Little Elm High School
Weekly Newsletter - April 7, 2019
Believe That You Can, and You are Already Half Way There
One of the many regrettable consequences of the rise of high-stakes testing is an increase in test anxiety, a condition that goes beyond the normal nervousness students may feel before a big test. Test anxiety can cause either a physical or emotional reaction to severe distress before, during, and/or after a test making it impossible for the student to do their best work. As parents and teachers know, tests can create crippling anxiety in students and anxious kids usually do not perform up to their true ability. So what can we do to help students during this busy testing season?
When students feel nervous, their capacity to think clearly and solve problems accurately is reduced. Students taking an exam must draw on their working memory so when they are anxious, their worries use up some of their working memory, leaving them with fewer resources to devote to the test. One strategy that can help them resolve their fears is to have them write about their thoughts and feelings immediately before the test. This can help them reduce negative thoughts and help them process a plan on how they can be successful on the test. Writing about their worries can allow students to unload them onto the page. Struggling students apprehension over tests can be especially overwhelming. The memory of past failures and a lack of confidence feed these students insecurities. Parents and teachers need to give this group of students lots of reassurance. They need to be shown tangible evidence that they are prepared for the test and they need to believe that their best effort will be enough. We need to learn to talk about performance in terms of growth rather than pass or fail.
Practical steps that can help relieve stress on the day of the test are get enough sleep, eat a hearty breakfast, come prepared, be on time, and practice some relaxation techniques like deep-breathing, positive self-talk, or visualization. This week all 9th grade students will take the STAAR English I EOC on Tuesday, April 9, and 10th grade students will take the STAAR English II EOC on Thursday, April 11. Both of these tests are 5 hours long. Please talk with your child about their test and help them work through any anxiety they may be feeling. They have worked hard all year long and have been well prepared for the test. Now they need to believe in themselves and understand that if they believe that they can, they are already half way there.
Renee Pentecost
Principal
Little Elm High School
April: Fine Arts Month
Congratulations to the LEHS Winter Guard!
Our LEHS Winter Guard got off to a slow start in the preliminary competition on Thursday coming in 11th out of 51 teams competing but they came back with a vengeance on Friday in the semi-finals finishing 5th. Entering the finals on Saturday with confidence and momentum from their Friday Semi-Finals performance, the LEHS Guard once again delivered a beautifully executed performance and finishing 6th overall.
Not familiar with Winter Guard? Music and dance, costumes and props, twirling and tossing all come together in a synchronized display of art and athleticism. Color guard has been dubbed "The Sport of the Arts" because it doesn't fall entirely into the sport or art category.
A color guard is a costume company of four to 30 members trained in dance, drama and the signature skill of color guard - synchronized tossing, twirling and spinning of rifles, sabers, flags and other props. Each color guard's program is designed as a mini-musical: the soundtrack is interpreted through movement and drama, then tied to a theme. The emotional impact can be breathtaking for observers.
A color guard competition is conducted like a gymnastic event. Each color guard unit is allotted eight to ten minutes to set up a floor mat, place props, perform its program and exit the arena. Units that fail to meet this time may lose points. Guard is a spectacular event, even though it is virtually unknown outside its small, but growing number of devoted fans.
Blue Angels Close out 18-19 with Spring Show
LEHS Choirs Sweep up the Awards at UIL Competition!
Bella Voce Varsity Treble Choir
Superior Rating; Perfect Score across the board - SweepstakesChamber Varsity Mixed Choir
Superior Rating; Perfect Score across the board - Sweepstakes
JV Treble Choir; First time to attend UIL for LEHS in History
Excellent Rating: Perfect Score in Sight Reading
Varsity Men; First time to attend UIL in LEHS History
Excellent Performance Rating
Bella Voice Varsity Treble Choir
Chamber Varsity Mixed Choir
JV Treble Choir
Varsity Men
Directors: Ms. Lewis and Ms. Vail
LEHS Art Students Advance in Congressional Art Competition
Please see the list below of students who will be moving on to the Congressional Art Show. One of the students work, out of all schools, will go to Washington DC. On August 24th at a reception we will know if one of our 7 students selected will be the Texas Choice Winner.
