Hello Academy Parents and Guardians,

Thank you to all who came out to the Academy Math Night and State of the School Address. We appreciate your presence.

January is School Board Appreciation Month. Take a moment to reach out to our school board member, Carlos Matthews, and show him some appreciation for all his hard work in Huntsville City Schools.

Please, Please, Please send in absence excuses. Please try to have your child in school daily. Everyday counts for learning success.

National Junior and Arts Honor Societies induction will be Tuesday, January 31, 2023 at 9:00a.m. Please look for information from your child's sponsor about inductions.

HCS Curriculum Showcase

Please come out if you want to learn more about the classes that will be offered next year. Middle School Class registration for next the 2023-2024 school year will begin the first week of February.

Please remind your child of the NO CELL PHONE POLICY. We want to focus on learning and not managing the cell phones daily. Thanks for your help and support.

Please continue to discuss with your child the importance of completing assignments on time and staying focused during learning times. We are excited to see all of the progress our students will make this nine weeks.

Arrival and Dismissal Expectations

In the morning, there are two arrival points - carline and bus. Students should NOT be dropped off in the front parking lot unless it is after 8:00 am. The earliest arrival time is 7:30a.m.

PLEASE, PLEASE do NOT drop students off in the front of the school unless after 8:00a.m. Then, you must sign them in. We have seen several students running across the parking lot before 8:00a.m. This is not one of the supervised drop off locations. Buses drop off in the front loop. Car riders need to drop off in the car line area. If you have questions, please let us know.

AAA Way

This month we are highlighting our Cafeteria Expectations. Please remind your child. The playbill is below.

ACAP Vocabulary Words of the Week

1. liberate- set (someone) free from a situation, especially imprisonment or slavery, in which their liberty is severely restricted; free (a country, city, or people) from enemy occupation

2. makeshift- serving as temporary substitute; a temporary or device

3. ignite (v.) to set on fire, to cause to burn; to heat up, excite

4. pertinent- (adj.) related to the matter at hand, to the point

5. accord- an official agreement or treaty

6. grapple- come to terms with; engage in a close fight or struggle without weapons, wrestle

Have an awesome weekend!!!

Our Best Always!

Kitrise Torain

AAA Middle, Principal

kitrise.torain@hsv-k12.org

Dr. Evelyn Coffey

AAA Elementary, Principal

evelyn.coffey@hsv-k12.org

Another great source of information - Join our Facebook Group page Academy for Academics and Arts! Join Twitter @AAAMiddle

Congratulations to our Stella Star Students of the week – Jan 23-27, 2023. We are so proud of their commitment to excellence. #WhyAAA #OurBestAlways

6th Grade

Ayden Thomas

Suleimy Peralta

7th Grade

Samuel Bailey

Kaitlyn Pelletier

8th Grade

Zachariah Bumbalough

Natalie McClendon

Congratulations to the following students who won the Spelling Bee!!!

Elementary School

1st Place- Adonis Harrison

Runner Up- Jude Carroll

Middle School-

1st Place- Kaitlyn Pelletier

Runner Up- Tatiana Mills

Please remember these important magnet dates.

We have the carline ending by 3:25p.m. If you pull in after this time, please go to the front office to sign out your child. Here are a few things that will help:

1. Please pull into the line in which you would like to exit. Pull in the line closest to the school if you are turning right onto Sparkman. Please pull in the second line if you plan on exiting left on Sparkman. THANK YOU!
2. Please do not yell at our faculty and staff. They are working hard to get your child to you in the safest way possible.
3. Display your child's name in the windshield, even as you pull up to the loading area. It is difficult to see names that are on the dash board.
4. Carline tags can be displayed on the sun visor with clips or rubber bands. Please keep the car tags in your sun visor until you are completely out of carline.
5. Being distracted by a cell phone, slows the line down more than one might realize. Please stay off the phone in carline.
6. The front line turns right on to Sparkman and the back line turns left on to Sparkman.
7. Pull up as far as you can.
8. Pull up as close as you can to the car in front of you.
9. Bus transportation is available to zoned schools. Most of the buses drop off at their first stop by 3:25 PM.
10. Afterschool tutoring pick up - Parents MUST park and walk to the door to check their child out.

