School news of the week: Student performances, culinary class project, lots of school scenes

Amazing things happen in our schools every day — if you know where to look! Do you know some school news others would love? Let us know at [email protected].

Congratulations to Whittier Middle School principal Erika Paladino-Hazlett and assistant principal Dr. Michael Moore for receiving the South Dakota Music Education Association’s Distinguished Administrator Award for 2022, which honors administrators who actively support fine arts programs in their schools.

“Both Mike and Erika show active support for our programs in many ways, but really it is just the active support and caring for our students that they exhibit every day that helps our programs thrive,” said Kim Bogart, Whittier orchestra teacher, who nominated them on behalf of the fine arts staff. “Everything that they do is to break down barriers for our students so that they can have the same opportunities to participate, experience and grow, and not have any excuses to not do the thing.”

What a great parent project! Garfield Elementary parent Amber Barnes and her friends from across the country, Canada and India recently donated knitted and crocheted items to Garfield. They donated more than 300 hats, scarves, bookmarks and amigurumi, which is the Japanese art of making small everyday objects or characters by crochet or sewing felt.

Here’s another great donation. Pheasantland Industries delivered a large donation of mittens to the school district’s Community Engagement Center at Axtell Park. Thanks to this generous donation, Sioux Falls School District students and families in need will be a little warmer during these cold months ahead.

Thanks to the Promising Futures Fund, eighth graders from across the Sioux Falls School District visited many local colleges last week. These Ben Reifel Middle School students engaged in hands-off activities throughout the day, toured the campuses, ate delicious lunches and listened to students speak about college life.

Here’s a clever lesson at John Harris Elementary, where fourth graders read the book “Thunder Cake” by Patricia Polacco about a young girl who makes a cake with her babushka, or grandmother, during a thunderstorm.

“The weather last week fit the occasion, so 404 decided to make a “thunder cake” as a class,” the school posted on Facebook. “The kids did a great job reading the recipe, computing fractions for measuring ingredients and communicating as a team. They even made homemade chocolate buttercream frosting to go on top! Babushka’s secret ingredient was pureed tomatoes … the class was feeling pretty apprehensive as they mixed the tomatoes into the batter, but it ended up tasting delicious!”

Now that’s an orchestra: 1,100 orchestra students grades 6-12 came together for a festival concert last week at the Sioux Falls Arena.

What a fun performance from the fifth graders at Terry Redlin Elementary School, who shared their concert “Wangari’s Trees of Peace” last week.

Spotted roaming the halls of St. Michael Elementary: Characters from “James and the Giant Peach,” starring in a performance by O’Gorman High School!

Students at Roosevelt High School are getting ready for their big show. They’ll be performing “Our Place” at 7 p.m. Dec. 1-3 and at 2 p.m. Dec. 3.

“It’s a bittersweet show about how one location, on a dock, can bring so much meaning to various people,” said Julie Blashack, a longtime theater teacher making her debut as a director at Roosevelt this year.

“There are 14 cast members and about 40 crew members who have taken part in the preparation.”

And finally this reminder from kids at Discovery Elementary definitely is worth sharing!