At Paynter Elementary, second grade students from
Mrs. Noel's and Mrs. Singleton's classes are thankful
for each other. During a celebration of the Thanksgiving
holiday, the children dressed as pilgrims and Indians,
made a turkey bag craft, and enjoyed a healthy pre-Thanksgiving
feast.
Posted
12/8/05
PES
- Twas the Night Before Thanksgiving
At Paynter Elementary, Mrs. Hoover's and Mrs.
Gorham’s classes joined together for a Thanksgiving
activity. Following the reading of the book Twas
the Night Before Thanksgiving, they each assembled
a “turkey” using cookies, candies, and
chocolate icing as “glue." The students
learned about this American holiday, customs, and
gained new vocabulary.
Posted
12/8/05
MES
- Thanksgiving Feast
At McAnnulty Elementary, the students in Mrs.
Foote's and Mrs. Hustava's first grade classes gave
thanks for all of the great food they shared at their
Thanksgiving feast. The classes learned about the
Pilgrims and the Native Americans during the month
of November. They then shared a feast that included
turkey slices, corn muffins, pumpkin cookies, craisins,
popcorn, and so much more! Many generous parents
sent in fabulous food, the paper products, and several
volunteered to help with the feast as well.
Posted
12/8/05
WES
- Mad Hatter and Friends Visit
Cast members of the Baldwin High School fall play,
Alice In Wonderland visited Whitehall Elementary
to personally invite the students to attend the upcoming
performances. The Mad Hatter (aka Justin Fortunato)
borrowed the PA microphone from principal Mrs. DeFilippo
and announced their presence in the school. After
dismissal for the day, the King of Hearts (Ben Turin),
Queen of Hearts (Jodi Matovich), the White Rabbit
(Keri Hartman), the Duchess (Kelly Hense), and Alice
(Michelle Jenkins) joined the Mad Hatter in greeting
the students and signing autographs.
Posted
12/8/05
WES
- The After Schoolsical
A group
of fifth grade Whitehall Elementary students
attended the show "Broadway Junior on
Tour: The After Schoolsical" at the Byham
Theater. The students enjoyed the story-line
of the Broadway Junior Club students unable
to decide which show to do this year, so they
present a few songs from their three choices:
Into the Woods, Dear Edwina, and The Music
Man. Soon, the students can't stop arguing
about which show to do. By the end, they realize
the most important thing is that they learn
to work together. The students attending the
performance were Jackie Sirc, Nicole Lemmon,
Lydia Gallagher, Miranda Kuzman, Emily Isaacs,
Callie Corcoran, Anthony Barbano,Tom Werkmeister,
Blaise Pfaff, Luke Dowker, Richard Knouff,
and Wyatt Sullivan. Upon their return, the
students wrote a "reflection" on
the experience.
Posted
12/8/05
PES
- Holiday Gift Shop
The walls of the auditorium were decked in holiday
trim at Paynter Elementary for the annual PTA holiday
gift shop. Many parent volunteers helped to prepare
for this event that allows the students to shop for
their family and friends. The children also enjoyed
hearing a story and a visit from a special guest
in a red suit.
Posted
12/8/05
WES
- Turkey Trot
At Whitehall Elementary, students in Mrs. Larson's
class enjoyed a day of Thanksgiving games in Mrs.
Hull's Physical Education class. Students ran the
Turkey Trot and Rounded up the Turkeys in two fun
fitness games!
Posted
12/8/05
MES
- Holiday Gift Shop
The walls of the auditorium were decked in holiday
trim at Paynter Elementary for the annual PTA holiday
gift shop. Many parent volunteers helped to prepare
for this event that allows the students to shop for
their family and friends. The children also enjoyed
hearing a story and a visit from a special guest
in a red suit.
Posted
12/8/05
WES
- Multicultural Day
Mrs. Melissa Walsh’s fourth grade students
at Whitehall Elementary had a glimpse of some of
the fascinating cultures from around the world during
their Multicultural Day. Six different countries
were represented. Parents and relatives came in to
share various customs and traditions with the class.
Students were able to learn about different cultures
through stories, music, PowerPoint® presentations,
speaking other languages, viewing various carvings
and items from other countries, as well as making
food from other countries. Students also experienced
the tasting of food from many different countries
during their international lunch featuring dishes
donated by parents and other family members. This
special day was a wonderful learning experience for
all involved!
Posted
12/8/05
WES
- Thanksgiving Celebration
At
Whitehall Elementary, the fourth and fifth
grade students in Mr. Regelski's and Miss Rose's
rooms combined to have a Thanksgiving Celebration.
The students made table centerpiece turkeys,
read a Thanksgiving story, and enjoyed tasty
treats. The students practiced using learned
social skills during the celebration through
polite conversation, helping each other, using
good listening skills, and taking turns.
