ParentSquare2024 Young Authors’ Conference, Books & Bots
This year P-H-M Education Foundation’s Young Authors’ Conference is partnering up with the Next Gen Robotics event to bring you Books & Bots! This event blends literary innovations with robotic creations. It’s a wonderful opportunity for P-H-M students in Kindergarten – 5th grade. Click here to view photos on Facebook from last year’s Young Authors’ Conference; click here to view photos of the 2023 Next Gen event.
The event will start at 9:15 a.m. in Penn’s Fitness Center. There will be the three rotations at three locations within Penn High School. Families and students will visit each station for 45 minutes, with a 15 minute break in between. The rotations will be an author visit, reader’s theater, and fun with the bots! Next Gen (the bots area) will be open until 1:00 p.m. Registered participants will receive a S’more with confirmation details the week of February 26. You and your student’s rotation schedule and starting location will be provided in the S’more. If you have any questions after receiving the email, please contact ccussen@phm.k12.in.us.
Please enter Door D. Parking is available in the front of Penn, at Schmucker Middle School, and in the parking lot near River Valley Church. Click here to access a Penn Building Map. Once inside Penn, look for “Books and Bots” signage and please arrive at your room between 9:00-9:15 a.m. With record attendance expected, plan plenty of time to park and walk to your designated area.
Books & Bots is completely FREE! Thank you to the P-H-M Education Foundation and P-H-M Superintendent Dr. Jerry Thacker and his wife Donna Thacker for covering the cost of the YAC for the second year in a row from the proceeds of #GivingTuesday donations.
NEW THIS YEAR … both events will be held at Penn High School!
While the events are FREE, registration is required!
Registration is NOW OPEN! Click here to register today! Registration closes Friday, February 23.
One parent only must accompany students! Younger siblings may not accompany adults. Due to the planned activities and available space, this experience is for your young author and one parent.
As part of the morning activities, students will participate in two rotations: one with well-known children’s author and speaker, Carolyn Crimi; and the other with Jocelyn Dupuis. Following these rotations, students will enjoy spending time exploring technology, with an opportunity to share a piece of their piece of writing on a FlipGrid or online writing platform.
Thanks to Better World Books, parents can purchase ahead of time Carolyn Crimi books online and then bring them to the March 2 event. Click here to preorder your student(s) books.
As a way to support Better World Books’ mission of providing books to children around the world to do their part in achieving global literacy, a collection box will be set up near Penn’s Door D for families to donate their gently used books.
BACKGROUND ON CAROLYN CRIMI:
Carolyn Crimi enjoys snacking, pugs, Halloween, and writing, although not necessarily in that order. Over the years she has published 19 books for children, including Weird Little Robots, Secondhand Dogs, Don’t Need Friends, Henry and the Buccaneer Bunnies, Where’s My Mummy?, There Might Be Lobsters, and I Am The Boss of This Chair. When she’s not snacking, Carolyn enjoys giving author talks to elementary schools all over the country.
BACKGROUND ON JOCELYN DUPUIS:
Also as part of Young Authors’ Conference, participants and parents will also enjoy an interactive experience with P-H-M’s extraordinary Jocelyn Dupuis. Jocelyn has a passion for music education and the performing arts. As a music teacher, she has taught many students to enjoy music as well.
*Questions, please contact Candace Cussen at ccussen@phm.k12.in.us.
2024 Middle School Instrument Selection Night
Every P-H-M 5th grader who will be attending a P-H-M middle school as an incoming 6th grader in the Fall 2024 has the opportunity to join an instrumental music class, which includes either band or orchestra. “Instrument Selection Night” is when students and families get to make their choice!
Fifth graders at Moran, Bittersweet, Elsie Rogers, Walt Disney, and Prairie Vista Elementary Schools will attend Schmucker Middle School for 6th – 8th grades.
Schmucker’s Instrument Selection Nights are Monday, March 4th and Tuesday, March 5th.
Penn-Harris-Madison School Corporation is nationally recognized as one of the “Best Communities for Music Education” offering choir, band and orchestra at Schmucker, Discovery and Grissom Middle Schools.
At “Instrument Selection Night,” a music professional will be available to give students advice about which instrument may be best suited for them. They will be allowed to “try out” instruments from various instrument groups.
In order to join 6th grade band or orchestra, students must select an instrument that they will learn, practice and perform for the school year.
Penn Orchestra Performs Elementary School Pops
“Captain Jack Sparrow” made an appearance at Penn High School today (Tuesday, January 30) performing the Pirates of the Caribbean theme song for 4th and 5th grade students. This mini concert is a great way to introduce students to instruments they might not be familiar with as they think about what possible instrument they might want to pursue in middle school. In P-H-M middle schools, students can pursue orchestra, band or choir as a Fine Arts elective.
Students got a real treat … the Orchestra’s drummers performed a sown written by Senior Clayton Hopper; it was called “March of the Clumsy.” All the drummers performed it together to demo percussion.
Due to scheduling logistics, only half of P-H-M elementary schools participated traveled to Penn for this year’s show. The other half attended last year. That way every P-H-M student will see the show in either 4th grade or a 5th grade.
Take a look at the photo gallery below …
Walt Disney Receives Four PHM Education Foundation Grants
The P-H-M Education Foundation has wrapped up the grant announcements for the 2023-2024 school year; and it’s been a big year with tons of recipients. Walt Disney was the recipient of four grants for the combined total of $4,486.13!
