Heritage Students Participate in Computer Science Education Week: Hour of Code!

Heritage students participated in Computer Science Education week during their Computer Specials class. Students were introduced to computer programming terminology such as code, computer programmer, sequence, loops and debugging. Students in kindergarten and first grade programmed by using basic, pre-reader directional arrows to move a robot through a maze. Second and third grade students programmed using drag-and-drop blocks while fourth and fifth grade students practiced creating Google logos with Scratch programming. All of these activities are accessible through the Hour of Code website www.hourofcode.com.

Invention Convention Success for Heritage Students!

Heritage students participated in an Invention Convention at Yough Intermediate School last Friday. Students presented invention prototypes and marketing strategies to a panel of judges and were awarded points for originality, creativity, usefulness, and presentation.

In the second grade division, Taylor Buccicone earned a first place ribbon for her “Glow Bo” light-up trick-or-treat bag. Ava Rutkowski and Evelyn Makosey were awarded third place for their “Easy Change Compost Bin” and Madison Wilder earned an Honorable Mention for her soccer kicking aide called the “Shooting Shoe.” In the fifth grade division, Abby Marion earned an Honorable Mention for her invention to rid water of trash called the “Water Vacuum.” Additional participants included Jaineel Varshney, Tanisha Narayani, Chris Wu and Anika Jadia.

All students worked really hard on their projects and all of the entries have been forwarded to the state level.

Kindergarten Celebrates the Season with Gingerbread Day!

Last week, Heritage Kindergarten students participated in an annual tradition - Gingerbread Day! On this fun and festive day, parent volunteers visit classrooms to spread holiday cheer and help students enjoy and learn from a variety of gingerbread themed activities across all content areas including: Math, Literacy, Science, and Art. Students read several interpretations of gingerbread stories and wrote their own stories about gingerbread. The best part of Gingerbread Day...decorating and eating the gingerbread cookies! 

Heritage Raises $10,498.43 for Needy Families in Westmoreland County

WINNER WINNER TURKEY DINNER!!

Each year the Westmoreland County Food Bank invites schools to participate in a Turkey Cup Challenge which raises money to provide food for needy families in Westmoreland County.  For the 5th year in a row, Heritage Elementary has proudly shown just how generous its students, families, and staff are by once again capturing the Turkey Cup!  This year, Heritage raised an incredible $10,498.43! Since 2010, Heritage has raised a total of $77,336.75!

A warm thank you goes out to all the students, families, and staff of Heritage Elementary.  Also, a BIG thank you to the Heritage PTO for organizing, collecting, and counting all of our pennies, nickles, dimes, quarters, and dollars!

Heritage Rocks!

The Cancer Moonshot Ribbon Quilt

Recently, a very special 363’ long quilt was on display in Houston, Texas that included fabric squares contributed by many of our student artists at Heritage Elementary. Ultimately, the quilt will be displayed at NASA.

Last year, fourth grade students in visual arts class designed a fabric quilt square inspired by a space theme. We are thrilled that our quilt squares were selected to be incorporated into a one of a kind collaborative fiber arts project- the Cancer Moonshot Ribbon Quilt.

The Cancer Moonshot Ribbon Quilt is a national collaborative project that aims to raise awareness and funds for cancer research, with the ultimate goal of dramatically reducing the incidence and mortality of cancer. Fabric artist Robyn Pettingill designed the collaborative project, challenging fabric artists of all ages across the United States to ‘show what the power of individuals inspired by a community can achieve’.

The completed quilt will be 363ft long, the same as a Saturn 5 rocket (the rocket that was launched to the moon a generation ago).

To learn more about the project, visit: https://www.birdzeed.com/cancermoonshotribbonquilt

Turner Dairy Farm Visits Heritage Kindergarten

Ms. Becky from the Turner Dairy Farm visited Heritage Kindergarten to teach students how milk from cows gets from the farm to our kitchen tables. After the visit, students enjoyed a milkshake with Ms. Becky. Kindergarten students built upon what they learned about the farm during KidWriting where they wrote about favorite farm animals. It was a wonderful experience!

