North Clarion County School District

The Great Depression

If after reading the attached pages you are still interested in joining Academic Sports League, please do the following items:

Submit $12.00 to Mrs. Schwabenbauer or Mrs. Bauer to order The Grapes of Wrath, by John Steinbeck NO LATER THAN TUESDAY, MARCH 9th! We would like to get the book ordered ASAP. If you do not have your money in by this date, you will be responsible for purchasing your own book.

Academic Sports League

This organization spans ten academic events: math, science, music, art, language & literature, economics, social studies, essay, interview, and speech. The curriculum changes every year, and this year's theme is the Great Depression.

SUPER QUIZ: The Super Quiz™ will focus on the topic of geology and will include a case study on the Dust Bowl. The Super Quiz Resource Guide will include readings on such topics as rock formation, the geological time scale, the hydrologic cycle and groundwater, the causes of the Dust Bowl, plate tectonics, and fossil fuel resources.

LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE: The language and literature curriculum will include critical reading, one novel, two interviews, one essay, two short stories, and two poems. The featured novel will be The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck.

ART: The art curriculum will cover art fundamentals and will focus on art in the era of the Great Depression.

MUSIC: The music curriculum will cover basic elements of music theory and will focus on American music of the 1930s.

SOCIAL SCIENCE: The social science curriculum will focus on the Great Depression and the New Deal.

ECONOMICS: The economics curriculum will cover fundamental economic concepts, microeconomics, and macroeconomics. The economics curriculum will also include a thematic section focused on the Great Depression.

MATHEMATICS: The mathematics curriculum will cover topics in algebra, coordinate geometry, and trigonometry.

We will participate in 3 competitions this year. The competitions are usually held in November, December, and January at Penn State Behrend, Mercyhurst College, and Gannon University. We will distribute the competition dates as soon as we receive them.

We can take 20 students to each competition. Our team will be split into 3 divisions: honors (3.75-4.00 G.P.A.), scholastic (3.00-3.74 G.P.A.), and varsity (2.99 and below).

Students are responsible for their lunch at each competition which is $7.00. We will collect lunch money in the fall.

Expectations

North Clarion has proven to be a highly competitive team. In order to maintain this level of achievement, we must adhere to a rigorous practice schedule, maintain a positive attitude, and take advantage of all resource materials.

Practice Schedule

This spring, there will be practice every Wednesday from 2:45 p.m. until 5:00 p.m. in Mrs. Bauer's room beginning April 14th. If you are in softball, track, or baseball, we suggest that you come to our meeting until 3:15, and then you should go to your athletic practice. The activity bus typically runs on Wednesdays. Attendance will be taken at every meeting. Submit a written excuse for any missed practice. Students missing practice without an excuse will be dismissed from the team.

If you are unable to commit to after school practices, then this program is not for you! If you don't like to learn, then this program is not for you! If you don't like to read, then this program is not for you!

Do your best to schedule around practices!

Tell your parents to try to schedule doctor's appointments for days other than Wednesday.

If you have an after school job, tell your boss that you can't start until after practice is over.

In addition to time spent after school, you will also need to read the resource material at home if you plan on being competitive.

You should use silent reading to read The Grapes of Wrath.

Tentative Timeline

April & May:

1. The Grapes of Wrath

2. Elect officers/Summer Meetings

3. Distribute study materials; practice interview questions and impromptu speech

June, July, August: (plan on 2 summer meetings)

1. Super Quiz (Geology)

2. Short selections, review of novel, prepared speech, interview

3. Study as much of the information as you possibly can!

September - January

1. Study all 10 events

2. 3 A.S.L. competitions

3. Form decathlon team based on the top three students in each division after the third competition

February - April

1. Regionals, States, & Nationals for the decathlon team

2. Students who did not qualify for regionals will work on a new speech for next season

Competitions

A preliminary test will be used to determine who attends each competition. Once we have the top four in each division, we will then take the remaining 8 highest scores.

