The third grade at Whitehall Elementary School
celebrated Dr. Seuss' birthday by reading during
the annual "Read Across America Day".
Miss Truver's class started the day by wearing
a crazy hat just like the one worn in The Cat in
the Hat. They also made The Cat in the Hat necklaces.
The children were visited by readers from Harrison
Middle School. Each child took turns reading from
their favorite Dr. Seuss book. Later in the afternoon,
the entire third grade gathered to read the story,
One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish, as a group.
The day ended as students in Miss Truver's room
signed an oath to read each day and received a
certificate for participating in "Read Across
America Day.”
Posted
4/9/05
BHS
- CPR and AED Trained Students
Over the past three years, over one hundred
Baldwin High students have been Red Cross certified
in CPR (Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation) for Professional
Rescuers. These skills are offered in the Lifeguarding
Class for tenth through twelfth grade students.
In addition, these students have been trained in
first aid and to use an AED (Automated External
Defibrillator). The high school currently has three
units, located in the gym lobby, auditorium lobby,
and the stadium. Promptly using an AED greatly
increases the chances of survival among cardiac
arrest victims. It is truly reassuring to know
that there are responsible students throughout
the high school building to aid serious, life threatening
conditions that could occur to staff or fellow
students.
Posted
4/9/05
WES
-Geode Sightings
Geode sightings took place for Whitehall Elementary
third grade students. A geode is a rounded irregularly
shaped mass of stone having a cavity lined with
crystals or mineral matter. Thanks to a visit by
Jeff "The Geode Guy" Smith, students
were able to take part in an adventure unlike any
other. Mr. Smith is an actual geologist who travels
annually to a small town in Mexico to gather
geodes.Because he records these trips on videotape as well as
film, students are able to get a first hand account of exactly
where geodes are mined. Mr. Smith's journey begins at his front
door. He and his family pack up for a five - day excursion to
Mexico, where they stay as guests of the ranch owners. But reaching
such a remote spot takes some time and effort. There is a full
day of travel each way, starting with an airplane ride to Texas,
and ending up in a pickup truck on a desolate stretch of road.
From there, the actual ranch is toured and then the highly anticipated
trip to the mine occurs. Students were actually able to see all
of this thanks to Mr. Smith's photos and video clips.
The visit ended with Mr. Smith actually splitting geodes in front
of the students! Because each geode is unique, no one is ever
certain what it will look like on the inside until it is actually
opened.Students eagerly awaited a turn to see these geodes split
up close. It was a truly memorable ending to a spectacular show.
Posted
4/9/05
BHS
- German Visit
Samantha Moik, a 2004 graduate, returned to
Baldwin High to speak with Frau Russman’s
German classes. Samantha was one of the students
who had traveled to Germany and Austria in July
2004 with Frau Russman (Baldwin High School German
Teacher) and Herr. Hindman (Harrison Middle School
German Teacher). She shared her pictures and memories
from this trip with students currently studying
German.
Posted
4/9/05
MES
- Construct-A-Tale
Students from McAnnulty Elementary School had
the opportunity to discover the magic of theater
storytelling through a presentation of Construct-A-Tale
presented by Tim Hartman. Construct-A-Tale, one
of many exciting Tim Hartman programs offered by
the Children's Museum of Pittsburgh, teaches students
about the three building blocks of a great story:
character, conflict and setting. Using examples
from folk tales from around the world, Tim enthusiastically
shared his skills as actor, comedian, singer and
storyteller. He embellished his performance with
input from the audience, keeping students thoroughly
entertained as they recognize the key to clear
expression.
Posted
4/9/05
HMS
- Harrison Readers
Harrison Middle School students traveled to
Whitehall, Paynter, and McAnnulty Elementary Schools
on Read Across America Day. Celebrating the birthday
of Dr. Suess, the students promoted their love
of reading by reading books to the younger students.
The seventh and eighth grade readers were selected
by their teachers, Mrs. Himes and Mr. Shaner.
Posted
4/9/05
PES
- Kindergarten Registration
Kindergarten Registration was held at Paynter
Elementary on March 14th. Parents met with the principals,
social worker and nurse while registering their child
to attend kindergarten in fall of 2005. Current kindergarten
teachers were on hand to give entering students a
developmentally appropriate test to assess abilities.
Posted
4/9/05
PES
- Kinesthetic Activity
Radius
Right Angle
During their Geometry Unit, Ms. Collett's fifth
grade students were able to do some kinesthetic activities
using their bodies to make cool shapes. This helped
the students remember the shapes and their definitions.
When they completed the chapter, pictures were taken
and put together to make a power point presentation.
