Students from K-6 at Conestoga Elementary School will be experiencing a science lab lesson in the PA Farm Bureau’s Mobile Ag Ed Science Lab.  The mobile classroom lab, complete with all supplies and a certified teacher, teaches science lessons based on students’ grade levels. The lessons meet the Pennsylvania Department of Education Science & Technology and Environment & Ecology Standards and each teaches a lesson in agriculture.

Mrs. Altdoerffer’s third class participated in The Colorful Bean investigation and demonstration. Students were presented with two types of crayons – one petroleum based and one soy based. They experimented to determine which crayon produced the brightest color with the least amount of flakiness and provided the best coverage. The students learned about soy based crayons and the teacher made soy based crayons for the students to take home. Other lessons being taught include Glue From Milk, Thirsty Stems, Water Analysis and Farm Charm. For more information on the Mobile Ag Lab, visit aglab.pfb.com.

Students on the Blue 7 Team at Manor Middle School learned firsthand about the voting process. Early in November, any student interested in running for president announced their candidacy. Each of the 27 candidates campaigned within their sections preparing a platform based on relevant middle school issues and naming a vice president and treasurer to help with their campaign. A primary election was held and a candidate from each of the five sections advanced to the final election. On November 13, all five candidates held a mock debate in front of the Blue 7 Team.

Using powerpoint programs, the candidates outlined their plans and made their campaign promises. All candidates supported more time between classes and rotating the lunch schedule. Candidate Cade Braas also supported being able to carry a water bottle to classes. Emily Cummings campaigned for a student lounge and more pep rallies. Jonathan Flatley wanted to see middle school hours changed to 8:30am to 3:00pm and more club options. Vinny Vozzella was for more middle school sports teams and early dismissals every 3rd Friday. Trey Erisman felt there should be more privacy to change in the locker rooms and supported teachers coordinating homework assignments.

The election was held later that week and Vinny Vozzella was elected President of the Blue 7 Team. He is pictured (center) with his vice president, Ben Wright (left) and his treasurer, Martin Zavadan (right).

Students in Mrs. Chismar’s first grade class at Eshleman Elementary learned a little bit about big rig hauling. Mr. Crowther, a 21st Century Skills teacher, brought a lesson in the first grade reading curriculum to life. After reading the story, Big Rig, Mr. Crowther, with help from Mr. McKnight, Applied Engineering and Technology Education teacher, Mr. Nesmith, the Twilight School Director, and several Twilight students helped students load big rig Lego trucks with cargo. The students were challenged to fit as many pieces of cargo as possible into a Lego truck and then empty the truck counting the cargo in groups of five. A Lego flat bed truck tested problem solving skills. How do you place three rings on a flat bed and not have them roll off when the truck goes down the ramp? Using just 6 additional Lego pieces, and after some trial and error, the two person teams were able to accomplish the feat.

Penn Manor School District is the only school district in Pennsylvania that offers a program in applied engineering geared to students in grades 1 through 6. The Big Rig Hauling lesson will be taught in all first grade classes in the district this year.

The following Manor FFA members represented Pennsylvania at the National FFA Convention in Indianapolis, Indiana, last week. To earn the opportunity to compete at the National FFA Convention each team placed first at the PA FFA Convention held at Penn State in June.

Agriculture Technology and Mechanics – 8th Place team overall – Gold Award
Tyler Bauman – Gold Award
Alex Cantey – Gold Award
Cody Rittenhouse – Silver Award
Caleb Hess – Silver Award

Poultry Evaluation – Silver Award Team
Brianna Hess – Silver Award
Ian Reissinger – Silver Award
Wayne Rineer – Silver Award
Steph Dengler – Bronze Award
Alternate: Cody Martin

Meats Evaluation and Technology – Bronze Award Team
Katie Hess – Bronze Award
Victoria Herr – Bronze Award
David Herr – Bronze Award
Jesse Burkholder – Bronze Award
Alternates:
Kayla Major
Aaron Breneman

 

 

Third and fourth grade teachers at Martic Elementary combined some fun harvest activities in their lesson plans. The students rotated through five harvest lessons – one in each classroom. For example, in Ms. Urban’s classroom, students used candy corn as a measuring device. The students were instructed to estimate how many pieces of candy corn would be needed to measure items such as their desk, ruler, and chair. They used a bag of candy corn to get the actual numbers. In Mrs. Bohannon’s classroom, the students made pumpkin glyphs. The students had to follow directions to construct their pumpkins. For example, the shape of the pumpkin was determined by their gender, the eye shape by their favorite subject, the nose shape by the number of siblings and the mouth style was determined by whether their first name ended in a consonant or a vowel.

Parents are invited to attend Penn Manor Education Day on November 7, 2012.  Admission representatives from 85 two and four year colleges, technical, nursing and business schools will be in the East Gym from 11:00 AM until 1:00 PM.  This is a great opportunity to speak to admission counselors and ask questions about the various programs. Learn about entrance requirements, financial aid, campus life and academic programs. Students will be able to attend during their lunch period. For a list of schools participating in Education Day, click here.