Magnet Attractions Newsletter

Freeman ~ Gregory ~ Snipes
VOL. 1 NO.1
NEW HANOVER COUNTY SCHOOLS
SPRING 2009
Magnet Schools Earn Awards and Accomplishments
Snipes Receives $500 Grant
State Science Fair Winner
Snipes has received a $500 grant from
Carolina Cement Company. The grant will be
used to bring the lively Jazz Band “NAME”
to Snipes. The band will perform for the
students and conduct a workshop, which will
address the basics of jazz and all of its
components.
Henry Cutting, 5th
grade student at
Gregory School of
Science, Math and
Technology, participated in the North
Carolina
State
Science Fair, on the
campus of Meredith
College, on March
28, 2009. At the fair, Henry’s science project,
“Pimp My Solar Ride,” received Exemplary
recognition in the Elementary Division. Henry
was also selected to participate in the
distinguished Discovery Education 3M Young
Scientist Challenge. The challenge is the
premier national science competition for
students in grades 5 through 8.
Gregory Receives $2,300
County Grant
Freeman Receives Picturing
America Award
Gregory is excited about the grant it has
received to help with the school’s Purple Martin
project. The grant will be used to assist with the
wiring of webcams, which will allow students to
watch these unique migratory birds build nests
and hatch eggs on a variety of monitors
throughout the school.
Rachel Freeman School of Engineering was
one of the ten New Hanover County schools
that received the Picturing America Award,
which was presented by the National
Endowment for Humanities. This free initiative
helps to teach American history and culture by
bringing some of the country’s art into the
classroom.
Magnet School Students Receive Help
Through New Mentor Program
T
he Port City Mentor Program (PC3
Mentor Program), is making a significant
difference in the lives of children. The purpose
of the Port City Mentor Program is to help
improve the overall well-being of at-risk
elementary school students by connecting period for about 30 minutes once a week.
them with caring and dependable adults on a Mentors are discouraged to meet with their
regular basis. First, second, and third grade child outside of assigned meeting times.
teachers identify students that would benefit
from a one-on-one relationship or are
struggling behaviorally and/or emotionally, and
refer them to a mentor. Parental consent must
be granted by the student’s parent/guardian in
order to participate in this program.
To become a mentor, a person must be
dependable and consistent. The commitment
requires simply visiting with an assigned child
during their regularly scheduled school lunch
As PC3 mentors, volunteers have the
extraordinary opportunity to inspire these
children in their strengths, encourage them in
their weaknesses and simply be a consistent
positive presence in their lives.
The Parent/Student Mentor Relationship is also
encouraged with this program. PC3 Mentor
Program wants parents to feel involved and a
part of their child’s and mentors relationship.
Magnet Schools
Contact
Information
Rachel Freeman School of
Engineering
Mrs. Elizabeth Miars, Principal
Mr. Adrian Pearson, Asst. Principal
(910) 251-6011
www.nhcs.net/freeman
Gregory School of Science,
Mathematics, & Technology
Mrs. Dawn Vickers, Principal
Mr. Walter Engle, Asst. Principal
(910) 251-6185
www.nhcs.net/gregory
Snipes Academy of Arts
& Design
Mrs. Allison Ward, Principal
Mrs. Paige Sundy, Asst. Principal
(910) 251-6175
www.nhcs.net/snipes
Other Important
Contacts
Freeman Educator Chosen for
Family Engineering Project
Writing Workshop
Lizette Day, Instructional Technology Specialist at Rachel Freeman School of Engineering,
has been invited to attend the Writing Workshop for the Family Engineering project.
The purpose of the Family Engineering program is to
help adults and children learn about engineering
through fun, hands-on activities.
The purpose of the Writing Workshop is to
brainstorm and draft a wide variety of engineering
activities appropriate for students in Grades 1-6,
and their parents/guardians. These activities will be
extensively field tested and disseminated through
the Family Engineering Activity Guide.
