Middle School

Middle School Students Work Cooperatively as Leaders and Learners

At the Western Wayne Middle School some eighth grade students are taking part in a special endeavor where they get to work as student leaders by assisting some of their peers to do research. These students were given an option to use some of the time during their academic lab period to work with peers in a special education classroom to assist them in doing research for a science project.

Mr. Todd Pauler, middle school teacher, and Mrs. Elizabeth Bellush-Moore, special education teacher, collaborated for the unique project which students are taking part in during the third quarter. Pauler thought it would be a good way for all students involved to learn from one another.

“Classrooms are social environments that rely heavily on students being able to interact, socialize and communicate with others effectively and appropriately. This can be a challenge for all students but especially students with autism and other learning disabilities,” Pauler explained. “So, the main goals of this cooperative activity are to help students gain these social skills, to not be overwhelmed by the process and to become aware and accepting of the different needs that some of us may have. The secondary goal is to learn about different wetland animals.”

Pictured are some of the students and the teachers who participated in this special cooperative-learning project at the Western Wayne Middle School. From left, standing: Mrs. Elizabeth Bellush-Moore, Emily Shemanski, Riley Kennedy, Gabby Ostolaza, Owen Kotchessa, Kennedy Mistishin, Becca Boots, and Mr. Todd Pauler. From left, sitting: Braydon Christian, Daisy Ann Kuniegel, Colin Cordier, Brody Cleveland, and Jamey Christopher.

Spring Sports 2018

Spring Sports practices begin on Monday, March 5, 2018.  Sports that are available are:

High School

  • Baseball
  • Softball
  • Tennis (Boys)
  • Track & Field
  • Volleyball (Boys)

Middle School

  • Baseball
  • Softball
  • Track and Field

High school students sign up outside the AD Office and Middle School students can sign up in the nurses office.

Western Wayne Receives 7,000 Grant for Word Generation Program

Debates about banning rap music in school, using animals in cosmetics testing, and deciding who should pay for damage from a natural disaster are all topics that sixth grade students are discussing on a weekly basis as a part of a new cross-curricular program called Word Generation.

Last school year, Western Wayne Middle School Principal Kristen Donohue applied for a grant for Word Generation from the Pennsylvania Training and Technical Assistance Network (PaTTAN) and got it. Donohue first heard of the program from Mary Lou Heron from the local NEIU 19 unit.

Word Generation is a cross-curricular program that has elements that are building wide. Each week, teachers introduce their students to five new words that relate to a specific debatable topic like the use of dress codes in schools. Students study these terms in their English language arts, science, and history classes.

The ELA teacher introduces the students to the words and then students apply them in their other courses throughout the week. As a culminating activity at the end of the week, students write a brief open-ended response piece where they have to use the new vocabulary correctly in the context of their writing.

“This program seemed to fall in line with things we were already talking about wanting to do to improve learning at our Middle School,” Donohue said. “We had already been in discussions about finding ways to do more cross-curricular activities. Word Generation has lent itself to be the avenue in which we are able to have even more of those conversations.”

Recently Mary Lou Heron from NEIU 19 and Mary Ann Dudak from PaTTAN came to observe Western Wayne’s use of Word Generation.

After seeing Western Wayne’s commitment to the program in their classrooms, morning announcements, and hallway displays, PaTTAN awarded Western Wayne a $7,000 grant to use toward their continuing work with Word Generation.

Donohue explained how the money will go towards the purchase of materials for the program and to pay for more training for Word Generation teachers.

This past December Donohue, Burke, and ELA teachers Grace Piconi and Jennifer Baldassari gave a presentation about their efforts in Word Generation at a training session at PaTTAN.

The Western Wayne team discussed how they are tailoring Word Generation lessons to their individual student needs and how they are working to make the lessons as high interest as possible to lead to meaningful classroom debates with the new words.

“I am proud of how our teachers presented at the session and of all of the work they are doing with Word Generation in their classrooms,” Donohue said. “I am also proud of the work our students are doing with this program.”

 

From left: Western Wayne Middle School Principal Kristen Donohue, Seth Dedonis, Ayden Connolly, Peyton Cook, Isis Christian, Gino Alcantara, and Dylan Davitt.

R.D. Wilson and Middle School Host Benjamin Franklin Assembly

Western Wayne elementary and middle school students were treated to an educational and extremely entertaining presentation about and “given by” Benjamin Franklin himself on Wednesday, Nov. 1. Elementary students at R.D. Wilson were treated to the presentation in the morning while students in the middle school enjoyed it in the afternoon in the newly renovated and recently dedicated Western Wayne Veterans Memorial Auditorium. The Wayne County Community Foundation made this presentation possible through a grant.

The Foundation has many programs and seeks proposals from organizations to secure grants that are meant to support efforts to improve the quality of life for the citizens of Wayne County.   A variety of programs received almost $ 40,000 from the foundation grants that were awarded in the last fiscal year.

In 1997 the Estate of Benjamin Franklin awarded $ 20,000 to the Wayne County Community Foundation.  The amazing vision of Mr. Franklin in realizing community organizations would exist more than 200 years after his passing, exhibits the man’s extraordinary vision.

The members of the Wayne County Community Foundation were glad students in Western Wayne’s R. D. Wilson Elementary School and the Western Wayne Middle School could experience a presentation about the life and accomplishments of Benjamin Franklin performed by professional actor Brian Patrick Mulligan.

Mulligan has been performing as Benjamin Franklin for over 25 years and his vast experience has proven to be an inspiration to all who have had the opportunity to witness his presentations.  He has an extensive repertoire of events and many characters that he portrays.

Mulligan entertained and educated the students dressed in a period appropriate costume. The program was very interactive with Mulligan discussing many historical facts from Franklin’s life. A number of students had the opportunity to act out scenes to help the group learn about this rich history. There was a scene about the functioning of the printing press and another about kite flying among others.

The Western Wayne School District is very grateful to The Wayne County Community Foundation for providing their students with this educational opportunity. The Foundation also provided this same program to students from the Wayne Highlands School District, Forest City Regional School District, Wallenpaupack School District, and Canaan Christian Academy.

From left: Mr. Josh Rowe, middle school teacher; Benjamin Franklin played by Mulligan; and Josh Mahnke, 8th grade, who got to play a role in one of the skits from the presentation