Weekly Announcements

MIDTERM REPORTS – Midterm reports will be issued this Friday, November 22. Please make sure you ask your child for his/her report. If a conference was not requested by a teacher but you would like to have one, please contact the school to set up an appointment.

 

FROM THE COUNSELOR: We invite you to visit our teacher and administrator blogs and become a follower of the ones for which you wish to receive updates. There's always valuable information posted on them that you might find useful with your children. All you need to do is click on "Participar en este sitio" or "Follow this site" and provide your name and email information, and you will be notified of updates to that particular blog automatically. You can follow as many blogs as you would like to.

 

FROM THE SCHOOL’S CAFETERIA -  Please visit the Cafeteria blog http://discoverycafeteria.blogspot.com/ for information on the delicious Pecan, Apple and Pumpkin pies that can be ordered for your Thanksgiving celebrations. The cafeteria is also offering a meal for the classroom festivities at a very attractive price!

 

LAST WEEK FOR DONATIONS  FOR “YA TENGO DONDE ESCRIBIR”:  Don’t forget to send in cereal boxes. Wednesday, November 20 is the last day! The grade that brought the most boxes will be awarded a pizza party or ice cream party! Please help us help those in need!

 

CHRISTMAS GIVING TREE:  Nuestro Pequeños Hermanos (NPH) is an international organization that takes in abandoned and orphaned children, providing a home and education.  Here in Honduras, the NPH organization provides for over 500 children in at large ranch near La Venta and home in Tegucigalpa for severely handicapped children.   While many children at the ranch have aunts, uncles, or grandparents that come to visit them and can provide some Christmas gifts, some children at a ranch have no family to visit.  It is these children whom we would like to provide for this Christmas.   On the second floor of the secondary building, a NPH Giving Tree will be set up.   Choose a paper tree that has a child’s information about his/her size for shoes or socks.  Purchase the new item and return it to Mrs. Agurcia’s Room (Rm. 7) by Tuesday, December 10th, with the tree tag taped to it.  As well, there are tree tags for basic food items that will be donated to the orphanage.  Cash donations will also be accepted to provide shoes and socks for children whose tags were not selected.  Thank you for giving this Christmas!  For more information about NPH’s work in Honduras, please visit http://www.nph-honduras.org/. 

COMMUNITY SERVICE CLUB:  There will be a meeting of the Community Service Club on Tuesday, November 19th in Mrs. Agurcia's Room (Rm.7) at lunch.  All secondary students are welcome.

 

SCIENCE FAIR:  Please remember that Science Fair will be held on Friday, December 6th.  That day, all 7th, 8th, 9th, and 10A students will be involved in the fair during 3rd and 4th periods. First period will proceed as normal and 1/2 of 2nd period will be used to set up the fair on the second floor of the secondary building.  As well, students with top projects will be asked to present their project to a visiting judge that afternoon in the library (meaning the library will not be available for classes that afternoon).  Students from other classes will be invited to visit the fair in the following schedule:  6A, 6B, 10B, 11, and 12 during 3rd period, and elementary classes during 4th period (10:53-11:43).  More details about the schedule will be given closer to the fair.

Weekly Annoucments

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT THIS WEEK -  Missi Love is returning for a follow-up training at the end of this week. She will work with all of our teachers on the Four Blocks Literacy Program, Literature Circles, and 6+1 Traits of Writing, and guide teachers’ discussions of how they grade written work, and why. This will take place on Friday, November 8 and Saturday, November 9. These two days will be full working days for teachers.  There will be no school for students on Friday, November 8 as stated in the school calendar.

 

DONATIONS NEEDED:  Please remember to send in cereal boxes for “Ya Tengo Donde Escribir” between now and November 20. The grade that brought the most boxes will be awarded a pizza party or ice cream party! Please help us help those in need!

