trojan update - Curriculum and Resources
Transcription
trojan update - Curriculum and Resources
TROJAN UPDATE Volume One No. 3 March, 2011 On Thursday, March 3rd eight members of the Trojans football team, accompanied by Head Coach Sam Rolfe, traveled to Cragin Elementary School to participate in the school’s Love of Reading week. The players who read to the students included (left to right) T.J. Morales, Jacob Adams, Jordan Hitchye, Ian Macomber, Anthony Adun, DeMarco Grayson, Kevin Cole, and Dominic Rhodes. In This Issue: CMHS Women at UofA Mr. Hanna Wins Crystal Apple Winter Sports Results And Much, Much More! Dear Families and Friends of CatalinaAt the beginning of this school year, we conducted assemblies for each of our four grade levels to talk to students about what they needed to do to be successful. There were three essential tasks they were charged to take on: 1. Attend every class regularly. Consistently, we see that the students who struggle in school the most are the students who have the worst attendance records. 2. Complete every assignment or test to the best of your ability. Nothing affects a student’s grade more than failing to complete a required assignment. 3. Ask for help when needed. Teachers are here to assist students in any way they can. Teachers are also available to tutor students before and after school every Monday, Tuesday and Thursday. If students are true to these three commitments, they should be able to achieve what they want for themselves during their time at Catalina. Parents and guardians can help by: • Setting a designated time and place for students to do homework every night. If students say they have no homework due the next day, tell them to use that time to read a book, review class notes, or work on long-term assignments. • Talk to your kids about the work they are doing in all their classes, help them with assignments as needed and share your own experiences as a learner, both now and in your past, with them. - Continued on next page Catalina Magnet High School 3645 E. Pima Tucson, AZ 85716 Principal Rex Scott 232-8400 • Stay in touch with teachers. Every teacher at Catalina posts their grades online. To see how to access your student’s grades, go to our new school website (http://edweb.tusd1.org/Catalina/index.htm) and click on the link for Parental Access Accounts at the top of the page. You can also find phone numbers and E-mail addresses for all Catalina staff members by clicking on the link for Faculty. As a professional learning community, we are committed as educators to doing all we can to improve the quality of teaching in every classroom and to engage in focused professional learning that helps us to stay current with best practices in our field. Catalina’s staff will be working this spring and summer to create a new instructional framework for our school, with the expectation that we will develop a school wide understanding of what constitutes effective teaching and rigorous learning. We will also be deciding the approaches to planning, teaching and assessment that should be evident in each classroom, as well as determining the curricular standards that our students most need to focus on. Booster Club Scholarship All athletes are eligible to apply for a $500 scholarship from the Booster Club. The scholarship application is available in the Counseling Office. It is a simple application to fill out. In addition to the application, athletes need a letter of recommendation from a coach who can highlight the athlete’s extra-curricular activities in sports. They also need to attach a resume highlighting their goals for college and life. They should tell how they chose their goals and give examples of academic choices, clubs, activities, volunteer work and or internships they have been involved in. The Booster Club chooses one female athlete and one male athlete. Apply by April 29, 2011. Catalina is a school where many of our students and their families struggle with the daily realities of these tough economic times. Seven out of every ten students qualify for the federal free and reduced lunch program, to cite just one critical factor at play in the lives of the kids we serve. We know that other high-poverty schools in the United States have done great things on behalf of their communities and we seek to learn from their examples. Towards that goal, I will be leading a team of staff members attending the 90/90/90 Schools Summit in early May. You can read more about the summit agenda and the research underlying the work that goes on in schools that follow this model by following these links: • http://www.leadandlearn.com/conferences-events/909090schools-summit-st-louis (Summit Agenda) • http://www.leadandlearn.com/test/909090-schools-study (Research Study) Everything we do every day at Catalina should tie in to the “shared vision” we have developed for our school. Please visit the page on our website (http:// edweb.tusd1.org/Catalina/sharedvision.htm) devoted to our plans for the school and let me know your ideas, suggestions and commitments. We have taken some big steps towards fulfillment of our “shared vision” during the last year and a half, but there is so much more to do! Actually, school improvement is an ongoing task and its demands evolve with each new group of students who enter into our care. Please contact me anytime at 232-8404, or via E-mail at rex.scott@tusd1. org. Together, we can accomplish everything we hope for at Catalina. As I finish my second year leading this school, I am filled