Exeter-Milligan Update: Book Reviews

Students often look forward to having a snow day, but once it arrives, they sometimes don’t know what to do with extra time. The English students at Exeter-Milligan suggest that snow days offer great opportunities to curl up with a good book. Avid readers may already have a stack of new books waiting to be opened; or at least some old favorites to re-read. Those who don’t particularly like to read, may have problems figuring out what book to choose. Here are some ideas from readers at Exeter Milligan School.

Mystery: The 39 Clues Maze Of Bone, by Rick Riordan

Reviewed By: Broc Mueller,

The main characters are Dan, Amy, The Holt Family, Mr. Alistair, Ian, and Natalie. The most important people are Dan and Amy. They are trying to get the 39 clues are which will make them the most powerful people in the world, and they could also become very rich. The first clue was found in Paris, France. My favorite part of the book is when Dan and Amy went into the catacombs, which is a cave full of bones, which is in Paris. I would recommend this book for people who like adventures and mysteries.

Sports Fiction: Forward Pass by

Reviewed by: Kyle J.

Forward Pass is about a girl named Jill Winston, who is a really good athlete and a great basketball player. On the football field there is a good quarterback named Scott Butler who throws a great bullet pass but he has no one to throw it to because nobody can catch it. The football coach Frank Gardner talks to Jill in the morning after a basketball game and she said yes her dad says no right away but coach talks him into it, but if the basketball coach finds out right away she could stop it so no one mentions it to her. My favorite part of the book is when Jill plays her first game because everyone on the opposite make a big deal about it and how she can’t play, but she actually can because there is no rule that says she cannot. I recommend this book if you like football and being a receiver even if you’re a girl it’s a good book.

Realistic Fiction: TTYL, by Lauren Myracle

Reviewed by: Janey Due

TTYL is about three girls named Zoe, Angela, and Maddie, who are entering high school as best friends, and trying to stay that way. Zoe likes a teacher and goes to church with him. Maddie is always mad except when she finds a boy that she likes. Angela also likes a boy and they get along really well. Maddie kind of breaks off from the group of friends to hang out with a girl named Jana. Zoe and Angela are kind of mad about it but it ends up working well in the end when all the girls work it out. Once I started reading this book I didn’t want to put it down. It really relates to real life and teens in high school. The girls learn to beat the pressures of high school and stay together. It was a very good book, and a lot of girls would probably like it if they gave it a chance.

Romance: The Last Song, By Nicholas Sparks

Reviewed by: Kylie Briske

The Last Song is about a girl named Veronica “Ronnie” Miller, who is from New York City. That summer she and her little brother, Jonah were visiting her father in South Carolina, who divorced her mother years earlier so she does like him at all. During the town fair she meets a boy named Will Blaklee, whose family owns a nation wide auto-care company and they are very wealthy. After Ronnie finally warmed up to her dad, they became closer, until tragedy struck. One evening Ronnie, Will, Jonah, and their father were watching over sea turtle eggs on the beach, and her father started to cough and then he fell on the ground with blood leaking out of his mouth. That night Ronnie and Jonah learn that their father is dying of cancer, and that he has stopped taking treatments for it. As the school year approaches, Ronnie decides to take a semester off from Julliard and stay in South Carolina to help her father. After about a month and a half, Ronnie’s father passes away and she decides to return to college with will just a few miles away. I recommend this book to anyone who likes a romance, but also a sad story. This is one of my most favorite books and I'm sure anyone would enjoy this book.

Winter is only seasonal, but a good story sticks with you forever. So find a good book to curl up with, take some time to read during every season of the year. Your next great read is only a page turn away.

Exeter Cub Scouts Work on Blue and Gold Projects

 Clint Oldehoeft (left) and Jackson Beethe (right) try out some tape measures before getting down to business on the project they are working on.

 Clint Oldehoeft, gets some help from his Mom, Jill Oldehoeft and a lesson in sanding wood.

 Jackson Beethe, hard at work putting together his recipe card holder.

Sawdust has been flying in Exeter as Exeter Cub Scouts have been working hard preparing for their Blue and Gold Banquet and Pinewood Derby Race at the end of February.  The Blue and Gold Banquet is the annual celebration of the Boy Scout program in the United States.

 

This year the Webelos II group chose cars as the theme for the banquet this year so all the dens will be making invitations and decorations to go along with the theme.

 

The Tiger cubs have been learning how to make change and sew on a button.  They will also be sharing their "collections" and making family picture frames.

 

The Wolf Den worked on their wood project, making recipe card holders.  They also sanded the recipe card holders in preparation for painting their projects at home. When they finished they played the pie tin washer game.