Charlis Cunningham, Franca Peluso Mulhern, and Tom Stanton applied for and received $2,997.96 to purchase supplies to create the “WDES Greenhouse Project.” An outdoor resource area would be built at the school to provide students with learning opportunities through nature. In collaboration with the St. Joseph County Soil and Water Conservation District Environmental Education Coordinator. The Walt Disney Greenhouse will also serve as a conservation project and house sustainable plants. The project will be supported in partnership with McKinley Garden Center.
First grade teacher Trisha Ledy applied for and received $1,028.97 to purchase “Secret Stories” toolkits. The kits will help students help teach students phonics and consist of a book, posters and musical CD that provide opportunities for multiple modes of learning including visual icons, auditory and kinesthetic motor skill movement. This method shares stories while helping students tap into the sounds the letter/letter teams make to facilitate reading skills.
We also applied for and received two EZ Grants:
- $184.95 to purchase multi-sensory flashcards for high frequency words
- $274.25 to purchase “Morpheme Magic”–reading comprehension program/teaching tools
This cycle the Foundation Grants Committee awarded $42,819.63 in funding to 15 EZ grants and 20 traditional grants.
PHMEF has moved to one grant cycle per school year, now moved to the Fall, to allow teachers and schools time to put their grant dollars to good use right away.
Executive Director Jennifer Turnblom traveled across the district to surprise various grant recipients with the good news of their funding amount. Grants awarded this year cover a wide array of innovative programs and activities from $10,000 to Grissom Middle School to purchase keyboards for the music room to milkweed plants for Madison Elementary so the school could attract monarch butterflies.
Click here to see the photo gallery on the District’s website of the check deliveries or click to follow PHMEF’s Facebook page.
Mr. Davidson Named Top 10 Finalist for Indiana Teacher of the Year
The Indiana Department of Education released today (Friday, August 18, 2023) the Top 10 finalists for Indiana Teacher of the Year and Walt Disney Elementary School Music teacher Mr. Robi Davidson was among them!
Superintendent Dr. Jerry Thacker and Board of School Trustees Member Dana Sullivan were touring Walt Disney as part of the beginning of the school year school visits when they learned the news, so they popped into Mr. Davidson’s classroom to congratulate him. Watch the video below.
This is two Fridays in a row that Dr. Thacker has shown up to congratulate Mr. Davidson. Last Friday Dr. Thacker, Walt Disney Principal Dr. Mindy Higginson, and other P-H-M Administrators showed up at Penn Band practice to congratulate him as well when Mr. Davidson made it to the Top 25; last week he was “serenaded” by the Penn High School Marching Band! Take a look.
Mr. Davidson makes P-H-M’s fourth Top 10 Finalist in seven years–John Gensic in 2016, Jeanie Mitchell in 2019, Amanda Fox in 2022, and now Robi Davidson in 2023! And he’s the only teacher from the Michiana area to make it to the Top 10!
In April, Davidson was P-H-M’s Elementary Teacher of the Year. Between his teaching career and his K-12 education, Mr. Davidson has spent almost his entire life at P-H-M! He attended Madison Elementary School, Grissom Middle School and graduated from Penn High School in 2007. He has taught music at Walt Disney Elementary for 11 of his 12 years of teaching. Click here to learn about Mr. Davidson.
The announcement for the winner of Indiana Teacher of the Year is expected to come early to mid September. We believe Mr. Davidson will be the winner!
Mr. Davidson Named Among Top 25 Finalist for Indiana Teacher of the Year
The Indiana Department of Education released today (Friday, August 11, 2023) the Top 25 finalists for Indiana Teacher of the Year and Walt Disney Elementary School Music teacher Mr. Robi Davidson was among them!
Davidson was at Penn High School Marching Band practice when Superintendent Dr. Jerry Thacker, Assistant Superintendent Dr. Heather Short, former Walt Disney Principal now Literacy Director Ryan Towner, and new Disney Principal Dr. Mindy Higginson surprised him to congratulate him. In the summer, Davidson coaches the tuba section for Penn’s award-winning Marching Band and works on the sound design team with the front ensemble. To celebrate Davidson’s next step in the Indiana TOY process, Walt Disney Principal Dr. Higginson brought him balloons and the band played the Penn Fight Song, with the tuba section front and center! Watch the video below.
In April, Davidson was P-H-M’s Elementary Teacher of the Year. Between his teaching career and his K-12 education, Davidson has spent almost his entire life at P-H-M! He attended P- Madison Elementary School, Grissom Middle School and graduated from Penn High School in 2007. He has taught music at Walt Disney Elementary for 11 of his 12 years of teaching.
Walt Disney is one of P-H-M’s five Title I schools. Nearly 30 different languages spoken in the homes of Disney families. To celebrate the school’s diversity, we host an annual “Culture Night” and month long of educational experiences and celebrations for both students and families alike. Along with his music teaching responsibilities, Davidson is the lead organizer along of Disney’s Cultural activities.
The IDOE each year recognizes an Indiana Teacher of the Year—a educator who works to inspire, rejuvenate, and celebrate the teaching profession by recognizing outstanding teachers from across the state. The INTOY award is a lifetime role in education, which has many opportunities to celebrate teaching and uplift the teaching profession.
On August 1, P-H-M’s Secondary Teacher of the Year Penn High School AP History teacher Eric Bowers was named Indiana History Teacher of the Year by the Gilder Lehrman Institute. Bowers will be among those recognized at the second annual Indiana Educational Excellence Awards Gala coming up in September.
