By Susie Rogers, ELA, 5th-8th

Every year St. James holds its fundraising Gala where we come together with our families, staff, and friends for a night of wonderful food, upbeat music, and one-of-a-kind auction items. Each class contributes an auction item to help raise money for daily operations for the school and teacher salaries. This year my 7th grade class voted to make a spectacular hand-painted wind chime for a lucky someone who has the highest bid! Today we began the process by using sharpies, rubbing alcohol, Q-tips, and droppers. Students chose their favorite colors and blended them to make the perfect colorful disk. There are a couple more steps to complete before the final reveal, so stay tuned!

The greater danger for most of us lies not in setting our aim too high and falling short, but in setting our aim too low, and achieving our mark. Michelangelo

This inspirational quote is a driving force of many of the projects for our students, and the Renaissance Research project In Mrs. Kandice’s history class was no exception. Each student had to choose a pivotal figure during the Renaissance time period, research the history, the life, and the accomplishments of each person. They then had to create a collage and present their project to the class. They learned about famous playwrights, artists, inventors, and rulers such as Galileo, Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael, William Shakespeare, Gutenberg, Copernicus, and Queen Elizabeth I.

By Susie Rogers, 5th-8th, ELA

As we begin our novel study of The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton, students were assigned different areas to explore such as tv, movies, music, fashion, cars, slang, important events, and Greaser subculture. With a partner, they had to research, create, and present their information to the class. Building background is a critical step before analyzing a story set in a different time period.

Interesting facts from the 1960s from the students perspectives:

“Gas prices in the 1960s used to be $0.31 a gallon.” Hattie

“I did not know that Martin Luther King was killed at a hotel.” Lennox

“Richard Harris was from Ireland. Sean Connery was the first James Bond. Adam West was the original Batman.” Boogie

“Transistor radios were popular…, but not today because of technology is so advanced.” Poca

“One thing I learned from the 1960s project is that a lot of the singers that I like sang in the time period. Larnelle Harris, Bill Gaither, and Mark Lowery to only name a few.” Reece

“Woodstock was the biggest concert in the 60s. An estimated 400,00 to 500,000 people attended the festival.” Archer

“I learned that the average cost of a car in the 1960s was $2,500.” Shepherd

“After the Gulf of Tonkin incident, the United States made up a second incident inearly August because they couldn’t make a sufficient war justification.” Chris

“Elvis Presley’s reported caloric intake at the end of his life was 10,000 to 12,000 calories a day.” JoJo

“I learned that Greasers, a popular subculture in the 60s, is still popular today in the main culture due to movies like Grease, and leather jackets, jeans, andmotocycle boots still being in style.” Elliot

“I learned how popular Go-Go boots are. These boots even had a show called “Hollywood a Go-Go” that teens watched.” Rivers

By Susie Rogers, 5th-8th ELA

This wonderful community service by our 7th and 8th grade classes has now become a fabulous, and highly anticipated tradition with Life House Church and their Kidz Club for Kindergarten through 5th grade children. We were able to provide a delicious dinner, make a reindeer cocoa mix, praise Jesus through song and dance, and give each child a Christmas present filled with gloves, blankets, socks, toys, and yummy treats! The interaction between our students and the children brought smiles and some tears to everyone who witnessed the complete joy and goodness that was shown. The experience truly emphasized the true meaning of Christmas!

By Susie Rogers, 5th-7th, ELA

Expanding your vocabulary is one of the most valuable skills you can develop. Words allow us to express ideas, emotions, and thoughts with precision and power. Let’s ponder why vocabulary learning is so critical and how different tools can make the process engaging and effective.

Strong vocabulary skills can transform communication. Imagine trying to describe your ravenous hunger for success or feeling feeble after a challenging day—specific words bring clarity and depth to your messages. Words like prostrate convey exhaustion in a way simple terms cannot. A well-developed vocabulary also gratifies the desire to understand and be understood, creating meaningful connections with others.

Learning vocabulary also enhances creativity. Words like impetuous can inspire dynamic writing, while having the language to describe abstract feelings like rapture helps refine your storytelling. Building a strong vocabulary takes effort but yields incredible rewards. Whether through workbooks, apps like Quizlet, or games on Blooket, you can find a method that suits your style. Take advantage of these tools and immerse yourself in the joy of language—you’ll find it to be an enriching privilege. (words in italics are 7th grade vocabulary words for this week!)