with pride and hope every day. It is the highest honor of my professional life to be your principal. Never hesitate to let me know how I can do a better job! Rex Scott Principal March, 2011 Catalina Magnet High School Page 2 What’s Cooking in Culinary Arts? Advanced Culinary students have had a busy 3rd quarter. On January 25, 20 students participated in our Thai cooking class. Students prepared 5 different dishes and shared in a great meal including; Sate Chicken, Tom Yum Kung Soup, Papaya Salad, Beef Red Curry, and Coconut Fried Banana. Third year students practiced knife cuts & apple crepes as part of the regional FCCLA competitions. Their next section is stocks, soups and sauces. Second year students have been learning the different cooking methods. They worked hard in the computer labs writing their resume and cover letters in preparation for their mock interviews on 2-17. Our JTED counselor, Mary Cassidy, arranged for 15 business members to interview our students. They received valuable feedback, and according to the interviewers, the students did an excellent job. The next day we attended an Etiquette Workshop and Luncheon at Tucson Country Club. Students not only practiced table settings but also networking techniques with table topics and getting to know students from other schools. This was the first time many of the students had tasted Chilled Cucumber Brie Soup. The food was excellent. Two students, Amber Poole and Emery Van Gilder, are competing in the Careers through Culinary Arts Program competition for scholarship money. The preliminary was Feb. 12. Emery was in the top 10 juniors for the state and Amber progressed through the preliminary and is preparing for the senior finals on March 26 by learning to prepare an entire French meal in two hours by herself. We will also have two teams of three in the FCCLA Culinary competition on April 9. The FCCLA competition is also a lot of fun and not the pressure of the C-Cap Competition. We are celebrating “Fat Tuesday” with beignets and shrimp/oyster po boy sandwiches. Next up is our Mexican luncheon on March 17 and plans for our awards luncheon at the end of the year. - Connie Campbell, Culinary Arts Teacher CMHS Marching Pride Struts Its Stuff The Trojan Marching Pride made its 2011 appearance at the 85th Annual Fiesta de los Vaquero Parade, also known as the Tucson Rodeo Parade! Wearing our Catalina band shirts, jeans and blue neckerchiefs we were greeted enthusiastically by Catalina fans all along the parade route. The band played the great standard western tune “Rawhide.” This year we were accompanied by the Catalina Varsity Cheerleaders! It was a great collaboration between the groups, and a fun time was had by all. On March 10th, the Catalina Orchestra hosted the ABODA/AMEA (Arizona Band Orchestra Directors Association/Arizona Music Educators Association) middle school orchestra festival. Catalina Orchestra members served as hosts to visiting schools and assisted the judges. We are proud to be active in the orchestral world again! Everyone put May 12th on your calendar for our 2011 Spring Concert! It will begin at 7pm in our Catalina auditorium and will feature the Catalina Orchestra, Trojan Jazz Ensemble and Trojan Wind Ensemble. Plan a family night out to enjoy some great music by our very own musicians! - Tammy Stewart, Director of Bands Page 3 Catalina Magnet High School March, 2011 Ancient Greece and Rome Debates in English Language Development World History This quarter students in the ELD World History/Reading class had the opportunity to flex their mental muscles by participating in the ancient tradition of debate. As a final project for a unit on ancient Greece and Rome, my co-teacher Kyle Pawlowski and I worked with the students on developing their critical thinking, research, cooperative, and speaking skills so that they could create effective arguments. After watching and analyzing videotaped student debates, learning key debate vocabulary (such as opposition, proposition, and refutation) formulating debates about topical issues like cell phone use at school, and April Conway, practicing the speaking format of debates, students were put in groups of three ELD Teacher or with a partner and assigned a topic related to Ancient Greece and Rome. The three topics were presented in the affirmative for Rome: Ancient Roman art had a more lasting impact than ancient Greek art; the Roman military was more effective than the Greek military; Roman inventions had a greater impact on modern society than Greek inventions. Students were provided with articles covering both sides and conducted their research by reading and filling out graphic organizers to keep track of reasons and evidence for both sides. The research was difficult as students were introduced to new vocabulary and concepts –astrolabes, arches, columns—but they persevered and once assigned a side to argue, they developed exemplary arguments. On the day of the debates the students had a diverse audience: their teachers and classmates, district representatives, and judges that included Principal Scott, ELD co-chair Meg Riley, Learning Support Coordinator Mary Morse, and a community volunteer, Javier Castillo, who also videotaped the debates. Though nervous, the students spoke strongly and eloquently. The students and judges evaluated each team and the judges gave their verdicts: teams who offered evidence directly related to their lives and who incorporated sufficient evidence from their research won the debates. CMHS Women