KNOW YOUR SCHOOLS Highland CUSD No. 5

400 Broadway, Highland, IL 62249

Superintendent’s Message

By Mike Sutton Welcome to this edition of Know Your Schools! KYS is one of our attempts to communicate with you about the great things going on in our schools. We have many great programs for students and a great deal of successes about which we want to share. We are dedicated to keeping our students challenged, engaged, and reaching greater heights. I am proud of our students, families, teachers, district staff, administrators, and Board of Education as we have much to celebrate. Please join me in celebrating everything that makes our partnership with students, staff, and community exemplary. Thank you for your support, involvement, and commitment to education and our students. Last year we reported on a number of focus areas identified to improve our instructional programs and environments. I am pleased that progress towards each of those focus areas continues. The following is a recap of our achievements and plans for this coming summer.

Recap of Highland CUSD No. 5 Focus Areas Technology (Infrastructure and support)

The district added a full-time tech person in November 2015 to better serve our teachers and students with repair and maintenance of current devices as well as working through any technical issues with our networks and applications. We doubled bandwidths at all schools to improve the speed of our systems. We added new wireless February 3 February 10 & 11 February 20 March 3 March 24 March 21-28 March 31, April 1 April 2 April 13-17

devices and improved the infrastructure in Highland Middle School and Highland High School. We added four new Internet firewalls to improve security and to better manage all online services. We added 240 Chromebooks and storage/charging carts for grades 2 through 5 in Highland. We expanded coverage of WiFi in K-5 buildings by repurposing technology from HMS and HHS upgrades. Our plan for this year includes purchasing 58 Chromeboxes to be split between Grantfork Elementary and Alhambra Primary, 90 Chromebooks with three mobile carts for HMS, and 30 Chromebooks with a cart for Highland Primary (second grade). That’s a total of 208 devices to be purchased. These purchases are over and beyond the annual budget for our technology department. We continue to work through the technology hub committee and building administrators to identify technology needs throughout the district.

Buildings and Grounds – Maintenance of Facilities

In 2015 we created a 5-year maintenance plan to address many district-wide issues through our 10 year Health/Life safety survey. This plan is fluid and may require adjustments based on new information and financial resources. We implemented year one in the summer of 2016. The vision for our maintenance plan was born from the desire to create an optimal, safe and learning environment for our teachers, staff, students, and community. We need to review the past to understand the direction we are heading. Looking back, the district completed the addition

Dates to Remember

Half-Day Inservice (Early Dismissal) HMS Spring Musical (Legally Blonde Jr.) Highland Elementary Auditorium 7:00 p.m. NO SCHOOL - Presidents’ Day Half-Day Inservice (Early Dismissal) HMS Trivia Night at HMS Pups Plaza 7:00 - 10:00 p.m., doors open at 6:30 p.m. NO SCHOOL - Spring Break HHS Spring Musical (All Shook Up) Highland Elementary Auditorium 7:00 p.m. HHS Spring Musical (All Shook Up) Highland Elementary Auditorium 2:00 p.m. Spring Break (NO SCHOOL)

February 2, 2017

to Highland High School in 1998, it reconfigured Highland High School in 1999, built Highland Middle School in 2000, and brought primary and elementary buildings up to the same standards in 2005-2006. The district has for 10 years been unable to attain the resources to do significant projects since that time. Through the 5-year facilities plan adopted in 2015, the district has made many improvements throughout the district. This report will be broken up into four main parts: Safety First, Protecting Our Assets, Addressing Occupant Needs, and Sustainable Path Forward. Safety First – The following improvements have been made: • Upgraded the security camera system at HMS focusing on the outside coverage. • Upgraded fire alarms throughout the district. • Replaced fire doors as needed at several locations. • Replaced the generator at HHS. • Removed the underground storage tank at HHS. • Created ADA compliance parking at HMS Protecting Our Assets – The following improvements have been made: • Installed a new roof at HHS with added insulation. • Completed tuck-pointing and brick sealing at HHS, HE, and AP • Replaced many exterior windows and doors at HHS, HP, and HE. Addressing Occupant Needs – The following improvements have been made: • Installed new air conditioning and

Kindergarten Call-in Registration February 21-24, 2017 See the last page of this publication for call-in information.

