Kentucky Teacher

Kentucky State Parks is offering children free admission to state park museums and historic sites with every adult admission purchased through Oct. 31.

The Kentucky State Park museums and historic sites cover topics such as Native Americans, pioneers, the Civil War, natural history, historic homes and other topics from the state’s history.

The coupon for the free admission for children age 12 and under is available by going to www.parks.ky.gov and clicking on the “discounts” heading. Here is a listing of the historic sites and a phone number. Guests should check in advance for hours of operation:

• Blue Licks Battlefield Museum, (800) 443-7008
• Butler-Turpin State Historic House, (866) 462-8853
• Columbus Belmont State Park, (270) 677-2327
• Fort Boonesborough State Park, (859) 527-3131
• Jefferson Davis State Historic Site, (270) 889-6100
• John James Audubon State Park, (270) 826-2247
• My Old Kentucky Home State Park, (502) 348-3502
• Levi Jackson State Park, (606) 330-2130
• Lincoln Homestead State Park, (859) 336-7461
• Old Fort Harrod State Park, (859) 734-3314
• Old Mulkey Meeting House, (270) 487-8481
• Perryville Battlefield State Historic Site, (859) 332-8631
• Waveland State Historic Site, (859) 272-3611
• White Hall State Historic Site, (859) 623-9178
• Wickliffe Mounds State Historic Site, (270) 335-3681
• William Whitely State Historic Site, (606) 355-2881

Enjoy with no admission fees:

• Big Bone Lick State Park, (859) 384-3522
• Boone Station State Historic Site, (859) 527-3131
• Constitution Square State Historic Site, (859) 239-7089
• Dr. Thomas Walker State Historic Site, (606) 546-4400

The Kentucky Department of Education has announced that the review process for the 2011 Project Lead The Way grants has been completed.

The awards listed are contingent upon districts/schools meeting all programmatic and budgetary requirements. In addition, awards are contingent upon available funding.

2011 Engineering Pipeline Awards
Hardin County
McCracken County
Montgomery County
Shelby County

2011 Energy Technology Awards
Daviess County
Johnson County
McCracken County
Shelby County

2011 Biomedical Science Awards
Corbin Independent
Covington Independent
Daviess County
Floyd County
Franklin County
Henderson County
Jefferson County (Moore and Valley High Schools)
Jessamine County
Johnson County
Marshall County
McCracken County
Montgomery County
Pulaski County (Pulaski County and Southwestern High Schools)
Scott County
Shelby County

For more information, contact Lea Ann Lewis at (502) 564-1979 or Henry Lacy at (502) 564-3472.

The Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) will provide tools to analyze resource decisions to improve school districts’ operational processes and free resources to invest in the work of Senate Bill 1 through the Performance Excellence Connection Project.

The “Kentucky Best Practices” website is a component of the project, and it will enable school districts to share solutions to common operational issues. Best practices and promising approaches may be submitted by superintendents, principals, finance officers, directors of pupil personnel, district assessment coordinators and others in management roles. Continue Reading

Three Kentucky school districts were recognized recently for their participation in a Spirit Contest hosted by the Kentucky Department of Education’s Division of School and Community Nutrition (SCN) to celebrate National School Breakfast Week.

The Estill County, Owsley County and Warren County school districts were awarded plaques by Education Commissioner Terry Holliday at a ceremony held in the State Board Room of the Capital Plaza Tower in Frankfort. Nine school districts submitted entries for the contest – the three winners and Fayette County, Laurel County, Ohio County, Perry County, Wayne County and Whitley County. Continue Reading

From the Prichard Committee

Training from the Prichard Committee’s Commonwealth Institute for Parent Leadership (CIPL) has turned mechanical engineer Michael Ekbundit into a champion for real-world science in the Bullitt County school district.

Ekbundit had been an occasional guest speaker before going through the institute. This year, however, he is focusing his work and looking to see if his work with 4th-graders will translate into improved test scores. Continue Reading

By Shannon Stiglitz,
Director, KSBA Governmental Relations Service

The relationship between school districts and local health departments will not change if the state switches to a managed-care system to administer Medicaid services, based on terms outlined in a request for proposals for managed-care organizations.

To provide school-based health services, many school districts contract with local health departments to provide Individual Education Plan (IEP)-related and non-IEP related services. These services are critical to ensure a high-quality education for Kentucky’s students. Continue Reading

Five Kentucky middle schools are among the 98 exemplary middle-grades schools from 16 states that have been named Schools to Watch (STW) as part of a recognition program developed by the National Forum to Accelerate Middle-Grades Reform.

Monroe Middle School (Monroe County); North Middle School (Henderson County); Belfry Middle School (Pike County); Benton Middle School (Marshall County); and Olmstead School (Logan County) were selected by state leaders for their academic excellence, responsiveness to the needs and interests of young adolescents, and commitment to helping all students achieve at high levels.  Continue Reading

Work is underway to set the agenda for the Kentucky School Boards Association’s (KSBA) Summer Leadership Institute, July 8-9, in Lexington.

KSBA has a limited number of spaces available for workshops on Saturday, July 9. Each workshop is 75 minutes long. Continue Reading

Contest inspires focus on environmental themes through art
The Kentucky Department for Environmental Protection (DEP) recently honored the winning 2010 Green Art Contest high school artists. Awards were presented to six Kentucky high school juniors and seniors who created art using the contest themes of natural resources and environmental management. Students were encouraged to submit painting/print work, sculpture, pottery and photographs.
“The purpose of the contest was to encourage high school students to think about the environment and inspire them to include the environment in their artwork,” said DEP Commissioner Bruce Scott, who presented the awards to students. Continue Reading

Mathematics teacher Joe Colwell talks with freshmen Tiffany Ramey, left, Baylee Rose, center, Jordan Bentley, right, and Charity Niece, far right, during Algebra I class at Jenkins Middle High School (Jenkins Independent) Sept. 2, 2010. The hybrid class is taught half in the classroom and half through Kentucky Virtual Schools. Photo by Amy Wallot

Teachers use hybrid algebra lessons to enhance learning

By Susan Riddell
susan.riddell@education.ky.gov

There are classes taught face-to-face and classes taught online. When you combine them, the result equals a hybrid class, a growing trend in state classrooms. What was a variable three years ago is becoming a constant thanks to its success.While hybrid learning can be used in any subject, Kentucky has a handful of hybrid algebra classes that are high-quality alternatives to Algebra I taught in a traditional classroom or online.

“The students prefer the mix of the class,” said Joe Colwell, a mathematics teacher at Jenkins High School (Jenkins Independent). “They don’t like when it’s all text or all lab. Having the mixture of the two gives them some ownership, and they go for that. I like the hybrid class, too. It’s a tool. It’s not about pass or fail. It’s about learning.” Continue Reading