Congratulations to the following students:
LITTLE ELM HIGH SCHOOL (Little Elm ISD)
BEST OF SCHOOL
Tarra Sparks
Sweet Dreams
JUROR'S CHOICE
Minha Cruz
Hint of Gold
Claire Felice
Cost of Our Creations
Abigail Jones
Strange
Maria Nguyen
Tropic
Jessica Solis
Wanna Play
Kaitlyn Somogye
Can You Feel It
BEST OF SCHOOL: Sweet Dreams
Tarra Sparks
Hint of Gold
Minha Cruz
Cost of Our Creations
Claire Felice
Strange
Abigail Jones
Tropic
Maria Nguyen
Wanna Play
Jessica Solis
Can You Feel I
Kaitlyn Somogye
Art students deck the Halls with Projects
Click image to submit a Lobo Shout Out!
FCCLA Competes at State Leadership Conference
FCCLA's mission is to promote personal growth and leadership development through Family and Consumer Sciences education. Focusing on the multiple roles of family member, wage earner and community leader, members develop skills for life through: Character development. Creative and critical thinking.
Her competitive event was in Early Childhood Education. Kayla had to create and implement Kindergarten lessons in her Practicum classroom, create several additional lesson plans for her portfolio, demonstrate her child development knowledge, as well as create and present a lesson plan on the spot during the event. Kayla’s presentation skills and ability to demonstrate her Education & Training knowledge were among the many reasons she placed at the top for both the Region and State level.
We also had students compete in Family and Consumer Sciences Assessments. Bianca Martin received a bronze medal in Hospitality. Kayla O’Mara received a bronze medal in Education & Training. Beatriz Pintor received a silver medal in Hospitality. Heavin Holguin received a gold medal in Etiquette.
Mrs. Sanborn and Mrs. Quint are the faculty sponsors of FCCLA.
HOSA Competes at State Conference
LEHS HOSA Helps Start MS HOSA Chapter
This year we branched out and started a middle school chapter. The high school officers have put a lot of work into making sure Cathy Hull and Michael Horvath have the support needed to run and efficient chapter. There are only 220 middle school HOSA members in the entire state of TEXAS and we own 19 of them! Their chapter was one of 7 that received recognition for earning over $100 for the National Pediatric Cancer Foundation. They had four members place in the top 5! Matthew A. placed 1st in Medical reading, where he had to read 3 medical novels and take a test, Monet M. placed 4th in Medical Terminology knowledge, and Queniyah S. placed placed 3rd and Kennedy W. placed 5th in Healthy Lifestyles in which they had to create a smart goal over a healthy lifestyle change and document their progress. 2 of the four will advance to Nationals in Orlando Florida this summer.
LEHS Competes at District UIL Academic Competition
The LEHS UIL Academic Team competed at the 8-5A District UIL Meet on Saturday March 30th at Denton Ryan HS and walked away with many individual and team awards. The following students placed and those marked with an asterisk are also Regional Qualifiers. The Region 1-5A Meet will be held on the campus of Texas Tech University in Lubbock, TX on April 12th & 13th.
Science:
*Armando Oliver Cruz - 1st place overall, Top Physics, & 2nd Chemistry
Jack Weikert - 6th
2nd place team (Armando Oliver Cruz, Jack Weikert, Richard Morales, & Amber Weisbard) - Alternate Team to Regionals
Calculator:
Chloe Hill - 6th place
2nd place team (Chloe Hill, Jack Weikert, Amber Weisbard, & Amy Almonaci) - Alternate Team to Regionals
Literary Criticism:
Tamia Thompson - 5th
Tatum Mowery- 6th
2nd place team (Tamia Thompson, Tatum Mowery, Max Geiser, & Maria (Elio) Montes) - Alternate Team to Regionals
Spelling:
Hailey Anderson - 5th place
Larissa Hernandez - 6th place
2nd place team (Hailey Anderson, Larissa Hernandez, Hannah Smith, & Christina Zank) - Alternate Team to Regionals
Ready Writing:
4th - Claire Felice (Alternate to Regionals)
5th - Annabeth Frizzell
6th - Amy Lamberson
Computer Applications;
*Gabrielle Necastro - 3rd
Kaleb Veader - 4th (Alternate to Regionals)
Tyler Ritter - 6th
Computer Science:
*Hongjun He - 3rd place
Editorial Writing:
*Max Geiser - 2nd
Headline Writing:
*Elias Webb - 1st
*Allison Baker - 3rd
News Writing:
Brenda Moreles - 4th (Alternate to Regionals)
Alexa Barzaga - 6th
Copy Editing:
*Allison Baker - 1st
*Elias Webb - 3rd
Brenda Moreles - 4th
2nd Place Team Journalism (The 5 Journalism events combine points from awards earned and we had the second most points scored by a team and they were only 2 points behind the first place team!)
