January 28, 2013

Volume 2, Issue1

Burbank Middle School

Ms. Wright- She teaches

8th grade Math for Dual Language. She

came to this school because when she

came to Burbank for an interview,

they were welcoming her and she

wanted to teach math. She went to

Sam Houston State University and

majored in Finance. She loves that

though she can’t speak English, she

still teaches the students.

Ms. Washington- She

teaches 8th grade Math for Excel. She

came to this school because she

heard great things about the students

and the staff of Burbank. She went to

Nova South Eastern University and

majored in Elementary Education. She

loves how to use a lot of technology.

Ms. Salazar- She teaches

7th grade English for Dual Language.

She came to this school because she

loves teaching her kids. She went to

University of Houston Downtown

and majored in Interdisciplinary Stud-

ies. She loves that she met a real

author (G. Neri).

Ms. Santos- She teaches

6th and 7th grade English ESL for Dual

Language. She came to this school

because Burbank was close by and

she liked the atmosphere. She went

to Saint Thomas University, Univer-

sity of Houston, and College of the

Mainland and minored in English and

majored in Education. She loves that

she became a Language elective

teacher.

Mr. Plancarte- He

teaches 8th grade math for Dual Lan-

guage. He came to this school be-

cause he liked the community. He

went to a college in Mexico called

Normal Superior de Victoria Tamauli-

pas and majored in secondary mathe-

matics. He loves everything about the

school.

Burbank Welcomes New Teachers

One Semester, One Book Encourages Students to Read

Here at Burbank Middle

School, new things have come to pass.

Many students have left, and many

students have come. Along with those

students, many new teachers have

arrived.

“(I Came to Burbank) to

educate children and have fun with

science,” said Ms. Cooper. She is one of

the 13 teachers that arrived at Burbank

this year. Although they teach in many

different subject areas, grade levels, and

academies they all came here for one

reason: because of the students.

All of the new teachers said,

that they enjoyed the students. There

was just one near-constant problem,

although the students were,

“entertaining and funny,” according to

Mr. Branham, nearly all of the teachers

said that the students could be very

loud. “I do think they’re awfully chatty,”

Ms. Kampf-Thibodeau noted.

Ms. Kampf-Thibodeau-

She teaches 8th grade science for Van-

guard. She came to this school because

of the excellent academic program. She

went to the University of Texas and

majored in Biology. She loves Teaching

IPC.

Mr. Branham- He teaches

8th grade history for Vanguard. He came

to this school because he wanted teach

history to Vanguard and EXCEL stu-

dents. He went to the University of

Texas and majored in history. He loves

how some of the students present their

projects.

Mr. McBride- He teaches

7th grade and 8th grade history for Duel-

Language, Pre-AP, and STAAR classes.

He came to Burbank because he

wanted to help in an area that needs

people to make a difference. He went

to the Monmouth University, Lone Star

Community College, and Ramapo Col-

lege of New Jersey and majored in

American Studies. He loves watching

Mr. McMains skateboard on the side-

walk.

`Ms. Cooper- She

teaches 8th grade Science for EXCEL.

She came to this school to educate

children and expand their learning and

have fun with Science. She went to

the Texas Southern University and

majored in Biology and Chemistry.

She loves the nice people of the

school.

Mr. White- He teaches

all grades Karate for all academies. He

came to this school to teach Karate.

He went to the Virginia, Tide Water

Community College and majored in

Martial Arts and still is. He loves that

everyone accepted him in this school.

Ms. Zamarripa- She

teaches 6th grade Science for Dual

Language. She came to this school

because she heard that Burbank had a

really good program to help students

go to college. She went to Sam Hous-

ton State University and majored in

Interdisciplinary Studies. She loves the

pinwheel for peace project.

Ms. Broussard- She

teaches 7th grade Reading for Van-

guard. She came to this school be-

cause she wanted to make a differ-

ence in children’s lives. She went to

University of Houston Clear Lake and

majored in Educational Leadership.

She loves the schedule of Burbank.

