Week 6

The fall weather has finally arrived, at least until the next heat wave. It feels great to wake up to the cool breeze in the morning. One trend that I have noticed in the fall, especially with high school students, is that it also becomes harder to get up in the morning because it is still dark. The time changes in October, so until then, you will have to make yourself get up and come to school. Absences are increasing, which results in missing vital information, which in turn results in students falling behind. If you are truly sick, (fever, vomiting, broken bones, etc) stay home by all means. But if you just don't feel well or are tired, get your tail up and come to school. You will feel better as soon as you get here. If you are absent, don't forget to bring a note to the office or your make-up work will not be graded. If you go to the doctor, bring a note back to the office, so that your absence will be excused medically.

Polar Bears and Lady Bears are in a slump. There, I said it! Yes I did! Maybe it is because we are playing bigger schools that have more athletes. Maybe it is because we have so many freshmen and sophomores on the teams that have to start. Maybe it is because we don't have a lot of big or tall athletes. Maybe it is because we are discouraged since we are not that accustomed to losing. Whatever the reason, we have to be careful not to make our reasons for losing an excuse. At the end of the season, even if we lose the rest of the games, you should be a team that never whines or complains about officials, the coaches, the size of the teams, cheating or the performance of the your teammates. If you keep working, realize that playing a game is supposed to be fun, perform your job on the team to the best of your ability 100% of the time, and keep a winning attitude, you will earn the respect of other teams, your coaches, teammates, fans and yourself. Do not ever make losing okay in your own mind by making up excuses for it. Just do your best individually so that your team can depend on your performance to help pull each other out of this slump. Practice well, think clearly, be dependable, and realize that each player on a team has a contribution to make. Help each other realize their importance and encourage your teammates to perform to the best of their ability. Polar Bears and Lady Polar Bears are in the position to be spoilers this year of some pretty good state ranked teams. Play together, play smart and give 100% of yourself 100% of the time.

This past week, Kerens, Cross Roads and Cayuga all handed us some convincing losses. The football team has a week off to heal and work on their strategies for district play.
The volleyball team will play at Trinidad on Tuesday and then will finally have a weekend off, since they will play Rice on Friday afternoon here. Make sure you support the Lady Bears in their remaining district matches.

This Week At A Glance Announcements

Monday - Junior High Volleyball vs Kerens - Here at 5:00
Tuesday - High School Volleyball vs Trinidad - There at 5:00
Wednesday - Team Kids and Wednesday Night Church - Baptist Church - 5:30
Thursday - No Junior High Football
Friday - Jostens will be here to take Ring Orders - 1:00 High School Volleyball vs Rice - Here at 4:30
Saturday - Methodist Church Lord's Acre BBQ and Auction at Frost Cafeteria 11:00, Auction at 1:00


This week's class schedule

Monday - Begin Plymouth Plantation - Vocab Warm-up & Exercises

Tuesday - Go over selection vocab - Graphic Organizers Handout

Wednesday - Journal Check/ Make up day/Selection worksheets

Thursday - Vocab Review - over all vocab for the six week period

Friday- Vocab Test - End of 1st Six Weeks



Vickery's Vit and Visdom

Courage is going from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm~
Winston Churchill

What Mr. Churchill does not say in his wise quote is that showing enthusiasm can reverse the failure simply by creating a winning attitude. Also, learning from each failure will give you courage and experience to face whatever obstacles you face. Looking at life through the eyes of a pessimist can disCOURAGE a person from trying new things or doing their best. Looking through the eyes of an enthusiastically positive person (optimist) will enCOURAGE yourself and everyone around you.

Have a great week and stay courageous in all of your endeavors.

Week 5

*Important Announcement*

Jostens will be here on Thursday at 1:00pm to talk to you about Senior Rings.

It was a tough week for the Polar Bears and Lady Polar Bears. The Polar Bears suffered losses to very tough Meridian junior high and high school football teams on Thursday and Friday. Injuries affected the varsity with the loss of our two senior linemen, but the Bears gave their best effort to make up for their absence on the line. The boys are working hard in practice to get ready for Cross Roads on Friday.

The Lady Bears lost to Milford, on Tuesday, in three games, and to Avalon on Saturday morning in four close games. We are gearing up for a better week with Junior High games in Cayuga and High School games in Kerens on Tuesday and back home on Sat. against Cross Roads.

Activities for this week:

Monday - Junior High Volleyball Game @ Cayuga - 5:00pm

Tuesday - Varsity Volleyball Game @ Kerens - 5:00 pm JV & V

District FFA Meeting @ Midway H.S. 6:30 pm

Wednesday - Fall School Portraits

Thursday - Junior High Football vs. Cross Roads (Here) beginning at 6:00 p.m.

