Fifth-graders at Jay Shideler Elementary School participated in Shideler City Streets today, a model city where every citizen is assigned a job and earns money to spend in various shops. Each shop, with the exception of the bank, was required to take out a business loan and work throughout the day to pay off their loan with interest. Some shops were successful. Others were not.

The list of businesses included:

💰 The bank, which handled business loans and citizen checking accounts.
🎤 The radio and TV stations, which sold advertising to businesses.
🗞 The newspaper, which produced and sold newspapers.
⚖️ City Hall, which distributed business licenses, assessed taxes, and ticketed citizens who broke laws.
🛒 The distribution center, which sold raw materials to businesses.
📬 The post office, which delivered mail and sold stamps and other retail products.
🍿 The snack shop, deli shop, drink shop, and sweet shop, which all made and sold consumables.
🛍The sports shop, nature shop, and jewelry shop, which produced and sold retail products.
📷 The photo shop, which took pictures and sold frames.
🖨 The sign shop, which made and sold signs for each business, and offered other retail products.

In addition to working their assigned jobs, students learned to endorse their paychecks, complete deposit tickets, and balance their checkbooks. The hands-on experience was meant to enrich their understanding of economics and fiscal responsibility.

Come support your Lady Blues and all the students participating at tonight's Soccer game vs. Wichita Northwest! Varsity game starts around 6:30 PM at the WRHS McElroy Field and will be livestreamed at http://wrhs.net/live.

REMINDER: Wednesday, May 1 is the final early release day of the school year. All schools will dismiss 90 minutes early.

Last week's Community Day event at Washburn Rural Middle School brought together nearly 50 volunteers to plant flowers in the campus garden beds and assemble a bench made out of recycled plastic. Thank you to the WRMS Garden Club for organizing the event and to the Kansas Association for Conservation & Environmental Education for providing the grant funding to complete these projects!

It is with immense pride we announce this year's Auburn-Washburn Distinguished Staff Award recipients. These individuals were nominated by colleagues and selected by a 17-person, district-wide committee. They will be recognized at a special reception on Monday, April 29 at 6:30 pm in the Washburn Rural High School Library. The event is open to the public and family and friends are encouraged to attend.

Please join us in congratulating the following:

Kyle Nelson
Elementary Teacher of the Year
Indian Hills Elementary School

Kristin Taylor
Secondary Teacher of the Year
Washburn Rural Middle School

Emma Tichenor
Master Teacher
Indian Hills Elementary School

Meghan Baranski
Distinguished Certified Support Staff
Washburn Rural Middle School

Marisa Dexter
Distinguished Classified Support Staff
Auburn Elementary School

Russ D'Andrea
Distinguished Operations Support Staff
Transportation

UPDATE: The soccer games vs. Blue Valley West that were scheduled for tonight have been CANCELLED. At this time, there is no rescheduled date.

When you think about schools being the heart of a community, Auburn Elementary School is a shining example, and this is why. Today, students in all grade levels participated in a day of service, picking up litter from streets, parks, and ditches around town. Each grade level was assigned a different section of the city as part of their schoolwide cleanup project, showing their dedication to strengthening their bond with the community through service.

❗️REMINDER❗️There is no school on Friday, April 26, 2024. This is a day dedicated to staff professional development. Enjoy the extended weekend!

Three Washburn Rural High School students will get the opportunity of a lifetime this week when they sign with professional soccer team Sporting KC. Conner Schonlaw, Gentry Scheid, and Cohen Nimz have been chosen for Sporting KC's Unified team, which fosters social inclusion by uniting students with and without intellectual disabilities in their shared passion for soccer. All three students will fly to Minnesota next month with the Sporting KC Club to compete against the Unified team sponsored by Minnesota United.

Second-graders from across the district attended today's Farm to Table event at Domer Arena. They traveled from station to station learning about how food gets from the farm to their dining room table. The water cycle, soil and irrigation, harvesting crops, and the role of farmers were some of the many topics explored. They also learned about processing wheat – the number one field crop in Kansas – into flour for use in things like pizza dough! 🌾