Mrs. Burgess's Website

Welcome to seventh grade, Black Bears!  I am very excited about this year, and I hope you are having a great start to your school year.

Here’s a list of supplies you’ll need for language arts & reading this year:

-pencils

-highlighters

-a folder/binder (can be shared with math & science)

-index cards (for debates in the spring)

-thumb drive/data stick or hard drive

$2.00 at school store

-ear buds or headphones

The school store does sell thumb drives and ear buds if you’d like to purchase them there.

2011 Lincoln-Douglas Debate Medalists

The Lincoln-Douglas Debates are legendary here at Leonard Middle School, and this year’s debates lived up to the hype.  LMS seventh graders debated many issues, including: gun control, cell phones in school, homework, locker and student searches, international adoption, the Library of Congress’s Twitter archive, year-round schooling, and requiring algebra for graduation.  This year’s Lincoln-Douglas Debates were held in the LMS library on Wednesday and Thursday, May  11th and 12th, and there were nine judges, including several retired teachers from the community.  The debates were a huge success! Thanks to all the students, teachers, and judges for their hard work and dedication, and especially to Mrs. Boone and Mrs. Roberts for all their help and dedication to making sure the debates are a success every year!

2011 Black Bear Team Lincoln-Douglas Debate Scores:

#1:    Is school safety more important than student privacy in terms of backpack, locker, and student searches?
436 points: Affirmative-Allie, Kenny, & Zoe
362 points: Negative-Thomas, Dylan M., & Jacob E.

#2:    Should algebra be required for high school graduation?
407 points: Affirmative-Lauren, Jia Xi, & Derek
392 points: Negative-Skylar, Emma, Annie, & Katelyn C.

#3:    Should there be year-round schooling for students in grades K-12?
409 points: Affirmative-Mikayla R., Noah, Michael, & Nick
388 points: Negative-Ben, Drew R., Nathan, & Eric

#4:    Should countries allow overseas adoption of their children?
421 points: Affirmative-Shaniah, Kalee, Abby, & John
375 points: Negative-Jasmin, Kendall, & Richard

#5:    Should homework be banned from schools?
403 points: Drew C., Jason, & Jake F.
436 points: Negative-Julia, Baxter, Makayla M., & Kaleb

#6:    Does the Library of Congress’s historical digital archive of texts and Tweets justify invasion of privacy?
359 points: Affirmative-Dominic, Harley, & Keegan
416 points: Negative-Peyton, Caitlyn K., & Lily

#7:    Should cell phones be allowed in schools?
369 points: Affirmative-Gabby, Allison, Kylie, & Angel
378 points: Negative-Courtney, Dylan G., Bailey, & Lacey

#8:    Should the United States strengthen gun control laws?
426 points: Affirmative-Keegan, Malcolm, & Lance
406 points:Negative-Jacob D., Dakota, Cassidy, & Dillon

All photos taken by Miss Layman!

Team Medalists:

This year, there were two teams tied with the highest overall score:

436 points-Allie, Zoe, & Kenny (affirmative-school safety is more important than student privacy)

436 points-Julia, Kaleb, Baxter, & Makayla (negative-homework should not be banned)

Individual Medalists:

Kenny

Jia Xi

John

Nathan

Peyton

Kaleb

Cassidy

Jason

Allie

Katelyn C.

Kendall

Courtney

Allison

Derek

Makayla M.

Malcolm

Lily

Nick

Dakota

Drew R.

Julia

Gabby

Emma

Kalee

Lauren

Ben

Noah

Bailey

Zoe

Michael

Drew C.

Jacob D.

Baxter

Abby

Kylie

Annie

Book of Awesome by Neil Pasricha

Finally finding the start of this stupid roll of tape, making a baby laugh, singing the national anthem with a big crowd… These are just a few of the awesome things on Neil Pasricha’s website, 1000awesomethings.com.  Students on the Black Bear Team have been writing about their own awesome things, and they have the opportunity to submit their work for possible publication.  Awesome!

Neil Pasricha is collecting submissions from his readers for a new book, as well as for possible publication on his website.  If students wish to submit one or more of their awesome things, they just need to get a copy of the permission slip and fill it out with a parent.   After that, we will get the awesome things ready for submission and submit them at school on his website.  Anyone whose awesome thing is chosen for publication on the site or in the new book will be contacted by the publisher, and will receive a signed copy of the new book, as well as full written credit!

See the “SUBMIT” tab on 1000awesomethings.com for more information, and see Mrs. Burgess or Mrs. Campbell for a copy of the permission slip!  Parents, please provide your contact information on the permission slip, not your child’s, as the publisher will need it to notify you if your child’s awesome thing is selected.

Click here to visit 1000awesomethings.com.

The Book of (Even More) Awesome by Neil Pasricha. Available April 28th!

