YMS Excels at the Nebraska State Science Olympiad

The Nebraska State Science Olympiad was held on Saturday, March 29, 2014 at UNL’s East Campus. York Middle School competed in the B Division which is open to 6th, 7th and 8th graders across the state of Nebraska.

YMS entered into the following events:

CRIME BUSTERS - Erika Hinz & Kinsley Flynt participated in this category where they were given a scenario, a collection of evidence and possible suspects and students had to perform a series of tests to solve the crime.

HELICOPTERS: Luke Stuckey & Mason Linder had to design, construct and test free flight rubber-powered helicopters to achieve maximum time aloft.

ROAD SCHOLAR: Simon Otte & Nick Weskamp earned 5th place by answering interpretive questions that use one or more state highway maps, USGS topographic maps, a road atlas or satellite/ aerial images.

ROTOR EGG DROP: Lauren Riley & Nicole Mittman earned 3rd place as they constructed an unpowered, autorotation helicopter device, which uses one or more helicopter rotors to safely transport a raw chicken egg from a specified height to the floor.

SOUNDS OF MUSIC: Holly Rockenbach & Ann Magner won 1st place as they built two instruments based on a 12 tone tempered scale, prepare to describe principles behind their operation and be able to perform a major scale, required and chosen melody with each.

WRITE IT/DO IT: Ally Warneke & Nicole Mittman won 1st place as one student wrote a description of an object and how to build it and then the other student attempted to construct the object from this description.

QUIZ BOWL: Simon Otte earned 3rd place as each school could have one student to answer questions.

Sponsoring Organizations were University of Nebraska - Lincoln: College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Center for Science, Mathematics, and Computer Education, Nebraska Association of Teachers of Science, Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo & Aquarium, ESU #10 & #16.

All in all, 26 different events were offered. York Middle School entered into 7 different events and brought home five medals with two 1st places, two 3rd places, and one 5th place.

YMS Science Olympiad Sponsor, Pam Petersen, had this to say about York Middle School’s team participating in this event for the first time, “I was amazed that we did so well. I told the kids that I would be ecstatic if we placed in one event! Holly & Ann's instruments were amazing and were a group effort with the help of our shop teacher Jason Hirschfeld and other experts in the musical field. There were over 700 students from across the state there to compete. Some schools have actual classes to prepare students for this competition. The top team overall gets to compete at Nationals - this year in Orlando Florida. Our students are very talented in many ways and are part of plays, sports, and weight lifting; which limits their time to spend on Science Olympiad.”

TeamMates Day at Runza on April 8th

"TeamMates Day" at both York Runza locations is scheduled for Tuesday, April 8th. They will generously donate 10% of all sales that will come back to our York TeamMates scholarship program.

Lorraine Grenfell is putting together a gift card order that she will process on April 8th so our TeamMates program can get 10% of the sales. She will take the information, collect the money in advance, purchase the gift cards on April 8th so the TeamMates program benefits from the sales, and then deliver them to those who buy them. If you think you’re going to use Runza gift cards for graduation gifts, birthday presents, anniversary dinners, etc. please consider contacting Lorraine Grenfell and ordering some that can be processed on April 8th.

Both York Runza sites will be open from 10:30 AM through 9:30 PM with extra staff on hand to get you in and out in a hurry.

Last year our check from Runza was $756.56 and we hope to exceed that figure this year.

Don't Be Too Quick to Judge Others....

In 2004, my maternal grandfather, Pappy, passed away in Wildwood, Florida. I flew down there for a week from my home in Franklin, Nebraska to help my family, and especially my grandmother, Mammy, with funeral preparations, grieving, etc. One of my duties that sad week included some yard work so it looked presentable for the numerous folks that would come visit us to pass along their condolences. I still remember vividly mowing, weed eating, edging, picking up limbs, etc. for multiple hours. It gave me time to reflect on Pappy and how he would be missed by so many.

Those hours spent doing yard work also allowed me to see what Mammy's neighbors were doing (and not doing) and I was enraged! For almost the entire time I spent working in Mammy's yard, her neighbors were doing the same; kind of. Actually, a woman in her 70's was mowing, weed eating, raking, etc. while her husband sat in a stinking lawn chair, drinking lemonade, and just watching her work her tail off. I couldn't believe my eyes. What kind of man would just sit there and watch his wife do all of this physical labor? I couldn't understand it.

I quickly finished up Mammy's yard and went inside real quick to get a drink so I could walk over to this lady that I felt sorry for and offer to finish up her yard work. Right before I went back outside to offer my assistance to this poor wife of a deadbeat, I told Mammy I couldn't believe what a lazy bum was living next door, that he just watched his wife work her tail off, etc.

