|
|
WHS Choir Tops Italy Tour with Vatican Performance during High Mass
The WHS Tour Choir spent the Thanksgiving break in Italy, visiting Florence, Rome and several smaller towns in Umbria and Tuscany. The 108 person entourage included 86 students, 17 parent chaperones and 5 school administrators. Under the direction of Dr. Jana Williams and Ms. Maggie Taylor, the 2015 Tour Choir began preparing for the trip last spring, with rehearsals scheduled during each WEB up until the day before departure.
The group explored Roman, Medieval and Renaissance architecture, art and history while admiring the varied landscapes and sampling the local culture and cuisine. From the obligatory "holding up the Leaning Tower of Pisa" photos, to riding bikes on the city wall in Lucca, to marveling at the engineering feats of the Roman Coliseum, the trip was a whirlwind of experiential learning.
Performances included a Friendship Concert with a local choir at the Santa Maria in Provenzano Church in Siena and a concert for students and faculty of the Instituto Serve di Maria Language School in Florence. Our students had an opportunity to mix and mingle with the Italian high school students after the concert which proved to be a favorite part of the trip for many. The final performance was at St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican where the Choir presented four pieces as part of the 5:00 pm High Mass. To make this event even more memorable, the Homily was delivered in English and addressed directly to the WHS students. But, perhaps the most impactful performances were the impromptu moments when members of the choir sang just for the joy of it for local residents in churches, restaurants, piazzas and street corners throughout the trip.
Each member of the group came away with special memories and a new perspective that always comes from travel. In this time of international strife and tension, sharing the gift of music has made the world a little smaller and a little warmer for these WHS students and for all those who were touched by their song.
|
|
 Mindfulness Classes Offered to Adults at WHS: Register Now
The PTSA has sponsored Mindfulness in School's ".b Program" in the WHS Health Classes for the past 2 semesters. Lisa Jones, certified instructor, presented the 9-hour research-based curriculum to the health students and shared highlights of each lesson with parents in the WHS Connections eNewsletter. The response to the program has been overwhelmingly positive from students, parents, and faculty.
Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction is a secular approach to train our brains to recognize and control our body's stress response. Functional MRI's validate MBSR practitioners' ability to change the way their brain and body react to the stress we encounter every day in our fast-paced, high tech lifestyle. If not addressed, chronic stress can reek havoc on our bodies, contributing to disease, affecting our emotions, relationships, and performance, and dramatically lowering our quality of life.
Evidence of the effectiveness of MBSR programs has propelled Mindfulness practices to the forefront in business, politics, higher academia, medicine, sports, and now schools throughout the world. The .b student classes at Walton have led to a demand from parents and teachers to learn more about Mindfulness. As a result, the PTSA will sponsor an 8 week .b Foundations in Mindfulness program at WHS on Wednesday afternoons from 4:30-6, beginning Jan. 6. (skipping the Wednesday of Winter Break).
.b Foundations is based on the core mindfulness principles found within Mindfulness-based Stress Reduction (MBSR) and Mindfulness-based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) courses. However, it differs in that this program has been designed with school staff and parents in mind. This course fulfills the prerequisite course and certification required to take the Teacher Training courses through Mindfulness in Schools. Adults who develop a regular practice and feel inspired to go on to teach mindfulness to students could then attend a Teach .b Course or Teach Paws b Course. PTSA sponsorship will allow the .b Foundations in Mindfulness Course to be offered at a substantial discount to the Walton/East Cobb Community. To register and pay the $295 registration fee on-line, click here: .b Foundations
|
|
Education Reform Advocacy
YOU CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE
On November 19th, Governor Nathan Deal's Education Reform Commission (ERC) met to receive final recommendations from each of the five subcommittees. The ERC meets one more time, December 15, to make those recommendations to Governor Deal who will then decide which ones he wishes to take to the General Assembly in January. As previously reported, the committees with the most drastic proposals involve recommendations from the Funding Committee and the Teacher Recruitment, Retention and Compensation (TRRC) Committee. For the full list of committee recommendations, click here.
As expected, the Funding Committee recommended replacing the Quality Basic Education (QBE) formula with a student-based formula which sets a base rate and assigns additional dollars to various student populations. The base rate was derived from the current amount of funding in the education budget which is less than what is mandated by QBE. According to the Georgia Association of Educators (GAE), this model is basically untested as it has not been used by any other state to fund education. In the short term, Cobb County would receive more funding than in recent years. But, the cuts that have been in place over the past decade would become permanent.
