School Happenings

You may have noticed the state of our arboretum area surrounding the greenhouse and wondered, Why the weeds? Over the last several months, we’ve certainly grappled with the same question. The area houses plants that are indigenous to Utah, and the intended ground cover is meant to be a wild Utah grass. In many areas, the grass is really doing quite well. In most areas, however, it seems overrun by weeds. We’ve worked in close partnership ...

To help students answer the question, “How will I know when I have learned it?” the Neil Armstrong Academy teachers have set up the Armstrong Evernote Digital Portfolios. These portfolios are owned by the students, and, therefore, will go with them long after they have left Armstrong. Because these portfolios exist in the cloud, students can access them from their school iPad, the school computer lab, their home computers, or even their parents’ ...

Just one week after the 1st through sixth graders arrived, the kindergarteners got their new school year underway as well. The Armstrong student body welcomed the Class of 2027 by lining the hallways and applauding the kindergartners as they entered. The sight of nearly 700 students greeting you as you enter the building is overpowering, and I believe our kindergarteners felt extremely special. We can’t wait to get to know them better, and we ...

This year at Armstrong, most grade levels will be issuing some of their report-card grades based on student mastery rather than work completion. This means they will report how students are performing in relation to the Utah Core Standards. This grading approach (known as Standards-Based grading): Indicates what students know and are able to do Measures a student’s progress toward proficiency Indicates if a student has reached ...

The Neil Armstrong Academy PTA is off to another great start, and its preparing the budget for the upcoming school year. The PTA board will meet for its monthly meeting on September 16, and it will vote on the budget (below). All are invited to attend the meeting. Also, the PTA will be selling new Armstrong T-shirts (red and blue) on September 8th and 9th from 7:45-9:00 AM and 3:00-3:45 PM in the front commons area of the school. ...

Kennedy (Mrs. Hind): She is a great example of how to use manners in our classroom! I love that she always says “please” and “thank you.” It sets a great tone for everyone. Aleisha (Mrs. Fisher): Very quiet. Gets all her work done. She is kind to others. Kamden (Miss Johansen): Wow! First day, and he is already a pro! Amazing behavior, nice to everyone, and listens to the teacher. Keep it up! Elliott (Mrs. Rogers): ...

We're off and running! We started the new school year with a tremendous open house for all parents and students. It was so fun to see all the familiar faces (and some new faces) roaming the hallways of Armstrong again. We quickly got the day underway and began establishing the important routines for the new school year. ...

Although the Armstrong students don't come back until tomorrow (August 25th), the Armstrong teachers have been back at it all last week in preparation for the first day of school. During the last five days, Armstrong teachers have participated in trainings on: Fidelity to the core Instructional framework Granite curriculum maps and assessment tools Professional Learning Communities(PLCs) Multi-Tiered Systems of Support ...

The teachers were kept hopping all week long during their professional development week meetings. Multiple times each day, the meetings were interrupted by a Twitter break. Each tweet gave a photo and a clue about the next Armstrong Rectangular Prism of Niftiness (ARPON). Using that clue, the teachers raced to be the first to touch the box and claim the swag inside. And, on a few of the events, getting to the box first wasn't enough. Teachers ...

It's almost here! The first day of school is only five days away! In anticipation of that exciting event, we're releasing the first episode of season 2 of ABC News a little early. This will help with some of the instructions related to that day (i.e. parking and line up, etc.). In addition, we'd like to invite anyone to attend our Back-to-School Morning on the first day of school. Students with their parents can enter the ...