The West Bend high schools welcome “The Well Pennies” accompanied by nearly 100 West Bend high school orchestra members, for a special performance in The Silver Lining Arts Center on Friday, May 6 at 7:30 pm. “The Well Pennies” are a nationally-known husband and wife duo from Los Angeles, who have produced multiple albums in the folk-pop genre and performed several covers of popular songs.
This performance will showcase the talent of WBSD high school musicians through a unique collaboration which will provide an educational experience like no other for WBHS students. Profits from the concert will benefit The Silver Lining Arts Center Transformation Project, and also help to fund a new sound system for the high school fieldhouse.
The benefit concert is a student-led project organized by members of Athletes for the Arts with support from community sponsors. Tickets will cost $5 for students and $10 for adults and will be sold at various locations. Tickets will be available at the WBHS bookkeeper's office, the WBSD Education Service Center, or online, starting April 1, 2016.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=87Fsy-PAlOo
A Growth Mindset: Continuously Improving English Language Arts 7-12 in the West Bend School District:
Results of the 2015 spring Wisconsin State Assessments (Badger Exam, ACT/Aspire, ACT) in the subject area of English Language Arts 7-12, indicate that students in the West Bend School District (WBSD) demonstrate proficiency levels slightly above the state average as referenced in the graphs below.
To strengthen student readiness in the skill areas of reading, writing, and English (grammar), the WBSD established an English/Language Arts (ELA) Goal Team during the fall of 2015 comprised of ELA teachers from Badger and the high schools and district Instructional Literacy Leaders to focus on the following tasks:
- review student performance data
- review curriculum standards
- review current curriculum for grades 7-11
- review current instructional practices
- recommend improvement opportunities to ELA design for grades 7-11
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After reviewing the work of the ELA Goal Team from semester 1 of the 2015-2016 school year, the Instructional Leadership Team recommended that the team further investigate redesign of the English Language Arts curriculum utilizing the Engage New York framework to fit the needs of the WBSD starting with the fall of 2016 for the following five course variations:
- ELA 7 (Badger)
- ELA 8 (Badger)
- English I (High Schools)
- English II (High Schools)
- English III (High Schools)
The ELA Goal Team and Instructional Leadership Team are not redesigning or modifying the Advanced Placement (AP) English courses or 9-12 English elective courses at this time.
The Engage New York ELA curriculum framework originally developed by the New York State Education Department is now published by Jossey-Bass (Wiley) as Paths to College and Career (PCG). The rigorous framework was designed to allow for adaptation and flexibility in each classroom, while providing a focus on strong instructional practice and student experiences with college and career ready skills. The curriculum empowers educators to implement and adapt the material to best support students with the English (grammar), reading, and writing skills that are necessary for career and college success while utilizing varied classic and contemporary selections, as well as fictional and informational text.
To prepare for the 2016-17 school year, the ELA Goal Team is customizing the framework, selecting curriculum resources, and deciding on the pacing of each unit/module. In addition, the WBSD will provide teachers with on-going professional development and one-on-one instructional coaching during the 2016-17 school year. Currently, ELA teachers in 7th and 8th grade will use the customized modules during the fourth quarter of the 2015-16 school year to familiarize themselves with the new framework and provide improvement opportunities based upon their experiences with the framework.
The WBHS choir programs present The Cat’s Pajamas on Friday, March 11 at 7 p.m. in the Silver Lining Arts Center (WBHS auditorium). The Cat's Pajamas Vocal Band is a five man acappella group that has been touring around the world since 2005 and has recently appeared on NBC's The Sing-Off. Founded by Brian Skinner of Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin, The Cat's Pajamas entered the national spotlight when they placed in the top 10 while performing their Oreo Cookie Jingle for Randy Jackson. After years of performing on Celebrity and Norwegian cruise ships as guest entertainers, The Cat's Pajamas now perform over 200 shows a year in Branson, MO, and across the Midwest as part of their Music in Schools tour. Tickets are available from the high school bookkeeper or at the West Bend School District Office, 735 S. Main St., West Bend. Tickets cost $12 for adults and $8 for students.
Chalk the Walk. Join the fun, or watch local artists create chalk drawings on the sidewalk between Hobby Lobby and Kohl’s parking lots on Saturday, May 21, from 8 a.m. – 4 p.m. for Chalk the Walk, presented by the WBSD Art Department…rain date is May 22. This unique event is open to professionals, amateur artists or families. Registration forms are available at the Chocolate Factory, all WBSD schools, or the WBSD Education Service Center, 735 S., Main Street. For more information, please contact Kiah Wolff@ (262)335-5478, or email mwolff@west-bend.k12.wi.us.
Nominations are now being accepted for the Distinguished Alumni Award created to honor individuals who have accomplished notable academic, humanitarian, athletic, artistic, cultural or historically significant achievement since graduation from the West Bend High Schools. Eligible alumni will have the following minimum requirements:
- The nominee is a graduate from West Bend East, West Bend West or the former West Bend High School (Badger)
- Must be an individual who has distinguished him/herself for a significant period of time in his/her chosen field over and above the average individual in that field
- He/she has been out of high school for at least 20 years
- He/she is recognized by peers in their vocation or avocation for their achievements at state, national or international level
- He/she agrees to be considered for the award and a background check to identify his/her eligibility.
NOMINATION FORMS must be accepted before March 18, 2016.
Last year’s recipients included Mary Hafeman, a 1975 East High School graduate and Jeff Steilen, a 1983 graduate of West High School graduate.
Volunteers from the WBHS Key Club will host Movie Night, featuring Finding Nemo, for kids ages 6-17 on Friday, February 12 at 5:30 p.m. at the Boys & Girls Club, 925 N. Silverbrook Dr., West Bend. Movie Tickets cost $1 and all proceeds will benefit Children's Hospital of Wisconsin. Concessions available.
To get kids excited about reading and encourage more adults to spend time reading with their children, the WBSD is partnering with the National Education Association (NEA) to celebrate Dr. Seuss’ birthday in the national Read Across America event on Wednesday, March 2, 2016.
The WBSD is looking for volunteers to read one book to an elementary classroom in our PreK through sixth grade classrooms; books will be provided at the event. We would like to have one volunteer reader for each one of our classrooms…that’s a total of 150 volunteers!
Volunteers are needed from 9:15 – 10:15 a.m. at Rolfs Education Center, Jackson, McLane, and, and from 12:45 – 1:45 p.m. at Green Tree, Fair Park and Decorah Elementary Schools. Silverbrook Intermediate School needs volunteers to read from 8:30 a.m. – 9:30 a.m. and from 10 a.m. – 11 a.m. for several classrooms.
Let's all join together on March 2, 2016, and every day thereafter, to ensure that our children have caring adults to share books and rich reading experiences.
Sign up online in a few easy steps: http://vols.pt/mF5sCX
Nominations are now being accepted for the 2015-2016 Rolfs Educational Foundation Award and the Support Staff of the Year award!
Recognize and honor exceptional teachers and support staff members by nominating them for these awards.
The deadline for completing your nominations is March 4, 2016.
Visit the staff award webpage to submit a nomination and view award details and criteria.
Jackie Vandenberg's article, Finding Comfort in the Listening, was published in the January issue of the Wisconsin School Musician magazine.
"As teachers, we are constantly trying to cultivate an environment in our classrooms that provides a zone of safety, a place were students can take risks in their learning, a place where they can safely make mistakes and know that it is all right; we are learning together..."
