From the Editor

We hope the school year is off to a great start for you and your students! This edition of VariQuest eNews is filled with ideas to help you meet the individual needs of each student in your classroom. You'll also learn how the principal at Eagle Creek Elementary School in Minnesota uses the VariQuest tools to help create a successful learning environment for her students. In recognition of World Teachers' Day in October, thanks for all that you do each day to guide your students on their Education Quest!

Teacher Feature

Patsy Winn
Grades 7-12 Family and Consumer Sciences
Westville High School
Westville, OK

Give an example of a lesson you teach that incorporates visual learning?
A: My housing and interior design classes draw, design and create a cardboard scale model of a house or an apartment.

Who or what motivates and inspires you to be a teacher?
A: I was so fortunate to have some of the best teachers in the world when I went to public school. They made school fun and interesting. They instilled a love for learning and I feel I still learn everyday with my students.

What teaching strategy do you find helps your students best grasp a lesson?
A: I feel the best approach incorporates both visual and lecture. I enjoy lecturing or explaining how a lesson or project should be done, then reinforcing it with a hands-on example to help all learners understand.

Name the most important thing you hope students take away from your class.
A: I truly feel the most important thing any student can take away from any class is a good, positive self image. If students do not feel good about themselves as a person, they cannot learn.

What’s your favorite quote or comment?
A: "In a world where you can be anything - be yourself!"

Events

Stop by the VariQuest booth at a conference near you!

Nov. 8-9 - Spinitar, an authorized VariQuest dealer, will attend the Nevada Association of School Administrators Conference in Las Vegas, NV

Nov. 11-12 - Spinitar will be at the Arizona Charter Schools 15th Annual Conference in Glendale, AZ

Nov. 13 - AVI-SPL, an authorized VariQuest dealer, will be at the Prince George's Powering Up Conference in Upper Marlboro, MD

Nov. 17-20 - Varitronics will host booth #404 at the National Association of Black School Educators Conference in Fort Worth, TX

Nov. 18-19 - Varitronics will attend the Virginia School Boards Association Annual Conference in Williamsburg, VA

Stay Connected

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School Spotlight

Eagle Creek Elementary School

From the first day of school at Eagle Creek Elementary School in Shakopee, Minnesota, students enter a carefully created environment built to help them succeed.

"Students respond to the environment they are in," said Libby Bergen, principal at Eagle Creek Elementary School. "Our students come into an environment that's purposeful and respectful, and students respond in that way."

Bergen's staff uses the VariQuest Poster Maker and Cutout Maker to help create this planned environment for the success of their students. Read more.

In the Know

Learning Styles: Be in the Know

Can you name the learning styles of individual students in your class? More importantly, do your students know their own learning styles? In a recent article on Education.com by Shannon Hutton, a school counselor, Hutton discusses the importance of teachers and students understanding their learning styles: visual, auditory, kinesthetic or a combination. The article, at www.education.com, also specifies strategies to help visual learners succeed.

Boosting Success for Exceptional Needs Students

Susan McLester, former editor in chief at Technology & Learning and HotChalk.com, and former education columnist for the Los Angeles Times, discusses the importance of effectively reaching students with exceptional needs in "Boosting Success for Exceptional Needs Students." Whether students' needs are intellectual, communicative, sensory, behavioral or physical, McLester provides ideas on how to use VariQuest Visual Learning Tools to help these students succeed.

Lesson Activities from Julia

Julia is a VariQuest content specialist and former teacher.

Comparing math concepts to everyday situations can be a challenge, and so can keeping students interested and engaged. Use the following activity ideas to spark students' minds through the use of group collaboration, puzzles and number "tricks."

Grades K-5

Solving Word Problems: Help students understand and solve word problems.

In this activity students will work in pairs or small groups to solve word problems. You will need to print several copies of the Word Problem (ORG050) poster, one for the whole-class example and one for each group of students. Read more.

Grades 6-8

Logic Puzzles: Engage students in logical thinking by giving them an opportunity to work in teams to solve puzzles while practicing math skills.

Mathematical reasoning involves drawing logical conclusions based on assumptions and the information provided. Give students an opportunity to practice their logical decision-making skills using educational puzzles. Look for logic puzzles that involve strategy, reasoning and mathematical operations for this cooperative group activity. Read more.

Grades 9-12

Number Tricks & Algebra: Challenge students to decode the algebraic equations behind number "tricks."

Allow students the opportunity to collaborate with peers to develop algebraic equations that represent number operations. For this activity you will need to cut out the following numerals and symbols from your font collection. Read more.