 

GOOD NEWS! THE SECONDARY SCHOOL (grades 6 -11) IS NOW USING IXL FOR MATH – This is a comprehensive math site with an unlimited number of practice questions in hundreds of skills. One of the best things about IXL is that your child can access it from home, so you have a chance to see your child's progress! IXL assesses our students' understanding as they practice.

 

In addition to making math practice exciting, IXL is designed to help your child learn at his or her own pace. The website is adaptive and will adjust to your child's demonstrated ability level. The site also saves all of your child's results, so you can monitor your child's progress anytime by clicking on Reports at the top of the page. Please encourage your son or daughter to use IXL daily. Here's to a year of working together to make math fun for your child!

 

Check your child’s math teacher blog to find out what skills they are practicing every week.

 

PASSING GRADE ACCORDING TO THE MINISTRY OF EDUCATION - We would like to remind parents that the passing grade for the Ministry is 70%. Therefore, your child needs to score at least 70% in each subject in order to avoid coming to recuperation exam/s, which are now required at the end of every quarter. The final grade for the quarter is an average of the failing grade and the recup grade. We encourage you to check blogs and ENGRADE on a weekly basis, and to keep in close communication with teachers.

 

STUDY SKILLS WORKSHOPS - To help improve students' overall academic performance we are offering the following mandatory Study Skills Workshops in the Library:

 

• Middle School (grades 6-8): Wednesday, November 13, from 8:00-9:40 a.m.
• High School (grades 9-12): Wednesday, November, 13 from 10:00-11:40 a.m.

 

These workshops are geared to students in particular. On a later date we will offer workshops that are more focused on parental support at home.

 

 

Weekly Annoucments

U.N. DAY CELEBRATION-  The DPTO is organizing our annual U.N. Day celebration for this Wednesday, October 30. We hope our parents can join us this day. The celebration will begin at 9:00 a.m. to allow parents time to set up their tables. Students will be dismissed from school at 11:45 a.m. The DPTO has planned an International Fashion Show for the UN Day, and they need your help! If you want to participate by modeling or by lending any typical costume that you may have, please contact Marielos or Alexanderia at the following email addresses:  mmm9487@yahoo.com  or   amhaidara05@yahoo.com

 

DONATIONS NEEDED:  Don’t forget to send in cereal boxes for “Ya Tengo Donde Escribir” between now and November 20. The grade that brought the most boxes will be awarded a pizza party or ice cream party! Please help us help those in need!

COMMUNITY SERVICE CLUB-  We will have a meeting on Tuesday, October 29, at lunchtime in Mrs. Christina Agurcia's room.  We will discuss our visit to Nuestros Pequenos Hermanos on Sunday, November 3rd and preparation for the annual Christmas party.  All secondary students are invited to attend.

 

OPERATION WALLACEA- Operation Wallacea is an international organization that joins high school and university students with field research scientists to aid in gathering data for biodiversity conservation, here in Honduras and in other locations throughout the world.  Representatives from this organization will present information on Tuesday, October 29, at 3:15 PM in the Discovery School library.  Students from Grades 8-12 and their parents are invited to attend and learn about this amazing opportunity.

 

Weekly Annoucements

 

MAP FALL TESTING SESSION – This is the third week of our Map testing session. Parent cooperation in making sure our students are in school on time is greatly appreciated. 

 

NO ELECTRICITY ON TUESDAY – The ENEE has published that there will be no electricity in our school on Tuesday, October 8. We encourage parents to pack snack and lunch for students that does NOT require refrigeration or heating.

 

DONATIONS NEEDED: “Ya Tengo Donde Escribir” is an organization aiming to help children from public schools that cannot afford notebooks. In order to help, the organization makes notebooks out of cereal boxes and pages from used notebooks. They are now collecting cereal boxes until November 20, and we encourage our students and teachers to bring cereal boxes from their homes. At the end of the contest, the grade that brought the most boxes will be awarded a pizza party or ice cream party! Please help us help those in need!

