Here's a look at what's happening in District Five schools this week!
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Five's Finest Teachers Recognized
Two of District Five's best educators received some well-deserved recognition this week!
Molly Haulbrook, of
Lyman Elementary, and
Christie Adams, of
Beech Springs Intermediate, were named Five's Finest teachers. The award recognizes teachers who are going above and beyond, both inside and outside the classroom, to see students succeed.
Haulbrook, who has taught art in District Five for more than 30 years, is known as a positive role model at
Lyman Elementary. In her daily interaction with students through art, administrators say she is able to inspire the best in students because of her kind and loving teaching style.
Haulbrook regularly steps in to do "whatever is asked" of her at school, and will be sorely missed, as she's retiring this year. Congratulations,
Molly Haulbrook!
Christie Adams is a 6th grade ELA/Social Studies teachers at
Beech Springs. Christie is a phenomenal teacher who ignites a passion within her students to know more once they leave her classroom for the day. She has a way of reaching students from all academic levels and demographic backgrounds.
Outside of school,
Adams never misses a chance to show students she cares about them, whether that means attending a drama performance, band concert, sporting event, or even their birthday party! Congratulations
Christie Adams!
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New Byrnes Opens Its Doors To Community
Students and teachers are finally settling into their new home at
Byrnes High School, and now we're opening the doors for the community to see it too! District Five is inviting parents, business leaders, and the entire community to an "Open House" on Sunday, March 12, to tour the new classroom wing at
Byrnes.
The building will be open from 2:00-4:00 p.m. Entertainment and light refreshments will be provided. Everyone is invited to attend!
Come tour this beautiful new space that's added a new sense of pride to
Byrnes High School!
**NOTE**
Please park in the senior lot closest to the new gym, and enter the building from the entrance just to the right of the gym lobby.
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District Five Junior Scholars Honored
Four dozen of District Five's most academically talented middle school students received one of South Carolina's biggest honors this week. 48 District Five students were recognized as Junior Scholars for 2016-17.
The program was developed by SC Department of Education more than 30 years ago as a way of identifying 8th grade students throughout the state with exceptional academic talent. Students must earn a certain score on their PSAT or be selected through the DUKE TIP program to be recognized as a Junior Scholar.
District Five students were honored at Converse College Thursday evening, along with more than 200 of their peers from across Spartanburg County's school districts.
Congratulations to these Junior Scholars for 2016-17:
D.R. Hill Middle School
Elijah Adams, Samuel Bolds, Carson Cassidy, Gabrielle Cook, Morgan Ellison, Andrew Eubands, Marilyn Eubanks, Jacob Gordon, Gabriel Gosnell, Ansley Harter, Roman Marcano, Noah McKenzie, Jacob Stone, Nicholas Thiele, and
Alexis Yoder
Florence Chapel Middle School
Trevor Babb, Jefferson Bennie, Julia Catron, Tripp Coan, Chloe Howard, Amanda Cox, Carsyn Dillard, Gabriel Dugaw, Melody Eckard, Matthew Everette, Blake Faulkner, Agatha Fowler, Gwendolyn Geen, Hailey Greer, Daniel Grooms, Clayton Gurley, Kendall Hill, Jayden Hines, Audrey King, Jonas Kovacs, Madison Montjoy, Jennifer Nguyen, Anika Rana, Haley Rimmel, Jacob Sareault, Emma Saunders, Nathaniel Sawczuk, Sarah Scholz, Henry Tucker, Summer Walker, Savannah Waters, Caroline White, and
Daniel Williams
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Top Orchestra Students Selected For All-State
Two of our own represented District Five well at the state level recently! Byrnes High School student Emily Carroll was selected for the Senior All-State Orchestra, and Florence Chapel Middle School student Peyton Lee earned a spot in the Junior All-State Orchestra this year! The All-State Orchestra Clinic was held at Lexington High School February 24-25.
Congratulations Emily and Peyton!
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Region Band Students Shine
Some of District's Five top band students showed off their talent with some of the best in SC recently!
65 band students from District Five participated in the All-Region Band Honor Clinic at Furman University February 24-25.
Students competed against other students from across the Upstate to earn their spot in the Honor Band.
This year's group set a noteworthy record: District Five placed more students in the All-Region Band than any other district in the Upstate!
Congratulations, students!
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Mentors Needed For Citizen Scholars
District Five is excited to have a new class of Citizen Scholars this year! The current 6th graders are participating in a six year program to help them become college and career ready.
