Cougar Campus News

Important Dates:

 

 

From the Desk of Dan Goggins:

Over the last two months we have been able to celebrate some progress we are making in our school improvement goals.   First, with regard to overall student attendance, we have seen an increase from the 2005-2006 first semester of 91%, to first semester of 2006-2007 at 92.6%.  We firmly believe the action plans developed in conjunction with the communication and cooperation of parents is a big reason for our movement in the right direction.  Additionally, each of our parent involvement opportunities has seen increased participation from last year to this.  We had a huge turnout at our Explorations Nights on February 20th and 21st with over 450 families present.  On February 24th, the Cougar Boosters held the annual bowling fundraiser and over 200 members showed up to support the cause.  Lastly, and most importantly, we are seeing improved scores on both our local assessments and standardized assessments.  The combined efforts of the home and the school are paying dividends for our students.  Every day we make positive contributions in the lives of kids. Thank you for continuing to play your part.  I hope to see you at a couple of upcoming events like the Spring Musical March 16th – 18th, Cougar Caravan on April 10th, and / or Parent Teacher Conferences April 12th – 13th.  Finally, the Latin name for cougar is felis concolor, meaning “cat of a single color.”  Just in case you were wondering, the color is blue and it’s always good to be one!  Have a great spring!

 

 

District 202 Education Partners:

v      Want to know what’s happening in District 202, direct from the source?  Become a “District 202 Education Partner”.  Go to the District 202 web site (www.learningcommunity202.org), click on “District 202 Mailing Lists” and subscribe to the new and improved “District 202 Education Partners” electronic newsletter.

 

 

Science Department:

v      In science, many courses have begun major projects or labs recently.  Our freshman Honors Biology classes have been busy performing the Genetics Project as a culminating activity for the unit on DNA.  Our Honors Chemistry students have been in the lab working on determining the percentage by mass of oxygen in potassium chlorate and the empirical formula of magnesium oxide.  Investigations of Matter and Energy classes will be using rockets to study Newtonian Laws.  Environmental Science will be gathering data for weather analysis.  In addition, many of our students will be traveling outside the district to investigate science further.  Future trips include the Museum of Science and Industry and a Genetics Conference.

 

 

English Department:

v      Along with journalistic pieces entered into the NISPA competition, the Paw Print students will enter various pieces into the IHSA journalism contest.  Good Luck Cougar Writers!

      Don’t forget: Preparing for the PSAE/ACT is as easy as writing a letter to your best friend.  Time yourself.  In a 30-minute segment, compose a well-organized letter to your grandmother, and then send it to her.

 

Social Studies Department:

v      With the year halfway over, we have accomplished a lot in the social studies department.  One of our great accomplishments this year has been the development of two AP courses, which will start in the 2007-2008 school year:  AP Government and AP Economics.  These courses were introduced by the PSHS social studies department and are now being looked over by PHS-CC and PNHS for implementation as well.  As of right now, we are in the final stages of selecting materials for the courses.  Our department is very excited to add some new and challenging courses for students to choose from.  Looking at initial numbers, we are very encouraged to see that a number of students are interested in adding these courses to their schedules next year. 

 

 

Chess Club:

v      Plainfield South hosted the Far Side Chess Conference Championships on Saturday, January 27th.  This was the first chess tournament this school (and possibly this district) has ever held.  The Cougar Chess Team had a great finish to the conference season, winning a trophy for finishing third place in conference for the season and also a trophy for finishing in third place at the tournament.   Each of the top six board players received All-Conference honors, and one player finished second in the Open Tournament.

The Chess Team's head to head record is 9-6; the team is expecting a great performance at the IHSA Chess Team Championships held in Peoria on February 9th and 10th.   

 

 

FAML Department:

v      Plainfield South Art department took work to the Scholastics Art competition.  The results are listed below; the Gold Key award is a wonderful achievement!

q       Gold Key: 

Dan Wozniak- digital imaging -Underneath it All

q       Silver Key:

Andrea Smith- painting - portrait

Andrea Smith- design/jewelry - My Dreams Have Wings

Taylee Dragovan -drawing -Puppy Love

Katie Albert- Digital Imaging- Pointe Ballet

Amber Mockus- Digital Imaging- Bear

q       Honorable Mention:

Tyler Cutro- Sculpture

Andrea Smith- Design/Jewelry

Lauren Bonano- drawing

Dana Bingham- drawing

Trevor Dean- Digital Imaging (Mechanics)

Andrea Smith- Digital Imaging (Fly Away)

Kayla Perez- Digital Imaging (Zoloft)

Andrea Smith- Digital Imaging (Bloom)

Zager Wordlaw- Digital Imaging (Screws To Skull)

 

v      Deutsche Klassische Musik 

German 3 students did a project about classical music and German composers.  They wrote a biography about a German composer and gave an oral presentation in German.  They also shared a piece of music from their composer, which was a great opportunity to listen to and share the rich and varied tradition of classical music in Germany and to learn about the lives of such famous composers as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Ludwig von Beethoven, and Richard Wagner, to name a few.

