Carbon School District Press Release
While academics at a school are always important, the basis of learning is having a safe and happy environment in which to do it. This year, as in the past, Wellington Elementary is working to ensure kids are in those surroundings at school.
“We have spent a lot of time and effort in the past few years trying to unify the students and to build a support system with friends helping each other,” said Stacy Basinger, the school’s principal. “We work hard on fostering students to have respect, take responsibility and to have integrity. We want every kid here to feel like they are on a team, the Wellington Warriors team.”
Part of that is special Friday events at the school. The student council plans a special theme and asks all students and staff to participate. They call it Spirit Friday.
“For instance, today is Unite in Blue”, said Basinger during an interview that took place on a Friday. “That’s in honor of friendship and unifying against bullying. Each Friday, we hold a competition between the classrooms to see who has the most participation. A traveling trophy is awarded to the class with the highest participation, and it’s a lot of fun.”
Of course, the school is highly focused on improving students’ reading levels as part of the district’s efforts to strengthen reading skills. Like all schools, the Wellington Warriors are doing a lot of reading. Students are sent home with books that fit their present level. Also, all students have access to an online reading portal, so they have abundant opportunities to read books on their level.
The continuing work on the Professional Learning Community is an important part of the education at the school as well. In the past, grade levels met at different times from others. This year, Monday afternoons have been set aside for all levels to meet at the same time.
“This gives us the opportunity to not only align our programs horizontally with others in the same grade level, but it also gives our teachers a chance to meet with other grade levels, making our vertical cooperation even better,” stated Basinger.
With all staff and students involved in making the school a better place, learning can be more comfortable and comprehensive.
“We are constantly working on our motto of respect, responsibility and integrity,” said Basinger. “We are doing that at all levels, not only with students, but with staff as well. We created a Wellington Warrior pledge and it lists very specific actions that we do. We ask each for a pledge from all students and staff. Each person has signed a pledge card and it’s hung by our pledge in the hall.
A main focus this year is learning how choices have consequences on people’s lives. We learn about how we should put ourselves in situations that offer positive consequences, and recognized how choices can result in negative consequences.”
The pledge includes statements concerning kindness, consideration of others, thoughts put into words and actions, helping others, doing the right thing (even when no one else is watching), taking care of all property like it is their own and being prepared to learn. Everyone commits to it and they all sign a card that they will live up to the pledge.
“The way we look at it is that everyone is human, and I tell the kids that,” explained Basinger. “We all make mistakes. The first time there is a problem, it is a mistake, and we carefully review what happened and how choices need to change in the future. The second time the problem occurs, it is a choice, and therefore there are consequences for that action.”