March 2015 - Maple Heights City Schools

MILKOVICH MIDDLE SCHOOL
MATH VIDEO CHALLENGE
Saturday, March 14, 2015
Some of the 6th grade honors students
will be participating in Destination
Imagination at Beachwood High
School. Students are working to
create an engaging and creative showing of their original fairytale.
Students must perform the story along
with original artwork, an illusion and
a showcase of individual talents.
Students will be scored on their
presentation. Students will also compete for “instant challenges” in which
they must work together to create a
project with only a few minutes
preparation.
Wednesday, March 18, 2015
3rd graders will be visiting Microsoft
to see the latest technologies and
digital skills. They will be involved in
a digital scavenger hunt, modern note
taking & media presentation.
25 senior AP & gifted students will be
taking a field trip to the Cleveland
Play House to see the play “The
Pianist of Willesden Lane.”
Thursday, March 19, 2015
8th grade students will be visiting the
Museum of Contemporary Art which
will align with their Language Arts
Career Unit as well as a series of
lessons/activities within their Social
Studies financial literacy unit.
WHAT IS THE MATH VIDEO CHALLENGE?
The Math Video Challenge is an innovative program that empowers students to be math teachers, video
producers, actors and artists - all at the same time! Working together in teams, students will create their own
videos about math problems and their associated concepts. It is designed to get students excited about math
while giving them the opportunity to hone their creativity and communication skills. Students will form teams
consisting of four students each to create a video that teaches the solution to one of the problems from the
2014-2015 MATHCOUNTS School Handbook, and also demonstrates the real-world application of the math
concept used
Since this past October 2014, Milkovich 6th grade Math Honors Students have diligently been
coming to school each Friday morning at 6:30 a.m. to work on 2014-2015 MATHCOUNTS
problems. This was in preparation for A Math Video Challenge. Snow days and
various obstacles limited much of their preparation time, however the videos were finished and
uploaded to the MathCounts website. Very few, if any, Ohio schools participate in this
contest. Whether or not we win or lose, the students learned a great deal and will be prepared
for next year. Mathcounts has a huge database of dynamic student led math videos to use in the
classroom as a resource, many aligned to the Common Core. An added bonus is the fact that
Milkovich Students have now been added to this database.
Team 1 - Milkovich Thunderbolts:
Davian Thompson
Steven Cook
Bryana Barnes
Jordan Bessick
Team 2 - Milkovich Thundercats:
Dashia Jackson
Da'Marieon Williams
Hollis Lewis
Makayla Allen
The students did all of the work including creating and editing their team videos.
Go to this website to view the videos: http://videochallenge.mathcounts.org/videos
LINCOLN ELEMENTARY
THINKING OUT OF THE BOX
Can you think outside the box? Kindergarten and first grade students can! Kindergarten student
Akevah Green says that to think outside the box, you have to " think of something that no
one else is thinking". The students worked hard to create and transform two shapes they see
every day in their environment, a cloud and a moon, and make them something new. The
students took the challenge presented and used their creative thinking skills to look further than
the obvious to create new ideas such as first grade student Israel Wagner, who turned his cloud
into a "sheep running in the meadow."
Thursday, April 9, 2015
8th grade students will be visiting
Case Western Reserve to view their
Engineering Program.
Kindergartener, Sophia Ring, turned a
moon into a person with a frown.
Israel Wagner, showing off his
sheep picture he created.
Vol. 1, Issue 3 - March, 2015
Maple Heights City Schools
A Message from the Director
of Instruction & Gifted
Education, Susan Jaroscak
In this issue of ‘Stretching Magnificent Minds in the
Maple Heights Gifted & Honors Classes’, you will
read about the many wonderful educational
experiences our gifted and academic honors students
have had in the last two weeks. Many of our
students have entered math, science, writing, and
creative thinking competitions. Our students have
also embarked upon many projects that have
deepened and enriched their understanding of
concepts.
In the last issue, I mentioned the ‘Four Cs’ of 21st
Century Thinking Skills. I wrote a bit about the first
‘C’, or Critical Thinking. In this issue, I would like
to explore the second ‘C’ or Creativity. When we
examine creativity as a 21st Century skill, we are
looking at problem solving, innovation, invention
and design.
In our honors classes this year we have engaged in
Creative Problem Solving (six steps), Insta
Challenges, STEM challenges, NASA Challenges,
Robotics, and daily brainstorming exercises that
lead to creative problem solving.
