LOGOS SCHOOL UPDATE – 2018 – #6

 

Elementary

Parent/Teacher Conferences: Families with three or more students in the elementary should have received an email last week with details on how to sign up. If you fit this category, and didn’t receive an email, please contact the front office. All other families will receive an opportunity to sign up this Friday. The Wilson/Calene fourth grade Parent/Teacher conferences will be on Monday and Tuesday (Oct. 29 and 30). Please see the HAS for details.

 

5^th Grade Play: This Friday morning Mr. Kohl’s 5^th graders will be performing a play. The show will open in the gym at 8:35 with a short recitation by the same class. All are welcome!

 

Speech Meet: Selections need to be memorized by October 5.

 

Secondary

VB & XC Pictures: Fall sports team pictures are scheduled for Friday, October 5.  An envelope came home with your student this week.  Please send it and payment with your student on Friday.  All athletes need to bring a clean home game uniform to wear for the picture.  Pictures will begin during seventh period and go until finished, so students may be later than usual after school.

 

National Merit Honors: Congratulations to seniors Nic Minudri, Nathan Miller and Laina Wyrick on being named semifinalists in the 64^th annual National Merit® Scholarship Program, based upon scores from the PSAT qualifying test. The 16,000 semifinalists represent less than 1 percent of the nation’s high school seniors,  Ninety percent of these semifinalists will qualify as finalists, to compete for National Merit® Scholarships.  In addition to these three, senior Ben Euhus was among the 34,000 who attained Commended student status.  They join the 67 other Logos alumni who achieved National Merit Honors-well done!

 

Study Tip for the Week

Flashcards are a super way to commit material to memory. Whether it is multiplication facts in the elementary or the periodic table for a secondary science class, using flashcards can be a huge help, if they are used wisely. Here are a few tips:

1. Have the student make the flashcards himself. This is a valuable part of studying. Write the question on one side (5 + 6) and the answer on the back (=11). Make sure that the material is written correctly (spelling and neatness) so that the student is not studying incorrect or confusing material. Also, make sure that the answer is written lightly enough so that you cannot see it through the card.
2. Have the student go through the stack of cards. Every card that he gets right should go on the ‘right’ stack and the ones he gets wrong go on the ‘wrong’ stack. Study the ‘wrong’ stack a few times and then go through it again dividing it into two stacks. This will allow him to focus on the information that needs the most attention. Eventually, remix the cards and test on all of them, repeating the process until he has it down.
3. Break study time into small bites. It’s usually best to focus on two or three intense fifteen-minute sessions rather than a solid hour with the attendant distractions and bathroom breaks.

 

Elementary Romance

Each year I make a point of speaking to the 2^nd – 6^th grade students about a fascinating and sometimes delicate oxymoron – elementary romance. I am very pleased to say that this has not been an issue that Logos elementary students have struggled with in recent memory, nor do I have grave concerns this year. My primary goal is that we maintain a positive school culture in which students do not feel pressure to “grow up” too fast in this area. Last week I stopped in for this year’s installment, and I thought it would be good for you all to know what I had to say to the students and what my expectations are in this area. First of all, the school policy for the elementary and secondary reads, “Public displays of romantic affection are not permitted at school or school activities.” My interpretation of a public display of romantic affection is very narrow. Any singling out of a person of the opposite sex, and anything that you could do to earn yourself the title of “an item” fall into this category. The discussion with the 2^nd – 6^th graders usually begins with me asking how old they are, and then following up by asking how old they think they will be when they get married. After clarifying, for the sake of the boys, that most people do not wait until they are 37 to marry, we move on to the application. The short form is that these students are a lifetime or more away from getting married, and any preliminary negotiations are absolutely inappropriate in the elementary. I am strongly against silly talk about who likes whom, and I am thoroughly opposed to premature pairing up (in the elementary and secondary). There is far too much fun and hard work for us to keep ourselves occupied with to give attention to cheap soap operas. Please don’t hesitate to let me know if you have any questions or concerns.

 

Cheers!

 

Matt Whitling