Horace Mann Kindergarteners Enjoy Playhouse Square

For many Horace Mann kindergarten students, last week's visit to Cleveland's world-class Playhouse Square was a first.  Do you remember YOUR first time in one of those gorgeous spaces?  Hopefully it sparks a lifetime of interest in - and appreciation for - live theater for them.

Our students saw The Ugly Duckling...but with an added feature:  so-called Light Wire special effects.  The theater was darkened and the actors had illumination on their costumes.  Teachers and students reported back that the play was really great and held everyone's interest.  Nice job, kids, for being safe on your first Lakewood City Schools bus ride, too!

Although I couldn't accompany Mrs. Rini and Mrs. Sloan's students to the play, I was lucky enough to have a connection to the experience.  On display in both rooms are several books, including The Ugly Duckling and some spin off stories with the same theme (such as The Ugly Duckling Dinosaur).  I recently had the opportunity to read aloud both books to Mrs. Sloan's class, which was super-fun for me (and I think they liked it, too) 😊

Several other grade levels at Horace Mann will visit Playhouse Square this year as part of similar reading extension activities.  Maybe this will inspire our families to take advantage of this wonderful resource, as well...right in our own backyard!

Horace Mann's Star Student for Board of Ed Meeting

Greydon Rosser

Horace Mann Star Student

K-5 at Horace Mann

Choir member, Safety Patrol, Boy Scout

Compassionate, curious, conversational

Chosen for enthusiasm about mindfulness

Our Superintendent, Dr. Michael Barnes, asks each building principal to select a Star Student for the Board meeting held at the building. Horace Mann hosted last week's meeting and we were proud to present Grey as our Star Student. He brought along a smiling entourage of family and friends! Grey rose to the occasion as he lead the Pledge of Allegiance and read his slide during our presentation:

“Don’t judge me by my fame, judge me by how many times I have fallen and gotten back up again.”  ~Greydon Rosser

Last year, Mrs. Woods came into our room after lunch and surprised us all.  She said, “I know you think you are a little young for this, but it really helps.”  Then she showed us some mindfulness videos. Everybody pretended to not like them, but really everyone had listened and they changed how they treated each other.  Each student began to help other students , and began to show perseverance in practicing kindness. Practicing mindfulness helped us be ‘in the moment’ and be aware of our surroundings, our actions, and how we interact with others.  That one video caused a change in our thinking from a fixed mindset to a growth mindset.

Thanks, Grey, for helping our Board understand the meaning and worth of Mindfulness at The Mann.

Safety First at Horace Mann

While safety is always high on our list at Horace Mann, we paid special attention to it last week with the help of the Lakewood Fire & Police Departments.

On the Police side, Officer Angela Ortiz dropped by to swear in the 2018-19 class of Horace Mann Safety Patrol.  All students raised their right hands and agreed to be top citizens of our school!  Special thanks to Mrs. Kelsey Robinson for advising this group.  This year's patrol members are:

Nora Kelly

Greydon Rosser

Ruby Fraunfelder

Nate Lardi

Jeremiah Neal

Erin Gerity

Amelia Diemert

Kelsey Karban

Fiona Radke

Sarah Seiler

Allison Easterly

Tessa Carlin

Charlotte Reed

Caitlin Pesta

Leading up to the Fire Safety assembly on Thursday was a city-wide, 5th grade essay contest. Congratulations to Horace Mann 5th graders Amelia Diemert and Charlotte Reed on winning trophies for their efforts!

Fire Marshal Tim Dunphy led the team of Lakewood firefighters in their annual presentation to our student body. While students learn from the video about fire safety at home, they really look forward to the end of the assembly. Each year, a firefighter climbs the TALL ladder, kids cheering him on.

Thank you, LKWD Police & Fire, for helping us all learn how to be safe!