On Sunday, Oct. 7, the PHHS Circle of Friends sponsored a picnic at Allied Gardens Park. Circle of Friends is an ASB club at Patrick Henry that creates and fosters friendships between students with special needs and their non-disabled peers. Henry has over 50 general education students who are actively involved in the club.<\/p>\n The club sponsors several off-campus events each year including a picnic, Winter Holiday Dance, and End of the Year Banquet. Students also eat lunch in a specified area each Monday and Tuesday in order to spend time together and build relationships.<\/p>\n Jim Achenbach and Tianna Reitman are the facilitators of the club and help the students coordinate all of the fun with co-presidents, Joy Churchill, Alyssa Lozano and their student board. The student board also meets weekly to discuss and upcoming events.<\/p>\n The students with special needs enjoy spending time with their general education counterparts and it creates a more welcoming environment at Henry as students wave and greet each other in the hallways. Students with special needs also feel more comfortable in the general education classes as they already know some of the students that are enrolled there.<\/p>\n __________________________________________<\/p>\n Semifinalista de la Beca Nacional al M\u00e9rito<\/strong><\/p>\n Patrick Henry High School (PHHS) is proud to announce that we had two students earn recognition for having exceptional academic promise demonstrated by their outstanding performance on the qualifying test used for the program entry. Maya Rozenshteyn and Sarah Kosci are proudly representing Henry High School with this great honor. Their high scores on the PSAT (Preliminary SAT) placed them in the top 2 percent among 16,000 other semifinalist students in the country out of the 1.6 million students who took the assessment. Their semifinalist status earns them a chance to qualify in the spring as a finalist where they may earn merit scholarship award money.<\/p>\n __________________________________________<\/p>\n New physical education<\/strong><\/p>\n As much of the state of California has rolled out common core standards and curriculum, physical education is also moving in that direction as well. With a new school year comes a new class of freshman ready to take on the challenges of a high school, standards-based, common-core aligned physical education course. What that might look like to freshman at Patrick Henry can be very different from anything they might have experienced during their middle school or elementary years. What makes it different? Well, we\u2019re less concerned with \u201cplay\u201d and most concerned with a concept called \u201cphysical literacy.\u201d<\/p>\n Physical literacy is a term that encapsulates all of what a public education high school physical education class should look like: learning, growing, challenging and changing. Students are focused on not just activity for activity\u2019s sake, but for the purposes of growth, both mentally and physically, understanding the \u201cwhy\u201d of movement and skill, not just the \u201chow.\u201d It is the hope of this freshman physical education teacher to take them on a journey through their freshman year that moves them toward a life of health and wellness beyond their physical education class experience. Play and activity are great, but when students understand the how and why of those concepts, they own what they have learned and are capable of using it for purposes that will carry them far beyond the class.<\/p>\n For more information, you might want to check out the YouTube video, \u201cWhat is Physical Literacy.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2014Terri Clark<\/em><\/p>\n __________________________________________<\/p>\n October Student of the Month<\/strong><\/p>\n Senior Darartu Mulugueta was nominated for the Kiwanis student of the month and was honored last month at the Kiwanis Breakfast. Vice Principal Bill Miller accompanied Mulugueta and her family and he presented to the club why she was selected. Mr. Miller noted that in almost every teacher\u2019s description of Mulugueta, she was described for being respectful, polite, and kind. He stated in his speech about Mulugueta: \u201cIn class, she\u2019s very dedicated and takes ownership of her learning. One teacher had the privilege to work with her in Spanish 3\/4 and currently she\u2019s doing great in that same teacher\u2019s AP Spanish class! She is a friendly, respectful and engaged student that participates in class. She is always prepared and asks thoughtful questions. From the conversations I’ve had with her, she also seems to have her integrity meter fully intact. Daratu is a member of our Link Crew. She is a committee chair on the executive board of Link Crew, as well (like being leaders of leaders of leaders). She is the best of the best!\u201d<\/p>\n One Henry teacher stated, \u201cDarartu is a kind, hard-working student. She always has a positive demeanor.\u201d Her AP U.S. History teacher from last year stated, \u201cDarartu Mulugueta is a strong student from APUSH last year. Very active in two student clubs, including speaking at March for Our Lives. She is transferring to Pennsylvania at the end of the month and I know a lot of teachers are sad to see her go.\u201d<\/p>\n We have loved working with Mulugueta and will wish her well at her new school!<\/p>\n __________________________________________<\/p>\n![\"Patrick](\"https:\/\/missiontimescourier.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/cicle-of-friends-2-copy.jpg\")
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