Sixth Graders Use Technology for Book Projects

Sixth graders collaborate to create multimedia "Did You Know?" book projects featuring a variety of informational books and topics of their choice. Students used iMovie, GarageBand, and the Internet to combine audio, video, images, and text to publish final projects.

Fifth Grader Wins School Spelling Bee

C-O-N-G-R-A-T-U-L-A-T-I-O-N-S to Shelley Phillips for winning the 2011-2012 Donoho Lower School Spelling Bee! Shelley will advance to the Calhoun County Spelling Bee on February 1, 2012. Let's wish her lots of luck. Also, congratulations to all the 4th - 6th grade homeroom spelling bee winners who participated in this year's bee:

Sarah Green (4th grade)
Adam Stremmel (4th grade)
Shelley Phillips (5th grade)
Sarah Abdul Ghani (5th grade)
Grayson Marlowe (5th grade)
Jenna Stremmel (5th grade)
Sonia Kashyap (6th grade)
Tej Patel (6th grade)

Middle School Quiz Bowl Wins Donoho Tournament

Congratulations to the MS Quiz Bowl team, winners of the 2nd Annual Donoho Quiz Bowl Tournament! The MS Quiz Bowl team competed in the 2nd Annual Donoho Quiz Bowl Tournament, Saturday, November 19. The tournament grew this year to include 13 schools with 18 teams competing, there were 9 schools on a waiting list. The Donoho team members are:  Wittney Brown, Libby Davis, Meghana Giri, Bella Howell, Derek James, Jake Kaplan, Mark Simmons, and Jake Walker. They were undefeated in the tournament. They won their pool play,  the semi-final round,  and took 1st place in the tournament.

First Graders Enjoy "Old Fashion Day"

Donoho first graders enjoyed an "Old Fashion Day" picnic as a culminating activity to their study of life in pioneer days. The children learned about daily life of pioneer children. They spent the day learning from the McGuffey Primer and playing games like the pioneer children would have played during lunch and recess. They had things such as fried chicken, ham, biscuits, fried apple pies, teacakes and lemonade in Mason jars. This along with learning to make syrup at Bennett Farms concludes a fun study of the life of Pioneer children. 

Second Graders Participate in Journey North

Second grade classes are participating in Journey North, a global study of wildlife migration and seasonal change. The students made paper symbolic Monarch butterflies that will travel to Mexico for the winter. In the spring, the butterflies will be sent back north to the students. Great job!

Two Students Named National Merit Semi-Finalists

The Donoho School is proud to announce that seniors Vinay Giri and Tate Thomas have been named National Merit Semi-finalists by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation. The National Merit Scholarship Program is an annual academic competition for recognition and scholarships that is open to all United States high school students who meet published entry requirements. The program is conducted by National Merit Scholarship Corporation, a not-for-profit organization established in 1955 that operates without government assistance. Semifinalists named in each year's Merit Scholarship competition show exceptional academic ability and potential for success in rigorous college studies. Those who meet requirements to advance to the Finalist level compete for National Merit Scholarships supported by independent sponsor organizations and by National Merit Scholarship Corporation's own funds.

About 1.5 million students in some 22,000 high schools entered the 2012 National Merit Scholarship program by taking the 2010 Preliminary SAT (PSAT). The 16,000 Semifinalists that were announced on September 14, 2011, are the highest-scoring entrants in each state and represent less that 1 percent of each state's high school seniors. They are the only participants who qualify to continue in the competition for National Merit Scholarships to be awarded in the spring of 2012. Most Semifinalists are currently twelfth graders who will enter college in the fall of 2012.

Congratulations Vinay and Tate!

Lower School Science Teacher Attends Prestigious Workshop

Lower school science teacher Donna Plunkett was one of nineteen teachers who spent the week of June 25 –July 2, 2011, touring Alabama and learning about natural sciences in the prestigious Mountains to the Gulf workshop sponsored by Legacy-Partners in Environmental Education, McDowell Environmental Center, Alabama Water Watch, JSU Field Schools, Gulf of Mexico Alliance, and Dauphin Island Sea Lab.

Dr. Jim Lacefield, a geologist and author, Dr. Bill Deutsch of Auburn University and Alabama Water Watch, and Dr. George Cline, a herpetologist at Jacksonville State University, each helped the teachers hone their science skills.  Dr. Cline spoke about the different flora and fauna of the various regions, Dr. Lacefield discussed the characteristics of specific geology, and Dr. Deusch explained how the geology shaped the local watersheds.

The group enjoyed activities at McDowell Environmental Center, Little River Canyon, Cheaha State Park, Elkahatchee Creek near Alex City, and the impact crater in Wetumpka.  They canoed the Coosa River and searched for fossils near the Conecuh River before winding up at Dauphin Island's Sea Lab.

Teachers and Students Meet Holocaust Survivor

Several Donoho teachers, students, and parents recently met Mr. Irving Roth, Holocaust survivor.  Mr. Roth, from New York, spoke at a recent community gathering at Temple Beth El, and he was the keynote speaker at a teacher-conference sponsored by the JSU Writing Project.  Students learned the importance of making informed choices about social injustice issues as they become world citizens.  Teachers learned more about connecting history to contemporary issues and how the power of one person, one decision, and one action can impact society in positive and negative ways.

Congratulations to AP Students

Congratulations to the 2011 Advanced Placement students. Nine students attempted nineteen exams during May 2011; fourteen of those exams were scored three, four, or five. Brian Westbrook and Tate Thomas earned a five on each of the exams they attempted.  
 

Diana Thompson, valedictorian of the class of 2011, has earned the honor of AP Scholar with Distinction.  Diana achieved an overall average of 3.5 and scored three or higher on five of the AP exams that she attempted while a student at Donoho.

Three Seventh Graders Receive Recognition From Duke TIP Program

Seventh graders Chandler Collins and Mark Simmons who were recognized by the Duke TIP program for earning scores equal to or better than 90 percent of college-bound seniors who took above-level College entrance exams (ACT or SAT). Mark and Chandler were invited to attend the Grand Recognition Ceremony held on the Duke University campus on May 23. They were among 2,085 students who were invited from across the nation to attend this ceremony.  

In addition, seventh grader Max Garrett was invited to attend the State Recognition Ceremony for scoring equal to or better than half of the college-bound students who took the ACT or SAT. He, along with Chandler and Mark, was among 24,847 students to have been invited to one of the 34 state ceremonies in the 16-state Talent Search region.

The Duke University Talent Identification Program (Duke TIP) is an international leader in identifying and serving the educational needs of academically gifted youth. Through identification, recognition, challenging educational programs, information, advocacy and research, Duke TIP provides resources to gifted students, their parents, educators, and schools for the development of the students’ optimal potential.

www.tip.duke.edu

21st Century Book Projects

Students in Mrs. Light's 5th and 6th grade reading classes chose alternatives to the traditional book report for their summer reading assignments. Check out these 21st century book projects for My Side of the Mountain and Number the Stars:

Other projects are on display in Mrs. Light's classroom. 

Biology Students Explore Basic Concepts of Experimental Design

Mrs. Taylor’s biology students are discussing the scientific method to begin the school year. Students today examined the effect of Mentos on diet coke, coke, sprite, club soda and water. Through this experiment, students learn the basic concepts of experimental design. Did the experiment boom or fizzle? Take a look!