Waggoner's Word - April 24, 2015

April 24, 2015

Dear Parents,

Calendar of Events for the Week of April 27^th-May 2^st

Thursday, April 30^th: Boys and Girls Soccer @ Deerpark MS 5PM

Thursday, April 30^th: Theater Performance 7-8PM in the Hopewell Cafeteria

Friday, May 1^st: Spring Pictures

Friday, May 2^nd: Theater Performance 7-8PM in the Hopewell Cafeteria

Saturday, May 2^nd: Band Solo Ensemble @ Deerpark MS 8:00AM – 3:30PM

FOLLOW MR. WAGGONER ON TWITTER:

Please follow me on Twitter@KarlWaggoner where I will be posting summaries and pictures of Hopewell school events as well as some personal things.  It’s easy, just do a Twitter search and type in KarlWaggoner and click to follow me.

GIFT CARD DONATON THANK YOU:

I want to thank the pastor, Linda McWhorter and her congregation of Round Rock Christian Church for donating many gift cards to our school to use as incentives and rewards for student accomplishments and behavior. Round Rock Christian Church is providing a way for us to do that and I thank them for their gifts on behalf of our staff.  

AWARDS ASSEMBLY RE-CAP:

Parents, we held our 4^th and 5^th six weeks reporting period awards assembly for our students during advisory prior to all three lunches.  The A and AB Honor Roll list is posted at the end of each 6 weeks reporting period in the upper commons for everyone to review.  Congratulations to those students that earned teacher and honor roll awards.  Well done Hornets!

We had three amazing young ladies, Maritza Lugo, Autumn Logston, and Olivia Sailor who were recognized and honored for their amazing performances at the Austin area Harp Ensemble Festival last Saturday, April 18^th.  Our students have so much talent in so many areas-very impressive kids!

AMERICAN HEROES MILITARY WEEKEND FOR OUR JUNIOR HISTORIANS:

Our Hopewell Junior Historians volunteered once again at this year’s American Heroes Weekend this past April 18^th and 19^th.  This was quite an honor as our club is a member of the Texas Military Youth Forces Program.  It was a memorable two days with lots of student volunteering, working with the public/patrons and with the dependents and their families of our military veterans, as well as getting involved in the many offered festivities.  The students spent time at the traveling Vietnam Wall Memorial and attending one of the best WW2 battle re-enactments in the United States!  Thanks to sponsors Ron Goins, Charles Nugent and Heather Byrd for all their time, love and energy with our kids and for providing this memorable experience for them. 

SIGNIFICANT MIDDLE SCHOOL MATH TEK CHANGES THIS SCHOOL YEAR:

Here are some stats for each grade level’s new 2014-2015 Math TEKS (Texas Essential Knowledge Skills) as designed by the TEA. (Texas Education Agency)  These are the state standards that our curriculum is based and built on for our students.  They are then tested (STAAR) on these TEKS and our schools are measured and rated by the results.  I believe that it’s important for our parents to understand exactly what each grade level’s TEKS contain which in all three grades levels grades 6-8, is now a more accelerated curriculum than last year.  It is very important to keep in mind when deciding with their math teachers to be in accelerated math or not.  More and more of the TEKS contain more abstract, Algebraic or Pre-Algebraic objectives and accentuate critical thinking at the application levels and beyond.  Below is a breakdown of the new TEKS that our teachers have been working hard to stay on top of!

6^th Grade:

Of the 38 TEKS

23 are current regular 6^th grade TEKS

7 are last year’s 7^th grade TEKS

5 are last year’s 8^th grade TEKS

3 are last year’s Algebra TEKS

55% of the TEKS this year are BRAND NEW content to 6^th grade

7^th Grade:

Of the 34 TEKS

1 is last year’s regular 6^th grade TEKS

25 are current regular 7^th grade TEKS

8 are last year’s 8^th grade TEKS

39% of the TEKS this year are BRAND NEW content to 7^th grade

8^th Grade:

Of the 41 TEKS

1 is last year’s regular 7^th grade TEKS

27 are current regular 8^th grade TEKS

8 are last year’s Algebra One TEKS

5 are last year’s Geometry One TEKS

39% of the TEKS this year are BRAND NEW content to 8^th grade

As you can see, the rigor is ramped up big time and accelerated at least one year over the past couple of years.  6^th graders had the most profound changes this year and the overall number of TEKS per grade level has significantly increased.  Sixth graders must now learn all four operations (+, -, x, and divide) of fractions, decimals, and integers.  Sixth grade is the foundation year and it’s crucial that our students solidly learn those fundamentals and concepts to be successful in the upper middle school grades and into high school.  Any support you can give your children at home with these new TEKS and concepts would help them immensely!

