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MPI middle school students once again spent time with residents of the Arcadia Retirement Residence on Saturday, April 12. The “youngsters” read current events, played word games, and entertained the elderly with their musical talents. The morning ended with a pleasant “talk story” session with lots of smiles and laughter.
Mahalo to the following students for their participation;
1. Alailima-Rose, Gabriel (8)
2. Chang, Keila (7)
3. Chee, Katie (8)
4. Chock, Didi (8)
5. Kawata, Monique (8)
6. Lee, Annette (8)
7. Lin, Jarret(7)
8. Lizama, Jessilyn(8)
9. Mor, Carmen(7)
10. Navarro, Alexe(7)
11. Ohtani, Lauren (6)
12. Osano, Nick (8)
13. Sato, Nicole(8)
14. Shigetani, Summer(8)
15. Ubasa, Brittenney(7)
This week marked the beginning of the 8th Annual Toy Project for the 8th graders. Dr. Robert Yonover (Jesse, ’07), has been an integral part of kicking off our project for the last 8 years. As the founder of SeeRescue, he shares his knack for developing valuable, life-saving tools from very simple ideas. His inspiring and engaging presentation starts the wheels moving in our young inventors’ minds. Stay tuned for the winners of this year’s Toy Fair, to be held on Friday, May 16.]]>
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The Honors English class recently completed their multi-genre research project on Hiroshima and the Holocaust. One of their reading requirements was Night by Elie Wiesel. The story is about a young man surviving the daily brutality of life at the Auschwitz death camp in 1944. Coincidentally, Mr. Goldberger's father and sister were transported to Auschwitz on the same train as Elie Wiesel.
Listening to Mr. Goldberger's anecdotes recounting the struggles of surviving the daily ravages of racism, anti-Semitism, hunger, and cruelty clearly resonated with the students. As difficult as it is for young people today to grasp the horrors of the Holocaust, Mr. Goldberger was able to personalize it in a way that students could make some important text-to-world and text-to-self connections.
I would like to extend a big mahalo to Julia Shropshire and her father for arranging Mr. Goldberger's visit.
John Mounts
Honors English 8
On Saturday 3/1/08 six 8th graders represented MPI at the Hawaii Science Olympiad. This event is held every year at Leeward Community College. This was the first year for the Middle School division. 8 schools competed in categories such as Tower Building, Rocks and Minerals and Trajectory. Cal Fujii and Sasha Han won a bronze metal in the Anatomy Category. Gabriel Alailima-Rose and Alec Toshi won a silver metal for Mystery Architecture. Also representing MPI were Max Ako and Kanji Hata.
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Karen Chang – Best in Category – Physics and Astronomy
TJ Goodin – Best in Category – Engineering – Electrical and Mechanical
Matthew Reese – Best in Category – Energy and Transportation
Brittney Arakaki – Honorable Mention – Medicine and Health
The following students were also selected to move on to the State Science and Engineering Fair:
Johanna Green – Physics and Astronomy
James Hamada - Chemistry
Jaimelenn Uemura – Behavioral and Social Science
On February 6, the 8th grade Science classes were able to isolate their own DNA from their saliva. Dr. Donlon, Director of Genetics Research at Queen’s Hospital and father of Erica Donlon, was the guest for the day and helped with this activity. Students were able to use real hospital lab equipment and lab techniques to produce a visible sample of their DNA. This was quite a highlight to their Genetics unit.
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In December, the 8th grade held their annual Science Fair Open House. Students had projects on display that ranged from Astronomy to Zoology. The top 20 projects will be selected to represent MPI at the HAIS District Fair in February. Thank you to all of the faculty and parents that stopped by to view the projects.
The 6th grade had the privilege of hearing Mr. Tokuji Ono speak about his experiences during World War II. Mr. Ono is the father of MPI trustee, Mrs. Diane Ono, and the grandfather of MPI alum, Kristen (Young) Unten, class of ’01.
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Mr. Ono was drafted into the United States Army at the age of 21. He was drafted just prior to Pearl Harbor. After the United States entered into the war with Japan, his unit was sent to Ft. Shelby in Mississippi for training. There, he and the men of B Company were shipped to Cat Island, Mississippi, for dog training.
