Roadrunner News
April 2017
Dear Miss Advice
Dear Miss Advice,
I need help not stressing out on tests. Is there anything you can suggest for this?
Thank you
Miss Stressed on Tests
Dear Miss Stressed on Tests,
I realize the issue; many people (especially students) have a hard time taking tests, the cause? According to http://kidshealth.org/teen/school_jobs/school/test_anxiety.html “Test anxiety is actually a type of performance anxiety — a feeling someone might have in a situation where performance really counts or when the pressure's on to do well. For example, a person might experience performance anxiety when he or she is about to try out for the school play, sing a solo on stage, get into position at the pitcher's mound, step onto the platform in a diving meet, or go into an important interview.” Here are some tips though that will help you with that stress.
1) Have a Positive Attitude
2) Make a Plan
The week before the test, ask your teacher what the test is going to cover. Is it from the textbook only? Class notes? Can you use your calculator? If you've been absent, talk to friends about material you may have missed. Make a list of the most important topics to be covered and use that as a guide when you study. Circle items that you know will require extra time. Be sure to plan extra time to study the most challenging topics.
3) The Night Before
Cramming doesn't work. If you've followed a study plan, the night before the test you should do a quick review and get to bed early. Remember, your brain and body need sleep to function well, so don't stay up late!
4) The Morning of the Test
Did you know that you think better when you have a full stomach? So don't skip breakfast the morning of the test. Get to school early and do a ten-minute power study right before the test, so your brain is turned on and tuned up.
5) Test Time
Before the test begins, make sure you have everything you'll need - scratch paper, extra pencils, and your calculator (if you're allowed to use it). Understand how the test is scored: Do you lose points for incorrect answers? Or is it better to make guesses when you're not sure of the answer? Read the instructions! You want to make sure you are marking answers correctly.
6) Manage Your Time
Scan through the test quickly before starting. Answering the easy questions first can be a time saver and a confidence builder. Plus, it saves more time in the end for you to focus on the hard stuff.
7) I'm Stuck!
Those tricky problems can knock you off balance. Don't get worried or frustrated. Reread the question to make sure you understand it, and then try to solve it the best way you know how. If you're still stuck, circle it and move on. You can come back to it later. What if you have no idea about the answer? Review your options and make the best guess you can, but only if you don't lose points for wrong answers.
8) I'm Done!
Double Check.
No matter what you do, try your best and you will do great.
Hope you do well,
Miss Advice
DIY Galaxy T-shirt by Sahar
Hey guys its Sahar here today and I’m here with another very exciting craft project! Today I will be teaching you how to design your very own shirt, using materials you probably already have at home! In particular, we will be designing/painting a galaxy design but you can use these step to customize it to whatever you like. I will also be teaching you how to make your own fabric paint along with how to apply your design! So let’s get started!
Material:
* White or black t-shirt (You can use any color but white or black is just preferred)
* Regular acrylic paint in the colors of white, blue, pink, purple, and black
* White Elmer’s glue
* Shaving foam
* Spoon or something to mix with
* Some scotch or painters tape
* Painting brushes
* Painting sponges
* Piece of paper board or cardboard
* Disposable cup or bowl
Now let’s move onto the procedure!
Ok so the first thing you want to do is gather all of your materials and sit on an old towel or trash bag so that if the paint falls/or leaks you won’t ruin your carpet. The next thing we are going to do is make our fabric paint. You want to start in a disposable cup or bowl so the you can mix your paint in there. So, Put equal parts of glue and shaving foam into the bowl or cup. The amount you put is according to how much or how less you want of that specific color. I recommend putting in one table spoon of glue and one table spoon of shaving foam. (You can always make more if you need to) Then you want to just add a ¾ teaspoon of acrylic paint, and you want to do this for all colors.
Then, you need to lay your t-shirt onto the floor and slid a piece of card board in between the front and backside of the shirt. Once that is done you are now going
to get your scotch or painters tape and tape a geometric shape. I chose a triangle just because it was the simplest. After you tape an outline of your shape you can now move on to the galaxy part. For this part you will need the painting sponges and for later you will need the painting brushes. Apply some blue fabric paint onto your sponge brush and start dabbing inside of the triangle outline on the shirt making circles and semicircles. After you have made several circles, you are basically going to go in with different colors making that exact same pattern. If you see in the picture, you will see that you are not going to dab on top of your firt color but you are going to dab on like the side.
Once you have done that inside of the whole triangle and it is starting to resemble a galaxy, you are almost done! The last step is to add the stars! Going in with your small paint brush you are going to make tine dots everywhere, and in some place you can also add large stars by just making a cross. After you have done that, you want to let this dry for at 8 hours before ironing. When the shirt is done drying you have to iron on it for about 5-7 minutes just placing the iron on it and then back off. Adult supervision is highly recommended so that you don’t burn yourself. Once you have ironed it you can now throw it in the washing machine. After it is washed you can rock your very own designed shirt! That’s all for today, I hope you enjoyed it and I’ll see you next month!
