A Letter From The Principal
Hello Lion Family! 🎉 9/26/25
What an exciting time at PJH! Homecoming week was a blast… Your students had ENORMOUS Lion Pride! It's fun to see them having fun and engaging with each other! Don’t forget—Next Friday (10/3) is our last Friday that school will be in session for students! Mark your calendars for October 10th, when we’ll host a special Parent Engagement Event in the morning—a chance to connect, learn, and grow together as a school community. (More details coming soon!) UIL practices are kicking off and we can’t wait to see their talents shine!
It’s a great season to be a Lion—thank you for your continued support!
– Kimberly McCage
Principal PJH
PJH First Pep Rally of the Year
Inside the Classroom
By: Truitt Laney, Parker Jackson, Logan Mueller, Kendall Custy, Maddie Wright, and Katelyn Starr
What we are doing in class!
In 6th grade we are learning to add negative and positive numbers with counters and number lines!
In 8th grade history we are learning about the American Revolution.
A daily warmup called the 7 minute challenge about Chemical Equations being lead by Emma Flores in 8th grade science.
Choir is working on a song called "This Train" for their first choir performance.
Mr. Conyers and his 8th period flute students playing the flute to a beat.
Drawing and perfecting their creatures coming out of an egg.
Working on building our bridge in GT!
Student Spotlight
By:Liam Lapinski, Cooper Moore, Triston Sands, Eddie Jones, Andrea Soto
This is Zeke Koshatka. He is in 8th grade. His favorite subject is health science and his favorite thing about PJH is the athletic program. He stays on top of his grades by taking notes and focusing. His favorite sport is basketball and he stays on top of his grades for college opportunities. He is continuing to be a good student at PJH.
What is your favorite football team? (College and NFL) Her favorite NFL team is Cowboys!
What hobbies do you have? Volleyball
Who is your favorite teacher? Coach Thorson
What’s your favorite show? Surviving Summer.
Who’s a good influence on you? Her dad because he’s a good person
What’s something you want people to know about you that nobody knows? She goes to Disneyland every year.
Boys Athletics
By: Beau Penland, Levi Davis
7th Grade Football Highlights
On Thursday 9/18/25 the 7th and 8th grade teams had a home football game. The first game started at 4:30 and the second game started at 6:00. They won against Bonham!
On Thursday 9/25/25 they played away in Boyd at 4:30 and 6:00. The also won against Boyd last night (40 to 0)!
Cross Country
Joel Hardin placed in the cross country meet this week in Boyd. They will be having their district meet in one week on Saturday at Boyd.
8th Grade Football Highlights
8th grade football is going strong. They won last night against Boyd (54 to 0)! They also won against Bonham last week. Way to go Lions!
Boys Athlete of The Week
By: Truitt Morris, Mason Garcia, Parker Calhoun
The player of the week is Cal Schulz!
Cal had amazing throws at Quarterback the past few weeks, and had amazing tackles at safety. Also, he's had an amazing attitude and effort, and led the football team the past few weeks.
How does it feel to be starting QB for 8th grade? It’s a big role and takes a lot of leadership.
Do you like to scramble or throw the ball? I like to scramble and have the ball in my hands.
What’s your favorite play? Duce right rodeo 94 or stack right Texas Q
Who’s your favorite WR to throw it to? Cole Camp
Do you like playing both sides of the ball? Yes, it gets very tiring, but I love being able to play both sides of the ball and have leadership.
Girls Athletics
By: Madi Reid, Georgia Angeley, Cori Johnson
7th and 8th Grade lost to Boyd, but fought hard!
This week, they played in Paradise.
Cross Country traveled to Boyd and we had three girls medal. Madi, Karol, and Hadley all placed in the meet! They will be having their district meet in one week on Saturday at Boyd.
Girls Athlete of the Week
By: Lilli Allred and Kaylee Martin
What’s your favorite candy? Hersey’s!
Who do you look up to and why? Her mom because she is so strong, and very happy all the time and very outgoing
What’s your favorite sport and why? Track because she is good and fast. She likes winning and running with her friends.
What’s your favorite subject and why? History because it’s interesting and she loves the teacher.
What is your dream job? Owning her own boutique around towns in Texas.
