First, I want to let everyone know that I will be out for 6 school days due to surgery beginning tomorrow. I plan to be back at school on Monday, March 29. Mrs. Chambless will be my substitute teacher working along with Mr. Harris (TOSS Student) and Mrs. Boggess (3rd Period). I feel compelled to emphasize the fact that students need to be certain they are respectful and on task at all times. Please make me proud of you.

Secondly, report cards are going home this afternoon. Please sign those and have your student bring back to homeroom. Once I have seen the signed report card and checked it off, students may have them back if necessary.

CLASSWORK

Warm-up #29 – All societies have economic systems. In most democratic societies, a market economy prevails. This type of economic system is based on free free market or free  enterprise.

Workbook - Complete chart and Part B on Page 15.

Physical Map – Complete the physical map. Be certain to use pages A24 and A25; 142, and 155. Don’t forget to put the color acheme on your map. Rivers – blue; Mountains – Brown, Basin, Pampas, Deserts, Plateaus, and Highlands – Yellow; all others – your choice.

HOMEWORK

1. Finish your physical map including the coloring according to the color scheme.

2. Continue to study for the political map for a test on Tuesday, March 26.

I hope you have a wonderful evening. I will see you on March 29. Thomas’ Adventure Travels signing off.  }:~) 

Happy St. Patrick’s Day! It was great to see so many kids particpating in celebrating this day by wearing green. It may have been the fact that they did not want to get pinched by other students. That seems to be the practice among students. 

CLASSWORK

Warm-up #28 – •Name the four types of economies. Answers: •Command •Mixed •Traditional •Market

Reading – Finish reading 6.1 (Pages 156-159)

Physical Map – Trace the bold pattern of Latin America. Begin labeling the physical features.  Use pages A24 and A25 to label the following today  1) Coastal Features; 2)Water Bodies; and 3) Islands. The remainder will be completed tomorrow. Physical map test will be on Friday, March 26.

HOMEWORK 

Continue to study for the political map test on Tuesday, March 23.

I hope everyone has a great evening. I will see you tomorrow. Thomas’ Adventure Travels signing off.  }:~)

Another great day at McClure Middle School. We started the day with our Advisement group. It is always good to see those students. My group participated with some other groups in a Scavenger Hunt to find questions from each subject area and then answer them. This activity is a review to help students be better prepared for the CRCT coming up in a few weeks.

Several student brought in recordable CD’s for me to copy the Latin America song. Remember it must be a clean CD and not a DVD.

CLASSWORK

Warm-up #27 – •What is economics? Answer:  Economics is the science of how people use resources to satisfy their wants and needs. An economy is a system of producing, distributing, and consuming goods and services.

Latin America – Land and Resources – Students watched a video about the land and resources of Latin America. While watching they answered questions that pertained to the information given in the video.  After the video was over, class discussion was generated from the questions.

Latin America Political Map Review  – Reviewed for the map test which will be Tuesday, March 23, of next week. Students need to be certain they know the location of each country and can match the capital to the country.

HOMEWORK

Continue to study Latin American’s country locations and know the capital of each country.

I hope you have a wonderful evening and enjoy this nice weather. Thomas’ Adventure Travels signing off.   }:~)

We officially began our unit on Latin America tody. Students had already made a list of the countries and capitals they need to know for the map test. Remember, you will be able to identify the countries easier if you color your map. However, it is not required.

CLASSWORK

Warm-up #26 – •What is the significance of the “Ides of March” (March 15)?  Answer:  It is the name of March 15 in the Roman calendar. It is best known as the date that Julius Caesar was killed in 44 BC.

Latin America Political Map – Checked and reviewed the countries and capitals of Latin America. Remember this is your study guide.

Guided Reading - Began reading Section 1 on page 151 through 154.

Countries of Latin America – Participated in a Smart Board without a Smart Board activity to review the location of the countries in Latin America.

HOMEWORK

Continue to study the location of each country on your map and be able to match the capital to the correct country.

Have a wonderful evening. I will see you tomorrow. Thomas’ Adventure Travels signing off.    }:~)

My goodness how this week has past quickly. Even though it has been a rainy week, it has been a busy week. I hope everyone remembers to “spring forward” Saturday night wit your clocks. Daylight Savings Time will have arrived!

Also, don’t forget that Monday, March 15 is the last time to turn in any money due for our field trip.

CLASSWORK

No warm-up today.

Latin America Pretest – Students took the Latin America pretest today. It will be interesting to see what the students feel they know about this region of the world.

Latin America Map – Student completed a political map (countries and capitals) of Latin America. This is the study guide. Plans are to have the political map test on Friday, March 19.

Latin America Map Song – A song was played to help students learn the countries and capitals of Latin America. Any student wanting a copy of the song needs to bring in a blank CD so I can copy it for them.

HOMEWORK

If you did not finish listing the countries and capitals on a separate sheet of paper, you need to be certain to have it complete for Monday. Remember, coloring the map is optional, but would certainly be helpful for distinquishing the different countries.

Have a fun-filled and exciting weekend. I will see you on Monday. Thomas’ Adventure Travels signing off.    }:~)

We had a fairly normal day today with no major adjustments that needed to be made even with all the rain.

Tomorrow we will be starting a new unit, Latin America. Students will be doing a pretest to see how much they really know about this region of the world.

I do want to remind everyone about Monday, March 15,  being the last day to turn in any money due for the Medieval Times Field Trip. This includes any chaperones who are planning on going on the trip.  

