The fourth quarter has kicked off in the Carbon school district, and along with it comes the challenge of keeping students engaged as summer rapidly approaches. At Wellington Elementary, the staff looks to combine education and entertainment with the help of the community. Principal Paulie Vogrinec joined the KOAL Newsroom to speak on these initiatives and what lies ahead for the elementary.
Principal Vogrinec first spoke on the school’s recent career day, which brought businesses from across Carbon County in to show students what industries were available for work,” We had some engineers here, we had a vet here, we had retired teacher, we had someone from the museum and they showed them different things that they do in their job. The kids got to ask questions. Some even brought computer things and showed them what they actually do with their job.”
This event was put together by Mont Harmon students participating in FCCLA,” it was really nice to have those two great students do that activity and all the work they did. And our students really enjoyed it.”
Wellington Elementary also hosted a wellness day, giving kids the opportunity to slow down and learn wellness techniques to aid them when times get tough. “The kids go to different rotations throughout the school, and we had someone come and work with them on physical fitness. We had a nurse come in and talk to them about washing their hands and germs. We had a dentist assistant come in and talk about the importance of your teeth. We had a school therapist come in and talk to us about emotions and feelings. We had one of our local doctors come in and talk to them about eating healthy and what they need to do to keep their bodies safe and healthy to be able to do things. And so it was a great experience, the kids love it.”
In addition to these events, the elementary hosts a weekly “Spirit Friday” to help boost student morale; Vogrinec explained,” Every Friday is spirit day. So the kids wear their Wellington wear. So if they have any type of Wellington shirts or hoodies or hats.” She added,” We’ve had a pajama day. We have had hat day. Sometimes, it gets really silly with things like crazy socks and ugly sweaters.”
Moving to the more serious side of things, Vogrinec discussed the school district’s upcoming kindergarten registration – which will be held in Wellington on April 23. “If you’re going to have a student that is going to come to Wellington, come on April 23 and we’ll get them registered. And so it gives us an idea of how many kids are coming.” The Principal continued,” For some schools, it’s determining if we have so many that we might need to add a teacher or something. It’s kind of exciting, they come and get to see the school and check things out with their parents as their parents are registering. And we like having as many parents as possible get their students registered for the next year.”
Our penultimate topic of discussion was the academic focus for the remainder of the school year, with Vogrinec sharing,” We are really focused on getting our essential standards, so what is important for the kids to know before they go on to the next grade … Once we finish all those, we will have a lot of fun things planned, such as field trips, park days, and field trips. So there’s a lot of fun things coming up for them during May.”
In closing, Vogrinec said,” It’s hard to believe that we are down to the last 40 days of school. So this year’s gone by really fast.”
To stay up to date with Wellington Elementary, you can follow the school on Facebook or visit their website here.