Eagle Update November and December 2019

December 19, 2019
Menely Hogan
Education

Activities Galore During the Holiday Season

DATE: December 19, 2019

Mr. Jon Harding/Ms. Aundrayah Shermer

The highlight of the month…..

The students were thrilled to attend a special event at a local high school. Their peer attends a local high school part-time and performed in a jazz concert. He had two solos on the piano during the event. The songs played during the evening included: Peter Gunn Theme, Charade, It Don’t Mean a Thing if it Ain’t Got That Swing, and Oye Como Va. The jazz student played beautifully, and his peers were so proud of him.

Image description: On the left (or first photo) is a student playing the piano. The image on the right (or second photo) is a group of students standing around. A peer put his hand on jazz player to demonstrate support and congratulations for the beautiful music.

A generous donation!

The Kansas City Sports Commission and Foundation have named KCBAS as the recipient of the Sports Legacy Fund to be used toward a playground. Reps from the Board of Public Utilities already delivered a check for $19k to the KCBAS. We are grateful for the support of these great organizations.

Save the date for an upcoming special family event

KSSB is sponsoring a Family Forum on April 25, 2020. This dynamic and interactive first (and hopefully annual) event will be held on the Emporia State University Campus in Emporia, Kansas. Do not miss out!! Please mark this date on your calendar. Watch for more information to come.

Upcoming Events:

Extended School Year Application for Student: Look for more information from your student’s case manager on January 7, 2020.
Braille Challenge is a day that we celebrate braille and literacy. Everyone is welcome to join us on Friday, February 14, 2020.
Boys and Girls Weekend is March 27th-29th, 2020. Look for more information from Aundrayah Shermer.

Highlights from the classroom…

Math / Science with Sandra Craig – Magnetic Letters as Manipulatives

Vocabulary worksheet sets often include one where the letters of a word are jumbled, and the student has to rearrange them. For the braille reader who has a kinesthetic learning style, try applying braille labeling to plastic magnetic letters. An inexpensive cookie sheet makes a suitable work surface.

Image Description: How many words can you make using the letters in “Thanksgiving”? Different colored letters (with braille labels) spell out Thanksgiving on a silver cookie sheet.

Magnetic Letters on a cookie sheet spelling the word "Thanksgiving".

Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art

The Career Exploration class took a field trip to the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art to visit the Access+Ability Exhibit. The students viewed several inventions from the past to the present day created to assist those who may have a disability, such as the D.O.T. Braille Watch and adapted clothing.

Image Description: Students and a teacher exploring an adapted zipper display.

Student standing in front of an exhibit with adapted zippers for a jacket.

Sweet Z’s Boxing Gym

The Career Exploration Class visited Sweet Z’s Gym at 2416 S. 34th St. in Kansas City, KS. The owner of the gym, Zach, showed the students the different types of punching bags in the gym and also let them explore the boxing ring.

Image Description: A student using boxing gloves with the coach watching the practice.

Student wearing red boxing gloves and punching a bag hanging from the ceiling. A boxing coach is standing near and smiling.

Highlights in the ECC…

KSSB students stretched their public speaking skills by producing a theatrical production: The Mysterious Mansion of Mr. Uno. Ms. Valerie Mackey, from the Theater of Young America (TYA), facilitated the play through nine (9) weeks of rehearsing. The hard work by all of the students and staff was evident. Staff and students enjoyed the radio broadcast style of the production. Students read scripts, developed their character, and practiced speaking skills. When students reflected on their theatrical experiences, they said that they “learned how to play dead on a sound cue,” and “working as a part of a cast.” Parents and staff enjoyed seeing the final product. The students in the KSSB public speaking class are collaborating with Accessible Arts and the Theater of Young America to plan more theatrical productions in the future.

Image Description: A group of students in costume on the stage in front of a crowd of people in chairs.

Students in costume standing on the stage with audience watching.

Tactile Maps

Students used tactual maps to set up tables and chairs for an event in the gym. They accurately set up two tables without chairs, two tables with five chairs each, and two rows with six chairs each.

Image Description: A map in braille creating the shapes of two rectangle tables, two rectangle tables with five chairs and two rows of six chairs each.

A braille map of table and chair set-up for an event.

Highlights from the community…

Garver USA donated Chain Reaction STEM Kit. KSSB was one of 100 schools across the country to receive this fantastic gift. The kit included manipulatives for use in science and math activities to create a more accessible experience. Thank you, Garver!

Image Description: A representative from Garver USA is guiding students as they explore hands-on materials.

A group of students standing around a table with an Engineer explaining the tools on the table.

Caroling

The extended day program students gave thanks to the Kansas City, KS Fire Station Number 9, for their service to our local community. The students shared the joy and sang Christmas Carols for about 40 minutes to both the fire station and a local nursing home.

Image Description: Students singing at a firehouse.

Highlights from across the state…

Festive indoor Orientation and Mobility lesson! This kindergarten student had fun practicing route shapes, using a tactile map, honing her cane skills, and utilizing sound localization to find the singing Elf on the Shelf!

Image Description: On the left, a young student is holding a tactile map. On the right, the same student is sitting at a table with a green fortune cookie and a red Elf on the Shelf.

Student holding a tactual map with a two turn travel route. Student sitting at a table with a fortune cookie and an Elf in red sitting on a blue speaker box.