Mammy very gracefully said, "Mike - don't be too quick to judge others. Mr. Sabol next door had heart surgery two weeks ago and is unable to do any physical labor for a while. He is the kindest and most giving man on the block. He treats his wife like a princess. Before his surgery, he helped Pappy and I with numerous projects around the house, mowed our yard, raked our leaves, etc. He is a true blessing. I hope you realize the damage in judging people too quickly."

Boy, was I embarrassed.

I think back to that story from time to time when I feel the urge to criticize someone. We never really know what others are going through and I hope we can all be a little more patient before casting stones at others.

Have a great week!

The Class of 2027 - WOW!!

I was lucky enough to take part in Kindergarten Round Up at YES on March 12th. What an awesome day! Many parents are preparing to send their first born child to school in the fall. Others are "old hat" at this but you can tell it is still a giant step. The soon-to-be kindergarten students we interacted with are the Class of 2027. Think about that for a minute. This Class of 2027 will begin to retire around 2070. How different will the world be then?

This really hits home to me as far as the impact that TODAY'S teachers have on TOMORROW'S leaders. No current YPS staff member will still be working for YPS in 2070 but the work they do with the Class of 2027, and all other classes, will be the legacy that lingers on. You think our jobs are important? You better believe it. Our passion, our strength, our tenacity get to help shape the future. Even those that will retire in 2070!

Wow! Pretty awesome!

YHS Speech Cruises to Conference Championship

Congratulations to the YHS Speech Team for the conference championship they earned on February 28th in Crete. Next up is the District Speech Meet in Central City on March 17th. In the meantime, please consider coming out to YHS on March 11th at 6:00 PM for the "Speech Share Night." This will be a great opportunity to see our many talented and dedicated speech team members in action.

Individuals placing at the Conference Meet include the following:

Humorous Prose--David Fillman 3rd; BreeAnna Gibbs 4th
Serious Prose--Julianna Blackmon 1st ; BreeAnna Gibbs 2nd
Persuasive Speaking--Sam Redfern 1st; Mary Heng 2nd
Duet Acting--Jonathan Postier/Julianna Blackmon 1st ; Paul Lindsey/Landon Norquest 2nd
Oral Interpretation of Drama--Landon Norquest, Paul Lindsey, Lauren Boyer, Jonathan Postier, David Fillman - 3rd
Oral Interpretations of Drama--Cori Bolte, Zach Kisby, Payton Demers-Sahling, Ashley Reynolds 4th
Entertainment Speaking--Sarah Bailey 6th
Extemporaneous Speaking--Rebekah Turnbull 5th

Importance of Digital Citizenship

Digital Citizenship: Safe, Responsible, and Respectful Use of Information Technology

We live in a digital world. Today’s digital life demands digital citizenship. Digital citizenship is the safe, responsible, and respectful use of information technology. It begins with your digital footprint, your public presence in cyberspace containing all information about you found online. Your footprint can help—or hurt—your image and future opportunities including your chances for college admission and employment.

York Community Education will be hosting an important presentation on Thursday, March 6th at 7:00 p.m. in the York High School Theater. It is FREE. The purpose of this presentation is to help individuals think critically about harnessing the positive potential of digital life and avoiding its perils. You are never truly anonymous. Your digital footprint persists and endures—often permanently—outside your control.

It will be presented by Ryan Sothan, Consumer Outreach Coordinator of the Nebraska’s Attorney General’s Office. It will be about an hour long presentation, but is absolutely loaded with information that will give parents, kids and community members a lot to think about on how to keep themselves and their kids safe in this digital world. It will be well worth your time! After talking with Ryan, this topic is a necessity for all to hear! There are so many things we need to become aware of as we go about living in this digital world.

For more information, you may contact York Community Education at 402-362-6700.

What do GREAT Teachers do?

Most of us have had the privilege of having a great teacher or two throughout our educational experiences. Great teachers go above and beyond to ensure that each child is successful. Many of us have had that one teacher/coach/mentor that inspired us more than any other. Great teachers are able to bring the best out of every student. They are often energetic, fun, and seemingly always at the top of their game. Their students look forward to coming to their class each day. When they are promoted to the next grade or course, they are sad that they are leaving, but armed with the skills necessary to be successful.

What are some traits of great teachers?

Many of the thoughts below are taken from research on effective schools and from the www.teaching.about.com website.

