By Max Batchelor

Last week, students of MES were given the opportunity to donate money in their classrooms to help the families of the victims of the New York attack. Teachers provided a container in each classroom for students to give whatever they wanted. It did not have to be a great amount. Students were also asked to sign their name. The signatures will be sent along with the money. The City of McKenzie collected the money from the schools and will match the amount collected. This was not a competition, but rather an opportunity to help those in need.

Mrs. Beth Wilcoxson, MES Librarian, would like to remind the community that the Tennessee Electronic Library is celebrating its 2nd birthday, October 1- 15. TEL allows Tennessee residents access to magazines and journals, reference sources, biographical materials and literature resources. Since it went online in October 1999, TEL has been accessed nearly 4 million times. You can access TEL at http://www.state.tn.us/sos/statelib/tel and click on "go to databases." The password is "elvis."

Mrs. Marlene Kreuter's Kindergarten class has been learning about the letter Tt. They can identify the new letter and also write it. They also learned to make the sound of Tt. They had much fun making turtles and turkeys. Looking at the map, they learned to locate Mexico. Friday was a very special day. They read the recipe and made Tillie's Texas Tacos. What fun learning can be!

Mrs. Tenia King's 2nd grade class did experiments in Science. They used feathers, paper bags, water, and cooking oil to prove that water and oil do not mix. They also learned that ducks are protected by oil so they do not get wet.

On Friday, MES was very busy with special activities. The first awards ceremony was held in the school gym. One student from each class was chosen as "Citizen of the Month." There will be another article about this in the McKenzie Banner. Congratulations to all those students chosen.

Also on Friday, students were treated to a visit from Arthur the aardvark. Arthur is the main character from the Marc Brown books and was celebrating his 8th birthday. Joined by Mrs. Sue Lasky from WLJT-TV and Mrs. Lisa Norris, Carroll County Title V coordinator, Arthur greeted the students. WLJT also gave each student a new Arthur book, shopping bag, sticker, and pencil. Each teacher was given two T-shirts and a medal to be used as reading incentive awards in their classroom.

This week's announcer was Codi Ellis. Codi led the school in the Pledge of Allegiance, Moment of Silence, and quotes of the day. Thanks, Codi, for doing a great job.
        

For the past several weeks, Mrs. Kay Green's sixth grade social studies classes have been learning abou ancient Egypt. First there was an archaeological dig. Pieces of clay pots were buried in shoe boxes full of sand. The students had to find the pieces and put the pots together like archaeologists. Next they signed up for projects to display in the library. Projects included mummies, sphinx carved out of soap, paddle dolls, scarab paperweights, papyrus and pyramids. Many students colored Egyptian designs and scenes from everyday life. The fifth period had the privilege of listening to Mrs. Scruton tell an Eqyptian myth. They enjoyed the study of ancient Egypt, a civilization very different from those of today.

The Beta Club is collecting can tabs to help the Ronald McDonald House, which is associated with St. Jude's Hospital. Please turn in your tabs to Mrs. Archer, Mrs. Green, and Mrs. Peters or Mrs. Ognibene if you would like to help. This project will continue throughout the year. Also during the month of October, they will sponsor a drive for accelerated reader books to be used in the library. If you have any books at home that you are no longer using and would like to donated them to this drive, please give them to your grade level Beta Club sponsor.
Parents, the first nine weeks tests are coming on October 10, 11 and 12. Math and reading will be given on October 10, science and social studies on October 11. Friday, October 12 will be the day for the language arts, P.E., music and computer tests.
 

by McKenzie High School Principal, Terry Howell

Our School Resource Office, Jackie Sykes, will conduct a Parenting Program beginning Tuesday, October 16, at the high school. This program will meet on Tuesdays and Thursdays beginning on October 16 for the remainder of the month. Each session will focus on proper parenting skills and techniques to use in dealing with young people in the family. The workshop includes parenting skills for children of all ages and will examine a number of different issues within the family. All parents may benefit from this program. It does not simply address dysfunctional families. I encourage everyone interested to call Officer Sykes at the high school to get more information about the time and scope of the program. This Parenting Program addresses the major focus of the School Resource Officer; that is, the officer serves as a valuable asset in dispensing information and solidifying good citizenship and responsibility in the community.

