Jan. 30 Portales Junior High News

Future careers

Principal Steve Harris and teachers express their appreciation to businesses and employers who hosted an eighth-grade student last week for the job shadowing program. Almost all of the eighth-grade students worked with a person in a career they wished to investigate for future possibilities. That same day GEAR-UP and Eastern New Mexico University hosted the seventh-grade students on a tour of the university. Students reported that they learned quite a bit about ENMU and the programs offered. GEAR-UP, a program designed to help students learn about educational opportunities available to them, and administers several programs to help students succeed.

NAEP test scheduled

Selected eighth grade students will be taking the National Assessment of Educational Progress tests Feb. 7. This is the test that the nation uses to measure the nation’s public schools. The national level selects random schools within states, and the state education departments select a random sample of fourth- and eighth-grade students within those schools to take the tests. Test administrators from the states come to the schools to give the test to students. Subjects covered are reading, math, and science. Data from these tests will be reported in the Nation’s Report Card.

Parent visits

The junior high teachers thank all the parents who came to the parent/teacher conferences recently. When the students, parents, and school work together as a team, students benefit with the best education possible.

Basketball wraps up

Tuesday finds both the girls’ and boys’ seventh grade “A” and “B” teams and the eighth grade “A” teams in a rescheduled game with Yucca. The boys play at home, and the girls have a road trip to Clovis. Thursday finds the boys’ and girls’ eighth grade “A” and “B” teams hosting games with Dora. Tip-offs begin at 4 p.m.

Progress reports go out

Tuesday teachers give each student a progress report of work completed so far this third quarter. Typically this quarter shows a slight decline attributed to less sunshine and a let-down in spirits after the holidays. Teachers ask parents to help students over this slump, so they will learn what they need to know for success.

Early release

Wednesday finds students released from school at 1 p.m. while teachers attend Vertical Team meetings to coordinate teaching strategies. In the morning classes, students will participate in various activities for the school’s anti-bullying campaign.

This state-mandated program is implemented to make students aware of the negative side effects of bullying and to empower students to stop bullying.