 

Student Services:

v      Plainfield South will be hosting the annual College and Financial Aid information meeting Thursday, March 1, from 7:00 - 9:00 PM, in Cougar auditorium.  There will be college representation from the following schools: Univ. of Illinois; Monmouth College, Lincoln College, JJC, and Lewis University.

Military reps will be here, and a rep from Career Vision will join us.  Al Hogan, Financial Aid Specialist from ISAC (Illinois Student Assistance Commission), will share his expertise in Financial Aid). 

There will be a time for questions and answers from our guests. 

 

v      Please encourage your senior students to apply for scholarships.  We have over twenty local scholarships available.  Students may pick up a list of requirements and applications in the College Career Center, Room 300, during their lunch period.  You may also access this list on line under the Student Services Department/Financial Aid & Scholarships link.

 

v      March is coming in with a roar, as PSHS will be holding its third annual Career Roundtable Week from March 5th – 9th.  Area professionals have been invited to come dialogue with our students and to share their own career journey.  A wide variety of careers will be represented from topics such as Criminal Justice, Space Exploration, Culinary Arts, Public Relations and more!  The junior class was surveyed during study halls as to their career preferences back in the fall of 2006.  This was taken into consideration when planning the event.  Students may sign up in Student Services with Mrs. Mary Mendoza.  Questions regarding the event can be directed to Counselor Intern Tuere Ingram or her supervisor, Counselor Natalie Kleefisch.  Teachers and their classes may participate as well in this school event promoting Education to Careers.

 

 

Math Department:

v      Members of the Computer Club, along with Mr. Hillegonds and Mr. Millar, competed in the Joliet Junior College Robotics Competition on Jan 26.  Congratulations to Mike Stapleton, Josh Lacey, Chris Villareal, and John Long on their 3rd place finish in the expert division of the Joliet Junior College Robotics challenge.  John Woolwine, Matt Byrne, Steve Downs, and Andy Otto took home a 5th place trophy in the expert division while out of the 21 teams in the Novice Division, Josh Brauer, Matt Kowolski, Jim Hicks, and Jorge Alonso finished in 5th place.

 

v      Teachers of juniors have begun to work with math students to prepare for the PSAE.  Teachers have made use of the computer lab where students are able to take practice timed math tests and see their results immediately.

 

v      Members of the Plainfield South Mathematics Department invite everyone to join in the celebration of Pi day!  Pi Day is celebrated on March 14, (3.14), which also happens to be Albert Einstein’s Birthday!  This year, because Midterm Exams are on March 14 – we will be celebrating on March 16th.  How many digits of pi do you remember?  PSHS students have shown in the past that they know as many as 67!  Many math classes will be involved in activities to help celebrate p (pi).  Calculus classes will be determining the volume of many common solids, for example the volume of a muffin.  Some of the Algebra and Geometry classes will try to discover pi by blowing up balloons and measuring their circumference and diameter.  Other students will be studying the many digits of pi to see if there are any patterns, or perhaps to discover if their birthday appears in the digits.  Some classes will create bar graphs to show the most common digit in the first one hundred digits of pi.  Those who like to sing will celebrate by singing some pi day songs.  For the artist, there will be a pi to decorate and hang on their locker.  It is a day we invite everyone to celebrate the many uses of mathematics in everyday life and to discover it might even be fun.

 

v      The Math team will be competing in the regional meet at JJC on Sat., Feb. 24th.  Students can qualify as individuals or as part of a team for the state math competition that is held at the University of Illinois in Champaign in April.       

 

v      Members of our Math team will be competed at the Lemont Invitational Math Meet on Jan. 24th with the help of their coaches, Ms. Hahn, Ms. Norco, Mrs. Baima, and Mr. Acevedo.

 

 

Applied Arts Department:

v      Mr. Clark’s Orientation to Business classes are now being taught by his student teacher, Mr. Warren.  Mr. Warren has taken the classes through chapters on goods and services, wants and needs, as well as supply and demand.  The students then used the concept of supply and demand as the theme of children’s stories.  These stories applied the laws of supply and demand to a situation that an 8 year old would understand.  Business Bucks were awarded to the groups/individuals who read their stories to the class.

