John Burroughs Middle School’s Seventh and Eight Grade teams won the LAUSD Academic Pentathlon competition this year and Coach Renee Senigram was recognized as Coach of the Year earning the school a place in the LAUSD Hall of Fame.
This is the fifth year students from the school have been competing in the Academic Pentathlon competition, explained Coach Renee Senigram who has been teaching at JB for eight years.
“It’s a great place for kids to bond and make friends, they get to spend time together outside of school because the competitions are on the weekend and family members get involved as well. Also, we do team-building activities and try to make it fun for the students,” Senigram told us. “The students get close and it shows the quality of the education the students are getting at our school.”
The academic competition program is voluntary, all seventh and eighth graders are welcome to participate and take the elective class. Senigram said the program also helps students develop confidence in their academic skills. Working together as a team helps students learn to collaborate and support each other too.
“I have students who start unsure of their abilities and see them become very successful,” said Senigram. “One student who was worried about their ability to compete ended up being one of the top winners on the team. It’s really wonderful to see the transformation.”
The other students in the school are very supportive and excited for their friends on the team, added Senigram, and more have signed up to join the team next year.
In the past several years, JB students have placed in the top three, competing with 23 other schools. The students also participated in an online national competition, placing 4th among 36 other middle schools.
“We proudly display the trophy in our school showcase,” John Burroughs Middle School principal Dr. Steve Martinez told the Buzz.
The Academic Penthalon covers five academic areas focused on a topic. This year’s topic was “Technology and Humanity.” Coach Senigram sent us a sample question from each area along with the answers, thankfully. Check it out and see how you would have done! Next year’s topic is climate change.
Fine Arts:
What does this best describe?: A mechanized contraption that copied a sitter’s traced profile onto a twice-folded piece of white paper to produce multiple identical silhouettes in miniature.
The Physiognotrace
The Daguerrotype
The Silhouette
Mother Teresa
Answer: The Physiognotrace
Science: What is the main role of the nervous system?
digestion
excretion
growth
communication
Answer: communication
Social Studies: Charles Babbage proposed automating calculations used for
manufacturing pins
navigational tables
codebreaking
the United States census
Answer: navigational tables.
Literature:
What is the primary setting of “There Will Come Soft Rains” by Ray Bradbury?
a future house
a busy city street
a rural farm
a remote island
Answer: a future house
Math:
A card is drawn randomly from ten cards labeled 1 through 10. What is the probability of picking a 7 or an even number?
40%
50%
60%
70%
Answer: 60%
