The Patrick Henry Post

This week at Patrick Henry, we were overwhelmed by so many amazing things happening inside of our school, around our neighborhood, and within our community partner organizations. There is so much to highlight that we could not possibly fit it all into one Patrick Henry Post! Take a look below for some of the special moments from this week's learning!

According to the mission statement of Delta Sigma Theta, this sorority is an organization of college educated women committed to the constructive development of its members and to public service with a primary focus on the Black community. There are thousands of chapters of Delta Sigma Theta sororities across the world on college campuses, but there are also thousands of chapters of Delta Sigma Theta alumnae all across the world. The St. Louis Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta adopted Patrick Henry Elementary this year and we recently received a gift for our students to take home with them - a fun goodie bag full of leveled books! Of course the books were wrapped up in the signature Delta Sigma Theta red!

Though Covid took away the opportunity for the sorority sisters to work directly with the students to read alongside them, we were lucky to have three delegates visit us and make the delivery of the books personal. Amazingly enough, all three of these accomplished women are not only alumni of the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, but they are also alumni of St. Louis Public Schools Educators! Each of our visitors spent their careers in education, and each one of them spent a significant amount of time in St. Louis Public Schools.

One of the most powerful things that we can do as educators is inspire others. Our Delta Sigma Theta partners came to provide books for our students to inspire a love for reading, but they also inspired the Patrick Henry Leadership Team with their depth of knowledge and passion for service in this community. We felt inspired by their continued commitment to serve children and contribute to their sense of community with each other and with the larger St. Louis community.

Thank you to our new community partner!

For more information, take a look at the links below:

• Delta Sigma Theta general website: https://www.deltasigmatheta.org/
  
• Delta Sigma Theta's commitment to public service: https://www.deltasigmatheta.org/public-service/
• St. Louis Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta: https://dst-sla.org/

We have always had an incredibly dedicated cohort of teachers who utilize DonorsChoose to fund special projects for their classrooms, and this year is no exception! Our teachers have received funding for classroom libraries, art supplies, school supplies, classroom furniture, flexible seating, and books to send home with students! We are deeply thankful for our larger community who donate to our school to make sure our students receive the very best. Please consider donating to Patrick Henry educators on DonorsChoose. See our school website below and find an open project today!

https://www.donorschoose.org/schools/missouri/st-louis-public-schools/henry-elementary-school/77988

Even though the students in Ms. Brown's class were completely embarrassed by Dr. Rogers taking their picture, these students HAD to be celebrated and recognized for their hard work in math class! They have been working so hard to understand and master long division. Pictured below are four students who had not only worked hard in their independent practice, but they had also taken Ms. Brown's feedback and implemented the feedback to find the right answer. It is incredible to watch our students grow in their ability and their confidence, and we are so excited to see where their math skills lead them!

Ms. Versen's students were so excited to show off their reading skills that they called Dr. Rogers and Ms. Smith back into the classroom so that they could read in front of them! That is a fantastic sign of confidence, passion, and engagement in the real work of learning to read. Ms. Versen's feedback at the guided reading table provided focused strategies for students to improve their skills as well as the encouragement to see how far they have grown even in half a year!

Ms. Hammock was also in the middle of a beautiful guided reading lesson when we stopped by this week. Her students were comfortable and focused, and her work at the guided reading table with her group was encouraging and open, allowing students to think and respond on their own before receiving feedback. It was wonderful to see every student engaged in their work and excited to show off their skills!

Every day in Related Arts classes, all students have the opportunity to earn a STAR in recognition of meeting the high expectations of the classroom. This system provides consistency across art, PE, and music so that all students understand what is expected of them in all settings of Patrick Henry. When students earn their star ticket, their names are entered into a raffle and two names are selected for each Related Arts teacher. Take a look at this week's winners below, and congratulate them on their treasures when you see them!

This week in PE, Mrs. Ralphs continued her baseball unit and focused on striking the ball, offense, and defense. Underlying every athletic skill was the ultimate lesson of teamwork teamwork teamwork! Take a look at some of the fun that all grade levels had in PE this week (including preschool, who learned how to strike balloons with their hands instead of a ball and bat)!

Though the nominees have not been made public yet, we must give a shoutout to the Patrick Henry staff for having a RECORD HIGH NUMBER of staff who were nominated for Educator of the Year for the 2021-2022 school year! We cannot wait to share the public nominees with everyone, but for now, we must say CONGRATULATIONS to every single staff member who was nominated. It is an incredible honor, and even if they do not win the overall competition, we know that we are the true winners for having such talented staff members in the Patrick Henry family. Congratulations, and good luck to each of you!