Third graders in Noele Mead’s classroom at McKay Creek Elementary recently worked on a project combining reading, writing, and a little bit of science. The students had to choose an animal to read about and research and then write about the animal.
On the wall outside Mead’s classroom are the resulting reports created by her students, with animals ranging from a koala to a Gila Monster to ocean creatures.
Third grader Gwen said she read and wrote about the Blue Marlin, one of the largest, fastest, and most recognizable fish in the world due to the long bill that grows from the front of its head. Gwen said she chose the marlin because her teacher said to pick an animal, probably nobody else would, so she searched in the fish category. Gwen discovered a Blue Marlin could weigh over 1,800 pounds and live in the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific oceans.
A main part of the assignment was to research adaptations of the animal you chose. Andrew, a third grader, said, “An adaptation is one of their special body parts that helps them survive.”
The sharp, spear-like nose on the Blue Marlin is an adaptation that helps it catch its prey, and it’s also a very fast swimmer, Gwen said.
Andrew chose to report on the King Cobra since he likes snakes. He said he learned that the hood of the snake, an expansion of their neck skin, makes it look threatening, and the snake’s bite can kill an elephant. It lives in forests and deserts and eats rats, squirrels, and frogs. The King Cobra’s adaptation is its threatening hood, and one type of cobra can spit venom into a predator’s eyes.
Both students explained that after reading about their animals, they completed pre-writes of their report, which their teacher reviewed and edited to be ready for publishing. Mead, their teacher, said the process of reading a variety of information, in addition to incorporating what they already know, helps them determine the most important items to include in the report. “This is a skill students need to develop that will help them be successful for future third grade lessons, but also as they progress through school,” Mead said.
In addition to their own animals, Andrew said he liked fellow student Noah’s report on the beaver, because he is a big Oregon State University Beavers fan and he also liked the Glass Frog. Gwen said she liked the report on the Gila Monster.
“In this project, I liked learning more about the Blue Marlin,” Gwen said. Would she want to see one in the ocean? Yes, she said, but “I would like to have a safe distance from it.”
ELD Program Winter Celebrations Event
/in News - District & All Schools /by rthornburgThe Pendleton School District welcomed students in its ELD (English Language Development) Program to a family event on Thursday, December 14th, at the Pendleton Early Learning Center. The theme of the evening event was Winter Celebrations Around the World.
Former and current students and their families were invited. A variety of arts and crafts were set up at different tables in the PELC’s Commons, with activities from different countries. Activities included making a holiday card for England, lanterns and fortune cookies for China, a Hanukkah dreidel for Israel, mini pinatas for Mexico, and gingerbread house cookie decorating for Germany.
High School students in the ELD Program volunteered at the event, helping at the tables. Jaylene, a sophomore at Pendleton High School, was volunteering at the event “just because it’s really fun to help the kids do fun crafts.” She was helping with the gingerbread cookie decorating and said she was enjoying looking at everyone’s ways of decorating their house cookies because they were all very unique.
Auna Alferez attended the event with her two daughters, who are in third and fourth grade. She said her children like to come to family events like these. Asked what their favorite part of the night was, her two girls said, “Everything!”
According to Cary Wasem-Varela, ELD Teacher, the events the program staff previously organized were not very well attended, so they started talking to the parents. “We found out they didn’t want to come to events to fill out paperwork or be asked to serve on committees. They enjoy socializing and getting together, so we feel like we really succeeded with this arts and crafts winter event where they can have fun as a family.”
Julie Smith, Director of Special Programs for the Pendleton School District, said one of the goals at the event is for ELD staff to circulate and talk with parents and families. “Our bilingual educators help bridge the language gap so parents can share their thoughts about our program. The staff try to talk to as many families as they can to gather information on what is working well and how we can improve our programs,” Smith said.
About 115 students are currently enrolled in the Pendleton School District’s ELD Program, and they are K-12 students from all of the district’s schools.
PHS Leadership Organizes Canned Food Drive
/in News - District & All Schools /by rthornburgDistrict Food Drive Aims High to Help Community
All schools in the Pendleton School District worked hard for their community this holiday season through the district-wide Annual Food Drive. Organized by Leadership Class students at Pendleton High School, this annual effort collects non-perishable food items from schools across the district.
According to Lea, PHS Senior and Chair of the Food Drive Committee, the goal of this year’s drive is to collect more than 2,000 food items. At the high school, students have donated food items in their Advisory class, and leadership students have kept track of which class has given the most. There are two categories that can win prizes.
PHS students recently traveled to the other schools in the district to pick up those donations.
Lea said the drive has gone well. “I like that this project helps people in our community, and I like being part of that. I also think students feel good when they can help someone less fortunate,” she said.
PHS brought in more than 2,800 cans of food. The expected total for the Food Drive is more than 8,000 cans. The food will be given to St. Mary’s Outreach and Salvation Army in Pendleton.
November is National Native American Heritage Month
/in News - District & All Schools /by rthornburgFall Parent/Teacher Conferences
/in News - District & All Schools /by rthornburgParent/Teacher conferences will be held on November 20 & 21, 2023. Please contact your student’s school if you have questions.
