District in Pictures
October 26, 2018
West Teaching Excellence Awards Presented to 35 Teachers
Thirty-five of WFISD’s top teachers were honored Monday at the West Teaching Excellence Award reception, held at the Career Education Center. Teachers selected for this prestigious honor exemplify the best in teaching, character and commitment to their craft. Superintendent Mike Kuhrt and Associate Superintendent Peter Griffiths visited 24 schools on Oct. 5 to surprise the 35 teachers who were named the 2018 West Teaching Excellence Award Winners. The coveted awards have been a district tradition since 1983. To celebrate the 35-year partnership between WFISD and the West family, the number of teachers recognized this year increased from 20 to 35.
Franklin Elementary Teacher Spices Up Biography Project with QuiverVision
Franklin Elementary fifth-grade reading teacher Tiffanny Lindsey livened up her students’ biography research projects with QuiverVision. Students used the QuiverVision 3D Augmented Reality app to bring their deceased subjects to “life.” They used the “Dot Day” template, drawing their subject in the dot. “Then they recorded themselves reading their report while their subject floated above their paper,” said Ms. Lindsey. “They had a blast reading their reports while watching their drawings come to life. Not only are we using technology as the end product, but the students have been reading and re-reading their reports to practice their fluency.” Click 10/19/18, 11:12 AM to see one student’s report on track and field athlete Jesse Owens.
Hirschi, Rider, Wichita Falls High School Marching Bands Ranked 'Superior' in UIL Region 7 Marching Contest
On Saturday, bands from Hirschi High School, Rider High School and Wichita Falls High School marched in the UIL Region 7 Marching Contest held at Memorial Stadium. The three WFISD bands were among 21 bands from around the region that performed. All three WFISD bands earned Superior ratings in the marching contest. Pictured here: WFHS band (top); Rider band (middle), Hirschi band (bottom).
WFISD is First in Texas to Use Ukuleles for Special Needs LIFE and LEAP Classes
WFISD is the first school district in Texas to adopt a new program, Ukuleles in the Classroom, for special needs students. WFISD purchased 50 ukuleles, and Special Olympics matched the purchase with another 50. The 100 ukuleles will be used with students in LIFE (Learning In a Functional Environment) and LEAP (Language Enriched Autism Program) classes and among students who are the most significantly challenged behaviorally and cognitively. “I saw a video of this in action and said, ‘This is what we need,’” said Suzanne Russell, director of Special Education. Teachers attended a seven-hour training and learned how to put anything a student needs to learn to music. “We are the first district to bring this on board,” said Ms. Russell. “It’s like Christmas!”
Jefferson Elementary Students Publicize School Mantra on Their Own Bulletin Board
Every morning at Jefferson Elementary, students listen to announcements, which end with this challenge: “Make it a great day or not. The choice is yours.” Karen Pipes’ group of teachers’ assistants and the campus beautification team – a group of students in grades 3 through 5 – decided to make a bulletin board that would showcase that mantra. “The girls worked very hard on the bulletin board, and they are very proud,” said Ms. Pipes. The project was an extension of the Jaguar Jungle clubs that meet every Friday and allow students to pursue a new interest.
Fain Elementary Students Use Dance Moves to Understand Algorithms
How does dancing relate to coding? At Fain Elementary, Charity Brunk’s class had fun finding out. They participated in a tech day with Dexter Learning, the local company that partners with school districts to enhance learning. “The Dexter team introduced the idea that each dance move required a symbol,” explained Ms. Brunk. “My students were asked to partner up, create a symbol for each dance move, define each symbol, and then showcase the new dance, based on the algorithm created.” Such algorithms are a lot like a recipe, or a dance, that tells a computer precisely what steps to take to solve a problem or achieve a goal. “Dexter Learning emphasizes that computers are only tools, and it is up to us to create the amazing things that a computer might produce,” said Ms. Brunk.