Posted
4/20/05
HMS
- New York City Trip
Harrison Middle School Musical Theater - cast,
crew, and pit orchestra - traveled to New York City
recently. The ninety-seven students and parents saw
many exciting things, including the musicals All
Shook Up and Hairspray. Sightseeing included a visit
to Ground Zero, the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island,
the Empire State Building, shopping in China Town,
and fantastic food in Little Italy.
Posted
4/20/05
PES
- Families and Reading Month
Kindergarten students at Paynter Elementary took
part in the Keystone State Reading Association and
Governor Rendell’s “Families and Reading
Month.” Mrs. Mervos, a kindergarten teacher,
invited parents and grandparents of her students
to read to her class.
Posted
4/20/05
PES
- Figurative Language
Break
a leg
Two
heads are better than one
While preparing for their figurative language
lessons, Ms. Collett's fifth grade students learned
about idioms, similes, metaphors, hyperboles, personification,
alliteration, and onomatopoeia. The students chose
one of these and then acted it out.
Posted
4/20/05
BHS
- Bowl-A-Thon for Cystic Fibrosis
The Key Club (Kiwanis Educating Youth) sponsored
a Bowl-A-Thon for Cystic Fibrosis on March 13. Fifty-one
Baldwin High School students participated and $1,540
was raised for this cause. Special thanks are extended
to Princess Lanes, the Baldwin Kiwanis Club, all
faculty who made donations, and the students who
participated.
Posted
4/20/05
PES
- Chicken Hatching
The students in Mr. Pascarella’s third grade
class at Paynter Elementary were excited about recent
chicken hatching. This year, they were able to get
all of the materials from Penn State Extension and
along with Mr. Pascarella’s student teacher,
Ms. Barr, the chicks successfully hatched on April
22, with another lone chick hatching the next day.
That made an amazing 18 chicks out of 19 incubated
eggs!
Posted
4/25/05
WES
- Building Terrariums
At Whitehall Elementary, Miss Tomcik's fifth grade
students are excited about their science unit on
Ecosystems. The students are building terrariums
in which they are going to fill with soil and grow
plants. After their plants are grown, they will add
crickets and potato bugs. During the second part
of this unit, the students will create an aquarium
with fish, snails, and interesting, water plants.
Next, they will combine both to make an ecocolumn.
They will observe the effects that both environments
have on each other.
Posted
4/25/05
BHS
- Craft Contest
Pat Catans Craft Center at Curry Hollow Shopping
Center sponsored a craft contest for area high schools.
Baldwin High School teachers Mrs. Rebecca Brennfleck
and Mrs. Ginny Pfatteicher, and students Lisa Finocchi,
Melissa Joseph, Krystal Finkbeiner, and Janey Lewis
participated in the 1 1/2 hour timed event. Each
school was given the same supplies and a ten dollar
in-store credit to buy any other supplies needed.
The theme was "Mascot" and Baldwin's theme
was a Crafter's Angel Mascot.
Posted
4/30/05
PES
- Writing Project
Students in Mrs. Gayle Hoover's
class participated in a writing project that
was tied to an immigration unit for fourth
and fifth grade English Language Learners.
The students learned about different groups
of immigrants who came to America throughout
history and the reasons why they came. They
also learned how, in the past, America was
called a 'melting pot' because immigrants
were expected to leave their culture and
traditions behind and assimilate into American
culture. Students reflected upon whether
they thought America today was a 'melting
pot' or a 'salad bowl' in which immigrants
from many countries are encouraged to
retain their culture
and traditions, creating an enriching, diverse
country. The writing project was the culminating
activity in the unit. The students were invited
to read their essays at the April PTA meeting at
Paynter School and for the Project Liberty meeting.
Posted
4/30/05
HMS
- Pig Kissing for Charity
Harrison Middle School's leadership program hosted
a students versusteachers basketball game to raise
money for the Highmark Caring Place, the Special
Olympics, and the upcoming Police and EMT Community
Picnic. During the week prior to the game, students
had the opportunity to bid on which teacher they
wanted to kiss a pig at halftime and raised over
$400 for the Caring Place. The winner was seventh-grade
teacher Mr. Brian Paulos. Mrs. Charmaine Baughman
was first runner-up and had the opportunity to kiss
a piglet. The basketball game concluded with the
teachers victorious over the students with a score
of 103 -74 and over $600 raised in ticket sales.