Please congratulate these students when you see them! Also, big shout out to our UIL Academic Team Coaches that took time out of their Saturday to be there with their teams: Julie Brown (Math & Number Sense), Heather Garrett (Literary Criticism), Michelle Gentry (Spelling & Journalism), Katy Goff (Ready Writing), Hollie Henry (Computer Applications), Chandler Smith (Computer Science), & Sherri White (Journalism).
Journalism Team
Calculator
Copy Editing
Ready Writing
News Writing
Headline Writing
Computer Science
Computer Apps
Science Team
Literary Criticism Individual and Team
LEHS Wins The Great Reading Games
Little Elm High School finished in first place in the Great Reading Games, a national audiobook event hosted by Learning Ally, a New Jersey-based educational solutions organization.
The annual event coincides with the National Education Association’s Read Across America to empower students in grades 3-12 with learning differences to read with frequency and build strong reading habits, which Learning Ally defines as reading for twenty minutes a day for thirty-three days. This year, more than 37,000 students from 1,600 U.S. schools read a record-breaking 12 million pages.
Little Elm High School won the grade-level bracket for reading 18,676 pages. The prize package included chromebooks, headphones, t-shirts and recognition for our school. LEHS also had two students, Jacob Chumbley and Roman Gutierrez, win additional Learning Ally prizes for being Top Finishers in The Great Reading Games.
Tuesday, April 9 - STAAR English I EOC, All Freshmen and English I re-testers
Thursday, April 11 - STAAR English II EOC, All Sophomores and English II re-testers
Monday, May 6 - STAAR Biology EOC, All Freshmen and Biology re-testers
Tuesday, May 7 - STAAR US Hisotry EOC, All Juniors and US History re-testers
Wednesday, May 8 - STAAR Algebra EOC, All Freshmen and Algebra re-testers
Also see the AP Testing Calendar linked here.
In preparation for these important graduation requirements, we are planning some specialized tutoring during the school day. In January we administered a STAAR benchmark assessment from TEA and experimented with a block schedule. As you know we have one period (5th) that is already on a block schedule (meets every other day). While this schedule is not practical for the entire year, it was a successful schedule for providing extra time for special projects. We will use this special schedule on the following dates:
April (A-16, B-17, A-24, B-25, A-30, B- May 1)
A days odd periods; B days even periods - See bell schedule below.
This schedule allows for extended time (1 hour 45 minutes each period) on a single day. While this extended time will allow EOC teachers the opportunity for strategic EOC preparation, other teachers will have the opportunity on these dates to plan other extended time projects needed in their content area.
Track and Field District 8-5A Meet
Girls Varsity Soccer
Congratulations to our Lobo Girls Soccer Team on a Great Season!
It was a season for all to be proud of but leaves us all wanting more!
Softball
Baseball
Golf
Tennis
Alli Ziehm - Singles Champion!
Tryouts for Student Athletic Training/Sports Medicine Program next year starts soon. Those interested in receiving a digital application need to Contact either Lkidwell@littleelmisd.net or mstine@littleelmisd.net to receive the application by email.
-If you enrolled in Sports Medicine or Athletic Training Courses for 2019-2020 please check your school email to complete the Digital Application that was sent to you.
**DIGITAL APPLICATIONS & HANDBOOK have been emailed out**
-Can take up to 30-45 minutes to complete with Parent/Guardian
–DUE COMPLETED & SUBMITTED APRIL 11th
NOTES:
Section 14: to be completed by parents/ guardians
Section 15: 3 Teacher References DUE April 17th
-Mandatory Parent/Student Meeting April 15th in LEHS Cafeteria
(Bring Copy of 3rd 9 weeks Report Card)
-Orientation April 23rd -Tryouts Begin April 24th
April Student Athletic Trainers of the Month
Please congratulate the April Student Athletic Trainers of the Month: Mia Whitehead, Stazi Safford, Valeria Villanueva, Ashlyne Smith, Michela Minutillo, and Michelle McKee.
SATs cast their votes on Rookie & Veteran Student Athletic Trainers to be recognized. Please read over what their favorites are about April & the North Texas Athletic Trainers’ Symposium & Student Olympics.
The LESMD-LC (Little Elm Sports Medicine- Leadership Council) coordinates monthly to send out themed questionnaires to the winners of the Student Athletic Trainers of the Month’s votes. This month Junior Hannah Farnell (LESMD-LC 3rd year Rep) designed the questions & presentation for April winners and did an excellent job! Thank you Hannah!