In addition, while the TRRC Committee prioritized changing teacher compensation, their recommendation would replace a state salary structure with one that local school districts would formulate with a combination of state money and their own. However, the Funding Committee capped the amount the state would contribute and the TRRC Committee did not favor rewarding teachers for experience and advanced degrees but rather suggested reimbursing them for the cost of advanced degrees instead. This would leave districts trying to decide how to retain experienced teachers when some struggle to open their doors for 180 days. And, the possibility of a different salary structure for each district could very well lead to discord within the teaching community.
Dr. Sid Chapman, president of the GAE, has said publicly that there has been low morale among teachers throughout the ERC's deliberations this year. He is concerned, as are teachers, that there are no active teachers on the ERC. "Proposed changes such as those on teacher compensation and eliminating the state salary schedule will make the morale even worse," Dr. Chapman said.
Teacher retention and class size increases are issues that changes in funding can bring about. Students in various populations from special education to English language learners to gifted need the necessary resources so they can achieve their potential. Think about a situation where your child has been impacted by an increase in class size. Or, think about a teacher you know who left the profession because he or she couldn't meet the increased demands. Educating our kids is one of our most important obligations.
What can you do?
- Attend the upcoming Education Forum sponsored by the East Cobb County Council of the PTA this coming Tuesday night, December 8 at East Side Elementary. It's your last chance to hear from people in the know before the final ERC meeting.
- Continue to spread the word among your friends and neighbors. All stakeholders are impacted by these changes and this is not just a Cobb County issue.
- Contact Governor Deal and express your concerns over the recommendations.
- Contact your lawmakers (Representatives Matt Dollar & Sharon Cooper and Senator Judson Hill). Remind them of the importance of real education reform. Ask that they consider funding education based on the actual cost of educating a child in Georgia rather than either an outdated formula (QBE) or one that imposes permanent cuts (ERC recommendation). Tell them how funding cuts and increased class sizes have impacted your child.
This publication is funded entirely by the WHS PTSA. No public funds were used to convey this message.
|
|
|
|
|
WaltonStrong
Test Taking Tips for Final Exam Week
Preparing for a test
- Review your notes everyday.
- Teach the information in your own words, out loud, to yourself or a buddy.
- Go for a brisk walk or a jog for a study break to stimulate your brain and release stress.
- Avoid late-night study cramming and study in 1-2 hour increments over time per subject.
Taking a test
- First, get 8 hours of sleep
- Eat a balanced and healthy breakfast and lunch. Fuel for thought? Make sure to include protein, carbohydrates and fat
- Visualize getting your test back and it is a A!
- Take a deep breath and relax.
PREPARE FOR YOUR TEST AND IT WILL HELP YOU DO YOUR BEST! BELIEVE IN YOURSELF!!
To your health,
Jill Gregory
Board Certified Nutritionist
PTSA Health and Wellness Chair
|
|
Inventing to Learn!
|
| |
Avery Kress presenting at the
SpaceUp Conference
|
Walton student Avery Kress had an idea...use non-newtonian fluids to act as shock absorbers for lift off and landing of payloads in space. He envisioned encasing a satellite in some sort of shell, filling it with non-newtonian fluid, and launching it with a rail gun or mass driver. This methodology could reduce the price of a satellite launch from the current $5000/lb to $200/lb or could even be used to cushion payload landings on Mars. But, Avery had no idea how to prove or patent his theory. Fortunately, Ms. Jennice Ozment, Avery's Honor's Chemistry teacher, was the perfect person to guide Avery through this process.
Ms. Ozment comes from a family of scientists and engineers. She fell in love with science at an early age and graduated with a chemistry degree, just as her grandmother did years before as one of the first women to receive this degree from the University of Michigan. After graduation, Ms. Ozment began a 20-year career as a research and industrial chemist in the oil industry and the paper chemicals industry. Eight years ago, she transitioned from the corporate world into education and began teaching science at Walton. Although she loves teaching, she admits to missing the excitement of research and discovery. When Avery approached her with his problem, she saw a way to combine her two passions and mentor a future scientist along the way!
After signing a confidentiality agreement, Ms. Ozment and Avery went to work designing experiments and testing Avery's theory. The results were increasingly positive, and they filed for a provisional patent which was granted in April 2015. They have been working with a teacher at a Columbus high school and began doing drop tests from tethered science balloons to reach the 2-4 g's of force needed to prove the theory. They will also have the experiment on board a LYNX rocket in 2016 with XCOR. Last month, they presented their study, data and provisional patent at the SpaceUp conference at Georgia Tech where they made some great contacts. Currently, they are seeking a research agreement with a company to scale up testing and apply for permanent patents.
The Walton community looks forward to celebrating the success of this venture with Avery and thanks Ms. Ozment for encouraging and supporting her students as they invent to learn!
|
|
The WHS Website, eBlast,
Connections and The Raider Review
are paid for by funding from your
Visit Our Website to Learn more about Walton's PTSA
|
|
