Special News: Thurston is a “School to Watch”!

On January 3rd California State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson announced that 12 high-performing California middle schools were newly designated as model middle grades schools in the Schools to Watch™−Taking Center Stage (STW−TCS) program. The California Department of Education, in conjunction with the National Forum to Accelerate Middle Grades Reform, and in partnership with the California Middle Grades Alliance, sponsors the California Schools to Watch™–Taking Center Stage (STW™-TCS) program. 

“Schools to Watch-Taking Center Stage” middle grades schools are high-performing model schools that demonstrate academic excellence, developmental responsiveness to the needs and interests of young adolescents, social equity, and organizational support. In order to be named a STW‒TCS model middle school, school teams must conduct a self-study evaluation and complete an extensive application process. Each site is then visited and reviewed by a team of middle grades experts. To retain the designation, each school is re-evaluated every three years. One of the tenets of the program involves model schools agreeing to host visitors from California and around the world who are looking for replicable practices that will help improve their middle grades schools and close the achievement gap among students.

 Laguna Beach Unified School District’s Thurston Middle School was designated as one of the only 12 newly designated model middle schools in California, and one of 2 in Orange County.

 

Semester One Information

Semester one comes to an end with final exam minimum days on January 24th and 25th. Students will attend odd period classes 0, 1, 3, 5 and take finals on January 24th and even period classes 2, 4, and 6 exams will be taken on January 25th. School lets out at 1:00 on both of these minimum days.

There is no school on Monday, January 28th. Teachers will submit the semester one grades and citizenship evaluations, and report cards will be mailed later in the week.

The Aeries’ gradebook starts new again for semester two. For students that have established SMART homework and study routines, this does not have much of an impact. But, bad habits can be very apparent during the first weeks of a new semester as there are few assignments and tests in the average. It’s helpful to closely monitor your child’s progress in Aeries over the last weeks of semester one in order to be proactive!

Mythology Club

Announcements advertising Mythology Club were made December 20-21st and January 7th and 8th. Students who have interest are asked to see Ms. Cochren in room 212 during break or lunch prior to January 11th to obtain the necessary information and permission slip.

We will meet five Tuesday lunches during January and February and compete in a Jeopardy style format. Questions will be taken from the myths in D’Aulaires Book of Greek Myths. Approximately 20 books are available on loan on a first come first serve basis.

Mythology Club 2013 = click on the blue attachment to obtain a schedule, information, and the permission slip.

Thurston School Spelling Bee

Thank you to those students who participated in our Spelling Bee Club. We met during lunch on 8 Tuesdays during November and December. At our meetings, we had friendly competition with words from the 2012-2013 Scripps My Spell It list: 2013 Spell It-plain text.

Announcements were made for those interested in participating in the club or in the bee for over one week at the start of November. Spelling Bee announcements encouraging students to participate were also made December 20-21st and January 7th, 8th, and 9th. Those interested were asked to see Ms. Cochren during break or at the start of lunch in order to obtain a pass to be able to attend the Thurston Spelling Bee. The bee will take place in the library during ESP this Thursday, January 10th.

 

 

Sixth Grade GATE Student Meeting

Ms. Cochren and Ms. Shaeffer will host a meeting for all sixth grade gifted and talented students during ESP this Thursday, November 29th in the school library.

Morning announcements notifying students of the meeting were made from the 26th-28th reminding students of the mandatory meeting and to plan ahead!

Students will be encouraged to get involved on the Thurston campus in the current and upcoming clubs and events. We will also complete a Howard Gardner’s Multiple Intelligence Survey, a SMART Strategies for Success Survey, and possibilities of goal-setting ideas.

Students will take home the materials to share at home that evening. They will also bring home a one page Individual Learning Plan form. Using the results and ideas from the ESP documents, they should create a goal in an area of strength and also a goal in an area of weakness. Students are asked to share the ILP goals with a parent/guardian to discuss and obtain a signature.

The surveys and the ILP will be used at the Individual Learning Conference the following day, November 30th. Students will receive a pass during their language arts’ class, and it will remind them to report to the office with the items. Conferences will take place with Ms. Schaeffer and Ms. Cochren. Our plans are to discuss goals, opportunities here at Thurston Middle School, current student progress grades and citizenship evaluations, and last year’s CST scores in math and language arts.

A copy of the completed ILP will be sent home with sixth grade GATE students on Monday, December 3rd.

Twelve Week Progress Reports

The twelve week progress period ends on Friday, November 30th. Student progress reports will be available on the Aeries’ Parent Portal the following week.

GATE Parent Meeting Materials

PowerPoint: GATE 2012 Meeting

Newsletter:

Spelling Bee Club: 2013 Spell It-plain text and Spelling Bee Club 2012

Mythology Club: Mythology Club 2012

Independent Reading: INDEPENDENT READING FOR GATE STUDENTS