1. education
2. school

Northern Tioga
School District
District Update
January 2015
www.ntiogasd.org
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Dr. Diana Barnes
Superintendent
portunity to audition for the District 8 Choral Festival sponsored
by the Pennsylvania Music Educators' Association (PMEA). These
students audition in competition with hundreds of students from 9
counties for the chance at participating in this festival. This year,
Brandon Dilly (Tenor I), a senior, was selected from Williamson
High School. The District Festival is being hosted by Amy Rhinard,
choral director at Shikellamy High School. One of the benefits of
attending such a festival is that the students and directors from all
of the schools are able to work with a prominent professional conductor for the three days of the festival. This year's guest conductor
will be Dr. Mitos Andaya from Temple University. A public concert
will be presented on Saturday, January 24th, beginning at 3:00PM
at Shikellamy High School. Tickets will be on sale at the door.
January is School Director Recognition Month
Have you thanked a school board member lately? January is School
Director Recognition Month, a recognition that honors members of
local boards of education for their commitment to provide quality public education for Pennsylvania’s school children.
School directors generously contribute their time and talents toward
the advancement of public education. They establish policies that provide the framework for our public schools. They represent their local
communities and attend sometimes lengthy and challenging meetings,
conferences and institutes for professional learning and understanding of public education.
These dedicated volunteers reside in our community. They are our
friends, neighbors, community leaders, parents and engaged senior
citizens. Although communities make a special effort to show appreciation to school directors in January, their contribution is a year-round
commitment, and deep appreciation is extended to them always.
Take this opportunity to help acknowledge thousands of public servants who make the time to share their vision and voice about the future
of Pennsylvania children.
Region I
Region II
Region III
Julie Preston
Michael Vayansky
Kim Strauser
Jolene Meisner
Dan Bower
Ian McLaughlin
Greg Cummings
Tony Daley
Ed Bonham
Thank you to each of you for your dedication, time, and effort. Northern Tioga School District is blessed to have dedicated board members.
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Public PVAAS Release
W.E.S.O. 2014 Recycling Numbers Are In!
With the help of Mrs. Schmouder's and Mrs. Blackwell's students, the Williamson Environmental Service Organization was
able to recycle our way to a new record. W.E.S.O. recycled 60lbs
of brown glass, 380lbs of clear glass, 60lbs of green glass, 860lbs
of magazines, 14,640lbs of mixed paper/junkmail, 6,560lbs of
newspaper material, 2,240lbs of plastic, 4,280lbs of textbooks,
and 3,680 lbs of tin/bimetal cans. This is a grand total of
32,760lbs of material recycled from the R.B. Walter and Williamson complex. Thank you to Mr. Kaufman and all of the students, faculty and staff for their continued support of our program.
Williamson Sophomore Students
Students in Mrs. Morrell's and Mr. Klemick's 10th grade English
classes are working on a unit for speaking and listening, two of
the most important skills students can develop to ensure success
in their future endeavors, whether it is pursuing a college degree
or entering the workforce. Throughout the unit students will deliver informative and impromptu speeches to their classmates.
While public speaking is one of the most feared and dreaded activities in class, we are proud that students tackle the challenge
and become better speakers for their courageous efforts. The
sophomores have also been working hard to get ready for the
upcoming Keystone Literature Test they will take in May. It's
never too early to start preparing!
Students in Mr. Liscinski’s Biology class are finishing Evolution
and beginning to review for the keystone test.
In Mr. Collum's Western Civilization class, students have spent
several classes researching a person they have chosen from history who they think is the greatest person in World History. A
few of the student choices include Gandhi, Benjamin Franklin,
Eleanor Roosevelt, and many more. They will research that person and write an argumentative speech based on why their person is the coolest. They will then debate their classmates in a
NCAA style tournament until we have one person who wins and
is voted the Greatest Person in World History.
The release of the 2013-14 Pennsylvania Value-Added Assessment system
(PVAAS) public site is now open for public review. The following results
are available:
Pennsylvania System of School Assessment (PSSA) Mathematics and
reading
High school end-of-course, Keystone exams: Biology, Literature, and Algebra exams
The site is found at http://pvaas.sas.com It includes:
Scatterplots: Visual representation of growth and achievement for
schools and districts
District Search: Ability to search growth results by district
School Search: Ability to search growth results by school
Winter Keystone Exams
The 2014-2015 Winter Administration of the Keystone Exams will be held
during two testing windows. Biology and Algebra I will be administered
during Wave 2, January 7-21, 2015. The Literature Exams here held in
December.
The Keystone Exams are end-of-course assessment designed to assess
proficiency in various subjects. Beginning with the Class of 2017 the state
requirements for graduation include passing the Literature Exam, Biology
Exam and Algebra I Exam. Keystone Exams will help school districts
guide students toward meeting state standards.
Parents and guardians may review the Keystone Exams if they believe
they may be in conflict with their religious beliefs. If you do not want
your child to take the tests due to a conflict with their religious beliefs,
you must make arrangements to come to the NTSD Administration Building to review the test two weeks prior to the assessments and submit a
written request to the Superintendent prior to the testing dates.
For more information on the Keystone Exams please visit: http://
www.pdesas.org/
Williamson Music
Each year, choral students from our school district have the op-
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Student Withdrawal from NTSD
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If you are withdrawing your child from NTSD (examples: moving, transferring schools, etc.) please notify the school’s office immediately. There
is a simple form to fill out upon withdrawing your child from one of our
schools. If you have any questions or concerns please contact Shana
Rambo, Child Accounting (814-258-5644 ext. 1012 or [email protected]).
Contact/Emergency Information
If your contact or emergency information changes during the school year
please contact your child’s school immediately.