Thank you for your patience! We can't wait to see how much this process improves next week. :)

1. The front circle is for BUSES ONLY in the afternoons!
2. Please do not park your car on the circle.
3. We have buses that drop off and pick up students every day between 2:30 and 4:30.
4. The curbs around the circle are not for car pick up and drop off, they are for buses only!

Cell phones must be powered off while students are in the building. Students will receive consequences based on the HCS Behavior Learning Guide if phones are on.

Please talk with your child to make sure they understand this procedure.

Thank for your support! Our students have been following the No Cell Phone Policy.

6th Grade Updates

We desperately need tissues for the classroom! Please help!!

ELA:

Stricklin- We are continuing to work on our narratives. Students have begun planning and writing their narrative stories. Students got to choose their favorite idea to creat their own story. Over the next couple of weeks, we will be editing and revising their narrative stories before they turn them in. After we complete this short narrative unit will move on to argumentative writing.

Estelle- We continue work on learning and using the writing process. Currently students are working on personal narratives focusing on adding descriptive details to their essays.

Math: We will wrap up our Module of Ratios and Rates with Converting Customary Units of Measurements. This lesson will last about two weeks with graded assignments, one quiz and a test. Work is expected to be completed during class time. Assignments have a two day grace period. Pencils and notebooks are used primarily for instruction, but a handful of students are coming to class unprepared. Please check if your child needs to make a supply run this weekend in order to be ready next week.

Social Studies: This week we are finishing our study of the Great Depression, Dust Bowl and the New Deal with a test on Friday, January 27. Students have worked really hard during this unit on citing textual evidence and answering text-dependent constructed response questions in preparation for the ACAP. We also analyzed multiple primary source documents including the famous Dorothea Lange photographs, “Migrant Mother”, “This Land is Your Land” by Woody Guthrey, an oral history of the Dust Bowl, as well as several other New Deal primary sources. Next week, we will be diving into our unit on WWII.

Science - For the next two weeks we will continue working on The Sun-Earth-Moon system. We have completed investigations of how shadows change throughout the day as well shadow changes through the seasons. Next week we will explore moon phases, eclipses and tides.

ELA: We just finished our figurative language unit with a test last Friday. Students who made a 74 or below are eligible for test recovery this coming Tuesday, January 31st, in academy time. Honors students who made a 74 or below can have a test retake (different test, same standards) on Tuesday in academy time. This week we started our symbolism unit and we will have a quiz on this material on Friday, February 3rd. As a reminder, the 7th grade team is not taking late work this semester. All work must be turned in by the following Monday at 8:00 a.m. to receive credit.

Math:

Science:

We will be completing a heredity project starting Monday January 30th and due Friday February 3rd. This project will demonstrate what students have been learning in class the past few weeks. Students will have 3 days in class to work on them. We will have a test over heredity on Tuesday February 7th. Study guides will be handed out the week of January 30th. After our test over Heredity, we will be learning about DNA!

Reminder that late work will not be accepted except in cases of absences.

Social Studies: This week in Geography we finished the 2 lessons we have been working on since the beginning of this 9 weeks. Most classes tested on 1/27. There is one class that will test on 1/30. We will begin our next lesson on Climate. We will also have a map test in the coming weeks on the 50 states. Please help me remind the students that there is no late work for this semester.

8th Grade Updates - With cold and flu season here, each homeroom could really use a few boxes of tissue. Thanks!

ELA: Hello! We have finally finished reading/listening to A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Students learned how authors use key literary elements to contribute to the meaning and purpose of a text, using text evidence as support. They concentrated on the setting, characters, plot, theme, dialogue, and conflict. In the upcoming weeks, they will make complex inferences from the structure and content of a text, including comparison and contrast, problem and solution, cause and effect, and substantiated and unsubstantiated claims and evidence, to draw logical conclusions about the author’s perspective. Graphic organizers and 3-paragraph essays will be the assessment. The texts that they will be using may include Shakespeare’s Sonnets 17, 25, 65, 116, 130, and an excerpt from Romeo and Juliet.