Please be aware that earning one of the 20 spots on each competition roster requires a great deal of responsibility and commitment. There is no limit to the number of students on the team. Please be aware, however, that we can only take 20 students to each competition. The roster can have different students on it every time! The ultimate goal is to earn one of the 9 spots on the Academic Decathlon team.

Behavior

There will be ZERO tolerance for any disrespectful or dishonest behavior. Even though each of you is competing as an individual, you are still representing North Clarion. It will be at the coaches' discretion to disqualify you from future competitions based on your behavior. We're counting on you to be mature, young adults!

The following behaviors are expected from you at school:

• Positive attitude, effort and team spirit
• Maintain academic eligibility!

The following behaviors are expected from you at competitions:

• All electronic devices must be off and kept in your book bag throughout the entire competition (cell phones, I-pods, headphones, etc…)
• No hoodies and/or hats
• Support team in an appropriate manner during super quiz (no headphones or texting on your phone)
• Be respectful to all coaches, proctors, and coordinators!

Resources

Resources, other than the novel, will begin to arrive toward the end of May.

DemiDec: http://www.demidisc.com/ (login: pwilliams@nccsd.org; password: ceh955)

The login and password will change once we place our order on May 15. I will post the new information for the Great Depression materials as soon as I receive them.

The materials on the Great Depression will be available on this website in August. There are fundamentals in art, economics, and music available at this time.

Integrated Academic Studies

Pass/Fail course designed to meet the curriculum of the United States Academic Decathlon

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

Take this course only if you plan on making a full commitment to all 10 events!

Gifted: Design your gifted project/GIEP around Academic Sports League!!!!

Important Notes for Parents

• The A.S.L. competitions are held on a Saturday during the months of November, December, and January. As soon as we receive the dates, we will notify the students so that you can mark your calendars. North Clarion will provide transportation to every competition, but each student is responsible for paying $7 for their lunch. Students are expected to arrive at the school by 5:15 a.m. in professional attire. Students will take a multiple choice test on each of the academic subjects, write an essay, give a speech, participate in an interview, and compete in a super quiz relay.
• This is a great opportunity for students to both enjoy learning and be rewarded for their efforts. It is also an excellent opportunity for students to be exposed to local colleges and universities. As an A.S.L. participant, you become eligible for many scholarships in your senior year. Over the past six years, North Clarion seniors have been awarded over $600,000!
• In order to be competitive at the A.S.L. competitions, an enormous amount of dedication and hard work is required. Students are encouraged to schedule Integrated Academic Studies to help offset some of the studying that must also occur at home. We will meet after school for 2 hours on Wednesdays during the spring, and we will continue to meet on Wednesdays starting next school year. If your son/daughter has trouble maintaining their grades or staying after school, this is not the organization for them to join. This curriculum is above and beyond what is offered in the regular curriculum.
• Students will be given and asked to submit a packet of items at the beginning of the next school year including permission slips, medical form, and $7.00 for lunch at each competition ($21 total). We will send these forms home in September. In addition, your child will need to have professional interview attire by November. We recommend boys wear a dress shirt, tie, dress pants, dress shoes (no tennis shoes), and a suit jacket or sweater if possible. Girls should wear a suit (either pant or dress), minimal jewelry, nylons, and dress shoes.
• We would like to encourage you to come to the competitions. There is a super quiz event at each competition around 1:00 p.m. during which parents are welcome to come and cheer for the school. It is fun, and everyone would love to see you there. The awards ceremony immediately follows the super quiz event, and we are very optimistic and hopeful about our team this year. Awards are given to the top three students in each division for each test, essay, speech, interview, and super quiz relay. We will distribute more materials prior to each competition.
• Please call Jackie Bauer at 354-2393 during the evening hours if you have any concerns about your son/daughter joining Academic Sports League.

After School Meetings for April and May

PLEASE BRING YOUR BOOK TO THE MEETINGS.

TENTATIVE: On Wednesday, May 19th, I plan to show the movie! Bring a snack!

It might be helpful to also look at the following website to help you understand the novel:

http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/grapesofwrath/