at UofA On Saturday, March 5, I had the pleasure of accompanying nine young women from Catalina to the Women in Science and Engineering Expanding Your Horizons event at the University of Arizona. Rwa Rahal, Tosha Wilson, Mackenzie Carr, Dallas Boies, Edna Macias, Jasanna Johnson, Hailey Dukart, Luz Orduno, and Zeljka Klipic spent the day hearing and seeing talented women from many different organizations talk about their successes. They also participated in hands-on science experiments and demonstrations. The purpose of this program was to show these young ladies that they can be successful in fields that have been traditionally dominated by men. The girls were energized by the information and the encouragement they received. On the way home I asked them if we should do this again and I got a resounding - Yes! Look out world - here comes at least nine empowered young ladies who will be our future doctors, scientists, engineers, and leaders! - Mark Hanna, Career and College Readiness Counselor March, 2011 Catalina Magnet High School Page 4 Visual Arts Students wax, the first step of their Batik project. Visual Art students have been actively engaged in a variety of projects during 3rd Quarter. They have glazed, built, stamped, waxed, dyed, painted, drawn, thrown, printed, carved, constructed, planned, and designed all in the name of Art. Crafts students designed, carved and printed Chinese chops for their Presentation Books which have Batik fabric covers. - Mary-Claire Ketchum, Fine Arts Chair Fill ‘Er Up! (Your Body That Is) I don’t have time. That’s the number one answer from our students when asked: “Do you eat breakfast”? As we’ve all heard forever, breakfast is the most important meal of the day and studies have shown that students that fuel up in the morning have energy to last through the day and perform better at daily tasks and test performance. When the students tell me they don’t have time, I counter with: “Then prepare something at night”! They often look at me like I’m crazy, but I explain to them that by simply boiling a few eggs, peeling them and storing them in a container in the fridge, that makes for an excellent breakfast on the run. Couple that with a piece of fruit and maybe some toast and they are on the way to perfect. I tell the students preparing a hot cereal like Cream of Wheat or Oatmeal the night before means heating up a bowl can be done while they are brushing their teeth. I’ve stressed the importance of also starting off your day with a food low on the glycemic index, which affects our blood glucose levels. Our bodies will metabolize foods with a higher GI number faster than those with a lower Erica Addison, GI number. Food choices that are Health Teacher whole grain, less processed and lower in sugar will have a lower GI number and therefore fill up the kids long enough to make it until lunch time. You remember when your parents said that you needed to eat something that would stick to your ribs? Well, this is what they were talking about. So, the next time you are in the kitchen preparing your meal for the night, why not call little Suzy or Sam into the kitchen and encourage them to get not only that breakfast started for the next day, but maybe even their lunch! Lunch, that’s a whole other subject, but for now we focus on breakfast. Fill ‘er up! Page 5 Catalina Magnet High School March, 2011 Mr. Hanna Wins Prestigious MEC Crystal Apple Award We are pleased to announce that Mark Hanna, Catalina’s Career and College Readiness Counselor, will be this year’s recipient of a Crystal Apple Award for counseling, presented by Tucson’s Metropolitan Education Commission, which champions education in our area. The award recognizes outstanding counseling services in a Tucson-area high school. Award recipients, which include teachers and administrators, will be honored at the MEC’s 21st Annual Crystal Apple Awards Luncheon on Friday, May 6, at 11:30 a.m. at the Desert Diamond Casino & Hotel. Congratulations, Mr. Hanna, and thank you for all you do for the students at Catalina! Science News We’ve Got Worms! - “Vermicomposting” is just one of the ways that the Agriscience students learn about “sustainability”. Mrs. Elliott’s class is home to a green bin that is labeled, “A worm friendly habitat”. It is occupied by hundreds of slimy little residents. The Ag students make occasional contributions to them, like the time that Rose Hebert (FFA V.P.) rediscovered a banana that had been lost in her locker for weeks. The overly fragrant and blackened fruit was tossed into the bin and the worms began to transform it immediately. Worms will eat a variety of food waste, turning it into a nutrient-rich soil additive (compost) that can be used in place of synthetic fertilizers. Another way that the Agriscience department practices sustainability is with large barrels that capture rain water as it flows out of the gutters on the greenhouse roof. The water harvesters are located next to concrete raised beds that students built earlier in the year. The students raised a variety of vegetables from seed in the raised beds while the Catalina construction students were busy installing an irrigation system inside the greenhouse. Tomatoes and Herbs for Sale - As soon as they returned from the Christmas break, the Ag students planted a variety of tomatoes and herbs. Their early start paid off with large beautiful tomato plants that are flowering in the greenhouse now, just in time for spring planting in Early April. Varieties include: Celebrity, Cherokee