HAWK EXPRESS

April-June 2008

 

It’s WASL Time!

 

            Students at Desert Hills are working hard to master core skills like reading, writing, math, critical thinking and reasoning.  Soon, all students at Desert Hills will take the Washington Assessment of Student Learning (WASL) to check their progress.  Sixth graders will take reading and mathematics tests.  Seventh graders will take reading, writing and mathematics tests.  Eighth graders will take reading, mathematics and science tests.  WASL testing will take place on April 15th, 17th, 18th, 22nd, 24th, and 25th.  All students will be tested in their first period classes from 7:50-10:20.  The students will then go to 2nd period and follow their regular class schedule between 10:24 and 2:18.  See the two-hour delay schedule on page 9 of your child’s planner for the actual class times.

            The WASL asks your child to read, write, think and solve problems – skills your child needs to be successful in the 21st century.  However, the WASL is just one tool to check your child’s progress toward state learning goals.  Classroom grades, homework and teacher conferences will continue to be good sources of information.

            Please make sure that your child gets enough rest and has a good breakfast prior to each of the testing dates.  It would be appreciated if appointments could be avoided during these test dates.  If a student is absent during any part of the test and unable to make it up, the test reports will indicate that he/she did not meet the standard in that particular area.  Mr. Schuldheisz and Mrs. Sievers, our counselors, will help students finish incomplete tests and make-up tests that were missed due to being absent.

            At Desert Hills we appreciate all you do to help your child and our school achieve great things.  Thank you for making learning a priority in your home.

Steve Jones – Principal

WASL KITS

 

First period teachers will be collecting WASL kits from students so they will have all the necessary supplies at school during WASL testing.  Each WASL kit should contain the following items:

  • One Basic Function Calculator
  • Two Large Pink Erasers
  • Twelve Sharpened #2 Pencils
  • One Ruler
  • One Protractor
  • One Pocket Dictionary/Thesaurus (optional—7th grade only)

There are some students who cannot afford to bring in a WASL kit so if you are willing to help out and send an extra kit, it would be appreciated.  Those kits can be delivered to any first period teacher. 

THANKS FOR YOUR HELP

 

Lunch Money Policy

Some of you may not be aware of Kennewick School District Policy about purchasing meals at secondary schools. When students arrive at the cashier’s station without money, it is district policy to not allow “charging” for meals.   In rare cases when this is allowed (by the cashier or building administration for special circumstances), the student will be expected to repay the charge as soon as possible.  Just like fees for lost books or athletic participation, the debt will need to be paid prior to the release of grades at the end of the year.

 It is recommended that you check your student’s lunch account often to make sure there is enough money to cover your student’s nutritional needs. You can check your student’s lunch balance by setting up an account online at -     http://www.mymealtime.com

 

Desert hills SCIENCE FAIR WINNERS

 

6th Grade

1st Place                                   Paul Pierson

2nd Place                                  Lindsey Przybylski and Dani Benson

3rd Place                                   Alex Vetrano

Honorable Mention                   Mallory Kestor

Honorable Mention                   Caitlin Risch

Honorable Mention                   Cassie Hadley

 

7th Grade

1st Place                                   Sangeetha Thevuthasan

2nd Place                                  Cooper Atkinson

3rd Place                                   Michelle Chiou

Honorable Mention                   Mark Hayden and Trevin Jacobsen

Honorable Mention                   Robin Rakowski

Honorable Mention                   Alexandria Miskho

 

8th Grade

1st Place                                   Sarah Blake

2nd Place                                  Abby Blanchard

3rd Place                                   Kim Raines

Honorable Mention                   Zacheria Lucas

Honorable Mention                   Geoff Bosserman

Honorable Mention                   Tasha Petermann and Taylor Schutzenhofer

 

 

Sarah Blake Wins CH2M HILL’s “Green Technology”

Award at the Mid-Columbia Regional Science Fair.

 

Sarah’s project focused on ethanol production. Sarah’s Award was accompanied by a $100 check from CH2M HILL.  The judges were impressed by her insightful presentation, her experiment, and her application of the scientific method.  Way to go Sarah!

GEOGRAPHY BEE RESULTS

 

The winner of the Geography Bee for 2008 is Jonathan Meng. He was also the winner last year! Congratulations Jon!  The runners-up were Tiara Johnson and Abby Blanchard who each lasted15 rounds!  The 6th grade winner was Tiara Johnson and the 7th grade winner was Caleb Vogel, who each lasted 14 rounds!  Every social studies class was represented!  Thank you to staff and parents who helped make the Geography Bee a success.

 

 

 

 

 

MATH COUNTS WINNERS

 

The Math Counts competition was held on Saturday, February 2, 2008.  The Desert Hills Team came in third place.  Desert Hills had two people in the top ten!  They are David Zilar and

Sangeetha Thevuthasan!  Both of them will be going to the state competition which is being held in on the Microsoft Campus Redmond.  Congratulations David and Sangeetha!

 

 

 

 

 

BABYSITTING CERTIFICATION

 

Pre-teens and teens (ages 10-15) are invited to learn how to be become the best babysitter possible. Hands-on activities, videos of actual babysitters and their experiences, and role playing will help participants prepare for babysitting.  Learn to care for kids of all ages and deal with difficult situations, how to prepare safe and fun activities, and how to make safe choices while babysitting. As a potential certified babysitter, you will also learn basic first aid and how to stay calm in an emergency. After successful completion, each student receives a babysitter’s handbook, laminated certification card, business cards and valuable forms to help develop a client list. Bring a bag lunch and two snacks. Participants will need to pay the instructor a $15 supply fee. For an additional fee of $10, participants can purchase a babysitter’s first aid kit. The class limit is 15.

Date: Sat, April 12

Date: Sat, May 17

Time: 9:00am-4:00pm

Place: First Aid Ed. Training Center, 320C W. Entiat Ave., Kennewick

Instructor: Sharon Burns

Class: 708                Class Fee: $49

Please call Community Ed Office at 222-5080 to register.

 

 

ADD YOUR NAME TO OUR E-MAIL LIST!

 

Most of you are aware of our parent portal.  Did you know that you can not only check your child’s grades on the parent portal, but you can also sign up for daily, weekly or monthly e-mails?  The next time you log into the parent portal, click on the “e-mail notification” icon and sign up to have a variety of reports e-mailed directly to your e-mail account.

 

 

 

 

SPRING CALENDAR

 

April 7 – April 11 – Spring Break

 

April 15—April 25—WASL Testing

 

May 8—Last day of spring sports

 

May 26—No school for Memorial Day

 

June 12—Payment of Fines

 

June 12—8th Grade Party

 

June 13—Yearbook Distribution

 

June 13—Fear Factor Assembly

 

June 16—Spring Fling

 

June 16—Early release for the last day of school

 

June 20—Report cards will be mailed home

 

 

For information on sports schedules and other activities, please visit our web sight at: www.ksd.org/dhills