Engineering students earn third place
July 2, 2019
General McLane High School students ranked third place in the Design/Build category of a national engineering competition.
The Varsity A team earned this recognition at the Technology Student Association Tests of Engineering Aptitude in Mathematics and Science (TSA TEAMS) Competition, which took place in Harbor, Maryland on June 28 through July 2.
General McLane students who placed include Vincent Spada, Kaley Berger, Spencer Conaway, Claire Campbell, Nate Price, Aida Shadeck, Ethan Greenleaf and Tyler Massey.
The Design/Build category of the competition was an impromptu project involving that programming and represents a very high level of knowledge application. The design/build task required students to engineer an attachment to the front of a small robot to clear away items and go through a maze.
TEAMS is an engineering aptitude, mathematics and science testing competition designed to help middle school and high school students discover their potential in the engineering field. The National Competition is deemed “the toughest engineering competition in the country.”
General McLane had two teams and 16 students qualify for the national competition based on results from the state level. Only the top teams in the state at each level qualify to compete at the national TEAMS competition.
There are three divisions, Middle School, 9/10 level and 11/12 level. In each division, they name those who scored in the top 10 in these four categories: Design Build, Digital media, prepared presentation and Best in the Nation (overall score of all three events).
Students competed against teams from prominent areas like Silicon Valley, where their high school campus includes an entire building for STREAM: Science, Technology, Robotics, Engineering and Math.
The 9th / 10th grade students, which took first overall in the state competition, includes Nicholas Tysiachney, Ellison Conaway, Calder Martin, Riley Clever, Wesley Hakanen, Zachary Roland, Elena Halmi and Spencer Green.
The 2019 TEAMS competition topic, “Engineering the Brain,” centered around topics and activities related to Artificial Intelligence.
General McLane High School physics teacher Dave Treusch coaches the junior/senior teams and mathematics instructor Rick Terella coaches the freshman/sophomore teams.
This was General McLane’s fourth year competing at the national level. TEAMS was started by the Junior Engineering Technical Society (JETS).
Congratulations to all of our student participants!
McKean fourth graders code drones
June 10, 2019
This year McKean 4th graders learned to code and fly drones in math class.
Students first learned about drones and the uses for them in our world. Then, the class discussed using drones for delivering food and water to victims of disasters, dropping water to put out forest fires, various uses in the military, or even just to a quicker way to deliver our pizza or online shopping order.
Then, students had the opportunity to program their own drone! Each drone has a launcher and grabber attachment that can be coded to perform specific actions. The student’s mission was to take off, go through a hula hoop, launch 3 “GPS tracking spheres,” and return home.
Students created an input/output table and ran many tests to determine how many seconds to code the drone to get it to go a certain amount of centimeters. They developed this rule for both the x and y axis.
Next, it was time to use Tynker, an app for coding on the iPad, to program the drones to complete this task.
It was a perfect example of organized chaos, says McKean Elementary’s Mr. Hutchison! At the end, he says they all agreed it was a success.
Thanks to Denise Bakich, GM’s recently retired 5th grade teacher, who came to work with the team!
Another big thanks to McKean Elementary PTA, who funded the drones for the school.
GM Community Fun Run returns
June 6, 2019
The fifth Annual GM Community Fun Run returned to General McLane High School grounds.
Hosted by both McKean Elementary Parent-Teacher Association (PTA) and Edinboro Elementary Parent-Teacher Organization (PTO), this is a fundraising event that brought in 180 runners.
Participants trek throughout GM grounds and get doused with Color (colored, food-grade corn starch) and water along the way. Runners also complete obstacle stations are placed throughout the 5k and 1milerun/walk (two different options). There was also a dunk tank and additional entertainment available.
- GM Community Fun Run sponsors included:
- Palma’s Sweet Treats
- Edinboro Community Church
- Gerlach’s
- John’s Wildwood Pizzeria
- Laughlin Collision
- Edinboro Health and Wellness
- Walker Brothers
- All State
- Complete Wireless
The sponsors for the after-run snack were:
- Wegmans
- Ideal Sound
- The Scarpitti Family
Thanks to all of this year’s sponsors and participants!
EE hosts Beanie Baby Drive
June 5, 2019
Edinboro Elementary School staff and students ran a drive to support our troops and send hem a touch of home!
Through a drive coordinated by Edinboro Elementary School AmeriCorps teachers Eve Bruce and Breanna Sonney, students sent packages reaching more than 300 troops stationed in Iraq, Kuwait, Singapore, South Korea, Qatar, etc.
Students collected 421 Beanie Babies/stuffed toys, 264 Clif Bars and 154 Letter/cards.
Students selected to help troops as part of a service learning project. Students selected Beanie Babies and stuffed toys because they learned that troops give beanie babies and small stuffed toys to kids in the communities where they are serving.
McKean 2019 Janelle Guriel Spirit Award recipient named
June 5, 2019
McKean Elementary fourth grader Avery Fiscus named this year’s recipient of the Janelle Guriel Spirit Award.
Nominees included Fiscus, Andrew Kennedy, Ashley Cummings, Jeffrey Dombrowski , Chase Durlin, Joseph Henry , Kayci Hinkle , Lakin Lutch,
Samantha Belden, Etta Spires and Emily Grutkowski.