Purple (heirloom), Yellow Pear, Roma and Beefmaster . Like last year, herbs are abounding in the hydroponic systems, and will provide fresh cuttings for the Catalina community. You can buy basil for your spaghetti sauce and cilantro for your salsa starting in the later half of April. High-tech Labs in the Classroom - When Patricia Cramer (FFA secretary) was asked what she liked about Agriscience labs she said, “You get the experience of learning in a fun way that makes you want to know more about what’s going on around you.” Catalina students are using “labquests”. With this new hand-held technology, students are measuring the amount of carbon dioxide that is being released and the amount of oxygen that is being consumed when seeds germinate. With a press of a button, data that was previously collected by attached probes is analyzed and a graph is created. Students can complete entire experiments in a matter of minutes. The addition of a pH probe to the device enables students to measure and properly control the pH of their hydroponic units. The new digital microscopes that were purchased this year with special funding, allow students to view specimens and manipulate their images on computer screens. The images that Ag students captured were uploaded from the microscopes and included in power point presentations. Anatomy and Physiology and Allied Health - Mr. Abate’s students will benefit from his recent attendance at the Nutrition Expo in Anaheim. He states that, “So much of good health depends on our choices in nutrition, exercise, and the reduction of obesity in our society.” - Tammy Elliott, AgriScience Teacher March, 2011 Catalina Magnet High School Page 6 Catalina Foundation Hosts Alumni Art Show Your Catalina High School Foundation is hosting a show of art by Trojan alumni and friends, March 25 through April 27, at Northern Trust Bank, 3460 E. Sunrise Drive (at Camp Abierto). Artworks will be on display during normal banking hours, 9 a.m. - 3 p.m., Monday through Friday. There are many, many affordable pieces and many are by people you may know from Catalina. 25% of the profits go to your Foundation. This is planned as a biennial event. During alternate years the Foundation will coordinate a juried Student Art Show, with work by the many current students at Catalina. Questions? Online sales? Contact Emily Kittle Morrison ‘60 at [email protected]. "Cellophane Man" Sports Medicine Students Visit Cadaver Laboratory in Mesa On Monday March 7, the Catalina Sports Medicine classes took their annual fieldtrip to A.T. Still University in Mesa to learn human anatomy in their cadaver labs. About 40 students got the opportunity to learn human anatomy from graduate and doctoral students at the university. Included in this year’s event were sessions on hardware/fixation of bones, an appendix surgery, and hand’s on learning with human cadavers in which the students had the chance to glove up and touch the ligaments, bones and muscles that they have learned about in their classes. For many students, it was an eye-opener for their future professions in the field of health care. “This unique opportunity sometimes seals the deal for these students,” says Sports Medicine Instructor, Michelle Gonzalez. “Students who really enjoy learning about the body and have a positive experience learning through the use of human cadavers usually go on to pursue careers in health care.” This opportunity allows students to take an up close look at how the bones, muscles, vessels and nerves are located within the body. “What I liked most Michelle Gonzalez, about the trip was seeing what actually Sports Medicine Teacher lies below the skin,” says junior Liliana Moreno. A.T. Still University has opened their doors to Catalina, and other TUSD Sports Medicine Classes for this annual event for the past 10 years and hope to continue this relationship. Watercolor by Lucy Masterman '61 Photo by Jeff Smith March, 2011 Catalina Magnet High School Page 7 Air Force Corps Values Air Force Corps Values include the following: Integrity First, Service Before Self and Excellence in all we do. Cadets are taught these corps values which are posted on the wall and repeated on occasion at the start of each class. The purpose is to develop a commitment and a willingness to make personal sacrifices. To teach that a leader is willing to sacrifice individual goals for the good of the unit. Robert C. Taking the third and final corps value of Excellence in All We Do, I will expand Robert Maldonado, Lt. Col., upon its meaning. The term directs us to develop a passion for continuous USAF (Ret.) improvement and innovation that will help propel us in an upward spiral of accomplishment and performance. Product/Service Excellence. We must focus on providing services and generating products that fully respond to customer wants and anticipate customer needs. Personal Excellence. We must seek out and complete our JROTC/school education and stay in physical/mental shape. Community Excellence. Community excellence is achieved when members of an organization can work together to successfully reach a common goal in an atmosphere free of fear that preserves individual selfworth. Some other factors influencing interpersonal excellence are: Mutual respect. Genuine respect involves viewing another person as an individual of fundamental worth. This means a person is never judged on the basis of his/her racial, ethnic, economic or gender-based category. Benefit of doubt: All coworkers or students are innocent until proven