Hanes Team Wins Future City Competition

For the third year in row, students at Hanes Magnet Middle have won the North Carolina Regional competition of Future City, a middle school competition in which students strive to make the world a better place by designing a more sustainable city.

This year, the Hanes students focused on Mumbai, India. 

“We have won the North Carolina Regional three years in a row and will be going to Washington, D.C. to compete against schools from across the United States during National Engineers Week,” said John Boyd, the Team Educator.

“The competition runs from Feb. 16 to 20. Last year, our team finished fifth in the country.”

“In addition to winning the overall competition, they were also voted the People's Choice Award for favorite city model chosen by their fellow competitors, and the judges awarded them the Most Creative Team Presentation. Each of those Specialty Awards comes with a $150 check.”

“Over the years in which we have competed, the Hanes Future City teams have won over $7,000 for the school.”

“We also must acknowledge our Team Mentor Jasmine Vadgama and our Team Coach Nehali Patel. This doesn't happen without them.”

This year's Mumbai team members are Benjamin Beaudry, Rebecca Beaudry, Cady Barlow, Hershal Patel, Zoey Yeboah, Thanai Votanopoulos, Peyton Morgan, Thanisha Vadgama, Larkin Macosko, Georgia Anderson, and Zhanqi Su.

“We had two other teams made up of students competing for the first time,” Boyd said.

The Choshi, Japan team members were Kaitlyn Nelson, Eva Dardeau, Addison Engle, Andrew Hjorth, Michael Ragonesi, Madi Fortney, Ryan Blankenbaker, Kamran Anderson, and Kristopher Burch.

The Tambora, Indonesia team members were Laasya Karnati, Ashley Meier, Michael Shen, Cole Hunt, Brian Jones, Jasmine Zhu, Taylor Lazenby, Sydney Yeboah, Maria Karagiorgis, and Anais Szeremeta.

You will find more information about the competition at Future City

The Early Childhood Education Program at the Career Center

Juniors and seniors can explore the possibilities of a career working with young children through the Early Childhood Education program at the Career Center.

To read the story, go to Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools

Here are more pictures:

 

A Special Welcome at Gibson Elementary

On Monday, members of the community helped students at Gibson Elementary get the third quarter off to a good start by greeting them as they came in.

To read the story, go to Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools

Here are more pictures:

Enrichment Activities at Petree Include Yoga

At Petree, fourth- and fifth-grades can take yoga classes.

To read the story, go to Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools

Here are more pictures:

Career Center Teacher Recognized as Fellow at Wake Forest

This comes to us from Kai Ehnes, who teaches AP Micro/Macro Economics and Explorations in Alternative Energies:

Kai Ehnes has been recognized as a Fellow to the Wake Forest University Center for Energy, Environment and Sustainability. 

“I am very excited that all our efforts over the years are being acknowledged,” Ehnes said. “Career Center is the backbone to all of these advancements. It is a great honor to be part of all of this.”

You will find a video showing some of what Ehnes is up to with his students at part of their initiative to move Winston-Salem into the new Bio-Green Economy at YouTube

Atkins Cyberpatriot Team Repeats as State Champions

This comes to us from J. Scott Plaster, who teaches at Atkins Academic & Technology High School:

The official results are in. The Atkins HS non-JROTC Cyberpatriot team repeated as the NC state champion this year, becoming the first team in school history to win a state championship twice. What is more remarkable, though, is that the team graduated three seniors from last year’s team, leaving the team in “rebuilding” mode. Team captain Caleb Rollins said, “The odds were definitely not in our favor. Winning a Cyberpatriot state championship once is a remarkable feat for the Platinum tier, and twice in a row with a new, inexperienced team is almost unheard of.”

Atkins teacher and coach Scott Plaster said, “I knew the team would be in a good hands with Caleb. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a better student leader. He is truly incredible.”

To read the rest of the story, go to Atkins

Hats for Students at Easton Elementary

A volunteer knitted 39 hats for kindergarten and first-grade students at Easton Elementary.

To read the story, go to Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools

Here are more pictures:

More Learning Adventures at Diggs-Latham Elementary

By Amanda Gordon
Magnet Coordinator & Art Teacher
Diggs-Latham Elementary School

To say we are excited about learning at Diggs-Latham Elementary A+ Magnet School of Arts Integration & Performance is definitely an understatement. Every day there is a buzz throughout the hallways and in the classrooms with students and teachers working hard, solving problems, working on projects, and making connections to real life. Just as Social Studies and Science show up in our routines and we read, read, read through signs, print, and text everywhere, math matters in many tasks and activities that we do daily.

Recently, the first grade team of teachers – Cymbre Cooke, Melissa Lemmerman, Sidonna Brown, and Nohora Martinez – planned a Winter Olympics unit to get their students excited about learning measurement. 

Mrs. Cooke explained, "We wanted to find an engaging and memorable way to teach measurement; if children are moving and playing while they learn, the skills seem to be much more ingrained into their memories." 

Within each classroom, students were divided into small teams; they chose names, created flags and cheered on their teams. Mrs. Lemmerman's students started their unit with a parade of flags. They researched different countries and watched last year's opening ceremonies for the Winter Olympics in order to prepare for their parade. 

Throughout the week, students participated in "Speed Skating," "Cross Country Long Step," "Free Style Jump," and "Snowball Throw." Each activity presented a unique way to measure using non-standard units. While children participated in the events, teachers coached the spectating students through cheers and announcements. At the end of the unit, groups were awarded Gold, Silver and Bronze medals and celebrated with a snack.

Fifth grade teachers – Michelle Moore, Kim Bersch, Ludy Lizarazo, and Krista Moroni – took their decimal unit to a whole new level by creating a "Decimal Diner." During first quarter, the 5th grade team created a "Construction Zone" to teach volume, and since that activity was so successful, Mrs. Moore said the team decided to plan a similar unit once each quarter.

Decimals are a major cluster in the 5th grade math curriculum this quarter, so "Decimal Diner" served as a review. Within the diner, the teachers served as chefs, complete with hats and aprons, and they served the students lemonade and brownies, which were on the menu of "Decimal Diner."  While in the diner, students rotated through three stations. In the first station, students were given receipts for orders, and they had to figure out costs of items and then total the receipts. In the second station, students were given menus and the opportunity to order from the menu. 

The students ordering had a certain amount of money, and the students taking orders had to use subtraction of decimals to decide if the money was enough to purchase the ordered items based on costs listed on the menus. In the third station, students were given a series of orders, and they had to arrange the costs of the orders from least to greatest. "Decimal Diner" was well organized and decorated and helped students see how decimals are used in real life outside of math class.

Creating real-world connections and authentic learning activities upholds our Essentials and Pillars as an A+ School of North Carolina and a National Magnet School. The 8 Essentials of A+ Schools include working, planning and focusing on the Arts, Curriculum, Experiential Learning, Multiple Learning Pathways, Enriched Assessment, Collaboration, Infrastructure, and Climate. 

Magnet School pillars address Diversity, Innovative Curriculum and Professional Development, Academic Excellence, High Quality Instructional Systems, and Family and Community Partnerships. The First Grade Winter Math Olympics and the 5th Grade Decimal Diner created an inviting learning environment that allowed students to experience their learning, fully engage with all senses, and collaborate with other students and their teachers.