Ms. Rodriguez- She

teaches 6th grade Math for Excel. She

came to this school because she went

here in middle school. She went to

University of Houston Downtown

and minored in Finance and majored

in Education Administration. She loves

having other math teachers to sup-

port her.

The book was a great

success and helped everyone group

together and learn while having fun.

Instead of having a scary start of the

school year, Ghetto Cowboy

brought in fun and learning.

“It was a good experi-

ence ,” said Nathan Garcia. The

main question on everyone’s mind

now, when do we get to read an-

other book?

Burbank Middle School

gave all students their own copy of

Ghetto Cowboy and time each morn-

ing to read it. Students were actively

engaged in reading the book and some

even asked about a sequel.

The book was about how

a young boy was left to survive in a

new environment after getting in

trouble with his mother.

“Suddenly, something big

and white bumps up against the car,

and I jump .I think I must be

dreamin’, ‘cause I just saw a horse

run by.” Ghetto Cowboy

The protagonist, Col-

trane, is dropped off in inner-city

Philadelphia with a cowboy father he

doesn’t know.

“The Ghetto Cowboy is

an interesting book and I think that

students relate to the story,” said

Mrs. Hernandez.

Inside this issue:

Homecoming Court

Crowned

2

Welcome Sixth Graders 2

New Food? 2

Burbank Works to Stop

Bullying

3

Literacy Night a Success 3

Cartoon/Puzzles 4

iPads at Burbank 4

The Eagle’s Nest

By Andrew Koltko and Hari Patel

Staff Writers

By Lucy Mejia and Ebony Villalobos

Staff Writers

Photo By Andrew Koltko:

Ms. Kampf-Thibodeaux

teaching science.

Staff Photos

Everyone at Burbank reading Ghetto Cowboy.

Homecoming Court Crowned; Mighty

Eagles Face Another Loss

New Year, New Food?

Welcome 6th Grade Class 2012-2013

pate in something,” said the home-

coming duchess, Yesenia Lopez. “I

think my votes came from Excel and

Vanguard” said the duke, Pedro

Gonzalez.

Sam Houston High

School also participated in the

homecoming celebration with their

drill team, color guard, and band.

They danced and played along side

Burbank’s own Cheerleaders and

intermediate, advanced band.

The football players

accepted their defeat, but only after

giving their all. “We gave it our best,

we worked as a team,” said 7th

grade football player Mark Lopez.

Some other players, thought the

game was not their best. “We could

have done better,” said Angel Flo-

res, another 7th grade player.

Even though the game

was lost, Burbank still had high

spirits about home coming with all

the festivities. “Homecoming was

Awesome” said Uriel Orozo a 7th

grade football player. It was an

evening to remember.

The Burbank Middle

School Homecoming was a huge

success. Even though Burbank was

defeated, the effort, heart, and

determination that our dedicated

football players put into the game,

made Burbank Middle School’s

football team winners.

And our homecoming

winners are… “You could practi-

cally see the excitement rising

through the crowd” said Cindy Silva,

8th grader, “It’s the moment every-

one has been waiting for since the

football season began.”

The candidates who ran for

duchess and duke were Airel Leal,

Heaven Sanchez, Erica J. Aguiniaga,

Keania Bell, and Destiny Tafoya for

Duchess, Agustin Ramirez.

Alexus Barrea, Yvonne Espinoza,

Carla Garcia Kiaria Cervantes, and

Destiny Torres, Joseph Arguelles,

Christopher Lopez, Ellias Careauga,

and Jose Vazques ran for prince and

princess. Priscilla Rendon,Sinai

Maldonado, and Michelle Medellin,

ran for Queen.

The winners were an-

nounced October 30th at Delmare

Stadium during the Burbank vs.

Black homecoming game. The win-

ners were Pedro Gonzalez and

Yesenia Lopez for Duke and Duch-

ess, Christopher Lopez and Saman-

tha Compean for Prince and Prin-

cess, and Christian Fuentes and

Gabriela Lopez were crowned King

and Queen.

“It was shocking, it

surprised me that I won,” said

Christian Fuentes the homecoming

king. “I won last year so it encour-

aged me to run again. I’m happy I

won,” says Gabriela Lopez, the

homecoming Queen.

