Blue & White Newsletter - 12/8/23
Week of December 4, 2023
I Spy a Fun Lunchtime Activity at Lincolnway!
Ms. Christine McKee, 2nd grade teacher at Lincolnway Elementary, created an AWESOME holiday/winter-themed 'I Spy' window in the cafeteria for students to complete weekly 'I Spy' challenges leading up to our winter break!
I Spy: A bucket of snowballs, a penguin, a pine cone, a snow globe, and squirrel. Can you find them?
Middle School Movers & Shakers
The Middle School has a unique club, the Movers & Shakers Club. This club helps clean up and/or organize different areas of the school (atrium, classroom, etc.) to help create more student ownership in their educational surroundings. If you are a Middle School student and would like to learn more about the Movers & Shakers Club, contact Mr. Samuel Miller, English Teacher and club advisor.
Student "movers" helping to organize a classroom library.
Students assisting 8th grade with lost and found clean-up and organization.
One "mover" helps to arrange algebra tiles.
Coding Offers English Learners Various Learning Opportunities - Not Just Coding!
The English Learners at Trimmer Elementary are participating in a variety of activities to guide them to build their language skills. In September, they gathered together as a whole group to use the Sphero BOLTs to go "bowling." Then, in October, they participated in human coding activities. This work is developing the students' abilities to code with technology. However, it is also building their English language skills while affirming their super powers of being bilingual. Ms. Donna Meeks, K-12 Technology Coordinator, was integral to the planning and implementation of these activities. Her creativity helped spark the journey into coding for the students.
Addition Doubles and World Travel with Ms. Murphy!
Students in Ms. Kelly Murphy's first grade class at Wallace Elementary learned about addition with doubles and used a double ten frame. This is part of their math curriculum. They then created number sentences to match their double ten frame.
They also made passports and have been traveling to other countries to see how they celebrate Christmas. Their suitcases are filling with crafts from each country as they travel and learn about the different celebrations!
Developing Our Student Leaders
Link Crew Leaders at the High School participated in a mini training day and worked in teams on a K'nex building challenge. As leaders and mentors who support our freshman students, these mini-training days support the development of their leadership skills.
Awesome Vocals From Trimmer Students
In November, 13 terrific and talented 5th grade Bulldogs were chosen to represent Trimmer Elementary under the direction of Ms. Janine Miller at the Elementary Chorus Festival at Central York High School! These students worked tremendously hard to memorize a whole program of folk songs from around the world and gave a fantastic performance at the concert! Well done!
Pictured top row (L-R): Lola Dorsz, Sumaiya Yankson, Isabella Lehr, Cora Vega, Haileigh Bravo, Naomi Hadarean, and Ms. Janine Miller. Bottom row (L-R): Allison Hazeleaf, Kaylee Myers, Julia Vega, Nylah Robertson, Zoey Sweitzer, Grace Searcy, and Shanell Nelson.
Special Packages for our Military Heros
Ms. Christine McKee's 2nd grade class at Lincolnway Elementary collected items for Hero Boxes. These items will be packed and shipped by the Ohrum family (Addison Ohrum is a student in Ms. McKee's class) to soldiers serving our country. Thank you to everyone who donated and also to Addison for such a great idea!
Autumn Exploration at Wallace Elementary
Our Kindergarten English Learners at Wallace Elementary participated in two activities to help them learn about autumn. In both activities, they listened to poems about nature, acted them out, and explored their world. They also completed an art activity to help build their understanding of the season. The kids learned about autumn leaves and acorns!
Being In Service to Our Bulldog Community
The Middle School Student Council challenged all 6th, 7th and 8th grade classrooms to collect the most non-perishable goods to help support the Bulldog Pantry. Sixth grade brought in the most items, followed by 7th and 8th grade. Each homeroom that brought in the most items earned themselves a cookie baking party! The winning homerooms were Ms. Deborah Parr's 6th grade class, Ms. Kelly Kardos' 7th grade class, and Ms. Kelly Martin's 8th grade class! In total, the Middle School collected over 700 items to help the Bulldog Pantry provide food for the holiday meals for those members of our community that are in need!
Also, students in Ms. Gidget Felty's 2nd grade class at Lincolnway Elementary were challenged to bring in items for the Bulldog Pantry!
Thank you to everyone who donated. All donations will help with our holiday distribution December 20!
