Friday, November 21, 2014
Physics lab: Motion in two dimensions.
Tuesday, November 18, 2014
Eagle Speech
Look for great things from the Eagle Grove Speech Team this season! We have 37 students out for speech team, participating in large group and individual events. Check out Iowa High School Speech Association for more information including this years contest schedules. This is my second year coaching and we have seen our team double in size. Speech offers our students the opportunity to practice a life skill, public speaking. This season we will have students competing in everything from short film to readers theatre to acting to improv. Yesterday, we started filming our short film for contest! We have an amazingly talented group of young people who will make Eagle Grove proud! Please find time to come watch our performances.
Competition Schedule (locations to follow in December)
Competition Schedule (locations to follow in December)
DISTRICT LARGE GROUP JAN. 24, 2015 SITES ACROSS THE STATE
STATE LARGE GROUP FEB. 7, 2015 SITES ACROSS THE STATE
ALL-STATE LG FESTIVAL FEB. 21, 2015 ISU CENTER, AMES
DISTRICT IE FEB. 28, 2015 SITES ACROSS THE STATE
STATE IE MARCH 14, 2015 SITES ACROSS THE STATE
ALL-STATE IE FESTIVAL MARCH 30, 2015 UNI, CEDAR FALLS
Social Media "The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly"
Social media can both negatively and positively affect our students lives. When it is used in a positive way it can highlight what our students and athletes are doing in education and activities. This type of communication can make students feel good about the things they are involved in. Teachers posting students learning in the classroom is a great way to communicate to the community about what is going on in the school. When the adults in the community can see what is going on they can talk to our students about how those things have helped them become better students and better learners. Coaches can post updated information with regards to their activities. This provides an active feed to the public about how things went on a particular date or even how they are going during an event.
On the other side of things social media can be used as a negative tool for communication. When these tools are used to intimidate, annoy, or antagonize individuals it can lead to cases of bullying or harassment. In these cases social media can be a weapon for students and can cause harm to individuals who may not know how to handle what is being done with social media. This weapon does not cause physical harm directly to any of the victims, but it can cause psychological harm which may lead to physical harm. When this happens we tell our students to do the following; block the individuals, stop following the feed, take screen shots of the information, share the information with the proper authorities, and never respond to the individual posting the information. We also remind students who are victims of this type of activity that those who are posting these things are trying to avoid dealing with their own shortcomings or problems. By posting things about others they are avoiding fixing their own problems and trying to bring others down to their level. Don't allow for them to bring you down. Stand your ground as Joel Penton would say and focus on your goals.
This year we have brought in local law enforcement to talk about consequences of misusing social media. What has been pointed out is that social media is not as anonymous as our students may think. Technology was built to be traceable and if the information needs to be traced back for good reason then it can be by the developers of different media. My advice is don't post things to hurt others as it will not help you personally move on in your life and achieve your goals. Stop following feeds that are built to hurt or embarrass others. It may be humorous to you for a while, right up until the day you are made fun of or attacked on the feed.
JS
Thursday, November 13, 2014
The Case For High School Activities
Eagles,
As Activities Director, I'm often in communication with students and parents about the value of participation in extracurricular activities while in high school. A few months ago, I came across this article written by the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS). In just a few pages, this article does so much to highlight the importance of extracurriculars for our young people.
NFHS - The Case For High School Activities
Extracurricular activities do so much to shape and change lives. As a young man growing up in small town Iowa I can honestly say that the values and lessons I learned through extracurriculars changed my life and helped make me who I am today.
As we head into winter activities, I would ask each young person at Eagle Grove High School to strongly consider participating in an extracurricular activity. If you've never participated before, there's no better time than the present to get started, don't let another year pass you by. If you're on a team or involved in a extracurricular activity, make a commitment to yourself, your teammates, your coaches, your family, and your community to put the very best of yourself into what you're doing.
As staff and community members, lets do all we can to support our young people and the coaches/sponsors who work with them on a daily basis. Working together, we can make a difference and have an impact that will last long after the lights of the gym are turned off.
I'll leave you with something that my high school football Coach Ed Thomas used to always say to us, I think it's so true and speaks to the spirit of what our coaches/sponsors/teachers here at EGHS are all about...."If all I've taught you is how to block and tackle, I've failed you as a coach."
