Had a great math class with 7th grade this morning. We were working on a problem which was a challenge for us all and we took time to share our ideas, math thinking and theories about how to solve it. There were many different approaches and ideas that we had. The fun,engaging part was that we then started to try and prove or disprove other's solutions.


I hope that we can come back to that level of engagement frequently and maybe take it to the next level.

 
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Stop and take a breath.   Breathe!!    

Nice soccer game today AVS. Fun one to watch and looked like a fun one to play.

Enough for tonight.  See you all in the morning.

 
Big day for middle schoolers as the camera man was in the house! Lots of getting that hair just right and trying to remember what the pose was that your parents wanted. Ahh, it is all behind us now.  8th grade even found a place to have their class photo taken, and it was not on the roof. Just so you know!

We had an afternoon trip to Lincolnville to partake in a presentation looking at relationships, how to keep relationships safe and how to help a friend who might be in a difficult relationship. The presentation was well done with a play situation that was interspersed with audience participation and interaction. This format was very successful in both getting the message across and entertaining at the same time. 


Soccer game after school @ 3:45 and I think that there is a X-country meeting either tomorrow or Thursday. Sorry I don't know the details on this. 


The salt water tank is doing well. Another green crab was added this afternoon and Kristen stayed after school to feed the critters so they are fat and happy tonight. 
 
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Maine Maritime Academy Adventures:  7th and 8th grade had a great trip today to Castine to visit Maine Maritime Academy. We had an opportunity to tour some of the facility and the State of Maine. We began in the tank research room, where we heard about and saw student research projects that are going on at this time. It made me think about trying to get some marine research going on in our little tank here at AVS.
 
We were treated to a lunch at the school dining facility and then heard from the waterfront director about the importance of shipping in all our lives. It is amazing to think about all the "stuff" that is shipped around the world and at Maine Maritime you can learn the ropes and be apart of this industry. There are many other industries that they offer education in but clearly the science and shipping are a focus.


To end the day we had a tour of the State of Maine which is their large training ship that the students do two cruises on while they are at MMA, one in their freshman year and one in their junior year.


Moving on to local news: Remember that our last home soccer games are this week. Wednesday the game is with Lincolnville at 3:45 and Friday is with Vinalhaven at 1:30. 


Looks like September is drawing to a close this week. Where does the time go?


8th grade parent meeting in a few hours. 6:30 to be exact.  See you then.



 
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Well, we are getting to the end of our Wednesday.  One soccer game just about finished, one class meeting down with lots of great suggestions about where the 8th grade trip might be going this spring and one more fundraiser completed. 


With Amanda Boyington coordinating the fundraising for the class trip we are going to have a parent meeting on Monday evening (Sept 27th) at 6:30 at the school. This meeting will give all a chance to share fundraising ideas and more importantly allow parents to agree to head up the various fundraisers that we think are worth doing. This is going to be a long year with plenty of money to raise and work to be done. We look forward to seeing you there to help with this process.

I hope that parents and students can make use of the forum on this site to coordinate the fundraisers as they come up. It might be easier than email as sometimes things get lost if we don't reply all, or addresses get dropped from the conversation. The forum conversation is visible to all so that we can all be on the same page as we coordinate for an event.

We now have a horseshoe crab in the tank and I think that Carly has taken over the guardianship of the crab. She has spent much of the day observing the behavior of the crab. She has made some recommendations about what the crab requires and I am hopeful that we can make the crab's stay as comfortable as possible before it has to return to the wild.


X-country meet at THMS in Belfast tomorrow. Soccer game at Hope on Friday. 

Reminder on those permission slips for MMA and the Lincolnville presentation next week. I have about half of the MMA slips at this time. 


Photo: Horseshoe crab

 
With our celebration of the final NWEA tests this week still ringing in the air I was reminded that NECAP tests will be starting October 4th. I have added the schedule to the calendar so you can have a look at the days and the time that we are planning to be testing. So with that in mind we are looking at this week as our last "normal" full week for awhile. Next week has Maine Maritime Academy trip on Monday (be looking for the permission slips tonight), an afternoon [presentation at Lincolnville School on Tuesday and finishing the week with a soccer game during school (@1:00) on Friday Oct. 1st. 

8th grade started investigating the rock cycle today. The are using this
site to guide them at this point. I think that we have now all logged into ALEKS and have started with that program.   

X-country and soccer are out there with their afternoon practices as I write. Soccer game tomorrow and I think that there is a X-country meet in Belfast Thursday after school. 


Just got word that Amanda Boyington is going to be the 8th grade advisor and will be working with  8th grade parents and students to get the fundraising organized for the 8th grade trip. Thanks Amanda!
 