Posted
4/30/05
BHS
- Bridges Presentations
Students in Ms. Pazo’s geometry classes
were assigned a bridge to research. Their goal was
to create a quadratic equation that modeled the parabolic
curve of the bridge. They also had to find when the
bridge was built, if there were any challenges the
architects or engineers faced, how long it took to
complete the bridge, how many cars use the bridge
per week or year, and if there were any interesting
or fun facts. They had one day in the computer lab,
one day looking at books and three days to prepare
their posters. They presented their information in
front of the class and fielded questions.
Posted
4/30/05
PES
- George Washington CLO Assembly
The Pittsburgh CLO Gallery of Heroes is an ensemble
of actors who use musical theater to present a 50
minute mini-musical to area schools. Paynter Elementary
was lucky to have the group present the new musical,Young
Washington, on April 25. Young Washington explores
George Washington's early life and surprising rise
to power.
Posted
4/30/05
PES
- Kindergarten Appreciation Celebration
Paynter Elementary kindergarten classes joined
in for snack time on a special day. To celebrate
National Kindergarten Day on April 21, students brought
snacks to share and sit with their friends in the
cafeteria. Friedrich Froebel was known as the “Father
of Kindergarten” because he developed the first
kindergarten in Germany in 1837. His ideas were that
children need to have play time in order to learn,
and that kindergarten should be a place for children
to grow and learn through their social interaction
with other children.
Posted
4/30/05
PES
- Organism Science Module
Students in Mr. Smith's and Mrs. Rau’s first
grade classes at Paynter Elementary recently completed
the ASSET Organism Science module. Using a magnifying
glass, each student had the opportunity to observe
up close the differences and similarities of two
freshwater plants, Elodea and Cobomba.
Posted
4/30/05
WES
- Passport to Reading
Why just "Read Across America" when
you can Read Across the World? As a storyteller,
Mrs. Adley brings this philosophy with her as she
implements her "Passport to Reading" program
with the fifth grade students of Mrs. Ridge. So far,
the students have traveled to Ireland, the Ukraine,
Ancient Greece, and most recently, China. The journeys
have included games and activities, food native to
the cultures, brief history lessons, and most importantly,
rich literature shared by their favorite storyteller.
Each child has their own passport to keep track of
their literature travels.
Posted
4/30/05
HMS
- Riverhound Presentation
Three members of the Pittsburgh Riverhounds Professional
Soccer Team came to Harrison Middle School to speak
with the seventh graders about drug and alcohol prevention.
Ryan Bradley, goal keeper; Greg Victor, forward/midfield;
and John Liersemann, outside midfielder talked about
the importance of a healthy lifestyle and making
positive choices.
Posted
4/30/05
HMS
- Mock Teen Center
Harrison Middle School sponsored its second annual
Mock Teen Center for the incoming sixth grade students.
Students from both Whitehall and Paynter had an opportunity
to mingle and engage in some of the activities that
they will encounter at Harrison's Teen Center. Activities
ranged from students dancing to playing bingo. Harrison's
leadership students, along with parents and staff
members, offered support by monitoring the various
activity centers.
Posted
4/30/05
HMS
- April Teen Center
The month of April marked this school year’s
last Teen Center at Harrison Middle School. Approximately
650 students attended this monthly event and engaged
in various activities ranging from Inflatable Games
to playing basketball. Once again, this evening was
a successful event.
Posted
4/30/05
PES
- Structures of Life
At Paynter Elementary, the third grade classes
of Mrs. Pollack and Mrs. Knerr worked together on
the Asset Science unit - Structures of Life. Using
cucumbers, green peppers, apples, and green beans,
the students identified the name of the fruit or
vegetable, counted the seeds, listed properties of
the seeds such as color and shape, and glued a sample
of the seed onto a chart.
Posted
4/30/05
BHS
- Wire Man
Josh Lippert, a Baldwin High
School junior created a life-size wire man
in his art class. The wire man is seated
on a chair, posed as if in deep thought.
Under the direction of his art teacher, Mrs.
Jane Riccardi, Josh has sent out forms and
slips of paper to all English classes at
the high school, so that students can write
their thoughts and feelings on these slips
of paper. He has also given these to all
staff members, and plans to give them to
the school board and administration. These
will be placed inside the wire man and will
reflect the thoughts of the school community.
He then plans to take his project out into
the community to collect the thoughts of
those in community government and businesses.
Posted
4/30/05
BHS
- Sewing Class
At Baldwin High School, students in Mrs. Sue Smocer's
sewing class have the opportunity to learn sewing
skills. They are busy working on projects in needle
work and clothing design. Students select projects
that reflect personal taste and individual sewing
ability.
Posted
4/30/05
Administration Building, 4900 Curry Road,
Pittsburgh, PA 15236
