• Getting Schooled on the Local Education Scene
• The Latest Educational Toys for Young Minds
• You Can Take It With You
• Grant Funds Early Literacy Project

Getting Schooled on the Local Education Scene

By Janice Lane Palko

Education methods and programs are always evolving.  Chalkboards and abacuses have been replaced by SMART Boards and graphing calculators.  Researchers are always studying the best ways for reaching students.  Northern Connection magazine is proud to introduce our readers to some of the innovative programs making a difference in education in our area.

Phase 4 Learning Center

For some students, the traditional classroom setting does not work, which can often frustrate students, parents and school administration, leaving them feeling as if they have no education options.  But there is help.  Phase 4 Learning Center, Inc., a community-based, non-profit corporation approved by the Pennsylvania Department of Education, provides alternative education for such students.

“Our mission is to work with at-risk students by providing an exceptional education by focusing on four areas:  academic, social, behavioral and future needs.  Hence the name Phase 4.  This helps students to graduate from high school prepared to become contributing members of the community,” said Terrie Suica-Reed, president and CEO and co-founder of Phase 4 Learning Center.

Students are referred to Phase 4 by their local school district.  The first Phase 4 location opened in September 2003 at Century III Mall, West Mifflin, with one school district and six students.  Since that time, Phase 4 has opened three more locations:  Washington Crown Center Mall, Washington, Pa.; Beaver Valley Mall, Beaver, Pa.; and 3 Rivers Computer Clubhouse in Pittsburgh’s East Liberty section and works with 60 school districts educating 600 students.

Phase 4 offers several different programs.  The High School Diploma program serves at-risk student from grades 7 to 12.  The Diploma Retrieval Program targets students who have withdrawn from school and choose to return in order to earn their high school diploma and a Summer School program aids local students in need of summer make-up courses.  In addition, the 3 Rivers Computer Clubhouse in East Liberty offers an after-school learning center.

“We have a 98 percent graduation rate and 100 percent placement rate of our students in either military, college, higher education or in the workforce,” Suica-Reed said.  Phase 4 is accredited by the Middle States Association and has been designated as one of the ten models for “Best Practices” in alternative education in Pennsylvania.  Their curriculum aligns with the Pennsylvania Department of Education’s guidelines and the local school districts. 
“I’m very proud our students, certified educators, counselors and administrators,” Suica-Reed said. 

Atlas and Athena Program

Most would assume that high school athletes are at the top of the charts when it comes to fitness, but that may not always be the case.  The ATLAS (Athletes Training & Learning to Avoid Steroids) and ATHENA (Athletes Targeting Healthy Exercise & Nutrition Alternatives) program is designed to help students focus on nutrition and exercise as an alternative to drug use.  This initiative is funded through a $1.2 million annual grant from the NFL’s Youth Football Fund in conjunction with the Center for Health Promotion Research at Oregon Health & Science University.

North Hills Senior High School is one of five local schools to be selected by the Pittsburgh Steelers to participate in the ATLAS and ATHENA programs.  The ATLAS program targets adolescent male athletes’ use of anabolic steroids, alcohol and other drugs and use of sport supplements while improving healthy nutrition and exercise practices.  The ATHENA program helps to reduce disordered eating and use of body shaping and other drugs among young women, while promoting healthy nutrition and exercise.

Coaches and student athletes are trained as “Squad Leaders” to lead their school teams in exercises using peer and group influences to promote sports nutrition and healthy behaviors.  These weekly sessions include role-playing, student-created campaigns and interactive games.

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The Latest Educational Toys For Young Minds

By Paula Green

“The purpose of learning is growth, and our minds, unlike our bodies can continue to growing as long as we live.”
—Mortimer Adler

Children these days are learning even when they play.   So many new, innovative learning tools have hit the stores, that it is virtually impossible to list them all. 

Right now electronic toys are quite popular.  The Easy Link™ Internet Launch Pad by Fisher Price is a launch pad for children to automatically access their favorite, kid-friendly websites.  The smart key links them directly, securely and only to the Easy Link character’s official website, blocking access to any other Internet sites, links or pop-ups.

Another hot Fisher Price interactive toy is the Smart Cycle.  A nice bonus to this hot pick is that children exercise and learn at the same time.  The Smart Cycle hooks up to your television, allowing them to enjoy interactive adventures, exercising without even knowing it.