Superintendent’s Message (continued) controls at the HP multipurpose building, HHS, and AP. • Completed LED lighting upgrades at AP. • Plans to complete an LED lighting upgrade for all of our exterior areas. • Removed loose gravel at the Lindenthal campus parking lot. • Remodeled the culinary arts room at HHS. • Installed new surfaces on HMS and HHS tracks. • Through a financial partnership with a private group and the City of Highland, we completely remodeled our tennis courts with a viewing area that rivals some of the best sites in the area. • Installed an epoxy flooring in several areas of AP and HE Sustainable Path Forward - While the initial focus was on the primary and elementary buildings, we naturally are back to focusing on the middle school for next year. We have some floor tile replacements scheduled in several classrooms. But on a larger scale we will be replacing the air conditioning throughout the entire building. This will make it not only more comfortable, but much more energy efficient. Along the lines of energy efficiency we will be replacing the roof with additional insulation and converting all interior lights to LED with motion detection in all the classrooms. The middle school is also on track to get the south parking lot resurfaced and made like new again. While the focus will be at the middle school this summer, there will be plenty of work district-wide. Last year we did a lot of work in the high school, but we still have a few items to complete. We will be upgrading

Highland PTO News

and adding to the security camera system, remodeling the restrooms off the commons as well as the gym lobby, replacing flooring in several locations, the band room and several stairwells. There is some plumbing work scheduled in the gym as well as replacing the basketball lifts with new and safer hoists. At the Highland Elementary we will continue with the exciting process of removing Asbestos floors and replacing them with Epoxy flooring. This was done in the East Wing of Alhambra Primary last year and is planned for the entire West Wing for this summer. The Highland Elementary will also be getting several analog two-way radios replaced with new digital radios. The kindergarten restrooms will be renovated at the Highland Primary as well as new drinking fountains and new digital radios. Alhambra Primary parking lot, will be chipped and sealed, as well as looking for a solution to securing the front entrance. Grantfork Elementary parking lots were resurfaced last year, so they are in really good shape. None the less, they will be getting new restroom partitions and two-way radio upgrade. We are so excited about the projects that we have completed, but we are also excited for the things that we hope to accomplish over the next several years.

Review of Class sizes and remedies to address

Last year we committed to looking at class-sizes. We had a large turnover of staff in combination with a state commitment to funding the General State Aid without proration (though it remains to be seen). We saw a reduction of nearly 100 students enrolled in the district last year and were concerned about the impact it would have on funding. We are fortunate not to experience a significant decrease in funds this year. These

factors have allowed us to address some concerns with class sizes. We added three new special education positions (one at HP, one at HE, and one at HMS), a teacher in fifth grade, and a teacher in sixth grade. These additions addressed most of our concerns, however, we will continue to monitor the class sizes throughout the district.

Support our curriculum with updates in instructional materials aligned to common core

We have made significant investments the last couple of years on new textbooks and instructional materials. We will continue to make progress this year by reviewing the Science curriculum and purchasing texts as planned. We will also complete review of the Math curriculum at HHS. The plan is to review Social Science in the 2017-2018 school year. It should be evident at this point that we remain focused on upgrading our learning environments, technology, and curriculum materials. I look forward to providing future updates on our progress. The parents, students, staff, and stakeholders in the Highland Community School District No. 5 take tremendous pride in our schools. The community works collaboratively to ensure the success of our curriculum, programs and activities that provide our children with an exceptional PreK-12 educational experience. We know that you will support our efforts to continuously improve our programs and demand the rigor that ensures future success of all students. As you review this edition of Know Your Schools, I hope you will find a great deal of helpful information about District 5 programs, and activities.