Math:

8th Grade Accelerated Math: Greetings! We will continue exploration, inquiry and application with real world connection of the Pythagorean Theorem and its converse, Volume of Cylinders, Cones, Spheres and Rectangular Prisms. We will also review previous topics incorporating angles; triangles; parallel lines cut by a transversal , Properties of Exponents etc…Classwork should be completed during class time. Homework is a means to reinforce and offer extended practice to master standards. Students will have homework 1-2 days during the week. Please have students check Schoology daily for assignments and updates. Classwork assignments are typically posted in class as well. Students should have their computer fully charged, pencil, paper/notebook, ruler and calculator (if possible) with them daily for class. Have an amazing week! :-)

8th Grade Regular: Greetings! We will continue exploration, inquiry and application with real world connection of the Pythagorean Theorem and its converse, Volume of Cylinders, Cones, Spheres and Rectangular Prisms. We will also review previous topics incorporating angles; triangles; parallel lines cut by a transversal , Properties of Exponents etc…Classwork should be completed during class time. Homework is a means to reinforce and offer extended practice to master standards. Students will have homework 1-2 days during the week. Please have students check Schoology daily for assignments and updates. Classwork assignments are typically posted in class as well. Students should have their computer fully charged, pencil, paper/notebook, ruler and calculator (if possible) with them daily for class. Have an amazing week! :-)

Science: Over the next two weeks, 8th grade students will begin what I would like to call “STEAM Bootcamp” where students will be reintroduced to the terms energy, force, and motion while introducing daily small group instruction rotations. Rube Goldberg Machine construction will begin on Wednesday, so all students will need to have all materials and plans completed. Please be sure to encourage your students to bring their necessary materials for class every day.

Social Studies: Well, we have officially wrapped up the Judaism unit. Hopefully we learned tons about this religion and its deep historical roots. We are on to Islam for the next week and a half. Do not be surprised if your learner comes home with some new information and questions regarding this subject. As we are learning about all these famous world religions, we are building up to what will be a classroom presentation on an assigned religion. We are a few weeks away from this but I can not wait until it is here. As far as changes in the classroom go, you may have heard that we have stepped up the rigor and coursework exponentially in both my regular and honors classes. I truly believe all students are capable of hitting these high standards and so this new semester we are going to work really hard on achieving this. The next vocabulary test is next week so please make sure your learners are making those flashcards and learning the new terminology! Hope everyone has a fantastic weekend!

Creative Writing - Students in Creative Writing are continuing to work on their Poetry Unit and prepare for upcoming workshops. We hope to have some visiting artists with us later this quarter and are currently planning for an Open-Mic event in March.

Media Arts - 7th & 8th grade - Students will record and edit their skits.

Media Arts - 6th Grade- 6th Grade is finishing up their Product Placement design where they have learned how to create an advertisement of their choice using traditional and digital media. They have been working very hard to hit the standards.

AAA Theatre -

• Comedy of Errors

• Rehearsals are underway. It’s going well! Please Make sure that students are bringing all materials needed to every rehearsal.

• **Donations Needed! - Any 80s clothing, accessories, stage decor.

• Mr. Grumpy’s Info

• Last Day to Purchase DVD & Photos are Jan. 27th.

• Link: https://forms.gle/QivHKeqSMHodstfh8

Theatre Performance Classes

• Introduction to Theatre

• We have worked on basic improv and have now moved into creating Improv Scenes.

• Theatre I

• We will move into a script writing unit soon. As of now, we are continuing to work on our scene development.

• Theatre Production

• Thespian Cabaret - Jan 28! More info soon.

• Rehearse those IEs

• Tech IEs need to be finished!

• Our One Act, The Yellow Boat - Feb. 11

• Please check the calendar for any after school changes.

• ThesFest - Feb 17-19

• Make sure you're making your payments!

Stars & Clowns

We have begun learning our competition pieces for Atlanta! The students are learning to site read and sing more difficult pieces. I am so proud of the work they are doing. Mr. Carter, our accompanist, is working hard to make sure we have practice tracks. Students should be practicing every day. I will post the tracks in Schoology when they are ready.

Be on the lookout for a fundraiser for Stars and Clowns coming up. I will send information home soon! Don’t worry THIS fundraiser is easy. We call it 20 for $20. All you have to do is ask 20 people for $20 the money can be applied to your trip or it can go towards another student’s trip that needs financial help. It is an easy way to ensure everyone gets to go on the trip! Thanks for your help!

