Hopkins School District #270

In April, Tanglen fifth graders had the opportunity to participate in the comprehensive two-week engineering unit, Marvelous Machines: Making work easier. Organized by fifth grade teacher Michael Yasis, the engineering lessons taught students the math and science behind simple machines, levers, pulleys, inclined planes, wheels, and axles.

What does education look like on the other side of the world? KSTP's Jason Davis went "On the Road" to find out. This feature highlights XinXing Academy and its sister school in Beijing. The American educational system and the Chinese educational system are vastly different, but each is interested in the other. Learn why our global partnerships are more important than ever.

This year, thanks to a Cargill grant, Hopkins kindergarten students and Stages Theatre participated in a unique partnership focused on using theatre to increase literacy skills. Many of our full-day kindergarten classes created digital stories. "The Lobster Who Thought She Was a Crab" is just one heart-warming story.

On Saturday, May 18th, Alice Smith Elementary School's 60th anniversary celebration perfectly blended the history and future of the school into a fun-filled afternoon. Families, community members, and staff all gathered in the entryway to the school to enjoy root beer floats, a vintage car display, a face painting station, and a performance by "Jazz on the Prairie" Big Band.

Frozen ground and thunderstorms have made the Eisenhower Playground Community Build very tricky but the goal is still to finish before school ends. They have a good start on the project but had to quit on Sunday due to weather and very wet ground. The school is looking for 8-12 people to work up to four hours after school on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday of this week. Click here to sign up to volunteer!

On Friday, May 17, Tanglen Elementary School had their third annual Walk-A-Thon where students ran or walked for one mile to raise money for the PTO. While morning kindergarteners had the opportunity to run around the high school track, rainy weather pushed the event to the hallways of the school in the afternoon.

 

 

The Hopkins High School Theatre program, Royal Productions, is proud to present "Our Town," a classic American Play written by Thornton Wilder. Curtains will rise on May 16, 17 and 18 at 7 p.m. in the Hopkins High School Little Theatre.

On Friday, May 10, students from Hopkins High School participated in the first World Café at the Eisenhower Community Center. A diverse group of about 50 students took part in a variety of discussions and activities aimed at creating positive change in the high school.

Kay Hawley, instrumental music teacher at Glen Lake Elementary and Alice Smith Elementary, received the 2013 Northfield High School Distinguished Alumni Award on April 28. This award is Hawley's second in 2013. In February, the Minnesota Music Educators Association presented her with the 2012 Minnesota Music Educator of the Year Award.

Check out some unique photos from Gatewood's Imagination Fair here!

Alice Smith Elementary students' imaginations are limitless! Check out some great photos of the imagination fair here!

On May 8, Alice Smith Elementary students participated in National Bike/Walk to School Day. Volunteers helped set up tables to hand out 150 aluminum water bottles and drawstring backpacks to the students who walked or rolled to school.

 

On Sunday afternoon, April 28th, 140 Alice Smith Elementary School students sang the National Anthem at the Minnesota Twins baseball game at Target Field. Wearing pink ribbons to honor an Alice Smith Elementary teacher who was recently diagnosed with breast cancer, the kids sang beautifully as they led the crowd of 35,000 before the game. And to top it off, the weather was glorious and the Twins won! Alice Smith students have been singing the National Anthem at Twins games since 2007.

On Tuesday, a group of United Healthcare volunteers worked to prepare Alice Smith Elementary's courtyard for the blooming spring and summer months. Equipped with rakes, shovels, and tarps, the crew cleaned the debris left over from winter and worked to make the space ready for new foliage.

Alan Page, Minnesota Supreme Court Justice and Minnesota Vikings Hall of Famer, visited Gretchen Larson's kindergarten class on Thursday to read his new children's book, "Alan and His Perfectly Pointy, Impossibly Perpendicular Pinky."

Eisenhower Elementary and XinXing Academy's dream of a new playground has almost become a reality. All they need is a little extra help from community volunteers to build the structures. The dates of the Community Build are Saturday, May 18 and Sunday, May 19. To volunteer for a shift, please sign up online or call the Eisenhower Main Office at 952-988-4300. If you have some mechanical skills and are interested in being a team lead, please email Paul Buschmann or call him at 952-848-7630.

Mark your calendars for Saturday, May 18, 1:00-3:00 p.m. to join the community in celebrating Alice Smith's 60th Anniversary with fun events including a jazz concert by "Jazz on the Prairie" Big Band, a vintage car display, rootbeer floats, a scavenger hunt, facepainting and a walk-through-history timeline. If you are interested in volunteering for this event, please contact the main office at: 952.988.4200. Check out our Facebook page for updates on all of Alice Smith Elementary's events.

On Thursday, May 2, Dr. Sharroky Hollie, Director of the Center for Culturally Responsive Teaching, spent the day with Hopkins High School staff. Hollie's presentation, "Journey to Responsiveness," was focused on culturally responsive teaching strategies and also on linguistically responsive teaching techniques. This work is part of an ongoing professional development designed to reach all students.

Hopkins Education Foundation (HEF) is awarding Hopkins Public Schools $61,000 this spring in grants to enhance education in Hopkins schools. HEF raised $38,000 in spring grants and another $23,000 at the Royal Bash as part of a Special Appeal to support STEM learning. Details about the grants are listed below.

Superintendents, Apple representatives, teachers, and digital content specialists from surrounding school districts gathered at Hopkins on May 2 to discuss digital curriculum being used in the classroom. Nearly 200 people attended the conference with one question in mind: How can we use technology to become more effective educators?

Second and third-graders at Meadowbrook have the unique opportunity to perform at the sixth annual EcoArts Fest. Produced by the non-profit arts organization ArtStart, the festival is a free, family-friendly event that celebrates creativity, culture, and conservation through the arts.

 

On Sunday, April 14, XinXing second-grade students performed at the sixth annual "A Passage to China" celebration at the Mall of America. Over 50 organizations participated in the event, which was focused on Chinese culture, history, and entertainment. XinXing students sang Chinese songs, recited Chinese rhymes, and delighted an audience as they stood center-stage.

The Hopkins School Board approved the purchase of the Minneapolis Crisis Nursery at its April 25 School Board Meeting. The Crisis Nursery (located at 5400 Glenwood Ave., Golden Valley) shares a campus with Meadowbrook Elementary. The property was purchased for $1.75 million. The purchase of the building will solve parking problems and will allow Meadowbrook to expand and serve more students.

The Hopkins High School Choir Program performed at the Minnesota State High School League Region 6AA Solo/Ensemble contest on April 18. Twelve students received a Superior Rating in the vocal solo category. Three of these students were given a Best in Site recognition in addition to their ranking. The Men's Ensemble, Women's Ensemble and Chamber Choir, also received a Superior Ranking.

Last weekend, seven Hopkins High School students traveled to Anaheim, California to compete in the International DECA competition. The students qualified for the International competition by finishing in the top three spots at State.