A great teacher is prepared. Preparation takes a lot of time. Great teachers spend a lot of time outside of the school day preparing for each day. This often includes weekends. They also spend countless hours during the summer working to improve their craft. They prepare detailed lessons, activities, and centers each designed to maximize student learning opportunities. They create detailed lesson plans and often plan for more in a day than they typically can complete.

A great teacher is organized. Being organized leads to efficiency. This allows great teachers minimal distractions and maximizes instructional time. Increasing instructional time will lead to an increase in academic success for students. Organization is about creating an efficient system to find resources and other materials quickly which a teacher needs. There are many different organizational styles. A great teacher finds the system that works for them and makes it better.

A great teacher is a continuous learner. They continuously read and apply the newest research in their classroom. They are never satisfied whether they have taught for one year or twenty. They seek out professional development opportunities, research ideas online and subscribe to multiple teaching related newsletters. Great teachers are not afraid to ask other teachers what they are doing in their classrooms. They often take these ideas and experiment with them in their classroom.

A great teacher adapts. They recognize that each school day and each school year is different. What works for one student or one class may not work for the next. They continuously change things up to take advantage of individual strengths and weaknesses within a classroom. Great teachers are not afraid to scrap entire lessons and start back over with a new approach. They recognize when something is working and stick to it. When an approach is ineffective, they make the necessary changes.

A great teacher evolves. They are constantly changing and never become stale. As trends change, they change with them. They grow each year they teach always improving across multiple areas. They are not the same teacher from year to year. Great teachers learn from their mistakes. They look to improve upon what has been successful and find something new to replace what has been not worked. They are not afraid to learn new strategies, technologies, or implement new curricula.

A great teacher is proactive. Being proactive can stave off a lot of potential problems including academic, discipline, or any other issue. It can prevent a small concern from turning into an enormous problem. Great teachers recognize potential problems immediately and work to fix them quickly. They understand that the time put into correcting a small problem is considerably less than it would be if it ballooned into something bigger. Once it becomes a large issue, it will almost always take away from valuable class time.

A great teacher communicates. Communication is a critical component of a successful teacher. They must be adept at communicating with several subgroups including students, parents, administrators, support personnel, and other teachers. Each of these subgroups must be communicated with differently and great teachers are terrific at communicating with everyone. They are able to communicate so that every person understands the message they are trying to convey. Great teachers keep people informed. They explain concepts well and make people feel comfortable around them.

A great teacher networks. Networking has become a critical component of being a great teacher. It has also become easier. Social networks such as Google+, Twitter, Facebook, etc. allow teachers from all over the world to share ideas and provide best practices quickly. They also allow teachers to seek input and advice from other teachers. Networking provides a natural support system with those who share a similar passion. It provides great teachers with another means of learning and honing their craft.

A great teacher inspires. They are able to pull the best out of every student they teach. They inspire them to become better students, to maximize their time in the classroom, and to look towards the future. A great teacher takes an interest a student has and helps turn it into a passion making educational connections that will potentially last a life time. They understand that each student is different, and they embrace those differences. They teach their students that it is those differences that often make them exceptional.

A great teacher is compassionate. They hurt when their students hurt and rejoice when their students rejoice. They understand that life happens and that the kids they teach do not control their home lives. Great teachers believe in second chances, but use mistakes to teach life lessons. They offer advice, counseling, and mentoring when necessary. Great teachers understand that school is sometimes the safest place a kid can be.

A great teacher earns respect. Respect is earned over time. It does not come easy. Respected teachers are able to maximize learning because they do not typically have classroom management issues. When they have an issue, they are dealt with quickly and in a respectable manner. They do not embarrass or berate the student. Great teachers understand you have to give respect before you earn respect. They are considerable and thoughtful to everyone, but understand that there are occasions where they must stand their ground.

A great teacher makes learning enjoyable. They are unpredictable. They jump into character when reading a story, teach lessons with enthusiasm, take advantage of teachable moments, and provide dynamic hands on activities that students will remember. They tell stories to make real life connections. Great teachers incorporate student interests into their lessons. They are not afraid to do crazy things that motivate their students to learn.

A great teacher consistently goes above and beyond. They volunteer their own time to tutor a struggling student after school or on weekends. They help out in other areas around school when they are needed. A great teacher is the first to help a family of a student in need in any way they can. They advocate for the students when necessary. They look out for each student’s best interest. They do what it takes to ensure that each student is safe, healthy, clothed, and fed.

A great teacher loves their job . They are passionate about their job. They enjoy getting up each morning and going to their classroom. They are excited about the opportunities they have. They like the challenges that each day presents. Great teachers always have a smile on their face. They rarely let their students know when something is bothering them because they worry it will affect them negatively. They are natural educators because they were born to be a teacher.