CATS - On Thursday October 24^th, grades 6 through 12 will be going to the Hotel Honduras Maya for the presentation of the play "CATS". The cost to attend this event is 150 lempiras. This includes the entrance ticket and transportation. Permission slips will be sent home on Monday, October 7, and the due date to turn the money and signed permission slip in to the homeroom teacher isWednesday October 9.

Weekly Announcments

MAP FALL TESTING SESSION – Our Map testing session begins on Monday, September 23. Parent cooperation in making sure our students are in school on time is greatly appreciated. 

 

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT WEDNESDAY IN SEPTEMBER – There will be no school for students on Wednesday, September 25. Teachers will receive in-service sessions with Ms. Judi Fenton.

 

DONATIONS NEEDED: “Ya Tengo Donde Escribir” is an organization aiming to help children from public schools that cannot afford notebooks. In order to help, the organization makes notebooks out of cereal boxes and pages from used notebooks. They are now collecting cereal boxes until November 20th, and we encourage our students and teachers to bring cereal boxes from their homes. At the end of the contest, the grade that brought the most boxes will be awarded a pizza party or ice cream party! Please help us help those in need!

 

BAKE SALE - The Community Service Club will be hosting a bake sale on Thursday, September 26 to raise funds for the annual Christmas party for the orphans from Nuestros Pequenos Hermanos.  Many delicious treats will be available at break and lunch time!  Thanks, in advance, for your support!

 

FLU SEASON: The flu season has arrived, and we feel it is important that parents be aware and on the lookout for flu symptoms. We want to give you some suggestions and guidelines for keeping your child and your family healthy.

 

1.    One of the first ways of controlling exposure to the flu is to avoid crowds and close contact with others.

2.    If your child is sick with flu symptoms (fever, cough, sore throat, vomiting, diarrhea, difficulty breathing), please keep your child home until s/he is symptom free for 24 hours.

3.    We have placed antiseptic handwash and Lysol disinfecting spray in each classroom and office. It is advisable for students to also have their own antiseptic handwash and to use it frequently.

4.    Teachers are reminding their students to wash their hands frequently, cover coughs or sneezes, not share drinking bottles, food, straws, etc., and to use the antiseptic handwash.

 

Flu Symptoms:  Fever, body aches including headache, fatigue, runny nose, cough and congestion.

 

What to do if your child has these symptoms:  Contact your doctor; keep your child home until s/he has been symptom free (including having no fever) for at least 24 hours.

 

By following the above precautions, we are hopeful that we can contain and prevent widespread cases of the flu.

 

 

Weekly Announcements

MIDTERM REPORTS were issued last Thursday, September 12. We encourage parents to go over them and discuss them with your child(ren), sign them and send them back to school. If you would like a conference, and one was not requested, please call the school to set up an appointment.

 

DPTO – The Discovery Parent-Teacher Organization (DPTO) works to help the school fundraiser for projects and provide fun activities for our students, parents, and teachers! Anyone interested in joining and help to organize events is more than welcome to join us, as we meet every Tuesday at 7:30 a.m. in the school Cafeteria. We would like to remind all parents of the agreement made by the General Assembly in May 2013, to have all parents donate L. 200 per child to help finance the events and activities organized during the year. You can pay the fee in the Finance Office to Ms. Belgica Varela, or your homeroom teacher. You will receive a receipt from the school. Parents who still have not done so, please fill out our survey athttp://www.surveymonkey.com/s/Q6QY2VF

 

MAP FALL TESTING SESSION – Our Map testing session will begin on Monday, September 23. The specific times and dates for our grades will be published in our blogs. Parent cooperation in making sure our students are in school on time is greatly appreciated. 

 

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT WEDNESDAY IN SEPTEMBER – There will be no school for students on Wednesday, September 25. Teachers will receive in-service sessions with Ms. Judi Fenton.

 

(Only for Grades 9-11) INFORMATIVE MEETING WITH PARENTS GRADES 9 – 11: We are inviting grades 9-11 parents to attend a meeting with the school’s Counselor, Ms. Marilis Zambrana, and Ms. Gloria Palacios, Secondary Assistant Principal to discuss college admissions and other pertinent information. The meeting will take place Thursday, September 19 @ 8:15 (school Library).

