School Event Calendar
Rebecca Russo, Shark Correspondent 10-1 Cross Country (A) MS/V 4:30
10-2 Volleyball (H) MS 5:30-V 6:30; Girl Scouts 2:30 Pre-K Classroom; High Q (H) VS. Williston 10-4 Family Reading Night 6:30-8:00
10-5 FFA AG Sales CDE; Cross Country (A) Disney Inv. & FFA COLT
10-8 FCAT Retakes; FTE Week 8-12
10-9 Volleyball (H) 5:00/6:00 & PTO Meeting 3:30
10-10 Early Release 12:00 & Jr. Girl Scouts 12:30
10-11 FFA District Forestry
Family Reading Night 6:30-8:00
Cross Country (H) MS 4:30 V 5:30
10-13 Girl Scouts Founder Day in Bronson & SWAT Highway Clean-up 10:00
10-15 Volleyball (H) MS 4:00 V 5:00; Cross Country (A) MS 4:30 V 5:30
10-16 Volleyball (H) DH 4:00/5:00; Girl Scouts 2:30 Pre-K Classroom
10-17 PSAT Test; READiSTEP 7th Grade
10-18 Family Reading Night 6:30-8:00 & 2:45 Jr. Beta Induction
10-19 End of 1st 9 weeks; FBLA District Leadership Day Ocala
10-20 Seafood Festival 20-21
10-22 Teacher Workday No School; Volleyball District @ Trenton TBA
10-23 Professional Dev. Day No School/Cross Country (A) MS 5:00 V 6:30 & High Q (A)
National FFA Convention
10-24 Early Release 12:00 & Jr. Girl Scouts 12:30
10-25 Family Reading Night 6:30-8:00; Cross Country (A) MS 4:30 V 4:30 Country Meet
10-26 Report Cards
10-30 High Q (H) VS. Bronson
10-31 Girl Scouts 2:30 Pre-K Classroom 6,000 Books to an Awesome Makeover
Mikayla Pope, Shark Correspondent Cedar Key School accepts the challenge of reading 6,000 AR books before the January 18th deadline. The previous year the students read 4,500 books, but the faculty and staff are positive the kindergarten through 12th grade students can achieve the 6,000 book goal. As a motivating reminder, Mrs. Sue Penny and Mrs. Lisa Smith will be putting up a bulletin board in the cafeteria marking the amount of school wide AR books read as well as, how close the students are to reaching their goal. The deadline lands on the same week as Literacy week which is celebrated every year with dress up days and decorating each door with a book cover of the classes` choice. If the students meet the 6,000 book challenge Mr. Faircloth has agreed to an extreme makeover from Mrs. Sue and Mrs. Lisa. To get the school excited for this challenge the students are spreading the news and encouraging each other to read as many AR books as they can squeeze in. "This challenge is a fun way for us to get our AR deadlines done fast, and we actually have something to look forward to!" says sophomore Taryn Epperson. Let the reading begin! Cedar Key FFA: Fundraiser
Sarah Bartholemy, Shark Correspondent The Cedar Key FFA Chapter is headed to National Convention to receive recognition for their Food For All project, targeting world hunger at the grass roots level. However, this trip is quite costly and the chapter needs a little assistance in getting to Indianapolis, Indiana. Cedar Key FFA members will be selling fried fish dinners on Tuesday, October 9th from 5-8 P.M at Robinson`s Seafood. The members will be selling tickets for eight dollars prior to the event, or if you are not able to reach a member tickets will also be available at the door. See an FFA member today and get your ticket to support Cedar Key FFA on their trip to National Convention! Running the Race: One Step at a Time
By Lauren Bartholemy, Shark Correspondent You can see the finish line; the crowd is cheering you on. Your lungs feel as if they are about to burst, and your legs and arms feel as if they are going to fall off, but you continue to push yourself faster. Your heart is pumping in your ears at this point, and you cross the finish line. Someone shoves a card in your hand and pushes you to the side. You just ran 3.1 miles. Cedar Key Cross Country runners have been preparing for this moment since the beginning of the school year. Coach Brad Penny has the team on a new work out regime. Morning runners arrive at the school at 6:00 in the morning for weight lifting or drills and a three mile run. All the hard work paid off as they raced through the first meet. The meet took place in Williston. Keith Eberhardt, senior on the team, placed first, closely followed by younger cousin Ben Wilson who too second. Austin Pope