Mrs. Johnson's Social Studies

Spring Break

2007-04-10T07:02:00.000-07:00

Dearest Starfish,

I hope you are enjoying your spring break. Before you know it, your seventh grade experience will be a thing of the past. William Shakespeare once said, "We know what we are, but know not what we may be." I hope you take a moment this week to reflect on your growth, not only physical, but your emotional and intellectual growth as well. I am proud of each of you. You have come so far since the beginning of the school year. I can't wait to see where you will go!

See you on Monday!

Love,
Mrs. J

November already?

2006-11-06T11:27:00.000-08:00

My goodness! We've already flown through one 9 weeks. Report cards are going home tomorrow.

We've had some really exciting things happening lately. On Friday, MCMS participated in a Mock National Election. The students, faculty and many community members voted on Issues in the 2006 campaign. Our local results were submitted to the state office, which in turn will submit to a national office. If you would like to see the latest national results, check out http://www.nationalmockelection.org/2006_results_issues.html. Soon, I will post the local results on the school home page.

Also, this week the student body will be voting for student council officers. Candidates have prepared campaign videos which will be shown before the voting begins. The student council has had an amazing interest this year. I know we will see great things from this group!

Love,
Mrs. J.

Wow!

2006-10-05T13:34:00.001-07:00

Friends and Starfish Family,

Wow! I can't believe how fast time is flying. I hear the kids say everyday that my class goes by fast. I'll take that as a good thing. "Time flies when you're having fun!"

We have an amazing group of kids this year. Thank you for sharing your children with us. I'm off to watch the final soccer game... Go Lady Minutemen!!

Love,
Mrs. J.

Student Comment Reminder

2006-10-05T13:34:00.000-07:00

Students,
For your safety, I must reject comments that contain your first and last names. If you will resubmit your post with only your first name, it will be posted to the blog. Thanks for visiting my blog site. :-) Love, Mrs. J.

New School Year

2006-08-08T07:40:00.000-07:00

I can't believe summer is coming to a close. It seems like we just ended the 2005-06 school year. My family and I had a really nice summer. We took one trip in June to Alabama for my grandfather's 80th birthday party. I was very happy that we could be there to share that special day.

In July, we spent a week in Florida at Walt Disney World. It was the first time my children had been there and it was great to see the "Disney magic" through their young eyes. We had so much fun that we plan to stay for two weeks the next time we go!

As we begin the 2006-07 school year, I hope that my students from last year will stop by to say hello when they have the chance. I would love to hear about your summer adventures and how the 8th grade will be going. To my Starfish Team students, I cannot wait to meet you and get to know you. I am very excited about being able to work with you this year. I know we will have a wonderful year together!

Love,
Mrs. Johnson

Dolphin Team Poetry Madness Finalists

2006-05-08T08:41:00.000-07:00

The following poem was written by a Dolphin that made it to the final round of Poetry Madness in Language Arts. Congratulations for making the final round, Shannon! We were all very proud of you!

Living Our Life
By: Shannon

Welcome to the most complex thing you will ever face.
To the many steps that will each take you to a different place.
Some wounds seem as if they will never mend,
Some friendships may never end.
School stereotypes are untrue,
How do you feel when someone labels you?
You're a cheerleader so you're a prep,
And everyone follows just to be in step.
You're intelligent so you're a nerd,
How can we get across the right word?
Some people try to break you,
But don't let them make you.
Though some things don't seem to go your way,
In your mind they should not stay.
Some things are full of excitement and fun,
And these are the things that are worth a ton.
But if discouraging things or emotions start to attack,
We all know who is there to hold our back.
Some elements seem so confusing.
Does it sometime feel as if you are loosing,
A battle too big for you to fight?
Is it sometimes hard to do what's right?
Peer pressure we do not need,
So all listeners take heed.
This confusing jumble of pleasure and problems,
Are set in a course so that we can solve them.
Many people call this, "what we live"
It is our life, the things we give
It is short, so live it long and live it well,
But what will happen next, no one can tell
Who knows what is at stake?
But whatever life is, its what you make.

Spring Break

2006-04-21T07:19:00.000-07:00

Spring Break is coming to a close, which means we are on the last leg of the school year. Time has really been flying. It won't be long until all of my darling Dolphins will be heading over to the 8th grade hall to be Navigators or Blue Marlins. But we all know that they will always be Dolphins at heart... *sniff, sniff*

We are now covering the physical geography of Southwest and Central Asia. I hope you will check out the Daily Agenda on my website to see what we are covering on a day to day basis.

Thank you!

2006-03-22T17:29:00.000-08:00

I'd just like to take the time to send out a quick thank you to all of my students! We have been talking extensively about reading strategies, note taking strategies and ways to self-check for reading comprehension. While learning and perfecting skills such as these is not a glamourous lesson, it is a necessary one that will benefit the students for years and years to come!

So... thank you, students, for remaining positive and optimistic! You guys have been working very hard at taking an active role in your education. Congratulations! :-) Love, Mrs. J.

Student Comments

2006-03-20T16:43:00.000-08:00

Time flies when you're having fun...

2006-03-09T09:06:00.000-08:00

I cannot believe that this nine weeks will be coming to a close so soon. It seems like we just began this new term. Progress reports will be issued on March 14th. The end of this nine weeks is March 29th. Please expect report cards to come home on April 10th.

The Fever 1793 unit was a great success. According to feedback from the students, it seems as though it was a hit from the student's perspective as well. We can't wait to implement it again next year.

Please talk with your student about what they are learning about Asia. Right now, we are learning about the physical geography of East Asia.

A huge thank you goes out to the friends and families of the Dolphin Team who sent snacks and drinks and volunteered to serve the students after the state writing test on Tuesday, March 7th. As always, your support is greatly appreciated!

2nd Quarter Final

2006-01-27T09:07:00.000-08:00

The Dolphin Team took the 2nd Quarter Final this morning. Because I know all of our sweet darlings studied, I look forward to seeing the test results.

A huge thank you goes out to the Dolphin friends and family who made donations and/or volunteered to serve refreshments to the students during the break after the exam. Your kindness was greatly appreciated by all!

In Social Studies, we will soon move on to our studies of Asia. But before we begin, the Dolphin Team will complete an interdisciplinary unit on the novel Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson. This means that all of the core classes will be conducting lessons based on the information from the novel as they pertain to our class. We know it is going to be an exciting unit and all of the team teachers are looking forward to it.

Have a great weekend!

Dolphins

2006-01-26T06:45:00.000-08:00

Welcome to my blog site! I am so happy to be a part of the Dolphin Team and the MCMS community. I am starting this blog to establish better communication with the students, parents and friends of the Dolphin Team at Morehead City Middle. Please check back often for updates.

Tomorrow, January 27th, we will be having our 2nd Quarter Final. The test will be 80 multiple choice questions long. The study guide for Social Studies was handed out in class and may also be found on my website.