 

 

Weekly Announcements

DPTO - Parents, please take a minute and fill out the short survey for the Discovery School Parent-Teacher Organization.  As you are part of the DPTO, the executive team wants your feedback and ideas on events and focus for the year.  Both parents are encouraged to fill out the survey. The link to fill out the survey is http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/Q6QY2VF

FROM THE FINANCE OFFICE – Parents who are not using an automatic debit system with a credit card to pay tution are asked to stop by the Finance Office to obtain their payment cards as soon as posible.

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPEMENT IN SEPTEMBER – On September 23, Ms. Judi Fenton is returning to Discovery to follow up on her visit and Professional Development sessions with teachers last year. A schedule will be provided once it is finalized with her. There will be no school on Wednesday, September 25, so teachers can participate in an all-day training.

INFORMATIVE MEETING WITH PARENTS GRADES 9 – 11: We are inviting grades 9-11 parents to attend a meeting with the school’s Counselor, Ms. Marilis Zambrana, and Ms. Gloria Palacios, Secondary Assistant Principal to discuss college admissions and other pertinent information. The meeting will take place Thursday, September 19 @ 8:15 (school Library).

Ecofriendly Lunch Day Games

On Thursday, our students celebrated Ecofriendly Lunch Day by packing waste-free lunches.  The environmental science also hosted games at snack and lunch to help our students remember to reduce their waste.  Here are some pictures of the fun we had!

Ecofriendly Lunch Day

Ecofriendly Lunch Day

Thursday, August 29th

Pack a waste free lunch!

Join in the fun activities to help us learn ways to reduce waste!

Activities will be held during elementary snack and lunch recess!
For more information on waste free lunches, visit http://www.wastefreelunches.org/,

To help our students learn more about waste free lunches and overall waste reduction at school, our 10th grade environmental science students visited the elementary classes on Tuesday, August 27th with fun lesson and activities.

COMMUNITY SERVICE CLUB

 For more than 10 years, Discovery teachers and parents have been visiting a group of children from Nuestros Pequenos Hermanos' orphanage.  Now, we would like to open this opportunity for our secondary students to be involved.   To celebrate Children's Day, we will visit the orphanage on Sunday, September 1st.  The club will then continue with monthly visits to the orphanage throughout the school year.  The first organizational meeting for the club will be held at lunch on Thursday, August 29th in Mrs. Agurcia's classroom.  Any interested secondary student is invited to attend.  Parents may email Mrs. Agurcia (cagurcia@discoveryschool.edu.hn) for more information.

Week of August 19-23

GENERAL ASSEMBLY – Discovery School parents are invited to attend the General Assembly that will take place this Saturday, August 24 from 9:00 to 11:00 a.m. in the School Cafeteria. Important matters such as a suggested revision to our school calendar, budget information, an update on the status of the Concrete Plant, Board committees and school-wide implications of MAP data will be addressed. YOUR ATTENDANCE IS CRUCIAL—we need a quorum of 1/3 of our parents (55 parents) for the meeting to be considered a legal meeting of our school Association. Please mark your calendars and plan on attending.  **Believe and Achieve Sports will be at the school to work with the children while the parents are attending the meeting. **Coffee and juice will be provided.

CHOIR AUDITIONS – The Choir auditions will take place on Wednesday, August 21 and Thursday, August 22 during Snack Recess (9:45-10:10) in the music room.   Students from grades 1-12 who did not audition last year are invited to audition. The students may sing a song of their preference acapella. Students and parents are asked to commit to the whole year’s participation in Choir. Our Choir has been invited and has accepted the invitation to perform at Carnegie Hall in New York City next summer, and practices will be geared to prepare the students for that prestigious event. A schedule of practices will be provided this week. If you have questions, you can contact either Ms. Pamela (pcruz@discoveryschool.edu.hn) or Ms. Norma (nlopez@discoveryschool.edu.hn) for more information.