Submitted by Curriculum Office
Teacher Spotlight
Congratulations to Karin Knaus (CVHS), Jessica Spencer (RBW ES),
Melissa Morral (WHS), Bobbi Button (WHS), and Jane Spohn (WHS)
who, along with Stacey Segur from Canton School District, and Julie
Weaver and Cindy Lisowski from Southern Tioga School District, recently published a book in conjunction with Nanci Werner-Burke from
Mansfield University's Endless Mountain Writing Project. The book,
Beyond the Classroom: Collaborating with Colleagues and Parents to
Build Core Literacy, focusses on how to build literacy and achievement
in reading and includes actual projects implemented by the authors. Mrs.Spohn, Ms. Spencer, Mrs. Button and Dr. Werner-Burke
were presenters at the Pennsylvania Council for Teachers of English
Language Arts Conference in October representing all of the teachers
involved with the book. Additionally, Mrs. Morral presented at the National Council of English Teachers National Conference in Washington
D.C. in November on a project conducted in her classroom with collaborative work with Dr. Werner-Burke.
Submitted by Rosalie Bates, NTEA Secretary
Westfield Area Elementary School
4th grade at WAES has been busy! The students wrote snowman Haikus
at Christmas time and stories from a turkey’s point of view for Thanksgiving. The stories and poems were displayed for others to read in the
school. We really have some creative kids! In science, the students created family trees and are now working on life cycles of living things.
They have planted seeds to observe and record their results as part of
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On November 18th, members from the Clark Wood Elementary
staff, including Principal Mr. Jess Millard, members of staff from
Williamson Middle School, and Williamson High School Student
Council, and several community members competed in a Donkey
Basketball game at the Elkland High School gymnasium. The purpose of the game was to raise funds for the Nelson's Playground
Committee, chaired by Mrs. Samantha Yonker. With the help of
dedicated teachers and staff, community service from student
council and community volunteers, the Nelson's Playground was
able to raise $1,600 to help replace the playground equipment
that was taken down last April.
The Northern Tioga Teachers Association also helped this group
by donating $200 that was raised through the paid dress down
days that occur once a month.
In all, $38,989 was raised to help replace Nelson’s Playground.
The Williamson High School Student Council really got into the
holiday spirit this year. While they enjoyed fun activities like a student-faculty Secret Santa, they also donated to local families
through the Angel Tree charities in Tioga, Lawrenceville, and Elkland. The Student Council and faculty provided gifts for over 70
local children and families. As a way to show their appreciation
and thank the faculty for all they do the Student Council cooked
their annual breakfast for the faculty before leaving for Christmas
break. Also taking place before the holiday break, the Student
Council organized and hosted the annual Williamson High School
talent show. There were many talented students that took part in
the contest. The winner his year was Katelynn Mays. She won by
singing the song “Blank Space” while playing the piano. The Student Council looks forward to the second half of the school year
and has several fundraisers, a district conference, dances, and
events planned for 2015.
Off to see the wizard…
Students from R.B. Walter elementary, along with students
from Williamson's middle and high school, will pool their talents
to perform the musical The Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum on
March 6th and 7th at 7 pm in the Williamson High School auditorium. Tickets will be sold at the door and are $7 for adults and $5
for senior citizens and students. This show is produced by arrangement with Tams-Witmark, Inc., 560 Lexington Avenue,
New York, NY 10022.
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-It Games that went on during the Lip Sync Assembly in late November. As for the special days, they involved students bringing in
a certain item, wearing certain clothing, and using their creative
minds to fulfill a day’s requirements. The students seem to be enjoying the days and working hard to achieve that goal of a free day.
According to Nate Bonham, the CV Student Council President,
“The competition is going great, and I love seeing the students
compete to earn a common goal for one another,” he said.
Meanwhile, the point system for the events is simple. The grade
with the most participants who follow a day’s requirements is
awarded 30 points, and then the points decrease by five to the lower places. The overall current places are as follows: faculty is in the
lead with 150 points, freshmen are second with 145 points, seniors
are in third with 105 points, sophomores are in third place with
100 points, and juniors are in last place with a total of 85 points.
Looking back on the competition’s inception, the first event was
Halloween Costume Day. Participants had to wear their favorite
Halloween costume to school. Seniors came in first place followed
by the sophomores, freshmen, faculty, and juniors. This day was
followed by M&M’s Day, which required participants to bring in as
many M&Ms as they could. All grades participated in this event;
however, the faculty did not. The M&M’s students brought in for
M&M Day were separated by color and will be used to show the
places for the competition. The jars are currently in Ms. Knaus’s
room and will be filled with the grade’s class color of M&M. Eventually, the jars will be a visual representation of the class rankings
and will be put near the curved wall for all to see.
When tallying up the M&M’s, the freshmen came in first place, followed by 7th graders, sophomores, juniors, 8th graders, and seniors. Next, Camo Day followed, requiring participants to wear their
camouflage to school. The seniors won, followed by the sophomores, juniors, and the freshmen tied with the faculty. Then, at the
lip sync, the groups that came in first, second, and third for their
commercial and lip sync were awarded 30, 20, and 10 points, respectively. The faculty had the best commercial followed by the
freshmen and juniors. The faculty also had the best lip sync followed by the freshmen and seniors. Finally, all groups of participants were awarded 30 points for the Minute-to-Win-It games, for
each group won a game.
Williamson High School
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this unit. In social studies, the students are learning about the factors
that affect the climate in Pennsylvania. Students will end the unit by
creating a brochure of our area describing our climate to all who are
interested in learning about it. In math, the students are learning
about multistep multiplication and division problems that can be applied to daily life and how to solve them accurately. In reading, the
students continue to learn about the different genres of literature and
how to use their comprehension and decoding skills to understand the
complex texts that are assigned and that they will encounter in his/her
lives. Finally, the students are preparing for our annual trip to Harrisburg, so you may see them selling snack food items to help with the
cost of the educational trip. Please support them in this endeavor; it is
a trip of a lifetime that they will never forget!