By Kristy Generalski The Highland PTO strives to enhance educational opportunities and contribute to the needs of teacher’s and classrooms. So far, we’ve had a great year! The PTO Board has approved the following grants that we have received so far this year. • New library books for Highland Primary and Elementary. • Transportation cost for Ms. Rinderer’s class to go to Mills Apple Farm. • Friendship Fair Bags for the First Grade Friendship Fair that Wendy Phillips heads each year. • PTO purchased new Box Top containers for each classroom at the Primary & Elementary to promote bringing more Box Tops in. In other news, at the end of last school year the PTO held a design contest for the HHS Art students to create an original design for our Spirit Wear T-Shirt. We had some wonderful entries. Whitney R., an eleventh grade student this year, won the contest. She did an excellent job capturing what HCUSD5 represents. She received a gift certificate, along with two free shirts. We will be running another contest for the 2017-2018 spirit wear. We are excited to see the designs the art students come up with! Also, the past few years the PTO has put together the Bulldog Raffle for a spring fundraiser. This year we decided take a break from it and try something new. Those plans will be announced at a later date. If you would like to be added to the PTO volunteer list, please contact Kristy Generalski at 618.795.4530 OR [email protected].

New Fitness Testing Standards By Barry Wittler Starting in the 2016-2017 school year all students in Illinois grades 3-12 will be fitness tested yearly in all public schools. The physical education teachers from every building have worked to create an environment of highly engaging physical activity. Beginning this school year, students were prepared for the new physical fitness standards. With State of Illinois guidance, our Physical Education Department has collaborated to implement the Fitnessgram testing standards seamlessly. Beginning in August classes were introduced or reintroduced to the four assessments and how to complete each to the standard. All students will be tested using four physical assessments unless alternative testing is required due to physical disabilities. Each student will complete the following tests, while scoring requirements are based on the student’s age and gender.

Very Important Principles RESPONSIBILITY-

Knowing and doing the right thing

COURAGEStanding up for what is right

RESPECTTreating other people as you would

like to be treated

SERVICEDoing all you can for others

HONESTYBeing true to yourself and others

CARINGShowing concern for others

FAIRNESSBeing decent and reasonable with others

SELF-CONTROLBeing in charge of yourself

CITIZENSHIPBeing an asset to your family, school, and community

Flexibility – Sit and Reach Aerobic Capacity – Pacer test, shuttle run style test Muscular Endurance – Curl-up test, situp style test Muscular strength – Push-up test. Fitnessgram scores for grades 5, 7, and 10 will be compiled and forwarded to the

Illinois State Board of Education for review at the completion of the school year. Many students tested during the first semester found the assessment both challenging and enjoyable. They performed very well while using the new system and are eager to retake the assessments to demonstrate their own personal improvements.

Highland Elementary Spelling Bee By Lisa Langham The Highland Elementary School Spelling Bee took place on Friday, January 6 at 9:00 a.m. in the school auditorium. The two top spellers from each fourth and fifth grade class were selected along with an alternate as a standby. Twenty-eight students participated in the event. Mr. Wittler was the pronouncer for this year’s Spelling Bee. Highland Elementary’s panel of judges was

Mrs. Klostermann and Mrs. Langham fourth grade teachers, and Mrs. Cotto and Mrs. Shively, fifth grade teachers. After over an hour of fierce competition, the top Spelling Bee winner went to Sophie F. from Mrs. Guse’s class spelling the word rendition correctly. Ashlyn R. from Mrs. Spies’ class was runner up. Both students will have the choice to compete in the Highland Knights of Columbus Spelling Bee on February 5.

Pack the Place 2016

By Mecala Scholl Pack the Place was held at Highland Middle School on Thursday, December 15. Pack the Place was a fun-filled, action-packed activity for students in grades 6-8.  Pack the Place provided opportunities for 107 students to make new friends through activities that are challenging, rewarding, and fun. The students participated in the following sessions: Sharks and Life Guards, Parachute Mania, Chrome-book Activities, a Jumpy House Obstacle Course, and a Holiday Movie. All these fun activities took place before the Highland - Triad Middle School Boy’s Basketball Game. After Pack the Place was over, the students packed the gym so they could cheer on the Bulldogs. Pack the Place was a definite success. In the future, Highland Middle School Student Council would like to offer a movie night, a spring dance, and maybe another Pack the Place for our Highland Middle School Girl’s Volleyball Team.

