4th Quarter PANTHER PRESS 2018-2019

Principal Dr. Teresa W. Hargrett 6th Grade Administrator

Ms. Eva Miano 7th Grade Administrator

Ms. Twyla Hinton 8th Grade Administrator Mr. William Grant Student Services Admin. Ms. Crysta Caruthers Counseling Dept. Ms. Kim Gray Ms. Rebecca Moore Language Arts Coordinator Ms. Tara Mann Math Coordinator Mr. Todd White Science Coordinator Ms. Oneisha Young Social Studies Coordinator Mr. Kasisi Brown Gifted Coordinator Ms. Laura Thomson ESOL Coordinator Ms. Melissa Guglielmi Academic Coach Ms. Sara Folk

Floyd Middle School Cobb STEM Certified School

2016 Bronze National Healthy Schools Award Title I Distinguished School

Honorable Mention for High Flying Schools Award

ASME INSPIRE Certification 2015-2018 Beating the Odds Designation by GOSA

Newsletter Date

May, 2019

4803 Floyd Road, Mableton, GA 30126 PH 770-819-2453 Fax 770-819-2455

http://www.cobbk12.org/Floyd/ http://teresahargrettblog.wordpress.com/ https://twitter.com/TeresaHargrett

97 Students had PERFECT ATTENDANCE during the school year! 173 Students received All YEAR HONORS Recognition! 52 Staff Members became Certified Microsoft Innovative Educators!

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SCIENCE

During the 4th quarter, 7th grade Life Science students explored the “Interdependence of Life”. They learned about the many ways in which living things interact with each other and their environment. They created wanted posters, thank you cards, and personal ads related to symbiotic relationships. They concluded the Ecology Unit by completing

WebQuests related to terrestrial and aquatic biomes. In addition, our students learned how to classify various organ-isms using dichotomous keys and explored the many kingdoms of the world.

Real World Science was the focus for the 4th nine weeks in 8th grade Physical Science. All students had the oppor-tunity to participate in The Science of Baseball presented by Xfinity and The Braves. Students were introduced to the game in all academic classes. Science classes discussed in detail how launch angle affects the distance and direction of the ball. Students completed projects on stadium design launch angles and road tripping to various stadiums. Some students were given the opportunity to present their project at the Braves Showcase on May 19!

Another group of 8th grade students had the opportunity to participate in High Velocity Education a motorsports based S.T.E.M. program co-founded by Henry Ford III and John Hope Bryant. The program allowed students to enhance and build skills in physics, chemistry, teamwork leadership and business development while constructing and racing a re-mote-controlled sports car. Our students are What’s Right with Floyd!

LANGUAGE ARTS Students in sixth grade have enjoyed preparing elaborate presentations for not only their peers, but also for members of our community through our "Shark Tank" projects. This interdisciplinary, multi-week study was a tedious process, but students who once had a fear of presenting now ask to have their community leaders visit again for their other presen-tations! Students' growth is also evidenced through their most recent Reading Inventory scores. Students took pride and initiative in raising their scores, understanding that said scores are a reflection of their determination to excel. The end of the year brought us to our novel study on "Freak the Mighty". Students related to the many intricacies of the charac-ters and their engagement was unreal. Students wrapped up the year by completing one final project on our book, finishing the year strongly. The Sixth Grade Team is incredibly proud of the diligence and voracity for success of these students. Sixth grade E.L.A. students showed us how diligently they had been working on their interdisciplinary P.B.L. project. Students pitched their Water Filtration System innovation in front of staff, students and Shark Tank volunteer judges from Wells Fargo Bank, Shaw Temple, and Chick Fil A. Entrepreneurs in the com-munity and parents of Floyd students also assisted in being Shark Tank judges. Students just completed reading projects based on their Literature Circle novels. Novels read by students included: Freak the Mighty, The Book Thief, The Boy on the Wooden Box, The

Outsiders, Number the Stars, The Devil’s Arithmetic, and The Boy in the Striped Pajamas. Students that read Freak the Mighty created board games, dioramas, body biographies, character trad-ing cards, and a comic book. AC students presented their final product to 6th grade Social Studies classes as a review and exten-sion of what they learned while studying the Holocaust. Students also recently completed their final Reading Inventory Assessment as a sixth grader. They were tasked with completing a reflection for their 3rd Reading Inventory Assessment. They were able to clearly define the reasoning in the increase or decrease of their individual score. Teachers and students celebrated the Lexile growth in each class.

May, 2019 Page 3

In order to earn promotion to the next grade level, the student must meet all of the following criteria:

(1)Pass math, English/language arts and one additional core subject for the year or demonstrate minimum proficiency on the appropriate state-adopted assessment in math, English/language arts and one additional core subject.

(2) Earn a combined overall passing average for all scheduled courses for the year; and

(3) Demonstrate an appropriate level of reading comprehension as measured by Lexile score.

What is Your Lexile Goal?6th 7th

At Grade Level/Proficient 925 - 1070 970 - 1120

Above Grade Level1075 – and above

1125 – and above

8th

1010 - 1185

1190 – and above

Why is this Important?• You will experience control and confidence.• You will be able to comprehend text. • You will build vocabulary.• You will respond to text. • You will improve independent reading.

