Winners for the Cougar Pride Club are: Kaitlyn Mikesell, Carter Moffitt, Ada Broadbent, Taylor Ford, Adam Johnston, Jentry Barker, Logan Wride, Bryan Brawn, and Adilene Vasquez. The Prize that was drawn was a Candy bar.

      In the month of January, the students at Orchard Hills spent a four week unit discussing Leonardo DaVinci.  We talked about some very usual facts, his talents, paintings and studied some of his inventions...on week four, it was the students (grades 3-6) turn to build some miniature inventions with their team.  Some pictures are hanging in the hallway in the "Art Gallery" of these inventions and the teams.

Kelly Zopes from Discovery Gateway came to Orchard Hills Elementary School as part of their Outreach Program.  She did a Reaction Time presentation to our fifth graders.  She discussed physical changes and chemical reactions with the students.  Our fifth graders had the opportunity to see several experiments demonstrated as well as doing some experiments in small groups as well!

The Social Skill for February is:

   How to Listen

1.  Look at the person

2.  Think about their words

3.  Wait for them to finish

4.  Say what you want about the topic

   We have reviewed and practiced these steps at school, but we hope that you will also review and reinforce them at home.

Sixth grade students were all required to read a biography about a person of their choice.  Each student wrote a written report about their character and then chose at least 5 important facts to share with Orchard Hills Elementary students.  A Biography Body was created by each student to wear as they traveled to different classrooms to share what they learned.

The two special education units at Orchard Hills Elementary in Santaquin, have the unique opportunity of learning in the community twice a month. These trips are called Community Based Instruction or CBI’s. The unit teachers Mrs. Owen and Mrs. Waters plan activities based on their students needs and then set up these bi-monthly trips. This year the students have the opportunity to participate in Adaptive Aquatics and Gym Kids at Brigham Young University. Students are paired with a college buddy, and they participate in Aquatics or various activities in the Gym.

Our 5th grade students graduated from DARE on Thursday, January 19th.  Officer Johnson spent the last 10 weeks teaching our students about resisting drugs and alcohol.  He also taught the students how to make good choices and how to handle peer pressure.  The Top Dare Students were Anika Teemant, Bryton Brown, Hailey Diamond, Nickelle Blanton.  The top essay winners were Austin Jackson, Nathan Quigley, Adilene Vasquez, and Trey Shipley.

The Social Skill for January is:

How to Get Along:

1.  Show concern for others.

2.  Remember everyone deserves respect.

3.  Apologize when you need to.

We have reviewed and practiced these steps at school, and we hope that you will also review and reinforce them at home.  

Steve James visited Orchard Hills Elementary and preformed several rousing renditions of his well loved songs.  Including favorites like: "I'll be Nice," "Hot to Not," and "Buckle Up."  Students and teachers were invited to join in on a couple of songs.  Steve's unique style and talent enable him to share his musical lessons on friendship, staying drug free, and self-esteem.  

Students at Orchard Hills enjoyed singing together in a school-wide Christmas sing-a-long.