Page 2 May 11, 2017 Wiseburn School Board Hears Dana ELA Presentation, Fetes Retirees By Duane Plank Schoolchildren of a certain age once had their lesson plans guided by the tenets of what were termed the “three R’s” (reading, riting, and rithmetic)--a phrase coined more than 200 years ago. With the onslaught of technology now confronting both teachers and 21st Century learners, the main presentation at the May 4 Wiseburn Unified School District School Board meeting could be considered a bit retro. It focused on the seemingly quaint idea of actually reading books and fostering student writing skills. In her 25-minute presentation to the Board, Dana Middle School English teacher Lisa Wilberg highlighted the strides being made at the school in the English Language Arts department. Her presentation was entitled “A Path to Writer’s Workshop.” Writer’s Workshop is an interdisciplinary writing technique that is gaining traction in many elementary schools. It is a program that seeks to build students’ fluency in writing, featuring continuous, repeated exposure to literacy through the process of writing. Wilberg, discussed what she termed “big ideas “in increasing the student’s breadth of understanding and achievement in the basic disciplines. “We want to create and maintain a culture of joyful literacy at our school, “she said. “We believe that all students are capable of reading, writing, and achieving at high levels.” She noted that while 2017 career fields such as math, science and engineering are “booming,” her belief is that literacy is at the core of the success that will be achieved in any of the STEM fields. Wilberg highlighted the advancements being made at Dana from the 2011-12 school year forward as the ELA department started researching and implementing the mandated Common Core requirements, shifting the way English was taught in schools away from certain areas that may have had little real world relevance and applications. It means much more of an emphasis on critical thinking and much less focus on terminology. “I tell students all the time that you can’t get better at reading without reading, Wilberg said, adding that the 2014-15 school year was the first time the new way of teaching English was implemented in Dana classrooms. The 2016-17 school year has also seen the continued refining and mapping of ELA units. Wilberg said a Writer’s Workshop program, initially developed at Columbia University, drew her interest. In the spring of 2016, Wilberg and other teachers and administrators were able to travel to Pacific Elementary School in Manhattan Beach and see how a neighboring school was implementing the workshop program. She came away very impressed with how engaged the Pacific students were in their writing, and is hoping to implement the workshop program at Dana. Wilberg concluded her program with data on the strides made by Dana students, with 75 percent meeting or exceeding mandated standards. The California state average is 49 percent. She also detailed events like “Literacy Week” that took place just prior to the spring break. Wilberg is also continuing to visit other schools that are successfully implementing the Writer’s Workshop curriculum. She cited the program benefits, which include giving the students a large amount of writing choices, being highly adaptable, and focusing on clear, specific writing skills. “This is where we’d like to go,” Wilberg concluded. She added that she hopes to return to a future School Board meeting with a proposed budget in hand to implement the Writer’s Workshop program in the District. After the presentation, School Board Vice President JoAnne Kaneda added her input: “I have four sons who are all engineers, and each one has told me that what differentiates them from other engineers, who might be just as good at engineering, is their ability to read and write.” A second presentation highlighted the tech opportunities available in the District. Nancy Wloch and Margaret Thelen, two members of the American Association of University Women, were on hand to brief the Board. Their organization raises funds to send seventh grade middle school girls to week-long summer science camps as part of a program that is called Tech Trek. They announced that Dana students Carolina Echavarria, Nayeli Ortiz and Sierra Clark were scholarship recipients. Echavarria will be attending the program at UC Santa Barbara; Ortiz at UC San Diego, and Clark at Whittier College. Said Superintendent Tom Johnstone, “It’s a great program. The girls that go have a wonderful experience.” Dana students Aidan Cessor, Logan Evans, Garrett Hoff and Diego Diaz were recognized for their top finishes in the school’s recent Geography Bee, with Cessor also competing at the state-level bee held in Fresno. District Spelling Bee 1-3 finishers were also recognized. They included Zachary Roach (Dana); Aldo Ayala (Burnett Elementary); and Eva Reyna (Dana), with Roach advancing to compete in the LACOE “grade bee” in Alhambra on March 29 for students in grades four two six. After the special presentations concluded, Board members thanked the presenters. In his comments, President Israel Mora mentioned a recent joint meeting between the DaVinci School Board and the Wiseburn Board: “What is special in our District is how well we work together,” said Mora. Four retiring District teachers were recognized during the action item portion of the 90-minute meeting. The retirees are Jeanette Payne Sutton, currently teaching fourth grade at Anza Elementary and completing her 34th year of service to the District; Sheila LaCour from Dana, who is retiring after serving the District for 28 years; Susan Coulbourne, who also teaches at Dana and is wrapping up 20 years of service; and Dana teacher Erma Bisignano, who is finishing her 14th year. Johnstone noted that having four teachers retire at the same time is a unique event for a district the size of Wiseburn. The Board then took action approving a traffic signal analysis study that would address student safety and traffic congestion issues as construction continues on the Douglas Street property leading up to the August 22 opening at the new Wiseburn High School. Consent agenda