Our Seventh and Eighth graders are taking on a few challenges in the coming weeks. Mrs. Mary Schoendorf, our middle school Language Arts teacher, has entered the students in the Union County Law Day Essay Contest. This is an annual event hosted by the Superior Court of New Jersey, Union County Vicinage. Each year a different topic is chosen and students must write a 400 word-or-less essay about the law. This year’s topic is “American Democracy and the Rule of Law: Why Every Vote Matters.” The students must reflect on the importance of each citizen’s right to vote and the challenges the nation faces in ensuring that every American has the opportunity to participate in our democracy. Winners will be announced in late April, and we wish our writers the best of luck.
The students are also enjoying a fun challenge in math. Mr. Steve Ferro’s 7th and 8th grade accelerated math classes and Mrs. Sue Florendo’s 8th grade math class are playing the Stock Market Game. Working in groups, the students are given a $100,000 “portfolio” and have to “purchase” and track various stocks over the next two months. In order to encourage mathematical analysis, the students must research various stocks and pick three stocks in each of three sectors. For each stock, they must determine various financial ratios such as price-to-equity, debt-to-equity, price-to book-value, the dividend-yield percent, the return-on-equity percent, the net profit margin, and the price-to-earnings growth ratio. The students are using these ratios to help them decide which stocks to buy. This is the fourth year the classes have played the game which is a fun way to learn how the market works and about money management. If you know a 7th or 8th grader, feel free to quiz them!