We also sent four teams to the Destination
Imagination competition recently. Our students
were asked to create improvisational situations, and
respond to Insta Challenges. In an Insta challenge,
students had a few minutes to respond to the
specifics of a prompt, using a certain type and
amount of materials, while collaboratively creating
and presenting a solution to a scenario.
We had kindergarten and first grade students
transforming two shapes that they see daily into
something completely different. We had high
school students incorporating old band instruments,
marbles, toy car tracks, etc. to create a machine
designed to inflate a miniature Goodyear Blimp.
All of these experiences prepare students to be
thinkers, creators, inventors, and innovators. We
are preparing our students for success now and in
the future.
Some ways to develop creative and innovative
thinking at home include playing games such as
Charades, Pictionary, and Cranium. Also provide
your child with an everyday object and ask him or
her to redesign the object to be used in a different
way. Provide your child with three objects such as a
cardboard box, string, and a pen and ask her to
create a simple machine to be used to move an
object. Have your child create a different ending to
a well-known story.
If you would like to do some further research on
creativity, I would like to suggest the following:
Inside the Box: a proven system of creativity for
breakthrough results by Boyd and Goldenberg
(2013), Thinkertoys by Michalko (2006), and
Sparking Student Creativity by Drapeau (2014).
MAPLE HEIGHTS HIGH SCHOOL
METROHEALTH TEEN BRAIN HEALTH VIDEO CONTEST
Tenth grade Honors Biology students in Mrs. Theofilos’ class competed in a Teen Brain
Health Video Contest sponsored by MetroHealth Cleveland. The students created 60second video commercials in order to educate their peers on Teen Brain Health and to
spark an interest in health care careers and video production. This year’s topic was
Multiple Sclerosis. The video content included demographic information, tests and
procedures utilized in the diagnosis of MS and medical treatments for Multiple Sclerosis.
After the videos were submitted in February, the students attended a Teen Brain Health
reception on March 10th, where the winners were announced. Unfortunately, none of the
videos from Maple Heights won, but the students were complimented on very well done
videos. At the reception, students were able to meet other participants and MetroHealth
staff. They also received information about Teva Neurosciences, Electroneurodiagnostic
Technology Program at Tri-C, and the MetroHealth EEG Team. The students attended a
presentation by Dr. Joseph Hanna, chairman of the Neurology Department and then all of
this year’s video submissions were viewed. After the winners were announced, students
were given a tour of the MetroHealth Media department.
The students who participated in the contest were: Jonathan Bass (not pictured), Olandra
Burns, Madison Buzzard, Sydney Dunn, Bobbie Forte, Somalia Garrison, Te’aira
Harris, Julicia Hernandez, Summer Jordan, Markitta Kline, Kelly Kuang, Isaiah
Lee, Nauja Lyle-Wolfe, Kendall McCoy, Deja McGlothan, Eric Moon, A’mira
Nicholson, Justin Primous, Adonis Pugh, Giovanni Rasheed, Kiana Rattliff, Maurica
Smith, Gevon Thomas, Kayla Thompson, Devon Wade, Mya Weems, and Tamia
White (not pictur ed).
MAPLE HEIGHTS HIGH SCHOOL
KENNEDY ELEMENTARY
TENTH GRADE HONORS ENGLISH
BY: MADISON BUZZARD & MAURICA SMITH
RIGHT TO READ WEEK THE STEM WAY!
Ms. Shaw’s tenth gr ade honor s classes just wr apped up a unique and engaging unit
that studied the classic play, The Tragedy of Julius Caesar. The students acted out the
famous scene where Julius Caesar is
assassinated. This student-led play is only
the beginning of the ingenuity Ms. Shaw, a
first year teacher, brings to the classroom.
Assignments included drawing real-world
connections, writing a found poem that
portrayed the major themes of each act, and
a challenging literary analysis paper. The
tenth grade honors classes have had a
delightful learning experience during this
unit, and hopefully it will continue in the
next unit about persuasive writing. In this
unit, students can look forward to
analyzing persuasive pieces about animal
Pictured: Karlton Daniels, Joyelle Hurd,
rights and the burden of student’s busy
Giovanni Rasheed & Dymond Pollard
schedules. At the end of the unit, students
Pictured: Alexander Johnson, Isaiah Lee,
will write a letter to Mr. Newman to
Te'Aira Harris, Alaiyna Boyd, Dionna Grant, persuade him to make a specific change that would benefit the high school.
