Saturday, December 13, 2014

EARLY BIRD BASEBALL REGISTRATION: Sign up early and save


Taylor Northeast Little League we will be offering a "early bird" registration from noon until 4 p.m. on January 24, 2015 and January 31, 2015, at its clubhouse. 

Cost on these dates ONLY is $35. The fee includes shirt, hat and socks.Trophies for younger divisions only. Players must participate in the league's fundraiser, as well. 

Additional registration dates are noon until 4 p.m. EVERY Saturday during the month of February. Cost on these February Saturdays is $45 (and you must participate in league's fundraiser). Discounts are available for multiple children registering from same family. Leagues are open to boys and girls ages 4-16. Must provide proof that you live in the Little League's boundaries or go to school within those boundaries. 

Visit us at www.taylornortheastlittleleague.com  for additional information or call at 313-291-7576. Located at 21720 Wick Rd, Taylor 48180.

JLWS BENEFIT: Bring in the New Year


A New Year's Eve gala is planned at the Knights of Columbus Hall, 24900 Brest, to benefit the Junior League World Series.
This is an adult-only activity.

Bring in the New Year dancing to the songs of the '40s, '50s and '60s performed all night long by The Motown Two Tones, who will be singing songs from The Mills Brothers; Nat King Cole; The Rat Pack of Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Sammy Davis Jr.; Bobbie Darren; Elvis Presley; The Righteous Brothers; and finally the Motown sounds like The Temptations and the Four Tops.

Tickets are $30 each and includes prime rib and chicken buffet style dinner; beer and set ups; midnight champagne; party favors; and pop and pizza and/or coffee and donuts (around 1 a.m.). Bring your own bottles of wine and spirits.

All profits go to benefit the 35th annual Junior League World Series, which will be held again this August at Heritage Park.

Tickets can be purchased from:
  • Tim (313) 418-9871 or tcc290@comcast.net
  • Greg (734) 306-3113 or bgregbz@att.net
  • Horace (248) 895-9312 or parker-h@comcast.net

Doors open at 6 p.m. Dinner will be served at 7. Dancing until about 1:30 a.m.

REINDEER DAYS: Continues Sunday at Heritage Park Petting Farm


Reindeer Days at the Heritage Park Petting Farm will continue from 11 a.m. until 4 p.m, Sunday (December 14). Bring the whole family to see Santa and his live reindeer. 

Tickets are $3 for Taylor residents, $4 for non-residents. Children 1 and under are admitted free. 

The Heritage Park Petting Farm offers a hands-on experience for the young or just young at heart in a unique park atmosphere. A knowledgeable staff is on hand to assist and make your visit a memorable one. Children, wearing proper footwear (gym shoes or boots), can walk around the stalls of the goats, sheep and piglets.


Friday, December 12, 2014

SIXTH GRADE ACADEMY: Honors assembly will bust at the seams


The Honors Assembly at the Sixth Grade Academy will be held on January 9 and this is will be the largest group of students receiving awards in recent memory.

SGA currently has 513 students:
·      287 of them made Honor Roll (55%)
·      34 had all "A's" a perfect 4.0
·      70 had 3.75 - 3.99  or Summa Cum Laude A-
·      73 had 3.5 - 3.74  or Magna Cum Laude  B+
·      110 had 3.0 - 3.49  or Cum Laude B

EUREKA HEIGHTS ELEMENTARY SCHOOL: VIP lunch


Here are photographs of Eureka Heights Elementary School children eating at the VIP lunch table!






EUREKA HEIGHTS ELEMENTAR SCHOOL: Photos from Principal's Pizza party


There are photographs from Eureka Heights Elementary School’s November All-Green, All-Month Principal’s Pizza Party winners!




EUREKA HEIGHTS ELEMENTARY SCHOOL: Truman Leadership students read to pupils


These photos show of Truman High School’s Leadership students reading to Eureka Heights Elementary School pupils.



TRUMAN HIGH SCHOOL: Latest Cougar News is published




Wednesday, December 10, 2014

BLAIR MOODY ELEMENTARY SCHOOL: Learning letters



(UPDATED WITH PHOTOS) KENNEDY HIGH SCHOOL: Senior class makes history



John F. Kennedy High School made history this year; every senior in the class of 2015 has applied to college.

Kennedy participated in the Michigan College Application Week (MCAW).  MCAW is part of a national initiative with the goal to provide every graduating high school senior the opportunity and support to apply to college.  Kennedy applied last spring to be a host school for this event and worked with the Michigan College Access Network to achieve success.


The actual MCAW was November 3–7.  Kennedy seniors started focusing on applying to college in the beginning of October.  The school held an onsite admission in which several universities and colleges met with interested seniors and accepted them to their school and almost all of the application fees were waived. 

Many scholarships were also offered to the seniors at that time. By November 7, 100 percent of Kennedy seniors had applied to at least one college or university.  Out of those students, 41 percent were first-generation college-going students.

The MCAW concluded with a celebration for all seniors that included food, music, games and a raffle. 

Congratulations to all of the Kennedy seniors!  The staff and the district are so proud of you!






Tuesday, December 9, 2014

MCDOWELL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL: Board games and bubble gum


December 5 was good behavior day at McDowell Elementary School. For positive behavior, the students enjoyed "Board games and Bubble gum!"









MCDOWELL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL: Speech therapy can be fun


Speech therapy occurs everyday at McDowell Elementary School. It is just another service that Taylor School District provides for students who need it. Here's Mrs. Reed with a group, learning while having fun!