Happenings at PJH
By: Mason Hanes, Easton Nordie, Tucker Dishman, Rozalee Sanchez, Iker Carcia, and Jesus Jimenez, Leiter Hagemann
UIL practice has started and will happen before school, after school, and during advisory which is in 7th period. We are going to practice strong and finish strong!
Our new bell schedule is going well!
On Monday, September 15 we started a new advisory schedule, and every class is cut down 3 minutes! On Wednesday, we do Wellness Wednesday, on Monday we do Make A Plan Monday, and for Tuesdays and Thursdays we either read or do IXLs! Each day teachers can also add you to a list to go to tutorials during advisory. Hope squad and UIL get to meet during advisory as well.
Kaylee Martin won the Coding.org Music Lab project in GT!
Finishing our shading work in Mrs Wiggins class.
All About Books
By: Braxton Wood and Eve Raymond
The Bible, one of the most famous books of all time, is a collection of religious books tied to Christianity. This book has billions of copies in circulation across the world, and remains that way today. It was originally made in Hebrew, and translated to many different languages for all of the people in the world. Although we won't tell you the full story, as it has ~1000 pages (depending on translation), it is a worthy mention.
James Brendan Patterson is a prolific and bestselling American author who has written across many genres, including mystery, thriller, romance, and young adult. He's best known for his series featuring characters like Alex Cross, the Women's Murder Club, and Michael Bennett. Patterson's writing style is characterized by short chapters, fast-paced plots, and unadorned prose.
Weather
By: Ethan Johnson
Weather on other planets:
Some of the most extreme weather ever isn’t on Earth,but elsewhere in the solar system. On Jupiter, there is the Great Red Spot, a huge, never-ending storm with winds well beyond anything possible on Earth. On Venus,the surface temperature is 870 degrees Fahrenheit, or 465 degrees Celsius. Venus’s atmosphere is very thick due to large amounts of Carbon Dioxide trapping heat in the atmosphere, and the clouds and rain are made of sulphuric acid, not water.
Fun Facts
By: Jackson Fairbanks
Did you know that the Pope can't be an organ donor?
Did you know that the number four is the only number with the same amount of letters as its value?
Before alarm clocks there were paid knocker uppers to wake people up.
Did you know that honey never spoils?
Did you know that the president is not allowed to drive?
What happens when a frogs car breaks down? It gets toad!!!! AH AH AH AH AH
Have you heard the humpdy dumpty had a great fall? Apparently summer wasn't too bad either.
People keep asking how I got to the middle east, well i just tell them,” Iran”.
Teacher Spotlight
By:Madeline Hunt, Charlie Chappell, Saylor Nightengale
What drives you to teach? Why did you want to teach middle school?
What drives me to teach is the chance to make a positive impact in my students’ lives and help them grow into the best version of themselves. I love celebrating their small wins, being there to guide them through challenges, and preparing them for what’s ahead. For me, it’s so rewarding to know I get to play even a small part in their journey.
I love teaching middle school because these kids are fun and full of energy, but they’re also at such a unique stage. They’re still goofy and playful, yet you can see them starting to grow into little adults. That mix makes it both a challenge and an opportunity, and I feel like it’s the perfect time to make a big difference in their lives.
Ponder Junior High UIL
By: Kannon Barksdale
UIL A+ Academics Tryouts – Coming Soon!
UIL A+ Academics gives students in grades 6–8 the chance to shine in a variety of academic and performance events. This program builds on classroom learning while helping students grow in confidence, teamwork, and problem-solving.
Tryouts will be held the week of September 15-19. Students may try out for more than one event as long as they are not scheduled on the same day. To participate, students should talk with the teacher sponsoring each event. Permission forms will be coming home soon!
Events include:
Art • Calculator Apps • Chess • Dictionary Skills • Editorial Writing • Impromptu Speaking • Listening • Maps, Graphs, & Charts • Mathematics • Modern Oratory • Music Memory • Number Sense • One Act Play • Oral Reading • Ready Writing • Science • Social Studies • Spelling • Theatrical Design (Pilot)
We can’t wait to see our Lions showcase their talents at UIL!
Ponder Junior High
940-479-8220
501 Shaffner Street. Ponder, TX 72259
