Monthly Archives: November 2013

In 21st Century Learning Spaces, It’s OK to Write on the Walls

Imagine a school where students can write and do Google searches on the walls of their classroom.

“How wonderful would it be for kids to have access to this kind of technology on their classroom wall?” said Furr High School Principal Bertie Simmons. “You can write on it. You can search the Internet with it. It’s just a really neat and innovative way to teach a class.”

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Some classroom walls in HISD’s newest campuses may be getting an upgrade with modular magnetic glass walls created by DIRTT (Doing It Right This Time) Environmental Solutions. The company, based in Calgary, Alberta, manufactures the walls, which are attracting attention as schools embrace 21st century learning environments.

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Longfellow Elementary Students Reveal Top 10 Toys for this Holiday Season

Separate lists provided for boys’ and girls’ most desired gifts

Every year, HISD’s Longfellow Elementary students take it upon themselves to find the top gifts for children to help parents tackle their holiday shopping. Today, after more than a month of research, the fifth-grade students revealed this year’s top 10 most-wanted holiday gifts for boys and girls.

[vimeo http://vimeo.com/80401731/ w=320&h=205]

“My favorite part about the toy survey was working in teams,” said fifth-grader Dasani Godfrey.  “We got together and came up with the different toys we thought students would want for the holidays.”

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Middle-School Orchestra Invited to Perform at Carnegie Hall Next Year

Johnston is the first from the Houston area to be so honored

Johnston MS

Johnston Middle School’s Sinfonia orchestra will be heading to Carnegie Hall next April, thanks to a stellar performance at a National Orchestra Honors competition this spring and the encouragement of an internationally acclaimed conductor.

The orchestra was named one of three national winners in the “middle school strings” category of the contest held in May of 2013 after submitting recordings of two of its performances for judging.

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Off-Duty HISD Officer Helps Catch Two Bank Robbery Suspects

An off-duty HISD police officer helped the Houston Police Department catch two bank robbery suspects Wednesday after following their car in his own vehicle.

“A woman ran to my vehicle, slapping on the window and was just telling me, ‘they’re robbing a bank, they’re robbing a bank,’” HISD police officer Robert Valdez told KTRK-TV.

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HISD’s Longfellow Elementary Students to Announce this Year’s Top 10 Toys for Boys and Girls

Lists to be released just in time for holiday shopping

What:                 For the fourth consecutive year, fifth-grade students at Longfellow Elementary School will host a press conference to release their top toys for children this holiday season based on the results of their surveys.  For more than a month, the students worked in teams to survey classmates in the playgrounds, hallways, and cafeteria and then tallied up the results.  Based on their own research, they have determined the most popular toys among young boys and girls that are also cost-effective for parents.  In addition to the findings, the students will showcase samples of the top 10 toys for boys and girls, provided by Target.

Who:               Longfellow fifth-grade students

When:             Tuesday, November 26 at 10 a.m.

Where:           Longfellow Elementary School, 3617 Norris

HISD Announces Second Phase of One-to-One Laptop Initiative

HISD has selected the 18 high schools whose students will be receiving laptop computers in the 2014-2015 school year in the second phase of PowerUp, the district’s one-to-one digital transformation initiative.

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Four Campuses Celebrate New Outdoor Spaces at SPARK Week Dedications

Kindergarten students perform a routine set to Louis Armstrong’s “What a Wonderful World” during the dedication of the Moreno ES SPARK park on Nov. 21.

A rain barrel system and a fruit tree orchard. A new walking trail and an outdoor classroom. These are just a few of the attractions now gracing four new SPARK parks at HISD campuses across the city.

The parks, which were formally dedicated on Nov. 21 and 22 by SPARK park representatives and campus officials, are located on the grounds of Almeda, Berry, Moreno, and Tijerina elementary schools.

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M/WBE Air Conditioning Business Has 10-Year History with HISD

Editor’s note: This profile is part of an occasional series on minority or women-owned companies that do business with HISD. The district’s minimum M/WBE goal levels are 20 percent for all levels of purchasing and construction, and 25 percent for professional services. In the 2007 bond program, that commitment reached nearly 34 percent. In the 2012 program, the contracts awarded to date reflect a nearly 51 percent M/WBE commitment.

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