Thank you Mia, Stazi, Valeria, Ashlyne, Michela, and Michelle for your hard work and commitment to the LE Sports Medicine Program!
Coach Cox & Doc Stine
Click on banner above to go to the LEHS Graduation web page for the latest information on graduation.
Ticket Sales Update
Tickets are now:
$75 EACH
$140 COUPLES
See Ms. Busher in Room 2255B.
Prom Salon
Each year CIS offers free hair and make up before prom for any of the students attending LEHS. We usually host it at Little Elm Public Library, but since they are booked the day of the prom, the location is TBD. It most likely will be at the school. Please pass on the info to your students. The sign up is below.
May 18th from 11am-2pm
Amanda Zimmerman, MS, LPC
Traditional Site Coordinator at Little Elm HS, room 2229
Communities In Schools of North Texas
Office: (972) 947-9443 ext. 20016
Prom Dress Code
If your prom date has graduated or attends a different high school, the linked form must be filled out and turned into Ms. Bausher in Room 2255B by May 10th.
Please note that if your date has graduated, a background check is required. Please go to this link and have your date fill it out before May 10th.
Are you an Alum of LEHS?
It is our pleasure to announce that our LEISD Communications department is embarking on the first steps of creating an official Alumni Association for LEHS. We understand that there may be some existing alumni Facebook page(s) and we are trying to make it easier to communicate with alumni. Our LEISD Eduction Foundation has also been working on this project and we're hoping to use the power of our social media to strengthen their efforts.
1. Please use the form, linked here, to submit your alumni information. Share, share, share this form as you see fit to all current alumni groups or individuals.
2. LEISD Communications has created an email address where alumni can get information and communicate with the District - alumni@littleelmisd.net
3. An alumni webpage is a work in progress -www.littleelmisd.net/alumni to share even more information.
We are hoping to capture as many class of 2019 students as we can before they head off to their next adventures. This will be a great place to start - but that's not all. We want as many alumni as we can find, from as far back as we can go. If we could manage to get a few well known alumni to Tweet or share with their alumni friends the efforts can multiply quickly.
Please share, share, share with your contacts, social media outlets, or however you need. Help us engage our alumni to connect our Lobo Nation. One Community, One Pack Alumni united can benefit our current students and keep the Lobo Spirit alive for generations.
Teenagers who are anxious or depressed often turn to pot or alcohol to make themselves feel better. It's easy to get, their friends are doing it, and there’s no stigma attached. It may actually help with their symptoms in the short term. But substance use can also delay and undermine their ability to get effective, lasting help and put them on a collision course with addiction.
This week on childmind.org we feature a comprehensive guide to substance use and mental health disorders, developed in collaboration with the Partnership for Drug Free Kids. In it we examine how substance use interacts specifically with disorders in adolescents and young adults — how does it affect symptoms, behavior, treatment, and long-term prognosis? The guide is for both parents and teenagers themselves, it’s downloadable, and we hope it will enable families to make decisions that will be effective for them, now and in the future.
Resources from the National Institute on Drug Abuse for Teens
Articles On Teen Vaping
Report Harmful, Harassing, and Bullying Behavior
LEISD has an on-line tool called "Anonymous Alerts" that students, parents, and teachers can use to report harmful, harassing, and bullying type behaviors. Anonymous Alerts bullying reporting mobile app helps combat bullying and other negative activity in schools by empowering students to speak up. Social and peer pressures are some of the hardest obstacles for students to overcome. Anonymous Alerts encourages students, parents and staff to quickly, easily, and anonymously report bullying, cyber-bullying, gang-related issues, and other sensitive topics through private messages to school officials by building. All reports remain completely anonymous even during a two-way email conversation, although submitters have the option to reveal their identity if they prefer to have a person-to-person discussion.
To send a report from the Web/Internet go to: www.anonymousalerts.com/littleelmisd/
To send a report from your phone:
- Download the Anonymous Alerts® app for free from the Apple Store, Google Play store, and the Chrome store
- Start the App, enter login: leisd and password: leisd
- Send important reports to school officials
- Add a screen shot or photo about the incident
Congratulations Deba!
North Texas U.S. Service Academies Forum
North Texas U.S. Service Academies Forum
Date: Saturday, April 13, 2019
Time: 8:00 AM - 12:00 Noon; Registration opens at 7:30 AM
Note: This is a “come & stay” event!