Students will attend Saturday classes, volunteer with the community, and participate in a variety of activities to prepare them for a successful future. These Citizen Scholars need adult mentors with a variety of backgrounds and education. If you are interested in becoming a mentor, please contact Dr. Amy Kitts at
[email protected] or call (864) 949-2300.
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Byrnes Student Takes Home Title At Regional Science Fair
A
Byrnes High School student showed off his science skills recently against other tops students in the Upstate, and took home top prize at the Piedmont Regional Science Fair! Sophomore
Harrison Homan was named the overall winner at the fair, held at USC Upstate on Saturday, March 4.
Homan's project, "Answers from Ashes" won 1st place in Chemistry as well as an ASM International Award, an Air Force Award, and a Naval award. In addition to receiving $1000 in scholarships to USC Upstate, the
Byrnes student, along with a chaperone, will also be sent on an all-expenses paid trip to Los Angeles to compete as a finalist in the International Science and Engineering Fair.
Harrison's project investigated the burn failure rates of three common fibers found in clothing, to determine which one is safest.
In all
Byrnes High School students walked away with over $1400 worth of scholarships, cash, and other prizes. Other regional award winners included:
Harrison Homan, Rebecca Lewis, Joanna English (not pictured)
, Iris Perla, Nathaniel Redwine, Anna Cantrell, Victoria White, and Hunter Stephens.
Way to go,
Byrnes students!
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Florence Chapel Academic Team Tops State Competition
A group of bright
Florence Chapel Middle School students proved their some of the smartest in the state recently! The school's Academic Team, led by advisor
Kristie Cox, took part in the state competition and took home 1st place! The team also placed 3rd in the entire Southeast!
The team, which is comprised mostly of 8th graders, will now move on to the national competition in several weeks.
Congratulations to these team members who were part of the 1st place team:
Agatha Fowler, Amanda Cox, DeLisa Milbourne, Tripp Coan, Blake Faulkner, Henry Tucker, Anika Rana, Camille Smith, Laurin Nodine, Mackenzie Melton, Jennifer Nguyen, Payton Lee, Jacob Sareault, Sam Johnson, Nathan Sawczuk, Jonas Kovacs, Matthew Everette, Daniel Grooms, and
Dominique Nguyen.
We're proud of you,
Florence Chapel students!
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Schools Celebrate Dr. Suess
The "Cat In The Hat" and "Green Eggs and Ham" were spotted all over District Five this past week, as schools celebrated the birthday of Dr. Suess!
Tales by the favorite children's author were a common theme at many schools, as teachers and staff planned activities to mark the occasion.
At
Reidville Elementary School, students and teachers celebrated with a different "dress up" theme each day. Even Principal Kim Deering got in the spirit with her special "Cat in the Hat" attire.
On "Wacky Wednesday", students in
Kaitlyn Boyter's 1st grade class did some wacky writing, putting paper on the bottom of their desks to complete their assignments. What fun!
At
River Ridge Elementary School, students had fun dressing up as their favorite Dr. Suess character! Throughout the school, visitors could spot different "cat in the hats" and "Thing 1 and Thing 2", in addition to other favorites.
At
Duncan Elementary School, students and staff got in the spirit by taking part in "Book Character Day." Students and teachers dressed up as their favorite characters all over the school. Some favorites were: Harry Potter, Cat in the Hat, If You Give A Mouse a Cookie and many others.
The school also hosted a Literacy Night where students and families enjoyed fun activities, "Make It and Take It" Pete the Cat bags, creative writing, a photo booth, and story teller. Door prizes were given out from the Book Fair, Greer Cultural Arts, and the items every student wanted: two Samsung tablets!
The night was a huge success!
Awesome job,
Duncan!
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River Ridge Wax Museum
4th grade students at
River Ridge Elementary School took students, parents, and visitors on a trip through a living wax museum this week!
Students researched historical figures for weeks, then selected one to depict during the "Living Wax Museum" at the school. From John Adams to Harriet Beecher Stowe, the students became "experts" in their own part in history, and did a fantastic job presenting what they learned to guests.
Great job,
River Ridge students!
To see more photos, visit our Facebook album
here.
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Wellford Takes STEM Challenge
Third grade students at
Wellford Academy recently had to sharpen their science smarts to take on the 2017 Fluor STEM Challenge! Students made models of rice terraces found in the Phillipines for the event.
The challenge was inspired by Banaue Rice Terraces, 2,000 year old structures that are carved in mountainsides in the country. The object of the challenge was to see if students could build a model of the terraced irrigation system that uses flowing water to transport cplastic beads.
