MAVERICK MEMO
INDEPENDENCE ELEMENTARY, 1/12/18
Librarian Courtney George Awarded $5000+ Grant!
Last Friday, Mrs. George was surprised as her library was filled with school board trustees, community leaders, corporate sponsors, Dr. Westfall, a drumline, and Paige Bussey, executive director of the Keller ISD Education Foundation. They were all here to celebrate Mrs. George being awarded a $5204.30 grant for our library.
Mrs. George wrote the grant with the goal of fostering real world problem solving and creativity in her Makerspace. The grant will provide our library with Makey Makey kits, Keva building structures, Osmo connector and kits, STEM kits, Little Bits, iPads with cases, Squishy Circuits, an Ozobot and more!
All of these products support our campus goal of problem solving and critical thinking and can be used by all grade levels. One of our campus goals is to foster critical thinking and problem solving skills needed make year to year progress in Math and through this grant, our students are able to work towards this goal. The various kits provide ideas and a starting point, but students are able to try one idea and if it doesn't work , they can try again. Through kits like Makey Makey which allows students to use regular items such as a banana as a piano keyboard they are able to problem solve until it works. It’s a simple way to teach circuits and connecting through fun applications. All of the items selected have multiple opportunities for students to learn through problem solving and critical thinking.
Mrs. George used Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz to help make a connection to the possibilties that would be available by adding these materials to her Makerspace.
"Just like in the Wizard of Oz, when Dorothy travels to another world that is magical, my students are able to travel into different worlds through Makerspace. They are able to try different things that they are not familiar with in a comfortable setting without the risk of failure. The beauty of Makerspace is that the whole idea is to try something new and to see what you can create without limitations. My grant is asking for these items for our library Makerspace;
Now, Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz was scared of the lions, tigers, and bears while they walked through the forest. Anything new is scary at first, but the students have jumped in and are asking for more materials just like Dorothy gained the courage to make it through the forest while traveling on the yellow brick road. I plan to use the Makerspace items to encourage critical thinking and real world problem solving while providing fun learning opportunities. The Makerspace will be open to students any time they come to the library and will be available for teachers to use as well."
The main way to see how the items impact our campus is for the students to use them and explore! We can't wait!
INCLUDED IN THIS WEEK'S MEMO...
- Library Grant
- Family Survey Results
- Campus and Community Events
- 4th 6 Weeks Calendar
- Event Flyers
Family Survey Results Available
We look forward to looking at these results with our Family Engagement Committee and PTA and designing a plan to improve.
We will ask all previous participants, and invite all other parents to take the spring survey in April so we can measure our progress.
MORE and MORE NEW books purchased through our Fun Run donations!
Congrats to our PTA on receiving ANOTHER award for membership!
STAFF AND STUDENT HOLIDAY, MONDAY, JANUARY 15, 2018
4th 6 Weeks calendar
- Sat. 1/13; Theatre Showcase at TCHS, 11:00 AM
- Mon. 1/15: Martin Luther King Day, Staff and Student Holiday
- Fri. 1/19: PTA Book Bingo Night, 6:00-8:00 PM
- Fri. 2/2: IES Battle of the Books
- Fri. 2/2: National GO RED Day, Wear red to support AHA
- Mon. 2/5: Spirt Day, Oliva and Elote, all day
- Mon. 2/5: Mini Mavs Story Time, 10:30 AM
- Mon-Thur. 2/5-2/8: APTT Nights (Schedule TBD)
- Wed. 2/7: All Pro Dads Breakfast, 7:15 AM
- Thur. 2/8: Glamourcraft Spring Class and Individual Pictures
- Fri. 2/9: Valentine’s Dance, 6:00-8:00 PM
- Mon-Fri. 2/12-2/16: Spring Book Fair
- Fri. 2/16: 4th Six Weeks ends
- Mon. 2/19: Student Holiday, NO School
4th Graders support Ronald McDonald House
Walk, Run, Push
The Keller Lions Club and City of Keller have taken on an idea from the 2017 Lions Club Lil Miss, who is also a Keller ISD 4th grade student at Eagle Ridge Elementary, of having a Fun Run for Special Needs kids and adults because every 5k/Fun Run she has been to, never featured many special needs people. She took the idea to The Lions Club as her personal project as Lil Miss, then set up a meeting with Jennifer Basham of The City Of Keller Parks and Recreation….and they were SO excited about the idea and are taking it over! ALL proceeds from the run go to the Keller ISD Special Olympics program, which runs on donations and fundraising. They fund 4 programs (flag football, bowling, basketball, track….as well as the Chad Powell track meet each year. Keller ISD alone has over 350 Special Olympic athletes! J This run is for SPECIAL NEEDS runners only…BUT anyone can be a ghost runner or be a business sponsor! All sign-ups will be through The City of Keller Facebook page and website. We will also need volunteers on race day, students can get HS community service hours, as well!
Let’s help these kids experience their first kind of race by supporting a great cause and bringing in money to our own district! J
https://www.facebook.com/events/548375158850508/ click and share here is the direct link to sign up https://prekindle.com/promo/id/24898849312943850
-Cost: $20.00 -- run is ½ mile and mile for our special needs kids/adults plus t-shirt
-It’s a walk, run, or push…so walkers and wheelchairs are encouraged! J
-Sponsors get business recognition on t-shirt and banners
-School with most entries wins a trophy
More questions? Contact Jennifer Basham at jbasham@cityofkeller.com or 817-743-4052 (No relation to Mr. Basham;) )
Fun Run Ambassador,
Lindsey S. Geasland
Adapted PE Teacher
Independence Elementary
Email: mark.basham@kellerisd.net
Website: http://campus.kellerisd.net/school/IES-121
Location: 11773 Bray Birch Drive, Fort Worth, TX, United States
Phone: 817-744-6100
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/iesmavericks/
Twitter: @Independence_ES