Gregory Students Have Fun While
Working With GPS
All students at Gregory, except those in
Kindergarten, have begun participating in
an activity called “geocaching”, which
utilizes GPS technology. The students
use GPS receivers, which are in
communication with GPS satellites, to
locate hidden items around the school
grounds based on longitude and latitude.
Each grade level had a different theme
when working with GPS hunts.
Third grade went on a “Bone Hunt”. Working in teams,
the students went to their first designated location by
using the GPS unit. Once they collected all their bones,
they returned to the classroom and placed the bone in
the proper position on the skeleton. It was a great
review of their anatomy studies as well as geography
skills.
Fourth grade went on a “Search for North Carolina
Crops.” They had the longitude and latitude for two
different North Carolina food plants and clues to figure
out which food crop they were looking for while
searching. They used the GPS units to locate the cache
containing pictures of the crop. They had to select the
correct one, and return to their teachers. They also
used the Palm Pilots to record the information of where
they found their crop and which one it was.
NHCS Transportation
Department
(910) 254-4080
NHCS Child Nutrition
Department
(910) 254-4212
Registration Information
Denise Angevine, Enrollment Specialist
Student Support Services
6410 Carolina Beach Road
Wilmington, NC 28412
(910) 251-2929
[email protected] – email
represented each of the world’s continents. Once they
got to their starting “continent”, they made the circuit
“around the world.”
First grade conducted a “Rock Hunt.”
Fifth grade students also participated as
the “Trail Guides” using the GPS to make
sure the 1st graders didn’t get off course.
First graders used maps and compasses
to locate a hidden rock.
Second grade went “Around the World”.
They worked in teams and used the GPS
units to go to designated locations that
Fifth grade has participated in two other GPS hunts.
Besides helping out the first graders, they conducted a
“Mean, Median, and Mode Hunt” where they used their
math skills to solve mean, median, mode and range
problems to figure out the longitude and latitude
numbers that would lead them from one GPS location
to another. They used the Palm Pilots to help out with
their calculations. They also used the GPS units in a
“Simple Machines Relay” where they took turns
bringing back simple machines to their group that they
then used as parts in a complex machine that they
invented.
Page 2
Families Take Part in
Stepping Stones
Literacy Program
Stepping Stones is a program of the Cape
Fear Literacy Council. It’s purpose is to
deliver community accessible, high-quality
literacy instruction for adults and children up
to age eight. These family learning sessions
are designed to increase families’ awareness
of the importance of reading. This program is
an eight-week course meeting on Mondays
from 4:30p.m. — 6:30p.m. at Freeman. During
each session parents/grandparents/guardians
spend time sharing books with their children.
For more information, contact Pat Christensen at (910) 251-0911.
Snipes Student -Teacher
Math Challenge
Students at Snipes have just started a unique Math Challenge
Activity based off the TV show “Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader”
that allows them to challenge their very own teachers and other
members of the Wilmington community on how well they know their
multiplication facts. This activity is a worksheet made up of 60
multiplication problems that are first completed by teachers. Their
worksheet is then graded to see how well they know their times
tables, then Snipes’ students complete the same worksheet with the
goal being to beat their teachers’ overall score. This activity has
become a huge hit at Snipes and the students are thrilled when they
come out beating their teachers’ scores.
Gardening at
Gregory
Third grade students at
Gregory are getting
their new spring garden
underway. The garden,
which is outside near
Gregory’s playground,
will consist of a variety
of vegetables, and
flowers. The students
will work on the garden
once a week for 45
minutes by weeding,
planting, watering and more in order to keep the garden looking fresh
and lively.
Snipes Turns Passing of
Titus Into a Learning
Experience
Mr. Michael Jeffreys, Ms. Bekah O'Connor and the second grade class
at Snipes Academy of Arts and Design turned the passing of Titus, the
final golden-crowned sifaka in captivity, into an opportunity to learn
about lemurs, Madagascar, endangered species and about kindness
and compassion.
