The Great Debaters!

Congratulations to Nathan Hale Debaters! Check out the results from the recent Debate competition at Garfield High School:


Isabel H. won the Original Oratory event
Kimberly R. placed 3rd in the Original Oratory event
Kimberly R. placed 2nd in the Extemporaneous Speaking event
Isabel H. placed 3rd and Anton L. placed 4th in the Extemporaneous Speaking event
Maareg M. placed 2nd in the Expository Speaking event
Maareg M. also placed 2nd in the Impromptu speaking event

Isabel H., Kimberly R., and Maareg M. are all going on to complete at the State level. Well done!

Thank you Mr. Hughes

I've known rivers:
I've known rivers ancient as the world and older than the
flow of human blood in human veins.

My soul has grown deep like the rivers.

I bathed in the Euphrates when the dawns were young.
I built my hut near the Congo and it lulled me to sleep.
I looked upon the Nile and raised the pyramids above it.
I heard the singing of the Mississippi when Abe Lincoln
went down to New Orleans, and I've seen its muddy
bosom turn all golden in the sunset.

I've known rivers:
Ancient, dusky rivers.

My soul has grown deep like the rivers.

Langston Hughes

If music be the food of love, play on . . .

You simply must join us for Nathan Hale's production of Twelfth Night, opening this week on February 13th. What a perfect play for the week of Valentine's day--a comedic consideration of the nature of love, identity, loyalty, and gender.

In this scene, Viola, dressed as a man, engages in a dialogue/debate with Duke Orsino about the strength and intensity of male versus female love:

DUKE: And what's her history?
VIOLA: A blank, my lord. She never told her love,
But let concealment, like a worm i' the bud,
Feed on her damask cheek: she pined in thought,
And with a green and yellow melancholy
She sat like patience on a monument,
Smiling at grief. Was not this love indeed?

Twelfth Night Act 2, Scene 4

And PLEASE don't forget to join us for the BITE OF HALE, our most distinctive school-wide event, blending diversity, community, and great food. Join us Tuesday night, February 12th, at 6 pm!

What's so great about Rigor and Relevance?

Check out staff members, including the gracious and loquacious Tony R., talking to the community about our academic vision at Nathan Hale. (That's "Upper House Jeopardy" on the screen!)

Nathan Hale has a mission statement that says that "ALL students will become honorable, thinking, skillful citizens." Here's an excerpt from an e-mail I just received from a Metro bus driver, who routinely transports Nathan Hale students:

The students who ride both of these trips have proven to be exceptional bus riders. The numbers vary from day to day, as do the particular students who ride. Despite the early morning hour, your students are pleasant, courteous, and ride without any undue disturbances. In fact, contrary to the complaints of many of my coworkers, the Hale students who ride my bus have a fare compliance rate of roughly 99%. If anything, the young people who ride in for a late start are unusually patient in that the bus is always late for a 10:00 a.m. start due to the high amount of pedestrian traffic on the University campus where we commence that trip. They always say thank you for the ride.

Do you remember this?

This is 110th on the day of our December flood.

We now know that the flooding in the building was not caused by creek overrun, but rather by an overwhelmed drainage system in our central courtyard. As part of our building remodel, we will be enhancing our drainage system so that we never have another flood!

What else is coming with the remodel? A new library, more natural light throughout the building, a green roof, a natural air ventilation system, another forum space like the ones in the Performing Arts Center, beautified courtyards, specialized facilities for our radio station and art classrooms, new science labs, and much more.

Stay tuned for information about a community meeting hosted by the BEX (Building in Excellence) team on February 11th. You'll have the chance to ask questions and get information about our upcoming remodel process.

Also, Rigor and Relevance night is tomorrow, Wednesday, February 6th in the PAC. Although this is primarily an event for incoming 8th grade students, all are welcome to attend.

What happens on a late start and early release days?

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.

This Wednesday, February 6th, there will be a district-wide two hour early release so that educators throughout Seattle Schools can do important professional development work.  That means that school will be out at 1 pm on Wednesday.

Congratulations to Nathan Hale students who performed at the Bellevue Community College Jazz Festival last week!

Reading, part two!

Our own Coach Hoover Hopkins, Division II Coach of the Year!

Our Horticulture students are wonderful readers~thanks Ms. Torvik!

Remember that Wednesday, February 6th, is an early release day. School will be done at 1 pm.

Wednesday night is our Rigor and Relevance night~see you there!

Finally, congratulations to our gymnasts for their 2nd place finish at Metro. We have 5 gymnasts going on to regionals--Lisa H. as an all-around, Kaeley S. on 2 events, Naivasha S. on 3 events, Tamra M. on floor, and Julia S. as an all round. Also congrats to our All Comers who also placed: Camille H. on vault and beam, Ella S. on floor and vault, Jade B. on vault, floor and 1st on beam, and Benji A., 2nd on vault.