The first workshop, "Who's in Charge? Homework, Chores, and Other Things That Don't Get Done," will be on March 28. This workshop will address the problems families encounter when a child or teenager does not assume responsibility for his role as a student and family member.
The series will continue on April 18 with "Discussing 'Unspeakables' with Your Child or Teenager: Feelings, Problems, Relationships, Your Relationship, Fears, Sex, Family Matters."
The series will conclude on May 2 with "Stop Walking on Eggshells! Parenting the Angry, Reactive Child or Teenager."
To register, send e-mail to doliver@dasd.org or call the middle school guidance department at 610-518-0710.
Avon Grove
Five students from Fred S. Engle Middle School will travel to Vancouver, British Columbia, this week with the Kennett Symphony Children's Chorus. The students will participate in "The World of Children's Choirs - 2001." The event features 50 children's choirs from all over the world. The Engle students are Jennifer Camela, Katie Dixon, Camilio Matos, Julie Swisher and Shannon Watkins.
Coatesville Area
Rainbow Elementary School held its annual spelling bee.
For third grade, Andrew Ruser placed first, Zachary Trost placed second, and Jacqueline Hume received honorable mention.
For fourth grade, Julia Ward placed first, Kristen Douty placed second and Maria Miller received honorable mention.
For fifth grade, Kendra Mass placed first, Anthony Heinzman placed second, and Francheska Martinez received honorable mention.
Downingtown Area
More than 125 students from Lionville Middle School were involved in the recent production of The Wizard of Oz. Sloane Earl was the student director and Laura Blust was the stage manager. The cast included Eva Canter and Nadine Schroeder as Dorothy, John Tully as the Scarecrow, Jeff Hanley as the Tin Man, Brendan Hurst as the Lion, Victoria Bonito as the witch and Matt Lee as the wizard. Other cast members included Abby Brunner, Jill Eckert, Andrew Glover and Jessica Norris.
Great Valley
In a service learning project coordinated by the Sugartown Elementary School student council, students collected about 200 stuffed animals for donation to the ambulance units of the Malvern and Paoli Fire Companies as well as the Jefferson Health System. The stuffed animals will be given to children to comfort them while being transported to area hospitals.
Kennett Consolidated
On Tuesday, the district presented Music on Parade, a showcase of music programs, as part of a statewide effort by the Pennsylvania Music Educators Association to promote music in schools. The 26th annual event was held before a standing-room-only crowd at the Kennett High School gym. The event featured a combined chorus composed of the chorus members from each of the district's three elementary schools. The middle school and high school also showcased their respective choruses and instrumental groups.
Octorara Area
Octorara Primary Learning Center second grade teacher Erin Campbell will be swimming, biking and running to show her support for the victims of leukemia and lymphoma. Campbell, a member of a group called Team in Training, will participate in a triathlon in St. Petersburg, Fla., on April 29. She is attempting to raise $3,600 by April 1 to benefit The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.
Owen J. Roberts
The Owen J. Roberts Parents-Teachers Association Council has recognized outstanding achievement by district students in literature, presenting trophies to students as part of the National PTA's Reflections Program.
The winners are:
Primary division: Tasha Caldwell, Alison Fedoris, Lauren Malamed, Sean Waclawsky and Callie Zimmerman.
Intermediate division: Sarah Beth Hall, Valerie Kilgannon, Michelle Kulla, Sarah Nastase and Lauren White.
Middle school division: Clare Calkin, Carolyn Gilligan, Kelli Gradel, Amanda Miller and Wendy Worthington.
High school division: Kristy Ondo.
Oxford Area
The Oxford Parent-Teacher Organization will host a Family Fun Fair on March 31 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the Oxford Area High School cafeteria. There will be more than 30 booths featuring games, food, information and crafts sponsored by various school and community groups. School nurses will conduct blood-pressure screenings and vision checks, and will distribute health information. The games to be enjoyed include duck pond, basketball toss and a lollipop pull. Area businesses have donated more than 100 items and gift certificates for a raffle drawing. Contact Maria Sovine at 610-998-0433 with any questions.
Phoenixville Area
The second meeting to discuss redistricting plans and the conversion of Second Avenue Elementary School into a kindergarten center for the school district will be at 7 p.m. tomorrow in the Phoenixville Area Middle School library. The series of redistricting meetings began Feb. 28.
Tredyffrin/Easttown
The Hobey Ford Golden Rod Puppet Show and Workshop will be this week at Valley Forge Elementary School, 99 Walker Rd. "World Tales" is a multicultural production that combines storytelling, music, and Ford's puppetry to entertain children with Chinese dragons, Cherokee animal tales, the web of Anansi the Spider and an Aesop classic with a Golden Rod twist. The performances will be held todayat 9:15 and 10:15 a.m. Tomorrow, during a one-hour workshop with second graders, Ford will help students create simple shadow puppets out of basic materials. As time allows, students will move on to creating skits for their puppets.
Unionville-Chadds Ford
A team from Charles F. Patton Middle School won first place in the 12th Annual Geography Challenge held March 7 at West Chester University. Billy Tancredi, who won the C.F. Patton Geography Bee, was team captain for three of the four rounds. The other team members were Doug Borbrow, Kevin Forbes, Tom Frick and Hannah Shafer. Teacher Janet Schuster was the coach. Eighteen schools participated in the competition, which tested knowledge of world geography.
West Chester Area
From cake decorating to jazz dancing, cultural activities of all kinds were included in Westtown-Thornbury Elementary School's Festival of the Arts last week. Sponsored by teachers on the school's Respect and Responsibility Committee, the 90-minute event also included quilting, wallpaper design, Irish dancing, origami, pottery and yoga.
"Education Notes" features news and items of interest pertaining to Chester County's public and private schools. All items must include a name and phone number for verification of information. Items may be mailed to Susan Weidener, Chester County Bureau, The Inquirer, 120 N. High St., West Chester, Pa. 19380. Items may be faxed to 610-701-7630 or sent to sweidener@phillynews.com.