Highland Middle School Service Project By PJ Bolk The Highland Middle School students completed a December service project on December 9. Students donated a new or gently used coat, scarf, hat, and/or gloves to benefit children ages 3-5 years old attending SIUE Headstart program. Students added their contributions to a Christmas tree located in the HMS Library. Every branch on this tree was covered with coats, hats, gloves, and scarves. The SIUE Headstart Program has 152 students and with these donations made each child will receive a hat and a pair of gloves at their Christmas party on December 13. What a wonderful way to keep kids warm this winter!

Highland High School Engineering at Highland High School

By Regan C., Grade 9 As a freshman at Highland High School, I am in the first engineering course of Project Lead the Way.   It is called Introduction to Engineering and Design.   In that class, I participate in many hands-on activities and projects.   My classmates and I learn all about the basic principles of engineering.   These principles include things as simple as the correct format of an engineering notebook, how to construct multiview sketches, how to use statistics to find how successful a new product is, and much more.   What we learn about in class is always connected to a real-life situation or scenario.   Mr. Durbin is the instructor for all of the Project Lead the Way classes here at Highland High School, and since he has gone through training to be a certified instructor, all of the classes he teaches are worth a college credit.   A student in Introduction to Engineering and Design, Lia B., says,” The class offers me creative challenges and interesting opportunities.”  The program is especially on the lookout for girls, since there is currently a shortage of girls pursuing careers in the engineering field.  Once a student finishes the four courses that are offered at the high school, they will have a base knowledge for all types of engineering.  The engineering program at the high school does a great job preparing students for their careers in the work force.

My Favorite Class

By Tess K., Grade 9 Highland High School offers many classes that help students learn valuable lessons; my favorite class at HHS this year is Mrs. Ramsey’s Honors Biology.  This is the first year in science that we frequently do hands on experiments based on our lessons.  One of the hands on experiments are called labs.  These labs help us expand our knowledge and help us create a better understanding on our chapter.   Not only are these labs helpful, but they are fun to perform. One of our labs involved a light variable that we chose, and leaves that we placed under the light to measure the photosynthesis rate.  Last semester, we learned about cell structure, cell respiration, and photosynthesis.   Ashley K. a student in my biology class said, “I believe that our

labs are fun and challenging, so they help me and other students better understand the concept.” I am excited for the thought provoking  labs that we do this semester and learning about new topics. Labs are not the only hands on activity that we do. In class we will draw color plates and do review stations.  In our class we get the diagram, we examine it, and have to try to draw and label the picture. Once we have attempted to draw it, Mrs. Ramsey explains the diagram over again to help us memorize it.  Many students including me find this activity very helpful when trying to commit the diagram to memory.  I think this process is helpful, very enjoyable, and more interesting than reading out of a book. I’m excited to see what our new labs and lessons we learn about this semester. Honors biology is a challenging and intriguing class that helps students have a deeper knowledge about the basics of life, and that is why my favorite class at Highland High School is Biology.

KSDK Pep Rally!

By Ethan A., Grade 9 Last semester, Highland had the opportunity to appear on television and host a prep rally.  Before the end of the football season, KSDK News Channel Five asked our school to host their 5 On Your Side Prep Rally.   Students with superb school spirit rose out of bed early to arrive at school before the sun rose to yell and cheer their heart out.  The Highland High School band played numerous songs to pump up the crowd, such as “Uptown Funk,” and the school song.  One student dressed up in the bulldog mascot outfit.  Some students even brought in their pet bulldogs.   Students made signs and wore the school colors.  The excited crowd even did cheers that the fan section does at the football games.  Students went wild while doing the “roller coaster” and other chants.   The dance and cheer teams performed to increase the energy throughout the gym.  The varsity football players wore their uniforms.   The prep rally ended with the student body giving Ryan Dean a ginormous version of the Highland High School I.D.   There was a great turnout.  Drew G., who attended the rally, later recalled,”It was a surprise how many people woke up early to come to the rally.”  After the prep rally, the school provided all students breakfast, consisting of egg McMuffins, soda, and water.  

