Smartboard Clickers – Coming soon to a math class near you

Mrs. Stienke’s 6^th grade math class is taking a pretest using Smart Board clickers that were purchased with some of the technology millage. These clickers are hand held devices that interact with the smartboard at the front of the class.  Once all students have answered, the teacher and students are immediately able see the results. This has helped the students become more engaged in their lessons and improve learning outcomes.  Teachers can quickly determine what needs to be retaught and when they can move to the next concept.

K-4 Hearing Impaired Students enjoyed a breakfast and language lesson on being thankful

Kindergarten Pow Wow

 Mrs. Locke, Mrs. Thorne and Mr. Green's Kindergarten classes joined together for a PowWow and also had a visit from the new sheriff in town.

Ida Middle School Students Support Justin Ryan

Justin Ryan is a 2010 Ida graduate who was diagnosed with a rare aggressive tumor in his foot that will result in amputation of his right foot and lower leg. Middle School students have been buying stars to support the many costs associated with medical care and recovery.  Justin continues to support Ida as a middle school wrestling coach and Young Life leader at the high school.

Board of Education Meeting Summary

HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE BOARD OF EDUCATION MEETING

                                                            November 12, 2012

Mr. Ron Schlump will be joining the Ida team as the new Senior Technology Technician. Ron is a lifelong resident of Ida and his children are proud graduates as well. Please help me welcome Ron to his new position.

The unofficial election results for the two vacant seats on the Ida Board of Education are:  Chris Horney with 2,299 votes, Patty Galloro with 1,957 votes and Phil Halsey with 1,239 votes.

The Board discussed the budget parameters for the 2014 budget which included a foundation allowance of $6,966, projected student enrollment decrease of at least 45 students, health insurance increase of 3.2% and an 8% increase for other insurance packages.

Governor Snyder has been working on a project to re-write the School Aid Act and fundamentally change the way public schools are funded in the State of Michigan. Therefore, it is nearly impossible to predict the potential revenue stream from Lansing for the 2014 budget. If you would like an outline of the Governor’s plans contact me at carsten@idaschools.org and I would be happy to send it to you. A quick Google Search of the Oxford Foundation may also get you to the right location.

A Strategic Planning report was provided to the Board of Education. The elementary school has formed a Strategic Planning Committee that has developed an action plan to begin working toward the selected goal areas. The committee will also develop an evaluation system and monitor progress as the action plans are implemented. The middle school has decided to use the School Improvement Team as the group to drive the Strategic Planning Process while Mr. Dykstra will drive the process at the high school in a more direct fashion. Both the middle school and high school have inventoried current practices that support the goal areas. Moving forward they will create additional activities and processes to ensure the goal areas are met.

 
Once approved, the meeting minutes are posted on the district web-site at www.idaschools.org.

Character Strikes Winners

The Character Strikes theme for the month of October was Trustworthiness. 

4th graders participate in the democratic process and understand civic duty