Poetry and Art with Pittsburgh History and Landmarks

Last week, the Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation brought poetry, personification and art to the Heritage 4th grade students. The Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation (PHLF) is a nonprofit organization housed in Station Square whose mission is to educate the Pittsburgh communities about restoration, preservation and appreciation of the buildings, spaces, and landmarks that surround us. Louise Sturgess, Executive Director, engaged students in a workshop which utilized landmark details from Greensburg, Oakland, and downtown Pittsburgh. Students were led in poetry exercises which invited them to become the details through personification. Charcoal sketching accompanied the poetry to culminate this unique poetry and art workshop! A special thank you to the Heritage PTO for once again sponsoring this incredible experience for our 4th grade students.

Heritage Students, Staff, and PTO Rock the 2017 Walk-A-Thon!

 

Walking, dancing, laughing, baskets, goody bags, prizes, and fun sums up the most loved PTO fundraiser of the year: the Heritage Walk-A-Thon!

This year, Heritage students and families showed tremendous pledge support that directly sponsors our school assemblies, field trips, field day, parties, the fifth grade farewell, the author visit, and so much more!

A special thank you to PTO for organizing this incredible day for our school and to our Heritage families for their support and energy for this event!

Heritage Celebrates Moms!

On two special dates in September, students kicked off the school year spending some quality time with moms before a hectic day began! This well-loved PTO sponsored event affords Heritage moms and children the opportunity to enjoy breakfast treats, juice, coffee and conversation together while also enjoying the company of other Heritage families.

Thank you PTO for once again providing this special event!

Parents as Writing Partners!

Students in Mrs. Saddler's 5th grade class participated in a day of writing and sharing alongside their parents and special guests!  This event has now become a tradition for students in Mrs. Saddler's class making this an occasion they look forward to all year. Sprawled along the greenery of the Franklin Regional campus, special guests paired with their children (notebooks and pens in hand) ready to write.  Among the pieces crafted were poetry, opinion, memoir, and personal narrative. Cookies were served during a culminating read around at the close of the event. It was a day of learning, sharing and fun for all!

        

First Grade Students Publish Opinion Pieces in Google Slides!

After visiting the writing lab, 1st grade writers in Mrs. Berkoben's room took structure and ideas back to their classroom where they continued to work on individual opinion writing pieces. Later, students paired with 4th grade writing buddies in Mrs. Ryan's room to publish their work into Google Slides. It was a wonderful collaborative experience for both students and teachers.

Kindergarten Celebrates KidWriting Authors!

Family and friends joined Kindergarten writers in a celebration last Friday.  These young authors proudly shared their published books.  Student narratives were carefully crafted utilizing want, problem and solution to development character and setting.  Each story was unique and filled with authentic elements of choice and writerly decisions!

 

 

Bingo for Books!

Title I students participated in a fun-filled night of Bingo for Books! Students searched bingo cards with colorful daubers to find sight words, letters, numbers, and seasonal themed words.  The best part of the night were the prizes: books...and lots of them!  All students were winners choosing from a variety of the most popular titles. Some of the titles included: Chicka Chicka Boom Boom, Dogs, The Kid Who Only Hit Homers, Jokelopedia, Trucks, and To Dance.  Students left for the night with armfuls of summer reading fun!

    

Second Grade Treasures!

Second grade students publish student books in cooperation with Student Treasures publishing company. Students in second grade have been publishing books for the past three years. Students take part in the writing process as a class and then complete an illustration that coincides with their individual writing piece.

                  

    

Baby Chicks Arrive at Heritage!

The students in Miss Wetzler's classroom came in Tuesday morning to find four baby chicks! They have learned about the life cycle of a chicken, how to safely handle them, first hand experience in cleaning their water & food dishes, and also built them a special cage out of blocks! The students especially enjoy reading stories to the chicks.