Brother Wolf

Here's a snap of some of our student government and their service project for Brother Wolf.

CSG 3

Our third grade CSG students got a chance to use their art skills in a direction-following activity. Students had to draw specific things in specific places in a fairly short period of time. Here are some examples of their work!

5th Grade Math Video

This video is from earlier in the year. Just chanced upon it and thought I'd share.

Bridge and Golf Camp

The fine folks at Blue Ridge Youth Bridge are offering the following camp for this summer. It comes highly recommended from staff at Asheville Middle School.
If you've never played bridge, it's a fascinating game that would be challenging for students in fifth grade or higher. Throw in some golf and a country club lunch, and you've got a winner. Check it out!

                                                                                                        

SUMMER YOUTH

BRIDGE AND GOLF CAMP

ANNOUNCEMENT

WEEKS OF JUNE 15 and JUNE 22, 2015

The 2015 Blue Ridge Youth Bridge summer day camp program will combine two great learning experiences, duplicate bridge and golf. Campers should be in grades 5 and higher.

*  In the morning campers will learn how to play Duplicate Bridge.

*   Following a lunch break, the group will receive instruction and practice in golf by professionals at the well-known area golf center, Broadmoor Links.

      * After one and a half hours of golf,  campers will return to the bridge area for an hour of instruction

          and review. Closed toed shoes are required for golfing.

     *Lunches, snacks and the use of golf clubs and golf balls are included in the registration fee.

          (campers may bring their own clubs if they wish)

Campers must arrive at Broadmoor Links clubhouse by 8:50 AM. They will be ready for pickup at the same location at 3:00 PM. Broadmoor Links is located next to the WNC AG center on Airport Road across from the airport.

Camp Fees:  $90 per camper, per week. ($80 per week if attending both weeks}, and an additional

$5 per week discount for families with more than one child.  A limited number of financial aid

scholarships are available. (please contact Linda for more information -828-658-9398)

Registration deadline is June 1 . Refunds for cancellation are $60.00. There will be no refunds after the registration deadline. Campers are encouraged to attend both weeks. Sign up now, space is limited.

 

Camp Registration: Please complete a registration form for each camper along with your check made out to BLUE RIDGE YOUTH BRIDGE and mail to Linda Brown, 205 Forest Knoll Ct., Weaverville, NC 28787.  Questions? Call Dan and Linda Brown (828) 658-9398.

Parent/Guardian name: (First) ________________ (MI) ____ (Last) ______________________

Your contact info: (number and street) _______________(City) ________________ ZIP_____

Phone ___ - _______ -_________           Email address:  _____________________

Camper(s) Name: (First) _____________ (MI) _____ (Last) ______________________ Camper’s age ______Grade in School ____ ,                 Attending:     Week 1 ____  , Week 2_____ , Both _____Limited meal selections are available.  If your campers have special dietary restrictions we suggest  they bring their own lunch.  Please lists any allergies that we should be aware of:

AIG Transition to Middle School

Today Ms. Jo Landreth and Mr. Keith Buff, AIG specialists at Asheville Middle School, visited with Claxton's AIG students today. These teachers shared lots of information about AMS and what the AIG program looks like there.
It was an extremely interesting conversation! AMS is packed with challenging and fascinating programming for gifted students!

Fifth Grade Writing

Throughout this year our Advanced Subject Group in Reading has been working with stories from Junior Great Books. One such story, by the celebrated Richard Peck, was about a child who only seemed to have special powers. Students in this group were asked to write a story in a similar vein. Here's one to consider:

The Special Powers of Agatha*

Everyone thought Agatha was a weird kid. She was quiet and came out of nowhere to the school of Claxton Elementary. She got really bad grades one day, and another, the best in the class. Whatever grade she wanted, she got, good or bad. Everyone wanted to know how or why she didn’t and believed she had special powers. As for Agatha, she didn’t know whether she had special powers or not.

                One day the students were learning about something Agatha did not understand at all, and she failed the test soon after. Then they did a re-do and she got a perfect grade. People were scared of weird and odd Agatha, who was so quiet

                One day, someone was finally brave enough o go to Agatha and ask her, once and for all, whether she had powers or not.  The young man charmed Agatha, and she told him, “Whatever grades I want, I work for.”  The young man was frustrated that he didn’t get a complete answer. Or that’s what he thought!

*name changed for anonymity

So, I confess I only glanced these over until finding this gem. I thought it worth sharing for a bunch of reasons, not the least of which is the subtle lesson about gifted kids and grades. 

Rising 6th Graders

Here is a copy of a letter sent home today for all rising 6th grade AIG students. Please contact me with any questions.

Thanks!

May, 2015

Parents of Rising AIG 6th Graders:

As we start looking toward the end of the school year, it is time to look ahead to what gifted services will look like next year at Asheville Middle School.  We are beginning now to collect data on each AIG student in order to determine the very best service match for your student.  This process will continue in the fall.  While this data is being collected and services are being determined, all sixth grade AIG students will be served through a weekly enrichment opportunity called Transition Study Group.  In Transition Study Group, the AIG Specialists work with the students to consider the nature of giftedness, offer enrichment opportunities, and help the students to transition academically to the sixth grade.

Here is the process that will be used to match appropriate services to student’s determined needs:

1. All current AIG students will have a new Gifted Rating Scale completed for them by their 5th grade teachers this spring. The Gifted Rating Scale (GRS) measures motivation and five areas of gifted characteristics: Intellectual, Academic, Creativity, Artistic, and Leadership. It provides nationally-normed percentiles in each area.
2. ALL 6th grade students, including those identified as AIG, will take the Cognitive Abilities Test (CogAT) in the fall of 2015. The CogAT consists of three sections: Quantitative, Nonverbal, and Verbal. It measures a child’s thinking and reasoning, as well as their potential for learning.
3. Also in the fall, AIG students will take the Iowa Assessment. This test provides a comprehensive picture of student progress in three areas: reading, written expression, and mathematics.
4. Once all the data is collected, the AIG Services Committee will meet to determine an appropriate service match based on determined needs as described in the Asheville City Schools AIG plan. The AIG plan is available on the AIG district website. Descriptions of services are included with this correspondence.

If you have questions, please don’t hesitate to contact the AIG specialist serving your school. You may also contact our middle school specialists, Jo Landreth (jo.landreth@asheville.k12.nc.us) and Keith Buff (keith.buff@asheville.k12.nc.us).

Respectfully,

Kristin Doe, Vance Elementary and AHS/SILSA (kristin.doe@asheville.k12.nc.us)

Julie Griffith, Hall Fletcher Elementary (julie.griffith@asheville.k12.nc.us)

John Pruett, Claxton Elementary and Jones Elementary (john.pruett@asheville.nc.us)

Marti Sullivan, Dickson Elementary and AHS/SILSA (marti.sullivan@asheville.k12.nc.us)

More Paleontologists!