Book Club Students Present at Conference

by Becca Warfel

12/1/2011

The Hunger Games are coming! Are you ready? Students and teachers from Neoga High School brought the Hunger Games to the ISLMA conference in Springfield this year. The Illinois School Library Media Association (ISLMA) held their annual conference on October 27^th through the 29^th at the Crowne Plaza Hotel. The conference showcased exhibits from book vendors as well as many presentations from librarians and teachers. Neoga teachers Mrs. Ludwig and Mrs. Wright traveled with students Stella Moderau, Alex Harvey, and Becca Warfel to give a presentation on last year’s Hunger Games competitions with the junior high students. Together the group gave their talk on what was done at the event and how the other teachers and librarians could replicate it at their own schools. “I thought it went really well,” said Mrs. Ludwig about the presentation. “Our session was well attended and several people at the conference complimented us on having students at the presentation.”

In addition to attending the conference, the group also made a trip to the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum. There they viewed the Ghosts of the Library and Lincoln’s Eyes presentations as well as artifacts from Lincoln’s life and presidency.

American Education Week

by Kendra Schooley

11/22/2011

American Education Week was observed at Neoga High School during the third week of November. Throughout the week, inspirational quotes were announced in the morning, and various activities were held throughout the week to celebrate American Education Week. On Tuesday, teachers were encouraged to wear collegiate apparel, in order to stress the importance of attaining a higher education. Also, a red, white, and blue day was observed to stress the patriotic aspects of the school environment. This event was first observed in 1921, and was created in order to highlight the importance of public education in this country. Teachers, as well as students, are celebrated during this week as both are integral elements of any school. Although it is sometimes easy to take school for granted, this week reminds all Americans that education is the foundation of this nation.

Skype Speaker

by Paige Osborn

11-17-11

For the First time in Neoga Jr.-Sr. High School’s history, the high school media class had the fortune to observe an interview via Skype. Skype is an online website that enables users to communicate through voice and video on the computer, through the use of webcams and microphones. Scott Licina spoke to the Media class at Neoga High School from his home in Chicago, Illinois. Scott is the previous owner of Fangoria magazine and multiple comic book publishing companies. He has also recorded musical selections for movie soundtracks, including the 30^th anniversary edition of the horror classic, Night of the Living Dead. Overall, the reception from the Media class was very positive and they all seemed to thoroughly enjoy the whole experience. When asked how he felt about the process, Media teacher Mr. Gibson commented, “Technology allows professionals from all over the world to come into the classroom, and that is pretty cool.” It is a remarkable development that now at Neoga High School we can talk to people all over the world for the sake of enhancing education for the students.

Neoga Team Competes in Eco Meet

by Becca Warfel

11/3/2011

Students from Neoga Jr./Sr. High School got a chance to show off their environmental science skills recently by competing in this year’s Shelbyville Eco Meet. The junior high and high school teams, coached by Mrs. Brown and Mr. Ballard respectively, traveled to Lake Shelbyville in September to participate in the competition. Each team member took a series of tests on various subjects pertaining to ecology and the environment. Subjects tested on included the importance of prairie, fungi, glaciers, nuts and berries, Illinois waterfowl, and pond ecology. This year Neoga’s junior high team placed second out of 33 teams, earning them an acorn shaped plaque. Congratulations, Neoga teams!

PBIS Rewards at NHS

by Mrs. Jennifer Bridges

11/3/2011

When the school year began, the Neoga Jr.-Sr. High students encountered numerous changes. One of the modifications made this year is the introduction of PBIS (Positive Behavior Intervention and Supports). With PBIS the school set three universal expectations: Respect, Responsibility and Success. Within these universal expectations more targeted goals were set for students: reduction in tardiness and more consistent homework completion. In an effort to encourage and help students manage working toward these goals, criteria for quarterly rewards were developed. The criteria for these quarterly rewards are: no major offenses, no office detentions, no unexcused absences, no in-school or out of school suspension and no more than two zeros in any class. Students that successfully met all these criteria during the first quarter were treated, by grade level, to a pizza party over the course of the past few days.

In addition to students being eligible for the quarterly rewards, such as the pizza party, all Jr. and Sr. High students were issued a red rewards card at the beginning of the year. The reward card has 10 spaces for teacher signatures. If a student is caught doing something sincere then a teacher will sign the reward card. Once all 10 spaces have been signed, the student may submit the reward card to the library to redeem for an immediate prize (i.e. free replacement lunch card) or take their chances at winning a $25 gift card. At the end of the first quarter, 48 high school students and 85 junior high students had redeemed their reward card. And on October 28, the end of the first quarter drawing was held and Morgan Miller (Jr. High) and Joseph Goldstein (Sr. High) were the winners of $25 gift cards.