The Phoenix Rising

Soaring to the Stars

Principals Message:
Respect, Responsibility, Rising, Scholars
Friends of West Oakland Middle School, Greetings! This letter reaches you in the midst of an ambitious school year for our inspiring middle-school scholars. Our enclosed Phoenix Rising newsletter the debut edition highlights 7th-graders forward-thinking PowerPoint projects. Not only are they exploring technology a big piece of our STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) focus but they are using it to deepen their learning in other classes. Through these and other projects, our kids are mastering the tools they will need in high school and beyond. In that spirit, we are helping them navigate the pathway to McClymonds High School, where many of our kids will go after WOMS. Through co-hosted events and visits to their campus, our kids are building a relationship with McClymonds that will ease their transition to high school. Our eye on the future does not end there: Our after-school program has set up several college tours for our __-graders this year, and we have arranged for local colleges to visit WOMS, where they have run college-prep workshops for our students and their families. We are also building partnerships out in the wider Oakland community. Bechtel (STEM support), Oakland Housing Authority, and Lifelong Medical (our health center) are just a few of the partners helping us become a full-service community school. Finally, we are in the process of modernizing our building, which will bring updated technology and facilities to our students and families also driving our community-school evolution forward. I invite you to visit West Oakland Middle School to see our rising scholars in action! Please call the school at 510-___-_____ to set up a visit. Meanwhile, I hope you enjoy our inaugural newsletter edition, and we look forward to bringing you more stories of success in the coming year. Happy New Year, Ron Smith, Principal

UPCOMING EVENTS
SCIeNCe FaIr - aPrIl/ May 2012 (Date tBD) BlaCk HIStOry MONtH PrOGraM - 2.21.12

west oakland middle school Newsletter Vol.1.0.0 991 14th St Oakland, CA 94607 (510) 879-2093 westoaklandmiddleschool.org

On Point:

7th-Graders Master Multimedia Through PowerPoint

The Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) focus at West Oakland Middle School has played out in many forms thus far this year, from our new weekly health classes to our 7th grade Manhood project. Technology-wise, we have watched the 7thgraders in Amrit Lals computer class learn to use Microsoft PowerPoint as a tool to add multimedia depth to projects across a range of subjects. This fall, many students have used the medium to tell their own personal stories. I went all out, says 7th-grader Taliah. My presentation has 17 slides. I had a lot I wanted to share about my family, and I put it all into that PowerPoint. The softwares multimedia elements have allowed the kids to bring their stories to vivid life. Using graphics and sounds, I was able to put my own touch on it, reflects Taliah as she clicks through to a slide celebrating her mother. The sound over here [on this slide] is the sound of a bomb because my mom is the bomb! While the projects are already compelling in their combination of technology and autobiographical writing, the kids will also add public speaking to the experience when they share their PowerPoints in person. When theyre required to talk in front of people in high school and college, explains Lal, theyll be able to say, Ive done this before, and have that confidence. Were looking forward to presenting in front of the class, says 7th-grader Demonte, and learning to speak in front of a big crowd. Taliah echoes Demontes confidence when thinking about presenting before an audience. Im good with it, she says with a grin. Im not nervous. She and her peers recognize the power of branching out and leaving their comfort zone to learn and experience new things. Thinking ahead, you never know what

RENDERINGS:

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job you might get or be qualified for in the future, Taliah reflects. So Im willing to take a chance on anything I can thats new. You never know -- in the real world I could have three jobs to take care of what I need to do. Hearing her express this kind of ambition, its no surprise to learn that shes already hard at work on a second PowerPoint, this one connected to Sweetblood, a novel her English class is studying. I might make it into a childrens book, comic book, something like that. From a teachers perspective the project has been equally rewarding. Especially with PowerPoint, says Lal, theyve been able to bring subject matter from others classes into their presentations. So we have technology being used across subjects math, English, science which makes everything more meaningful. PowerPoint is just one of the programs WOMS 7th-graders are mastering this year. Were working with other programs that are new to them like Photoshop and Sketchbook Pro, he says. Once they get to know this technology and become fluent with it, theyll be able to use it in high school as well.

Support Our Rising Scholars!

As we continue building a full-service community school, we invite you to join our growing group of partners. If you are interested in volunteering at WOMS, please call us at 510-274-6788. We are specifically looking for support in the areas of: Math, Science, Technology, and Educational Field Trips. As an under-resourced school in a state that ranks 46th in per-student funding, we are also seeking financial contributions. To support programs like our computer classes we need more computers and updated software you can make a tax-deductible donation at www.oaklandschoolsfoundation.org (designating West Oakland Middle School) or by mail to: OSF/WOMS, P.O. Box 20238, Oakland, CA. We thank you for your support!