By Julie Riggs
English K-7 Department Chair, Lakehill Preparatory School 

Though we have fewer than three weeks left of school, this is my first blog ever. But starting something new in May makes sense to me. Reflecting on the school year charges my creativity.  At no time of year am I busier, and at no time am I more brimful of ideas.

As time moves on, more and more of my ideas involve technology and what is known in the trade as “twenty-first century learning.”  I did my first Power Point presentation this spring, and I ventured boldly where many had gone before and used Google documents for group assignments this year.  In two weeks, I’ll begin an online course to learn HTML.

Warming up to new ways of doing is not always easy, and sometimes it’s intimidating for those of us who still remember when an Atari console (plugged in to a mere 19 inch analog TV) was the hot new toy.  I love the feel of a hefty old-fashioned fountain pen in my hand, but there’s no denying how much time and paper  I would have wasted using it to compose this little message, which I have so far revised dozens of times.

Times change, tools change– but the most important tool in our twenty-first century survival kit is not the latest tablet computer.  It is and always will be imagination.

best practices · imagination · inspiration · Lakehill · Lakehill Prep · Lakehill Preparatory School · love of learning · teaching · technology

By Kaye Hauschild
Middle School Coordinator, Lakehill Preparatory School 

Time for true confessions: I have been a cheer lover forever.  It is not a well-known fact, but I never achieved the rank of cheerleader as a student.  Oh, I tried out and have some very funny stories for my family to retell of my trials and errors.  Not being on the cheer squad did not lessen my cheer.  Instead, I became a member of the pep squad, drill team, spirit sign painting club, ribbon seller, and anything else that let my love of spirit shine.

One normally leaves cheer behind when formal education ends, but I was a lucky cheerer.  I got to cheer at work.  In my first school, I quickly joined the ranks of the cheer people, coaching a squad of ninth graders in my hometown.  When life moved me to Dallas and Lakehill, I followed the stomps, claps, and chants to my colleagues, Mrs. Harris and Mrs. Durbin, and asked for the chance to share the Lakehill love.  I have lived happily ever after since then.

Cheer has changed a lot since I first hit a megaphone on the ground while yelling, “Lakehill….Warriors!”  We used to have super strict try-outs for our squads that left other cheer lovers off the field.  When we realized that every other sport at Lakehill allowed every student to participate without try-outs, we happily joined in the fun.  Our squads have ranged in size from five to twenty-five in my twenty-something cheerful years at Lakehill.

For a cheer lover like me, life could not be better!  Whether Varsity or Middle School, Lakehill cheer brings me the joy and spirit that we share with our fans.

Along the way, I have been lucky enough to find others like me, those who love Lakehill and cheer alike.  And beginning this spring, I am passing the opportunity to lead our Varsity squad to the amazing and awesome Mrs. Becker and Mrs. Burt.  I will continue my stomp, clap, and cheer with the Middle School cheerleaders and look forward to those amazing times when we get together, two squads as one.  “Lakehill……Warriors!”

cheerleading · community · excellence · Lakehill · Lakehill Prep · Lakehill Preparatory School · middle school · spirit · traditions · Varsity

By Heather Dondis
Director of College Counseling, Lakehill Preparatory School

The college list is posted!

Each year the bulletin board outside of the Main Office is filled with the names of all of the colleges to which the members of Lakehill’s Senior Class have been accepted.  We don’t attach the names of students just yet as students have until the May 1 national reply date to make their final decisions.

I have seen so many parents looking at the board, wondering where their own children may go one day. I’ve seen faculty and staff looking at it, wondering which students were accepted into which schools. I’ve seen middle school students looking at, commenting on the schools they have heard of (and secretly learning about the schools they haven’t, as I make sure to post where each school is located).  But most importantly, I see the seniors looking at it, proud of their accomplishments and hopeful of all of the possibilities they will have in the next stage of their lives.

college acceptances · college admissions · college applications · college readiness · excellence · Lakehill · Lakehill Prep · Lakehill Preparatory School · traditions

By Patti Brooks
Lower School Coordinator, Lakehill Preparatory School 

Springtime means so many different things to so many people! In my case, for almost 30 years, it has involved the metamorphosis of the Painted Lady Butterfly.

In my second grade classroom, we always highly anticipated the arrival of the tiny, squirmy larvae from Carolina Biological Supply.  When they arrived, everyone usually shouted happily, anxious for their own larvae to “raise”. (Many even named their larvae).

We distributed the larvae in clear cups, giving two to each child. Each day, as we arrived at school, we were amazed at their growth! After a couple of weeks, the nice fat larvae would slowly make their way to the top of the cup. The magnifying glasses we used were a big help as we tried to see the little suction feet, called prolegs, help the larvae climb. Eventually the spinnerets wove the chrysalis and the “waiting game” began.