Rider High School Teacher Launches District's First AP Seminar Class
This is the first year for WFISD’s AP Capstone Program, which began with the AP Seminar class, now offered at Rider and taught by Chris Preston. Twenty-seven students enrolled in the class. The student-centered class includes frequent team work where students follow the QUEST framework: Question, Understand, Evaluate, Synthesize and Transform. Students will be better prepared for college with this research-based study, said Mr. Preston, who is the only WFISD teacher certified to teach the Capstone program. Next year, Rider will offer students who complete the AP Seminar class the second class in the program: AP Research. For this class, students will conduct independent research on a topic of their choosing and write a 4,000-word paper that they must present and defend. These courses can lead a student to earn an AP Capstone diploma. The current AP Seminar class "bubbles with excitement,” said Mr. Preston. “The conversations from AP Seminar flow into the halls and can be heard in other classrooms. The program already shows signs of great success.”
Ben Milam Elementary Third-Graders Follow Important Writing Rule
One of the first rules of good writing is, “Write what you know.” Ben Milam third-grade teacher Rulinda Eakin decided her class needed a little hands-on experience before they could write about what it’s like to carve a pumpkin, with all its seeds and stringy guts. “We can’t write about carving a pumpkin until we’ve actually experienced it,” she said. Then students wrote directions on how to transform a pumpkin into a jack-o-lantern. She encouraged them to “sprinkle in” strong verbs and use sensory words. After brainstorming, drafting, revising, editing, and publishing, the students sampled a tasty treat: store-bought pumpkin seeds.
Kirby Middle School Students Extract DNA from Strawberries
Kirby Middle School science students were busy this week with another creative lab planned by seventh-grade science teachers Laura Checki and Ana Dougherty. Students extracted DNA from strawberries. The ripe red fruit is an excellent source of DNA because strawberries are easy to pulverize, and they contain enzymes that help break down cell walls. Strawberries also have eight copies of each chromosome so there is much DNA to extract. “These teachers really enjoy hearing students gasp when they see something new and love hearing them say, ‘I feel like a scientist,’” said Kirby Principal Shannon Cunningham.
Cunningham Elementary Sports 'Little Free Library'
The Little Free Library looks slightly larger than a birdhouse and stands proudly on Cunningham Elementary’s north side. It’s stocked with books that neighborhood students can take, free of charge, or a place where they can leave a book for others to read. The Little Free Library is a gift from former second-grade teacher Susan Buckley, who recently retired after 30 years of teaching. When a friend gave her the structure, she asked the Career Education Center’s construction class to refinish the wood and paid them for the project. Mrs. Buckley and her husband, John, then installed The Little Free Library for community use. “It stays up all year,” said Cunningham Assistant Principal Gena Ayers. “They take it down during bad weather. Mrs. Buckley and her husband donate their time and money to make sure it stays looking nice.”
Massive Spreadsheet Tracks 16,000 Maintenance Details at 30 WFISD Facilities
It’s no simple thing to keep abreast of all the maintenance needs of WFISD’s 30 facilities. To do it, WFISD collaborated with two firms -- Bundy, Young, Sims, and Potter and Huckabee Inc. -- to visit every room in WFISD’s 30 buildings and write down the individual tasks necessary to bring each room up to the good-quality condition of the District’s newest schools, Scotland Park Elementary and Southern Hills Elementary, which were built in 2008. The massive spreadsheet will now become a tool that District leaders can use to assess the timing and cost of repairs over the next decade. This report differs from a previous facility study that surveyed, rated and ranked schools according to each facility’s condition. Pictured here, the report was presented to board members in a recent special session.
WFISD Bands Brave Rainy Marching Season with Grace
Students from Hirschi, Rider, and Wichita Falls High School Achieve Eagle Scout Rank
Four WFISD high school students achieved Eagle Scout status: Hirschi High School’s Aidan Parker, Wichita Falls High School’s Casey Hare, and Rider High School’s JB Poore and Dale Easterwood. All four students belong to Troop 1. Three of the four boys (all but Dale Easterwood) began their Eagle Scout journey as Tiger Cubs in first grade at Fain Elementary. Dale moved to Wichita Falls and joined Troop 1. “Only four to five percent of all Boy Scouts actually make it to the Eagle Scout rank,” said parent Kellie Hare. Students must earn at least 21 merit badges and complete a special community service project that they plan, finance and recruit volunteers for, and finish it before their 18th birthday. From left to right: Aidan Parker, Casey Hare, JB Poore, Dale Easterwood
WFISD Teachers Take Waterford Program to the Next Step
WFISD has had such good results with the UPSTART home reading program for 4-year-olds that teachers are now using Waterford’s SmartStart program. It’s up and running in all 4-year-old classrooms across the District (excluding bilingual classrooms), said Cindy Underwood, Early Learning Program Support coordinator. Pictured here, students participate in the Classroom Advantage component that is designed for whole group or small group instruction. “Students seem to love using the interactive whiteboards,” said Ms. Underwood. This week, a Waterford representative visited all 3- and 4-year-old classrooms that use the program. Pictured here, Southern Hills pre-K students participate in a Classroom Advantage Lesson.