This award recognizes a fourth grade student who demonstrates the spirit of Janelle Guriel, a former General McLane student. Students selected for this award quietly make the best choices that affect them and their peers and leads by example without expectation for reward. This recipient represents the GMSD Core Values, is responsible, respectful, fun to be with and safe, exhibits quiet leadership, has shown perseverance, enjoys writing and exhibits a positive relationship toward the environment.
This is the seventh year for this award. Previous recipients included Jackson Spires (’13), Brooke Simmons (’14), Henry Salvo (’15), Megan Grutkowski (’16), Izabella Behnke (’17) and Charlie Salvo (’18).
JWPMS students host grand-opening for learning garden
June 4, 2019
James W. Parker Middle School students hosted the grand opening for the Learning Garden yesterday.
Students in Mrs. Tuttle’s classroom hosted for their grand prize winning cake, show a 2-minute slide show and then proceeded outside for the grand opening of the Dole and Captain Planet Foundation Learning Garden.
The Learning Garden was one of the prizes received after students were named one of the three National Grand Prizes winners for their Super Delicious Strawberry Pineapple Cake recipe in Dole’s “Get Cooking With Fruit Student Recipe Contest“. The Learning Garden provides schools with raised garden beds, soil, seeds, cart & tools, and interpretive signs so students can start their own 80 square foot raised garden.
After receiving the materials for the garden, the students planted the seeds indoor, water and cared for the plants, spread the pea-gravel, built the garden boxes and put them in place, filled the garden boxes with soil, transferred the plants into the boxes and now are maintaining them as they watch them grow!
Students in Mrs. Tuttle’s class used the contest as an opportunity for a cross-curricular activity that included math, reading, community-based instruction, technology and science. Students researched Dole products, viewed their available products at a grocery store, brainstormed ideas on incorporating Dole products into a recipe, calculated costs of needed ingredients and supplies, invented a recipe, revised the recipe and then wrote, typed and emailed the final recipe.
The recipe they entered was featured in James W. Parker Middle School’s cafeteria for their Thanksgiving holiday meal dessert. Food Service Director Nicole Keller submitted the recipe.
A big thanks to the following individuals who helped to make this a success: David Campbell, Dawn Johnson, Carolyn LaFata, Williams Moats, Laurie Santos, Deb Lathrop, Marge Horne, Eric Lathrop, Nicole Keller, Laura Allwes, Richard Scaletta and Mark Niezelski.
Parker Pride Winners
June 4, 2019
Congratulations to our FINAL Parker Pride winners of the year! For the last selection, JWPMS staff decided to recognize the top 15 students who earned the most Parker Pride tickets throughout the year. These students earned 18-25 tickets.
In total, JWPMS staff gave out nearly 2500 tickets for positive decision making and following their school-wide expectations this year!
James W. Parker Middle School’s Parker PRIDE program is a new program that launched from the school’s PBIS initiatives. Each week, five students will be recognized for exhibiting the positive behavioral expectations set. Students will be selected randomly from those who have earned “tickets” throughout the week. Students selected will choose an incentive from a list of five choices. This is only for grades 5 and 6.
Garden of Edin donates seeds
June 3, 2019
On Friday, the Garden of Edin donated seeds to Edinboro Elementary second graders during their annual field trip to Goodell Gardens and Homestead.
Thanks to a grant, the club was able to provide a pack of bean seeds to each student.
Following the presentation of seeds, the students spent the day at Goodell Gardens and Homestead. Students learn about pollination, works, vegetable gardening and germination.
McKean Elementary hosts Hula-Hoop Showcase
June 3, 2019
McKean Elementary School second graders celebrated the end of their dance residency program with a showcase for their friends, classmates and family members.
The students learned basic dance concepts and many hula-hoop moves and tricks through artist Jennifer Dennehy, who was welcomed to McKean in March as part of the Erie Arts & Culture‘s Artist-in-residency program.
Prior to the showcase, each student made and decorated their very own hula hoop and made art on a tapestry with special hula hoops that splattered paint.
The Artist Residency Program is a collaboration between Erie Arts & Culture and General McLane, one that provides a professional artist(s) where the artist (s) works with a small group of learners over a period of time. General McLane’s residency was provided through an Erie Arts & Culture grant.
Through Dennehy’s time she provided second graders with an opportunity to learn dance basics, hoop dancing, a dance routine and hoop art. The focus of program was on self-esteem, expression and staying healthy through a variety of mediums.
Erie Arts & Culture is a local organization whose role is to promote, support, and develop arts and culture at the regional level; ensuring broad opportunities for residents and tourists throughout communities in Erie, Crawford, Venango, Warren, Mercer, and Lawrence counties to engage with the sector educationally, socially, and economically.
Next year, the school looks to host its second artist-in-residency program to help with the McKean Nature Trail.
GMSD Waldameer Summer Picnic
June 3, 2019
A James W. Parker Middle School parent, Bobbielyn Dibble-Norris, is coordinating a district-wide celebration at Waldameer on June 28.
Tickets will be on sale Tuesday and Wednesday morning at the middle school and after school, from 7 a.m. until 8 a.m. and then from 2 p.m. until 4 p.m.
Tickets are $21 and cash only. The tickets are actually valid through June or after August 19th until Labor day, so they do not need to be used on June 28.
Ms. Dibble will also be selling tickets for a hot dog and chip meal for $5 each. Waldameer has reserved a pavilion that can be used as a meeting place the day of the picnic.
For more information, please e-mail Ms. Dibble at norrisbrood@gmail.com.
Subscribe