A toy that also hooks up to your television and is a great educational choice is Vtech’s V.Smile TV Learning System.  Simply plug the console into your TV, pop in a game called a Smartridge and let the fun begin.  The games build skills in spelling, logic, counting, problem solving, phonics and vocabulary.  Kids don’t even realize how much they’re developing their minds in language, science and math.

Another fun VTech product is their Kidi Art Studio which consists of an art desk with touchpad and stylus and a stool.  The system is connected to the TV in order to view one’s work.  An attached camera that allows children to take pictures and subsequently modify them is also included in the studio.

Leap Frog has hundreds of educational products.  A few of the newest ones develop reading and writing skills.  The LeapFrog Tag Reading System allows children to read on their own by using a specially designed touch pen.  The pen contains a lens in the tip which is sensitive to the specially printed words on the pages of the books.

The LeapPad Plus Writing comes with two interactive books: Interactive Book 1 and Interactive Writing Book.  With these starter books, kids learn an assortment of facts about science, geography, foreign language, phonics and more.  With the writing sampler book, children practice drawing letters and numbers, spelling words and more.

The LeapFrog Leapster 2 handheld games offer a learning experience through built-in tutorials and learning levels that adapt to your child’s pace.  Its touch screen stylus helps develop motor skills used in writing, while its compact design makes it easy for kids to play with on the go.  You can also connect it to a computer to monitor your child’s progress.

A good tip for selecting that special educational toy is to make sure it is fun.  If you can manage to combine learning with having fun, you are one step ahead of the game.  You are helping them to mold their mind in a relaxing and fun-filled manner. 

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From the Editor... Just a Thought!

You Can Take It With You

By Janice Lane Palko

Education.  Even the word sounds serious, and certainly education is a weighty matter.  Education, or the lack thereof, is a major influence on a person’s life.  Recently, I attended a workshop for parents of high school juniors, and the guidance counselor presented some remarkable statistics from the U.S. Dept. of Labor that demonstrated that the more education a person has, the more money they are likely to earn and the less likely they are to be unemployed. 

Education may be a serious subject, but should learning be as well?  Sometimes I think as we grow older we lose our enthusiasm for learning.  It’s unfortunate because learning is a sign of life.  If you aren’t learning, you aren’t living.  Anything that stagnates eventually dies. 

I don’t know why we sometimes lose our lust for learning.  Perhaps it’s a fear of failure.  I worked for Westinghouse Electric Corp. in the early 80s when computers began to revolutionize the workplace.  Most embraced the new technology, but there were others who opted to retire rather than to learn how to use a personal computer.  Nobody likes to feel inadequate and unsure of themselves, but if you’re not stepping out of your comfort zone, you’re really not living.  Have you ever learned how to do something you initially thought very difficult?  Do you remember how alive you felt then?  Learning was exciting then and it still can be today.

Ever watch toddlers?  Their whole life is consumed with exploring, learning and failing.  Sure they may struggle and fall several times before actually standing, or take a few spills before getting the hang of walking, but they don’t let setbacks hold them back.  And neither should we. 

Several years ago I read a book written by a woman who claims to have had a near-death experience, and something she wrote struck me and remains with me today.  She stated that when we die, there are only two things we take out of this world and into the next:  One is love and the other is knowledge.  In essence, we are what we have loved and learned. 

A common reason for giving up on learning is the “I’m-too-old- you-can’t-teach-an-old-dog-new-tricks” excuse.  In Anthony DeStefano’s book The Travel Guide to Heaven, he states that in Heaven there will be so much more to explore and that we’ll have the opportunity to study and learn forever.  So if you believe that the afterlife is going to be the ultimate in continuing education, there’s no reason to believe you are too late to learn in this life because you can always finish your study in the next. 

So live a little and learn a lot.  Think of all the things you’d like to do or learn and jot them down.  In the book The Success Principles by Jack Canfield, the co-creator of the Chicken Soup for the Soul series, Canfield talks about former Notre Dame football coach and ESPN sports analyst Lou Holtz.  Many years ago, Holtz drafted a list of 107 things he’d like to learn or do during his lifetime—everything from shooting a hole-in-one to having dinner at the White House.  As of the book’s printing, Holtz had achieved 81 of the goals on his list.  If Holtz can do it, there’s no reason you or I can’t do the same.

So as we begin a new year, take the opportunity to learn something new.  After all, when it comes to knowledge, it seems that you can take it with you.

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