It is not easy for children to wait….patience with the process of nature is hard! Eventually each chrysalis starts its swinging rhythm and the time has come for the miraculous emergence! (If you have never witnessed this stage of metamorphosis, I hope you get to see it sometime in your life. It is truly amazing to watch the adult butterfly push out of its case and spread its moist wings for the first time!) We then had a fun “Release Party”, enjoying snacks and releasing our butterflies to the world of nature.

A respected colleague of mine told me that this process reminds her of the metamorphosis that a child goes through from Kindergarten to his or her senior year! This analogy is a great one…taking much patience, care, and help along the way from loving parents and teachers alike. Luckily, we have lots of great teachers and parents at Lakehill and the process is a success over and over again!

best practices · elementary education · excellence · inspiration · Lakehill · Lakehill Prep · Lakehill Preparatory School · teaching · traditions

By Victoria John
Latin Teacher, Lakehill Preparatory School 

HOPE
All hope is gone
Not as long as we have Latin,
Latin is a dead language, my friend,
Not for Hogwarts, it isn’t!

A student recently showed me these lines written on a wadded-up piece of notebook paper. In the center was the outline of a large red heart encircling the word, “HOPE.” Under that was written, “All hope is gone.” By the time I reached the fourth line I realized that five different students contributed to the above graffiti. It made me laugh.

While Latin has been a constant at Lakehill for 40 years, it was J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter that revved up the spirit of the language for a new generation of students. The creative stories combined the enchanting world of wizardry with myth. Given my love for the classics, the students’ excitement upon learning that the spells and other ancient references were written in Latin, recharged my own creative spirit.

I love teaching Latin at Lakehill. Since I teach all 7^th and 8^th grade students for two years, in 2002, I decided to jazz it up a bit toward the end of the 8^th grade experience. I wanted to challenge students to study the lessons in new ways and to give them more ownership of the material. From this sprang the Latin Teaching Projects, whereby small groups of students would each teach one of the remaining five chapters to the class. When I announced this, they responded with shock.

Following several weeks of preparation and paperwork, the students began teaching by the end of February. I was amazed. Each student’s individual presentation plus the group work went beyond what I envisioned. They met the original requirement of approaching the material in a different way. As one student wrote in her evaluation, “When you learn something for yourself, it is one thing. But when you teach it, you have to learn it differently. You are not just doing it for yourself, you have to be able to explain and demonstrate it to others.”

Their presentations showed incredible enthusiasm and respectful treatment of their classmates. Words of praise for their peers like, “good job,” and “thank you for your great comments,” rang throughout the room. Their lessons were organized, taught with clarity and motivated the students. Everybody won. I witnessed qualities I had not previously observed. Some emerged as group leaders. Some showed creativity and variety in their lessons.  Some wowed the class with their own Latin web sites, power point lessons and review games. Others went above and beyond requirements by developing translation and grammar handouts as well as detailed study guides. They worked together, encouraged one another, and learned the Latin.

I learned from them. I know we are all teachers and learners, but this project really brought that to my attention.

Since that first experiment, the assignment has grown in its scope and in technological sophistication and has taken on a life of its own. Each year I tweak the requirements based on my evaluations and feedback from students.

It is April and nearing the end of my 12^th class of 8^th grade Latin students at Lakehill. With two more chapters, they remain engaged and excited. What started as a way to spice up the end of the year has morphed into an incredible teaching and learning experience.

Hope – all is not gone! Not as long as there are Lakehill students with a creative spirit.

best practices · excellence · hope · Lakehill · Lakehill Prep · Lakehill Preparatory School · Latin · love of learning · middle school · teaching

By Katie Becker
Social Studies Chair, Lakehill Preparatory School 

Spring is here! You can feel the energy in the building. This time of year the school is buzzing with track, baseball, and tennis. And if you are not involved in sports you are busy with musicals, debates, and community service projects. It seems everywhere you look someone is doing something and it’s a race to the finish line.

It’s just six weeks until the end of school. That means only six more weeks until my 8th graders will move on to high school, just six weeks until the senior’s journey ends at Lakehill and their college experience begins, just six weeks until summer, and just six weeks until  I start planning for the next school year.

It always amazes me how quickly the school year passes and how much we seem to accomplish. I can’t wait to do it all again in the fall!

community · community service · excellence · Lakehill · Lakehill Prep · Lakehill Preparatory School · spring · teaching · traditions

By Kaye Hauschild
Middle School Coordinator, Lakehill Preparatory School 

On the road again…I am humming an iconic tune that goes with those lyrics as I write to you from the hallway of a lovely hotel where I have stayed for the past three days surrounded by my super sixth grade students and my stalwart fellow chaperones.  As you have likely guessed, I am enjoying Middle School Adventure Week 2012.  It amazes me that our time on the road has passed so quickly!

