Friday, September 17, 2010

Fifth Grade Classroom Uses Smart Board

5th grade math in the Exeter-Milligan classroom looks a
little different this year with the addition of a
Smartboard. Students are able to log onto an interactive
website and do math activities together. Google maps on a
Smartboard are awesome! We can really zoom in to the area
we are reading about. Pictured is Hannah Horne sharpening
her math skills with the Smartboard.

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Exeter Veteran Scrapbook Project




Exeter might seem like a small town but many members of their community have served their country for years and are now getting the recognition they deserve.

Tess Moor, a long time Auxiliary member, knew that something had to be done to preserve the stories of aging veterans, “we were losing our World War II veterans.”

After Moor approached her fellow Auxiliary members about interviewing the veterans and documenting their stories, she contacted local journalist and scrap booker, Leesa Bartu, to see if she could come up with a proposal for the Auxiliary.

Bartu met with the Auxiliary and presented three possibilities for interviewing and creating a historical book about local veterans. The first option was creating a traditional scrapbook with paper and embellishments, scanning photos and printing them out before placing them on a page. Second, Bartu shared the idea of a digital scrapbook page. Digital kits are most often purchased online and include digital paper and embellishments which can be used multiple times on multiple pages. Additional copies of the digital pages can be printed out for family members if they were interested. The third option would be to use an online company to make a storybook or coffee table book, uploading the pictures and stories of the veterans.

The Auxiliary liked the flexibility of the digital scrapbook option and asked Bartu to present the idea to the Legion members. Both groups were very enthusiastic about the project. Tim Wilbeck, a Vietnam Veteran and long-time Legionnaire was “excited about the project because I am a firm believer in it. We should never forget what our veterans have done for this country. It should be another excellent way to hear the stories of what our veterans have done.”

After the interview is completed, Bartu compiles the information from the veteran in a story form and then creates a digital scrapbook page or pages for each veteran. “Digital scrap booking doesn’t require the input of cost for the supplies as they can be used over and over again and also allows for changes to be made easily if things aren’t quite right. It also allows for multiple methods of preservation as the file can be printed, stored online or in a variety of media,” explains Bartu.

American Legion Auxiliary President Annette Gloystein was thrilled with the project, “It will be a real treasure for our community. As this is an ongoing project we will need anyone with military family members from Exeter to contribute information about their service so that they can be included.”

Bartu has begun the process of interviewing the local veterans, starting with World War II and Korean War veterans, scanning their personal photos and documents and then creating scrapbook pages about their experiences. In addition to the photos, letters and poetry that the veterans have shared, several family members have shared medals and other important items from their deceased veterans.

“I feel privileged to be a part of this project. My own grandfather would not share his experiences in World War II they were so atrocious, so I understand that not all veterans will want an in-depth interview. However, we do want to at least have a picture of them, their branch and years of service and recognize any honors they received,” said Bartu.

With some of the interviews and pages complete, Bartu has thoroughly enjoyed spending time with the veterans and often their wives. "When I interviewed Myron Schiefelbein and scanned the picture of him next to his truck it came up on my computer screen and for the first time in their many years of marriage his wife Maxine realized her name was painted on the door of his truck in Korea. It was so special to be able to point that out to her."

As pages are completed they will be viewed by the family or veteran and the Auxiliary and then placed into a scrapbook which will be kept at the Exeter Library, available for the community to look at in the library. Also available at the Exeter Library is a volume titled SERVICE RECORD World War I and II Exeter and Community. This book includes a black and white photo of servicemen from Exeter and a very brief record of their service, branch and location served. This new project hopes to expand the history of World War II veterans and include subsequent wars and conflicts.

Bob Dumpert, who served in the Air Force during Vietnam and was a member of the Air National Guard for over thirty years is also a member of the Exeter Legion. He was very supportive of the scrapbook idea, “This project will continue our preservation of the history of men and women who have served their country from the Exeter area. The Legion wants to honor those who have served and this will be an excellent way to both recognize their contribution to our freedom, and record their history.”

The originator of the project, Moor, looks at the full circle of history, “I’m hoping to inspire the younger generation of the efforts made by their forefathers protecting our freedom.”

Wilbeck shares that thought, “If anyone can learn from what we went through and appreciate it and gain a greater feeling for what the veterans did I am all for it. I like to think that our veterans are a treasure. Where would we be without the sacrifices they have made?”

The community of Exeter plans to remember those sacrifices for many more years to come. If you have a family member from the Exeter area and would like to include them in this project please contact Leesa Bartu or Annette Gloystein.

