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We
are fortunate to offer choices to parents when it comes
time to start school. Onekama Elementary continues to
offer all day, everyday kindergarten for those children
ready to attend all day, as well as the Young Five’s
program which meets all day, three days per week.
Placement is determined through the kindergarten
interview process with a recommendation made to the
parents. Over the years, we have found that the all day
program provides a strong foundation and increases
student success as they move into the elementary
program.
This
past school year marked the seventeenth year Onekama
Elementary School has participated in an instrumental
learning experience of bringing science to life.
Through a generous grant from the Portage Lake Watershed
Forever Council, the Salmon in the classroom program at
Onekama Elementary will continue for many years to come.
The
salmon release
was
the culmination of the
Salmon in the Classroom
project, a comprehensive program developed by the
Michigan Department of Natural Resources that teaches
students about the state’s freshwater resources through
interactive, hands-on learning.
As
part of their science curriculum, Onekama students have
traveled to the weir to harvest salmon eggs, raised the
salmon from eggs, watched them grow, and then released
the young fish into a local watershed that feeds one of
the Great Lakes. |
In
March during March Reading Month, students were visited
by Mr. Tom Silverthorn from South Dakota and his dog
Ranger. They demonstrated how dogs are used to help the
vision impaired. This special visit was organized
through the Manistee County 4-H Office.
This
year several classes used Student Publishing to create
their own books on line. These classes piloted the new
web-based program, and the students received
professionally-bound and published paperback books.
Young Author’s night was more than just an opportunity
to show off their writing, teachers prepare their
students by practicing public speaking skills as well as
learning to be comfortable in front of an audience.
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