RRISD TEACHER JOB FAIR THIS SATURDAY:

I will be at the Round Rock ISD Teacher Job Fair at Stony Point HS this weekend seeking teachers to fill some positions that I have open for next school year.  We are going back to TEAMING next school year and I firmly believe that is the best middle school structure for our kids.  We will break up our 325+ students per grade level into three smaller learning communities.  Those four core teachers will truly get to know their students, will meet weekly to discuss student issues and concerns, and develop strategies to help them be more successful.  I will need new teachers to fill core academic teaching positions so that I have three Math, Language Arts, Science and Social Studies teachers per grade level.  This will also decrease our class sizes so that more teacher attention can be given to each student in those core academic classes.  This year, we have many core classes over 30.  Next year my goal is to have zero core classes over 30. 

Karl

Waggoner's Word - April 17, 2015

April 17, 2015



Dear Parents,



Calendar of Events for the Week of April 20th-24th:

Monday, April 20th: STAAR Math Test for 8th graders (Closed Campus)

Tuesday, April 21st: STAAR Math for 6th and 7th graders & Social Studies for 8th graders (Closed Campus)

Wednesday, April 22nd: STAAR Reading for 6th and 7th graders & Science for 8th graders (Closed Campus)

Wednesday, April 22nd: Hopewell Big Band Concert 7-8PM Cafeteria      

Thursday, April 23rd: Boys and Girls Soccer vs. CD Fulkes 5PM @ Hopewell field

Friday, April 24th: 8th Grade Movie Night



3 NO HOMEWORK NIGHTS DUE TO STAAR:

There will be no homework assigned or any before or after school activities Monday through Wednesday of next week due to STAAR testing.  Also, please make sure that your children get a good solid 8 hours sleep the night before their STAAR tests.            

CAFETERIA NEWS:

During STAAR testing week, April 2 - April 24, every RRISD student is eligible to receive FREE SCHOOL BREAKFAST.

All school cafeterias will be getting a new Point of Sale meal checkout system.  All schools will be transitioned to this advanced level of service by Monday April 27. There will be no disruption to service and students will continue to use their current IDs or PIN to purchase their meals and food items. The change in POS system will also mean a change in the online payment service system.  PayPams will be replaced with MySchoolBucks. MySchoolBucks will launch in coordination with the new POS system.  All balances will be seamlessly transferred from the previous system to the new system.  For more information, including key transition dates please refer to the postcard mailed home or visit the Food Service website at https://roundrockisd.org/departments/food-services/  Every day we strive to provide world class food and service to the students and staff of RRISD.

CLOSED CAMPUS APRIL 20TH-22ND DUE TO STAAR:

STAAR testing will occur April 20th-22nd. We will have a closed campus and visitors will be limited to the front office.  All three grade levels will be testing on Tuesday and Wednesday, April 21st and 22nd. To ensure students have 4 uninterrupted hours to test and eat lunch at an appropriate time, the cafeteria will be serving sack lunches on these days. Sack lunches provided by the cafeteria are the same price as regular lunches and usually contain a cold sandwich, fruit, chips and milk. If you do not want your child to purchase a sack lunch on these testing days, they may bring their own lunch from home to eat after testing.  Due to the closed campus and the uncertain schedules, we ask that you do not drop off lunches on these testing days, April 20th -22nd. Thanks!

HOPEWELL SPIRIT NIGHT AT DELL DIAMOND FOR THE RR EXPRESS GAME POSTPONED:

Due to a lack of interest and too many events happening in May, we are going to postpone the Hopewell Spirit Night on May 15th to August and a TBD date.  If you still want to go and support the express that night please do so and enjoy the game!  The RR Express will still give back money to Hopewell for any ticket purchases up to today's date.