On Tuesday, February 1, during class, students presented their selected scenes from the play of The Diary of Anne Frank by Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett in front of several other classes.  They used props and costumes, memorized lines, and used the four tools of subtext, including gestures, pause, stress, and inflection to deliver their lines.  Thanks to Miss Layman for taking these fantastic photos!  Also, thank-you to Mr. King, Ms. Weatherbee, Miss Layman, and all their classes, for being such a wonderful audience!

Welcome back to school, and welcome to the Black Bear Team!  We are excited about this school year, and I hope you enjoy our classroom web page, dedicated to pictures, contests, information, and celebrating student work and achievement.  It’s a great way to stay in touch with what’s happening in class.  I hope you’ll visit the page often!   Of course, if you have anything you’d like to see here, let me know!  I’d love to hear from you.  My contact information is to the right of the page.

Using the format that Lincoln and Douglas used so long ago, seventh grade Black Bear Team students debated several issues, including the death penalty, Hollywood’s influence, homework, animal testing, cell phones in school, Maine’s child labor laws, and sex education in school.  This year’s Lincoln-Douglas Debates were held in the LMS library on Wednesday and Thursday, May  5th and 6th, and judges included many retired teachers from the community.  The debates were a huge success, and thanks to all the students, teachers, and judges for their hard work and dedication!

2010 Black Bear Team Lincoln-Douglas Debate Scores:

#1:    Cell phones should be allowed in schools.
359 points: Affirmative-Keragan, Jordyn, and Sarah K.
344 points: Negative-Blake B., Haleigh, and Alex

#2:    Hollywood is a good influence.
374 points: Affirmative-Damien, Sam, and Clara
357 points: Negative-Lily, Jacob, and Devon C.

#3:    The death penalty should be banned.
372 points: Affirmative-D.J., Kaylen, Zachary, and Ian
368 points: Negative-Christine, Corey, Avery, and Caitlin

#4:    Schools should be allowed to teach sex education to students.
383 points: Affirmative-Savannah, Mason, and Mitchell
374 points: Negative-Andrew, C.J., and Deon

#5:    Homework should be banned from schools.
332 points: Affirmative-Freeman, Mateo, and Dakota
390 points: Negative-Blake N., Sara T., and Devan M.

#6:    Animal testing should be done for medicines and cosmetics.
360 points: Affirmative-Baylee, Tyler, Brandon M., and Selaina
340 points: Negative-Brandyn D., Brianna, Orrin, and Tiffany

#7:    The state of Maine should lower the age at which kids can work.
343 points: Affirmative-Lakeisha, Darin, and Jaime-Lynn
368 points: Negative-Braden, Maddi, and Mike

Team Medalists:

This year’s highest scoring debate team included Devan M., Sara T., and Blake N., with 390 points out of a possible 400.

Individual Medalists:

Zachary

Avery

Savannah

C.J.

Devan M.

Damien

Mitchell

Ian

Braden

Lily

Andrew

Mason

D.J.

Jaime-Lynn

Mike

Blake N.

Brandon M.

Sam

Corey

Haleigh

For the project, groups selected one of several topics we had been studying during our unit about bullying and violence in schools.  Students learned how to use different camera angles, shots, and filming equipment.  They also participated in script and story board workshops, as well as iMovie tutorials to learn how to edit video footage, and add finishing touches, like titles, transitions, music, and special effects.

2010 L.M.S. Academy Hill Film Award Winners:

Best Picture: Zach, Orrin, Baylee  &  Brandyn

Students’ Choice Award (tie): Lily, Deon & Mason  &  Christine, Kaylen, Selaina & D.J.

Best Film Editing: Savannah, Devon C. & Mitchell

Best Script: Blake N., Sara T., Dakota & Alex

Best Action Sequence: Corey, Brianna, Tiffany & Avery

Best Use of Special Effects: Lakeisha, Braden & Devan M.

Best Actor: Mason, Brandyn D. & Zach

Best Actress: Tiffany & Christine

Best Supporting Actor: Damien & Devan M.

Best Supporting Actress: Kaylen  & Lakeisha

Best Villain: D.J., Corey, Braden & Blake B.

Greatest Hero: Avery, Jaime & Devon C.

Best Cinematography: Andrew, Sam  & Jacob

Best Story Board: Clara, C.J. & Damien

Best Sound Editing: Ian, Brandon M., Caitlin & Tyler

Best Bloopers: Lily , Mason, & Deon

Best Teacher Performances: Mr. King and Mrs. Lacombe

Students presented their chosen segments of the play of The Diary of Anne Frank by Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett on Friday, January 8th.  They used props and costumes, memorized lines, and used the four tools of subtext, including gestures, pause, stress, and inflection, to deliver their lines.  Their presentations were a big hit!  All photographs courtesy of our fabulous photographer, Miss Layman!