MATH REINFORCEMENT:  IXL ACCOUNTS (for grades Kinder through 5 only) – Last year our teachers piloted the IXL Math enrichment with our students. Because it was so successful and well received by parents and students, the school has acquired a

subscription to IXL for all students in Grades KG-5. This is an individualized on-line program that reinforces math skills across the curriculum and is aligned to our Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) assessment that we administer to all students in Grades KG-10 three times during the school year. Teachers will post information in their weekly blogs indicating what areas and how much time students should work on IXL during the week. Parents are encouraged to support their children by checking the weekly blogs and having their child complete the practices assigned by each teacher. If you are unclear about any aspect of the IXL, please contact your child’s teacher or the Area Administrator (Nora for KG – Grade 1 nsierra@discoveryschool.edu.hn and Cristiana for Grades 2-5 cbanegas@discoveryschool.edu.hn.

SCHOOL CAFETERIA – for information on the school cafeteria menu and services please visit discoverycafeteria.blogspot.com 

AFTER-SCHOOL SPORTS PROGRAM – Our first session of After-School Activities with Believe and Achieve Sports starts Monday. The sessions will run from 3:15 - 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday and Wednesday, and 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 noon on Saturday for students from Kindergarten up. During the sessions, students will rotate through different sports, including soccer, basketball, frisbies, golf, American football, and others. Focus is on helping students learn skills, practice teamwork, and have fun, regardless of their current knowledge or skills!

·         TRANSPORTATION:  The school will follow the practice we have followed over the past several years and provide transportation for the students at the end of the Tuesday and Wednesday sessions in the main part of Tegucigalpa. We will not provide transportation to the outlying areas, such as El Hatillo, Santa Lucia, and the airport. As in the past, there will not be a nanny on the bus; however, the driver will make sure all students are buckled up. We will not provide transportation to any area on Saturday.

·         TRANSPORTATION FEE:  Parents are asked to pay Lmp.100 per month for the bus services if their children are planning to use it on Tuesday and Wednesday, and Lmp.60 per month if they are planning to use it for only one of those days. That can be given to Carolina (Receptionist) or anyone in the Finance Office.

·         SIGN-UP FOR SPORTS PROGRAM:  Sign-up for the sports program is with Mr. Eric Hamm directly. His phone number is 9599-2959. As this is a new program, we may need to make adjustments as we go along, and we will keep you informed of any changes. One thing that we will be considering is the traffic at 5:00 p.m. and how long it takes us to get the students home after the activities.

The school welcomes any suggestions parents may have. If you have not had a chance to sign up yet, please contact Ms. Paola Mena, Administrative Assistant, atdsoffice@discoveryschool.edu.hn, 2231-7790 or 9950-66924 to let us know of your interest.

·         At the current time we are not planning to offer other activities during the first quarter, with the exception of Choir. After we have assessed the Sports program, we will make a decision if we will offer other activities starting in the second quarter. Choir teachers will provide parents with a schedule of practices this week, but we will attempt to schedule the Choir practices so they don’t interfere with the Sports.

WELCOME!

                Welcome to a great year of learning about the beautiful world that surrounds us!  I am excited for a new school year to begin and to join with you in educating your student about the wonders of the world.

                My name is Christina Agurcia, and I am originally from Illinois.  I graduated from Lincoln Christian College with a BS in Bible and from Illinois State University with a BS in Biology.  I am certified by the State of Illinois to teach a wide range of science subjects, including biology, chemistry, and physics.  As well, I have taken graduate education courses in zoology, botany, chemistry, physics, and AP Environmental Science.  To continue gaining knowledge about pedagogical technique, I also have participated in teacher workshop events, such as the ones offered by Discovery School and Escuela International Sampedrana in San Pedro Sula, and most recently, a workshop on environmental education hosted by the Wildlife Conservation Society.

I have over 10 years of teaching experience in the secondary science classroom, and this will be my seventh year at Discovery School.  Previously, I taught one year at a private school here in Tegucigalpa and three years at a public school in the United States of America. 

