Just Move It! Challenge

Last Saturday, many families and teachers from across the school district came together to run and walk in the 5K/1 mile Just Move It! Challenge to benefit the ABC/25 Foundation. The ABC/25 Foundation's mission is to support excellence and innovation in education for students in our school district. They provide grants to teachers and schools and award college scholarships to graduating high school students who attended Arlington Heights School District 25. This year, Dryden received a $2500 grant to upgrade the interactive whiteboard technology in our classrooms.

Last night, the Board of Education recognized the teachers who received individual grants. Library Media Center Co-Director Mrs. Powers acquired a grant to purchase e-Readers for the school. Many favorite children's books are downloaded onto the e-Readers. Students can check out these e-Readers, just like a library book.

Advanced Learning teacher Mrs. Schwarz earned grants for earthworms and microphone headsets. Students in the Ecology Club were able to build habitats for the earthworms, study their growth and learn how earthworms contribute to healthy gardens. The headsets can be used by all of our students for all of the fine arts performances that are held throughout the year.

Art teacher Mrs. Fuglestad received grants for green screens and two iPads.She now has a one-to-one iPad-to-student ratio in her classroom. Students can now easily upload images of their artwork into digital portfolios and communicate feedback with one another. Digital animation is one of the many forms of digital art  that students will be able to learn. The technology skills they learn in art class are also applied to their use of technology in the classroom, making technology a seamless and valuable tool for learning. You can learn all about Mrs. Fuglestad's art program at her website,  http://drydenart.weebly.com

Last year, we received a $3,000 Marian Elliot grant through the ABC/25 foundation to update the Dryden courtyard. With this grant, we were able to install a mulched walking path, classroom meeting space, compost bin, bird feeder, large thermometer, rain gauge and decorative bridge. We also received kits which the Ecology Club will use to make stepping stones for the courtyard.

This year, the Eagle Scouts will be building benches for seating, planting flowers and sprucing up the courtyard with new mulch. They are holding a car wash tomorrow in the Dryden parking lot from 12-3 p.m. to raise funds for this project. Please stop by! We look forward to seeing you there!