“I thought most of my

votes came from the excel acad-

emy” said Samantha Compean the

homecoming princess. “It felt good,

and I was excited when I won” said

Christopher Lopez the homecoming

prince.

“Weird, I didn’t think I

would win. I just wanted to partici-

counselor, said, ”I’m happy being

their counselor because I get to

know new students and remember

their names.”

Burbank hopes the

sixth graders can keep up with our

system and that they can respect

all the staff and students. Burbank

hopes to become another recog-

nized school this year with a help

of the sixth graders.

Burbank is excited to

have new students. The sixth grad-

ers knew they were going to have

to face more challenges.

Haylee Caballero said,

“I feel happy being here and its

awesome learning new things.”

“Yeah, I like the school

and everything but, I dislike the

food!” Manuel Nuno said. “It’s

going to be an awesome experi-

ence being here.”

A lot of the sixth grad-

ers said they were scared on the

first day, but now they know they

are starting to adjust to our rules,

schedule, and routines.

They all know they have

to listen and follow any adult’s

instructions, so they can get the

fair respect back.

Ms.Avila, sixth grade

grains that have been proven to

benefit our health.

Like it or not, the lunch

food has been made to stay, and is

going to have many changes and

surprises, so look out for new items

introduced in the food.

With a new school year

in front for both teachers and stu-

dents, everyone is expecting many

new surprises and experiences

especially at Burbank Middle School

(the best school ever).

Among the

many changes, one of them being

debated is the lunch food served

daily.

Some students claim to

see a big difference in the food,

while others just shrug, saying

there's no noticeable change in the

menu. "It's different, you can't really

tell what it is anymore," Crystal

Lucatero, 7th grader said.

Although many students

claim not to be too thrilled about

the food, the Burbank lunch ladies

think the opposite. "We think the

food is good, nutritious, and excel-

lent." the Burbank Middle School

cafeteria staff said.

Some of the students

really enjoy the free food they re-

ceive! "I really like burgers, pizza,

and Sloppy Joe's," Itzel Castillo, 8th

grader said.

HISD has been very

generous to offer free meals to all

qualified students, it provides a

balanced meal, with many whole

Staff photo

Cafeteria food during lunch.

Page 2

“I’m happy being

their counselor

because I get to

know new students

and remember their

names.” - Ms. Avila

Volume 2, Issue1

Photo By Candace Charles

Former Queen Dayna Jaso, Current Queen Gabriela

Lopez, Former King Alberto Gomez, and Principal

Hernandez posed on the field after the crowning.

Staff Photo

Burbank’s football team played Black Middle School.

By Candace Charles and LaSean Roy

Staff Writers

By Natalie Briceno and Gricelda Torres

Staff Writers

By Maria Almaguer, David Arguello and Nelson Macias

Staff Writers

Burbank Works to Stop Student Bullying

Literacy Night Had Record Turnout

believe that if students need to

solve an issue, they can always

come to me,” she stated.

Now if you don’t feel

comfortable talking to her, stu-

dents can always write a simple

note. The notes can be placed into

the turquoise lockers with the Anti

-bullying mural painted on it lo-

cated across from the cafeteria.

It is time to start a new

generation to stop judging people

on how they are or appear to be.

It’s time to stop calling people ugly,

stupid, gay, disgusting, retarded,

etc.

Words have power, use

them wisely.

Burbank is a magnificent

school, but could it be infected by

a common disease named Bullying?

There have been seven

reports in sixth grade alone since

the beginning of the school year,

according to Ms. Avila, sixth grade

counselor.

Many Students here are

afraid to talk to an adult. The only

thing they need is a friend to know

at least that they have someone.

“Some days I just feel sad and

depressed, I just …” said a sixth

grade student who asked not to be

named.

Bullying leaves students with

many questions and concerns and

often makes them think they’ve

done something wrong. “(I

thought) Why would they bully

me?” said a 7th grade student.

Everyone has problems.

Some students ball up their energy

of hatred and release it on others.

