Dear Parents,

I hope that this email finds each of you well and looking forward to well deserved weekend. This week has been an eventful one with Red Ribbon Week, a Pep Rally, and special assembly which I believe the student really enjoyed. Next week, we will finish Newton’s Laws with next week focusing on Newton’s 3rd Law. As a reminder, next Tuesday is our Vocabulary Quiz #10. In addition, as it stands right now, students will take their exam on all of Newton’s Laws next Friday. If you have any questions, please feel free to let me know.

I would like to thank everyone for their kind emails and support as I have been working through trying to repair JGDickson.com. Ultimately, here is what took place:

• JGDickson.com was attacked by a Trojan Horse which has been noted to also attack other large websites including those belonging to corporate entities and universities.
• The design of the Trojan Horse was to insert a small amount of code into a webpage requesting a macro to be run. If the user should run the macro, a program would be installed on the user’s computer which would ultimately cause unwanted actions.
• To insure that all traces of the Trojan Horse are gone, I have completely deleted the entire website and rebuilt it from the ground up. Fortunately, I had backups of all the files so the overall format has not changed much.
• Please be advised that the site is only running at 80% capacity as some material is still not available. However, the parent updates and updated information will be added over the next several days.
• As the site is being updated, you may find JGDickson.com inaccessible during low traffic periods in order to update the pages. Please be patient and check back again.
• The events that occurred to JGDickson.com can happen to any website at any time. For this reason, may I encourage you to obtain a good quality antivirus (i.e.: Norton’s Antivirus, McAfee, PC Security Shield) to help protect your computer.
• If you should have any questions or run into any challenges, please let me know. In addition, please be assured that though I have done everything within my abilities regarding JGDickson.com, I understand the hesitancy of some individuals and will do what is needed to help continue my partnership with you, the parent, to help encourage your student’s success.

Thank you all, again, for your patience and understanding. If you should have any questions, please feel free to contact me at any time.

J. Gavin Dickson, Ed.M.
8th Academic Science & Pre-AP Science Teacher
Keller Middle School
817-744-2981
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Words cannot express how much I have appreciated all your encouragement, support, and willingness to partner with your student’s teachers in the upcoming year.  The beginning of the 2008-2009 year began without a hitch and I can honestly say that you have some amazing students!  I have greatly appreciated all of their sincerity and respect during my bout with laryngitis and their genuine concern when some of them learned of my recent family emergency.  It is true, Team Braves has some of the best students and I must thank you, the parents, for playing such a pivotal role in their lives.  Thank you.

Now on to our Science News:

1)      This Friday, September 19, is our first Science Exam.  It will be going over everything we’ve covered since day one including Atoms, the Atomic Theory, Periodic Table, and some Lab Safety.  I will discuss with students the format of the test and suggestions on how they can prepare on Thursday.

2)      As a reminder, we are continuing to have vocabulary quizzes every Tuesday.  The list is available at www.jgdickson.com in case you need an extra copy. 

3)      Next week, we will be starting our discussion on Specific Heat, Compounds and Chemical Changes… a continuation of our lessons on the Atom.

Please encourage your student to continue studying their notes and vocabulary daily for an average of 10 minutes a day.  This will help them tremendously not to get overwhelmed on the evening before a quiz or exam.  May I also encourage you to review their Science journal periodically to see what they are studying and, possibly, ask them a few questions about what they have learned.  It’s a great way to help them review plus, it’ll allow for some great quality time between parent and student. 

Thank you again for your support and I look forward to working with you all throughout the year.

Sincerely,

J. Gavin Dickson, Ed.M.

8th Academic Science & Pre-AP Science

Keller Middle School