CLASSWORK

Warm-up #25 - •On Australia’s northeastern coast is the Great Barrier Reef. It is a chain of colorful coral formations and islands rising out of the Pacific Ocean and is 1,250 miles long. Coral is a hard, rocklike material made of the skeletons of small sea animals.

Austraila Unit Test – Students took a test on Australia. The test included some questions about economics, which we have been studying, and refresher questions about Canada.

HOMEWORK

There is no homework this evening.

Have a woderfully fantastic evening. I will see you tomorrow ready to learn about Latin America.  Thomas’ Adventure Travels signing off.  }:~)

Well, we are having another “rainy day in Georgia.”  This certainly should help usappreciate those wonderful sunny days like we had this past weekend.

Note: All money must be paid by March 15, in order for students to attend the Medieval Times field trip. Those parents who are chaperoning, please remember that you all need to pay to attend. Thank you.

Please read the folowing message from our principal.

got hope???

You may have heard that there is a t-shirt sales campaign going on at McClure and not know the background of the ”why”.  At McClure, we have several students dealing with significant medical issues (among those cancer and organ transplant needs).  We as a school community wanted to reach out to help those families and to show our support for them financially and visually.

Each advisement group was asked to develop a theme – one line – that would show visual support for these students as we wear the shirts, but also generate conversation about why we are wearing them.  Each advisement group submitted suggestions and the student body as a whole chose the winning theme “got hope?”

We are currently selling the t-shirts for $10 or a bracelet that says got hope? for $3.  You can purchase both as a set for $12.  All proceeds from the shirts will be given to these families to meet the additional financial needs that they are incurring.  The families may choose to give the funds to the charity of their choice if they personally don’t need the funds.  One of the families has been assisted tremendously by the Rally Foundation and may earmark the funds they receive for that organization.

This is a time where we can all step out and make a personal difference to students at our school.  We hope that you will purchase a shirt and talk to your friends and neighbors about purchasing one as well to help these families!  The shirts are on sale for the next few days and are available in black with white print, black with hot pink print and brown with turquoise print.  Checks may be made payable to McClure Middle School PTSA.

Thanks for your support!

Susan Wing, Principal

CLASSWORK

Warm-up #24 – •Australia is made up of mostly deserts and dry grasslands, with a few low mountains and coastal plains. Winds and time have worn the land into the flattest and lowest continent in the world.

Australia Study Guide Review – We went over the answers to the study guide. You also may download the answer from the following site. Australia-Study-Guide-Key1 

HOMEWORK

Be certain you are prepared for the test tomorrow. Remember we are adding some questions about Canada to continue reviewing for CRCT questions.

Have a fun-filled evening and stay dry. I will see you tomorrow. Thomas’ Adventure Travels signing off.    }:~)

What a wonderful weekend. I hope everyone had the opportunity to be out and about. I was able to go to our faculty softball game on Sunday. It was a lot of fun.

Don’t forget to be certain to pay for Medieval Times by March 15 and to have all permission forms signed and turned in. March 15 is the absolute deadline.

CLASSWORK

Warm-up #23 – •The official animal of Australia is the_kanagroo_. The official bird of Australia is the_emu_. Both these animals appear on the Australian Coat of _Arms_, which is embellished with Golden Wattle – the official floral symbol of Australia.

Page 740 – Checked and reviewed the homework  from the textbook which was due today.

Date Review – Students were given a worksheet to use data from pages 668-671 and map information from page 735. This was to be done in class. Those students who did not finish are to complete it for  homework.

HOMEWORK

1. If you did not complete the data review, you need to finish it for homework.

2. Begin reviewing the sections in the book on Australia for the unit test on Thursday, March 11.

I hope you have a fantastic evening. I will see you tomorrow. Thomas’ Adventure Travels signing off.  }:~)

What a beautiful day. The sun looked great shinning through the windows. I hope everyone has some outside activities planned for this weekend.

Read Across American week is over, but don’t let that keep you from continueing to read great books. If you can’t find what you want at the school media center, then try the public library or a book store.

CLASSWORK

Warm-up #22 -  •Climate and vegetation along with _natural_ resources have a major impact on a country’s _economy_ and population. Landforms, _climate_, and natural _resources_ influence the way people live in different areas.

Guided Reading – Read pages 737 through 740.

Section Assessment - Complete questions 1-4 on page 740

Finish questions to Coach Book – pages 216-219 (These were turned in today.)

HOMEWORK

Finish and classwork that is not completed. Student should have page 740 with them.

Have a wonderful weekend and get outside. The fresh air will be good for you.  Thomas’ Adventure Travels signing off.   }:~)

Well, we were back on a regular schedule today. Students seemed to like knowing exactly when they would be changing classes and eating lunch (food – very important).

Don’t forget to dress as your favority character tomorrow for Read Across America.

CLASSWORK

Warm-up #21 – •Australia is the _smallest_ of the seven continents. It also has the unique feature of being both a _continent/island_ and a _country/nation_.

Returned Map Test – Students were able to look at their Australia map test to see where they made any of the errors if they did. The test were given back to the teacher since several student have been absent and need to take the test. Please check Pinnacle for a grade.

Powerpoint on Australia and New Zealand –  Viewed and discussed a short powerpoint giveing a brief overview history of  Australia and New Zealand. 

Pages 216-219 in Coach Book – Read pages 216 to 219 together and then began answering questions pertaining to the information. 

HOMEWORK

There is no homework this evening.

I hope you have a wonderful evening. I will see you tomorrow. Thomas’ Adventure Travels signing off.    }:~)