Churchill County School District News

CCHS

Churchill County Work Based Learning advisory committee met on April 19. The purpose of the meeting was to plan and develop goals with outcomes that provide a direct path to work toward.

“The first of the goals established was incorporating soft skills which is a valuable initiative as it can help students develop important interpersonal and communication skills that are essential for success in the workplace,” said School Careers Coordinator Sue Segura. Encouraging reflection was the second goal, which is also a great way to help students develop critical thinking skills, that are important for problem-solving and decision-making. Encouraging real-life internships was the third goal, which provides students with valuable work experience and exposure to different career paths.

“This can help them make more informed decisions about their future and provide them with valuable skills and connections,” said Segura, who elaborated that increasing technology and offering extra-curricular activities are also important goals as they can help students develop skills that are relevant to the current job market and help them explore different interests and passions. The meeting had representation from various stakeholders including the Governor's office, the county, the school board, CCHS staff members, and community businesses. “This is a collaborative effort to improve the education and development of students in our school district. Overall, the outcome goals of this advisory meeting are commendable and we will provide data to our community in the Fall,” said Segura.

CCMS

Active-duty military students were celebrated last week during a special field day CCMS hosted with some great activities for them to participate in. Military students were able to bring two friends with them to the event and their parents were also invited. There was a dunk tank, inflatables, and other field games such as corn hole, a three-legged race, an egg relay, and more.

The students and their families were served lunch and the CCHS JROTC cadets came and helped run the event as well.

“We really want to thank our local Coca-Cola Distributor, CCHS Navy JROTC, CCMS Purple Star Committee, our local Walmart, and our CCMS staff for making this event possible and helping us provide an amazing morning for our military students and their families,” said Vice Principal Dr. Deana Porretta.

Numa

Students in Vanessa Burch-Urquhart’s pod began working on inventions as part of unit five in science. Students had to invent something practical to improve the lives of the people living in Peña Blanca, Guatemala. They used their skills to create anything from twin-catching rooftop gardens to bicycle-powered wood choppers.

“They worked so well together while considering constraints in the small village. We have some creative problem-solvers in this fourth-grade group,” said Burch-Urqhart.

E.C. Best

Students have been learning how to do the ChaCha Slide as a part of their dance unit in Christine Mori’s Physical Education class.

“This dance greatly improves a student’s sense of coordination. It is also a great way for them to show off their self-expression because like with any kind of dance, the ChaCha slide really places an emphasis on a dancer's self-expression. In other words, the more a student feels the music and gets comfortable with the moves, the more they feel comfortable expressing themselves through movement,” said Mori.

Lahontan

Students in Rachel Gonzalez's Kindergarten class began their plant unit last week. They learned what plants need to survive and discussed photosynthesis. The students also had to pick out one thing they learned about plants and present it to the class.

“I asked students to volunteer to go up to the board and point to a part of the plant or their environment and explain the importance of that part of the plant or their environment to the growth and development of the plant. I find this to be a really great way for the students to practice speaking in front of people and show off what they know and have learned. It is a great retention tool, especially for younger students,” said Gonzalez.

After presenting to the class the fun began and students were able to plant their own flower seeds. They got to break up the dirt, pick out their seed, and plant them in small pots that were then covered and hung in the window. Students will now be challenged with taking care of their plants over the next serval weeks in the classroom in hopes of eventually taking them home.

“I really could not have done this unit without the help of my student's amazing families who purchased the materials for this unit. I could not thank them enough for making this possible for their littles,” said Gonzales.

Since planting their seeds, students have been eager to go to class every day to see if their flowers have begun sprouting. They were thrilled on Monday morning when they came in and saw sprouts. “It was so fun to see their reaction and I look forward to continuing this unit with them and seeing how excited they get the more their flowers grow,” said Gonzales.

Northside Early Learning Center

Students in Octavia Merritt’s class are learning about the life cycle of a butterfly. They are also using their fine motor skills to make their own caterpillars.

“We are learning that a caterpillar creates a chrysalis and it takes the caterpillar two weeks of sleep to become a butterfly,” said Merritt. Students also read The Very Hungry Caterpillar and are working on their counting skills to count all the different foods the caterpillar eats.

Kaitlin Ritchie is the public information officer for the Churchill County School District.