Kennedale Wildcat News
Friday, September 21, 2018
Greetings Wildcats!
During the first six weeks the state release the 2018 Accountability Ratings. Under the state-developed model, districts receive a letter grade of A-F based on student achievement and academic growth measures, while individual schools are labeled as Met Standard or Improvement Required. Kennedale ISD received an overall performance grade of B while all campuses received a Met Standard rating. The district is extremely proud of the students, teachers and staff for being awarded 14 academic distinctions which is attributed to their hard work, but want to assure our stakeholders that we believe our students and campuses are much more that just a letter grade. A single letter grade or label is incapable of fully capturing performance, progress, and readiness of levels of our students.
The following details the achievements awarded:
- Kennedale High School - Academic Achievement in English/Language Arts and Reading, Math, Science, and Social Studies.
- Kennedale Junior High School - Academic Achievement in Math and Science, Top 25% in Academic Growth, and Top 25% in Closing the Gaps.
- R.F. Patterson Elementary - Academic Achievement in Math, Top 25% in Academic Growth, and Top 25% in Closing the Gaps.
- Delaney Elementary - Academic Achievement in English/Language Arts and Reading, Top 25% in Academic Growth, and Top 25% in Closing the Gaps.
Check out the Wonderful Outstanding Wildcats Nominated for August and September
New Communication Routine for Campuses Effective October 1st
When communication is pushed through our mass notification system we are aware that pushing it out during peak hours that a delay in delivery could be possible. Anticipate no more than a 15-30 minute delay in most instances. We hope you find this new routine helpful as that is our goal!
Please note, if there ever is a time when the campus needs to reach parents due to an emergency, the campuses will most definitely send out that information regardless of their designated routine time.
New Look at Patterson Elementary
This summer Patterson Elementary started getting a new look. Fresh paint and new decor surprised students and parents as they began the new School year. New floors in the library and new chairs were also part of the transformation. The new updated look has been receiving rave reviews from all that have entered the school.
The updating will be a long process, as painting will continue along with cleaning up the exterior. Future plans also include new sidewalk games to be painted on the outside for students to release some energy as they jump, hop, and skip to numbers, maze lines, and much more. Several other plans are in the works as grants are being written for playground equipment.
The transformation has involved faculty, several community churches, and the city of Mansfield. The KISD maintenance team has been a large factor in helping this vision become a reality. This "village" has helped make our students year a little brighter and happier.
JAA Students are Having a "BALL" in P.E.
Mrs. Patton’s students have been working really hard the first six weeks in P.E. The first few weeks were full of running relays, team-building games, and agility drills. We’ve also started our volleyball unit and the students have been passing, setting, and serving. The students had a blast using beach balls to volley back and forth over the net. They are super excited to start learning some football skills next six weeks. P.E. is the place to be!!
First Grade Apple Fun at Patterson Elementary
First grade students at R.F. Patterson Elementary practiced using their five senses to write about apples. Students each tasted an apple, and then brainstormed adjectives to describe the apples as a class. We discussed how the apples tasted, looked, felt, smelled, and even how the apple sounded when we bit into it. Students then used a thinking map to plan their writing. Students put a lot of thought, hard work, and creativity into their writing. Their teachers were very proud of their final products!
J.A.A. Intermediate House Party Balloon Pop Event
James A. Arthur Intermediate students transitioned from four to eight houses this school year. With that being done, the 6th graders needed to be assigned to a new house. On Friday, August 24th the sixth graders were called to the gym to pop a black balloon. Inside the balloon was a slip of paper that represented their new house for the 2018-2019 school year.
Delaney and Patterson are both using eight houses this school year, so the fifth graders that enter JAA in the next school year will keep their same house to help them have a smooth transition from fourth to fifth grade. Hopefully, this will ease the confusion from year to year and campus to campus.
Each house character trait will be taught during the students’ social studies class period each month with the school counselor, Mrs. Anglin.
House of Citizenship (pink), House of Caring (yellow), House of Respect (red), House of Responsibility (blue), House of Perseverance (purple), House of Honesty (grey), House of Integrity (orange), House of Cooperation (green)
Balloon Popping in Action
Principal, Cari Blackstone at House Party Event
6th Grade House Color Fun
Camp Grady Spruce Parent Meeting
On Thursday, August 23rd, James A. Arthur Intermediate held their annual Camp Grady Spruce Parent Informational Meeting for fifth grade students and parents. We had about 50 parents attend to learn the details of the upcoming outdoor learning experience that is available to our fifth grade students.