Strings-2023 February is on its way! Our AAA music dept. students for orchestra are doing the $20 for $20 fundraiser too. Have your AAAmazing strings student ask 20 people for 20 dollars. Make sure they express how important the educational cause is! Our students are making a difference in their lives being dedicated and focused in their arts talents, while being thoughtful and successful Academic students. Most also exemplify full respect and attitudes of cooperation daily too, among their teachers and peers. I am noticing more self confidence and pride in being a member due to GREAT CLASS REHEARSAL METHODS! Positivity and actions to keep moving forward matter and make the best impact. II want to extend information about AOA All-State Orchestra Festival for which none of our students are involved as of right now, due to early year Grumpy’s—HOWEVER, it would be incredible for any parent to take their child to OBSERVE the event in rehearsals (Saturday-February 11, OR in Performance Sunday-February 12th at Moody Music Bldg in Tuscaloosa, Alabama and the University.

Band - Uniforms have been ordered. The band uniform performance attire for beginning and advanced band will consist of the following: Black Satin Vests and bowties (School will provide), White collared button-down dress shirt, Black dress pants or long Black skirts (girls option), and Black dress shoes (Parents will provide). NO BLACK JEANS OR BLACK TENNIS SHOES!! Girls that are in both band and choir will wear the Black choir dresses.

Choir - Uniforms have been ordered. The choir uniform performance attire for boys will consist of the following: Black Satin Vests and bowties (School will provide), White collared button-down dress shirt, Black dress pants, and Black dress shoes (Parents will provide). NO BLACK JEANS OR BLACK TENNIS SHOES!! The choir uniform performance attire for girls will consist of the following: Black choir dresses and Black dress shoes.

Visual Art- The Visual Arts I students have been building their ‘Artist Letters,’ over the past few weeks. These are 3-dimensional block letters. They are finishing up the paper mache process and will begin painting them next week. The students are very proud of their work and cannot wait to share it with everyone!

Visual Art II Students have been working hard to learn how to build a Keith Haring sculpture from scratch and plaster cloth it to create a form/sculpture. These sculptures are turning out wonderful and the students are very proud of their hard work.

Dance-This week middle school dancers have been rehearsing and learning proper dance audition etiquette. They’ve been working really hard for their upcoming dance production “The Wiz”. Auditions will be January 21st, 2023. 9am-2pm. Students should bring black leotards, black leggings, and a one minute solo if they're auditioning for a lead role or lead ensemble.

We are happy to accept any gift card donations ($5-10) to use for Teacher Door Prizes. Donations can be dropped off at the front office.

Chromebook chargers are available for purchase for $30 each. The chargers may be picked up at the front office. Prior to pick-up, you can pay the charger fee with a Credit Card/Debit payments via MySchoolFees: www.myschoolfees.com. Sign in as GUEST, Select AAA Elem (or Middle), Select Public, Select Chromebook Charger $30, be sure to list child’s name in the COMMENTS. Or you can pay the $30 fee at the time of pick-up with cash or check. All checks should be made payable to Academy for Academics and Arts Elementary (or Middle) School. If you have any questions, please contact the school at 256-428-7600 and speak to Erica Dillard or Ingrid Lawler, Bookkeepers.

Grades and Coursework - Contact the teacher first please firstname.lastname@hsv-k12.org

Data Generalist: Ramona Calhoun at Ramona.Calhoun@hsv-k12.org

Attendance - Ramona Calhoun at Jahshay.McKeller@hsv-k12.org

Cafeteria and Nutrition - Norma Martin at norma.martin@hsv-k12.org

School Counselor - Debbie Smith at debbie.smith@hsv-k12.org

Nurse - Christina Darby at Christina.Darby@hsv-k12.org

Librarian & Technology - Brenda Levert at brenda.levert@hsv-k12.org

Elementary Principal - Evelyn Coffey at Evelyn.Coffey@hsv-k12.org

Middle School Principal - Kitrise Torain at kitrise.torain@hsv-k12.org

Elementary Admin Assistant- Mary Christopher at Mary.Christopher@hsv-k12.org

Middle School Admin Assistant- Erica Dillard at Erica.Dillard@hsv-k12.org

January

January 24- Honor Society Inductions 9:00a.m.

February

February 7- Madison County Spelling Bee

February 27-March 3- Read Across America Week

PK-5th grade and 6th-8th grade Arts Magnet school in the Huntsville City School District.

Email: Kitrise.Torain@hsv-k12.org
Website: https://www.huntsvillecityschools.org/schools/academies-academics-and-arts
Location: 4800 Sparkman Drive Northwest, Huntsville, AL, USA
Phone: 256.428.7600
Facebook: facebook.com/AcademyforAcademicsandArtsElementary
Twitter: @AAAMiddle