Jostens meets with Juniors @ 1:00 pm

Friday - Varsity Football @ Cross Roads 7:30pm

Saturday - JV & Varsity Volleyball vs Crossroads (Here) at 10:00am

Remember that this is the fifth week of the the 1st Six Week Period. If you are in danger of failing a class, this is the week to buckle down to raise your grades. Your teachers are here to help you, but you have to make your best effort as well.

Week At A Glance

Monday - Before you read handout "The Iroquois Constitution" Vocab Warm-up List, Exercise and Vocab Builder - Finish for homework

Tuesday - Discussion - Iroquois Constitution - Literary Analysis - Political Document/Symbols pg 38 Create a word cluster "Eagle" for homework.'

Wednesday - Enrichment Exercise pg 42 - After You Read Worksheet for homework

Thursday - Begin Open Book Test

Friday - Finish Open Book Test - Selection Test scheduled for Monday.



Vickery's Vit and Visdom:

"Always forgive your enemies; nothing annoys them so much."
~Oscar Wilde~

" The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong." ~Mahatma Gandhi~


One of the best pieces of advice that I ever received was that when someone hurts your feelings, then you have chosen to allow that person to affect your self esteem. You have chosen to be hurt. Yes, the person was probably insensitive or intentionally hurtful, but you chose to let it get to you. The hardest thing to do is to let ugly things that people say to hurt us, roll off of our back. This is where forgiveness comes into play. If you immediately forgive the person for the hurtful comment, then you will not give them the satisfaction of hurting you. Your self esteem and self image should not be formed by other people. You are in complete control of your emotions and feelings. You are in complete control of your self image. You are in complete control of your desire to retaliate. You are in complete control of of your ability to forgive. When you allow your feelings to be hurt, you give up your control of your own emotions to someone else.

Week 4

Homecoming Dance was a success and everyone seemed to have a good time.

Thanks to everyone who worked hard to make it memorable. We will let you know how much money we made on Monday. Although some complained about having to take off their shoes, it didn't seem to dampen the fun.

Congratulations to Marcie Hernandez - 2010 Homecoming Queen. Congrats to the rest of the court as well. You were all beautiful. The escorts were a little sweaty but still handsome.

It is always tough to play a volleyball game after a home game, and especially a Homecoming game and dance, but the Lady Bears didn't seem phased on Saturday morning. Congrats to the Lady Bears for their decisive win in 3 games over Covington. The score was 25-17, 25-22, 25-22. Great job girls!

The Bears suffered a tough loss on Friday to TCA, but, they never lose their spirit. Keep working Bears. District play is right around the corner.

Activities for the week:

Monday: J.H. Volleyball vs Rice (Here) 5:00

Tuesday: H.S. Volleyball vs Milford (Here) 5:00

Thursday: J.H. Football vs Meridian (Here) 6:00

Friday: H.S. Football vs Meridian (There) 7:30

Week at a Glance

Monday - Grammar Worksheets: Coordinating Conjunctions (Due at the end of class) HOMEWORK: ENRICHMENT WORKSHEET PG 24 (Due Tues. at the beginning of class)

Tuesday - Begin Open Book Test over selections in Unit 1 (Turtles Back, Grizzlies, & Navajo Legend)

Wednesday - Continue Open Book Test - Handout Review for selection test

Thursday - Go over review for selection test

Friday - Selection Test pg 28-30 over Turtles Back, Grizzlies & Navajo Legend

Vickery's Vit & Visdom:
Responsibility:
"Responsibility is the price of greatness."
WINSTON CHURCHILL

"Make it a point to do something every day that you don't want to do.
This is the golden rule for acquiring the habit of doing your duty without
pain."
MARK TWAIN

This last week opened my eyes as to who is responsible when asked to perform a duty, and who is not. I was a little surprised at who stepped up to bat and who decided that they are bigger than the group. We are all asked to do things, that we prefer not to do, because it interferes with our daily personal lives. There are those individuals that roll up their sleeves and work and then those that choose not to for whatever reason. You are all members of the "Class of 2011." Whether you are in college, or a cheerleader, or a football player, you are all members of the class and with that membership comes responsibility, especially during your junior year. We must conduct fundraisers, such as the Homecoming Dance, Junior High Basketball Tournament Concession Stand and anything else we can think of to raise money for the prom This tradition has been repeated for generations. The fact that a few had the lion's share of duties at the dance, Friday night, indicates that some of you consider yourselves a little bigger than the group. These fundraisers should be considered like any other activity, such as a game or a pep rally, and like the responsibility required by you for your team or squad, your spirit of teamwork is needed for the fundraisers as well. Thanks to all who worked their tails off; you know who you are. I appreciate your hard work.