All the best to our young people and coaches/sponsors as we roll into winter activities!
Until next time,
kw
As Activities Director, I'm often in communication with students and parents about the value of participation in extracurricular activities while in high school. A few months ago, I came across this article written by the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS). In just a few pages, this article does so much to highlight the importance of extracurriculars for our young people.
NFHS - The Case For High School Activities
Extracurricular activities do so much to shape and change lives. As a young man growing up in small town Iowa I can honestly say that the values and lessons I learned through extracurriculars changed my life and helped make me who I am today.
As we head into winter activities, I would ask each young person at Eagle Grove High School to strongly consider participating in an extracurricular activity. If you've never participated before, there's no better time than the present to get started, don't let another year pass you by. If you're on a team or involved in a extracurricular activity, make a commitment to yourself, your teammates, your coaches, your family, and your community to put the very best of yourself into what you're doing.
As staff and community members, lets do all we can to support our young people and the coaches/sponsors who work with them on a daily basis. Working together, we can make a difference and have an impact that will last long after the lights of the gym are turned off.
I'll leave you with something that my high school football Coach Ed Thomas used to always say to us, I think it's so true and speaks to the spirit of what our coaches/sponsors/teachers here at EGHS are all about...."If all I've taught you is how to block and tackle, I've failed you as a coach."
All the best to our young people and coaches/sponsors as we roll into winter activities!
Until next time,
kw
Friday, November 7, 2014
Physics: Determining the coefficient of friction
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| Dragging the cart across carpet to measure the friction force so they can calculate the coefficient of friction. |
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| GLX unit used to record data |
Anatomy and Physiology: The reflex arc
In anatomy, we are studying the nervous system. Our most recent lab explored our bodies ability to subconsciously respond to external stimuli in order to maintain homoeostasis. This response is called a reflex arc. They experimented with the knee jerk reflex with the patellar tendon, the grip reflex and the pupil reflex in response to light. Included in the learning was the difference between the three functional classification of nerves: motor, integrative and sensory.
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| Checking the knee jerk reflex. |
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| Another knee jerk relex |
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| How fast can you close your fingers? |
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| and another... |
Biology: Surface area to volume ratio
In Biology, we are currently studying cells. My students are learning why cells can't keep growing and become giant monster cells that take over the world. One of the reasons is that the surface area to volume ratio in cells decreases as the cell get larger. This make nutrient uptake and waste removal slow down to a point where the cell could die. The only options are to divide or die. This is leading us into the discussion of mitosis (cell division). Here, my students are experiencing for themselves, what effect cell size has on diffusion of a material into the cell. The gel blocks (the cell) have an indicator in them so when the liquid (NaOH) diffuses into the cell, it turns pink. After making measurements and calculations, they we able to determine that the effectiveness of diffusion does decrease as the cell gets larger.
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| Cell showing a dark area of diffusion and a light area where diffusion was not able to reach during the 6 min. time period. |
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| Students measuring the area of diffusion of their three cells. |
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| The three cells soaking in the NaOH solution. |
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| Observing all three cells |
Who are you and what do you do?
Hi,
I am Sharon Geisinger. I teach Special Education and Credit Recovery at the High School level. I have been alive for 57+ years, married for 36 years, have 2 children who went through the Eagle Grove school system, and a 18 month old grandson who will be entering the Eagle Grove school system in the coming years. My husband drives truck for Decker Truckline. My son is a 2000 graduate of EGHS, a veteran, and also drives truck for Decker truckline. My daughter is a 2004 graduate of EGHS, is a mommy, and is a nurse at the hospital in Clarion. In our free time my entire family likes to camp and go to Wabasha, Minnesota to fish and relax. My husband and I like to go on cruises and camping with our friends when we are able to.
I have been working in the school district since 1994. I was initially a substitute teacher, then I moved up to being a full time associate for Special Education at EGHS. After a few years I became a Special Education teacher at the high school and in recent years have added the credit recovery program to my list of duties. So far this year I have had students earn 19 credits in the Credit Recovery program. I have some very motivated students working toward getting caught up on their credits so that they will be able to graduate with their class.