The WAES Fifth Grade wishes everyone a Happy New Year! Last year
was an exciting adventure and this one will be even bigger! As we ended our year we had a lot of excitement in Mrs. Newcomb's science
class. We went through the design process and made aluminum foil
boats. We then floated them in water to see which boats held the most
pennies. We had one boat which held over 300 pennies while following the directions. Way to go Tess Johnson! In history we are learning
about the colonization of our great country and how England got to be
so powerful. Do you know what a sea dog was? Ask one of our fifth
grade students and they can tell you. In English we wrote narratives
and are now moving to persuasive argumentative writing. Mrs. Kulish
is getting our fifth grade students ready to tackle those ELA PSSA's. In
reading we will be soon focusing on informational texts. In math class
we will be adding, subtracting, multiplying and dividing fractions. We
will miss Mrs. Smalley as she transfers to RB Walter Elementary
School. Best wishes to her! Have a great 2015 year!
The new year has begun and the first graders are ready to get back to
learning! We are already reading Unit 3 in our Wonders Reading
books. The kids are improving their reading skills and making the
most of their stories. The first graders are excited to read the required
stories for the monthly Book-it program. They want to be part of the
drawing for the great monthly prizes. In December the grand prize was
a sport jersey of their choice with the next prize being a $25 gift card
to the Dollar General. So keep reading!
At the end of the month Mrs. Doan’s first grade class gave a performance of “The Gingerbread Man” to the other first graders and parents. It was apparent there was much practice and hard work involved.
Great Job!
In Science we are learning about the weather, including clouds and the
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water cycle. The eighth grade Science kids came down and made a
snow globe craft with each first grade class.
In Math we have completed subtraction and fact families. Now we have
started place value. We should be able to count to 100 by the time the
100th Day arrives very shortly!
The students at WAES didn’t hesitate to dive back into painting in the
art room after our Chr istm as br eak! Kindergarten star ted a
unit about color and were introduced to a “new kid”, Roy G. Biv! Roy
helps us to remember the colors of the rainbow in order. He’s pretty
popular in Kindergarten! Students have learned how to use primary
colors to mix their own secondary colors and they’ve done a great job!
1st Grade is explor ing textur e w hile r eading and lear ning
about Dr. Seuss in art! We are creating implied textures with texture
plate crayon rubbings and lines. Our “One Fish Two Fish” project will
help us prepare for making textured clay fish later on.
2nd Grade is tr aveling to Italy, Fr ance and Afr ica w h ile w e explore shape in art through the art of Modigliani. We will be taking a
look at where we are in the world compared to the art we’ll be discussing. We will also be comparing and contrasting characteristics of various types of art and discussing how things we see influence artistic
choices.
3rd Grade h as been studying the ar t of Mexico and lear ning
about famous Mexican artist Frida Kahlo. After making a portrait of
Frida and studying symbolism, students started self-portraits that applied facial proportions we had learned. Students are currently working to add symbolism to their self-portraits. We are looking for more
than just favorite foods and toys. We have talked about important people, relationships, events and things that hold a deeper meaning and
ways to incorporate those things into our art through symbols. They’ve
done an amazing job so far and I look forward to seeing them completed!
4th Grade is w r apping up a sh ape unit w her e w e focused on
using shapes as the foundation of a drawing. We studied the work of
famous artist Grant Wood and based our project on his popular American Gothic. Students discussed what they believed what happening in
the picture, what the people did for a living, where they were from,
what decade it was, and then discovered how close their thoughts were
as we learned more about the artist and his work. Students also
learned about parodies in art and created an original parody of American Gothic.
5th Grade is w r apping up a line unit in w h ich th ey studied th e
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When looking back at her decision to become a trainer, Ms. Kosa has
no regrets. “There are not a lot of people who can say that they love
their jobs, but luckily, I do love mine,” she said. Not only does she
enjoy her work, but she also recommends her occupation to anyone
who enjoys sports or has interest in the medical field. Meanwhile, if
someone is interested in being an athletic trainer, Ms. Kosa notes
that some of the most common injuries encountered during the fall
season are ankle sprains, muscle strains, and concussions. However,
now that it’s basketball season, the types of injuries change a bit.
During the winter sports campaign, Ms. Kosa treats a lot of jammed
fingers, shin splints, and even more ankle sprains.
While some of these injuries are more serious than others, Ms. Kosa
says that there are a variety of ways to help decrease the chance of an
injury occurring. According to Ms. Kosa, athletes need to have full
range of motion in their joints before attempting rigorous exercise.
She tells each athlete to stretch before and after practices and events.
When stretching doesn't take place, the risk of muscle strains and
other injuries is often increased. “Injuries are certainly part of
sports,” said Ms. Kosa, “but body awareness and flexibility often decrease the risks of any injury.”
To help assist with her athletic training, Ms. Kosa recently became a
performance enhancement specialist. This program showed her different ways to asses an individual and identify what muscles are over
or under active when performing certain movements. “Ideally, I
would love to test all of the athletes in the district and design a program based solely on each student’s needs,” she said. While time
constraints make this dream impossible, Ms. Kosa will still continue
to do whatever she can to assist athletes in the district. “In a perfect
world, I would be able to be at all the district games and practices,”
said Ms. Kosa. “However, I have to decide which event to attend on
any given day, so logically I have to pick the sport that presents the
highest risk of injury to the athletes at Williamson and CV.”
CVHS Class Competitions
It’s class versus class at CV. The competitors are fierce and are taking names later. All of the 7-12th grade classes at CVHS are battling
one another in miscellaneous events hosted by the CV Student Council in hopes of winning the grand prize: a free day! The CV Student
Council has wanted to do a class competition for some time now. The
council’s objective is to encourage school activity and friendly competition.
Events to promote this objective include Camo Day, Class Color Day,
Halloween Costume Day, M&M’s Day, and a group of Minute-to-Win
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repetitive prints of Andy Warhol and discussed “popular culture”. We
have worked diligently at tweaking and improving our printmaking
skills and learning how to properly sign a series of prints. They students have loved printmaking and have produced some beautiful
prints!
February 27
and 28, 2015 at
7 p.m. with a
matinee on
Sunday, March
1 at 2 p.m.
Tickets are $7
for adults and
$3 for students. People
who come in
1950s costume
will receive $1
off admission.
6th Grade is near ly finished w ith their plaster sculptur es.
We are in the final stages of painting, but it’s been quite a process.