The Origin of April Fool’s Day By: Aria Sarracino
April fool’s Day has been celebrated through several centuries all around the world in different cultures celebrated in different ways. Although it is not a legal holiday it is usually filled with practical jokes. Its origin remains mysterious as we have failed to pinpoint the exact year and how it started. But many people have different ideas. What are the dates?
Some historians say it all started with the Council of Trent in 1563. The council sent out a message that instead of the New Year starting on April it would start in January. Many people either ignored it or just didn't get the news on time so they celebrated the supposed holiday. And when they realized there mistakes it turned into a day of tricks. Still other historians linked April fool’s day toward ancient festivals such as Hilaria which the Romans celebrated. It includes the people of Rome Dressing up and they believed that Mother Nature fooled people with changing unpredictable weather.
Whenever it was created or whenever the custom began it started out small. Today though many people all around the world celebrate it in different forms or sometimes on different days. Some of these are called: Hilaria, Holi, Festival of Lud, Feast of Fools, and Regional British Festivals.
For More information:
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/april-fools-tradition-popularized
http://wonderopolis.org/wonder/how-did-april-fools-day-begin
http://hoaxes.org/af_database/permalink/origin_of_april_fools_day
http://www.seeker.com/where-does-april-fools-day-originate-1769694656.html
Student Spotlight By: Aria Sarracino
7th Grade
Interview
Name: Sahar Mamdani Grade: 8th
What are your hobbies or interests outside of school?
“I like to paint, I am not much into video games.”
Were you homeschooled and what was your prior school?
“I have been doing this online school since sixth grade which is for three years now. But before this I was going to a private school.”
What are you going to do you do after high school?
“I am planning on going to college and getting my degree, and then I am planning on becoming an international artist.”
Who is your family and what do you like doing with them?
“There is me, my mom, my dad, an older brother, and older sister, and one younger sister. For family fun we like watching football together and if not we go to the playground and do some outside stuff.”
What is your favorite type of ice-cream?
“My favorite tye of ice cream would be the chocolate ice cream.”
If you were to be the principal of this school what would you do first?
“If I were to be the principal of this school I would change the system a little. I know I had trouble adjusting towards the expectations.”
Do you speak any other languages?
“Yes I speak Urdu it is kind of like Hindu.”
What meaningful quote has changed your life forever?
“Believe in yourself no matter that comes in your way!!”
If you ruled the world, what would you do?
“If I could rule the world i would make smoking be illegal texting and driving illegal I would move the driving age up to 21 and I would probably have my own posy of kittens!!!!!”
GO ROADRUNNERS!New Teacher Interview by: Sammy Balsamo
Where did you go to college?
I went to Colorado College then I transfered to UNNM where I earned my bachelors in Biology and Earth and Planetary Sciences. I also went to University Veritas in Coasta Rica for a semester. After working as a contract biologist at Taos Soil and Water I got my teaching certificate from Northern New Mexico Community College.
Where have you taught before?
I have taught at Enos Garcia Elementary for 9 years and Penasco for 1 year.
Could you give some personal background? I am married to Mrs. Balsamo and I have 4 children Juliet, Marion, Sammy, and Tallee. Two of my children attend NMVA now and Juliet graduated from NMVA 2 years ago.
Are you involved in any community organizations? I am a soccer coach for TSYL, I am the Park coach for the TWST ski team at Taos Ski Valley.
What are your hobbies? I love to ski and in the summer I build and farm.
Where did you grow up? Did you move around a lot? If yes, how did this affect you? If no, how did the stability of living in one place all your life affect you? I grew up in Taos, NM and have lived in New Mexico all my life. I traveled all around the world with my family as a child and I love New Mexico.
What's the hardest thing for you about being a teacher? How do you address that? The hardest thing about teaching is keeping up with all the paperwork. I stay organized and that helps me keep up with the paperwork but I still fall behind.
Who was your favorite teacher and why? My favorite teacher was Mr. Lopez my Algebra teacher because he was funny and mean and kept everyone in line. He also was an amazing teacher. I learned all my math from him.
Spring DIY By: Marion Balsamo
- First blow up a balloon.
- Tear up newspaper into lots of strips.
- Make paper mache glue (water and flour mixed to the consistency of glue)
- Dip strips of paper in glue and lay flat on balloon.
- Cover the balloon with paper strips. All the strips should be laying flat and not too soggy.
- Let dry over night.
- Pick a pretty color of paint and paint your balloon.
- let dry.
- Cut the balloon length wise in half.
- Glue a strip of thin cardboard around the inside of the bottom half of the egg.
- Decorate with lace, flowers, paint, stickers, ribbons, glitter.
- Fill with treasures and display.
Enjoy your egg decoration.
Poetry Contest
Online Clubs
NMVA Clubs
Join the Chess Club by contacting Ms. Rebecca Spencer at rspencer@nmvirtual.org.