Exeter-Milligan School News


Math Musings by Mary Kay Pribyl

The Algebra III Students are busy finding all of the roots
of a polynomial function!  They have started out the year
studying polynomial functions which ties in a review of many
of the topics they learned last year in Algebra II.
Pictured are Zach Jensen, Caroline Harre, Landon Rhodes, and
Chloe Breitbach.

Exeter -Milligan Senior Chosen for Congressman Smith's Youth Advisory Council

Washington, DC – Congressman Adrian Smith announced the names of the Third District high school students who will serve on his Youth Advisory Council for the 2010 – 2011 academic school year. Jameson Elias Trauger a senior from Exeter-Milligan High School has been reappointed for a second term.
Smith’s Youth Advisory Council is a forum for high school students to discuss throughout the school year opinions, thoughts, and concerns with Smith about local and federal issues. Through in-person meetings and other contracts, the Council provides students an opportunity for involvement and insight into their government and communities.
The Council is open to high school students who are nominated by their teachers, principals, or guidance counselors.

Sunday, September 12, 2010

Exeter-Milligan Kindergarten

The Exeter-Milligan Kindergarten are just finishing up a
unit called Who We Are.  The kindergarten students pose with
the puppet they made of themselves.

Will an Apple a Day Keep the "F's" Away?

By Rhoda Wahl – English/Lang. Arts

Gone are the days when students bring apples for their teachers. At Exeter-Milligan Junior High and High School, the students are getting the Apples - - as in computers. The 2010-11 school year began with full implementation of the One-to-One laptop program, in which each student in grades 7-12 has an Apple laptop for use at school and home. What was once the seed of an idea is now a reality that is taking root in every area of the curriculum. The real question, however, is: “Will an Apple a day keep the “F’s” away?

As an English and Language Arts teacher, I am always looking for ways to encourage students to write more and more often. The attraction of writing digitally is already showing positive results. Students can compose, revise, edit, illustrate, save and submit their writing in less time than it takes to create handwritten text. Student engagement is at an all time high, and time-on-task has also improved. They are always more eager to write digitally, and writing more often improves the quality in every case.

Digital revision and editing is also a snap. The word processing software automatically locates and underlines spelling and grammar errors. Comments, suggestions, and questions can also be inserted without changing the original document. A speech function allows students to highlight their writing and listen to a computer voice read it aloud. Drop boxes enable both students and teachers to pass documents back and forth digitally, thus saving money on paper and ink.

As the year progresses, time and experience will determine the success of this new program. In the meantime, we’ll put the old home remedy - An Apple a Day – to the test. Check back in May 2011 for an update.
Brittni Kotas and Lana Kennedy

Exeter-Milligan 5th and 6th Grade Social Studies Classes

Mrs. Polak’s fifth and sixth grade social studies classes are in the midst of doing research projects to start the year. Ancient Cultures such as the Mesopotamians, Egyptians, Chinese, Maya, Inca, and early Afticans and American natives are occupying the sixth graders. They will be doing PowerPoint or Poster presentations of their research. The fifth graders are researching North American explorers, including Henry Hudson, Antoine de Cadillac, Kit Carson, and Juan Ponce de Leon. These projects came about as a result of the work of the Blue River Cohort, which brought schools in the area together to address common curricular issues. The sixth graders began with a brief introduction to archeology, during which they did some activities to show them how hard it is to determine what artifacts really represent about a culture.
The sixth grade science class has been “doing” science, and investigating a couple of questions posed by Mrs. Polak, and then coming up with their own variables to see if the results would change. They are now writing their own “testable” questions, and will eventually conduct an investigation of their own. Other topics for study this year include electricity, kitchen chemistry, earthquakes and volcanoes, and Lego engineering.
Fifth grade science has begun a study of plants, and many are waiting impatiently for their Wisconsin Fast Plants to sprout. These plants have a life cycle of 35-40 days from seed germination to seedpod harvest. Fifth graders will also study some systems of the human body, rocks, minerals and fossils, force and motion (including Newton’s Laws) and possibly some weather.
6th grade social studies students sort through “artifacts” of an imaginary archeological site to determine what the various areas of the dig were used for.
Mrs. Polak kept busy during the summer months directing a week-long science camp at Camp Carol Joy Holling near Ashland, NE. She is also working with Dr. Mike Leite at Chadron State College on a summer workshop for rural teachers of grades 4-8.

Exeter-Milligan Wins Big at Harvard

The Exeter-Milligan visited Harvard Friday night and defeated them 76 - 0. This brings the Timberwolves record to 1 - 1.