Posted
12/8/05
PES
- Peer Mediation
The month of November marked Peer Mediation Training
for Paynter Elementary School select students and
faculty. Chosen students from grades two thru five
participated in Paynter’s Peer Mediation training
program, a program developed to help increase the
students’ ability to resolve conflict and engage
in pro-social behavior in the school setting. A Peer
Mediator is a student trained to provide a safe,
scripted, structured, confidential process to assist
other students in conflict to end disputes peacefully
by reaching mutually acceptable agreements. In short,
it’s students helping students!
The training program required over
12 hours of active participation by both trained
staff and students, learning and applying the techniques
of peer mediation. The training ended with each participant
receiving a Peer Mediator Certificate of Completion
for a job well done. As a proven effective research
based program to resolve conflict and develop and
improve social skills, Paynter Elementary is proud
to continue with peer mediation training year after
year. The following staff members helped Dr. Lepore
with the training: Mrs. Bishop, Mrs. Knerr, Mrs.
Myers, Miss Petrilla, Mrs. Schubert, Ms. Zyznewsky,
Ms. Piaggesi, and Mrs. Volitich.
Posted
12/8/05
BHS
- Orchestra Performance
Baldwin High School string orchestra, under the
direction of Mr. Gary McKeever, performed for an
attentive audience at Overlook Green Assisted Living
Facility. During this annual visit, the students
played holiday favorites.
Posted
12/8/05
HMS
- Moosehead Lodge
The students at Harrison Middle School hit the
slopes with the opening of the Moosehead Lodge Ski
Resort in the library. The Resort marks the second
cafe held in the Harrison Middle School Library this
year. This time the ski bunnies rotated in with their
Social Studies classes. Snacks for après-ski
included hot cocoa with peppermint stick, bottled
water, Rice Krispie Treats, chocolate muffins, beef
jerky, and potato skin chips.
Posted
12/8/05
HMS
- PowerPoint Project
At Harrison Middle School, Mrs. Grattan’s
sixth grade technology and computers classes recently
completed their unit on Microsoft PowerPoint. Hands-on
projects allowed students to pursue individual interests
while acquiring fundamental technology skills and
essential knowledge for success. Students were assessed
on their ability to creatively solve problems, locate
appropriate resources, and the final production of
slide shows in accordance with the Pennsylvania State
Standards for Science and Technology.
Posted
12/29/05
BHS
- Ground Breaking Ceremony
The ground breaking ceremony for the Baldwin High
School construction project took place on November
30. Over one hundred people, including administrators,
school board members, educators, students and residents
gathered in a tent on the front grounds of the high
school. The group was entertained by the Baldwin
High School Symphonic Band and the Baldwinaires.
Remarks were made by Superintendent Dr. Donna Milanovich;
School Board President John Schmotzer; Principal
Dr. Todd Keruskin; project architect of HHSDR Architects
and Engineers, Greer Hayden; John Taormina, construction
manager with P.J. Dick; and students from the five
school buildings within the district.
Students enjoyed center time in Mrs. McWilliams
kindergarten class at Paynter Elementary. The Jingle
Bell Numbers Center allowed the students to identify
numerals one through ten and match them to their “Bingo” bell
card. At another center, the children wrote “C” words
in their journal and drew pictures to match. At the
ABC Center, they had to find ABC’s and place
the letters in order on a magnetic board. The Book
Making Center kept them busy completing pages in
their Number Sense book, drawing the same number
of Christmas cookies as the number on the page.
Posted
12/29/05
MES
- The Polar Express
Mrs. Bruder's second grade students at McAnnulty
Elementary celebrated Chris Van Allsburg's story,
The Polar Express beginning with a pretend
in-class train ride with Mrs. Bruder as the conductor.
She punched holes in their tickets, gave them Santa
hats, and followed up with storytime in their make
believe in-class train. The students were then served
hot chocolate. All week long, Mrs. Bruder's class
celebrated this magical holiday story with activities
such as choral readings of the poem "The Silver
Bell," comprehension activities centered on
the story, similes, and even writing about the true
spirit of giving. They learned about the North Pole
and followed up with singing some great holiday songs!
The students received a special silver bell necklace
reminding them to BELIEVE in the true meanings of
this special holiday. All Aboard!
Posted
12/29/05
PES
- ESL Holiday Visit
Twice yearly the International Club from Seton
LaSalle High School and their teacher, Pat Garritan,
comes to visit the English Language Learner (ELL)
students of Paynter Elementary. This year, this group
did something very special. These young adults raised
money through bake sales and other fundraisers which
enabled them to purchase gifts for all of Paynter’s
ELL students.