Every morning, Mr. Jeffreys gets up and reads the News and Observer
online for articles to share with his students. When he saw the article
about Titus dying of cancer at age 25 (quite elderly for a lemur),
he decided to project the article for his class to view. Mr. Jeffreys said,
"They were all quite interested. We turned the passing of Titus into a
learning experience. They will forever put Madagascar and
Titus together.
The second grade class at Snipes Academy learned that lemurs only
natural habitat is
Madagascar, an
island off the
coast of Africa.
They learned that
golden-crowned
sifaka's habitat is
even smaller, and
that the tiny
habitat and the
precious lemurs
that live there are
in grave danger.
They learned an equally important lesson: what they do matters. They
recognized that the people, who cared for Titus for 15 of his 25 years,
were deeply saddened by his passing. They recognized that the staff at
the Duke Lemur Center was sad because the last golden-crowned sifaka
in captivity was gone, but also because an animal they knew well and
had cared for daily had passed away. So these seven and eight-yearolds took action. They designed beautiful hand-made cards for the staff
and sent them to comfort the people who had cared for Titus.
The students' thoughtfulness brightened the day for the Duke Lemur
Center staff.
Students Create &
Compose Music
With today’s society and the vast amount of technology at hand, it
seems like almost anything is possible to create. Fifth grade students at
Gregory have been working with the computer software program
“Finate Print Music” to compose and listen to their very
own music. This software allows students to create an
individualized tune by combining different beats and
tempos to create the perfect sound. After the music is
composed, students are able to burn it onto a CD or
upload onto a MP3 Player.
Page 3
SNIPES STUDENTS SHOW OFF TALENTS DURING
AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY CELEBRATION
In celebration of Black History month, Snipes students incorporated Arts and
Technology by having each grade level take part in a different aspect of history:
Kindergarten performed a song, which was a huge hit.
1st grade created their very own Obama rap, which they all worked together
creating.
2nd grade designed a wax museum which was filled with interesting historical
facts and information. Some students even dressed up as famous and current
historical public figures such as Francis Weller.
3rd grade created a very colorful Obama banner, which hung across the entrance
of Snipes.
4th grade developed Power Point Presentations that were on display
continuously throughout the day.
5th grade used their creative sides by making historical figures using art supplies
that were displayed throughout the hallways.
Snipes’ first grade students perform their “Obama” rap.
CHESS ANYONE?
GREGORY HOSTS
ANNUAL CHESS
TOURNAMENT
Gregory recently
hosted
the
school’s first of
two Greg Hardee
Chess Tournaments for the
school year. The
tournament was
held
from
January 27 February 10. The
tournament included 34 participating students, most of
which were fourth and fifth grade students. The tournament
followed a double elimination format so that each student
could play a minimum of two games.
The tournament finalists were fifth grade students, Jared
Robinson and Diego Abraham. Jared captured the
tournament by accomplishing the winning move, “pawn
promotion," which allowed him to earn an extra chess
piece. The consolation round was won by fifth grader,
Alandae Hedgemond beating out fellow fifth grade student
Catherine Bennet.
Gregory’s Chess Club meets every Tuesday from
2:30 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.
HUMAN RELATIONS DAY WAS
A DANCING SUCCESS
Snipes Academy’s third grade
class and dance ensemble group
members danced the day away at
NHCS Human Relations Day, on
February 26, 2009. Pictured are
the very talented dancers from
Snipes, performing during the
awards ceremony.
The dance ensemble is comprised
of first, second, and third grade
students. Snipes incorporates both dance and drama classes into their
curriculum once a week for all students, Grades K-5.
2009 NATIONAL ENGINEER’S
WEEK AT FREEMAN
Freeman students had an “egg”citing week as
they took part in National Engineer’s Week,
February 15-21, 2009. During the week,
students in all grades formed teams to design
and build their own capsule for an egg. The
devices were dropped from ladders, thrown
down sidewalks and lifted up 40 feet in the air
by the Wilmington Fire Department. Several
devices survived the drops saving the teams’
fragile eggs. GE engineers stopped by
throughout the week and gave valuable engineering advice which helped the
students design and construct their egg capsules.