collected fourth place, Kevin Carswell received seventh place, and Cody Beckham got eighth place. The boys team as a whole one the meet. Cedar Key Varsity Girls were not to be outdone by the boys. MacKenzie Kirkbride placed first in the meet, and defending champion, Lauren Bartholemy followed closely with second. Brooke Allen collected fifth place, followed my Jessica Mitchell with seventh. Sarah Bartholemy closed the deal with tenth place. The girls` team also brought home first. The following week the cross country team ran again at the Yankeetown Middle School Invitational. Cedar Key team went at the whole, but competing middle school students were, MacKenzie Kirkbride, Kent Sloan, and Wyatt Carswell. Kirkbride took home the gold for the second time in a row for Cedar Key. Wyatt Carswell placed ninth place in his division, and although not placing, Kent Sloan finished the meet with a personal record. Sarah Bartholemy, sophomore commented on races, "It is an endurance sport, you always have to push yourself to the limit. We are gaining the ability to push ourselves past our breaking point. We`re just running our race one step at a time." Cedar Key School S.W.A.T Team
Rebecca Russo, Shark Correspondent Cedar key school offers students many opportunities to participate in extra-curricular activities. One activity started at Cedar Key School last year when students, under the leadership of Ms. Kathy Hudson, put the first S.W.A.T. team together. S.W.A.T stands for Students Working against Tobacco. Ms. Hudson stated "I started S.W.A.T in Cedar Key last year because I felt that students needed to understand how big tobacco companies target youth and promote tobacco use with kid centered advertising." The deadline to join the S.W.A.T team is October 1st; it is open to both middle and high school students. Grade point average is not a factor to becoming a member of S.W.A.T, but in order to attend field trips you must have at least a C. Cedar Key S.W.A.T team participates in a minimum of two community projects each school year. The two major projects this year are International Coastal Cleanup and Highway #345 Cleanups, which will be in conjunction with the Department of Transportation and local community volunteers. Stand By Me: A United Front Against Negativity
Mikayla Pope, Shark Correspondent "When the night has come, and the land is dark, and the moon is the only light we`ll see. No, I won`t be afraid. No I won`t be afraid. Just as long as you stand, stand by me." The lyrics to the Ben E. King song Stand By Me is the perfect way to explain the relationship students should be towards one another. The negativity of life can bring anyone down but just as long as there`s someone to catch us when we fall the hard times will be bearable. Living on the island can easily become paradise but for the students of Cedar Key School it hasn`t always been easy. As a student, there were times when I`ve felt like staying home to get a break from drama. Teenage years can sometimes seem impossible to make it through but if kids would set aside their differences, see past the bad, they would find out going to school will slowly become less of a struggle. I know, easier said than done! But how nice would it be to walk into the hallways and have someone just give you a huge bear hug? It`s our responsibility as students in the same high school to there for each other regardless of drama. We`ve all grownup together and have the advantage of "one big family." We`re a family and as family it`s time we stood by each other and stop negativity. So the next time you see someone just a little down, stop. Ask them, "Are you okay?" "How`s life going?" Let them know that you are available if they ever need someone to chat with or have a problem they need help with. Maybe school is getting too stressful; help them work on whatever subject you`re best at. Positivity can result in more positivity! A good deed never goes unnoticed; that peer will remember your help and you might just make an impact in their lives. It starts with one so, join me in ending negativity! Stand by me and we can make a difference in each other lives. | 
