News

The Oak Grove LEGO Robotics team, the Fin-tastic Fish, won a state championship award for core values at the State Robotics Championship in Hillsboro earlier this month.

The Fin-tastic Fish team were selected by the tournament judges as this year’s Oregon first place state champions for Core Values for team work, problem solving, inspiration and gracious professionalism.

This year, approximately 450 First LEGO League (FLL) teams competed throughout Oregon and southwest Washington. One hundred twenty teams advanced from qualifying tournaments throughout the state to the state championship tournament.

“All in all, it was an exciting, fun-filled day for the team,” said team coach and Oak Grove teacher Mark Gullickson. “They were able to share their robot design and programming ideas, sing and play their ukuleles for the entire audience of more than 1,500 people. They led a Conga line of more than 300 kids around the gym during the awards ceremony.”

The competition included a robotics competition table with tasks for their robot. The team completed eight of the 18 tasks. They also had prepared a research project proposing a solution to generating power with a hydroelectric generator. Read more about the project.

To date, the team has shared their research project and innovative solution with more than 50,000 people worldwide.

Pictured (above): The team receives their State Championship trophy. Team members, from left are: Ellie Grace, Lena Larson, Brianna Williams, Greta Babbitt, and Nicole Williams. The individual standing to the right of the team is an executive from Tektronix, Inc., the award sponsor.

Read the story in the Democrat-Herald.

Team members competing on the competition table. The team was able to successfully complete eight of their missions.

At its Jan.  22 meeting, the School Board honored Student All-Stars, including an All-Star student from Timber Ridge School who was absent during the school’s recognition earlier this month.

Pictured is Gabriella Kesinger, who earned the highest score in the school on the 2016-17 third-grade English language arts assessments. The following comments are from Timber Ridge Principal Jodi Dedera:

Gabby is an incredibly hard worker. It’s evident that she puts forth her best effort. Gabby not only works hard on her academics but is very kind to others. She is an all-around great student.

On Monday, the School Board honored Student All-Stars from South Shore Elementary School for earning the highest scores on the 2016-17 state assessments in language arts, math and science.

The students were introduced by Principal Kraig Sproles. South Shore students are (from left):

Alan Rodriguez: fourth-grade math
Model bilingual student. Very strong grit and work ethic. He is a natural leader in the classroom and always tries his best.

Jett Johnson: fifth-grade math and science
Always up for a challenge and has a strong work ethic. He is not only a strong learner, but also a champion for other students.

Aubrey Volland: fourth-grade English language arts
A conscientious student who always gives her best effort. She is a positive leader with her peer group and is constantly seeking out challenges.

Marlee Johnson: third-grade English language arts and math
Dedicated, hard-working student who has a quick laugh and is willing to help others. She often elevates the learning for all students in the classroom and will often help students who need extra support.

Not Pictured: Diana Carbajal: fifth-grade English lanaguage arts
One of the top students in both Spanish and English. Hardworking, dedicated to her learning, and an inspiration to her teachers. She is truly an All-Star!

On Monday, the School Board honored Student All-Stars from Tangent Elementary School for earning the highest scores on the 2016-17 state assessments in language arts, math and science.

The students were introduced by Principal Gretchen Rayburn. Tangent students are (from left):

Layla Almason, fifth-grade English language arts and math: Layla is a dedicated student who always strived to do her best. She is an amazing dancer. She received the highest recognition in the area of language arts and mathematics.

Kyle Campbell, fifth-grade science: Kyle has a keen sense of humor and is always seeking out any science fact. He received the science award for 5th grade science at Tangent.

Noah Lopez, fourth-grade math: Noah is a hard worker who is proud of his family and farm and can take any situation and problem solve it. He is a leader at Tangent Elementary and is part of our student leadership team.

Abigail Ghio, fourth-grade English language arts: Abigail is a diligent student who puts her whole heart and soul into a project. She takes initiative to extend her thinking and apply her knowledge into her work. It has been a pleasure to watch her grow and succeed at such a high level.

Not pictured: Conner Bleaker, third-grade math and English language arts.

SELCO Community Credit Union has announced application dates for their 2018 SPARK! Creative Learning Grants. Grants are available up to $1,000 for K-12 teachers.

“We love projects that spark something new and want to see proposals for helping kids create and teachers innovate.”

If interested, find details about grant requirements and scoring criteria on the Selco Community Credit Union website.

Please note the following dates:

August 15: Applications open
SELCO SPARK! Creative Learning Grants

September 30: Application deadline
SELCO SPARK! Creative Learning Grants

Visit selco.org/SPARK for details and to apply.

“We can’t wait to see what innovative projects our teachers come up with this year.”