Order up! Students in Ms. Qualls’ Spanish class are prepared to take learning to the next level. Students will walk to Mamacita's Mexican Grill from Asheville Middle School and order burritos, tacos, churros and more. Here’s the twist though, students must order in Spanish. Students practice weeks in advance to perfect their order. “I will probably always remember how to order a chicken burrito in Spanish!” a student told me; “Quiero un burrito de pollo con lechuga, cebollas, queso y arroz”. Students can learn and remember much more Spanish if they are having conversations and engaging with real life Spanish speaking situations. Going to Mamacitas and ordering in Spanish is an honor for the class; Ms. Qualls has month long competitions that compete on which classes are able to go on this amazing field trip. Students must be perfectly behaved and always on task. Ms. Qualls wants every class to be able to have the opportunity to go on this field trip. Currently, 4 out of her 6 classes have gone!

AMS student art is on display in the ​Robert Shetterly’s Americans Who Tell the Truth exhibit at the YMI Center. The 7th grader's art was inspired by the citizen heroes they found the most interesting and relatable to, then the students wrote about them and drew portraits of the “hero” of their choice. As an example, a student chose Martin Luther King Jr. as a civil rights leader to research and draw. Every seventh graders art has been chosen to appear in this gallery walk, as well as the eighth grade colleges. The 8th grade took self portraits and made a collage surrounding our faces, telling/showing about who we are, how we see ourselves, and our goals in life using magazine scraps.

The art will be displayed at the YMI Cultural Center (39 Market St., Asheville NC) starting on Saturday, September 30 going until Nov. 19th.
Hours: Tuesdays- Saturdays 11 am- 4pm. Sundays 1-4pm

Go support our awesome middle schoolers by checking out the exhibit! 

Story by Mekada Wickliffe

In our Spanish class they are learning about “El Dia de los Muertos”, which is Day of the Dead. They are participating in the event by making sugar skulls and pan de muertos. Sugar skulls are often made to decorate the “ofrendas” which means offerings. These skulls are generally used for decorating purposes but they do make mini sugar skulls that you can eat! Pan de muertos means bread that is eaten in Mexico and Central America during “El Día de los Muertos”. Pan de muertos is a sweetened soft bread that is shaped like a bun. They are often decorated with bone shaped pieces.

I went into the classroom where they were making sugar skulls, and when I walked in I saw trays of mini sugar skulls. The mini sugar skulls are usually the ones that you eat and enjoy! Instead of the “Pan de muertos” they had nachos and some type of apple tea. In the nachos there was a chicken mixture and queso that I got to try, it was really delicious! I didn’t get to try the sugar skulls, but a student said they just tasted like sugar. I talked to two 7th grade girls about what they thought about making sugar skulls and eating nachos. Daijah Elliot said “ I am very excited about making sugar skulls because I love food, I loved eating the nachos!” Jenaya McDaniel said “I feel like making sugar skulls is going to be fun because we get to decorate it on our own.” Great job, Spanish class! 

Story by ​Morghyan Harbison

The Asheville Middle School Theatre program welcomed a special guest during club time on Monday, October 30th. Local comedian, Mondy Carter, volunteered to come and teach an improv class for the theatre club. Mondy is an improv actor; he has worked with many different groups and now works with the local “Lazoom” comedy bus tours in Asheville, as well as being part of an improv group called Reasonably Priced Babies.

​He arrived with an array of games and activities for the students to do in order to warm up and get used to a more professional attitude towards acting. It was clear he is very knowledgable on the subject and not to mention rather hilarious! At many times he had the classroom full of laughter, all while the students gained a lot of focus and intention in their acting. The games included “What are you doing” as well as “bibbity bibbity bop” and a hand focus game. They taught the students to be confident in their stance and actions, and to be intentional with where their energy is directed. Thank you Mondy!!

It’s cookie time! Ms Monson's class made sugar cookies as a sweet treat. The atmosphere in the room was stressful and yet very peppy! I got to try one of the cookies and they were delicious! Crunchy on the outside and gooey on the inside.

Everyone seemed to be having a great time from mixing, rolling, and putting them in the oven. I spoke to a student in Ms Monson's class, Tavon Lytle (7th), and here is what he had to say “It only took 25 minutes to make the cookies. They were so easy! We put extra sugar on the cookies and it made me very hyper!” Overall, it seemed like a very fun class! 

Here at AMS we have a Teacher Incentive Program. I had the chance to speak with Mr. Hooten (who is on the PBIS committee) about the program. Here are questions I asked about the program:
 
Why did you start the program?
The PBIS committee started the AMS Teacher Incentive Program.
We wanted to reward staff that were going above and beyond the call of duty.

What are some of the incentives?
Some of the incentives include gift certificates from local businesses, tickets to shows in the area, we've even had ROOTS Hummus donate tubs of hummus, and Dynamite Coffee donated bags of awesome coffee!
​
What is the program?
Once a week we recognize one staff member that exemplifies awesomeness at AMS. It could be in the classroom, somewhere in the building, on the field.  We know that everyone in the building is doing their best all the time, but it’s a challenge to reward everyone all the time.

Who are some of the teachers?
It depends, it varies by grade level, content area, etc... on Friday we announce the winner for that week on the announcements.
 
Thank you Mr. Hooten for all of the information, and thank you to everyone who has donated! Our teachers deserve to be recognized! 
 
Story by Iris Schreiner

At Asheville Middle School, cougar pride is always being spread, and everyone feels pride in a different way. Whether people feel it when at a pep rally, when they hear a teacher talk, or when they feel supported, no matter when, or how, we all feel it. Ms. Forsythe says that “cougar pride is not just pride in our building or team but when we all come together as one to be part of a community bigger than ourselves”. A student, Kate Buys, feels the same way, she says that she feels the most cougar pride “when I am surrounded by a fluffy pillow of supportive teachers and friendly classmates, and I know that if I fall they will be there to catch me because they are my pillow that I know I can fall into when I need to”. Other students say they feel pride during sports, like one student Aislinn Nash says she feels the most cougar pride when she is playing her volleyball team. Another student, Winston Sloan, says “I feel the most cougar pride when I’m in the locker room getting pumped up with my team.”

Everyone feels this cougar pride in a different way, and they show it differently too. One student says they wear their cougar wear around town and that shows their pride and tells people where they go to school. An 8th grader, Hallie Dodd, said that she “goes to all the sports games and supports our cougar sports.” Even if students don’t always feel this pride everyone has felt it in some way, shape, or form. So, how do you show YOUR Cougar Pride?

Story by Ginger Hanlon

On October 31st, it was Halloween. People were dressed up, they had face paint on, and even the teachers got into the spirit of Halloween! Everyone was looking forward to the trick or treating that would be taking place late at night, and especially the candy that can be eaten afterwards. From places like West Asheville All the way to the rose garden, all of Asheville gathered together trying to get as much Halloween candy as possible. People at school already had candy in the bags before the night even started!
         
On Halloween day, students and teachers could dress up in their costume at school. There were things ranging from blow up dinosaurs to characters in movies, characters in books, and even group costumes that friends made together. Everyone looked amazing in their costumes, and definitely ready to seize the night to have fun with each other!

Story by Uma Daniel