Hot Springs Gardner MagnetSchool

HSSD elementary schools are ready for Read Across America Week! Join in on the fun - Find a full schedule of books and attire for each day of the week, here. The National Education Association’s Read Across America initiative is an annual reading motivation and awareness program that calls for every child in every community to celebrate reading. It is celebrated on March 2nd, which is also the birthday of the famous children’s book author Dr. Suess. Our wonderful school media specialists at each HSSD school organize the week-long celebration ahead of March 2nd to celebrate reading and the many ways we promote and support literacy for our students at the HSSD.

Third graders in Mrs. Jackson’s class are excited to welcome Roz - a furry, white hamster - to their room. Students will be busy in the coming weeks learning how to care for Roz in terms of cage maintenance and food/water needs, while also observing her eating and sleeping habits. Students will also read about the habitat and behaviors of hamsters in books Mrs. Jackson has selected from the library. Plans are also underway to soon acquire a rolling cage ball for Roz, so that she can safely engage with students, while rolling herself around the room as they work.

The EAST (Education Advanced by Service and Technology) at Gardner STEM Program is a unique group of young entrepreneurs working in the Gardner STEM Magnet School community and the Hot Springs area to complete technology-based service projects. EAST classrooms are different from others, especially at the elementary level, because EAST curriculum is based on developing skills that are directly applicable to the real world through self-directed projects. Few schools in Arkansas host EAST programs for elementary students. The HSSD is proud to have Gardner focusing on EAST for such a young age, and EAST Facilitator Paul Miller helps to ensure that these young minds remain challenged, and are not underestimated. The group is excited to be part of the 2nd Annual Early Childhood STEAM Conference on January 26th, where they hope to partner with local Pre-K programs to build educational resources and outreach tools, and serve as mentors to younger students with an interest in technology.

No students can have enough exercises, reminders, and examples of how to embody kindness toward others and toward themselves. Second grade teacher Mrs. Nikki Anderson seized an opportunity to offer a heartwarming lesson in kindness to her classroom of rambunctious students, with big hearts and curious minds. Students discussed personal examples and experiences with unkindness and identified solutions to improve their own behavior and treatment of others. Their responses to the exercise surprised even her, and has created a lasting impact for her kids about the power of kind words and gestures in all situations.