City-Wide Student Leaders at Nathan Hale

Student leaders, above, from Ballard, The Center School, Cleveland, Franklin, Hale, Roosevelt and West Seattle high schools attended a leadership conference at Nathan Hale High School on February 6.



Student leaders compare notes at high school leadership conference

Nathan Hale High School hosted a high school student leadership conference on February 6. Students from Ballard, The Center School, Cleveland, Franklin, Hale, Roosevelt and West Seattle high schools mingled with other student leaders, ate a pancake breakfast, and shared ideas on student leadership and school activities. Students also met in round table discussions on the topics of Spirit Week, fund-raising, school dances, rules and regulations, and student clubs.

Save the Date: Guiding Good Choices

Learn parenting tips from local experts

Save the Date: March 23, 7:00-8:30pm, Eckstein Middle School Library. Join other parents in our community to learn more about how to set appropriate boundaries and limits, encourage accountability, while allowing your children to grow and gain independence in their teenage years. Featuring J. David Hawkins, Ph.D., from the University of Washington School of Social Work's Developmental Research Group and developer of Guiding Good Choices. Sponsored by the NE Coalition to Prevent Underage Drinking/Prevention Works in Seattle. www.PreventionWorksInSeattle.org. For more information contact Inga Manskopf 206.252.5010

Nathan Hale Graduates Take the Stage!

Check out this article about Nathan Hale graduate Sol Rosenberg and this about Nathan Hale grad Dillon Eng.

Cement, Steel, and a New Nathan Hale!

Here are some shots of this week's concrete work on our new Library/Radio/Art/Fitness wing.

You can see a concrete pump truck (the bright orange beast) extending to reach each of the columns (see all the wood forming?). These columns are formed/braced with wood, but use a SonaTube form for the cylindrical form. Inside is a rebar cage (a rounded ‘skeleton’ made of reinforcing steel) from the concrete slab to the top of the columns. The worker holds the concrete pump hose at the top of the column form and fills the column, in and around the rebar.

When the forms are removed, there will be 12 cylindrical concrete columns standing at the edge of the slab.

Raiders in DC!

Nathan Hale student leaders from our RADD (Raiders Against Destructive Decisions) group and their two advisers, Dean of Students Amy B. and Drug and Alcohol Prevention counselor Christine T., attended the Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America National Forum in Washington DC the week before Mid-Winter Break. They participated in the National Youth Leadership Initiative, a series of workshops to help students and adult leaders create action plans to address issues of drug and alcohol use in their communities.

Physics is still Phun!

Here are our young, energetic scientists at work testing the force/load/mechanical advantage properties of their trebuchet!

Tuesday Mornings at Nathan Hale

Every Tuesday morning, Nathan Hale starts 90 minutes late, at 10 am. These later start days are used for professional collaboration. Here are some things you might see during this time:

* Inter-disciplinary teams, like 10th grade Integrated Studies, 11th grade American Studies, or 9th grade academy teams planning culminating projects like the mock trial or the Harlem Renaissance exhibition.


* Departments like the Math, Art, Science, Language Arts, Social Studies, Music, Special Education, or World Language meeting to look at student work, share common assessments, and look for trends in data.

How does this help your student? By collaboratively planning units of study, sharing student work, and critically assessing and reflecting on our practice, we get better at creating personalized, rigorous learning--and the results are evident in your student's work.

Nathan Hale STARs

Last Saturday, the Nathan Hale chapter of FCCLA (Family, Career, and Community Leaders of America) participated in the STAR (Students Taking Action with Recognition) Events competition. STAR events allows students to present their FCCLA projects before a panel of evaluators. Students are scored on professional speaking skills, the quality of their project, and the quality of their presentation. Evaluators are FCCLA Advisers as well as high school students from other schools. Attending from Nathan Hale were: Aurora M., presenter, Career Investigation and Lane S., presenter, Illustrated Talk. Both of these students earned gold (90% or better) and have been invited to FCCLA's state competition. Serving as evaluators from Nathan Hale were Xiu W., Lenae J., Laura D., Kiana M., and Brittany S. Cindy Kegley is their fearless leader!

Nathan Hale Leaders In Action

Last Monday, the Nathan Hale Life Smarts team competed in the state competition in Tumwater, WA. Team members Trevor R.(captain), Alex T., Julian P., and Chris T. were led by Nathan Hale teacher extrordinaire Cindy Kegley. LifeSmarts is a game-show style competition which tests student's knowledge of Personal Finance, the Environment, Technology, and Health and Safety. It is a program of the National Consumer's League, and Nathan Hale was the only Seattle School participating.

Here are some snapshots:




Congratulations Ms. Kegley and competitors!

Raider Remodel: The Great Foundation~Wednesday, February 11, 2009

Today we were able to pour the foundation to our new wing, which will house our Library, Radio Station and classroom, Art classrooms, and Fitness Center/Classroom. As always, check out our webcam for up-to-date images.

Raiders Get Wet!!