Lamar Elementary Welcomes PALS
High school students who work as PALS play an important role at Lamar. Here, a Wichita Falls High School student takes time to read with a Lamar child as part of the Read 2 Learn program.
New Activity Buses are on the Way
WFISD recently received six new activity buses. They are in the process of being wrapped and aren’t on the road yet. “They look great!” said Athletic Director Scot Hafley.
Kirby Middle School Class Embraces Kindness
Students in Tami Davis’s computer science class are racing through a special kindness challenge with enthusiasm. They took the “Be Fearless Be Kind” pledge on paper and online, then made a social contract that incorporated kindness in it. They took a “Letting Go of Anger Through Compassion” challenge by practicing a meditation break. Then they completed the Group Jump Challenge, collaborating and communicating using kindness instead of argument to jump and land simultaneously. “The task was harder than they first thought,” said Tami Davis, coordinator for the International Baccalaureate Middle Years Program at Kirby and at Hirschi High School. The Computer Science class was the first Kirby class to complete four challenges – with more to come, said Ms. Davis.
Cunningham Elementary Hosts STEAM Night
On Thursday, Cunningham Elementary invited professionals from around Wichita Falls to teach students about their specialties during a special “Leaders of Tomorrow” themed STEAM Night. A paleontologist introduced dinosaur bones and an engineer demonstrated the use of a 3D printer. Here, students break into groups to try special projects.
Ben Milam Club Experiments with Tie-Dye
Ben Milam Elementary’s after-school Home Economics Club gives students a chance to “make things to call their own,” said teacher Siobhan Loyd. This year, students will make sugar scrub, Christmas stockings, popsicle-stick trinket boxes and tree ornaments. On Monday, the students tried a popular craft from the 1960s; they tie-dyed socks. “It was a great time!” said Mrs. Loyd.
Risk Management Awards SuperStar Status
It’s important to track the trips and falls of district employees, and making speedy reports on accidents is high priority to Betsi Morton, manager of Risk and Contract Management. This week, she dubbed Southern Hills Elementary’s Kelsie Whitener a “Risk Management SuperStar” for her quick reporting of a staff member’s tumbles during a school day. Ms. Whitener spearheaded the filling out of an injury report on her campus and notified Ms. Morton.
Jefferson Elementary Staff Offer Teachers 'Room Service'
Jefferson Elementary Principal Erica Adkins and Assistant Principal Kelli Roberts found a way to show gratefulness to their teachers for their hard work. Ms. Adkins taped a room service menu to each staff member’s door or computer screen on a Friday evening. When staff members arrived to work Monday, they completed their order of two snacks and a drink. Later in the day, Ms. Adkins and Ms. Roberts delivered their requested room service treats. “Teachers are working so hard all the time, and we just wanted to take time to do something nice and unexpected to show our appreciation for them,” said Ms. Adkins. “Teachers were very appreciative and many wrote little thank you notes.”
Barwise Middle School Assistant Principal Remembers Her 'Why'
Barwise Assistant Principal Stephanie Zamora Robles received a thank you note that reminded her of the importance of her job. “It’s crazy how on the days I want to throw in the towel, something like this reminds me about why I do what I do,” she said. “It’s the ‘why’ behind the ‘what’ of what I do.” She encourages all educators to return often to the reason they chose the path of education. “What’s your ‘why’?" she said. "Don’t lose focus. It’s about the students!”
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