Place: The Colony High School
Performing Arts Center
4301 Blair Oaks Drive
The Colony, Texas 75056
Representatives from congressional offices and all five academies (U.S. Military Academy, U.S. Naval Academy, U.S. Coast Guard Academy, U.S. Merchant Marine Academy and U.S. Air Force Academy), as well as current academy cadets and midshipmen, and representatives from Air Force, Army, Navy and Marine Corps ROTC will be on hand to answer questions. North Texas students, parents and educators are able to hear from and meet with these representatives on a one-to-one basis to become informed about the excellent possibilities associated with attending these premier educational institutions and the sorts of careers they generate.
This free event will begin at 8:00 AM; registration opens at 7:30 AM. It is not a come and go event but "come and stay!"
In addition, this event is of primary importance to current juniors who may NOW begin the application process to receive a congressional nomination to one of the service academies. My nomination application will be available for pickup by those students interested in entering the academies in summer 2020.
For more information, please contact Robin Vaughan in my Lake Dallas office by email: robin.vaughan@mail.house.gov or phone: 940-497-5031.
It is my privilege to serve the 26th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Sincerely,
Michael C. Burgess, M.D.
Member of Congress
Lobo ColLEgiate Academy Begins in the Fall of 2020
Spring College Readiness Dates to Remember
- TWU GO Center every Tuesday
- Spring Mini College Fair April 18
- Senior Scholarship Recognition Assembly May 1
- College Search Series and College Fair June 12
Scholarship Opportunities
Deadline to Apply: April 13
The Alliance for a Brighter Community (ABC) Foundation, an IRS designated 501(c)3 and Texas Non-Profit Corporation, is proud to offer the 2019 ABC scholarships for students living in the boundaries of and attending high school in the following school districts: Frisco ISD, Little Elm ISD, Prosper ISD, Denton ISD and The Colony High School.
To review all the applications and eligibility please visit www.abrighternorthtx.org/scholarships.
2019 Scholarships Available
2019 Patrice Withers-Stephens HBCU Scholarship for First-Generation
2019 Patrice Withers-Stephens HBCU Scholarship for N.C. A&T State University
Deadline to Apply: April 22, 2019
DeLeon English Campaign
TYPE 1 DIABETES STUDENT
AWARENESS SCHOLARSHIP
Two Scholarships (1) One $500 and (1) One $250
Students of Little Elm Independent School District Only
Submit By Midnight, April 22nd, 2019
The election campaign of DeLeon English established this scholarship in honor of his daughter Amanda and Krista English, along with all student currently living with the daily struggle of Type 1 Diabetes. The goal of these scholarships is to raise awareness of the disease through education of the topic. These scholarships are offered to provide financial aid to students entering the field of healthcare upon graduation. These programs are offered to help offset tuition costs, student loans, and expenses.
This scholarship is presented from residual funds donated by the generosity of supporters.
SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM CRITERIA
The DeLeon English Scholarship on Type 1 diabetes student awareness scholarship is awarded to deserving students who are seeking an associates or undergraduate studies at an accredited university or community college related to the field of health; to include, but not limited to public health, nursing, medicine, pharmacology, health promotion, disability studies and majors that will impact and improve the quality of life of those afflicted with life-threatening diseases.
Find more about the scholarship HERE.
Application is linked below.
LEISDEF CoServ Scholarship - Deadline April 12
Ozarka Every Drop Counts - Deadline to Apply April 26, 2019
Linked below are the scholarship materials for the 2019 $10,000 Ozarka “Every Drop Counts” Earth Science Scholarship. Since 2002, Ozarka has awarded students in the state of Texas a $10,000 scholarship.
Scholarship Search Site Provided by College Board
College Covered
While you are there, check out the website College Covered. Do you want to know what you need in a winning college essay, what college entrance test score you need, or what makes a top notch college application? Get what you need to help get into the college of your dreams with the help of College Covered.
An App Matches Students with College Scholarships They Can Use
Little Elm High School
Chris Reza - Associate Principal (creza@littleelmisd.net)
Alen Palislamovic - White House Principal A - E (apalislamovic@littleelmisd.net)
Ruben Molinar - Grey House Principal F - Li (rmolinar@littleelmisd.net)
Kyle Heller - Blue House Principal Lo - Ri (kheller@littleelmisd.net)
Terilyn Thomas-Monday - Gold House Principal Ro - Z (tthomas-monday@littleelmisd.net)
Website: http://www.littleelmisd.net/Domain/9
Location: 1900 Walker Lane, Little Elm, TX, United States
Phone: (972) 947-9443
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Little-Elm-High-School/736775073135970?notif_t=page_fan
Twitter: @LittleElmHS