Challenger Elementary’s Festival of Cultures celebrates diversity
February 7, 2012
Nuoyan Zhang, 6, plays the Chinese instrument known in English as the koto during the Festival of Cultures held recently at Challenger Elementary School Photo by Tom Corrigan
The American table had a bag of food from McDonald’s and a Dorothy doll straight out of the movie version of “The Wizard of Oz.”
A Mexican table featured ethnic toys, including a Spanish Monopoly game. The Japanese table had a lot of visitors, perhaps all wanting to try what turned out to be some surprisingly tasty Spam sushi.
Creekside Elementary School goes all out for Operation Bald Eagle
February 7, 2012
Creekside Elementary School kindergartners Reagan Mitchell, Caden Culver and Ethan Ball (clockwise from bottom) show off pictures and decorated collection boxes going to Operation Bald Eagle. Contributed
There probably is no doubt that the Sammamish-based organization Operation Bald Eagle has inspired plenty of people to help United States troops and their families here and overseas.
Operation Bald Eagle has definitely touched the students and staff at Creekside Elementary School.
“At Creekside, a goal is to help each child realize that they are a leader and to encourage them to make a positive, meaningful difference in their community,” Creekside teacher Michelle Blake said.
According to both Blake and fellow instructor Katie Tasa, the school has numerous Student Leadership Clubs. Tasa and Blake are the faculty advisors to the clubs. Principles from the well-known book “Seven Habits of Highly Effective People” are taught at the school, Blake added.
Blake noted that her kindergarten class just happens to include Reagan Mitchell, the son of Operation Bald Eagle president and founder Jeff Mitchell.
Briarwood Elementary is latest campus to be honored as a Green School
February 7, 2012
Efforts that started in September 2010 just paid off for students and staff at Briarwood Elementary School.
In December, the school was certified a Level One King County Green School. Along with only three other schools in King County, Briarwood’s efforts were formally recognized Jan. 31.
“Each of these four schools can be proud of how they have involved their students and staff in learning about conservation and improving conservation practices,” said Dale Alekel, King County Green Schools Program manager.
Level One programs focus on waste reduction and recycling. There are several criteria schools must meet. The schools must reach a recycling rate of at least 40 percent; establish at least one paper reduction practice; one lunch waste reduction practice; and, one practice involving durable products. Alekel said many participating schools sliced garbage disposal costs by reducing waste and recycling.
Briarwood staff and students took several steps in order to reach Level One status, said Jennifer Mitchell, a program assistant at the school. First, the school created a Green Team of students, third-graders who helped train other students how to sort lunch waste into recyclable materials, compostable materials and garbage. There are now about 35 third-graders trained to help younger students sort their lunch leftovers.
Is Facebook drama too much, too far?
February 7, 2012
Hall Monitor Maddie Wiley Skyline High School
More than 75 percent of Skyline High School girls polled said they have intentionally posted a status on Facebook with the intent of aggravating someone; 85 percent of boys polled said they find “Facebook drama” funny.
Online, some boys “like” the mean comments girls send to each other, essentially giving them a false sense of support and confidence in what they write.
Facebook, because it is on the Internet and not in person, can give people a false sense of security in what they say. Conversations are able to spin out of control while people write things they possibly would never say to someone’s face.
The biggest reason why drama on the Internet is hard to stop may be because no one wants to be embarrassed for “losing” a fight in front of their peers. It is also expected of friends to step in and protect the people arguing, often causing more issues.
¿Hablas español? Language program for kids takes flight in Issaquah
January 31, 2012
Students in Marta Ramos’ first-level Spanish class take a make-believe shopping trip to Spain for an educational game to help them with clothing vocabulary. By Celina Kareiva
Students riffle through articles of clothing in “La Tienda de Ropa,” a make-believe clothing store in a first-level Spanish class.
“La bufanda!” and “El vestido!” they shout as their teacher instructs them to repeat after her.
Newcastle Elementary School organizes inaugural geography bee
January 31, 2012
Winner Colby Vuong has chance to enter state competition
Colby Vuong, a Newcastle Elementary School fifth-grade student, waits to reveal his answer to a written question during the final round of the school’s Jan. 13 National Geographic Bee. By Christina Lords
Just slightly and not at all.
