Technology Aids Flipped Classroom Concept

Just as other Diocesan schools are successfully implementing the flipped classroom, so too is St. Michael Catholic School. “We must prepare our students to be digitally literate,” said Mrs. Marianne Bohinski, Grade 5 instructor. “We owe it to them to prepare them for future and high school readiness.” Amy Reitz, our Technology Integration Specialist, heartily agrees. She and a colleague presented the flipped classroom concept at the Diocesan Professional Development Day held September 22. Classroom time is precious and, so teachers need to be fully prepared to make the most of that time. How can they prepare their students in advance, so every classroom minute is dedicated to learning? “Homework has traditionally been paper and pencil work at home after a new concept has been introduced in the classroom,” explained Mrs. Marianne Bohinski, Grade 5 instructor. “I often find it more effective to provide information in advance so that students come to class with a basic understanding and thoughtful questions for discussion,” she explained. She also finds that providing students with guided notes, which they fill in while watching the video clips, helps students to learn note-taking skills while remaining more focused on the task at hand. Homework for Bohinski’s students might be to watch a video and take notes on what they watched. For science, students might be instructed to watch a video explaining how to use a balance scale, and write down those instructions for use the next day in science lab. For math, they have access to all video clips that go with each lesson’s concept. If a student didn’t understand the concept in class, missed

class, or needs additional homework help, the video is there as an extra resource. Students can pause the video and watch it as many times as needed, and when they are taking notes, they may do it at their own pace. This teaching method has come to be known as “flipping” the classroom. Bohinski has been trained in this method by Dr. Lodge McCammon, an independent education consultant who was previously a project director with the Friday Institute at N.C. State University. The project was funded by SAS. See this video by Dr. McCammon.

Vol. 1 No. 1 October 2014

In this Issue

Technology Aids Flipped

Classroom Concept

Making Science Come Alive

Faculty Profile: Linda

Piegore

Community Celebrates St.

Michael Feast Day

Fall Athletes Hustle to

Perform

Stay Connected:

www.facebook.com/StMich

aelSchoolCary

vimeo.com/stmcary

twitter.com/StMSCary

Vol. 1 No. 1 October 2014

“There are so many great resources available today that we have to take advantage of it,” Bohinski said. “Technology is changing the ways students learn and how teachers teach. The amount of visual aids and tools available today is amazing and can benefit all students, whether it’s enrichment they seek or remediation.” Besides using an online textbook for math, which has a plethora of enrichment opportunities, Bohinski uses instructional videos found on YouTube® and has also created some of her own videos. It’s not, however, all about watching videos at home. Bohinski requires her math students to keep a notebook of math concepts, which is organized by concept and is therefore a valuable reference tool. The goal is that by watching the visual clips, students are better prepared for working with the new concept in the classroom and there is more time available for the teacher to work with small groups or individuals as they work on problems. In a traditional classroom, more time is spent on lecturing and allowing time for copying down notes before being able to do a few sample problems. Typically the rest of the problems are assigned for homework. In a flipped classroom, the large portion of the lecture is done at home with students taking guided notes based on a video clip so that in the classroom students can have more time to work problems. Students may watch the video clip several times as they study and prepare for tests, or to master concepts. Also, students can delve deeper into concepts and whole group math discussions can be conducted where students are encouraged to explain their answers. We are grateful that Mrs. Bohinski has joined our StMS team, as she is passionate about teaching, loves her fifth graders, and is excited to see how well they are doing so far this year.

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Making Science Come Alive

Mrs. Lisa Buch, who is new to our school faculty, wants her students to learn basic science concepts in a way they will be

able to remember. For her, that means spirited discussion and hands-on lab experiments.

Just walk into her classroom and it’s apparent: The students

are engaged and the excitement is high.

“My students love doing labs,” she said, “and they get so

excited. That’s a good thing.”

Recently, the lesson for her eighth grade students was about

mass, weight, and density. “The object of the lesson is for

students to understand the definition of the three terms and

to understand how to use math to understand the

relationship. They need to understand that density is mass

divided by volume, and then know the correct units used to

express those measurements,” Buch explained.

To make it memorable and fun, Buch provided liquids of various densities and various colors. By slowly adding these

liquids, in a specific order, into a graduated cylinder, students observed a “layered rainbow.” Through this lab students

also began to understand the different densities of the following liquids: colored water, liquid soap, ethanol, Karo syrup

and glycerin.

The next experiment involved more fun – in the form of Play-Doh®. Students measured the weight of a clump of the

dough, and then divided it into two portions to see if the density changed when the mass changed. Students determined

the mass by submersing the dough in water.

“A lot goes on in one class period,” said Buch, “but the

hands-on experiments are visual and tactile reminders

of the definition and relationship between important

scientific concepts, such as mass, weight, and density.”

To provide an opportunity for reflection, the next day

the students are asked to recall the experiments and

provide detail about what they had learned through

lab reports and small group discussion.

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Faculty Profile: Mrs. Linda Piegore – 7th Grade

Mrs. Piegore’s favorite compliment is when a student she has taught returns to say, “You helped me find my passion.”

“I want my students to love learning, and I want to help them discover their strengths and passions. It’s wonderful when

I hear that they have nurtured that passion and have a career in medicine, or teaching, or engineering,” she said.