Spanish I

By Ashley K., Grade 9 Spanish I is a fun filled, exciting, and enjoyable class that many students at HHS look forward to every single day. Many HHS bulldogs definitely think that spanish makes all kids work hard and strive to do their best.   One thing most students love about Spanish I is how everything they learn is cumulative.   Meaning that the Spanish students have to remember almost all new knowledge they acquire because they are expected to apply it to other topics that come up.  Also, learning new vocabulary is exciting. Mrs.Wagenblast always introduces the students to interesting activities to help drill the vocab into their head so it can be applied when needed.  For example, earlier this week the students in first hour Spanish were learning how to conjugate the spanish verb estar.  To help the teens remember its conjugations, Mrs.Wagenblast showed them a song to assist them when putting the verb in their sentences. “I really love all of the fun things we do in Spanish 1 class, such as learning new things and discussing spanish topics with friends,” said Mackenzie M. as she explained her feelings about the Spanish class she attends.     Another nice part about Spanish class is that the students are not loaded with homework.  “I really appreciate not having homework in Spanish every night.  With all of my other subjects it is difficult for me to finish everything, but I usually get to take it easy when it comes to Spanish,” Tess K. described about her sixth hour Spanish class. Most students who take this class still do outstanding even though homework is not often distributed.  Occasionally, the students are given work to be done at home.  This work is useful and tests their knowledge on the skills they have already been taught.  For example, during semester one the kids in Spanish I classes were given small worksheets with a few questions over topics like ser, new vocab, and conjugating.  These few questions tested enough of the students skills so that Mrs. Wagenblast could see whether or not the student understood the concept.  Spanish is a nice class that goes easy on the homework, but gives the students enough opportunity to test them on the skills they need. Spanish is a terrific class for students to sign up for when they come to the high school.   Spanish is a fun-filled class with little homework, and most students look forward to it everyday.

Varsity Cheer

By Kamy D.,Grade 9 At this point in the season, the Highland varsity cheer team has competed three times. The first competition was in Waterloo, HHS cheerleaders earned first place by hitting an almost flawless routine. After that, they hosted a regional competiton at Highland High School, where they placed second. Recently, the team ventured to Springfield to compete in the ICCA state championship. By performing in the medium varsity division they took home a second place trophy. Four upperclassmen put together a stunt sequence to compete in an all girls stunt competition. They earned first. With about one month remaining in the season, the team still has three competitions ahead of them. They plan on traveling up to Huntley as well as participating in the Triad sectionals. Hopefully, the team will qualify for IHSA as a final competition. Taking place in Bloomington over the course of two days the cheer team will compete there twice if they advance to the next level after the first day. Along with competing and daily practices the cheer team stays extremely busy by frequently cheering at basketball games and tournaments. Candice G., who is a varsity freshman, explained, “The best part of cheer is the feeling you get after you perform a routine and you know all the hard work has paid off.” The cheer team has come a long way from the beginning of the season and is continuing to work hard.

Boys Track

By Nicholas H., Grade 9 With the new year, the track season is coming up fast.  Many runners have already started running to be prepared for the season.  The first official practice is on the 17th of January, with the first meet on February 18 at Principia College.  After the first meet many more meets come up very fast.  In the month of March, meets occur almost every weekend.   Now that the new year is here, there are many new faces, but also returning ones.  One senior, Tyler H., recently received a scholarship to run track and field for West Point.   Jacob P., another senior, hopes to reach a 4:30 mile and a 9:40 two mile during his last season in high school.  Jacob stated, “Track is very competitive and is a fun challenge to improve every week.”  Many athletes hope that the new season goes well for them, and the team. Track meets include many different events of several different types, such as running, throwing, and jumping events.  The running

portion consists of sprints, mid-distance, long-distance, hurdles, and relays.   In the throwing section there are usually two events, shot put and discus.  Meanwhile, the jumping portion includes long jump, triple jump, high jump, and pole vault.   Each of these events require a different type of talent for each athlete.   Track and field is a very challenging and competitive sport.

