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Update Hopkins Public Schools
The community’s guide to the District.
Eisenhower teacher nominated for Minnesota Teacher of the Year Hopkins teacher Anna Wosika was nominated for the Minnesota Teacher of the Year. She is one of 111 candidates who were nominated statewide. The Minnesota Teacher of the Year will be announced in May. Read more about Anna inside.
Two state champion titles in a row Congratulations to the Girls Basketball team for winning their second consecutive state championship title, beating Osseo 77-55. The following players were named to the alltournament team: TT Starks, Sydney Cofffey, Nia Coffey, Taylor Anderson.
Recipe for Success
The 14th Annual Empty Bowls fundraiser for ResourceWest and ICA Food Shelf on March 13 was a great success at Hopkins Center for the Arts. This year’s recipe to fill Empty Bowls in our community included 1,022 bowls created by students, staff and community potters; 32 Hopkins Schools art, music, and elementary teachers; 218 volunteers and 473 entertainers of all ages; 60 artist bowls and fine art pieces sold in a silent auction; 1,350 servings of soup and bread; and 47 sponsors of in-kind services. Together we raised $77,490!
Join us for an evening of dancing fun featuring the Big Band Sound of the Dick Macko Band. Register: $13 advance tickets, 952-988-4070. Friday, April 27, 7:00 p.m. Eisenhower Comm. Center www.HopkinsSchools.org/dance
College Search Process: Know the Facts Learn how to successfully plan for and navigate a productive college search. Registration required: 952-988-4070. Monday, April 23, 6:00 p.m. Eisenhower Comm. Center www.HopkinsSchools.org
April/May 2012
Spring Concerts Enjoy upcoming high school student concerts. High School Orchestra: District Orchestra Festival April 30, 7:00 p.m. High School Band: Spring Concert April 26, 7:30 p.m. www.HopkinsSchools.org
Digital Content Comes Alive in Junior High Science Entire seventh-grade class to go digital next school year Toni Schwartz, an eighth-grade science teacher at West Junior High, estimates that she pulled out a book in her classroom twice this year. This does not mean her students are reading less, but the manner in which they are receiving content has changed. The junior high science department started using digital curriculum this year, and as a result, books in the science classrooms have become all but obsolete. The students are reading, learning, and conducting research on iPads issued specifically for the science department to leverage new technologies. For the science department, the decision to go digital was a logical progression towards a more effective learning model. Schwartz and her teaching counterpart, Todd Roudabush, found that they were referencing digital material more often than not. They were constantly checking out laptops or taking students to computer labs. Having iPads in the classroom has allowed them instant access to their digital curriculum, which has enabled them to delve deeper into this new way of teaching.
Sid Voss, director of media and technology for Hopkins Public Schools, echoes Roudabush’s insights, and is much more interested in the transformed learning experiences digital content makes possible, rather than the device itself. “Digital devices such as iPads allow us to build rich learning experiences,” said Voss. “However, the device is merely a tool that provides access to digital content and resources. The most critical components will be our ability to transform learning experiences for our students.”
We live in a world where few people get content out of Next year, all seventh-grade classrooms will a book, unless resemble the junior high science department. it is in school. On March 15, the Hopkins School Board approved a Digital Content and Access plan We don’t open that will provide an iPad to every seventhgrade student. The program will grow each encyclopedias or year, and by the 2014-15 school year, every junior high student will have a school-issued phone books. It iPad. only makes sense Focused on learning, not the device to have a device When people hear about seventh-grade students having iPads, the natural assumption in the classroom is that the device will cause a certain level rather than a of distraction. Although this seems to be the case at first, according to Roudabush, textbook. the “distraction factor” of the iPads wears “We live in a world where few people get content out of a book, unless it is in school,” said Schwartz. “We don’t open encyclopedias or phone books at home. It only makes sense to have a device in the classroom rather than a textbook.”
off pretty quickly with students. He noticed that the more frequently he uses iPads for learning, the less they are viewed as a toy and the more they are viewed as a powerful learning device.
Transformed, customized learning With the iPads, students are taught the same curriculum as before, but the method is more engaging and dynamic. The science department is using iBooks that students can access on their iPads. Unlike regular books, the content is enriched with links to relevant videos, websites, and collaboration tools. At the end of each unit is a quiz that students can complete to test their proficiency. While the concept of testing is nothing new, the fact that students can immediately view their scores is significant and empowers them to take a more active role in their learning.
Instant feedback is just one example of how digital curriculum promotes a more Todd Roudabush (left) and Toni Schwartz (right) customized learning experience. presented their digital curriculum model at a technology training day. Because students are so engaged see Digital Content inside