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Monday morning and the NWEA testing is finished for 7th and 8th grade. Celebration.  The sun is shinning, the temp is not 95°, the salt water tank is filling up with life, there is a soccer game this afternoon and it is fall in Maine. 

Saturday's home soccer game was a great time for us all to share that fall time with family and friends and neighbors. Thanks to 8th grade parents who set up an amazing concession stand with, not only coffee, but a variety of flavors of coffee, food and other goodies. Thanks to Amanda B. for getting that put together in such a professional manner. Come check it out this afternoon if you are available. Remember to bring along some $$ for the offerings.  And the again on Wednesday after school there is another home game. 

7th grade is looking into the classification of living things and tonight they are trying to come up with some categories that one could use to organize them. Interested in hearing their idea tomorrow.


8th grade has some math homework tonight. Page 27, # 7,8,9.  A check up quiz on Wednesday if all goes as planned tomorrow. In science we are beginning to looking into rocks and where and how they have been made. 


Photo:  Autumn 

 
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Well today was an exciting day in the middle school as the soccer team was headed out to Vinalhaven for an early afternoon game. They had an early lunch and boarded the bus shortly after noontime. This Vinalhaven game experience will be a new thing for Appleton. I am not sure why this change was made but it certainly will be an adventure for as all! As I recall I think that Vinalhaven is coming for a game at Appleton on October 1st. This is a 1:00 game as they have to get back to meet the ferry. Plan on attending if you are available.

Thanks to a few 8th graders, as the soccer team was headed off on their ferry ride, the rest of us went out on the Appleton field and began measuring for the lines to be painted here at Appleton. Weather permitting we are hoping that the paint can get down and dry before Saturday's game. 

I enjoyed last night's gathering at school as it allowed me to meet new parents, reconnect with familiar parents and answer some specific questions that some folks had. It is always great to share with parents what is going on at school, share stories and moments that tend to get lost in the usual hustle and bustle of school. I know that some were busy and unable to attend. If you have not signed up for a conference in October please call the school and see what time slots are still available. Conference day is Oct. 20th.

8th grade parents and students have been talking about fundraising options this last week. Great to have the discussions starting. Don't forget if you can post ideas and thoughts on the forum I would love to see ideas shared here!

And speaking of that, it was great to get positive comments about this site from parents both at the Welcome Back night and through email. It helps to hear that there are people who are reading and enjoying this communication medium. I hope that we can get this thing up and running on a consistent basis this year.

And don't forget NWEA testing tomorrow morning! 

Photo credit: FloSchMUC

 
Sorry no day 9 report last night. I was under the weather so here goes day 10.

Getting ready for the Open House this evening. Yesterday we did NWEA tests with 7th and 8th grade. There are two more tests this week, on Thursday and Friday. Any make up tests will be scheduled for next week. We then have a week off and then we have to think about the State tests that we need to complete in October. 

We have the tank up and running and now we have a few critters hanging out in there. Kristen brought in some lobsters and crabs. Thanks for the crustacean delivery! David Burr has taken a tank repair project home with him this afternoon to see about fixing the outflow pipe. I'm sure that he can work his magic on that plastic pipe. 

8th grade met today to talk about fund raisers that they had in mind and dance dates and themes. Good meeting. Used a lot of what they had learned from their time at Kieve to work together during the meeting time. And while I am on the Kieve news they have come back to AVS with such positive attitudes and spoke very highly of their time there last week. Hats off to them!

7th grade has been working on their math, looking at linear relationships, intervals and graphing them. Has been a productive week. No science yet this week. Just tank talk which has been excellent. All seem excited about getting it up and running.


 
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Two weeks already. Wow!
I trust that the 8th graders are headed home as I write this and that parents and students alike have had a good final day at Kieve. I can't wait to hear the stories on Monday.  Remember on Monday we will be doing NWEA tests with 7th and 8th grades. Check the calendar for the other NWEA testing times.

Today we have had a productive day with math lessons around data and what does it mean. The lesson is centered around a few college students planning a bike trip business, offering five day trips from Philadelphia to Williamsburg. After math we then started setting up the saltwater tank. We began by creating a space in the room for the tank. Then  began loading in the 80 gallons of water. We next added rocks to the tank for effect and house building for the new inhabitants next week. Finally we added salt. And then more salt and then more salt, I am still adding salt. Hope that I have enough and I hope that you can make it in Tuesday night to check it out in person!

Working with the 7th grade today was a great experience as they knew what I was expecting and they delivered on the focused, responsible work that needed to be done.  Thanks!

The compost buckets were delivered to classrooms today so that will be getting started next week. 8th grade will need to get out in the garden soon to begin the harvest.  Also 8th grade parents you might be thinking about fundraising. There is a thread on the forum that might become a place where we can do fundraising communication.