Panther Press, 4th Quarter, 2018-2019 May, 2019

NEWS from ESOL & WORLD LANGUAGES ACCESS scores are in! Over 70% of all ESOL students in Grades 6—8 showed growth in comparison to last year’s scores. Congratulations to Sadie Cazares, whose exemplary performance has resulted in her exit from the ESOL program. During the testing period, the various ESOL classes completed novel studies in addition to continuing to work on improving skills in the four linguistic domains (speaking, listening, reading, and writing). The sixth grade read The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain, and The Jumping Tree, by Rene Saldana; the sev-enth grade completed The Prince and the Pauper, by Mark Twain, and The Man in the Iron Mask, by Alexan-dre Dumas; and the eighth grade read White Fang, by Jack London. Vive le francais! Students in the French class have continued to increase their vocabulary in re: verbs (RE, IR, aller and faire) and vocabulary for prepositions of location, places in town, interrogative words and question formation, additional numbers (60—100+), and food. In addition, French students used the online textbook and a variety of activities to explore Paris. The following students were recognized for their outstanding per-formance in the French class: Alexus Berry and Dzenan Cerimagic. Allons-y! Viva el mundo hispanico! In the Spanish class, the students learned to use demonstrative adjectives, prepo-sitions, and negation, and vocabulary for clothing. Students then created a performance task video using the vocabulary that had been previously taught. The following students were recognized for their outstanding per-formance in the Spanish class: Yuli Diaz, Nayeli Rendon, and Pharoah Nkosi. Continuamos! In closing, Mrs. Ammerman would like to thank everyone for the welcome she received at Floyd and the gen-erous support given when needed. Her future plans include teaching Spanish closer to home.

TITLE I PARENT LIAISON

Dear Parents and Guardians, The year has gone by so fast and I’m proud of the work our teachers, support staff and students have accom-plished to meet state standards and progress with reading, writing and mathematics. However, above all those things just mentioned, I am proud of you…the parents, and guardians that volunteered your time and service to make sure that we met all the federal guidelines expected of us as a Title I school. Thank you parents that let me know what tools were needed to help your child. Thank you parents that supported me with encouraging words when things got a little challenging. My primary role as the Parent Facilitator is to enhance and support parent involvement initiatives that focus on improving student achievement. You are the expert on what your child needs. I would just like to take this time to say thank you for all your input and allowing me to help you help your student this 2018-2019 school year. As we now turn our attention to prepare for the 2019-2020 school year, I encourage all parents to be actively involved in their child’s education. I believe that behind the child that makes the most progress, is an actively involved parent. Please keep in mind that there are ten (10) months in the school year, with various opportunities to attend at least one (1) event per month. I understand you may not be able to attend every event or meeting held, but I would like to see families attend at least three (3) events during the school year, aside from Parent/Teacher Conferences and IEP meetings. When students see families attend an event, they become eager to learn more and focus on their academics as well as build their confidence and self-esteem. I look forward to working with you this coming year and encourage you to take a moment to attend a workshop or event this school year. You are a valuable member of our school team, and we need your support to help our students achieve success. Please enjoy your summer, and as always don’t forget to be Respectful, Responsible, and Safe. Cynthea B. Lester Floyd Middle School Parent Facilitator

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Taking Classroom Learning into the Real World During a Community Based Instruction (CBI) field trip, students had lunch at one of our partners in Education,

Chick-Fil-A. Students observed posted menus and ordered their favorite food items. Students in Ms. Jefferson’s and Mr. Haskins’ classroom engaged in real world life experiences by practicing life skill techniques that required them to use functional skills involving money. Students were able to give the cashier their money, maintain self-

control, speak clearly while waiting for their food and change. Students enjoyed this event and looked forward to the next opportunity to demonstrate skills learned inside the classroom. Thumbs up! – for active and productive learning outcomes in Room #124!!

Panther Press, 4th Quarter 2018-19

Floyd Middle invites all parents to be ac-tively engaged in the education of our stu-dents. We welcome your participation through support organizations such as PTSA, Floyd Foundation, School Council, as well as your frequent interaction with teachers and staff.

How can PTSA help YOU help YOUR child? Greetings to Floyd MS and a special welcome to our new parents and students. We’re off to a great start to support-ing Floyd’s initiatives and overall school curriculum by way of communications and engagement.. We look forward to working together, making a difference, one child at a time. Stay connected with us and find out how you can get involved.

