Education Notebook: Students read Dr. Seuss classics for birthday celebration
Kay Bryant, of Spokane Valley Rotary, had no problem gaining the attention of the children Monday in Althea Erbeznik’s first-grade class at Ness Elementary School.
Bryant was reading the Dr. Seuss classic, “Horton Hatches the Egg,” as part of the school’s celebration of Dr. Seuss’ birthday and the annual delivery of books donated by Rotary.
A total of 2,574 books – costing $7,692 – were delivered to Broadway, Ness, Trent, Trentwood, Orchard Center and Opportunity elementary schools.
“We pick two schools in each Valley school district,” said Bryant, who started the book program in 2010 at Broadway Elementary School.
She said she was inspired to start the program after watching a mom tell her children that she couldn’t afford a book from a school book fair.
“Everybody should be able to have a book,” Bryant said.
Bryant and other members of Spokane Valley Rotary arranged the books by grade level on tables for the kids to select.
The children were very engaged in the tale of Horton the elephant, who ends up roosting on an egg in a tree for 51 weeks while doing Mayzie the bird a favor.
“I told them they were in for a treat,” Erbeznik said. “Kay is just such a great reader.”
Teams to face off in robotics competition
Teams of students from high schools across Washington and Oregon will meet at West Valley High School on Friday and Saturday for the Pacific Northwest FIRST Robotics competition.
The public is invited to watch the competition, which kicks off Friday with opening ceremonies at 10:30 a.m. and qualifying matches at 10:45 a.m. The second day of competition begins with opening ceremonies at 8:30 a.m., with qualifying matches beginning at 9 a.m. Final rounds begin at 11:30 a.m., and the awards ceremony is at 2 p.m.
FIRST Robotics encourages students to pursue careers in science and technology through activities that involve both technology and sports. The competition will be held at West Valley High School, 8301 E. Buckeye Ave.
STEAM staff earns STEM award, grant
On Monday, the East Farms STEAM Magnet staff will receive the STEM Lighthouse award and grant from the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction during an assembly at the school.
East Farms will receive $20,000, a banner and a plaque. The school is one of six state schools to receive this award for its work in STEM education, which focuses on science, technology, engineering and mathematics. The STEAM program adds art to the mix.
The assembly will be 2:40 p.m. in the East Farms gym, 26203 E. Rowan Ave., Newman Lake.
‘Insane with Power’ to open at EVHS
East Valley High School’s production of “Insane with Power” premieres Wednesday at 7 p.m.
The play follows reporter Lois Lancaster as she interviews a group of inmates who believe they are superheroes. Lancaster thinks these fantasies are just delusions until something unusual happens that makes her question this thought.
The play stars Emma Hedemark as Lois Lancaster, Connor Reidlinger as Dim Bulb, Krystabel DeFeo as Mental, Braden Jolstead as Kevin, Nathan Jolstead as Speed Freak and Grace Connine as Dr. Eisner.
“Insane with Power” will be at the school, 15711 E. Wellesley Ave., at 7 p.m. Wednesday and Friday, and 3 p.m. Thursday. Tickets are $2 for students with EVHS ASB cards, $3 for senior citizens and $5 for adults.
Mt. Spokane dance team on to districts
The Mt. Spokane High School dance team recently competed at the Shadle Park High School dance team competition and qualified for districts.
The team took third place in the hip-hop and pom divisions with scores of 214 and 221.8 respectively, which qualified the team for districts.
Districts will be March 14 at Lewis and Clark High School, 521 W. Fourth Ave. To qualify for the state competition, the Mt. Spokane dance team will need a score of 210 or higher at districts.
Northwest Christian on target for goal
Following a variety of fundraisers, including making a donation to wear pajamas to school, buying chili, collecting change during a “Fill the Boot” campaign, and Pie in the Face and Duct Tape a Teacher events, Northwest Christian students, preschool through eighth grade, were on target to reach their goal of raising $3,750 for Generation Alive’s Something to Eat initiative.
The Something to Eat campaign sends low-cost nutritional meals to people in need.
The money raised purchased meal packets to be donated to Second Harvest Food Bank, which students assembled on Feb. 27. The packets should feed an estimated 15,000 people.
Four seniors named scholar candidates
Four area high school seniors have been named candidates for the 2015 U.S. Presidential Scholars Program.
They are Tim Ngo, East Valley; Jackson Spencer, Cheney; and Jordan Roth and Mia Sanchez, John R. Rogers High School,
The students join 3,900 candidates who were selected for performances on either the SAT or ACT, essays, self-assessments, activities, school recommendations and transcripts. Next month, a panel of educators will narrow the 3,900 candidates to a group of 560 semifinalists.
The Commission on Presidential Scholars, a group of 32 appointed by President Barack Obama, will make the final selection of scholars in May. These students will be invited to Washington, D.C., to receive the Presidential Scholars Medallion and participate in a variety of events and activities.
East Valley schools team up for biz plan
East Valley High School’s Future Business Leaders of America chapter recently teamed up with the East Valley Middle School seventh-grade engineering class. The engineering students were told to create a business plan, a sales pitch, a logo and a company name for an invention of their own design.
After two weeks, students set up a trade fair during lunch periods. Middle school students were given two tickets to give to their favorite invention.
The top three inventions received $80 in gift cards from local businesses. FBLA also teamed up with local production companies Altek and MINDS-i, which agreed to produce a prototype of the winning invention. The first place invention was the Cord Catcher, which helped rid curling iron cords of tangles. The Pooper Scooper, a dog poop collector, took second place, while the Air Bear, an air filtering teddy bear for children with breathing problems, placed third.