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!

Middle School Matters

Happy Presidents' Day Weekend!

Holiday Monday

Due to the Presidents' Day holiday, there will be no school Monday.  Enjoy your time off!

Carpool Changes

Please remember that beginning Tuesday, February 22, middle school students who have siblings in lower school will be allowed to exit through the front entrance of Trinity School at the end of the school day.  This applies only to those middle school students who have brothers and sisters in lower school.  All other middle school students are to meet their rides on the steps of Willett Hall each day.  It is our hope that this will improve our carpool process tremendously.  Thanks so much for your cooperation.

Youth In Government

Several Trinity students represented our school well in recent Youth in Government activities.  More are slated to participate in events at the Alabama Department of Archives and History next week.  Many thanks to Rebecca Helms for providing our students with such outstanding opportunities to develop their leadership potential.

Tests for Next Week

6th Grade:

Thursday - Social Studies

7th Grade:

Tuesday - English

Wednesday - Pre-Algebra

Thursday - Science

Friday - Economics

8th Grade:

Thursday - Pre-Algebra

Have a Great Weekend!

Middle School Matters

Greetings!

It was good to be back in the saddle this week after a great trip to Washington, DC, with our 8th grade students.  As usual, these students did Trinity proud with their outstanding behavior.  In fact, an usher at the Kennedy Center said that our kids were the best behaved she had seen at a performance of the National Symphony Orchestra.  Needless to say, I am very pleased!

iPads and Kindles 

We are starting to see several of our students with iPads and Kindle readers on campus.  For the time being, we are asking that these be kept out of the classrooms until we can craft policies to assist us in managing such devices.  Your cooperation is greatly appreciated.

Carpool Changes

Beginning February 22, 6th, 7th, and 8th grade siblings of lower school students will be allowed to exit through the main entrance of Trinity School at the end of the school day.  This should alleviate some of the carpool problems we experience in the area around Willett Hall.  Remember - this begins on February 22, and only applies to middle school students who have siblings in the lower school.  All other middle school students will dismiss from the steps of Willett Hall as usual.

Here are our tests for the coming week:

6th Grade:

Friday - Social Studies Map Test

7th Grade: 

Tuesday - Old Testament, Math 7

8th Grade:

Tuesday - Pre-Algebra

Wednesday - US History (Franklin, McLemore)

Have a great week!

DC Day Three

Better late than never, here is the video for Day Three of our DC adventure.  Enjoy!

DC Day Three

Good Morning!

Unfortunately, some equipment issues prevented us from uploading our latest DC video late last night as we have the last couple of days.  However, we have a long ride back tonight and wifi on the bus, so we may be able to push something out this eventing covering yesterday and today.

For our third touring day, we visited the National Cathedral, drove down Embassy Row, and spent a good amount of time at Arlington National Cemetery.  However, we were unable to participate in our customary wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier due to a major ceremony that was taking place when we arrived there.

Our students witnessed an impressive ceremony as the Minister of Defense of Columbia placed a wreath at the Tomb.  "Pershing's Own" United States Army Band played our national anthem, and most had to fight back tears as our own flag was honored in such a dramatic way.  We walked up just in time to see three, massive cannons present a 21-gun salute, and we heard the playing of taps as the ceremony ended.

We instead placed our custom-made Trinity wreath at the Vietnam Memorial, and several of our students had the opportunity to pay their respects to family members who gave their lives on the battle field of that war.  We also visited the grave of John F. Kennedy, as well as the Lincoln Memorial and the Korean memorial.

Our day was capped off with a magnificent "Disney" concert presented by the National SymphonyOrchestra  in the world-famous Kennedy Center.  It was an unforgettable evening!

We head out to the White House after breakfast this morning, then hit it hard all day long.  Once we're underway tonight, our production crew will get started on some videos.  Thanks to modern technology, we may be able to get them to you as we drive to Home Sweet Home!