Parents invited to join teachers for ‘curriculum day’ excursion

Parents, please note: No classes will be held Oct. 5 at local public schools.

That day is designated “Curriculum Day,” the first of the school year’s professional development days for teachers and staffers.

All Idaho public schools observe the in-service training day.

In the Lakeland School District parents are invited to join teachers on that day for morning-long visits to Kootenai County businesses and industries.

“Connecting the Classroom to the Workplace” gives participants up close introductions to a dozen professional career “clusters.”

People will divide into groups to tour two or three businesses within the 12 professional groups, said Brad Murray, an assistant superintendent.

The 12 groups are agriculture, food and natural resources; arts, audio-video technology and communications; finance, marketing, sales and service; hospitality and tourism; architecture and construction; information technology; manufacturing; science, technology, engineering and mathematics; transportation, distribution and logistics; health sciences; government and public administration; and the law, public safety and security.”We’ll visit businesses throughout Kootenai County, from Silverwood Theme Park to Jacklin Seed,” Murray said.

“I think including parents in these tours will be a tremendous advantage to educate them about the opportunities that do exist locally for their kids and our graduates,” Murray said. “I think parents can help students make (career) decisions.”

This is the second year the program has been offered.

It is organized primarily by the Post Falls Chamber of Commerce.

“This is a wonderful activity,” Murray said. “Teachers have an opportunity to get out and visit with businesses. And they share with kids, so it has high impact.

“We want to reinforce the fact that kids need to be (academically) prepared no matter what they do after high school,” Murray said.

The Speakers Bureau, a collaboration between business professionals and Lakeland schools, was born out of last year’s tour.

The bureau consists of scores of career people working in a range of jobs who are willing to make classroom presentations. Some even encourage job shadowing and student internships.To be included in next Friday’s tours, call Murray at 687-0431 or send e-mail to bmurray@lakeland272.org.

Betty Keifer staging ‘Christmas Carol’

Ebenezer Scrooge, Bob Cratchit and Tiny Tim soon will be haunting the halls of Betty Keifer Elementary School.

They’ll be practicing after school for a Dec. 7 benefit performance of “A Christmas Carol” to be staged at Lakeland High School.

Sixty children will make up the cast and crew, said Fred Meckle, who volunteered to direct the performance, the first of its kind by the school’s pupils.

Music teacher Jimmy Morrison and kindergarten teacher Tamara Shanklin will help direct the cast.

Admission will be canned goods, which will be given to Rathdrum’s food bank.

Post Falls High homecoming Friday

There’s a chill in the air, which means it’s time for football.

Post Falls High School will hold its homecoming game Friday evening when it takes on Lakeland High School.

You’ll want to show up early for school-sponsored tailgating outside the football field.

High school students from various clubs will man booths offering bratwurst, hamburgers, hot dogs and cotton candy. Cheerleaders will fire up your school spirit at a pep rally, said Mike Dornquast, senior class president.

Some booths will carry fan accessories such as pompoms and giant black and orange foam fingers.

“We really hope the community and our students will show up and show their support,” Dornquast said.

A semiformal homecoming dance will follow the game.

Cross country popular sport at Ponderosa

A cross country running program, which began four years ago at Post Falls’ Ponderosa Elementary School, has become exceptionally popular with the kids.

Jim Wyatt, the school’s physical education teacher, said 172 boys and girls in first through fifth grades have participated in the fall sport, which lasts about a month and ends in mid-October.

That’s up from only two pupils who ran the first year when the school offered cross country, he said.

Ponderosa has the biggest team among the district’s four elementary schools.

Students in first through third grades run a half-mile course; fourth- and fifth-graders run a mile.

But before they go all out, they stretch and do warm-up drills together, Wyatt said. Emphasizing these important pre-race activities gives the children a healthful foundation should they pursue the sport.

However, more important is getting students together to connect with their peers, exercise and have fun, Wyatt said.

“We’re just out here to have a good time. I don’t care if you can’t make it around the course,” Wyatt said of his coaching philosophy.

The Ponderosa team will participate in three meets, which all will begin at 4 p.m.

The first will be today when Ponderosa takes on Mullan Trail Elementary School at Ponderosa. Next Thursday, it will be Ponderosa vs. Seltice Elementary School at Ponderosa. On Oct. 11, the districtwide elementary meet will be held at Post Falls High School.