Inside Dallas ISD

A recent event at Dallas ISD’s W.E. Greiner Exploratory Arts Academy gave students and their families a chance to see and experience science, technology, engineering, art and mathematics (STEAM). The Family STEAM Fest was conducted by students in the school’s AVID program, which is a college-readiness program that stands for Advancement Via Individual Determination. Principal Yvonne Rojas said AVID students created the booths, which demonstrated several aspects of STEAM. It was the school’s first such event. Jennifer Hatcher, a teacher and AVID coordinator at the school, said the event had more than one purpose. “Our goal is to increase their interest…

Mercy Blanco was casually shooting hoops on the playground when some fellow classmates walked by and suggested she try out for the basketball team. Blanco, a fifth-grader at the time, had never seriously considered playing basketball. But she took the classmates up on their offer, made the team, and, by the next year, was running the basketball court. “I just fell in love with the game very quickly,” she said. “I have always liked having to push myself physically and mentally, and I kept on working to become a better basketball player.” Blanco’s hard work has paid off: now a…

Shannon Sanderford, Miss Texas 2015, visited Dallas ISD’s George H.W. Bush Elementary School on Thursday, Dec. 3, to emphasize the importance of reading, math and making good choices. Sanderford used giant Lego blocks – “Legos for Life” – to visually represent how honing each of the three skills can serve as building blocks to success. In talking about each one, Sanderford asked students why would it be important. Many of them showed a career focus even in grades 3-5, providing answers about how each of the three skills will help them in future jobs. Students taking the STAAR test next week…

Students at James S. Hogg Elementary have earned new technological tools to take their computer science skills to the next level. Code.org will present this annual award, which is given to one school in Texas that is committed to computer science student engagement, on Dec. 7. Principal Jairo Casco will use the $10,000 award to give the school a technology makeover. The event coincides with the official kickoff of Computer Science Education Week that is happening Dec. 7-13. “The $10,000 award will help us equip our students with the 21st-century skills that are necessary to succeed in school and beyond,” Casco said. “We are…