Life Skills is all about sensory and learning day to day life activities. We’re so thankful to the Henrietta ISD Education Foundation for giving us the opportunity to provide new engaging learning activities to our students. Whether they are practicing “cooking” in the new kitchen with food they can cut apart or feeling overstimulated and need to spin in one of the spin chairs. The students are enjoying learning everyday.

We were able to use our grant to purchase the “Handling Upset” video series from Conscious Discipline. This 8-video series teaches educators how to view behaviors through a different lens, and therefore respond in a different way. It is an approach that starts with the adult by teaching the adult how to recognize their own triggers, brain states, and needs so that they can get to a place of regulation. This allows the adult to offer their calm to help the student co-regulate so that learning can happen! All HES staff has access to this video series and can watch them at their own pace. We come together as a campus to go over one video per month to discuss and review. These pictures are of some of those group presentations. Thank you so much for your generous donations and support! 

The Maestro Arts Project offers an intensive workshop with Rick Garcia which equips theatre directors with innovative and creative ways to serve students by fostering educational theatre within their schools. This professional development gave us ideas for enhancing student achievement on and off the stage (for both cast and crew) by focusing on team building strategies, critical thought as they participate in world-building, and community service opportunities. We are thankful to the Henrietta Education Foundation for granting us the ability as directors to continue cultivating a positive educational theatre experience!

A huge thank you for the generous grant that provided us with two whiteboard collaboration tables! The students and I absolutely love them. They’ve been a fantastic tool for quick, interactive assessments—allowing us to gauge understanding without the need for traditional paper and pencil. These tables have truly enhanced our learning environment, fostering creativity and teamwork in the classroom. We are so grateful!

Thanks to your generosity, we’ve added 12 Compound Monocular Microscopes(40X–1000X magnification, dual light sources, cordless) to our lab, replacing outdated, non-functional equipment. These microscopes will provide students with a “real-life” look at cells and organelles, moving beyond illustrations in books or screens. Using our 3 teacher microscopes with digital connections, we’ll also teach proper microscope techniques and imaging of microorganisms. We’re excited to bring Life Science to life with this upgraded equipment—thank you for making it possible!

Mrs. Fletcher used her grant to fund the supplies for First Aid Kits that were distributed to every High School classroom and office. Our high school students will no longer have to make the long haul to the front office in order to receive a Band-Aid, ice pack, or simple wound dressing. Each class is now equipped with a first aid kit that will allow teachers and students to handle small first aid issues in class. This will keep students in the classroom and help to minimize interruptions from instruction. In Mrs. Fletcher's Human Services, Child Development, and Human Growth and Development courses, there are many lessons on careers in childcare and the safety that goes along with caring for children. Mrs. Fletcher wants each classroom and the students to feel safe while also helping the school become more efficient in caring for our students.