Here's the Vit:
When I see a player on a team, after making a mistake, point at himself/herself and say"My Bad", I have to admire the gesture, but it doesn't excuse the mistake. My Bad....let's think about this grammatically. Not only is it a fragment, but it makes no sense. My bad what? My bad mistake? My bad for making you look bad? Let's just shorten it even more and say "M.B. and point at ourselves. When I am around cliches and sayings long enough, I find myself saying them also, even if the slang is grammatically imperfect. I am instantly forgiven and excused from responsibility. NOT! (Another grammatically incorrect cliche) Here at work, if I make a mistake on grading or teaching, all I have to do is say, "Sorry, Mr. Lockett, My bad" and everything is okay. Again NOT! So when I mess up your grades and you get a C instead of a B, just remember "My Bad" excuses it all. And when you mess up on a test or don't turn in your homework, or give less than your best effort in my class, just remember "My Bad" fixes everything. NOT!

Week 3

Congratulations to the Polar Bears for their win over Lakehill Prep.
Final score was 21-12.
Check out the article at
http://corsicanadailysun.com/sports/x955427161/Frost-uses-big-first-half-tough-D-to-earn-second-win

This week is Homecoming Week. Don't forget to show your spirit by dressing up this week. You can find the spirit schedule on the bathroom doors.

Juniors will host the Homecoming Dance after the game. We are selling raffle tickets all week and at the game. Prizes will include a Polar Bear and Lady Polar Bear team autographed football and volleyball, a wooden standing drink cooler and many other prizes. We need to make posters for the dance, so when you complete your assignments, you may work on it in my class. I will provide the poster board and I have markers and stencils. More details on the dance will be posted in the hallways and announced during the week. Don't forget to vote for Homecoming Queen!

Lady Bears will have a week off this week and will resume play on Sat. Sept 11.

Speaking of Sept. 11. Most of you were only seven or eight when the 9/11 bombings occurred, but even at that age, I'm sure you have some memory of the impact the tragedy had on our country. As we approach the ninth anniversary of 9/11, please keep in mind the people who lost their lives that day and our soldiers who continue to fight terrorism in Afghanistan and Iraq. They are fighting for our way of life and our liberties. Justin Baldridge, 2006 Frost graduate and son of Coach Jerry and Teri Baldridge is part of the Marine company that is clearing out the Taliban extremists ahead of our troops. He is right in the thick of the danger and he, now more than ever needs our thoughts and prayers.

State Senator Brian Birdwell who survived the Pentagon bombing on 9/11 will speak at the Navarro County Courthouse on Sat. 9/11/2010 at 1:30pm. Senator Birdwell is a very good friend of our family and has quite a story of survival to tell. I urge you to attend the gathering in Corsicana if you can. I will let you know what time he will speak.

This is the third week of school and progress reports will go out next week.

Here is our week at a glance:

Tuesday - Literary Analysis: Literary Analysis: Origin Myths/Archetypes, Reading Strategy/Purpose for Reading pg 23
Wednesday - , Vocab Builder pg 21, Grammar: Coordinating Conjunctions, Homework: Enrichment: Native American Myths pg 24
Thursday - Begin Open Book Test pg 25-27
Friday - Continue Open Book Test

Vickery's Vit & Visdom
"Tell me a fact and I'll learn. Tell me a truth and I'll believe. But tell me a story and it will live in my heart forever." --- Indian Proverb

This brings to mind, when my children were very small. I underestimated their intelligence, as many parents will. I got in the habit of saying "no" and using the reason, "Because I said so." After all, that is how I was raised. My children wanted reasons, justification and would negotiate their case whenever they could. I was exhausted trying to outwit them. Finally, I realized that they deserved an explanation to my decisions. Once I took the time and explained why they couldn't have something or do something, and used a story from my own childhood as an example (sometimes I had to make one up), they were more okay with the decision. Children are smart if we allow them to be. If we bully and intimidate them when they are small, they figure out very quickly, it is not worth it to question, which is sad on so many levels. Danny DeVito in the movie "Matilda" demonstrates his terrible parenting skills with this line,"I am smart, you are dumb, I am right, you are wrong and there is nothing you can do about it."
In class, I sometimes get off topic and share a story from my childhood to prove a point in a lesson. Years later, kids (now adults) come up to me and tell me, "I loved your stories". If it helps them to remember the point I'm trying to make, I will gladly get off topic for a minute to explain, not just state facts to be regurgitated on a test. My parenting advice to you, although I hope you don't have to use it for a while, is to correct your children early, often, but, always explain your correction. It makes them feel more valuable that you took the time to explain. The time you take to do this will help your child in the long run.

Here's the Vit....If you learn to laugh at yourself, you'll never run out of smiles.