We have traveled to seven different cities where we have seen a lengthy list of historically significant things (which is very good).  But I also rank high in importance the expansion of confidence, the growth of friendships, the sense of self-reliance, the appreciation for all things, both new and familiar, that my students have gained.

As tomorrow brings us to the end of this year’s adventure, we will all go home tired and grateful for the comforts of home.  But I also know that the end of the week does not mean the end of the experience.  Friendships will remain, confidence with continue to grow, new interests will be explored and memories will be the stuff of many a reminiscence.  Thank you, Lakehill, for allowing us to learn through experiences collected in our annual trips.  My students and I are already looking forward to Adventure Week 2013!

adventure week · Lakehill · Lakehill Prep · Lakehill Preparatory School · middle school · teaching · traditions · travel

elementary education · history · Lakehill · Lakehill Prep · Lakehill Preparatory School · lower school · spring · spring fever · traditions

By Roger L. Perry
Headmaster, Lakehill Preparatory School 

On a recent drive to Abilene to watch our boys and our girls Varsity Basketball teams play for the area championships, I had time to reflect on how far our school has come over the many years I have been at Lakehill. Many people do not realize that from 1971 until 1989 the school leased portions of the building at the Hillside campus from Lakewood Baptist Church.

The church actually owned the building and used it all day on Sundays and on Wednesday evenings. Under the early lease, any person (adult or student) who was on the second floor, more than six feet from the stairways at the end of each hall, cost the school $50 per occurrence. The old sanctuary, that no longer exists, was only available for us to use once a year, for graduation. The current lunchroom was not available for use at any time. One of my critical functions as a young administrator was to make sure the vending machines worked properly for the lunch periods and to have enough change for everyone on campus to use for lunch. Yes, the lunch program consisted entirely of vending machine items. The lunchroom was located on the bottom floor where the locker rooms are today. This space was also used for any performing arts performances and music programs.

Prior to the construction of the gym in 1980, basketball practice was held on an asphalt parking lot on the opposite side of the auditorium, where we now have playing fields. We had to lease this property from the church as well. Yes, I coached a Middle School boys’ basketball team back in the ‘70s. The gym was a wonderful addition to the school and for many years had a concrete floor. Traveling was never called because any player who tried to stop would slide on the concrete for at least a couple of feet before coming to a stop.

The gym we enjoy today is outstanding and is available to us because of a visionary Board of Directors and many donors over the years including two major donors, Joe Lancaster and Karl Kuhlman, who made large gifts to make it a reality. Both Joe and Karl are now deceased but our school would be much different today had they not given so generously in the early years. They would have enjoyed, with pride, the performance I watched in Abilene of two teams who gave all they had for their team and for their school. The school will continue to develop over the coming years and generous people, just like Joe and Karl, will step forward to make sure generations of children will be able to enjoy their Lakehill experience.

basketball · benefactors · community · donors · Lakehill · Lakehill Prep · Lakehill Preparatory School · role models

By Jamie Thorne
Social Studies Teacher, Lakehill Preparatory School 

I recently tried a new project in my Modern American History class.  A previous colleague shared this project with me a few years ago, and to be honest, I hadn’t thought of it again until this year.  The project, to create a game based on the events of World War Two, always made me skeptical.  I couldn’t help thinking…

How could the students create a content-driven game?

Wouldn’t this just be a waste of precious class time?

Then along came my current group of freshmen.  I’d call them a large group of history buffs, specifically history buffs obsessed with war.  I thought, if any group can make such a game, this group could do it.  Boy was I in for a surprise!  I created a detailed rubric to ensure that they were incorporating “history” into their game and then I turned them loose.  I looked on skeptically as the students brought in game boards and game pieces.  When it came time to build their games, I naturally saw students turning games pieces into little likenesses of Hitler and Stalin.  Not surprised.  But then I started hearing conversations about key battles, Allied offensive strategies, the order with which we “island hopped” our way across the Pacific and so on.  I finally thought, this is working!  They were having fun AND delving into certain topics in a much deeper and more meaningful way.  I decided that we would play these games the day before our test over World War Two as a review.  As I wandered around the room, I overheard students answering questions correctly.  Great.  I also overheard comments like “Oh I can’t remember that.  I better highlight that in my notes so I make sure to really study it.”  Even better.

I love being pleasantly surprised and I especially enjoy watching my students have loads of fun while learning.

best practices · high school · history projects · Lakehill · Lakehill Prep · Lakehill Preparatory School · love of learning · teaching · world war II