Karen Dux

St. Jude’s Christmas Cards

As a member of St. Jude Children of Hope my family and I get updates and information about children receiving treatment at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. This month we received another letter about a little girl who only wanted a Christmas card for her Christmas wish. To say that the letter left a lasting impact on myself, is an understatement. I told my class about the letter and they decided that they wanted to give to the kids as well. So, Mr. Evans 6th grade class made 30-40 Christmas cards and are sending them to the children at St. Jude’s hospital.

Jefferson 3rd Graders Study Pottery

The third graders at Jefferson Intermediate School learned in their Enrichment class about pottery, then and now. They learned that the Native Americans took pride in creating their pottery by hand using the methods of pinching and coiling. Archeologists have found many of these primitive pots over the years. In the past pottery was created for practical uses rather than the artwork of the piece.

The students learned the basic method for making coil and pinch pots. The clay we used came from Endicott Clay. The students learned about where and how it was gathered in much the same way the Native Americans gathered their clay from the earth. However, the Native Americans would try to make their clay stronger by mixing other materials into it like sand, plants, or shells. The students learned the clay needed to be kneaded to remove air bubbles. They had to roll the clay into ropes or coils and building them up on top of a round base to make the coil pots. The Native Americans would usually pinch their coils until they blended together so that the pots had smooth surfaces. The students like many artists left their coils to add to the decorative look of the pottery.
The Native Americans would then put their pottery in a fire pit and heat it to around 1,500 degrees. The students clay pots were glazed and sent up to the high school to be fired in a kiln after they air dried. The clay pots were done just in time for Christmas. Most of the students will use their clay pots for gifts.

Molly’s Pilgrim

Before Thanksgiving, Mrs. Shinn’s class read the book entitled Molly’s Pilgrim by Barbara Cohen. Students took home 2 clothespins, and with the help from family, made a clothespin pilgrim and Indian doll to go with the book. Students made the clothespin doll at home. I sent home a clothespin, a note, explaining this a little more. It is one of my favorite books. The students enjoyed the story and the movie made from the book. It has such a sweet message about differences, modern day pilgrims, and accepting others. I was so amazed at all the creative pilgrim and Indian dolls! Thank you for your help with this project and Happy Thanksgiving to all my students and their families!

Energizers’ Drug-Free Mascot Contest

Energizers was excited to sponsor a drug-free mascot design contest for Central Elementary School. The Energizers members voted on the submissions to select the winner. The winning design was by Daniel C. in Mrs. Wanamaker’s 2^nd grade class.

Energizers officers were excited to present the plush mascot in a ceremony last week. All of the submissions were used to decorate the high school for Red Ribbon week. Thanks to all students that participated and we look forward to seeing the new mascot around Central school helping promote our drug-free message.

Construction Class Builds Deck

Students in Mr. Scott’s construction class are building a deck in Gladstone. The purpose of the deck was improve accessibility and add curb appeal to the home. Students learned how to calculate area, create a materials list, layout step risers, and use a variety of tools such as a router, drill and skill saw.

Industrial Tech Students Visit Endicott Clay

Roughly 30 students visited Endicott Clay in Endicott on Friday Nov. 13th. The focus of the day was to expose students to the many types of jobs available at Endicott Clay Products. Students broke up into groups and toured the facility. They saw the Computer Aided Drafting Department, toured the plant and saw the old oven where bricks were fired. They also got to see the heavy equipment that is used at the factory. This was a great educational opportunity for the students at FHS.

Solar Ovens in Mrs. E. Winter’s Science Class

Mrs. E. Winter’s 7^th grade science students have been learning about the types of heat energy transfer. To see what we’re learning about in action, we did demonstrations of both conduction and convection. Radiation is energy transferred through waves; this is how the sun heats things. To learn more about radiation, students built solar ovens to harness the heat from the sun to cook a hotdog. We also got out our solar bag; the sun heats the bag through radiation. When the air inside the bag gains heat, it becomes less dense, allowing the bag to float. It was a great opportunity to take learning outside in the nice fall weather!

Central School 2015 Veterans Day Celebration

A brisk damp morning didn’t bother Central Elementary’s plans to honor Veterans.

On November 11th the school day started out a bit different than normal. Students and staff gathered outside around the flag and watched as the VFW Color Guard presented and raised the flag. High school students Ryan Umland and Garret Ragland played “Call to Colors.” After the flag was raised, the students joined together in saying the Pledge of Allegiance.

Students and guests then gathered in the gym for a special program. Mrs. Mans welcomed the guests and thanked them for their service. Mrs. Beachler gave a brief history of Veteran’s Day and what it means to be a veteran. Lee Greenwood’s, “God Bless the USA” video was played.

The student body, led by Mrs. Bigley sang “God Bless America” with choreographed red, white, and blue plates. It was wonderful!

Mrs. Mans read a video to the students entitled “Veteran’s Day Honors,” followed by asking the guests to introduce themselves, tell what branch they served under, and tell how many years they served.

The student body concluded the program by singing “Grand Ole Flag” as they waved their own little flags.

The program received many compliments. A special thank you to the Veterans who have served and are currently serving, and a thank you to the Central Committee for putting on a wonderful program to honor them.

Check out our pictures of the Veteran’s Day Program

Gardens in Gloves

Fifth grade science students studied the life cycle of plants and learned all about their anatomy and how they reproduce. Students then were able to plant various seeds in a glove and view the germination process. Our seedlings are off to a great start! Hopefully many students will grow green thumbs and take them home to plant so that the growing process continues.