 

The Bear Den made wooden tool boxes and learned to measure, pre-drill holes and assemble the boxes.  They cut the wood for the handle.

 

The Webelos learned more about Boy Scouts, planned a flag ceremony and also planned the theme for the Blue and Gold Banquet.

 

Exeter Cub Scout Pack 218 in part of the Prairie Winds District of the Cornhusker Council of the Boy Scouts of America.

 

 

Exeter-Milligan Introduces Breakfast Program

 Superintendent Paul Sheffield shows first grader Casey Underwood exactly how to make the straw work with his cup of juice.

 The salad bars holds a few breakfast extras. Peanut Butter and Jelly is available along with butter and cinnamon and sugar for toast (the toaster is in the service area where it can be supervised).

 Lori Ruhl, left, serves breakfast to first grader Casey Underwood while Superintendent Paul Sheffield helps Casey navigate breakfast for the first time.

Second grader Jackson Beethe,left, Freshman Devin Sheffield and Senior Amanda Dinneen make their breakfast choices at the Exeter site of the Exeter-Milligan School District.

It may not be Breakfast at Tiffany's but what sounds better, a buffet of hot and cold breakfast foods for $1.25 or whatever you can grab as you leave the house? Students at Exeter-Milligan can now take advantage of the opportunity to eat breakfast at school.

Due to the weather delays both campuses of the Exeter-Milligan school district served their first breakfast on Wednesday, January 12^th.

The idea of serving breakfast was brought to the district by Exeter-Milligan Superintendent Paul Sheffield. “At my previous position I was instrumental in starting a breakfast program and it went over pretty well. It took some time to build it up and work out the kinks, but it is something that benefit’s the students. I brought up the idea with teachers and they were on board. The extra push to get it going came from my son - he asked me when we would start having breakfast at the school,” said Sheffield.

Having two different sites for the program made planning a little more challenging, but the staff was up for the task. The most difficult part of the program has been planning how many students to be ready to serve at each location since some students arrive at the Exeter site for transportation to Milligan. Often making the window of opportunity for them to eat very small.

To help plan for the number of students eating breakfast, teachers ask their classes during lunch count in the morning if they will being having breakfast the following morning. Included in that question is the location they plan to eat at. So far it has worked well to follow the count this way.

The faculty and staff at Exeter-Milligan have several goals for the program. They see the program as an attraction to students who run late along with the nutritional factors. “With our low cost and nutritious offerings we hope to attract students to this kind of meal as opposed to donuts, chips and pop which we see a lot of. Studies have shown the kids do better in school both academically and socially fueled with breakfast in their stomachs,” said Sheffield.

As far as the additional costs for the program staffing was already in place at both locations. “Really since the staff was already there in the morning it was just the cost of the food. We plan for the program being self-funding,” Sheffield explained.

Of course the school is reimbursed by the State for each student who eats a meal free, at a reduced cost or at full price. And according to Sheffield, the students who have eaten breakfast have been from all categories of lunch costs so it is serving a need for entire student body.

So far at both sites they have been serving 25- 30 breakfasts each morning. At his previous position Sheffield always saw the number almost double when biscuits and gravy was on the menu so he is curious to see how that offering is accepted at Exeter-Milligan.

Some students who ride the bus from the country and then stay on the bus for a ride to their campus might not have free time to take advantage of the program, but faculty are recognizing the difference breakfast can make in school performance. “We won’t deny breakfast to a student, the meal is more important that being on time for class. Of course we have to watch that kids won’t milk the situation, but the response from students has been positive,” according to Sheffield.

Exeter-Milligan Update - Perfect Attendance

Exeter-Milligan 2nd Quarter Perfect Attendance

Front Row: Cade Kresak, Marcus Krupicka, Aaron Ostrand,
Cecelia Murphy.

Second Row: Kole Svec, Briana Capek, Casey Underwood, Olivea
Swanson.

Third Row: Jaiden Papik, Jackson Beethe, Blake Meyer, Braden
Capek
 

"PINK OUT" Tonight!

Cece Murphy, right, purchases a pink-frosted sugar cookie from Mrs. Mary Lou Vossler, Family Consumer Sciences teacher and FCCLA sponsor at Exeter-Milligan.  The Exeter-Milligan FCCLA has set a goal to raise $400 for Breast Cancer Awareness and cookie sales. "Cookies for a Cure" for the week of Jan 17 -21st along with a "Pink Raffle"  and "Shot for a Pop" are part of their fundraising efforts this week.  Superintendent Paul Sheffield has promised to change his hair color to pink for the rest of the month if the group meets their goal.Wear Pink tonight to the basketball games in Exeter and the "Shot for a Pop" will be held at halftime during the boy's varsity game.