Mrs. Poore, Assistant Principal of JAA, talked about everything from what is outdoor education to behavior expectations. At the conclusion of the meeting, parents were able to ask questions and left with a full understanding of the benefits of the learning opportunity for their child.
Teachers, students, and chaperones will leave JAA on Monday, November 12th, and return on Wednesday, November 14th. Camp Grady Spruce is located on the shores of Possum Kingdom Lake, which is about 90 miles west of Kennedale. The cost of attending the camp is $135 per student. All students have the opportunity to participate in the outdoor learning experience. If parents need to make payment arrangements or have a financial need that will prevent their student from attending, they are asked to contact the school. Money for students and chaperones is due on Thursday, September 20th.
If you would like to sponsor (partial or full) a student to go to camp, please contact Mrs. Poore at 817-563-8303. We look forward to another memorable year with our fifth graders!!
Science Adventure at R.F. Patterson Elementary
Fourth grade students at RFP observed the larva stage of a beetle, better known as the “mealworm.” Students were fascinated by these tiny crawling insects as they inched their way around the students’ desks. Their first task was to observe the worm with a magnifying glass and try to count its legs and record its length in centimeters. The students then were to compare their mealworm with a partner. Then the real fun began. The teacher posed a question as if this was a science experiment. The question was, ”Does a mealworm move faster in a darker area?” The students were asked what they could do to test this theory. Some students responded by saying, “We could turn off the lights.” Others responded by stating, “We could cover the worm with a dark paper.” Therefore, we did just that, and students hypothesized with a yes or no answer. To keep it more interesting, we had mealworm races. The students took two large straws and covered one of the straw with black construction paper. The teacher put one worm in the covered straw, one in the plain straw, and they were off to the races. Well at least one of them was. The students even named their worms and cheered as they watched the outcome. They soon discovered that the mealworm with the dark paper over it was resting comfortably in the middle of the straw almost refusing to exit. The other worm raced out of the straw hoping to find its comfortable dark habitat. Fourth grade students then recorded their data and wrote a conclusion. Of course, the students that guessed the correct answer were a little more excited than those that did not. Overall, it was a great hands-on experience, and students were able to have a little insight into the scientific method before their upcoming, more in-depth science fair group project.
Second Graders Matter!!
Our Patterson Elementary second graders have been exploring changes in matter. Students were asked to make a hypothesis of what might happen to crayons when heat is applied. Some of their hypothesis proved to be correct. Mrs. Hooker used a blow dryer to apply heat to the solid crayons, and students observed the change from a solid to a liquid right before their eyes. The second graders are looking forward to more hands on activities in Science.
STEM at James A. Arthur Intermediate
STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) is starting strong at JAA this school year! Students in Mrs. Vaughn’s GT classes used their creativity and ingenuity to tackle building challenges using STEM bins. Students are encouraged to use varied resources such as straws, toothpicks, cups, index cards, building blocks, dominoes, magnets, Velcro sticks, pipe cleaners, and more to design and build structures. After creating, the students complete a STEM writing journal entry to reflect on their successes and challenges during the exploration process.
Bathroom Beautification
Meet Delaney Elementary Principal - Ms. Kari Pride
Ms. Pride is thrilled to be part of the Wildcat family and is anticipating a great year filled with many accomplishments and celebrations. Her passion is working with students and the school community to promote lifelong learners, positive citizenship and empowering students to reach their full potential.
Ms. Pride has three sons, Richard, Reid and Ross. In addition to her three sons she has two fur babies, Bob the cat and Bailey the dog. When she is not spending time with her boys she enjoys going to the movies, attending sporting events, playing volleyball, golfing and listening to live music.
Please take some time to give Ms. Pride a powerful Wildcat Welcome!!
Favorites
Animal: Dog
Book: The Help
Candy - Chocolate covered almonds
Color: Blue
Movie: I Can Only Imagine
Subject: Math
2018 Lone Star Leadership Academy
The students were also able to take this opportunity to meet others students from across the state, all while forming new friendships, leadership skills and plenty of information to add to their already wealth of knowledge from the classes they have attended in Kennedale ISD.
Congratulations to the following students for their outstanding commitment to going above and beyond in the classroom and for being future leaders we are proud to call Wildcats!
Abigail Berry - KJHS
Alena Gargus - JAA
Braydyn Godley - KJHS
Anna Shonkwiler - JAA
To learn more about the Lone Star Leadership Academy visit https://educationinaction.org/
Welcome Back to School
The Kennedale Junior High Teachers and Administration welcomed back students on the first day of school with a new theme for 2018-2019. This year the theme is "KJHS Tribe...It Takes a Village!"