On Thursday, October 18th, North Arlington High School held its 8th grade open hourse. Teachers from each subject area had tables set up in the gym displaying their attributes. Mackenzie Cutruzzula, a senior at N.A.H.S., helped during the orientation by sitting at the Student Council and Drama Club table and informing students and parents about both clubs. When asked about her opinion on this event, Mackenzie stated, “8th grade orientation is a positive outlook on all of the things that our school has to offer.”
Each subject’s table had some sort of interactive experiment or information on the curriculum. Miss Dempsey’s table for culinary arts included cookies that the students made in class. The athletics table had information on sports and highlight videos of N.A.H.S. athletes and sport teams. The Science table had interactive games that students can play and Dr. Necoechea had his famous telescope outside for anyone to look at. Rebecca Filgueiras, another student who was working the orientation stated, “The activities that each table had looked very cool. It’s nice to see that teachers incorporated things that the 8th graders could participate in.” These activities truly contributed to the 8th graders outlook on our high school.
In select classrooms throughout the school, teachers from different areas and departments had presentations for the 8th graders. Mr. Mott and his A.P. Biology class had cheek cells in a microscope and they were magnified and projected so that everyone could see them. Mrs. O’Brien Romer and Mrs. Kusher had an activity for the students on a SmartBoard. The activity included matching different phrases to their meanings. Mrs. Burns and Mrs. Albuquerque gave a presentation on the English electives and showcased the online edition of our school newspaper The Viking Saga. These interactive programs helped the 8th grade students understand the myriad of lessons they too can experience when they begin high school. A big thank you is in order to all the teachers, administrators, and students who made this event possible!