Monday, October 31, 2016

Middle School Students-of-the-Month for October

Congratulations to Belleville Middle School's Students-of-the-Month for October. They were recognized at an assembly in the commons on Halloween morning. They received recognition from their nominating teacher with a certificate, along with a Catty Shack buck to use at the school store. They will also add their hand prints to the wall. Great job BMS students!
From left to right: McKenna Folkers, Cassie Narf, Kyla Jerome, Raina Nicholson, Jaxson Pier,
Lance Varney, Morgan Messmer. Zach Thole, Haven Hatleberg, Gina Salmela, and Kirsten Krantz

Noelle Maire - State Cross Country Champion


Our senior, Noelle Maire has ended a phenomenal cross country career by becoming Belleville High School's first State Champion in Cross Country. Noelle ran a time of 19:12 and finished well in front of the 2nd place girl, sophomore Lydia Murphy of Lancaster who had a time of 19:26. Noelle has had an amazing support system around her during her high school career. Congratulations Noelle! Well done! [Submitted by Coah Houser]

Sunday, October 30, 2016

Science Olympiad's Haunted Trail

About 400 people went through the Haunted Trail on Friday (10-28) and Saturday (10-29) nights. The BHS Science Olympiad team collected five large bins of food for the food pantry. Thank you to Mrs. Smith and her students for resurrecting the trail after a 6-year absence!

Thursday, October 27, 2016

A Conclusion to Red Ribbon Week

With no school on Friday, our week ended on Thursday with numerous activities. All 425 students and staff practiced an evacuation drill to our secondary site (First United Church of Christ). Walking both ways, the drill was completed in exactly 45 minutes. Our students responded in a very safe and orderly fashion!
The school day ended with an assembly featuring the UW-Whitewater Wheelchair Basketball Team. Students heard how the players have handled adversity but were also able to play against them on the court.
Thank you to the parents who purchased and donated books at the Book Fair during Parent-Teacher Conferences and to those who came out to discuss student progress with teachers. Your support is truly valued at Belleville Middle and High Schools.

Health Immersions I

Cassidy Heller, a junior at BHS, is taking a hands-on career exploration course at Madison College. Health Immersions I is offered through the Dane County School Consortium (DCSC) for all Dane County students every Wednesday night from 5-8pm for 16 weeks. Each week, students experience a different  health care associate degree program presented by Madison College instructors. In the second semester,  DCSC has partnered with UW-Madison to let students experience four-year health care degree programs. Both courses fill up quickly, require an application, and count toward high school credits. If you are interested, see Mrs. Gartley, School-to-Career Coordinator.

Wednesday, October 26, 2016

Parent Presentation for Red Ribbon Week

Dr. Emily Ramharter of UW Health-Belleville Clinic presented information at a roundtable parent event on Tuesday night (10-25). The topics included signs and symptoms of drug abuse and how prescription drugs are misused. Dr. Ramharter also shared a "Drug Guide for Parents" that can be found on www.drugfree.org. Please check out the resources below.

Tuesday, October 25, 2016

Building Education Towers

Students in Mrs. Gartley's Personal Finance & Careers course were given the task of building the tallest education tower within the confines of a limitation. Some groups could not speak, or had keep one hand behind there back to simulate real-life limitations associated with a lack of human capital (skills, knowledge and experiences) acquired through formal and informal education. It became clear they already are investing in the base of this structure while in high school. While  they may be earning invisible money today, with more time and investment after high school it will translate to increased opportunities and income in adult life. [Submitted by Mrs. Gartley]

Monday, October 24, 2016

Geometry in Action!

Mrs. Spellman's Geometry classes practiced trigonometry concepts today by launching rockets of their own design. They used clinometers to measure the angle of slope. Foresters often use clinometers to quickly measure the height of trees. They are also used by land surveyors.

Wednesday, October 19, 2016

ACT Results (Compared to Dane County)

Congratulations to our students and thank you to our teachers on strides made on ACT scores, proving that Belleville High School is one of the top schools in Dane County!

Tuesday, October 18, 2016

First Student Council Meeting

With voting finalized last week, the newly elected Belleville High School Student Council met for the first time today (10-18) at lunch. Mrs. Schween led them through a review of roles and then the students selected an agenda for their work this year (in addition to the Blood Drive). Mr. Ziehr will take over as Student Council adviser when he returns next week.

Robotics Programming in Computer Integrated Manufacturing

Mr. Neumann's Computer Integrated Manufacturing class took two days last week to assemble VEX robotics kits. They are now learning how to program them. They will eventually be de-constructed and reassembled and programmed differently for various functions. Belleville High School is the second smallest school in the state to offer this Project Lead the Way course. We are a small high school with big opportunities!

Strides for Africa

Chris Jimieson presented to Belleville Middle School 7th graders this morning (10-18) in the auditorium. Chris is from an organization called Strides for Africa and has previously worked with school districts such as McFarland in Southern Wisconsin.

Chris was brought in by English-Language Arts teacher Elizabeth Miller. Mrs. Miller's 7th grade ELA classes are reading Linda Sue Park's book, A Long Walk to Waterthe story of the "Lost Boys" of Sudan during the Sudanese Civil War. The novel spotlights the current water crisis in Africa.