Students began by making gesture drawings, using basic shapes to
quickly capture friends in a variety of poses. We discussed why artists
make gesture drawings and later used ours as the foundation of our
sculptural work. Measuring, proportions, and creating an interesting
sculpture in the round is no easy task but they’ve done an impressive
job tackling it!
NTSD Athletic Trainer
Injuries are synonymous with sports. No matter what the sporting
activity, small-scale or large-scale injuries are bound to occur at some
point. With this in mind, it is important for any student athlete to be
wary of the most common types of injuries and ways to prevent these
injuries from happening. This, in part, is what the Northern Tioga
School District’s Athletic Trainer, Ms. Kosa, does on a daily basis.
Ms. Kosa, who was hired through Susquehanna Health just over a
year ago, replaced Mr. Frye as the district’s trainer last September.
Since then, Ms. Kosa has made her presence known at Williamson
and Cowanesque Valley sporting events. While Ms. Kosa is quick to
point out that she spends more time at football and soccer games,
events where the most injuries occur, she is also available for every
other sporting event offered by the school district. “The busiest time
of the year for any athletic trainer is in the fall,” said Ms. Kosa. “More
injuries occur on the soccer and football fields than anywhere else,
and despite some of the protective gear worn by these athletes, injuries aren’t always prevented.”
Ms. Kosa knows athletics well, for she was a three-sport athlete in
high school and played volleyball and basketball collegiately at Marywood University. While attending Marywood, Ms. Kosa completed
the necessary training programs to earn her degree, and she continues
to take required tests every two years that are mandatory to maintain
her certifications. Even though her love for sports is one main reason
why she chose athletic training as a field, Ms. Kosa was also influenced by her brothers’ sports injuries, injuries that she feels could
have been prevented with an athletic trainer’s guidance. “I chose athletic training based on all these experiences, and my goal has always
been to try to keep athletes in the game,” she said.
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Third grade at Westfield Elementary has been very busy ending the
old year and beginning a new one. It is hard to believe we are in 2015
already. There have been many new ideas and concepts taught in the
curriculum during December. In math the students have been learning their multiplication and division facts. They can’t wait to celebrate their mastery for each set of facts with an ice cream party. Each
set of facts earns a scoop of ice cream for the student’s sundae. So
they are practicing as much as they can. The social studies classes are
working on physical characteristics of the Earth. They are doing lots
of hands on activities to support what they learn. Science is working
on life cycles. It is exciting to see all the cycles that Earth has for us to
experience. Along with this, the third grade reading curriculum has
supported many of the things students have been learning in science
and social studies with wonderful literature. We have had stories
about “Earth and Space” and “Protecting the Islands”, just to name a
few.
December was full of fun activities as well. Mr. Weaver came and did
his annual ventriloquism act with lots of songs and friendly characters. Third grade also watched the Polar Express and did several writing activities with the movie. Finally, we made ornaments and cards
for the troops and our parents. We made little reindeer for the troops
and wonderful cards that told our parents how much we appreciate all
the things they do for us. The students are excited to start the New
Year with resolutions they can achieve. Here’s to 2015 and a new year
of learning!!!
The Westfield Area Elementary Music Department has had a very exciting beginning to the 2014-2015 school year. Students were able to
get to know a few popular composers, learned the fundamentals of
rhythm, and are now discovering the wonders of expression. The 1st
Grade, 3rd Grade, and 5th Grade students, along with the folks in band
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and chorus, capped off the year 2014 with their concert in December.
Kindergarten h as been busy lear ning differ ent for m s of expression in music. Students learned the functions of dynamics and
tempo through playing of songs and instruments.
1st Grade ended the year 2014 w ith a stellar per for m ance at
the WAES Holiday Concert, singing the songs “Silver and Gold” (from
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer) and “Suzy Snowflake”. The students are now finishing up their lessons with expression.
2nd Grade star ted th e sch ool year w ith lear ning the essential
parts of rhythm including note names and values, measures, and time
signatures. Students are now completing their lessons on expression
as well. Students are culminating the lesson with a group project
where students add in their own expressive cues to the song “Twinkle
Twinkle Little Star”.
3rd and 4th Grade com pleted their w or k w ith r hyth m ic notation and have now moved onto the use of dynamics. In addition, the
3rd Grade class put on a wonderful performance of both “The Christmas that Almost Wasn’t” and “Jingle Bell Rock” at the Holiday Concert.
5th and 6th Grade have also com pleted th eir w or k w ith
rhythm, learning about the use of concepts such as syncopation and
ostinatos. They have now moved on to studying major scales and
chords. The 5th Grade class, who also performed in the Holiday Concert, gave the audience a tropical glimpse of the holidays with the
songs “Christmas on the Beach at Waikiki” and “Mele Kalikimaka”.
Concert Band and Advanced Band, w h o opened the concer t,
put on a wonderful performance that included a variety of musical
pieces ranging from Beethoven to traditional Christmas carols.
5th and 6th Grade Chorus closed the Holiday Concer t w ith
four pieces: “Do You Want to Build a Snowman?” from Frozen,
“African Noel” featuring African drums, “Holly Jolly Holiday” featuring several Christmas tunes, and “Light Up The Tree” in which the
ensemble transformed into a Christmas tree with the help of flashlights. The group is very excited to perform in the spring of 2015, and
is happy to announce the induction of several new members from
both 5th and 6th Grade.
Happy New Year from the second graders at WAES! Before we left for
the break, we made picture ornaments and had delicious Christmas
treats. We also enjoyed our annual puppet show from Mr. Weaver and
Friends.
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ering all the physics models we derived over the semester will conclude the class in mid-January. Sadly, there being no physics-2, I will
have to bid a very fond but again, very reluctant farewell to our physics class as they move on to their last high school semester of classes
before they graduate. What a great time it has been this year with a
phenomenal group of students. A special shout-out to Nate Bonham
and Brandon McLean, ou r fu tu r e eng ineer s a nd to Becky,
the last of the Plummer dynasty, our future forensic scientist. Your
futures are indeed very bright so bring your sunglasses. There is nothing you cannot accomplish (unless it is to complete a lab in one day).