Piegore found her passion for teaching after college. She graduated from the University of Illinois with a degree in

English literature and romantic poetry, and completed her Master’s degree in Education while working fulltime. She

taught for several years in Wake County Public Schools, then at The Franciscan School for three years. She’s been

teaching at St. Michael Catholic School for the past 10 years.

This year, she was asked to move from teaching fourth grade up to

seventh grade.

“I’m really enjoying the change. The students all know me because

I taught many of them as fourth graders. They know my rules and

they know that we are here to help each other,” she stated. “My

goal is to make them feel safe and loved. My own children are all

grown up now, so it’s wonderful to spend my days with these

students.”

Piegore understands the importance of identifying students’

learning styles and presenting the curriculum in varied ways to

account for those who are visual, auditory or kinesthetic learners.

She is especially enthusiastic about teaching in a Catholic school and integrates Catholic teaching into her daily lessons.

Her faith is central to her life and always has been.

“My family and my faith are so important to me. I met my husband when we were both students at Immaculate

Conception High School in Elmhurst, Illinois. I was a cheerleader and he was the captain of the football team. My family

moved to Cary and I finished high school here, but when I went to college in Illinois I was reunited with Mark,” she said.

Piegore and her husband are parents to Mark, Jr. and Ashley. Mark graduated from Cardinal Gibbons High School and

Elon University and now works in research at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Ashley, also a Gibbons

graduate, is now a senior at Appalachian State University.

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Community Celebrates St. Michael the Archangel Feast Day

September 29 is the Feast Day of St. Michael the Archangel, and our school proudly celebrates the day each year. We

began the day with Mass celebrated by our Pastor Emeritus,

Monsignor John Wall.

During his homily he reminded the students that our school,

which opened in 2000, was a gift for Jesus. Msgr. Wall, who

was the pastor when our school was built, was pleased to be

celebrating Mass with our school community on such a special

occasion.

In the afternoon, we celebrated our athletes and our school spirit during our first pep rally to be held in Archangel Hall.

It was wonderful to see the entire school community gathered together in our spectacular new parish activity center,

Archangel Hall.

St. Michael Catholic School alumnus Anthony Palumbo, a student at Cardinal Gibbons High School and the school’s

Green Army General, led our students in cheers and served as the afternoon’s master of ceremonies.

Students returned to their classrooms for St. Michael Feast Day celebrations, graciously hosted by homeroom parents.

See Feast Day Pep Rally photos on Flickr.com/stmscary

Watch Feast Day Pep Rally Video on vimeo.com/stmcary

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Fall Athletes Hustle to Perform

St. Michael Catholic School fall athletes have started the year strong, working together to improve their soccer,

volleyball, tennis, and cross country prowess. Our coaches offer a season update below, and they ask everyone to

support the teams as they close out their season. Check out the athletic calendar for a complete schedule.

Tennis

Coach: Mrs. Cami Preti

This year we have another reason to Rejoice at StMS! We have a

newly formed Varsity Girls Tennis Team. Our players include three

eighth-grade students: Ava Collard, Karly Fitzgerald, and Carolyn

Simoncic; one seventh-grade student: Karen Galush; and three sixth-

grade students: Ashley Goulding, Callah Preti, and Anna Mary

Reichert. We are proud to report that the team has won its first

three matches. Congratulations StMS Tennis Team -- We are proud

of you!

Cross Country

Coach: Maryanne Lutz

The Cross Country team is off to a great start. Our runners have competed in four meets so far, and all have made

notable improvements from their initial Time Trial early in the season. The runners are dropping time at each meet and

many have made new Personal Records at each race. Coach Maryanne Lutz has our students "running happy" and it

shows when they give it their all on the course! Highlights

include: our girls placing fifth out of 30 teams at the Cross

Country Jamboree and our boys placing in the top 10. At the

recent home meet, our girls won and the boys took second. The

next home meet is the very important TCSAC Cross Country

Championship on Wednesday October 29. We'd love to have as

many StMS supporters at Bond Park as we can, so save the date

to come cheer on all our runners!

Volleyball

Coach: Mrs. Lynn Netzel

We have 18 student-athletes including six sixth graders, eight seventh

graders, and four eighth graders, which encompasses both a JV and

Varsity Squad. There is a combination of veteran and returning

players, and the skill levels are very diverse. We are able to

concentrate on more drills and lineup plans because we have two

practice courts in Archangel Hall. The team is working hard and

making many strides. We are expected to have a good shot at the

reaching the playoffs. Varsity captains are Sarah Netzel and Catie

Byerley. JV captains are Alexa Wood and Grace Gidley.

Soccer

Coach: Mr. Nick Nelli

The 2014 St. Michael Boys Soccer Team has started the year off with a

bang. The Angels currently post a record of 5 wins, 2 draws, and 1

loss. In addition, they are undefeated in conference play! Team

captain JT Nalesnik has led the team with his dominant midfield play,

while assistant captain John Barczak tops the team with six goals. A

big key to the Angel’s success so far has been their defense, where

assistant captain Andrew Kazmer has helped the team post four

shutouts already this season. The 2014 Angels are committed to

continuing their excellent start and hope to bring home the school’s

first ever boys soccer championship on October 29.

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The Messenger is a digital monthly publication for the families, faculty, staff, alumni and friends of St. Michael the

Archangel Catholic School. If you know of someone who would like to receive The Messenger, please contact Susan

Washburn, Director of Advancement, at swashburn@stmcary.org or 919-468-6140.