guilty. No one should rush to judgment until we hear the whole story. Resource Excellence: Demands we have an obligation to ensure all assigned equipment or property (curriculum materials) asked for is required and accounted for. Under human resources excellence, we need to recruit, train, promote and retain those who fit in and accept our standards. Operations Excellence: Internal—involves the way we conduct business in the JROTC and school. It involves respect and total commitment to maximizing a team effort. External—pertains to the way we treat the world around us. Need to be sensitive to the rules that govern us. 2010-11 Finding My Voice is Here! The annual Finding My Voice magazine is ready to read! Thank you to all of the authors, their teachers, and the wonderful friends at Catalina and in the Tucson community that make this publication possible. The stories and art work of over 100 international students are included. Congratulations Finding Voice students! Get your copy now and learn about Catalina’s global community. Copies are $6 and can be picked up in Ms. Kasper’s classroom, M219. WRITING AND ART BY INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS IN THE TUCSON COMMUNITY CATALINA MAGNET HIGH SCHOOL – TUCSON, ARIZONA SPRING, 2011 Page 8 Catalina Magnet High School March, 2011 Winter Sports Update Catalina’s Winter Sports (Boys and Girls Basketball, Boys and Girls Soccer, and Wrestling) continued to maintain an established “Tradition” at the end of their regular season. At all levels of competition, teams strive to have the opportunity to participate in post season tournaments. All of Catalina’s Winter Sport Teams qualified again this year for State Tournaments. LEARN Center Holds Annual Student Mock Job Interviews The LEARN Center held its annual Mock Job Interviews in early February in our Catalina Library. Prior to the interviews, the juniors and seniors in Marge Gould’s English for the 21st Century Workplace classes prepared Employability Skills Portfolios to present to their interviewers. Each student selected two jobs to interview for and then visited the websites of both employers to learn about the companies or organizations . Students were coached by Mr. Mark Hanna prior to the interviews. For the Mock Job Interviews, the students, in business attire presented their portfolios to their interviewers, who completed a brief evaluation of each interview. Some of the students in Mr. Trumbull’s Aviation classes were also invited to participate in the Mock Job Interviews. Tucson area employers who participated in the interviews included Raytheon, IBM, Cox Communications, Comcast, Jim Click Automotive, Diamond Ventures, Pima County Juvenile Probation, Lockheed Martin, Martin, Mesch, Clark, & Rothschild, National Wright Realty, Sundt, Texas Instruments, Tucson Federal Credit Union, Vantage West Credit Union, Tucson Medical Center, University Physicians, Venus By Mars (plastic surgery) , U.S. Forest Service, U of A Credit-Wise Cats, and others. - Marge Gould, Catalina LEARN Center Director Page 9 Catalina Magnet High School March, 2011 The opportunity to participate this year was largely due to a special organization called “The Educational Enrichment Foundation.” This organization helped to keep all three Winter Sports Team’s “Tradition” alive. The Foundation sponsored 80 Catalina students that applied and qualified for a $50.00 scholarship to pay their Sports Participation Fee. Catalina is thankful for the community and to the business owners in Tucson that donated money to the EEF. It is always appropriate to celebrate and acknowledge the students that participated on our Winter Sport Teams. On behalf of Catalina and its community, help us to celebrate and acknowledge our Basketball Coaches, Soccer Coaches, Wrestling Coaches, Athletic Trainer, Booster Club, Team Parents, Educational Enrichment Foundation, and all other support staff that helped Catalina’s Winter Teams reach their goal. Thank you for your help with keeping Catalina’s Athletic traditions alive! - Ken Harcus, Athletic Director From the Math Department We would like to remind you of the importance of homework and good study habits. Homework is a very important part of mastering math skills. Math is a very complex subject, and it is important that the skills learned in class are reinforced as soon as possible. It is usually helpful to do your homework in a quiet, well lit place with minimal distraction. It is also helpful to set up a routine of doing your homework at a certain time each day. If you keep up with your math homework, the class will be easier and your grade will benefit. Michael McGlynn, Math Department Chair We have tutoring available: Tutoring is available after school in the library on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursday from 2:45- 4:15. You can also make arrangements with your regular math teacher for help before or after school. Help is always just a question away. Don’t be shy. If you are planning to go to the U of A or Pima College, you will need to take a placement test for your math classes. This is a comprehensive test so it is important that you study before the exam. There will be material on the test that you may not have worked with for quite awhile. See a math teacher if you need help. All you have to do is ask. Tidbits from the Gym Testing Time: Things down in the gym are getting heated. As we speak the PE department is in the midst of their mid semester testing. All of the classes are testing in 11 activities