During the holiday visit the students from Seton
LaSalle read books with the younger students to help
them learn about the many different holidays celebrate
at this time of year. After the readings, the students
discussed the holiday they had read about, created
a decoration, and told the group about something
new they learned. They finished their get-together
with cookies, milk, and gifts. Every Paynter ELL
student recieved a new hat and gloves from the Seton
LaSalle students. The students enjoyed seeing their
'old' friends and meeting new ones. The children
were thrilled at recieving a gift and are looking
forward to their spring visit.
Posted
12/29/05
BHS
- Teen Leadership Program
As part of Teen Leadership - Diversity Council,
Baldwin High School conducted a one day seminar in
the library with the topic of discussion "Holiday
Celebrations – Celebrating All." There
were forty students from various school districts
across Allegheny County in attendance. Students in
the group were given information on different religions
which included Sikh, Islam, Jewish, and Christianity.
They learned about the history of the religion, places
of worship, holidays and holy days, and traditions
and then compiled questions. At the conclusion of
the information session, there was an open panel
comprised of adults who participated in these various
religions.
Posted
12/29/05
BHS
- Powder Puff Game
The annual Junior/Senior girls Powder Puff football
game took place recently at Baldwin High School.
The seniors used a running attack lead by Carina
Honeygosky, Carol Kienzel, and Rickia Davenport.
Carina had the knack for finding the endzone, as
she scored four of her team's five touchdowns. Rickia
also scored a touchdown. The game went back and forth,
until the senior defense made a huge goal line stop
on the two yard line. The seniors then drove the
length of the field to score and go up by two touchdowns.
The juniors used a passing attack and relied on the
arm of Lindsay Pasanka. She completed two of her
passes for touchdowns to Alicia Brody. The other
touchdown was a nice run by Brittany Ogden. In the
end the seniors had more fire power and came away
with a 36-20 victory.
Posted
12/29/05
HMS
- Holiday Performance
Harrison Middle School eighth grade band and chorus
members traveled to downtown Pittsburgh to perform
holiday music for the audience at the PPG Wintergarden.
This field trip is always a much anticipated honor
for the students.
Posted
12/29/05
WES
- Gift Distribution
Students
in all grades at Whitehall Elementary were
able to experience the giving aspect of this
holiday season—together they collected
over 750 new or slightly used toys for needy
families in our area! Thanks are extended to
the Whitehall families for so generously donating
to this worthy cause. Whitehall SOAR (Students
Organizing and Achieving Results) students
helped to sort the gifts for distribution.
Posted
12/29/05
BHS
- 12 Days of Christmas
Baldwin High School French III students spent
time brainstorming for French items that could be
used in the song "Les Douze Jours de Noël." They
then decided where they would place the words and
how they would make the items fit the rhythm of the
popular song by adding adjectives, adverbs, etc.
Finally, they had to come up with samples of the
items and sing the song.
Posted
12/29/05
WES
- Powerpoint Presentation
At Whitehall Elementary, Mr. Fisher's fifth grade
students were responsible for researching and compiling
information on one of the states of the Northeast.
Once decided which information to use for their state,
they develolped a six slide powerpoint presentation.
The slides that were required were a title slide,
state flag, state flower, and state bird. Once they
completed, they were to pick two interesting facts
to develop two more slides. The culminating activity
was to present their state information to their peers
and parents.
Posted
12/29/05
MES
- Fire Drill
How do we get better at something? Practice, practice,
practice! McAnnulty Elementary students practiced
evacuating the school in case of a fire. Normally,
the building can be cleared (about 500 students)
in less than two minutes. The December practice had
all students, staff, and visitors evacuating from
just the front exits of the building and everyone
was still able to get out safely in about two minutes.
What a great job!
Posted
12/8/05
HMS
- Murder Mystery Contest
The
librarians arrived at the Harrison Middle School
Library one morning to discover a crime scene!
A body outline was found on the floor right
in front of the "Who dunnit?" book
display. Students wrote short stories to explain
the who, what, where, why, and how of the terrifying
incident. Seventh grader Natalie Turin wrote
the winning short story and received a gift
certificate to Best Buy. *Click
to read essay! (pdf)
Posted
12/29/05
PES
- Second Grade Caroling
Second graders from Mrs. Noel’s, Mrs. Myers’,
Mrs. Singleton’s and Mrs. Zamboni’s classes
spread holiday cheer around Paynter Elementary. They
caroled through the halls of the school singing songs
they practiced so hard to learn.
Posted
12/29/05
MES
- McAnnulty Readers
During the months of November and December, Mrs.
Rohm, McAnnulty Elementary's librarian, conducted
a motivational reading program called "Be a
McAnnulty Reader." To be a "McAnnulty Reader," kindergarten
students were asked to read four books, first graders
were to read six books, and second grade students
were to read twel
