Community e-Newsletter

In Photos: Hands-on Learning

Student News

Bears Giving Back

WBLAHS - North Campus students in Ms. Jones' art class decided to give back to the community. Using their embroidery, beading and stitching skills, students created small bear backpack keychains known as "Bear Hugs." They donated their creations to the non-profit Solid Grounds MN, who distributed the keychains as gifts. 

Willow Lane Elementary fourth graders took part in a fun project called, The Minnow Tank. In groups, the students presented to a panel of judges, explaining why their charity of choice should be gifted money the students raised. The winning team (some members pictured below) will get to donate $1,000 to Hope Kids: Minnesota Chapter. The second place team will get to donate $750 to Masonic Cancer Center and the third place team will get to donate $450 to Second Chance Animal Rescue.

Ninth and tenth graders at North Campus in Mrs. Suchy’s math class raised $350 to purchase supplies to make hats, mittens, scarfs, and blankets for those experiencing homelessness in the Minneapolis community. In total, students cut out and assembled 22 hats, 25 pairs of mittens, 50 scarfs, 12 tie blankets and 11 ponchos!

Students worked on important life skills in the district’s Transition Plus program this week. In one class, they learned how to cook by following a recipe to deep fry ravioli. While in an employment exploration class, students learned community service by lending a helping hand to local businesses by assembling key tags, shredding paper, wrapping coins and creating a “thank you” poster. The Transition Plus program serves students with special needs ages 18-21. Watch a recent "The Week in 62.4 Seconds" video here, to see these lessons come to life.

Creative Minds

Second graders at Otter Lake Elementary took part in a fun art experience. They created sculptures by rolling out clay and choosing an animal design. Some options included a bear, eagle and dinosaur. The students then put their creations in a kiln to allow the clay to harden.

Ninth and tenth graders at WBLAHS - North Campus took on an exciting lesson involving planning, construction and design. In an architecture class, students assembled model homes using foam board. First, they visualized and designed their home around a specific location. Then, they used a computer software to make the layout and create a true fourth scale model. Students also designed a smaller scale model to ensure their designs would work when using the foam boards. This creative project was highlighted in a recent video here

Central Middle School band students worked on getting in tune ahead of their winter concert. The students have been practicing five compositions for months while also learning how to work together as a musical team. The students will take part in another band concert in the spring. See the student's hard work come to life in a recent video here.

Area Learning Center student Via Kamper-Jones is creating change through her art. She created a silk screen design about body positivity that has resonated with students and staff at ALC. She and her INSIGHT program classmates have hand printed more than 35 t-shirts and sweaters. Get a closer look at her project in a recent video here.

Fun Experiences

White Bear Lake Area High School students who are taking Chinese language classes visited a fourth grade class at Lincoln Elementary. The students listened to the older students share their world language experiences, and played several games together and made crafts. This fun experience was featured in a recent video here.

Sunrise Park Middle School students got to try a new food option at lunch. Nutrition Services offered the students a "build your own bowl" choice. Students could stack their plates with rice, meat, all sorts of veggies and fruits and other topping options along with different sauces and dressings. Sunrise Park was the first school in the district to try out this option. It will also be available at WBLAHS - North and South Campuses along with Central Middle School later this month.

Kindergartners in Mrs. Vanden Berg’s class at Otter Lake Elementary worked on sounding out words. The students used play-dough to crush each letter in the word they heard before practicing writing the word on a whiteboard. See this lesson come to life in a recent "The Week in 62.4 Seconds" video here.

kindergartners practice sounding out words

High School choir students spent a morning with 8th grade choirs students. All students took part in warm-up exercises together before the older students performed for the 8th graders. The high schoolers also took time to answer questions while giving the younger students some exposure to what high school choir is like. 

The Sunrise Park Middle School Fishing Club is once again back on the ice! Students enjoyed their winter time activity as they learned what ice fishing is all about and of course, aiming to reel in a monster fish! See what the student's caught while ice fishing in a video here.

District Kudos

WBLAHS basketball star, junior Jack Janicki, has reached 1,000 career points. The impressive feat happened during a recent game where the bears boys' basketball team defeated Andover 59-54. Read the White Bear Press article highlighting the achievement here

WBLAHS senior gymnast Grace Squires was one of 7 high school athletes selected as a "Prep Athlete of the Week" by the Star Tribune. Read the article here

WBLAHS wrestler Matt Sloan captured the 195-pound championship in the recent 30-team Rogers Holiday Matness tournament. Read the White Bear Press article featuring his achievement and the team's here.

1998 WBLAHS grad Michael Djupstrom is performing in a chamber music series in White Bear, with a second concert planned for February. Read the White Bear Press article highlighting his impressive career in music here.

The White Bear Press "Letters to the Editor" recently included a shout-out to former coach/teacher and current substitute teacher Jim Galvin. Read the entire submission here. 

 

 Activities Updates

Bears Wrestler Matt Sloan captured the 195-pound championship in the recent 30-team Rogers Holiday Matness tournament. Read the article here. The Girls Hockey Team defeated Hopkins/SLP in a recent game. Read their article here. The Boys Swim and Dive Team placed 5th out of 10 teams in the Tiger Division at the Maroon and Gold Invitational meet at the University of Minnesota. The Girls Basketball Team beat No. 7 ranked Roseville. Read the highlights here. The Boys Basketball Team had an outstanding showing, defeating Roseville in a recent match up. Read their article here. Boys Basketball junior Jack Janicki has reached 1,000 career points as a bear. Read the article here.

Along with season passes and punch cards, the WBLAHS Activities office is now offering digital ticketing to all regular season, home athletic events. Information is available here.  

Please contact the Communications Department (651-407-7695) to submit Student News for inclusion in future publications. 

The Week in 62.4 Seconds

Enjoy The Week in 62.4 Seconds videos highlighting weekly district activities throughout the school year.

School Board News

At the January 10, 2022 Regular Meeting of the School Board, the Oath of Office was administered by Superintendent Kazmierczak to newly elected School Board members Deb Beloyed, Kathleen Daniels, Jessica Ellison, and Chris Streiff-Oji.

Upcoming School Board Meetings

School Board Regular Meeting Subscribe to Alerts
Community Room 112, District Center
School Board Regular Meeting Subscribe to Alerts
Community Room 112, District Center
School Board Regular Meeting Subscribe to Alerts
Community Room 112, District Center

Past Meeting Highlights

January 10 Regular Meeting

December 13 Work Session

November 22 Work Session

District News

General Information