Students worked really hard on their engineering skills.
Great work,
Wellford!
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Meteorologist Visits Abner Creek
Abner Creek Academy welcomed Malachi Rodgers, meteorologist for WSPA, to speak to kindergarten students this week!
Malachi is not only a local celebrity but a dad to Makayla, a kindergarten student at the Creek. He used volunteers to demonstrate how the earth moves around the sun during the various seasons. The children also participated in acting out the water cycle . Thank you, Malachi!
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FIGHT Club Runs Race On The Coast
Members of
Byrnes High School's FIGHT Club laced up their running shoes and headed to Charleston last week, as the largest group to participate in the Lifepoint 5K! The club joined forces with
Byrnes student Keyshawn Suit, who was running in honor of his aunt, who received a kidney transplant. Combined, the group totaled 77 participants!
In addition, several FIGHT Club members earned medals in the race. Congratulations to:
Elizabeth Schrum, Iris Perla, Bryce Coponen, Nasir Smith, and Chris Konoka.
Way to go,
Byrnes FIGHT CLUB!
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D.R. Hill Shows Off Science Skills
A group of super science stars from D.R. Hill Middle School took their skills to the SC State Science Olympiad recently! The event was held at Newberry College on February 18.
The school's Science Olympiad team competed against other students from across the state and took home 8th place in "Experimental Design and Reach for the Stars".
Congratulatiosn to: Heather Pridemore, Carlee Motes, and Payton Brown.
Great job, D.R. Hill!
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Florence Chapel Supports Staff Members
Florence Chapel Middle School students and staff came together this week to show the meaning of family!
Students, teachers and staff joined forces to show support for teacher
Keri Gillespie and technology specialist
Homer Ellis, who are both currently fighting cancer. Students and staff rallied around the two fighters for group pictures, then took a ceremonial walk around the parking lot, decked out in "Cougars Kicking Cancer" t-shirts in their honor.
What a great family we have in D5!
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Reidville's "Press Start" Hits Home With Audience
Bravo to students and staff at
Reidville Elementary School for a great performance
of "Press Start"! The fun musical transported the audience into a world filled with video games and fun!
Great job,
Reidville!
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Abner Creek Journeys Through "Adventures In Wonderland"
Students and staff at
Abner Creek Academy deserve a big standing ovation for their performance of "Adventures in Wonderland"! The fun musical took the audience on a journey through the classical tale, as Alice met the wonderful characters of the Rabbit, the Cheshire Cat, and the Queen of Hearts, played by none other than,
Abner Creek Principal Karen McMakin.
Bravo,
Abner Creek!
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Byrnes Girls Soccer Takes Tournament Title
The
Byrnes High School Lady Rebels Soccer team is starting the season on a great note with a huge win in the Hillcrest Classic Preseason Soccer Tournament!
The Lady Rebels defeated Woodmonth 4-1, Pickens 9-0, and Wren 2-0, to take home the title of Tournament Champion.
Also, several Lady Rebels were named to the All-Tournament team including:
Emily Morrison (goalkeeper), Kayla Dendy (Forward), Katherine Gonzalez (Forward), Kimberly Seto (midfield), and Alyssa Harter (defender).
Congratulations ladies!
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Abner Creek Presents "Adventures In Wonderland"
Come out and support the talented students of
Abner Creek Academy be amazed as they present "Adventures in Wonderland" tonight!
The performance will be held on Friday, March 10 at the District Five Fine Arts Center at 6:30 p.m.
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Judging from the looks of this picture, our Rebel Regiment is off to a great start for 2017-18! At a recent practice/informational meeting, 230 wind and percussion students showed up! Combined with future guard members, this will put next year's band at just under 300 members! That would make the Regiment the largest high school marching band in South Carolina! We can't wait to see what next year brings!
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Stay Connected With District Five!
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As we begin a new year, make sure you stay connected with District Five for all your latest news, announcements, and sneak peeks into our classrooms! Here are a couple of ways you can stay connected all year long:
SOCIAL MEDIA: District Five is very active on social media, sharing all kinds of exciting news from our classrooms, and highlighting our students and teachers. Be sure and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, or (brand new just this year) Instagram!
MOBILE APP: If you want your news on the go, and in the palm of your hand, the D5 mobile app is for you! Everything from calendars to lunch menus, along with emergency notifications can be found there. Download the app
FOR FREE for your Apple or Android device today. Simply search Spartanburg District 5 Schools!
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If you have an item you want featured in D5 News, please email District Five Director of Public Relations Melissa Robinette at