Bobbie Forte & Lydia Goodner
OBAMA ELEMENTARY
A STRONG FOCUS ON THE INTEGRATION OF TECHNOLOGY INTO 4TH GRADE
HONORS AND GIFTED CURRICULUM
This school year has been one of amazing growth in many ways. Especially in the area
of enhancing education through the use of technology in the classroom. With each
student having daily access to his/her personal Chromebook, it is incredible to see the
level of engagement, collaboration, and overall learning taking place. Each day students
open their Chromebooks and expand their knowledge through research, collaborative
assignments, and differentiated instruction in math, science, language arts, and social
studies.
Burgett’s Breakfast Bistro.
This year students have worked with partners to research a Native American Tribe and
create a Google slide presentation, as well as design and construct a Native American
home STEM project using items found in nature. Additionally, students have written
and published original “I Survived” stories based on actual events in history chosen
based on student interest. Each story includes a child hero/heroine and is written from
the point of view of the main character. These stories are accessible online in Google
Drive accounts and will be published this spring.
Technology has also enhanced our STEM lessons by allowing students to conduct
research on each project prior to the design and construction phase. Math pre and post
assessments are given using computer technology to quickly assess student learning and
drive instruction to meet the needs of each student individually. In Science, students are
currently conducting research and writing about an African American inventor or
scientist who is important in history and character traits of that person.
Through the use of Google Drive, students are able to share their work with peers, make
comments and provide constructive feedback. Each student has his/her Google account
which can be accessed through any digital device. This tool helps to build a strong
home/school connection by enabling students to share work with family, while working
on projects and upon completion. This digital tool is being used to build an online
portfolio for students to access and expand upon throughout their educational careers.
Last week was Right to Read Week which was celebrated throughout the Maple Heights City
School District. In second grade, students celebrated Right to Read week the STEM way! We
began the week reading “If I Ran the Zoo” by Dr. Seuss. During the read aloud Marcellus
Lewandowski pr ompted us with a ser ious pr oblem, “If this was a r eal zoo that animal
could get out of the cage!” This thought got our class working on how to solve Marcellus’
problem. Students began by choosing a animal for their zoo and planning a cage that could
hold the animal without it escaping. Students engaged in the asking, imagining, and the
planning process to create their cages. The next day we continued our celebration of STEM
and Right to Read Week by attending “Burgett’s Breakfast Bistro”, a small breakfast joint in
our classroom. Students began the day by listening to “The Great Butter Battle” by Dr. Seuss
and making their own butter for their breakfast. Working in
groups of four, they measured cream and shook it until it
changed from a liquid to a solid. After creating the butter,
students were given a menu filled with the Burgett’s
Breakfast Bistro’s daily specials, which included green eggs,
ham, butter, toast, and water. While choosing what they
wanted for breakfast, students were engaged in three-digit
addition with regrouping using money. Students also picked
from a leveled bag of money to determine how much money
they would receive for breakfast. Using three-digit
subtraction, students found out how much change they would
receive from the Bistro. Finally, on the last day of Right to
Read week students put their measurement skills to work
making Oobleck. Students had to measure all ingredients
while using different measuring cups. Students had to figure
out how many fourths, thirds, and halves were in a full cup to
Annabella Wingard and Ashton correctly measure the ingredients. Students will continue
throughout the year exploring, learning, and investigating
Knox wor king har d to decide
STEM and using the engineering process!
what they would like to eat at
La’Raye Thedford and Braylon Donegan measur ing out
the corn starch in their 1/3 cup. According to Braylon “It was
fun when we measured the corn starch but it was hard. We got
to help each other and work together to measure and mix up
the ingredients.”
SPOTLIGHT ON EXCELLENCE
Whenever Elijah Reed has free time in Mrs. Lindsey's Kindergarten
class, he starts writing stories that he heard previously in class. He
has all these little books at his desk that he wrote from memory.
Kela McPherson " Using our
Chromebooks helped us research
information for our “I Survived” stories
and makes learning more interesting."
Michael Whitt " I love using my
Chromebook! I can use it to learn and
practice math."
Elijah said “Wr iting books makes me happy.”
Laila Asberry, Ayana Keaton, and
Nilah Jackson in the cr eating
process of their zoo cage project.
The girls worked hard to create a
zoo cage that would hold their
animal and help solve Marcellus’
prompted problem.