 

v      The Computer Accounting 2 class has taken on the task of creating and keeping accounting records for the Plainfield South Quickie Mart.  The Quickie Mart is open each morning before school and provides students with a variety of breakfast items.  The students analyzed the operation of the Quickie Mart and created a proposal as to what services and records they would provide.  This proposal was presented to both the Principal, Dan Goggins and the Assistant Principal, Cathy Bethia.

The students will be providing a variety of services and records.  They have created several accounting forms including inventory and stock records, daily and weekly sales records, tally sheets to track daily sales, and unit price lists.  The students will take a physical inventory every two weeks and will cost out the inventory.  They will keep track of daily sales by item and will analyze the information at the end of the week as compared to total sales dollars.  They will also provide an income statement at the end of the month to show a profit or loss.  Finally, at the end of the process the students will analyze the information they have gathered and will provide recommendations that they think will help improve the Quickie Mart.

The students are very excited about this opportunity.  In not only allows them to be involved in a practical application of their accounting knowledge, but also allows them to be more involved in the school community.  Because of that, the students are taking a lot of pride and ownership in this project.

 

v      The Advanced Child Development class will began its Preschool program on Wednesday, February 21.  Children from the surrounding community who are 3 or 4 years old can participate in this program. Space is limited, and we are currently full for this semester. The Preschool is run by high school students enrolled in this course, with supervision from their teacher, Mrs.VanDuyne-Mueller.  PSHS students plan, teach and implement activities for the preschoolers.  The Adv. Child Development students choose a different theme every week such as Family, Dinosaurs, and Spring etc. and plan their activities around them.  We even have “Pajama Day”; the children can come to preschool in their pajamas.  This is a very popular day!  The preschool runs about 10 weeks during the semester and is held from approximately 9:00-11:00am or 12:30-2:05pm on most Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays.  If you would be interested in your 3 or 4 year old participating in the 2007-2008 Preschool, please contact Mrs. VanDuyne-Mueller for more information at PSHS.

 

v      In our Foods 1 classes we recently had a guest speaker come in and talk to our students about different careers in the area of culinary arts and the Illinois Institute of Art.  Our guest speaker was Chef Maurice Lyons from the Illinois Institute of Art in Chicago.  He did a demonstration for the students on either a chicken appetizer or pizza quesadillas.  He gave the students an idea of just how many opportunities there are to get into the area of culinary arts.    

 

 

 

 

 

 

Students of the Month: (December/January)

Applied Arts: Ricardo McCauley, Jeremiah Lennox, Kiarra Franklin, Kim Linden; FAML: Ashley Callahan, Maria Szocinska, Ben Magolan, Bridgette McGuire, Mike Gorecki, Jake Beadleston, Sarah Deeter, Stephanie Dimenico; Math: Sarah Johnson, Kelly Bishop, Chase Plasencia, Josh Piechur, Spenser Wheeler, Samantha Edds, Jayson VonOsinski, April Montgomery; Science: Alex Fishbeck, Ryan Burke, Eva Quintero, Devon Jarrett, Vincente Guzman Kaley Westfall, Sarah Albert; Social Studies: Siobahn Dermody, Samantha Menke, Morgan Williams, Natalie Clapp, Yasmin Perez, Melissa Wroble, Brittany McAllister, Kamile Jaskeviciute

 

 

 Cougar Boosters:

Dear Cougar Families,

 

Explorations Night at PSHS was held on February 21st and 22nd and over 600 8th grade students visited our school to gain insight into the many curricular and co-curricular activities that are available to enhance their high school experience.  The Cougar Boosters met many of the parents and future PSHS students, signed up new members and sold a good deal of CougarWear.  It was fun to see all the kids so excited about coming to PSHS!

 

The Bowling Bash, held on February 24th, was a gigantic accomplishment!  The committee did a tremendous job of collecting donations and putting the entire event together and we greatly appreciate their efforts!!  We would also like to thank Town & Country Lanes and all the parents, staff, coaches and community members who participated and added to the success of the evening!  We haven’t finished tallying everything up, so you’ll have to wait until the next newsletter or join us at our next Cougar Booster meeting on March 7th for the exact amount of profit.  All profits from this event will be used to further enrich the experience of all the kids that attend PSHS. 

 

If you didn’t get a chance to join us at the Bowling Bash, make sure to watch for more information on our upcoming Golf Outing, tentatively scheduled for June 22nd.  Last year’s outing was fantastic, so make plans now to join us!  If you would like to donate items or help organize the event, please contact Melanie Jones at mdjones@learningcommunity202.org or 577-5587.