Using Creativity - Exhibiting New Learning
A group of fourth grade English Learners at Trimmer Elementary is developing academic English skills by learning about forestry, aquatics, and wildlife this year. After reading about lotic aquatic habitats, they created stream and/or river dioramas based on their learning to demonstrate their understanding. Their creations really showed a deep comprehension of their texts. They are excited to learn more about their world throughout the year! They enjoyed this lesson with Ms. Shanda Goodwin, ESL Teacher.
Pictured (L-R): Rashdan Nadvi, Jose Jimenez-Mejia, Juyle Bermudez-Miranda, Jovan Vargas, Keyshlian Santiago-Rivera
The Art of Tinsmithing
Ms. Susan Anstine's Spanish III class at the High School shared the Mexican handicraft of tinsmithing with Ms. Amanda Burt's Life Skills class. The students shared lively conversations and created Christmas ornaments.
Instructional Leaders Hard at Work
Our District Instructional Leaders are teachers in all grade levels and content areas who come together several times a year and work in blended teams with Ms. Melissa Appnel, Director of K-12 Education and Assessment. These workshops ensure all departments and grade levels are moving in a common direction. This past week, our leaders dug deep into Webb's Depth of Knowledge and analyzed different academic tasks. Through discussions, they pondered in cross grade level and content teams what different tasks told instructors about what a student knows. Each department is working hard to prepare students for what awaits after graduation. This group helps each other prepare for academic conversations around lessons and student outcomes. We are so proud of the work they do for Every Student Every Day!
DECEMBER 8, 2023
9th/10th Grade:
David Runkle
For helping a fellow student clean up a mess she had in class!
11th/12th Grade:
Athena Richards
For continuing to follow classroom rules and procedures!
Faculty/Staff:
Mr. Deny Rodriguez
For going above and beyond assisting with preparations to host the Model UN conference next week!
December Important Dates
- Sunday, Dec. 10, 3:00 PM, High School Holiday Band Concert
- Tuesday, Dec. 12, 6:30 PM, Board Meeting
- Thursday, Dec. 14, 6:30 PM, Trimmer Elementary Holiday Concert
- Wednesday, Dec. 20, 5:00 PM, Bulldog Pantry Distribution Night
- Friday, Dec. 22, Early Dismissal
- December 25-January 1, Holiday/Winter Break
- Tuesday, Jan. 2, Students return from Holiday/Winter Break
FOR YOUR INFORMATION
IN AND AROUND THE DISTRICT
Time to Order Your Middle School Yearbook
Calling all Middle School students - don't miss out on ordering your 2023-2024 Yearbook!
The yearbook captures today's memories to enjoy for a lifetime!
The $35 price is only good through January 26th! Don't delay and possibly miss this low pricing! Click the image below to order your yearbook today.
- Complimentary admission to all home athletic events (excludes playoff events)
- Complimentary admission to all District concerts (most do not charge admission)
If you have any questions, please feel free to email
BulldogMail@wyasd.org or call 717-792-2796 ext. 1003 or 1004
Spring events will be announced in early January,
and will include the High School musical dinner and a show event!
Community Corner - Be Sure To Check It Out Often!
The Community Corner of our website offers families many helpful links to organizations or flyers about upcoming or ongoing community activities, clubs, and events. The information on this webpage changes frequently and those changes will be highlighted here as they occur. The latest updates are pictured below.
From our Home webpage, click on Community to access links to various organizations/community events.
Here are just some examples:
- Cub Scouts (Boys & Girls ages 5-12)
- Girl Scouts
- West York Boys Club
- York JCC
- YMCA of York
- YWCA of York
Community Resources such as:
- United Way
- Community Progress Council
- Dream Wrights Center for Community Arts
Fundraisers Benefiting WYASD Students, Teams, and Clubs
Class of 2025 Gardners Candies Fundraiser
Place Orders Now Through December 15th
Help support the Class of 2025 by purchasing delicious Gardners candy! With the holidays right around the corner, it is the perfect gift, snack, or stocking stuffers! All proceeds will benefit the class of 2025. Please visit GTardnersCandiesFundraising.com or scan the QR Code.
Our Organization Name when ordering is: West York Area HS-Class of 2025
Our Group ID Number is: 10-1564
Thank you in advance for supporting the Class of 2025!