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THE MARKESAN DISTRICT SCHOOLS
Winter 2025
READING INITIATIVE AT MARKESAN ELEMENTARY
The passage of Act 20 by the Wisconsin Legislature and the media attention to address literacy and the Science of Reading brought us all together in focus of what our students need. We do this with instruction in phonological awareness and phonics to make decoding fluent and automatic. Students need experiences to build background knowledge and vocabulary. They need a variety of texts to learn about language structures, literacy knowledge so that they can apply verbal reasoning to comprehend. They need experiences to write about what they read, to apply graphophonic skills and communicate reasoning and evidence All of these skills can grow through oral communication practice
WelearnedandsharedknowledgetogetherbycompletingoureightchaptersofLETRstraining.Allteachersin theelementaryschooldidourreading,ourhomework,thepracticeactivities,ourcasestudywork,andjoined intoeightday-longzoomclasses.
Wealignedourmaterials-ourSavvasandourHeggertytomakesurethatweaddresstheeightskillthreads thatweavetogetherinLanguageComprehensionandWordRecognitiontobuildtheskillsofallofourreaders
ach other on who develo sight This can compr
We zoomed into a focus on vocabulary needs for students We want to build with words of learning content, of subjects, of experiences and of text reading to strengthen comprehension of what students read.
“This is a credit to our learning, our collaboration, and our work in designing instruction that reaches all of the threads of skilled reading.”
Weassessedourreaders-learningthedemandsoftheAct20mandatedscreeneraimsweb+andworked toembedpracticetodevelopconfidentreaderswithallofthethreadsofskilledreading We collaboratedwitheachother,withinterventionandTitle1,withassistants,withSpecialEducation teachersinordertodeterminewhateachstudentneedstogrowtoskilledreading Aboveall,wehelp eachstudentthroughplanninganddeliveringinstructioninbothlargegroupandsmallgroups,by differentiatingactivitiesandbyprovidingtimetopractice
Wecommunicatesuccessandgoalstostudents,toparents,andtoourschoolboard Weareproudthat theneedforthemandatedAct20readingplansingradesK-3thiswinterwerelessthanneighboring districts Webelievethisisacredittoourlearning,ourcollaboration,andourworkindesigning instructionthatreachesallofthethreadsofskilledreading
Update from Markesan Intervention/Act 20 Coordinator, Kim Schneider
Boys Basketball
ORTS UPDATE
With an overall record of 15-11 and a conference record of 7-7, the 2023-24 boys basketball team earned a fifth place finish in the Trailways-West Conference standings. Heading into the WIAA tournament, the team earned a #7 seed where they squared off against the #10 seeded Waterloo Pirates. The Hornets were able to secure the win in this matchup, but unfortunately fell to the #2 seeded Marshall Cardinals in the Regional Semi-final round The Hornets look to build on the improvements made this year as they turn their attention to next season All-conference honors for the Hornets were: 1st Team - Austin Moderow; and Honorable Mention - Cohen Hoffmann
Markesan Forensics Update
Girls Basketball
The Markesan Lady Hornets finished the Trailways-West season with an 11-3 conference record, which earned them a second place finish in the standings. Overall, the team finished the season with an 18-8 record. In the first round of the WIAA tournament, the #5 seeded Lady Hornets faced off against the #12 seeded Waterloo Pirates The Lady Hornets were victorious in this matchup, but unfortunately fell in the second round of the tournament to the #4 seeded Lomira Lions The Lady Hornets were well represented in the All-conference balloting as Lauren Moldenhauer, Rylee Hoffmann, and Peyton Jenkins all earned honors
Markesan Forensics is off to a great start. Our team consists of 10 entries and 13 students. David Oft and Angelia Mirr in Moments in History, Ginger Austin in Special Occasion, Delyla Ratliff in Prose, Lily Miller in Storytelling, Johanna Vargas, Layne Schertz, Mario Herrera, and Izzy Hernandez together in Group Interpretation, and Vika Villanueva, Morgan Wuerch, Jadyn Crook, and Kataya Drehmel in Poetry On February 3rd, we competed in our Trailways Conference meet hosted by Randolph this year Lily Miller and Jadyn Crook both won All Conference medals at this meet by being the top in their respective categories Then on February 10th we headed back to Randolph, who was hosting our Sub District meet At this meet, participants needed to earn two scores of 16 or more to qualify for our District competition that is coming up on March 17th in Westfield. At this meet, participants must earn two scores of 21 or more to qualify for State on April 12th.
Markesan Referendum Update
Sincethesuccessfulreferendum,MarkesanDistrictSchools,BrayArchitects,andCDSmith Constructionhavebeenmakingsteadyprogress.Earlyplanningeffortshavefocusedon settingborrowingschedules,establishingadesigntimeline,andtouringnewerfacilitiesfor inspiration
ACorePlanningTeam comprisedofmembersfromMarkesan’sadministrativeteam,Bray Architects,andCDSmith hasbeenestablishedandwillmeetbi-weeklythroughoutthe designprocess Theteam’snextstepistocollaboratewithElementarySchoolstafftoassess specificneedsfortheirspaces,suchaslayout,sinkplacement,andstoragerequirementsfor theArtDepartment.