Model United Nations

By Tristan M., Grade 9 Model UN, or Model United Nations, is an afterschool program that starts in sixth grade at the Highland Middle School, which continuously helps teach students aspects required for a more intellectual and prosperous future. The teachers for the Model United Nations program are Mrs. Athmer for the Middle School program, and Mr. Holt, who is the teacher in charge of the High School program. To briefly summarize the Model UN, it is a small, precise representation of the real life United Nations. The United Nations is a collection of a majority of countries around the world working for the betterment of economic, security, technolog-

ical, and sociological problems prominently presented in the world today. To solve these problems, students are required to take time to intricately research a specific problem, then present a solution to the problem in a type of report, a “resolution,” during a conference throughout the year. The student, or delegate, as they’re referred to in Model UN, in the conference must then think hastily on their feet to defend their solution, and to point out more international views on other topics. Model UN teaches students how to publicly speak, research an otherwise unknown issue, and broaden their perspective away from a simple 21st century American youth, to problems the world faces in poor, impoverished countries, or even rich, formidable cities.

Left: Jackson M.; Right: Tristan M. Two students at the High School Model UN Conference, held annually at McKendree University.

Highland High School (continued)

HHS Scholar Bowl

By Jackson M., Grade 9 Scholar Bowl is a competitive trivia club at Highland High School that consists of a Varsity and Junior Varsity team. Each team has five players total, which may be rotated or substituted, who compete at home and away matches against other Varsity or Junior Varsity teams in the area. Scholar Bowl’s sponsors (shown below) are the remarkable Danielle Case and Sarah Bland, who are both English teachers at Highland High School. Our wondrous coaches train us on how to answer questions, when or when not to buzz in, and how to get along with the rest of the team. Questions are extremely random and can range from asking, “Who was the president of the United States in 1801?” to “What was the most trending song of 2014?” Overall, Scholar Bowl is a great experience offered at HHS, with every student generally having their own expertise in a subject. All members of HHS Scholar Bowl have their own area of excellence. According to Varsity Scholar Bowl member Sophia M., “There is no competition if there is no teamwork. If the Scholar Bowl team doesn’t get along or function correctly, then there is no way to successfully compete.” The environment of Scholar Bowl is very inviting, no matter how much one contributes to the team. Scholar Bowl’s competitiveness is greater than or equal to that of any HHS sport because every member gives it their all to win the game. As a freshman, I think that it is easy to get along with any other sophomore, junior, and senior in Scholar Bowl because we all work as a team to win. Our lovely coaches also help us work as an effective team because they initiate practice rounds within the team, which show us how to buzz, when to buzz in to answer, and that it’s okay to make a complete guess. Scholar Bowl has a very accepting and fun environment, and it is an important club here at HHS.

Scholar Bowl Coaches: Danielle Case and Sarah Bland

Highland Middle School Geography Bee

By Dawn Hubbard In December of 2016, Highland Middle School hosted its 28th annual school competition for the National Geographic Bee.  All HMS students took a 35 question-qualifying test to see if they could make the school finals.  After all the tests were scored, 15 students participated in the finals, they were:  Anne Marie B., Abby B., Connor C., Carter D., Tucker E., Nathan H., Eli J., Alli K., Joshua L., Autumn M., Jacob R., Kade S., Garrett R., Gurman T., and John W.  After many record setting rounds of competition, Abby B. became the Geography Bee Champion.  Great job Abby!!  Abby will now take a test to attempt to qualify for the Illinois State Geography Bee Finals.  Those results will be known in March.  Good luck Abby!!  Here is an example of the type of question, students are asked to answer:  Category:  Odd One Out  Which country does not have large areas of tropical rainforest—South Africa, Brazil, or Costa Rica? Answer:  South Africa

Moderator Doug Bradley, Geography teacher at HHS and Geography Bee winner Abby.