Cowanesque Valley
Drama Club Brings
a Favorite to the
Stage
What do fast cars,
hand-jive contests,
and a dreamy teen
angel all have in
common? Simple…
you have your shot
to see all three and
more in the Cowanesque Valley HS
Drama Club’s
spring production, Grease!
The show is a comedic rock n’ roll high school tale, featuring the characters you’ve probably loved for some time! Sweet Sandy Dumbrowski
(Becky Plummer) has just entered Rydell High to discover her summer beau Danny Zuko (Ethan Mead) may not be all that he seemed.
Their story unfolds surrounded by Sandy’s new friends the Pink Ladies, Rizzo (Jane Hurd), Marty (Whitney Earl), Frenchy (Delaney
Smith), and Jan (Sierra Gehringer) and Danny’s greaser buddies
Kenickie (Brendon Bell), Sonny (Joey Brown), Roger (Derek James),
and Doody (Zach Cooper).
With a fun rock n’ roll, doo wop score and plenty of song, dance, and
50s nostalgia, this show is sure to delight and entertain. Co-director
Karin Knaus says “the chemistry among this cast was clear within moments of starting our first rehearsal. They’re funny, talented, and enjoyable to watch!”
The show features more than 40 cast members and a set, stage, and
production crew of a variety of district students and faculty members,
making the show a real community effort. The production will run
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We’ve been busy learning about how the world around us affects us
and how we can make a difference. In math, the students are regrouping two and three digit numbers in addition and subtraction.
reach.
CV Science News
Science-9: W h at a fantastic w inter w e ar e having! Our extreme thanks go out to Mrs. Connie Cummings for volunteering to help
our class with our weather unit. Mrs. Cummings is a retired meteorologist and environmental scientist (and is still an irrigation design engineer). Every day during our weather unit Mrs. Cummings ran the class
through what we called a “weather update” and to the students,
seemed like we were getting our very own weather report. So cool, so
relevant, and so science! This practice stems from when meteorologists
have to brief the next shift on the weather trends before they go home.
It worked very well for us too. Mrs. Cummings offered valuable input
and resources during the unit of which we were very appreciative.
We are deep into astronomy currently which takes us to the midterm
exam. After the midterm our class will review the basics of experimentation and of the scientific method before we move into introductory
chemistry. Our year will end with a biology unit on life chemistry and
on ecology as a way to begin the transition to tenth grade biology.
Chemistry-1: W hat a fantastic year w e h ave h ad. As a sem ester-long class, we are getting ready to take a final exam then move on
to other classes. Some will continue their chemistry experience with
chemistry 2 but many will transition to upper level math or English
classes. Currently we are wrapping up chemical reactions as we learn
the method of predicting products of chemical reactions. This will culminate in a reactions lab where students will create five different
chemical changes to observe the various reaction types. Our class will
end with a unit on stoichiometry (math relationships in chemistry).
Mr. Spencer was reported of late praising the higher than normal class
average on the difficult chapter 7 test that covers naming and formula
writing of chemicals. In fact, Mr. Spencer is very proud of the chemistry-1 class and is reluctant to “let them go” at the end of the semester
just when it was getting interesting. I wish the best to Casey, Marissa,
Kayla, V. Joey, Madelyn, Madeline, Lauren, Sierra, Kirsten,
Ben, Jessica, Paige, Dillon, Nate, Malcolm, Jamie, and
Michale. W ha t a jou r ney w e ha d tog ether !
Physics: Mech anics is com ing to a close as w e study the last
topic on motion, momentum. We have one paradigm lab on impulse,
one practicum lab on conservation of momentum and mass prediction,
and a challenge lab from our previous unit on projectiles (shooting a
ball into a cup mounted on the top of a moving cart). A final exam cov20
We’re looking forward to all that 2015 brings!
R.B. Walter Elementary School
PTO will be hosting a “Family Game Night” on Friday, January 23
from 6-8 PM! Please plan on attending!
With a New Year comes new experiences for Pre-K! We have started
focusing on literature and doing special projects for each story. This
week we are focusing on the cold and snow. We have made snow
globes and wrote a little about living inside of the globe! We are also
reading "The Mitten" by Jan Brett. We talked about the animals in
the story and acted the story out with our animals and mitten. We
hope that everyone has a Happy New Year!
Our kindergarten students are using key details in reading to make
connections to a story and retell it. We are continuing to work on
writing in all areas of our curriculum to make sure we: 1) stretch/
sound out our words, 2) use capital letters appropriately, 3) use proper spacing, 4) use punctuation marks, and 5) reread to see if it makes
sense. In science, we are learning how animals survive in the polar
regions of our earth. We are also using informational text in social
studies to learn how communities of people and animals work together to achieve a common goal. In math, we are counting our way to the
100th Day of school. Students and parents are preparing a special
100th Day project using number knowledge to create unique displays
that will be shared at school. Be on the lookout for pictures in our local newspaper!
First gr ade h ad a gr eat h oliday season! Pr ior to br eak, th e
students got to travel around the world and learn about holiday customs in Germany, Mexico, Australia, and China! We are right in the
middle of Unit 3 of our reading series. When the students reach Unit
4, the expectation is that they will read all passages and questions on
their own for their weekly assessment. Currently, we are preparing
students for this transition by having them first read their passages
independently. We then reread the passages together. The weekly
reading homework sheet is a great way to help them prepare for this
as well. Simply have them read it independently to you! Congratulations to Mrs. McCarthy's class. They collected over 100 items for the
Arnot Ogden Medical Center NICU's parent rooms. The students collected items such as travel sized toothpaste, shampoo, deodorant,
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soap, etc. to make parents' stays more comfortable while their baby is
hospitalized. They also collected several books to add to the NICU library, Mason's Little Library! The nurses from AOMC NICU expressed how much this service project helps and that it is appreciated
greatly by the parents! Way to go kids!