Contact us: Our website www.floydmiddleptsa.com

Email us at floydptsa@gmail.com

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Students of the Month

March Ariana Calderon Kimaya Clement

Yuli Diaz Sadeem Joyner Clara Marquez Xavier Medina

Abraham Reyna Christopher Sevilla Emerson Thomas

April Daisy Adame

Jonalyn Barcon Marelyn Castro

Eric Erazo Radahi Garcia Jonah Gomez

Jo’Maree Mason Christian Medrano

Yoselyn Ramos Marcus Whaley

School Council Parent Representatives

Tikki Bester Barbara Carrington Simona Goodwin Stephanie Kirksey

Teacher Representatives

Lynnyetta Baker Kenneth Colston Oneisha Young

Business Partner

Steve Taylor, McDonalds Principal

Teresa Hargrett

MATH

Math 8 - 8th grade students have been working hard on many concepts this year – anything from geometry to number sense! During Unit 7, we learned all about systems of equations and how to solve them! In Unit 8, we reviewed all materials from the school year starting with Unit 7 and working our way back to Unit 1. Please be sure to complete as many practice prob-lems on IXL as possible so that you can all be successful math students next year as freshmen!

From the Title III Parent Liaison, Ms. Sandra Weston

Parents, If you did not have the opportunity to sign up for ParentVUE please do so next school year in order for you to be able to see your student’s grades and attendance. It will be very helpful if you have it beginning MS since it will be imperative to have when your student goes to high school. It keeps you informed up to date about your student’s grades and attendance. I want to thank all the parents that attended all the classes and workshops that I offered. I hope they were of good use. I hope that next year I can offer even more and better things in order for the parents to be more involved in their children’s education. Have a nice and safe sum-mer. Sandra Weston ----------- Padres, si no tuvieron la oportunidad de inscribirse en ParentVUE, háganlo el próximo año es-colar desde el principio para que puedan ver las calificaciones y la asistencia de sus hijos. Será muy útil si la tiene para comenzar con middle school, ya que será imperativo tenerla cuando su hijo vaya a la escuela secundaria. Le mantiene informado sobre las calificaciones y la asistencia de su estudiante al día. Quiero agradecer a todos los padres que asistieron a todas las clases y talleres que ofrecí. Espe-ro que hayan aprendido algo de buen uso. Espero que el próximo año pueda ofrecer más y me-jores cosas para que los padres participen más en la educación de sus hijos. Que tengan un ve-rano agradable y seguro. Sandra Weston SOCIAL STUDIES 6th Grade Social Studies has been working on Canada and Latin Amer ica in the 4th Quar-ter. Students were able to focus on the Geography of Canada through a One-Pager project. Stu-dents were given the opportunity to choose the project they wanted to work on for Latin Ameri-ca through a Tic-Tac-Toe Choice board, where they choose three from a list of projects to com-plete. Students also finished the 4th quarter reviewing for our Student Growth Measure to see how much growth they made throughout the year. One goal for students over the summer is to continue reading every day to increase literacy. We hope all students have a safe and happy summer.

Panther Press, 4th Quarter, 2018-2019

Page 9

Global Connections Book Club Service Project After reading The Long Walk to Wa-

ter, 7th grade social studies stu-dents collected funds to help pur-chase water wells in Africa. This was a great example of Civics in Action as they learned about water scarcity and unequal educational opportu-nities in Africa. Community News Thanks to Police Athletic League

(PAL) and the Cobb County Police Department, students were able to attend a special Field Day

activity at Pebblebrook High School.

7th and 8th grade chorus earned superior and excellent ratings in performance and sight reading at LGPE! Photo attached.

The Panther Basketball Club had a very successful initial season with more than 30 participants of all skill levels!

JALEN BRADDOCK

Fernando Ortiz-Tamayo

Sincere Brooks-Davis

Sincere Brooks-Davis

XAVIER MEDINA

Attention all 6th Grade Students!! Atención a todos los estudiantes de 6to

Proof of these vaccines are required to enter 7th grade for the 2019-2020 school year. Please bring your updated GA form 3231 to the school.

Panther Press, 4th Quarter, 2018-2019 Page 12

From the Principal Dear Floyd Family, Please enjoy the change of pace that summer brings but still spend time reading, writing, and practicing math skills. Doing so will help you re-tain your knowledge and improve your skills for future application. Please access the following websites to continue learning during the summer break. https://www.ixl.com/signin/floyd (ELA, Math, Science) www.ReadTheory.org www.CommonLit.com https://www.ck12.org/ (6th, 7th, 8th Grade Science) Newsela.com and Zinc Learning Labs on the Springboard online platform(reading and writing practice) https://newsela.com/ https://cobbga.springboardonline.org/ebook/cleverSsoLogin (Reading & Writing Practice; Al-so, check out the Zinc Learning Lab on the Springboard Platform.) Information on the state assessment, The Georgia Milestones, can be found at http://www.gadoe.org/Curriculum-Instruction-and-Assessment/Assessment/Pages/Georgia-Milestones-Assessment-System.aspx . Dr. Teresa W. Hargrett Floyd Middle School Principal http://www.cobbk12.org/Floyd/ http://teresahargrettblog.wordpress.com/ https://twitter.com/TeresaHargrett Floyd’s Mission: Perform with Excellence Floyd’s Vision: A community engaged in real-life, innovative experiences preparing our stu-dents to be college and career-ready. Collective Commitments: Floyd Students, Staff, and Parents Promise to Be Respectful, Responsible, and Safe Focus on Learning with Active Participation

Collaborate as a team to increase achievement.