Every day is a new day, don't bring your problems from yesterday.
Sharon L. Geisinger
I am Sharon Geisinger. I teach Special Education and Credit Recovery at the High School level. I have been alive for 57+ years, married for 36 years, have 2 children who went through the Eagle Grove school system, and a 18 month old grandson who will be entering the Eagle Grove school system in the coming years. My husband drives truck for Decker Truckline. My son is a 2000 graduate of EGHS, a veteran, and also drives truck for Decker truckline. My daughter is a 2004 graduate of EGHS, is a mommy, and is a nurse at the hospital in Clarion. In our free time my entire family likes to camp and go to Wabasha, Minnesota to fish and relax. My husband and I like to go on cruises and camping with our friends when we are able to.
I have been working in the school district since 1994. I was initially a substitute teacher, then I moved up to being a full time associate for Special Education at EGHS. After a few years I became a Special Education teacher at the high school and in recent years have added the credit recovery program to my list of duties. So far this year I have had students earn 19 credits in the Credit Recovery program. I have some very motivated students working toward getting caught up on their credits so that they will be able to graduate with their class.
Every day is a new day, don't bring your problems from yesterday.
Sharon L. Geisinger
Future Business Leaders of America at UFLC
United Fall Leadership Conference
Nine members of the Eagle Grove High School Future Business Leaders of America chapter attended the United Fall Leadership Conference in Des Moines on October 26 & 27, 2014. This conference, held every four years, brings together high school students from across the state from FBLA, Business Professionals of America, and DECA chapters. The conference included two keynote speakers, a business etiquette dinner, numerous business-related workshops, and networking opportunities for nearly 1,000 attendees.
Actor/Writer Eric Stolhanske, best known for the movie Super Troopers, shared with students his inspirational personal story of perseverance in becoming successful. Mr. Stolhanske was born without a lower right leg, but didn’t let that stop him from being captain of his high school baseball team. He eventually started a comedy troupe during his college years before moving on to Hollywood and motivational speaking.
UNI graduate and author of The Money Game Adam Carroll taught students about avoiding debt in college and shared ways to earn money instead of taking out student loans. Mr. Carroll illustrated how a large student debt burden can hinder future earnings and investment opportunities.
Representing EGHS at the conference were students Brian Gonzalez, Shelby Axtell, Jarika Eisentrager, Luke Teeselink, Sandra Evensen, Justin Day, Hallie Jeske, Sadie Stuhr, and Jesus Marin.
Nine members of the Eagle Grove High School Future Business Leaders of America chapter attended the United Fall Leadership Conference in Des Moines on October 26 & 27, 2014. This conference, held every four years, brings together high school students from across the state from FBLA, Business Professionals of America, and DECA chapters. The conference included two keynote speakers, a business etiquette dinner, numerous business-related workshops, and networking opportunities for nearly 1,000 attendees.
Actor/Writer Eric Stolhanske, best known for the movie Super Troopers, shared with students his inspirational personal story of perseverance in becoming successful. Mr. Stolhanske was born without a lower right leg, but didn’t let that stop him from being captain of his high school baseball team. He eventually started a comedy troupe during his college years before moving on to Hollywood and motivational speaking.
UNI graduate and author of The Money Game Adam Carroll taught students about avoiding debt in college and shared ways to earn money instead of taking out student loans. Mr. Carroll illustrated how a large student debt burden can hinder future earnings and investment opportunities.
Representing EGHS at the conference were students Brian Gonzalez, Shelby Axtell, Jarika Eisentrager, Luke Teeselink, Sandra Evensen, Justin Day, Hallie Jeske, Sadie Stuhr, and Jesus Marin.
Tuesday, November 4, 2014
Growth
Mr. Williamson:
This is my fifth year at Eagle Grove High School, and fifteenth year in education. I teach American History and American Government and serve as the activities director for EGHS. I am currently in graduate school working on my K-12 Administration degree, I'm on pace to graduate in May 2015.
I'm on a journey in my classroom, moving from "teacher centered" instruction to more "student centered" instruction. This shift in philosophy has led me to introduce a more performance based approach to my classes and an emphasis on standards based grading.