That’s how much runner-up Bridget Ury and first-place winner Colby Vuong said they studied for Newcastle Elementary School’s National Geographic Bee — which concluded in a showdown of 14 contestants vying for the top spot in front of their instructors, classmates and family members.
Newcastle Mayor Rich Crispo and Deputy Mayor Lisa Jensen served as official judges at the Jan. 13 event.
Each fourth- and fifth-grade class held a geography bee of its own — sending two representatives of each class to go head to head with their peers for the school’s National Geography Bee.
“These questions were a lot harder than the ones in class,” Ury said. “Then we had multiple choice answers of A, B, C, D … here you just pretty much had to know them.”
Because Newcastle Elementary’s bee is a part of the National Geographic Bee, Vuong will have the opportunity to take a written test to qualify for the state bee.
Vuong and Ury, both residents of Newcastle, represented the top-two qualifiers from Mariel Hanna’s fifth-grade class.
The other 12 participants were Olivia Lesnik, Andre Wax, Brooke Ury, Dillon Gyotoku, Joey Eigo, Trisha Jaggi, Tristan Brecht, Jacob Robblee, David Heyward, Toshin Rao, Tommy Todderud and Nathan Jackson.
Local students compete for slots in high-tech aerospace residency
January 31, 2012
One memorable assignment so far was designing a space shuttle, according to Spencer Schiefelbein.
“I really like my robot,” Alison Chiu said.
Both age 16 and juniors at Skyline High School, Schiefelbein and Chiu are just two of five Issaquah School District students taking part in this year’s Washington Aerospace Scholars program. Or perhaps it’s more accurate to say, they hope to take part in the program scheduled for this summer at The Museum of Flight in Seattle.
Starting near the end of December, students accepted into the first round of the program have been completing essay, math and graphics projects every other week, said Melissa Edwards, WAS director.
Learning delayed by snow days
January 31, 2012
Hall Monitor Michael Payant Liberty High School
As a senior at Liberty High School this year, I often feel I have experienced about everything there is to experience in high school.
I have seen nearly every school sports team play, seen multiple school drama productions, participated in numerous band concerts, attended numerous school dances, taken many of the most difficult classes Liberty has to offer and seen many things I could never have imagined.
Yet a couple weeks ago, as semester finals were set to begin, it started snowing. After having Monday off for Martin Luther King Jr. day, the snow gave us Tuesday off, and then Wednesday, and then Thursday and then Friday. A whole week off, during finals no less.
Suddenly, teenagers around Issaquah turned back the clock. As snow built up, student stress everywhere melted away, and we were all little kids again.
Cramming for social studies became “Snowman-building 101.” Cramming for physics became a real-life application of physics — sledding down snow-covered hills.
Though many of my senior peers are counting down the days until they get to fly away and start their post-high school lives, the snowstorm a few weeks ago brought us all back.
In a world of ever-mounting pressure, college applications, job interviews and a fast-approaching future, the early January snowstorm gave us all one last chance to turn back the clock and be kids again at least one more time before we have to grow up.
Local high schools’ music programs shine
January 24, 2012
Early bird jazz band is in fine tune
Iman Baghai Issaquah High School
Most students dread the 7:25 first-period bell. But a small group of students might really dread the 6:25 zero-period bell. These students drag themselves to school in order to practice America’s music — jazz.
Under Issaquah High School Director of Bands Patrick Holen, the Issaquah Jazz Band is an audition group of about 25 members. They play a variety of tunes from the swing big-band era, Latin salsas and hard-driven rock music that allows members to fine-tune skills and awaken sleepy minds.
“The experience is worth the lack of sleep,” said Madison Kelly, a pianist and junior.
But the sleep deprivation does kick in at times, according to Alli Gillett, a guitarist and senior.
“The vibe is laid back and chill … though that might be because no one is really awake yet,” she said.
Junior Jack Gentsch chimes in that the students still work hard despite being tired.
Finding Kind campaign puts spotlight on girl-on-girl bullying
January 17, 2012
Molly Thompson (left) and Lauren Parsekian, documentary filmmakers with the Kind Campaign, will be speaking with local high school students. Contributed
There is no doubt that bullying in schools is a hot topic right now. There is a decided difference, however, in how girls bully each other as compared to boys, said Page Meyer, assistant principal at Beaver Lake Middle School.
Meyer was one of the driving forces behind bringing an independent documentary concerning girl-on-girl bullying to the Issaquah School District.
