Academic Assistance:
The speakers from Bank of America
who addressed the math classes were very informative. They helped
to increase the students' appreciation of math in the real
world. For example, their topics included car loans, tuitions
and checking accounts. They also extended the students'
understanding of the role of banks in the community.
By the end of the month, the
majority of the Seniors in the SRA program will have completed
four of the eight required SRAs in Math and two of the four
required SRAs in Language Arts.
The Department purchased new writing
books for the Foundations English classes.
English:
The Advanced TV Production class
taped the fall Pep Rallies in October and November for the
review and enjoyment of the students during their lunch
periods. The TV Production classes will begin writing their
first screenplay for competion in the upcoming Fall Festival. A
trip to New York City is planned for December 12th to Madame
Tussaud's Wax Museum, NBC Studios and Rockefeller Center to
video the tree.
The Drama Club hosted a reception
for the Middletown Senior Citizens on Friday, November 30th. The
refreshments (homemade cookies and breads) were provided by Jill
Nyland's food classes. Afterwards, they were invited to watch
the school play, Lend Me a Tenor , which was performed
on November 29, 20 and December 1.
Judy Bolton and her Journalism
classes worked on the three page Asbury Park Press coverage of a
" Day in the Life of Middletown North." Copies of the paper
were distributed to all staff and students.
George Obermeier, the Student
Assistance Counselor, made a presentation to Ms. Wood's English
classes on how to give up smoking. Persuasive speech and
writing skills will be assessed on the HSPA tests in the spring,
and Mr. Obermeier's lecture convinced the students that they
should quit or never consider smoking.
Guidance:
The counselors attended I & R S and
CST meetings for appropriate student placements. They
distributed and processed applications for the Governor's School
Programs. A sophomore was selected to attend the Hugh O'Brian
Youth (HOBY) conference. The Department hosted 12 college
visitations, communicated scholarship opportunities to Seniors
and worked with them on college applications.
Physical Education and Health:
Representatives from Riverview
Medical Center presented a program on Cancer Detection to the
12th grade students. The females learned about breast
self-examination and the males about testicular self-examination
and ways to detect if there are any abnormalities.
All grade levels are actively
participating in Physical Fitness and Weight Lifting
activities. All of the students went through a battery of
Fitness Tests which will be repeated in June.
The 9th grade classes will soon
begin their Folk/Square and Social Dance unit.
Dugouts are currently being built
at the site of the new Varsity Softball field next to the
Bubble.
Science:
Rich Unterstein is conducting a
protein-modeling unit in his AP classes using creative model
kits as demonstrated at the weeklong workshop he attended last
summer.
Ed Zawistowski is planning a trip to
"Body Works" at South Street Seaport and Dan Rodrick is
coordinating a visit to the American Museum of Natural History
to enhance the study of their curricular areas.
All science teachers, but especially
the freshman and sophomore instructors, are incorporating
subject matter and test taking skills in their curricula in
preparation for the HSPA Science component. The Biology
curriculum has been modified to address the requirements of the
HSPA Science test. The mid-term Biology exams will be revised
to reflect the curriculum changes.
Aquariums, that contain local and
tropical species captured during the Marine Science fall field
trip, are being maintained by the Marine Science class.
The SEARCH Club has initiated the
following projects:
Adopted a palm tree--they moved
two large palm trees from the front of Dosil's into the
cafeteria to save them from the winter freeze.
Launched its own website that
will be expanded throughout the year.
Brainstormed ideas for a Coffee
House Extravaganza to raise funds for environmental causes.
Painted storm drains.
Made plans for the construction
of a pond in the courtyard.
Helped with the courtyard
cleanup.
Provided plant maintenance
throughout the building.
Decided to purchase more
recycling containers for the cafeteria.
Researched ways to eliminate
Styrofoam containers from the cafeteria.
Decorated seven bulletin board
dispays and a showcase.
Planned for an upcoming
environmental video contest.
Developed announcements to be
read every week pertaining to the environment.
Wrote newspaper articles.
Researched ways in which we can
make North into a Green school.
Social Studies:
At the November Board of Education
meeting Barbara Guenther's 2007-2008 U.S. History I students
received commendations for their work with the League of Women
voters.
On November 29th and 30th Beth
D'Alessandro accompanied five students to the Model United
Nations at Princeton University.
Doug Felegy announced the opening of
the school store, organized and run by the Future Business
Leaders of America (FBLA).
Ken Sedlak started swim practice.
His Girls' Team should be a favorite for the Shore Conference
Division Title.
Special Education:
Jen Basmagy-some 9th grade Resource
Room students went to see West Side Story at the Count
Basie Theatre in conjunction with their reading of Romeo and
Juliet in class.
Lisa Lombardi-9th grade Special
Education teachers who teach Math observed classes in the middle
schools where the Connected Math Programs are being
implemented. The teachers were able to see the program being
used in ICS and Resource Room classes.
Michele Lombard, Clare Isaksen and
Sue Terplevich attended a district APA Professional Development
workshop and have been working with students to complete the APA
process.
Michele Lombard-attended an MTEA
sponsored workshop on "Succeeding with Difficult Students" and a
Professional Development program sponsored by the Two River Film
Festival and the Brookdale Center for Holocaust Studies. The
informative seminar looked at ways to effectively use film and
the Internet in daily lessons; provided a chance to review
resources for Holocaust instruction in the classroom; and
allowed for a discussion of genocide, bias, anti-Semiticism and
hate crimes.
Connie Lopusznick, John Fitzpatrick
and Sue Terplevich attended a NJ HSPA Writing workshop.
John Fitzpatrick-used a film clip
about violence in schools from United Streaming to introduce a
project in which students developed slogans against violence.
IDE Portal teachers have been
implementing problem based learning units in English, Social
Studies, World Languages and Science.
As part of their Monthly Manners
Monday Unit, Sue Terplevich and Michelle Goldfarb discussed
table manners and dining etiquette, relating them to those found
in Of Mice and Men, Inherit the Wind and The
Great Gatsby.
Sue Terplevich-is part of the
Steering Committee for Self-Assessment prior to the State
Department's monitoring.
World Language:
Jen Magiera took her Spanish levels
2 and 3 classes to a Latin Jazz Concert at NJPAC.
Debra Barca planned on going to New
York City with her French students to see the play, Les
Miserables and to a French restaurant for lunch.
Unfortunately, the trip had to be cancelled due to the stage
hands' strike.
Beatriz Pelaez-Martinez spent our
November break in Spain, visiting Madrid and Sevilla.