesday, April 6 at 8:50 a.m. to speak to our middle & upper school students in Willett Hall.  In April of 2008, Katherine had a massive brain-stem stroke. She was not expected to live or recover. In the time since her stroke, she has relearned to eat, to speak, and is now relearning to walk. To read more about her story of Hope check out her website by clicking here.

Khan Academy

If you have not checked out Khan Academy, you need to.  This tremendous resource is the most incredible collection of educational videos I have ever seen in one place.  Your child is certain to find many helpful videos here, and they are all free!  Have a look, and let the learning begin!

Tests for Next Week

6th Grade:

Monday - Math, Social Studies

Tuesday - English

7th Grade:

Tuesday - Old Testament

Friday - Economics

8th Grade:

Monday - Algebra I

Thursday - Pre-Algebra, Science

Have a Great Weekend!

Middle School Matters

Happy Friday!

I hope your first week back in the saddle was a good one!

Our children are more connected now than ever before.  Social media outlets such as Facebook, Twitter, and others, have made the world a smaller place.  The trouble is, our kids seem to know more about these communication avenues than we do, so we don't always know just what is going on.

Connect Safely recommends some privacy settings for your young Facebook user.  You may want to take some time this weekend and view this chart with your child.  Together, you can decide which privacy settings are best for your particular situation.

Many thanks to Dr. Frank Buck, who made me aware of this outstanding resource.

Here are our tests for next week:

6th Grade:

Wednesday - Social Studies

7th Grade:

Important Announcement: Students in Mrs. Cantey's English class are reminded to purchase a copy of The Hiding Place.  Please see Mrs. Cantey for more information.

Tuesday - Science

Wednesday - Math

Thursday - Economics

8th Grade:

Wednesday - US History (McLemore), English

Friday - US History (Weeks)

Have a Great Weekend!

Middle School Matters

Happy Friday!

I hope you and your family are looking forward to spring break!  My prayer is that you have a happy and safe vacation.

What's Right with Our Schools

Recently, WAKA TV-8 did a fantastic report on how Trinity is using technology.  You may view the report by clicking here.

Our school is poised to be a leader in this area by becoming the first school in the River Region to implement an Apple 1:1 computer program. Exciting times are ahead!

Talk About It

Let's face it, being a teenager can be tough!  Ever since I arrived at Trinity three years ago, I have been looking for ways for us to be more proactive when it comes to bullying prevention.  To that end, we are partnering with a company to institute an electronic means for students to let us know when they are being bullied or when they see bullying take place on campus.  The program is called Talk About It, and you can visit their website by clicking here.

Talk About It allows students to let us know what is going on via text message or email.  The messages go to a special account which routes the information to key school personnel.  If necessary, students can report anonymously.  Students can also let us know when they are experiencing excessive stress or other difficult situations.

Again, Trinity will be the first school in the River Region to implement such a revolutionary reporting program.

Stay tuned for more details on the ways Trinity School is utilizing technology to improve instruction and, now, to help prevent bullying.  Our primary job is to do everything we can to make your child's school experience the very best possible.

Once again, my prayer for each of you is that you have a safe and happy spring break.  I look forward to seeing your children again when we return to school March 21!

Middle School Matters

Happy Friday!

I hope you have had a blessed week.  I certainly have!

Social Media Awareness Meeting

I hope each of you will make plans to attend our first-ever Social Media Awareness meeting this coming Monday evening, March 7, at 6:30 in Willett Hall.  Liz Carter, a local attorney and social media law expert, will be speaking about the potential land mines associated with this new technology.  The truth is, our kids understand it better than we do, and it poses more dangers than we think it does.

Please don't miss this important event.  It is important that we all have a clear understanding of just what our children are facing these days.

Common Sense Media

The folks over at Common Sense Media recently released their annual Spring Movie Preview.  This brief article gives you a heads-up on the hottest spring movies that your kids may ask to go see.  You may access the preview by clicking here.

End of Third Nine-Weeks

It is hard to believe that our third quarter is officially in the books!  Please encourage your child to bear down and work hard in this final stretch!

Spring Break

Next Friday we'll be celebrating the beginning of spring break.  Please remember that there will be no school the week of March 14-18.

Tests for Next Week

6th Grade: 

Thursday - Social Studies

Friday - Math

7th Grade:

Tuesday - Old Testament

Friday - Economics, Math 7/Pre-Algebra

8th Grade:

Wednesday - US History (McLemore)

Thursday - US History (Weeks)

Friday - Science, US History (Franklin)

Have a Great Weekend!

Middle School Matters

Happy Friday!

Trinity Fun Run

I hope you will make plans to join us for the first-ever Trinity 5K and Fun Run.  The fun starts tomorrow morning, bright and early.  Visit the Trinity website for more information.

Junior Youth Legislature

I had the great joy of watching several of our middle school students represent Trinity at Junior Youth Legislature held today at the Alabama State Department of Archives and History.  As has been the case in recent years, we had the largest delegation there.

The best part of the day today was having lunch with a table full of our wonderful middle school students downtown.  We had great conversation and fellowship, and I couldn't have been more proud of them!  Many thanks to Rebecca Helms for making our Youth in Government program one of the very best in the state.

Carpool Changes

Thanks so much for your cooperation with our new carpool procedure.  Our system is running more smoothly, and we are moving people through much faster than we were before.  Thanks for your help!

Tests for Next Week

6th Grade:

Tuesday - English Novel Test

Wednesday - Math

7th Grade:

Friday - Economics, Old Testament

8th Grade:

Tuesday - US History (McLemore)

Thursday - English

Friday - Algebra I

Have a Great Weekend!