including the mile run, sit-ups, push-ups, and the 100 yard dash. At the conclusion of testing the PE department will post a list of the top 5 individuals in each event by grade as well as the top five overall. The tests will then be done again at the end of the 2nd semester. Rosa Lara, Dance Dance Revolution: Ms. Lara and her dance classes are in the PE Department Chair process of preparing for a performance at the next Pep Assembly on April 8th. The class led by Mr. Rojas has been working extremely hard on moves to the dance that they call the MJ Mix. The MJ of course stands for Michael Jackson and the dance includes moves from the Tango, Triple Time Swing, Waltz, other ballroom dances, and of course, some moves made popular by MJ himself. Way Beyond the Weights: The Body Conditioning classes are in full swing. The classes purpose is not only to allow students to lift free weights but also to teach the classes about overall fitness. In the classes the students alternate between lifting and cardio vascular activities. In Mr. Rolfe’s classes the students are working with jump ropes, and stair steppers. The goal is to get the students interested in their own personal fitness and it seems to be working. March, 2011 Catalina Magnet High School Page 10 Tucson Shooting Sparks Dialogue Between Catalina Students and French Journalist Back in early January, while watching the news and reading online about the horrific events of the shooting, a column in one of France’s largest newspapers (www.lefigaro.com) caught my eye. I decided to write to the columnist, and she decided to post my comment and then replied to it. I thought it would be good to process some of this with the students the next day—so in my second year French class we talked about international points of view and how Tucson, unfortunately, made frontpage news all around the world. So the students wanted to see some of the headlines—I showed them, we discussed them, and then this column came up. The students were intrigued by the ‘conversation’ the journalist and I had. They thought it would be cool to write a message back to the journalist, as a class. And then, an hour or so later, the columnist in France decided to post the class remarks on the newspaper’s website, and then to e-mail the class with her commendation! So--here’s what our students (with some grammatical coaching) wrote, and below is the translation: Nous avons pensé que tous ces commentaires ont été intéressants. Nous sommes un groupe d’élèves dans une classe de français dans une école secondaire ici à Tucson, et nous avons entre 14 et 18 ans. Nous sommes choqés par les événements ici. Personne ne peut vraiment expliquer toutes les raisons pourquoi ce qui s’est passé ici s’est passé. Il est fascinant de savoir que tant de personnes de si loin sont concernées. Translation: We thought that all these comments have been interesting. We are a group of students in a high school French class in Tucson, and we are between 14 and 18 years old. We are shocked by the events here. Nobody can truly explain all the reasons why what happened here happened. It is fascinating to know that so many people from so far away are concerned. -Joseph Cyr, French/Spanish teacher The journalist and I hope that these students will start to make a habit of getting an international perspective on things, using their budding reading ability in a foreign language to see the larger world from more than just one point of view. Congratulations to AFJROTC Cadets Luke Lehrling and Sierra Perez. They finished FOURTH in the Co-Ed Division of the Orienteering Competition, February 26th at Bomboy Mine, AZ. Way to go, Trojans! PAGE 11 Catalina Magnet High School March, 2011 Catalina Wrestling Spanish class singing Juanes’ “Nada Valgo Sin tu Amour” EEF Grant Awarded to World Language Department Natasha Escalada-Westland has extensive experience working with the hearing impaired community in Tucson. Recently she has been brainstorming how she could get her students to transfer the signing skills they are learning in the classroom to a more authentic setting. She approached the World Language Department with the idea of developing a “Local Authentic Language Use Library” where students will collect narratives and oral histories from local native speakers. Together we agreed that such a library would be useful in helping students to increase fluency in any language. In February we were awarded a grant of $960 toward the purchase of technology to help fund this project. Beginning in the 20112012 school year our upper level language students will begin to collect the narratives and we hope to culminate the project with a public forum to showcase the student work and library of real-world language examples. Southern Arizona Language Fair Another exciting upcoming event is the Southern Arizona Language Fair to be held on Saturday, April 2 from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at the University of Arizona. Several second language students from American Sign Language, French and Spanish will be participating this year. The contests range from poetry recitation, drama and art. Our American Sign Language classes will also be giving a performance at the fair. There will be informational booths for the U of A Modern Languages programs, cultural demonstrations including music and dancing. A fun time will surely be had by all. Come join us if you can! - Alicia Lara, Spanish Teacher and World Language Dept. Chair Page 12 Catalina Magnet High School March, 2011 Congratulations