Wow! Can you believe we are almost half way through second grade
already? The second graders are continuing to work hard as we progress through the year. In math, we are learning to regroup as we add
larger numbers together. We are also working on how to solve twopart word problems. The students continue to improve on their math
facts daily as they utilize the Reflex Math computer program both in
school and at home. Currently in reading we are studying about the
different types of weather and the effects it can have on us. We have
also been discussing the relationship of our Earth, sun, moon and
stars. In early February we will be traveling to the Corning Community College Planetarium to view their program about the stars and
learn more about the solar system. Yes, we all had a wonderful
Christmas vacation and enjoyed our time of relaxation, but know that
we must now get back to work to ensure that we will be ready for third
grade by late spring!!
In reading, the third graders have been learning about main ideas and
details and summarizing. Students have also been studying verbs and
verb tenses. “A verb is a word—it’s an action word; if you can do it,
then you do it; if you do it, it’s a verb!” Students will soon be working
on informational writing. In math, we finished our division unit. Students saw how multiplication and division are related. We will be
working on fractions in the upcoming month. In science, students
have been exploring matter. They have been learning the three different states of matter and how they change from one state to another.
In social studies, students are learning about aspects of culture. What
kinds of traditions have been passed down through your family’s cultures? Third graders wrote goals for 2015. We wish you the best in
meeting your goals in the New Year.
Fourth gr ade is r ar ing to go in 2015. In m ath w e h ave almost conquered long division. In addition to the standard algorithm
for long division, we have also learned the box method. Many of us
have found the box method to be much easier than the “old fashion
method.” Later this month we will be looking at patterns that we can
find in numbers and shapes. In science we have been examining ecosystems. We have discovered that everything in an ecosystem has a
purpose. Abiotic factors, which are nonliving things, can have an impact on an ecosystem the same as biotic factors, or living things. We
are reading biographies about people who make a difference. In our
graphic organizer, we list details that help us determine the author’s
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Cowanesque Valley High School
Mr. Bonham Goes to Washington
In the educational arena, we hear it and say it all the time—hard work
pays off. Not everyone believes it, but every now and then, someone
comes along and shows anything is possible with hard work. This is
certainly true for Cowanesque Valley High School senior Nathan Bonham. In December, Bonham was notified that he would be one of only
two students to represent Pennsylvania as a delegate to the United
States Senate Youth Program (USSYP) to be held in Washington, D.C.
March 7 – 14, 2015. Nathan will also receive a $5,000 college scholarship.
Nathan applied for the honor this fall and was selected to be interviewed in Harrisburg in November. The program is highly competitive. Among other qualifications, applicants must be currently serving
in an elected or appointed capacity in a student organization, and the
application process included a recommendation from the principal, a
letter of recommendation from an activity advisor, an academic transcript, an activities résumé, and an essay.
Only eleven students in the state were selected for the interview. At
that level, Nathan took a government and current events exam and
then had an interview with a panel of adults led by members on the
board of the Pennsylvania Association of Student Councils. Following
these interviews, Nathan was selected as one of Pennsylvania’s two
representatives!
According to the program brochure, “The United States Senate Youth
Program brings the highest-level officials from each branch of government together with an outstanding group of high school students.”
Nathan's experience in March will include touring government agencies and attractions in Washington and meeting extremely highranking government officials. The 2015 agenda is not yet available,
but last year’s included “major policy addresses by Senators, cabinet
members, officials of the Departments of State and Defense and directors of federal agencies, as well as participation in a meeting with a
Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court.” Students last year met with people ranging from the Secretary of Defense to a representative from
NASA, and the agenda also included a meeting with President of the
United States Barack Obama!
Nathan has said from the beginning of the process the reason he was
aiming for this opportunity was that he wanted to show other students in our rural area that being from a small town doesn’t limit the
scope of the things one can do. He hopes others will learn from his
opportunity that just because something is far away, it isn’t out of
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and will begin studying American colonization. We will also be looking
at the events surrounding the American Revolution.
We are all looking forward to our end of the year field trip to Baltimore
in May. Please check for trip cost updates for your student. Krispy
Kreme sales will be an upcoming event.
Students Of The Month:
Art Students of the Month
Primary: Danika Gardner
Intermediate: Anika Piaquadio
The Clark Wood Elementary School is proud to present our students of
the month. Our students our chosen, by their teachers for standing out
amongst their peers. Congratulations to the following students:
Kindergarten: Tyonna Tormey
1st Grade:
Alyvia Morgan
2nd Grade:
Xander Nunn
3rd Grade:
Donovan Weatherby
4th Grade:
William Farnsworth
5th Grade:
Troy Burrous
6th Grade:
Heidi Gee
January: Clark Wood Student of the Month:
Donovan Weatherby is a third grade student in Mrs. Costellic's homeroom. He resides with his Grandmother, Jane Rucker, in Nelson, PA.
Donovan takes great pride in his school work and his classroom
jobs. He always gives his best effort and keeps a positive attitude. His
teachers say that he is sweet, polite, dependable, well-behaved, and
always willing to help others. His work ethic and courteous nature set
a good example for the rest of the class. Congratulations and keep up
the good work.
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point of view. To improve our narrative writing, we are learning to
create more meaningful dialogue that helps move the story. Identifying helping and main verbs is our objective in grammar. We plan to
use more vivid verbs in our writing. In our social studies class, we are
learning to locate places around the globe using lines of latitude and
longitude. Living at 41⁰ N and 77⁰ W you need to dress for the weather!
Fifth gr ade w ishes ever yone a Happy New Y ear ! In r eading,
we are comparing and contrasting main characters’ reactions to conflict in order to understand the overall theme of “Nadia the Willful.”
For math class, we are working on subtraction of fractions with renaming, problem solving, and multiplication and division. Bionic
body parts are a current technology that we are studying in science,
through the internet, followed by designing our own healthy communities. In social studies, we are learning about the importance of economic motivation of exploration of the world in the 1400s.