While it's definitely safe to say I'm not where I want to be, I have to remind myself that I'm not where I used to be either...I call that growth.
Here's a few samples of some of my students recent work:
American Government: Students worked in teams on a project with the goal to bring stability to the middle east. Here's a sample of one groups work...
http://eghsgovernmentproject.tumblr.com/
Pass Word: Eagles
American History: Students worked in teams on a project with the goal of understanding America's migration west during the 1800's in a way that made connections to today's world. Here's a sample of one groups work...
http://donnerpartytrip.weebly.com/
In doing these projects, it's been fun and rewarding to see the students think critically, solve problems, make judgements and decisions, and be creative in the learning process. Even better, the added emphasis on technology and 21st Century Skills has given me a shot in the arm both as an educator and future administrator...you can teach and old dog new tricks!
I'm thankful for our staff and students, and to have a career I love. What a tremendous opportunity to make a difference in the lives of young people.
Contact Information:
Email: kwilliamson@eagle-grove.k12.ia.us
Twitter: @savedballcoach
Wix: kwilliamson5.wix.com/kelly-williamson
This is my fifth year at Eagle Grove High School, and fifteenth year in education. I teach American History and American Government and serve as the activities director for EGHS. I am currently in graduate school working on my K-12 Administration degree, I'm on pace to graduate in May 2015.
I'm on a journey in my classroom, moving from "teacher centered" instruction to more "student centered" instruction. This shift in philosophy has led me to introduce a more performance based approach to my classes and an emphasis on standards based grading.
While it's definitely safe to say I'm not where I want to be, I have to remind myself that I'm not where I used to be either...I call that growth.
Here's a few samples of some of my students recent work:
American Government: Students worked in teams on a project with the goal to bring stability to the middle east. Here's a sample of one groups work...
http://eghsgovernmentproject.tumblr.com/
Pass Word: Eagles
American History: Students worked in teams on a project with the goal of understanding America's migration west during the 1800's in a way that made connections to today's world. Here's a sample of one groups work...
http://donnerpartytrip.weebly.com/
In doing these projects, it's been fun and rewarding to see the students think critically, solve problems, make judgements and decisions, and be creative in the learning process. Even better, the added emphasis on technology and 21st Century Skills has given me a shot in the arm both as an educator and future administrator...you can teach and old dog new tricks!
I'm thankful for our staff and students, and to have a career I love. What a tremendous opportunity to make a difference in the lives of young people.
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| Students working on their model and website for their Am. History "Go West" project |
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| Students filming their movie trailer, "The Donner Party." Soon to be out on DVD & Blue Ray! |
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| Staff Sergeant Travis Blunck of the US Army in class providing perspective and expertise for Am. Government students working on their Middle East project |
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| Am. Government students working together on Middle East project |
Contact Information:
Email: kwilliamson@eagle-grove.k12.ia.us
Twitter: @savedballcoach
Wix: kwilliamson5.wix.com/kelly-williamson
Monday, November 3, 2014
Welcome!
Good Afternoon! The goal with our high school blog is to share our students learning and progress with the world. We have acknowledged the need for our students to have an authentic audience and our need to model sharing by becoming connected educators. Each week different staff members will share what is happening in their classrooms or what is going on with EGHS in general. We look forward to sharing our classrooms with you :)
Mrs. Haugland:
I have entered my fourth year at Eagle Grove, teaching science and health1. I have enjoyed becoming a part of the Eagle Grove Community and getting to know the awesome students we have here. Since the year has started we have built helmets, rollercoasters and rockets in general science. In health we have learned what it means to be drug free and added information to our "toolboxes" to help us make better decisions!
lhaugland@eagle-grove.k12.ia.us
Twitter -- @LindsayHaugland
Mrs. Haugland:
I have entered my fourth year at Eagle Grove, teaching science and health1. I have enjoyed becoming a part of the Eagle Grove Community and getting to know the awesome students we have here. Since the year has started we have built helmets, rollercoasters and rockets in general science. In health we have learned what it means to be drug free and added information to our "toolboxes" to help us make better decisions!
lhaugland@eagle-grove.k12.ia.us
Twitter -- @LindsayHaugland
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