Upcoming Events

Nov 2 Cultural Arts Program in the morning:

“So THIS is Opera”

Nov 3 Green Team Work Day, 8:30am-12:30pm

Nov 6 PTA Meeting: 7pm, Media Center -

“Conversations about Douglas”

Nov 5-15 Book Drive

Nov 12 No School

Nov 16 Year Book Pre-sale deadline

Nov. 30 Reflections deadline

Magnet Corner

“The Essentials Behind Douglas”

Essential Evidence: Multiple Intelligences

7^th in a 10-part series

At Douglas, it’s not “how smart are you?” It’s “how are you smart?” Based on Howard Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligences, teaching, learning and assessing at Douglas is designed to address all the different ways that we are smart. Gardner’s Theory has particularly strong ramifications in the classroom, because if we can identify children's different strengths among these intelligences, we can accommodate different children more successfully according to their orientation to learning.

How are you smart? In which of these eight ways do you prefer to learn?

Visual-Spatial/Art Smart - learning visually and organizing ideas spatially. The ability to "see" things in one's mind.

Verbal-Linguistic/Word Smart - learning through the spoken and written word.

Logical-Mathematical/Math Smart - learning through reasoning and problem solving.

Bodily-Kinesthetic/Body Smart - learning through interaction with one's environment and concrete experience.

Musical-Rhythmic/Music Smart - learning through patterns, rhythms and music.

Intrapersonal/Self Smart - learning through feelings, values and attitudes.

Interpersonal/People Smart - learning through interaction, collaboration and working cooperatively with others.

Naturalist/Nature Smart - learning through classification, categories and hierarchies.

Teachers at Douglas work on assimilating this knowledge into their strategies for helping children learn. Students are more engaged when they can feel successful. You can see it, hear it and feel it in the classroom and in the building as students use all of their smarts as they learn.

How do we do it all? Find out about how teachers collaborate to create this wonderful learning environment in next week’s installment.

Magnet Fair This Saturday, November 3

Don’t miss the WCPSS Magnet Fair on Saturday, November 3 from 10 am to 1pm at SE Raleigh High School. This is a great event for exploring all of the magnet opportunities available to Wake county parents. All of the feeder Magnet Middle Schools for Douglas will be represented. Tell your friends and neighbors to come by and check out the Creative Arts & Sciences booth where Douglas parents and staff will be sharing our fabulous program!

GREEN TEAM WORKDAY

Calling all Douglas Families - Come and join us Saturday, November 3rd from 8:30 AM to 12:30, for our first School Workday. Despite the drought, we have much we can accomplish around our school without using a lot of water. Some of the projects we would like to tackle include: landscaping the slopes behind the gym, weeding and edging at the front of the building, spreading mulch, installing block along Ortega, and transplanting shrubs. The work we can accomplish is dependent upon how many volunteers participate and the available tools. Please bring your gardening tools: (shovels, pitch forks, mattocks, hard rakes, wheelbarrows, tillers) and a lot of energy for a productive and fun morning improving the Douglas landscape. Workdays are a great time to meet new Douglas families and see some instant results of your labors. Last year we started with bare ground at the front door and the courtyard. Now look at the lively plantings that make the main entrance more inviting and the dragon more colorful. It would also be helpful if each family could bring some of your recycled water from home in soda bottles and milk jugs for our new transplants. Please don’t forget to bring work gloves and your children! Call Anna and Keith Wilder at 870-0566 or annawilder.nd@gmail.com if you have any questions.

You are Invited:

šParents are invited to attend our first “all school” Cultural Arts Program which takes place this Friday, November 2^nd. Come enjoy and learn along with your child during “So THIS is Opera” with Yvette Lewis, beginning at 9:30am and again at 10:30am.

šParents and staff are invited to attend our next PTA meeting which takes place next Tuesday, Nov. 6^th, at 7pm in the Media Center. The emphasis of the meeting is “Conversations about Douglas” and will feature conversations with Michelle Burrows, magnet coordinator, and our principal, Dr. Spivey. Bring your questions and join us! For more information, contact Alice Spickard, PTA president: 877-0490.

REFLECTIONS – ENTER NOW!

Calling all artists, writers, filmmakers, photographers, dancers and choreographers!

Do you like to draw, paint or put together a collage? Do you enjoy taking a photograph or writing a story or poem? Is creating a film or video how you express your creativity? What about composing a song or choreographing a dance? If there’s anything on this list you enjoy doing, then you need to enter our Annual PTA Reflections Arts contest.

Pick up an entry form from the Media Center. Take some time and reflect on this year’s theme: "I can make a difference by. . . " Ask yourself, “What does this mean to me?” Think through your ideas and run them by someone you trust. Then, set to work expressing the theme through visual art, literature, photography, dance choreography, music composition, or film or video production. Remember, your work must be original.

Note to Parents: Please read the rules before entering your child's artwork, which are included in the entry packet. There are limitations on size of work, and rules for preparing artwork for entry.

Deadline to enter Reflections: Friday, November 30^th. Questions: Contact Claudia Dickson at isaiah43a@gmail.com or (919) 782-7801.

Shopping for the Dragons

What is Shopping for the Dragons?

An opportunity for you to buy a gift card at face value and for Douglas to benefit in the process.

How Does it Work?

You order cards to the places you want to do business with and the PTA processes your purchase. Cards you purchased are delivered to school and you may choose to pick them up in the front office or choose to have them returned to you via your child’s backpack.

When Can I Order?

We place orders throughout the school year. Order forms are sent home every couple of weeks.

Merchant Information

There are three new merchants participating in the gift card fundraising program, Circle K, Cooking.com and Fashion Bug, all offering a $25 card.

L.L. Bean is offering free shipping through December 21 which may come in handy as you begin purchasing gifts for the coming holidays.

Questions? Call Wendy Sielaty at dwsielaty@earthlink.net or

THANK YOU!!

Thanks to all who helped with the Book Fair last week! It was a great success and thanks for supporting it! A special thanks to all the volunteers who worked the book fair and helped get things ready; it couldn't be done without you!!

Diabetes Week

October 30 – November 2

Tuesday - Friday

Coins for a Cure campaign - Students are encouraged to donate money to find a cure for diabetes. Coins as well as paper money are gladly accepted.

Thursday, 11/1/07

Caps for a Cure – Students and staff are encouraged to wear their favorite hat in support of finding a cure for diabetes. Participants are encouraged to donate $1, although it is not required.

Friday, 11/2/07

Kids Walk – During recess time, students can walk 6 laps in support of finding a cure for diabetes. Goodies will be given to the participants. VOLUNTEERS NEEDED FOR THIS – Please call Kelli Williams, 881-4897.

All money collected this week will given to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.

Yearbook Pre-Sale through November 16

Thank you to all families who visited the yearbook table during Arts Night. We conducted a give-away drawing for student name engraving and congratulations go to Jennifer Wojcik! Don't miss your opportunity to win a free yearbook by purchasing your child's copy during the pre-sale period, ending November 16th. Please stop by the PTA bulletin board and pick-up an order form. Make checks payable to Douglas PTA with yearbook noted on the memo line. Any questions? Call Kelly Henry, 790-9198 or Wendy Sielaty, 846-6276.

MI Night a Success!

Thanks to everyone who helped make Douglas’s MI Night a grand success. Those families that stayed to the end were treated to some fantastic shared products that had been created in the breakout sessions. We hope you all had as much fun as we did. If you have any thoughts or suggestions on making Arts Night even better, contact with Michelle Burrows, Magnet Coordinator at mburrows2@wcpss.net

Check out the article and photo on MI Night at Douglas on the NBC-17 Website!