Tokeeptheprojectonscheduleforconstructiontobegininsummer2025,theCorePlanning TeamaimstomeetwithstaffandgatherfeedbackbetweenJanuaryandmid-April
OnDecember16th,Markesan’sadministrativeteam,elementarystaff,andprojectpartners touredareaschoolstoexploredesignsolutions.Meanwhile,theMiddle/HighSchool renovationisprogressingquickly,withdrawingssetforcompletionbylateFebruary,followed bythebiddingprocessinMarchandApril Atthesametime,theElementarySchoolfloorplan continuestoevolvethroughstaffinputandthoughtfulplanningtocreateanefficientand functionallayoutforstudentsandstaff
Update from Markesan Athletic Director, Skip Laper
Update from Forensics Advisor Erin Douma
Wrestling
TheMarkesanwrestlersextendedtheirconferencechampionship streaktofiveconsecutivetitlesastheyearnedtheTrailways ConferenceTournamentchampionship Attheconferencetournament thefollowingwrestlersearnedall-conferencerecognition:LiamHart, GavinSlark,JabinLawson,TrestonEckstein,BradenBurk,Kayden Vannatta,andCadenRuetten TheHornetteamalsoadvancedthree wrestlerstotheWIAAstatetournamentinMadison Wrestlerswho advancedtothestatetournamentlevelwereGavinSlark,Treston Eckstein,andJabinLawson.Congratulationstotheentirewrestling teamontheirchampionshipseason.
Markesan New Podcast
MarkesanDistrictSchool’snewpodcast,"Hangin’withMr Super,"ishere!Hostedbyourdistrictadministrator,this shortandengaging15-minutepodcastisperfectforlistening onyourwaytoworkorwhiledrivingkidstoactivities. Withsevenepisodesalreadyout,topicshaveincluded4K enrollmentinformation,constructionupdates,andaspecial interviewwithJohnBradleyabouthiscoachingcareer Eachweekfeaturesnewguestsandtimelydiscussionsto keepyouinformedaboutwhat’shappeninginourschools. SubscribeandfollowusonPodbeanandAppleMusicto stayconnected TuneinandstayuptodatewithMarkesan DistrictSchools!
What’s Next in the Timeline?
The next phase of the project includes the start of user group meetings, where staff and stakeholders will provide input to refine plans The Elementary School floor plan layout will be finalized, while work continues on developing exterior design concepts An early design package is set to be completed by June 2025, allowing construction on the addition to begin in July/August 2025. Bid submissions are due in September 2025, with the addition expected to be completed by June/July 2026 The overall construction project remains on track for completion in fall/winter 2026
DISTRICT ADMINISTRATOR MESSAGE
Jason Breaker, District Administrator
DearMarkesanCommunity, It’shardtobelievewe’realreadyatthe midpointoftheschoolyear!Ithasbeena busyandexcitingtime,filledwithgrowth, learning,andnewopportunitiesatevery gradelevel.
Ourelementarystudentshavebeendiving intoliteracywithastrongfocusontheACT 20readinginitiative Justbeforewinter break,wekickedoffourWinterReading Buddyprogram,wherehighschoolathletes fromtheboys’basketball,girls’basketball, andwrestlingteamsspenttimereadingwith ourlittleHornets It’swonderfultoseeour studentsservingaspositiverolemodels! Additionally,ourelementarylibraryhosted BlindDateWithABookwithMrs.Rauls, encouragingstudentstostepoutsidetheir comfortzonesandpickbookswithoutseeing thecovers whatafunwaytodiscovernew favorites!
Wehavebeenfortunatetohaveincredible communitysupportthroughoutthisschool year,bringingreal-worldexperiencesintoour classrooms SergeantCodyMcLean,Chief JoelStrahota,andCaptainCoryStrahota sharedtheirexperiencesinEMS,fire,and policework.TrooperDanielRestrepoand DNRWardenBradLatzavisitedourcriminal justiceclass,providinginsightintotheir careers.Middleschoolershadagreattimeat DonutswithaCop,connectingwithmembers oftheMarkesanPoliceDepartment, SouthernGreenLakeEMS,andMarkesan FireDepartment Meanwhile,ourTechEd classeshadtheuniqueopportunitytotravel toColomaandtakepartintheLocal139 EquipmentOperator’sExternship,gaining hands-onexperienceintheskilledtrades Beyondtheclassroom,we’reproudto celebrateBreeandHarmony,who representedMarkesanattheRegional SpellingBeeinRipon,competingagainst60 studentsfromneighboringschools wayto go!
Thank you for your continued support and your dedication to the success of Markesan students!
AppleMusic
PodBean
TheMarkesanFFAchapterhasbeenbusywithvariousevents,competitions,andcelebrations, showcasingtheircommitmenttoleadership,agriculture,andcommunityinvolvement.From travelingtonationalconventionstohostinglocalcompetitions,membershaveembraced numerousopportunitiestogrowandengagewithothers