Chris, Mrs. Miller, and her 7th graders, along with the 7th grade Social Studies teachers, are all working together to try to fund a well in Liberia, the cost of which is about $2,500. Chris demonstrated the need for clean water sources in African villages in his presentation this morning.

We hope this project provides our students a global perspective and how they can impact the lives of others. 

Monday, October 17, 2016

BHS's Newspaper: The Prowl

On Friday, October 14, 2016, students of the Newspaper Production class, along with Mrs. Miller and Mr. Farrar, traveled to the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater to attend the Kettle Moraine Press Association (KEMPA) Fall Scholastic Journalism Conference. This is the first year that Belleville High School has offered this class, and the conference offered much needed insight on how to successfully create a newspaper. At the conference, students learned new media-based and writing-based techniques that will further the success of The Prowl.
The students, along with Mrs. Miller and Mr. Farrar, enjoyed a beautiful day exploring and learning at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater.

Friday, October 14, 2016

Literacy in Action in Belleville

Today's (10-14) classroom visits were just one example of how our teachers are incorporating literacy into their practices. The chart below was created by Mrs. Jenkins's Advanced Placement Literature class. The class has been reading "Hamlet," and the students created several charts to remember the characters and their relationship to other characters in the play. Going one step further, they made connections from the Shakespeare play to the movie "Lion King" and the television series "Game of Thrones" to which they are familiar.

Mr. Bussey also makes Friday "little book, big idea" day by reading to and discussing with his Sophomores in Biology. They were resistant at first but now remind him that he has to read to them to end each week. Mr. Bussey is also journaling with students on a regular basis.

Thursday, October 13, 2016

Publicity for BHS's New Auto Course

Last night (10-12), NBC15 ran a story on Belleville High School's new automotive course. Students from both Belleville and New Glarus had the opportunity to sign up for the course which is held on Wednesday nights from September to May. Students earn high school credit and also can receive their certification through this process. The course is run through the Dane County School Consortium and is taught by Ned Lease, who teaches the same course during the day at Oregon High School. Thank you to Francois Ford for providing a state-of-the-art "classroom" for the students. Check out the news story starring BHS's Jordan Caputo!

Wednesday, October 12, 2016

Voter Registration

Mr. Hodgson and his Advanced Placement Government class organized a voter registration drive at lunch today (10-12) for those seniors who will be 18 and eligible to vote in the November 8th election. Volunteers from the Village of Belleville, Town of Exeter, and Town of Montrose were here to register students. It was a real-life learning opportunity for these young adults to participate and have a voice in the democratic process!

Tuesday, October 11, 2016

High School Students-of-the-Month

The Belleville High School staff recognized its Students-of-the-Month for September on Tuesday (10-11). Each department nominates a student by writing about them and how they exemplify the Wildcat Way. Students were treated to a pizza lunch and received a certificate from their teacher and a gift card donated by the P.T.O. Congratulations (from left to right) to Jered Barclay, Maddie Bartels, Connor DeLorme, Aimee Sies, Matt Hackman, Cheyenne Koeppel, and Adam Gaff!
Not Pictured: Tashayanna Derke

Treder Family Donation

On Monday night (10-10), Mike and Erin Treder were recognized for their most recent donations to the Belleville High School Band and Math Department. In the past, he has also donated to the Fun Run, as well as creating the Awesome Scholarship and Awesome Teacher Award. Mike and his family's generosity to the school district have earned him the nickname "Awesome Mike."

Thursday, October 6, 2016

Drive Your Tractor to School Day

Today was Drive your Tractor to School Day for the Belleville FFA! We had 10 participants, including 2 lawnmowers.  The rain held off for nine students and Betty who drove their tractors to school this morning.

Tuesday, October 4, 2016

World Dairy Expo

On Tuesday (10-4), eight Belleville FFA members competed in the Central National FFA judging contests held at the World Dairy Expo in Madison. Participants included Clarice, Denise, Amanda, Melissa, Rachel, Devin, Nick, and Jorden. They competed in the areas of dairy showmanship, dairy products, dairy cattle, and forages.  They all enjoyed the experience of judging at that level and witnessing such world-class cattle! [Submitted by Mrs. Knudson]

Monday, October 3, 2016

Middle School Students-of-the-Month for September

Congratulations for our Middle School Students-of-the-Month for September. They are off to a great start to the school year. They were honored during Monday morning's (10-3) Homeroom in the Middle School Commons. They received  a certificate, Catty Shack buck, and will get to put their handprint up on the walls.  
Front row (left-to-right): Caitlin Johnson, Emma Erickson, Isamara Gomez
Back row (left-to-right): Tyler Fahey, Logan Schneider, Carson Syse, Matthew Loshaw,  Mason Schwoegler, and Erin Przybyl

Saturday, October 1, 2016

Homecoming Dance

Belleville High School concluded the 2016 Homecoming Week with the Homecoming Dance on Saturday night (10-1). A band, the Skankin' Barbs, made up of six current BHS students played from 8-9pm. This was followed by the Grand March, Court Dance, Parent Dance, and Senior Dance. The students took ownership and even DJed the dance themselves!