“I’ve bullied other people because I

didn’t know what to do with my-

self, but my parents told me that

bullying is not the solution,” said

an eighth grade ex-bully.

A good solution is to

talk to someone about it. Parents,

friends, a counselor, coach or

teacher would all be helpful indi-

viduals in such situations.

Ms. Avila has helped

many students here at Burbank to

overcome or stop bullying. “I

night,’’ Mr. Boyd said.

“The idea is to teach the

kids that reading and writing are

very important and entertaining to

your life,” said Ms.Wilkes.

Some of the kids riding

horse were scared because it was

their first time riding and the

horses kept moving making it

difficult to get on.

The kids said, ”it was a

good experience and that we had a

good time at literacy night. Some

can’t wait to see what’s next...

Burbank’s Literacy

Night was amazing! The reading

and writing teachers were wonder-

ful and they helped the students

learn in a fun way. But, the best

part was that the author of Ghetto

Cowboy, Greg Neri, was there to

sign the student’s books.

Students were eager to

have their books signed. Lining up

early and eagerly waiting to meet

G. Neri. “It was beast getting my

book signed,” said Daniel Ruiz,

seventh grader.

The students rode horses

around the campus, and they

watched the karate demo team,

cheerleaders, and ballet folkloric

dancers perform.

The students enjoyed

literacy night; you could hear

screams of excitement when kids

won the prizes for every booth. “I

liked the activities because I got

prizes,” said eighth grader Yedid

Garin.

The teachers were amazed

at how many families came to

literacy night and how students

used their strategies to play the

games. “It’s so amazing looking at

how many kids came to literacy

Page 3

“It’s so amazing

looking at how

many kids came to

literacy night,’’ Mr.

Boyd said.

Volume 2, Issue1

Staff Photos : Cheerleaders performed in the courtyard, Author G. Neri signed books, and students participated in various reading activities.

By John-Paul Arreaga

Staff Writers

By Jessica Duarte and Mitzy Rivas

Staff Writers

Staff Photo

No Bully Here Day presentation in the

auditorium.

Lara said, “ I think that I could keep up with my Ipad because the teacher will be on top of us every time they give

them to us.”

Also, students are not allowed to download or play games that are not “educational.” After this was said, Eduardo Mendez, a seventh grader stu-dent, said, “If they don’t let us download games, I will still download them because I don’t care.” But after this, he found out

that if you download or play games you would get detention so he may have changed his

minds.

So far, the iPad pro-gramming is working well. Teach-ers and students are learning and

working together.

Puzzled

Burbank introduced a new iPad initiative to get students excited about learning. Students and teachers are eager to show

off their technical skills this year.

Each cluster received a cart of iPads and a selected homeroom gets to use them throughout the year for their assignments. According to Mr.Pineda, the iPads were given to students that were surveyed last year. They also selected the

class who had the most interest in taking advantage of getting on

the device.

Uriel Lara, a seventh grade student said, “I think it’s pretty awesome that were getting the iPads!” Juan Manzano added, “I think these iPads will help us in our education because we will

take notes with them.”

At first there were complaints about “smart kids” getting iPads and other students not. However, it seems reason-able that the students who do

their work be rewarded. In addi-tion, Ms. Hernandez has pur-chased an additional iPad cart that can be checked out and teachers

can use with all classes.

Students are very excited about using the technol-ogy. Victoria Gomez, sixth-grader, said, “We are excited

because we are not going to have to write a lot.” She also said, “If my iPad ever ruins, I’ll immedi-

ately tell my teacher.”

Students using the iPads had to sign contracts taking responsibility for any damages or thefts that result while in the

students’ possession.

iPads Engage Students’ Minds By Jesus Nunez

Staff Writers

Jumble - Math Terms 1. IIOVISND ____________________

2. TEMYGOER ____________________

3. RBSNUEM ____________________

4. INATDODI ____________________

5. IATILICLNPTMUC ____________________

6. OTTUCNBSRIA ____________________

Staff Photo:

Ms. Wilkes and her students pose with their iPads

mimicking the popular Apple advertisement.