UIL CHOIR RESULTS:

The Non-Varsity Women's Choir got Excellent Ratings on Stage and Straight Superior Ratings in Sight-Reading.  The Non-Varsity Guys Choir got Superior Ratings on Stage AND in Sight-Reading, earning them a Sweepstakes - also giving them the title of the FIRST Hopewell Guys choir in school history to ever earn a Sweepstakes!  BRAVO!!  The Varsity Women competed at UIL this afternoon.  These ladies earned Excellent ratings on Stage and Superior (1s) in Sight-reading.  This makes another "historical" moment at Hopewell - ALL UIL choirs earned 1s in Sight-reading this year!  Congratulations to these ladies and to all of our Hopewell choir students on a wonderfully, successful year at UIL.

ORCHESTRA SOLO-ENSEMBLE RESULTS:

Over 100 Hopewell orchestra members participated in Solo and Ensemble contest on April 11, 2015. There were over twenty ensembles and fifty solos that performed for a judge.  The vast majority of musicians received medals for superior performance, with the others receiving commendation for excellence. These students worked very hard to prepare for this competition and represented our school exceptionally well!  Congratulations!

CELL PHONE REMINDER:

As you know, we have instructed our students to keep their cell phones turned off and put away during instructional time. Teachers will be picking up phones that are out in class unless being used for an instructional purpose.  Students are not to be on or using their phones during our five minute passing periods as well.  If students need to get a hold of a parent they may use our office phone.  Additionally, if you need to get a hold of your child, please do not call or text them during school hours.  Please call the main office and we will get the message promptly to your child. We appreciate your support with this initiative.

CELEBRATION OF FAMILIES TOMORROW:

The April 18 Celebration of Families 5K benefiting Project Graduation at all 5 high schools – Cedar Ridge, McNeil, Round Rock, Stony Point and Westwood – still has open spots for registration.  The chip-timed 5K will start at Round Rock High School, 201 Deep Wood Dr., at 8 a.m. with registration at 7:30 a.m. The cost is $20 for RRISD employees and students, $25 for everyone else. Registration ends Wednesday April 15.  Awards will be presented to overall female & male winners, overall masters female & male winners, and top 3 females & males in the following age groups: 10 & under, 11-14, 15-19, 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, 60 & older. No duplication of awards.  The race will be the start of a FREE morning of wellness activities and parent/student workshops as part of the Celebration of Families. For more information on that event, please click here.



Karl



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Waggoner's Word - April 10, 2015

April 10^th, 2015

Dear Parents,

Calendar of Events for the Week of April 13^th-20^th

Saturday, April 11^th: Orchestra solo and ensemble contest at Hopewell MS all day

Monday, April 13^th: Boys and Girls soccer parent informational meeting 5PM in the Cafeteria

Wednesday, April 15^th: Choir Concert and Sight Reading Contest at the RRISD PAC

Thursday, April 16^th: Choir Concert and Sight Reading Contest at the RRISD PAC

Thursday, April 16^th: Boys and Girls Soccer Vs. Cedar Valley.  Girls @ 5:00PM, Boys @ 6:15PM

Friday, April 17^th: GO GREEN Celebration #5

Friday, April 17^th: Georgetown Jazz Festival

6th GRADE PARENTS:
ALL 7th grade students are required by Texas Law to have TDAP, Meningococcal, and Varicella #2 (if no history of chicken pox disease) BEFORE they can start the 7th grade with no exceptions. If your child recently received their immunizations as described above, or will be getting their immunizations over the summer, please remember to send a copy of the updated verified record to our school nurse, Jamie Mayfield.  Please make sure that you take care of this very important, pre-first day of school obligation to ensure that your child can start off the school year in class.  Thanks!

STAAR TESTING INFORMATION

STAAR testing will occur April 20th-22nd. We will have a closed campus and visitors will be limited to the front office.  All three grade levels will be testing on Tuesday and Wednesday, April 21st and 22nd. To ensure students have 4 uninterrupted hours to test and eat lunch at an appropriate time, the cafeteria will be serving sack lunches on these days. Sack lunches provided by the cafeteria are the same price as regular lunches and usually contain a cold sandwich, fruit, chips and milk. If you do not want your child to purchase a sack lunch on these testing days, they may bring their own lunch from home to eat after testing.  Due to the closed campus and the uncertain schedules, we ask that you do not drop off lunches on these testing days, April 20th -22nd. Thanks!