K-5
Monday, Nov 20: 4 – 8 pm
Tuesday, Nov 21: 7:30 am – 7:00 pm
SMS
Monday, Nov 20: 4 – 8 pm
Tuesday, Nov 21: 7:30 am – 1 pm, 2 – 7 pm
PHS
Monday, Nov 20: 4 – 8 pm (commons)
Tuesday, Nov 21: 7:30 am – 1 pm (virtual), 2 – 4 pm (virtual), 4 – 7 pm (commons)
Outdoor School Transitions from 6th to 5th Grade
/in News - District & All Schools /by rthornburgPendleton School District’s Outdoor School (ODS) program recently encountered a big change. This is the last year that sixth graders from Sunridge Middle School will attend ODS. For several weeks last month (October), this year’s sixth graders attended the program. While ODS is usually run in the spring, the middle school had sixth graders attend this fall, as all fifth graders in the district will be attending in Spring 2024.
The district transition from having all fifth graders attend this traditional program instead of sixth graders was done for various reasons. The spring schedule conflicted with the testing schedule for sixth graders at SMS; also, many substitute teachers were needed for long periods of time.
The same curriculum and model, where students rotate to different stations around the outdoor camp, will be used for the fifth-grade Outdoor School program.
“Our sixth graders had a great time this fall at Outdoor School. We are excited to continue the program since it is a longstanding tradition for PSD, and we know our fifth graders will really enjoy the experience,” said John Summerfield, SMS Social Studies Teacher and ODS Coordinator.
Pendleton School District’s Outdoor School has been running for 52 years. It is held at the U.S. Forest Service’s Buck Creek Cabins/Corporation facility on the Umatilla National Forest, on the banks of the Umatilla River. Students are bused to the site every day and spend the day in field studies to learn about natural habitats and outdoor skills. The field studies are taught by federal, state, and local natural resource employees and volunteers from the region.
New Faces in Pendleton SD – Lindsee Hancock
/in District Site News, McKay Creek School News /by rthornburgThe Pendleton School District is happy to feature new PSD teachers.
First Student Safety Stand-Down Week
/in News - District & All Schools /by rthornburgFirst Student, LLC., the transportation company Pendleton School District contracts with to bus students, is increasing its focus on safety with a Safety Stand-Down Week from October 25-31. This is a special event in which company leaders pause to talk directly to employees about safety and provide education and training on specific safety topics.
According to materials from First Student, the company is having the event because “we have a responsibility to learn from recent safety incidents and ensure they do not happen again by reinforcing fundamental safety principles.”
Stand-Down Week will focus on three key areas: Manage Distractions, Focus on the Task at Hand, and Apply Your Training. Some of the safety practices being re-emphasized for bus drivers are:
According to Patrick Phillips, Location Manager for First Student, the Pendleton location employees will be able to sign Safety Pledges, watch reminder videos, and get daily reminder posts during the event. First Student will also be running special safety radio messages. “The Safety Stand-Down is an opportunity for our company to reiterate to employees to get back to the basics of safety,” Phillips said.
Matt Yoshioka, Director of Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment at Pendleton School District, said the district is pleased that First Student has organized Stand-Down Week to re-focus on safety. “Student safety while being transported to and from school is a top priority for First Student and our district, just as keeping students safe at school is,” Yoshioka said.
3rd Grade Animal Adaptation Project at McKay Elementary
/in District Site News, McKay Creek School News /by rthornburgThird graders in Noele Mead’s classroom at McKay Creek Elementary recently worked on a project combining reading, writing, and a little bit of science. The students had to choose an animal to read about and research and then write about the animal.
On the wall outside Mead’s classroom are the resulting reports created by her students, with animals ranging from a koala to a Gila Monster to ocean creatures.
Third grader Gwen said she read and wrote about the Blue Marlin, one of the largest, fastest, and most recognizable fish in the world due to the long bill that grows from the front of its head. Gwen said she chose the marlin because her teacher said to pick an animal, probably nobody else would, so she searched in the fish category. Gwen discovered a Blue Marlin could weigh over 1,800 pounds and live in the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific oceans.
A main part of the assignment was to research adaptations of the animal you chose. Andrew, a third grader, said, “An adaptation is one of their special body parts that helps them survive.”
The sharp, spear-like nose on the Blue Marlin is an adaptation that helps it catch its prey, and it’s also a very fast swimmer, Gwen said.
Andrew chose to report on the King Cobra since he likes snakes. He said he learned that the hood of the snake, an expansion of their neck skin, makes it look threatening, and the snake’s bite can kill an elephant. It lives in forests and deserts and eats rats, squirrels, and frogs. The King Cobra’s adaptation is its threatening hood, and one type of cobra can spit venom into a predator’s eyes.
Both students explained that after reading about their animals, they completed pre-writes of their report, which their teacher reviewed and edited to be ready for publishing. Mead, their teacher, said the process of reading a variety of information, in addition to incorporating what they already know, helps them determine the most important items to include in the report. “This is a skill students need to develop that will help them be successful for future third grade lessons, but also as they progress through school,” Mead said.
In addition to their own animals, Andrew said he liked fellow student Noah’s report on the beaver, because he is a big Oregon State University Beavers fan and he also liked the Glass Frog. Gwen said she liked the report on the Gila Monster.
“In this project, I liked learning more about the Blue Marlin,” Gwen said. Would she want to see one in the ocean? Yes, she said, but “I would like to have a safe distance from it.”
Superintendent Video Message – September 29, 2023
/in News - District & All Schools /by rthornburgStart of the 2023-24 School Year
Live Broadcast of PHS Football Games
/in News - District & All Schools /by rthornburgExciting news for PHS football! EOA Network will be broadcasting PHS football games this year, and they are starting tonight, September 1, 2023. You can stream the games on the following platforms:
EOAlive.TV
https://www.facebook.com/EOAliveTV
https://www.youtube.com/eoalivetv
GO BUCKS!!!!