to all 2010-2011 Trojan Wrestlers! During this past season, eight standout seniors wrestled their final matches and a number of younger wrestlers displayed their readiness for varsity competition. The new crop of freshman showed their inexperience, but also their willingness to compete, as Joey Morales (135 lbs.), Ricardo Carranza (112), and Sofus Nielsen (112) all earned varsity letters. Junior Kevin Cole (189) was the lone underclassman to qualify for state, narrowly missing an opportunity to knock off the #1-ranked wrestler in the first round. Seniors Marcos Valles (152), Hilario Rojas (215), Andres Carino (285) and Ian MacOmber (171) also made the trip to Prescott, where they would finish their careers on a strong note. Rojas came within one match of placing, while MacOmber wrestled the best tournament of his career, placing 6th in only his third year of wrestling. All five state qualifiers were also named “Honorable Mention” for the Arizona Daily Star All-Southern Arizona team. - Eric Slabaugh, Wrestling Coach at ing cr e re or PD F th is int ing pr m fro es tri cte d ex pli cit ly r e ar ny or th Pu bli sh ing PAGE 13 Co m pa ny On lin e De sig n Pr oo f- Co py rig h tW als wo rth Pu bli s hin g Co m pa ny - On ly pr ov ide d as a pr oo fP DF -P rin te rs ot he rt ha n W als wo rth Pu bli sh ing Co m pa Have you purchased your all-color 2010-2011 yearbook? The cost is only $70! Put a $20 payment down and reserve your copy today! See Ms. Herlein in the Finance Office! 14 Catalina Magnet High School March, 2011 Ms. Curtis Says: ATTENDANCE, ATTENDANCE! Here we are at the final quarter of the 2010-2011 school year. I am sure you agree the year has gone by extremely quickly and the remaining few months will fly by in the same manner. It is extremely important that you focus on excellent attendance and being in school every day, every class on time. If you have 10 or more unexcused absences you will receive a “NC” on your report card and will have to go through the appeal process to see IF your credit and grades will be granted. Make sure all absences are reported to attendance wuth 48 hours and make sure you are in school. It has been a great year and soon we will be talking graduation and summer so let’s focus on hard work in all classes and fantastic attendance so we can move forward. - Susan Curtis, Dropout Prevention Specialist Trojans Get Special Golf Lessons This year, Ms. Fortier’s class was invited to a the Tucson Conquistadores 4-Hole Tournament and Putting clinic along with Ms. Fontain’s class from Flowing Wells High School. This event was a special event for the Special Olympians from Arizona. After we spent the morning receiving putting and golfing lessons, we were treated to a lunch at the El Rio golf course. The students had a great time socializing with other schools and had a great learning experience. The staff from Tucson Conquistadores were very kind and helpful with the students. - Jackie Fortier, Exceptional Education Teacher Restorative Practices Update Over the past two quarters, Restorative Practices has demonstrated great promise to alleviate teaching and learning barriers. Many students, parents and teachers have come to recognize the role of the Learning Supports Coordinator as an advocate to improve classroom climate and provide avenues to increase student and teacher success. Classroom requests for restoring or assisting in building a strong community have increased and demonstrated positive reception from the students and faculty involved. Additionally, student requests for conferences with their teachers to address concerns for grades, attendance and behavior have proven the self-reflective and mature approach to identifying their needs as responsible learners. An increase in whole class and individual student teacher conferences are only two of the constructive shifts occurring on the CMHS campus. In addition to moving toward building even more effective and positive interactions between students and teachers, students are working hard toward establishing stronger relationships with one another. They are taking the time to be proactive and requesting staff assistance in eliminating conflicts or repairing harm to peer relationships that they recognize impact their ability to reach academic goals. Parents have also done a wonderful job of providing support and helping to build community by visiting campus, shadowing their student, and conferencing with school personnel. Every day, Catalina proves to be an amazing example of teamwork, as students, families, staff and community work to create an institution celebrated for its diversity, academics and collaboration. I am proud to play a role in continuing to make our school a positive place for learning! - Mary Morse, Learning Support Coordinator PAGE 14 Catalina Magnet High School March, 2011 Dodgeball is a, um, Hit! The third annual Catalina Dodgeball Association of Catalina (yes, we know it is redundant) was held on Saturday March 12 in the Hines Gym. Eighteen teams of students, alumni and staff made it the largest turnout in the three years the tournament has been put on. The teams were separated into three pools of six teams and they each played all the members of their pool. After pool play the teams were put into a single elimination March Madness-style tournament. The finals saw an epic battle between the Little Dudes and Dirty Meli and The Boys. The game saw the Little Dudes jump out to a two game to none lead but Dirty Meli and the Boys put on a valiant