Austin Monthly magazine rankings of Austin area middle schools:

Please check out the link below and see where Hopewell Middle School ranks among all the middle schools in the Austin Metro area.  We are ranked #26 out of hundreds of middle schools.  This is an incredible confirmation of the exceptional school your children attend and the rigorous, relevant instruction our staff delivers every day.  Hopewell is a safe school, a place where students are learning at high levels, and where they are prepared for the next level.  Thanks for your continued support as we strive to be even better. 

http://www.austinmonthly.com/AM/April-2015/40-Best-Middle-Schools/ 

Long Term Sub for 7th Grade English class:

We have had some challenges the past several weeks securing a long term substitute teacher certified in English Language Arts to cover Mrs. Lovejoy’s 7th grade Language Arts class. We have qualified substitutes in place until a finally secured long term sub arrives on April 27th.  Both Mrs. Copley and Mrs. Hargrove have worked overtime to ensure that Mrs. Lovejoy’s subs have the materials and learning targets for those students.  In addition to handling their own classes, they have graded Mrs. Lovejoy’s students’ papers and will input them into the grade book in time for the end of the reporting period on Friday.  We apologize for any inconvenience this has caused but again, I assure you your children are still learning the objectives they will need to be successful on the upcoming STAAR assessment.  This truly has been an incredible team effort on behalf of the 7^th grade Language Arts teaching team-Kudos to them for their great efforts on behalf of your children. 

Hopewell Reading Initiative Update:

As you know, we have implemented a school-wide reading initiative where ALL Hopewell students are required to bring a book to read for pleasure during Advisory and to all their classes this year.  I walked around today and most students had a book out and were reading today during advisory.  Thanks to our teachers for supporting this initiative and making sure all students are reading.  It is crucial that we continue to promote reading which builds vocabulary, increases comprehension and fluency, and sparks interests in the world around them.  Many of our students spend much of their day with their noses in their cell phones, tablets or computers.  Promoting reading an actual book (or electronic reader) is crucial to their overall intellectual development.  Below are results of a recent study supporting our Hopewell MS Reading Initiative:

Student A reads a book 20 minutes per school day amounting to 3,600 minutes in a school year accounting for approximately 1,800,000 words on average read in one school year!

Student B reads for 5 minutes per school day amounting to 900 minutes in a school year accounting for approximately 282,000words on average read in one school year.

Student C reads for one minute per school day amounting to 180 minutes in a school year accounting for approximately 8,000 wordson average read in one school year.

Astounding results for reading only 20 minutes per day! Whether it’s reading right before bed time, during advisory, or after school and on weekends-the results speak for itself.  By the end of the year, Student A will have read the equivalent of 60 whole school days while Student B will have only read twelve school days.  Which student would you expect to have a better vocabulary? Read at a faster and more efficient rate? Which student would you expect to be more successful in school and life?  This program is effective for students of all ability levels and challenges.  As in anything in life, the more you do something, the more you practice, the better and more proficient you will become.  Thanks again for supporting our program and making sure your child has a good book to read that they are interested would be a great help. 

Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!
I will be off campus both this Thursday and Friday taking my Junior in high school daughter to a university campus visit out of state and will be back on Monday.  Hard to believe that next year at this time I will be getting ready for a high school graduation.  Having your children around is a wonderful, precious luxury but the time you have with them goes oh so fast.  Have them put away their cell phones and provide family opportunities to be together, talk, and do things together.  Before you know it, you will be getting ready for that college visit with that hour glass sand dwindling. 

Karl

The April 18 Celebration of Families 5K benefiting Project Graduation at all 5 high schools – Cedar Ridge, McNeil, Round Rock, Stony Point and Westwood – still has open spots for registration.

The chip-timed 5K will start at Round Rock High School, 201 Deep Wood Dr., at 8 a.m. with registration at 7:30 a.m. The cost is $20 for RRISD employees and students, $25 for everyone else. Registration ends Wednesday April 15.

Awards will be presented to overall female & male winners, overall masters female & male winners, and top 3 females & males in the following age groups: 10 & under, 11-14, 15-19, 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, 60 & older. No duplication of awards.

The race will be the start of a FREE morning of wellness activities and parent/student workshops as part of the Celebration of Families. For more information on that event, please click here.