HMS Students Visit the Holocaust Museum

Holocaust survivor Siegmund Adler speaks to a group of visitors about how he fled Germany after the violent anti-Jewish pogroms of November 1938, known as Kristallnacht. Why do we have to learn about this?  It happened SO long ago? Actually, the Holocaust was an era not so long ago that affected millions of people’s lives.  Students in eighth grade at Highland Middle School were given a first-hand account of life in Germany for a young Jewish boy.  Mr. Adler recently spoke to Team 8 Red about his struggle for freedom and his will to survive during this harrowing time period.  He managed to escape to the United States with his parents after many hardships.   Eighth grade students read the drama THE DIARY OF ANNE FRANK in Language Arts class.  A field trip to the Holocaust Museum is the culminating activity.  To find out more about the museum, you can go to www.hmlc.com.

By Chastity Hyre

HMS Supply The Troops Drive  By Dawn Hubbard It seems like the other day, but 2016 marked the eleventh year that Highland Middle School has held a Supply The Troops Drive.  It has become a tradition, as a way to show support for our military service members, who cannot be home for the holidays.  Our drive coincided with our annual Veter-

ans Day activities.  It was an extension of us recognizing, appreciating, and giving thanks to our troops.  As a part of our drive, the students and faculty members of HMS, brought in supplies, such as, snack items, personal care products, etc., which were packaged and shipped for us by our friends at Scott Air Force Base.  This year, HMS faculty and

students, with the help of their families and friends, collected 35 boxes to send overseas to our troops.  All of the donations, along with student letters, were then sent to over 30 service members overseas.  It was truly a remarkable display of service by the students of HMS.  Thank you to all who participated, and we wish our troops a safe return home!!

IMSA is the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy By Terri Ammann What is IMSA? IMSA is the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy. IMSA’s program enrolls academically talented Illinois students to take part in innovative instructional programs that foster imagination and inquiry. Fourth and fifth grade IMSA students at the Highland Elementary meet weekly on Wednesdays. Their units of study this

year are Climate Change and Dive In: Oceanographic Engineering. In Climate Change the students were engaged participants in several investigations to help establish basic understandings regarding climate science literacy. They explored both virtual and real-time experiments, used web-based applications, modeled and constructed engineering experiments. The students identified facts,

issues, and actions they wished to take to create a solution. Dive In: Oceanographic Engineering began in January and is a new unit of study for our IMSA program. The students will be engaged in and evaluate modeling and simulations. They will use real world data and develop an awareness of engineering opportunities provided by the oceans. The goal is to gain a global perspective on the importance of the oceans.

Highland Middle School presents Legally Blonde Jr. Friday, February 10 and Saturday, February 11 7:00 pm

Thanksgiving is Not Just a Feast…It’s also a time for learning By Susie Kronk, When we think of Thanksgiving events that primary schools have, most of us think of children dressing up like Pilgrims and Native Americans and eating some sort of food. At Alhambra Primary, our first graders experience The First Thanksgiving as if they were actually a child at the event! On the last day of school the week of Thanksgiving, students participate in a “Thanksgiving Village” full of opportunities for learning! Approximately two weeks prior to the “Thanksgiving Village” experience, students are taken on a series of several “virtual field trips.” These 20 minute field trips are online videos that have a tour of a Mayflower replica, a visit to Plymouth Plantation in Massachusetts, and actual discussions with members of the Wampanog Tribe who are still alive today! To start the Thanksgiving Village Project, retired history teacher, Ms. Barb Kay paid the first grade a visit. She was dressed as a pilgrim woman, her husband was dressed as a pilgrim man. They talked to the students about coming on the Mayflower and what it was like to be a pilgrim. After hearing from the Pilgrims, there are many centers, which the students rotate through. All of the centers are based on historical facts related to the Pilgrims, Native Americans, or the actual events of the First Thanksgiving. In the first center, students experience making rag dolls. This was something that