comeback to tie it up after four games. In the fifth and final game Dirty Meli and the Boys were able to hold off a tough challenge from the Little Dudes to to hold on for the victory. In the consolation match it was the Clan versus the Junior Mafia with the Clan pulling out the victory and taking the final spot on the podium. Overall the event was a huge success. Congratulations go out to all the teams that participated but especially the top three teams. Student Council is looking forward to next years event. Also stay tuned for the Student Council’s Karaoke Contest coming up in late April where all proceeds will go to the Hole in the Wall Camps. - Sam Rolfe, PE Teacher and Dodgeball Expert From Your FBLA and Link Crew FBLA and Link Crew have been busy this whole year. For FBLA, in the month of November we put together and collected food for Stuff-A-Sack for Catalina’s families in need. In December we collected and put together shoe boxes full of toys and supplies. Then we wrapped the boxes and donated them to Casa De Los Niños. Also in December the students got a chance to go to Phoenix for the 3rd Annual Pursue the Passion Conference and then attended a Phoenix Suns Basketball Game. The up coming events in March are Fill-A-Closet and our Go Green Campaign. For Fill-A-Closet we are asking all of the homerooms at Catalina to donate any pieces of clothing so we can stock the Catalina Wellness Center. Our Go Green Campaign is to make Catalina aware of the different ways we can all Go Green. In April we are attending an Etiquette Breakfast at Denny’s, to learn and practice proper table manners. For Link Crew, we have been in the freshmen classes teaching them important life lessons. As a part of the business classes, the seniors had a chance to participate in Mock Interviews. From what the interviewers said, they all did excellent. As for the end of the year we are having an awards celebration to celebrate the great year we have had! - Nancy Dettman, FBLA and Link Crew Sponsor PAGE 15 Catalina Magnet High School March, 2011 English department update [ACADEMICS] - Students have been busy testing for the Arizona’s Instrument to Measure Standards (AIMS) reading and writing exams this March. The writing test was administered on March 1st and the reading test on March 2nd. Results for these exams will be available at the end of May. [THE YEAR AHEAD] - The English Department is excited to share some news about changes to the curriculum. Starting next year, juniors and seniors will have more options when configuring their schedules. Juniors and seniors are able to now register for newly offered English classes such as Mythology and Folklore, Holocaust and War, and much, much more! These courses are district-approved alternatives to English 11 and 12. These satisfy all requirements for college-bound students. [REMINDERS] - Students are always in need of the following supplies: tissues, paper, pencils. Also, help is available! Students that need assistance writing papers or raising their grade in English can attend tutoring Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday, 2:45-4:15 PM, in Catalina’s library. [OUR THANKS] - The department would like to thank all the student teachers that have spent time with us third quarter: Melissa Walker, Ms. McLeod’s English Class, and Evan English, Ms. Reilly’s English Class. - Elizabeth McLeod, English Teacher Library and Book Club News The Book Club has been very busy the past few months collecting recipes for their Catalina Cookbook and preparing for the Tucson Festival of Books. The Catalina Book Club sponsored a district-wide bookmark contest, had the best bookmarks laminated and gave them away at the TUSD School Libraries and School/ Community Services booth. They also hosted a nationally renowned author of Young Adult books, Aprilynne Pike, who came to Catalina and spoke to about 10 classes on Friday, March 11. Members have also been busy doing fund-raising for a club trip in May – we want to visit the main public library in Los Angeles and book publisher. Last year we went to the Burton Barr library in Phoenix. We had a private viewing and presentation in the special collections room. We also visited the U of A’s new EBM. If you would like to support the Book Club, please make a tax credit donation to our club. Ultimately, we would like to go to Washington DC to see the Library of Congress, the Newseum, and the Smithsonian next year. That is going to be a lot of bake sales, so if you support our goal, please donate. Library information – Mrs. Beran is still collecting decent sofas, chairs, and coffee tables for our reading area in the library. If you are thinking of remodeling, please consider us when looking for a new home for your old furniture. We also accept donations of old magazines that we send to classrooms for class libraries and projects. For more info on any of the above, call Mrs. Beran, 232-8424, or email [email protected]. - Cheryl Beran, Librarian The Trojan Update Volume One, No. 3 March, 2011 The Trojan Update is a quarterly publication of Catalina Magnet High School. All rights reserved. Produced by Unicycle Press, a subsidiary of The Banana Group. Published on a Mac, of course, using Adobe inDesign CS5, Photoshop CS5 Extended, and a 64 ounce bottle of La Costena Pickled Jalapeno Nacho Slices. Staff members’ photos with backdrops by LifeTouch Photography. View this edition in color at Catalina’s website: http://edweb.tusd.k12.az.us/Catalina/. PAGE 16 Catalina Magnet High School March, 2011