The boys' golf team finished fourth in the district tournament last Monday at Pine Tree Country Club in Lexington. The team narrowly missed out in advancing to regional play as a team as only the top three teams advance. The top five players not included among the top three teams advanced to regional action. Our school placed three of these five individual slots and competed as individuals to earn the right to advance to the state tournament. Those advancing included Andrew Bateman, Mark Anderson, and John French. The team ended the season at 11 wins and 10 losses. Rachael Pruiett will represent our school in the girls' regional golf tournament. It is slated for Tuesday, October 2, at the same location as the boys'.

Next week, we will administer our mid-term exams for the first semester classes. On the 4 x 4 Block schedule, these tests are of critical importance and count 25% of a student's grade in each class. The test itself is comprehensive and will address all material taught during the first semester. Teachers will review and design study guides or special directions in preparation for these major tests. On Thursday, October 11, students will take First and Third Block tests. On Friday, October 12, they will have Second and Fourth Block tests. We will issue report cards for the first half of this term on Wednesday, October 17. Please check for your child's progress. We will be glad to arrange a conference with any teacher if a parent so chooses.

The McKenzie Rebels maintained their unbeaten status by defeating Decatur County Riverside High School 51-13 in Region 6-2A action last Friday. McKenzie played an outstanding first half in building a 37-0 half time lead as they coasted to victory with no players being seriously hurt. With a 3-0 region record, the Rebels placed themselves in an excellent position to host a first round playoff game again. Their remaining region games are at Chester County on October 12 and at home against Huntingdon on October 26. This week the team returns to Rebel Stadium to play the Choctaws of Dyer County. Dyer County boasts a 5-1 record with a noteworthy victory over Dyersburg High School. We will have to play our best games of the year to measure up to the difficult task ahead. Come out and support the Rebels as they continue their fine season.

Last Monday the freshman-sophomore football team remained unbeaten with a narrow 7-6 victory over Gleason. This week they travel to Martin Westview for their toughest game of the season on Thursday, October 4. The B-Team played Riverside High School on Monday, October 1, with results not in at the time of this article's being written. They will play at Dresden on Monday, October 8, at 6:30 P.M. Both McKenzie groups are undefeated.

The band attended the ratings festival in Jackson last Saturday for the purpose of assessing their strengths and weaknesses to date. They scored an overall 3 in the band category with 1 being the highest rating. Of the eight bands in their category, five of them earned a 3 in some very stringent judging standards. The percussion scored a 2 in the ratings. This week the band begins its first competition. They will travel to Union City to the Union City Marching Festival. Good luck to them as they begin the competition season.

Mrs. Shelia Ridley has held mock job interviews in her vocational keyboarding applications class. The interviews satisfy the state curricular standards for that portion of the class. Sergeant David Jarrett with the McKenzie National Guard conducted the interviews. They are intended to simulate real interviews and to prepare students with a real life skill to be used in applying for any job.

Mr. Scott Jewell has teamed with Ms. Jennifer Yates and the yearbook staff to begin yearbook ad sales for the 2002 yearbook. Students in Mr. Jewell's class go to area businesses and industries to sell various size ads for the yearbook. In this way, students can use skills that Mr. Jewel teaches in his Marketing II in a real life situation. Yearbook ads are an excellent means of advertisement and also a way that we try to keep the yearbook at an affordable price for our students. We appreciate all of those businesses, industries, and individuals that support our school in this way.

Ms. Ladona Herrin, our guidance counselor, will sponsor College Night on Tuesday, October 9, at 7:00 p.m. in the Theatre. Seniors and their parents are welcomed to this event in which Ms. Herrin and others will discuss the admission process, the method to use for the scholarship application, the necessary financial papers to complete, and a timetable to have these steps plus the standardized test for the admitting College. This workshop will not replace the January workshop which directly addresses financial aid. It is, however, an important workshop in understanding the overall process.

School will not be in session on Monday, October 8. This day marks our observance of Columbus Day.