                This year our secondary students, from 7^th-10^th grade, will be participating in science fair.  This is a long term project that will span all of first semester and will involve components in language arts and science.   While this is a student-directed project, parents are asked to provide the necessary supplies (as directed by the student’s individual project) and to help their student keep on track with due dates.  A list of science fair due dates is provided on the science fair page of thus blog-  see the link in the right hand column.  

I am looking forward to developing an excellent working relationship with you.  Each week I will be updating the blog, which will have information about the material being covered in class, student activities and homework, as well, as upcoming dates for projects and tests.   From this home page, you will find a link specifically related to your course- see the right hand .  Students and parents should check the blog weekly.               As well, you can follow your student’s progress through checking the online grading program, Engrade.  This program creates a personal, secure account by which you can access your student’s grade and list of outstanding work.  Personal access codes will be given to each student.  From that code, parents can create an account to review student’s scores.

Students will be given homework, as listed in class and on the blog.  Students are responsible for turning this homework into my classroom by 8:00 AM on the day the assignment is due.  Any work submitted after 8:00 AM will be considered late.  Only excused tardies (for medical appointments or late bus) will be accepted as a reason for turning in work after 8:00 AM.

Classtime is valuable, and therefore, a student should attempt be at school as much as possible.  However, if a student is absent, he/she is responsible to complete all make-up work.  Make-up work can be found in the “make-up” folder for his or her class.  Any missed notes can be copied from a fellow student.  If a student missed a test/quiz/lab, she/he will need make an appointment to complete the work.  For excused absences, students are given one day to make-up work per each absent day.  For one or two day excused absences, the students should be prepared to take any pre-scheduled test or quiz and submit any large project upon returning to school. For a longer absence, the student will not be required to take a test or quiz on the first two days after returning to school.  For preplanned absences, a student is to notify the teacher in writing previous to the absence (at least 3 days).  The teacher will assign work, giving a schedule for work to be complete.  No credit will be given for unexcused absences or absences due to suspension. 

If you need to contact me individually, the best way is through email.  My email address is cagurcia@discoveryschool.edu.hn.  The office will also take messages for me.  If you would like to meet with me, I would be happy to schedule an appointment with you. 

If your student has any concerns or does not understand a topic, please encourage him/her to see me.  I am available most days before school, during snack, and during lunch.

Thank you for entrusting me in joining you in the education of your student!

                                                 Sincerely,

                                               Mrs. Agurcia

END OF THIRD QUARTER IS COMING!

Be sure you are up to date with all work.

Any late or missing work is due by Tuesday, March 12th.

Check Engrade for blanks or M's. 

Check the "No Name" folder.

Check with Mrs. Agurcia for a list of missing work.

Any extra credit needs to be submitted by Thursday, March 14th!

YEARBOOK PICTURES ARE COMING!

 Yes, it is that time of the year! Please look at the schedule provided below.

 

	Monday, Feb. 25	Tuesday, Feb. 26	Wednesday, Feb. 27	Thursday, Feb. 28	Friday, March 1st
8:00 - 8:50	Pre Kinder A	3rd grade A	Retakes	7th  grade	ALL SCHOOL PICTURE
8:53 - 9:45	Pre Kinder B	3rd grade B	Retakes	8th grade	Staff
9:50 - 10:10	Break	Break	Break	Break	Break
10:10 - 10:55	Kinder	4th grade A	Special requests	9th grade A	Staff
10:55 - 11:45	1st grade A	4th grade B	Special requests	9th grade B	Staff
11:45 - 12:25	1st grade B	5th grade A		Lunch	Staff
12:25 - 1:17	Lunch	Lunch		10th grade	Lunch
1:20 - 2:10	2nd grade A	5th grade B		11th grade	Retakes
2:10 – 3:00	2nd grade B	6th grade (with caps and gowns)		12th grade (with caps and gowns)	Retakes