The premise of the training was that dogs would be able to detect differences between people of different ethnic groups. The dogs were being trained detect people of Japanese heritage. As Mr. Ono and his fellow soldiers put it, they were dog bait. Although he was clothed in thick protective clothing, Mr. Ono says that he could feel the pressure of the jaws of the large German Shepherds as they attacked. He told us that he will never forget the words of the dog trainers as the dogs were let loose, “KILL!” The experiments failed, the dogs detected no differences. After the training ended, Mr. Ono served in Europe, fighting with the 100th Battalion.
The 6th grade has just completed an intensive study of World War II. In social studies, they investigated the causes leading up to the attack on Pearl Harbor. They visited the Pearl Harbor Memorial. This was followed by a teleconference with Pearl Harbor survivors, Mr. Cale and Mr. Rodriques. In language arts, the students read the works of Graham Salisbury, Under the Blood Red Sun, The House of the Red Fish, and Eyes of the Emperor. These books are about the Pearl Harbor attack and World War II from a local perspective. Mr. Ono and the men of B Company were the inspiration for the main character, Eddy Okubo, in Eyes of the Emperor.
We, the 6th grade, will always be grateful to Mr. Ono for sharing his story with the students. The men who fought in World War II are truly the greatest generation. They helped to shape our lives as we live them today. We view them as heroes, yet they will humbly tell you they were doing what needed to be done.
Thank you Mr. Ono for the gift of your wisdom.
Every day during lunch, students donated a dollar for all kinds of crazy things like “holla for a dolla” (sending messages to their classmates), BillBoard (taping Dr. Priester to a cafeteria table with duct tape!!), and buying Jamba Juice. Our bake sale alone collected $847 from the yummy baked goods which were donated by our very own students and teachers.
A heartfelt thank you to everyone who generously donated to a worthy cause!
Please visit the virtual art gallery on the MPI website to view the latest artwork produced by the 8th grade art workshop classes.
Click here to link to Virtual Art Gallery
5:30 – 7:00 p.m.
Where: Bakken Auditorium
Speaker: Former HPD Detective Chris Duque, Computer and Internet Crimes Expert
Please RSVP by Thursday, November 15, 2007, to mpipto@midpac.edu. Please include the number of people attending.
We look forward to seeing you on November 20th!
Middle School students and teachers filled 28 laundry baskets with food, toys, books, school supplies, toiletries and just fun stuff to give to families who are less fortunate. Students were told to reflect on things they were thankful for and show their appreciation for what they have, by donating items to a family in need. They were told to be creative and resourceful…and they went beyond their assignment! The baskets were overflowing with goods and they were beautifully decorated. ]]>
6th Grade teacher, Mrs. Lisa Mah, who organized the activity sent this message to MS teachers and her words say it all.
“Thank you ALL for the beautifully filled baskets this morning! The representatives from Catholic Charities were truly in awe and grateful. The power of giving is remarkable…..thank you for instilling that value in your students.”
Thank you Mrs. Mah and WAY TO GO MIDDLE SCHOOL!!!
]]>Place: Scudder Dining Hall
Time: 5:00pm - 8:00pm
Cost: $1.00 will be collected for the Aloha United Way.
Students will need to show MPI ID to enter
Pick-Up: To alleviate traffic, please adhere to the following
times/locations:
6th grade: 7:45pm at gym parking lot
7th grade: 8:00pm at Bakken Circle
8th grade: 8:15pm at gym parking lot
We appreciate you picking up your child at times indicated. There is a 15-minute time period for each grade level. If your child is not picked up by 8:30pm, he/she may not attend the Middle School Valentine dance.
DRESS CODE FOR HALLOWEEN DANCE
MPI Polo shirts are not required. Regular T-shirts (with appropriate messages), blouses and shirts may be worn but tank tops, tube tops, sheer or spaghetti-strap tops are not allowed. Sleeveless blouses may be worn provided they are not cut in from the outer corners of the shoulders.
Pants, slacks, and short/skirts that are at least mid-thigh in length are required. Cut-off jeans, jams or skirts with high slits are not allowed. Swimwear and running shorts are prohibited.
Sandals with straps allowed. No slippers.
Halloween costumes are allowed but no mask. Costumes must be age-appropriate, no bare midriffs or spaghetti straps and must be dress code length.
If attire is deemed inappropriate, student will be asked to change or get picked up by parent/guardian.