Area high school dance teams qualify for districts

Area dance teams competed in the 2014 Shadle Park Dance Invitational on Saturday.

The event included dance teams from Mt. Spokane, Shadle Park, West Valley, Ferris, Rogers, North Central, Lewis and Clark, and Mead high schools, and was a qualifier for districts. Dance teams from Mt. Spokane, Shadle, Ferris, Rogers and West Valley qualified for district competition.

In the Pom division, Lewis and Clark took home second place and West Valley placed fourth. In the Military division, LC won second place and West Valley received third. In the Hip-Hop division, Mt. Spokane placed second and Rogers third. In the Novice Drill Downs, Ocie Tarver won first place, Victoria Caroll took second and Megan Keppler was awarded third place. All three dancers are from Shadle. In the Advanced Drill Downs Rakel Tangvold, Ferris, received third place.

Call-in Q-and-A with school officials

Community members will have the opportunity to have their questions answered about Spokane Public Schools when “Educating Spokane” airs tonight at 7:30 on KSPS channel 7.

School board President Jeff Bierman, board members Deana Brower and Rocky Treppiedi, and Spokane Public Schools Superintendent Shelley Redinger will respond to comments and questions from the public.

Listeners may text or call (509) 354-7711 or email es@ksps.org to ask a question.

Kindergarten registration starts

Spokane Public Schools will begin registering students for kindergarten Monday.

To attend kindergarten, students must be 5 on or before Aug. 31. Families can register at their neighborhood elementary school from 8:15 a.m. to 3:45 p.m. on school days. Families in the Finch neighborhood should go to Camp Finch, 6104 N. Moore St., behind the new Westview Elementary.

The school district uses a lottery system to enroll students in kindergarten. By June 1, principals will select kindergarten placements. Priority will be given to children of full-time certificated and classified school employees and children with siblings already attending the requested school. If there are more students requesting a spot at a particular school than there are seats, a wait list will be created.

Orientations planned for APPLE program

Spokane Public Schools will host orientation meetings for parents interested in enrolling their children in Spokane Public Schools’ APPLE program on Monday or March 10 at 7 p.m. in the first-floor boardrooms of the administrative office, 200 N. Bernard St.

The APPLE – Alternative Parent Participation Learning Experience – program was developed for families who would like to be more involved in their child’s education. Parents have a consistent presence in the classroom, providing children with an opportunity to build confidence with adults. The program includes multiage groupings, which allows for more individuality and encourages cooperative learning between children of different ages. The APPLE program is offered at Garfield Elementary School, 222 W. Knox Ave., and Franklin Elementary School, 2627 E. 17th Ave.

The program is for first- through sixth-graders.

For information, call (509) 354-5966.