both Pilgrim and Native American girls did. This is how both pilgrims and native Americans taught and interested their young girls in sewing. This would be an important skill as they grew older. In the second center, students learned to make soap boats. While the Native Americans did not make boats from soap. Native American boys were taught to use fire and other tools to make a “burned out” canoe. Native American boys built small boats that could not actually be used by anyone out of small pieces of wood. This craft, became a life skill as they became men. Next, came the food center. In the food center, students experienced foods that were actually served at the first Thanksgiving. While history tells us that some game birds were served at the first Thanksgiving, it also teaches us that five deer were actually the main course. Foods like cranberries, cabbage, squash seeds/squash, carrots and herring were served. These foods were served to each first grade student on a plate for sampling. Of course, there was some deer sausage for sampling as well. After that, students made coil pots. Coil pots were made by the Wampanog (the name of the Indian tribe who helped the Pilgrims). Their coil pots were used for carrying food and water. While our first grade students made the pots out of air dry clay, it was a fun experience to learn how the pots were made. Students then had an opportunity to make hats/head dresses of the time period.

Ideas to Increase Language Skills in Preschoolers

Then they played in a “clapboard” common house that they had constructed (in similar fashion to the pilgrims) throughout the week with cardboard and construction paper. The house was constructed using construction paper thatch for the roof, brown construction paper “clapboards” on the sides, and stones cut from purple and gray paper for the stone fireplace and chimney. Students also made a map of the voyage on the Mayflower and then discussed the perilous 66 day trip the Pilgrims endured over the Atlantic ocean. They learned that 102 Pilgrims got on the Mayflower, 103 got off (a baby was born), and only half survived the first winter, and half of the survivors were children! The final two centers are Native American “paper gardening,” and a Native American legend. In the garden, students begin by putting two fish for fertilizer (all made out of paper), then a corn seed. After that, pumpkin and bean seeds are planted. The corn actually grew and acted as a pole for the beans to grow on. The pumpkins grew on the ground below. Every inch of soil was used. In the legend center, students heard a story of how the big dipper appeared in the sky. They then went to “fish” in the “river.” Each fish had a fact about the first Thanksgiving written on it for the students to read. Over 20 parents volunteered to help with the event and the Highland Board of Education also paid “The Thanksgiving Village” a visit. Two board members even ate herring!

By Sadie Buehne Often enough, speech therapy for young kids, including preschoolers, tends to be focused around “play”. Play encourages core language and vocabulary skills such as naming items, requesting, conversational skills, repeating, colors, rhymes, answering questions, sentence structure, and social skills, just to name a few. Parents ask all the time for ideas that they can use at home, so I’ve compiled a short list. These are a few things I use with my kiddos at school. Play is essential for our little ones learning how to talk and they can have fun learning too! o Play-Doh o Lego Sets o Fisher Price Little People Sets or Farm o Puzzles o Doing Crafts o Books o Play Food and a Kitchen o Pretend Play Scenarios (such as “dress-up” or “making food”) o Blocks or Magnet Tiles o Movement toys (ball, bubbles, chalk, cars)

Preschool class in Alhambra enjoying a play-doh activity

Kindergarten Call-in Registration Set

Highland and Alhambra Primary schools will hold kindergarten call-in registration the week of February 21-24, 2017. If you have a student turning five on or before September 1, he or she is eligible to enroll in kindergarten in the fall of 2017. To register a student who will be attending kindergarten at Highland Primary, please call 654-2107 between the hours of 9:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. during that week. If your child will be a kindergartner at Alhambra Primary, please call 488-2200 between the hours of 9:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. (If you live north of Interstate 70, your child should register at Alhambra Primary.) Any family registering a student will need to provide a certified copy of the child’s birth certificate and proof of residency by the visitation date. Kindergarten visitation is scheduled for both Highland Primary and Alhambra Primary on Friday, May 12, 2017. If a student is not registered, he or she will not be involved in kindergarten visitation. Please mark your calendars to register your new kindergartners!