Happy New Year! Our sixth graders are well-rested from the nice
break and we are ready to get started on many new topics in each subject. We started the unit on algebra in math class before break and
will continue through that over the next few weeks. Students enjoy
this change of pace; it is always amazing to see how they grasp these
concepts. In reading, we are continuing our poetry unit. We are reading a set of poems titled, “Message from a Caterpillar”, “Fog” and
“Two Haiku.” We are developing the student’s ability to synthesize
interpretation of imagery found in various poetic texts as well as analyzing the meanings of metaphors in poems we read. We are also
memorizing poems to read in front of the class for our “Coffee House
Day.” Students are looking forward to a class of drinking hot chocolate and listening to their classmates recite poetry. Finally we are
working on building an understanding of paraphrasing as we read.
In language arts, we are writing, writing, writing. Students just finished an informational piece on a topic of their choice and we are now
looking ahead at our “American Hero” piece. Students will research
and write about an American who has made a positive impact in our
country. Students will dress up as their American hero and present a
summarized version of their paper and paraphrase this person and
what they stood for. In science class, students are classifying the
characteristics of protists into three categories. Protists are grouped
with animal-like protists, plantlike protists and fungus like protists
based on characteristics they share with animals, plants and fungi.
The word that best describes protists is diversity. A protist is a eukaryote (containing a nucleus). Most protists are unicellular, but some
are multicellular. Some are heterotrophs, some are autotrophs and
others are both. Protists are different from one another and are often
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called the “odds and ends” kingdom. The scientific approach is to
group these hard to classify organisms under one kingdom named Protista. In social studies students are exploring Latin America. The students are learning about the many different and unique landforms
found in Central and South America. In each class students are applying the five themes of geography to determine how life is different in
Latin America compare to the United States. Students will complete
their exploration of Latin America by designing their own board game
based on the information that they have learned.
After a very successful Winter Concert (Grades 1, 3 and 5) and a relaxing break, the music room is buzzing with activity again! Pre-K students are back to singing, playing instruments, and moving to songs
such as “The Wheels on the Bus” and “If You’re Happy and You Know
It.” Kindergarten and first grade students are reviewing fast/slow
tempo—ask them about “The Old Gray Cat!” Second graders are reviewing loud/soft dynamics and enjoying “John Jacob Jingleheimer
Schmitt.” Our third and fourth graders are still working hard on recorder and are learning their first songs for the year—“Hot Cross
Buns” and “Mary Had a Little Lamb.” Students in fifth and sixth grade
are exploring tempo through singing and playing the Orff instruments.
They are also putting their music reading skills to work in small groups
and preparing a 3-level accompaniment to “Al quebrar la piñata” (The
Piñata Song).
In physical education, Grades 4-6 will be working on developing team
work and communication skills. They will get a chance to practice
those skills through simple games. One of those games is called Team
Handball. It is a modified simple version of the Olympic sport which
involves throwing a ball into a guarded net, past a goalie, without being tagged. In order to do this, students must be able to work together. Grades PK-3 will be starting a unit on jump roping. All activities
are age appropriate and geared towards their current skill level.
Mr. McKee's art room is firing on all cylinders again as students return
from the long break. We have all grade levels finishing projects: Sixth Wire & Plaster Sculpture, Fifth -Styrofoam Printmaking, Fourth - Tangrams, Third - Victorian Architects, Second - College Drawing (a study
of drawing people in different poses), First - Pattern with Elmer the
Elephant, kindergarten - Foreground, Middleground and Background
Landscapes. Pre-K is progressing very well with following directions
and handling the art tools. (A big thanks to the awesome job done
by Mrs. Newton and her aid Mrs. Tracy in prepping these fine young
folks for life in kindergarten). The 4th Grade project, Cars of the Future, has been sent to Mazda in hopes that we hear from them
soon...fingers still crossed! Happy New Year!!!
Student Council’s character trait for the month is “fairness.” January
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each ecosystem. We will then move on to explore Earth’s wonders
through rocks and minerals!
Science 4:
4th Grade Scientists are learning how animals can adapt for survival. We've studied birds' beaks & feet, as well as animal camouflage &
mimicry. We've learned the difference between animals that sleep
deeply in the winter and the animals that hibernate or migrate. We'll
also learn about animals that learn behaviors to help them survive
and, sadly, the animals that didn't adapt and are now extinct.
Social Studies 4:
4th Grade Pennsylvania Cartographers (map makers) are continuing
the study of Pennsylvania's Five Regions. We'll find out how the land
influenced the industry & growth of each region. We'll identify major
cities & landmarks and culminate our study by creating a map of
Pennsylvania as a group project.
Fifth and Sixth Grades:
Fifth and sixth grade language arts classes are continuing their study
of genre in literature, specifically examining the elements of informational text. Students are examining the different types of organization
related to informational text. Students are also continuing to hone
their grammar skills by learning more about parts of speech, context
clues, and base-words/prefixes.
Fifth grade science classes recently completed their unit of plant characteristics. They are now studying earth science processes including
plate tectonics, sea floor spreading, volcanoes, and earthquakes. Sixth
grade science classes are continuing their earth science study of
weathering, erosion, and deposition factors.
Fifth grade is finishing up a unit on writing and solving expressions,
equations, extending patterns, and writing rules. They then will move
on to a unit in geometry. Sixth grade is just beginning a unit on expressions, equations, and inequalities. They will be applying them to
real world problems.
Sixth grade geography class is wrapping up a unit on the eight traits of
culture and then will move on to a unit on Canada and the United
States.
Fifth grade social studies classes are finishing their unit on explorers
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will include “Building Towers,” “Filling Up Cups,” and “Number
Race.” Children will be expected to know all numbers 0 to 20 in random order. They will also be asked to write them numbers in order
from memory.
The end of the marking period will be soon approaching. We will be
assessing for report cards. Be sure and review numbers, counting,
letters, sounds, blending, and high frequency words.
Second Grade:
The Reading Wonders reading program adopted by our District continues to challenge our students. Many more writing opportunities are
a part of the reading program. Our next writing assignment will be an
informative piece giving the directions for how to build a snowman.
