Happy Valentine's Day, Tigers!
This Week’s Highlights - It’s “A” Week in Tiger-Land  - ABCDEF

02.16.04
* GSOC v Fairview      6:00 @ Messer Park

02.17.04
* BBB v Cobb        6:30 PM in the Tiger’s Den

02.18.04
* GSOC v Raa            7:30 PM @ Tom Brown Park

02.19.04
* FCAT Practice Testing during “C” period
* Parents Check & Sign Agenda Books
* BBB v Raa       6:30 PM @ Raa Middle School

02.20.04  School Spirit Day- Gooooooo, Tigers!
* Show your Tiger Team Spirit by wearing Blue & White!
* Silent Auction HR Class contributions due!

Tigers: Get Ready to SHOW what you KNOW!
What are test-taking skills?

Test-taking skills are the skills you need to show what you know on a test.
They are your ability to read, understand, and answer questions asked on a
test without “going blank” or getting so nervous you cannot think straight.
Also, test-taking skills include your ability to pace yourself to complete
a timed test. Having good test taking skills means you are familiar with
the test format, read carefully, pace yourself, and bubble correctly. Good
test taking skills also require you to focus on yourself rather than others
and to check your work if time permits.

Tigers Soar in 2004 - The Tradition of Excellence Continues!
Test Schedule for FCAT 2004

March 2          READING SSS
March 3          MATH SSS
March 4-5  MAKE-UPS
March8 FCAT SCIENCE   (8TH Grade ONLY)
March 10  NRT READING & MATH
March 11-12  MAKE-UPS

The Market at Griffin – Silent Auction Extension
The Annual Griffin Middle School PTO Silent Auction planned for April 1,
2004 will be here before you know it! Parents, we really need your help!
Please make sure that your child has shared the blue Homeroom class
contribution letter with you or ask your child’s homeroom teacher about
this letter. Contributions for homeroom baskets are due on Friday, February
20, 2004. Thank you for making this annual event our best ever!

Message from the Principal, Mrs. Michelle Gayle
Our week has been wonderful at Griffin Middle School! Our students did a
great job on the FCAT Writing Test and the Writes Upon Request exam on
Tuesday, February 10, 2004! We will receive the FCAT Writing results before
the end of the school year. I will announce when parents should receive a
golden-rod copy of the Writes Upon Request exam grade. Special thanks to
our Writing Coach, Mrs. Bunn, for scoring all of the WUR exams.
Our construction project at Griffin Middle continues to move ahead and on
schedule. The footers for the new building have been set and part of the
old cafeteria serving line has been demolished. Be sure to check out our
school web-page each week for photo updates.
Did you know that many of our 7th and 8th grade students are participating
in The Stock Market Simulation? Well, chances are that if your child has
Mrs. Register, Mrs. Osborne, or Mr. Rich as a teacher, they are researching
stocks, trading stocks and learning real-life investment lessons right in
their classrooms! Mrs. Register wrote a grant that allows all of these
classes to participate in Stock Market Simulation – 2004 sponsored by the
Florida Council on Economic Education. Two hundred and seventy three 7th
and 8th grade students will work in teams of four or five. These teams have
been given $100,000 to invest by purchasing stocks and/or mutual funds.
Teams must keep up-to-date records of gains and losses, trades and buys, as
well as personal reflections on the entire process. Students must also
maintain portfolios that include newspaper articles and other real world
information that has helped them make their stock market investment
decisions. This wonderful learning experience continues through late April.
Please ask your child about what she/he is learning! I am so impressed with
this project and can’t wait to see how our students fare against other
teams across the state of Florida! As always, please do not hesitate to
call upon me at 488.8436 or email me at [log in to unmask]
Have a Happy Valentine’s Day and a positive week!

Science Fest News...........Very Important Information
All science students are expected to participate in the Annual Griffin
Middle School Science Fest. All science teachers have shared information
about this school-wide requirement. This project will total 300 points and
will be considered a science test grade. All due dates and deadlines are
final. Failure to meet any of the first 3 deadlines will result in a
failing grade for all other parts of the science fest project. Written
materials must be word processed or neatly written in black ink. A back
board that can stand alone is required for display of the project. No
posters or poster boards will be accepted. Please review and mark these
dates on your family calendar:
• Friday, February 27, 2004 - Information on individual or team
project due
• Wednesday, March 10, 2004 -Title Page due
• Monday, March 19, 2004 -Project Plan due
• Wednesday, March 31, 2004 -Annotated Bibliography due (3 sources)
• Monday, April 5, 2004 -Rough Draft of written report due
• Monday, April 16, 2004 -Final Project Due!
• Monday April 19- Friday, April 23, 2004 – Classroom Display and
Oral Presentations
• Monday, April 26, 2004 – Thursday, April 29, 2004 – Science Fest
Exhibit/Display in the Media Center
Science Display Boards can be purchased in the front office!  White display
boards are $4.00 each. Color display boards are $5.00 each (colors include
light blue, black, navy blue, fuchsia, red, and yellow). Hurry, supplies
are very limited! Best of luck in the Science Fest, Tigers!