Sunday, October 28, 2018

A Jumping Good Time!

We had a jumping good time at the PTA Just Jump fundraiser! All of our students were involved in showing their support for PTA by jumping rope. We thank our PE teacher, Mr. Gries, and our PTA volunteers for making this a fun, healthy activity for all of our students!


 


 

 


On the outside, these students look calm and serious as they carefully paint their creative robot designs with precision and accuracy. On the inside, they are jumping with pride at how beautifully their work is turning out! 
 

The fourth grade musical performance gave us reason to jump for joy! The patriotic songs that they sang invoked appreciation for our freedoms and inspiration for being "united".

It made my heart jump for joy to see this teacher involving this student in working the sound system during the musical performance. Whether in the spotlight or behind the scenes, there are so many important ways to contribute and participate. 

 Here's another jump-for-joy moment! I love how at any given moment I can spot a staff member connecting with kids at their eye level.  Our students look up to all of the adults who work in our school district, so it's great to see our staff members taking the time to interact with the children in such caring and friendly ways. 

What makes you jump for joy at Dryden?





Sunday, October 21, 2018

Every Child

This past week, our Parent Teacher Association was recognized for outstanding membership and for their service project involving fifth grade students in learning about and benefitting the Children's Craniofacial Association. We appreciate all they are doing for our school community and beyond! 

This Friday, they are facilitating our annual school fundraiser, Just Jump! You can donate by clicking here. We would greatly appreciate your donations as they fund many great programs for our students and families such as Field Day, Camp Duncan, assemblies and more!


I love our PTA's slogan, "Every Child. One Voice." This emphasis on inclusivity amongst our school community is so important. We greatly appreciate our PTA's efforts to make sure all of our students can be included. 

It was so fun to participate with the children in the PTA's Running Club before school last week! The chilly fall weather did not hold us back! There were lots of fun activities to try as students took turns drawing cards from a bag and running to each station.

This week every child also practiced our annual bus safety & evacuation drills. We learned a lot from our bus drivers about all that they do to help keep our students safe as they are transporting them to and from school. And, the bus drivers helped our students learn what they can do to keep themselves safe when riding a school bus. Thank you, bus drivers!


It's truly wonderful to see every child growing as readers, writers and thinkers. They are learning so many important strategies that help them make meaning of the texts they are reading!



Sunday, October 14, 2018

Amazing Opportunities



What an incredible week this has been! There were so many amazing opportunities for our students to learn, play and grow!

Our One Book One School reading of Wishtree by Katherine Applegate culminated with a visit by the Traveling Tree Trunk and Animal Exhibit from The Grove in Glenview. 
 
 

It was pretty amazing to see our students working together to demonstrate all the working parts of a living tree!

 Our assistant principal/technology facilitator, Mrs. Beane, was recognized by the Illinois Retired Teachers' Association. Mrs. Beane was a awarded a grant that will be used to purchase robotic kits for our students to use at Dryden. 

Many parent volunteers joined our first graders for a STEAM Career Day exploration. What a wonderful way to learn first-hand how Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math are part of so many important careers! 
Engineering thermal protection for a cup to keep ice from melting

Package Design
Landscape Designer
Chemistry - Making a rainbow with chemicals
Learning how sound travels and how telephones work
Veterinarian

Interior Design
 
Engineering & Design of Construction Vehicles by Komatsu
Learning how a clinical researcher goes about collecting data

We appreciate the involvement and support of the Arlington Heights Fire Department as we practice our school evacuation drills and learned about fire safety during Fire Prevention Week.

You could hear a pin drop when author Megan McDonald spoke to our student body about her life as an author. We learned how everyday life experiences can be wonderful sources of inspiration for writing.  A huge thank you to our LMC teacher, Mrs. Kovacic, for bringing Megan McDonald to Dryden!

I found this poster of positive words to be very inspiring! As we learn ways to encourage one another and ourselves, these words were a positive reminder about how we can go about doing just that! 

Just look at how these young mathemeticians are applying their problem-solving skills and positive thinking!


The PTA Fall Fest was a wonderful event for our families thanks to efforts of so many caring volunteers. There was a great volunteer turnout of many former Dolphins who are now middle school and high school students. The current Dolphin students really enjoyed playing with them! 

 


Students also enjoyed an obstacle course and were wowed by a magician! 


 


What an incredible week of learning and playing! Thank you to the many dedicated parents, community members and teachers for making our students school experiences so special!!