MCDOWELL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL: Frosty takes center stage


Frosty the Snowman never looked so good. Mrs. Warrington's kindergarten class at McDowell Elementary School had fun making their snowman and they really enjoy going outside to play!




Monday, December 8, 2014

TOMMIE SAYLOR: It's time to get with the program

By Tommie Saylor
Kennedy High School Principal


“A team without vision is not a team”

Now that we have just entered the new Trimester, let’s look upon this as an opportunity.  An opportunity to “hit the reset” button and fix all those little things that annoyed us in the first Trimester. 

Remember, you have total control of your environment, of your classroom, and if you did not like how things went in the first Trimester, or if this procedure or that procedure just did not work out, this is your opportunity to make a change.  Be brave enough, bold enough to tell your students that you are changing how we conduct business that you are not willing to continue to do something that has proven itself to be non-effective, that you are not willing to continue to make the same mistake over and over again.  Students can and will respect this approach, and in turn, gain a deeper respect for you for being brave enough to make a change. Your classroom is your world. Make it a good one.

In the spirit of having an opportunity for a new beginning, let’s review our Mission, Vision, and the process of achieving our vision through the application of our mission:

Mission Statement:  John F. Kennedy High School is a community committed to improving the lives and education of its students.

To implement, apply, or carry out our mission, we employ the three R’s, Rigor, Relevance, and Relationships.

Rigor means more than just being hard on students, for being hard on students without heart is easy. Rigor is about academic integrity. It is about not accepting anything less than a student’s absolute best.  If the student turns in subpar work, give it back to the student and tell them to do it again, that it was not their best effort and that you are not going to accept anything but their absolute best. Rigor is about having clear classroom expectations, clear grading expectations (rubrics), and upholding standards while pushing your students to achieve the standards. 

Rigor is about being content tough and academically fair. Like the student, don’t like the student, “good” student or “bad” student, if they “get” it then grade it accordingly. Remember, it’s about learning not about how compliant the student is when it comes to procedures, guidelines and rules. Rigor is about honestly preparing the students for the next level, and this may come with tears, frustration, and anguish.  But giving them a “free ride” in high school only to see them fail in college is more of a sin than hurting their feelings in the loving and supportive environment of high school.

Relevance is about, as the students would say, “keeping it real.” It is making connections between what is taught in class and the real world.  How many times have we heard the question, “when will I ever use this in life” as the student groans about learning a new concept?  Well, have an answer for the student, be prepared for this question and turn this question into a learning opportunity for the entire class.  When I was teaching (science) and I was confronted with this question, I would respond by asking the students what is the point of the football team hitting the blocking sled during practice? During the game there is no blocking sled on the field, so hitting the blocking sled during practice is a waste of time. 

Inevitably a student would answer that hitting the blocking sled better prepares the football team for the game.  With this, I would respond “EXACTLY!”  Science “exercises” your brain, helps you to think logically, critically which will help to prepare you for the “game” of life.  You may never use this information again, but you will use the processes and logical thinking strategies your entire life. 

Relevance is also about preparing students for the ACT/MME tests, and letting them know that what you are doing in class is preparing them for these important State mandated examinations that will have a significant influence on their lives.  Relevance is about sparking an interest, opening a student’s eyes, it is about showing the students “the beauty they possess inside”, it is about inspiring students to their fullest potential.

Relationships means stepping into the student’s world, it is about seeing through the parent’s eyes, it is about being human.  Like it or not, we are emotional creatures and our emotions are a big part of who we are. Knowing this, it is foolish to believe that learning does not have an emotional factor, because it does. Face it, by human nature you work harder for someone you know, you like, than for someone you do not know, or for someone you dislike. Given this, cultivating good positive relationships between you and your students, by showing an interest in your students, or just simply letting them know that you care is not only educational productive, it is also professionally rewarding and personally satisfying. Simply, “students don’t care how much you know, until they know how much you care.”

As the three R’s are implemented, we monitor our progress through the Professional Learning Communities (PLC) process.  Through the PLC process we ask ourselves what is working, what is not working, how can we make the educational process better for our students?  By meeting a couple of times each month after school, free from the constraints of time and the distractions often associated with students, and by meeting collaboratively in our individual areas of expertise to evaluate our programs, make changes, and adjust to better serve the needs of our students, we strengthen our efforts and renew our resolve through self-regulation and oversight.  Without the PLC process, we would have no oversight of the application of the three R’s, and therefore would not be able to accomplish our mission as expressed in our Mission Statement.  Simply, the PLC process is the filter through which we pass our efforts to better hone and direct our labors to achieve the mission in which we have previously dedicated ourselves.

Through the implementation of the three R’s, and the oversight of the PLC process, we are able to realize our vision as presented in our Vision Statement.

Vision Statement:  The community of John F. Kennedy High School, through innovative techniques, applied technology, effective instruction, and lasting relationships, will prepare students for a successful and diverse future.

Our “road map” and/or journey is now been laid before us. We start with the Mission, travel along the trails of the three R’s guided by the PLC compass and arrive at our Vision. This is a never-ending journey that renews itself at the beginning of each new Trimester.

What starts here, changes the world. Making Kennedy the school of choice. Excellence by design.


KENNEDY HIGH SCHOOL: The Eagle News is out





MELISSA SKOPZYNSKI: Cougar Connections!