items were quickly addressed, including the approval for students and staff to participate in the Robert H. Herndon Memorial Science Competition that takes place at the Aerospace Corporation on May 25. In his remarks, Johnstone painted a positive picture of the current events in Wiseburn. “We have the right people in the right places at the right time,” he said. Great things are happening.” The next regularly scheduled Wiseburn School Board meeting is on the calendar for Thursday evening, May 25, and will be held on the Cabrillo Elementary School campuss. • Community Briefs Free Rides on Metrolink During Bike to Work Week Metrolink will offer free rides during Bike to Work Week, May 15-19, 2017, to anyone who brings a bike onboard Metrolink. This offer will be effective on all Metrolink trains in operation Monday, May 15, 2017 until Friday, May 19, 2017. Riders must accompany their bike for the entire trip. Free ride offer is limited to one person per bike. Metrolink Bike/Board Cars are in high demand across the Metrolink system as more cyclists continue to take the train. Due to the high demands across Metrolink’s system, there will be limited bike capacity during Bike to Work Week. If the train cannot accommodate El Camino Receives $40,000 Grant from Pritzker Foster Care Initiative The El Camino College Foundation recently received a $40,000 grant from the Pritzker Foster Care Initiative to continue programs that support foster care youth as they pursue higher education. The Pritzker Foster Care Initiative grant will help fund El Camino College’s Guardian Scholars program to assist with retention and academic persistence among students from foster care. The ECC Guardian Scholars program currently supports 68 students. Foster care youth receive funds for tuition, books, supplies and campus resources such as the “LINK UP” program. This program provides foster youth students with informational sessions each month, covering topics such as job search strategies, money management, college transfer, and skills to achieve classroom success. LINK UP provides a community environment where students can come together, receive support from professionals, access additional information, and share a meal with others in the program. Research indicates that there are over 400,000 children in the U.S. foster care LAX Relocations Mean Major Changes for Passengers The biggest airline relocation in Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) history is about to take place as Delta Air Lines relocates from Terminals 5 and 6 to Terminals 2 and 3. Airport officials say the end result will be more efficient airline operations between partner carriers, and planned facility improvements for Terminals 2 and 3. The activity taking place on the nights of May 12, 14 and 16, into the early morning hours the following day, has been planned for nearly a year. It is part of a larger effort that began when American Airlines and Delta Air Lines swapped four gates in Terminals 5 and 6 at the end of January. Each night when the airlines that are moving have completed their operations, they will begin the process of moving equipment to their new home, where they will begin operations the next morning. In many cases this means aircraft will be towed from one terminal to another, ground service equipment and entire offices will change places in the early hours of the morning. Delta will move portions of its operations on each of the three nights--May 12, 14, 16. Delta will operate from as many any additional bikes, you will be asked to take the next train or find alternative means of transportation. To ensure the safety of all passengers, Metrolink conductors have the right to ask bicyclists to relocate to another passenger car or in the situation where there is no more bike storage available, ask you to wait for the next train. The free rides on Metrolink are not eligible for free transfers to any other bus or rail operator. This offer does not apply to any Amtrak trains including shared service trains. . system with over 100,000 waiting to be adopted. Every year, 23,000 of these youth will age out of the system, never having found a permanent home. Young people who age out of foster care face a tough road: they are more likely to experience significant challenges with completing their education, obtaining a job, homelessness, and maintaining financial security. The Pritzker Foster Care Initiative, part of the Anthony & Jeanne Pritzker Family Foundation, made a previous $40,000 grant in December 2015 to initiate the Guardian Scholars program at El Camino College to provide support services for foster care youth. In addition to their foundation, Jeanne Pritzker also launched the non-profit Foster Care Counts in 2012 to provide support to programs that help foster youth as they leave the system and work toward becoming successful young adults. The ECC Guardian Scholars program is headquartered in the RISE Center in the Student Services Center. For more informa tion, contact fostercare55@elcamino.edu. as four terminals between May 13 and 16. The remaining airlines will move on one day and start in their new location the next morning. Extra staff and volunteers will be on hand to help guests find their way around. There will be a moratorium on construction in the Central Terminal Area (CTA) during the week of the moves. While that week will be most busy, passengers using LAX should always plan ahead to navigate sidewalk and vehicle lane closures and in-terminal work. Construction alerts showing Central Terminal Area (CTA) roadway lane restrictions and sidewalk closures, as well as a pedestrian walking map and helpful airline terminal finder, can be found at www.laxishappening. com. LAX provides real-time traffic status in and around the CTA, and space availability in the terminal area parking garages and Lot C on Waze, the community-based traffic reporting app. More information on the upcoming changes, including a fact sheet listing the affected airlines and a map showing the locations as of May 17, 2017, is available at http://www. laxishappening.com/laxonthemove.aspx • happy mother’s day!
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