We are beginning Unit 3 which is about our Earth. During this unit we
will discover the forces of our Earth while looking at author’s purpose,
similes and action verbs. Clark Wood 2nd Grade will culminate the
unit by creating a paper mache globe that helps us better understand
our 7 continents, 4 oceans, as well as rotation (that gives day and
night) and revolution (that brings us the seasons) and the moon phases. In Math the students are continuing double digit addition and beginning double digit subtraction with and without regrouping. By the
end of February the students should be fairly competent at both procedures. The students continue to develop their fine motor control as
they learn the capital cursive letters. Congratulations to Xander Nunn
our student of the month for January. Xander is a conscientious student that always gives his best.
Third and Fourth Grades: Math:
In third and fourth grade math we are beginning our unit on fractions. Students have gotten vocabulary cards to help them increase
their understanding of the new words in this unit. Please keep studying your math facts!!
Language Arts:
This month we are working on Author's Point of View, Main Idea and
Details, and Sequencing. Our Narrative writing project will be inspired by the cold winter days of January.
Science 3:
3rd grade students are moving on through various ecosystems, and we
will conclude the unit by making brochures “inviting” people to visit
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30 is Student Council’s Favorite Sport Team Day!
Congratulations to fifth grader Taylaur Morgan. Taylaur is our January student of the month!
Clark Wood Elementary School
From the Principal:
I hope you have all enjoyed the Holiday Season. Now that school is
back in we will be making our push towards the PSSA’s. This year the
tests have been changed. We will now be testing based off the Common Core Expectations. The state has also changed how the tests and
testing is organized. Our students in grades 3-6 will be tested in the
area of Reading/Language Arts from April 13-April 16. They will participate in the Mathematics tests from April 21-23. Fourth grade students will be taking the Science examination on April 28 and 29. I
will share more details with you as we get closer to these dates.
I am very proud to announce that on Friday, January 9 seventy-five
students enjoyed ice skating at the Nassir Civic Center in Corning,
New York. They were awarded this trip based off earning a predetermined number of Accelerated Reader points in the months of
October and November. These students worked very hard to obtain
this goal. I am very proud of them and all of our students as they continue to work hard each day.
Thank you to our community for you continued support.
Family Reading Night:
The cold weather couldn’t keep Santa and his elves away from Clark
Wood Elementary’s Family Reading Night on Thursday, December
18. The event had been rescheduled due to bad weather conditions
that had cancelled school the week before. But Santa and his elves are
used to weather conditions like that at the North Pole, and it made
them feel right at home. Santa brought with him 27 special elves from
the elementary student council and sixth grade. While Santa was at
the school, he shared the traditional Twas the Night before Christmas
with the students and their family members that were present. There
were plenty of activities, crafts, and snacks to keep everyone busy
while waiting to see Santa. All children received a book and a special
gift from Santa.
This is the sixteenth year for the program at Clark Wood Elementary. The staff appreciates all the family and community support
that they receive each month. A special thank you is given to all the
student Family Reading Night art helpers that attend each program
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and assist with many activities. Also, a special thank you is given to the
Student Council members who create the monthly display case in the
school lobby. The next Family Reading Night will be on Thursday, January 15, as we “Snuggle Up with a Good Book”.
Clark Wood Home and School Association (HSA):
Clark Wood HSA thanks everyone for the support of our giftcard fundraiser. Keep saving box tops for our next contest and movie
night. We will be selling Gertrude Hawk Easter candy soon. Sixth
graders voted on a cover, and the committee is hard at work putting
together the yearbook. We are planning a winter fun night in January,
watch for more details! If you would like more information on meetings or activities please contact [email protected] or [email protected].
Clark Wood Positive Behavior Program:
As we enter into the spring semester we are focusing on reteaching the positive expectations of our school. On January 7-9 members of the School Wide Positive Behavior team spent time with each
grade level reviewing specific areas of expectation with our students.
We our also implementing our “We Our Proud” campaign. This program with emphasize our students self-worth and good decision making. We are very proud of our students, families, staff, and community.
Memebers of our team along with some new members will receive training in February on alternative methods of recognizing and
supporting students whom have difficulties in a variety of behavioral
areas. This new team will specifically target areas of high concern within our building and Clark Wood community.
Please continue to stress with your children and any children in
our community our core values:
Respect Everyone
Act Safely
Make Responsible Choices
Show Pride
Early Dismissal
Monday, January 19:
No School
Thursday, February 5:
Kindergarten Field Trip (Clemens Center)
Thursday, February 12:
Family Reading Night 6-7:30 PM
Friday February 13:
Early Dismissal
Friday February 20:
Clark Wood Chorus (Jackal’s Game)
Tuesday, February 24:
End of Second Marking Period
Classroom News:
Special Areas:
Thanksgiving is a time of tradition. The annual custom continues at
Clark Wood as Mrs. K. Butler’s Life Skills class arranged another
Thanksgiving Feast to share with family and staff this year. The students experienced planning, preparation, and participation in the process of putting on the entire diner for invited guest and faculty members
to show thanks for what others do for them. Aside from the functional
learning skills of cooking, baking, table preparation, and cleanup, students gained an opportunity to apply social skills throughout the project.
Thank you goes out to the Osceola Big M for donating turkeys to the
children for the occasion. Along with classroom aides Mrs. Tammy
Marzo and Mrs. Amanda Kerr, and Speech teacher Mrs. Tammy Stilts,
Mrs. Karen Butler wishes to thank everyone at Clark Wood for their
amazing support of the Life Skills class.
Kindergarten:
For more information about our School Wide Positive Behavior Program please contact Jess Millard or Susan VanPelt at (814)258-5131.
Thank you for your continued support of our programs here at Clark
Wood.
Upcoming Events:
Thursday, January 15:
Friday, January 16:
Family Reading Night 6-7:30 PM
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In our “Wonders” Reading program, our class will be focusing on plants
and what they need in order to grow, such as water and food. Children
will read stories about gardens, and how living things, such as trees,
change as they grow. Children will learn to name the parts of a tree,
such as the trunk, bark, branches, leaves, and roots. We will also read
stories about the kinds of fresh foods that are grown on a farm. We will
be identifying different kinds of fruits and vegetables.
In our math lessons, we will focus on numbers in the teens. We are will
count and write numbers to twenty. Many of our activities focus on
looking at number lines and ordering numbers. Some of our games
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