Here is an update on our Nathan Hale swimmers, complete with inspiring (if soggy!) images:

Hale had 28 swimmers at the Metro Championships, with many of them making it back to the finals. We had many best times and fantastic swims, with Nathan Hale placing 5th out of 11 teams behind O'Dea/Holy Names, Seattle Prep, Lakeside and Bainbridge. Check out the results on the swim page: http://www.halesports.org/swimming/index_swim.php

Nine Nathan Hale students were qualifiers for the District 2 Boys' Swimming Championships this Friday and Saturday at Mercer Island: Chris A., Fletcher B., Ben F., Aaron L., Keenan M., Eric N., Kyle Q., Alex R. and Charles Y. Good luck!

We had two inspiring swims from our Swimmers of the Meet at Ingraham. Paul W. swam his first ever 200 free and did a great job! He went on to swim more events, along with a relay to help the Raiders take Ingraham. Blythe W. also swam a fantastic 200 to qualify for Metro. She swam a very smart race and it paid off! Congratulations!

What Students Say . . .

This is preview of a document you will be receiving shortly as part of our request for donations to our Annual Campaign fund. At Nathan Hale we strive to live up to our mission statement every day: ALL students will become honorable, thinking, skillful citizens.

With State and District budget shortfalls and global economic uncertainty, it has never been more vital that we all contribute what we can to help keep our school strong. A strong education is the best gift we can give to our children.

Here are a few quotes from current Nathan Hale 11th and 12th graders regarding their Nathan Hale experience:

Nathan Hale has helped me grow into a well rounded student and thinker. I have learned to embrace my passions and confront challenges. I have been prepared for college and our growing world.

Throughout my time at Hale, I have become more of a global citizen. Through the combination of all my classes, I have become more accepting of other views and opinions, more aware of the problems and changes occurring around me, and more curious about what is to come in my time after I leave Hale.

At Hale I have been able to tailor my education to my own interests. My teachers facilitate my individual learning by letting me construct many assignments around my specific curiosities.

Sports have been a meaningful part of my experience at Nathan Hale. Being part of a team has allowed me to meet new people, gain new experiences, and challenge myself.

The kindness of students and staff has put a positive atmosphere throughout the halls of Nathan Hale.

At Hale I feel completely supported by peers and faculty alike, knowing that their current dedication to my achievement will continue guiding my success in the future.

The AP Environmental Science class went to the Olympic Park Institute in the fall of 2008 to study the effects of removing the Elwa River dams on the surrounding ecosystems. The trip gave us a chance to not only bond with our fellow classmates, but to apply what we had learned in class to an actual situation that fit into the “big picture”. We used data collection techniques that we had learned in class, and applied the five habits of mind to problem-solving situations.

The journalism program means a lot to me. It gives student voice to the school, among other things. The advisor spends dozens of hours per month, outside of regular hours, overseeing the process.

Thank you for giving what you can to help support innovative, creative, progressive schooling at Nathan Hale High School.

Give online at today http://www.nathanhale.org/

Important Second Semester Dates

Please mark your calendars…important 2nd semester dates from the Counseling Department

GRADING
Feb 9 Last day to drop a class without a "W" (withdrawal grade) on transcript
March 6 Last day to drop a class without an "E" (fail grade, affects GPA) on transcript
March 13 Last day to complete any "I" (incomplete) grades for first semester

COURSE REGISTRATION FOR NEXT YEAR
March 5 Course registration materials to be passed out in mentorships. Course selection sheets are for students to choose classes for the 2009-2010 school year.
March 12 Students return completed course selection sheets to mentorship teachers.

Our Great Debaters

Congratulations to Nathan Hale debaters! This last weekend (January 30-31), the Raider Debate Team won the novice division of the Pacific Lutheran University Speech and Debate Tournament as the debate champions.

In 1st place were ninth graders Chaitan C. and Rafael L. They had a 5-1 preliminary round record, beat Annie Wright 3-0 in the semifinals, and then beat Gig Harbor 2-1 in the finals.
In 5th place were ninth grader Maya J. and eleventh grader Amanada M. with a 4-2 record. Maya J. also won a first place trophy for being the best individual speaker and Amanda won a second place trophy.
In 8th place we had eleventh grader Matthew S. and ninth grader Braxton B. with a 4-2 record.

Nathan Hale also competed in speech events: Ninth grader Graham C. was ranked the top 1st year speaker in impromptu speaking.

Nationally Recognized Math and Science Teachers

Nathan Hale Science teachers Matt Hinckley and Karl Englert, and Math teacher Brian Coon recently published an article in the January 2009 edition of The Science Teacher titled "Arctic Research and Writing: a Lasting Legacy of the International Polar Year." The article chronicles their experience working with students and professional scientests on polar ice research funded by a National Science Foundation grant.

Their conclusion? They saw "improved student interest" as students learned about the "real work of scientists and how it relates to important issues such as global warming."

We are fortunate to have working Scientists in our community!