I just wanted to take a quick minute and thank you so much for all of your help yesterday. We received the lectern this morning. I really appreciate everything that you did to expedite my order. You saved the day! Have a great day and thank you again for everything.
D.B.
Philadelphia, PA
Worthington Direct knows that schools work hard to provide quaility education in an environment that is suited to enrich the student’s time spent their. Visit www.WorthingtonDirect.com today and find trusted classroom desks from Virco, Smith System, Scholarcraft, Royal Seating and more- that are all worth earning.
On the first day of school, with permission of the school superintendent, the principal and the building supervisor, she took all of the desks out of the classroom. The kids came into first period and there were no desks.
They obviously looked around and said, “Ms. Doe, where’s our desk?” And she said, “You can’t have a desk until you tell me how you earn them.” They thought, “Well, maybe it’s our grades.” “No,” she said. “Maybe it’s our behavior.” And she told them, “No, it’s not even your behavior.”
And so they came and went in the first period, still no desks in the classroom. Second period, same thing, third period too. By early afternoon television news crews had gathered in Ms. Doe’s class to find out about this crazy teacher who had taken all the desks out of the classroom. The last period of the day, Jane Doe gathered her class. They were at this time sitting on the floor around the sides of the room. And she says, “Throughout the day no one has really understood how you earn the desks that sit in this classroom ordinarily.” She said, “Now I’m going to tell you.”
Jane Doe went over to the door of her classroom and opened it, and as she did 27 U.S. veterans, wearing their uniforms, walked into that classroom, each one carrying a school desk. And they placed those school desks in rows, and then they stood along the wall. And by the time they had finished placing those desks, those kids, for the first time I think perhaps in their lives, understood how they earned those desks. Jane said, “You don’t have to earn those desks. These guys did it for you. They put them out there for you, but it’s up to you to sit here responsibly to learn, to be good students and good citizens, because they paid a price for you to have that desk, and don’t ever forget it.”
Friends, I think sometimes we forget that the freedoms that we have are freedoms not because of celebrities. The freedoms are because of ordinary people who did extraordinary things, who loved this country more than life itself, and who not only earned a school desk for a kid at the American High School, but who earned a seat for you and me to enjoy this great land we call home, this wonderful nation that we better love enough to protect and preserve with the kind of conservative, solid values and principles that made us a great nation.
“We live in the Land of the Free because of the brave.” continue reading
Worthington Direct weighs in on the hottest topic in education- which is better, the classic chalkboard or modern whiteboards? (
In the past, it was common to pass along the school hallways at the end of a day and see teachers with white hands and dusty clothes. This wasn’t the era of the Dust Bowl, but the era when chalkboards took center stage in every classroom.
Technology and materials have advanced and teachers today have moved the majority of their daily lessons onto the modern dry-erase, or whiteboard. They are more common and less dusty, but some still argue the value of the classic chalkboard.
Chalkboards
Chalkboards have been a standard teaching tool in schools for years. Educators have maintained that the chalkboard is still an ample teaching device for students, commenting on how it seems to help with the student’s handwriting. Chalk seems to be easier to hold for younger students. Educators have found that students are not developmentally ready to grip with their thumb, index and middle fingers. Instead, holding writing tools with more of a fist can be easier for young learners, thus making chalk an easy writing tool.
While students are using chalk, it doesn’t slip once it’s on the chalkboard as a dry-erase marker would on a whiteboard’s smooth surface. The chalkboard is also ideal for students learning cursive handwriting. Best-Rite, a manufacturer of quality writing surfaces, make their porcelain steel chalkboards with a fine-tooth abrasive surface for easier writing with chalk. http://worthingtondirect.com/brands/bestrite.htm
Originally made of slate, most chalkboards today are made from porcelain enamel and can be manufactured in a variety of sizes, styles and colors. They can be mobile, mounted to walls or hand-held. The porcelain steel products sold by Worthington Direct are strong and very sturdy, and are guaranteed to last 50 years or more.
Maintenance is a simple process. The chalkboards and their trays can simply be wiped down with a damp cloth, which makes them look good and new. Chalk can easily be replaced and doesn’t dry out. The cost of chalk is also far less than the cost of replacing markers.
The chalkboard does have its share of disadvantages, as well. For one, the chalk, which is simply compressed dust, can bother some educators and students with allergies. With the growing use of technology in the classroom, dust can be especially damaging to expensive equipment like microscopes and laptops.
The chalkboard still has plenty of benefits today, despite the relatively recent advances of whiteboards. Many teachers are fighting to keep them in their classrooms because they think the chalkboards are such a great benefit for their students and the entire learning process.
Whiteboards
For the past 20 years, many schools have chosen to replace the familiar chalkboard with high-tech and advanced whiteboards. These particular whiteboards, whose surfaces are smooth, use dry-erase markers. Teachers and students like the option of using whiteboards because they don’t require chalk and there is no dust.
Whiteboards offer a clean, modern, businesslike look, making them more appealing than darker chalkboards. Some whiteboards manufactured by Best-Rite have pre-printed lines and lettering to help in certain classes, such as music and geometry. The popular Pale-Riter, available through Worthington Direct, includes a grid pattern embedded in the board surface that is visible to the user, but remains nearly invisible to an audience. http://worthingtondirect.com/school_furniture/dry_erase_boards/paleriter_grid_line_board_by_bestrite.htm
Like with the chalkboards, whiteboards are available with porcelain steel surface consisting of low-gloss magnetic steel surface laminated to a thick MDF substrate for extra strength and moisture resistance. Teachers often prefer the magnetic surface because it allows them to easily display other teaching aids, such as maps or color wheels, with the use of small magnets.
Marker ghosting is not a problem with the Best-Rite porcelain steel surface, which offers superior erasability. The reduced surface light distortion enhances visibility to provide optimum eye comfort. Worthington Direct sells the full line of quality boards made by Best-Rite. http://worthingtondirect.com/brands/bestrite.htm
One drawback of using whiteboards in classrooms is that they are slick, so students end up writing faster than their brains can think, making handwriting not as clear. Also, shading in an area on the whiteboard is difficult with the dry-erase marker as the felt-tip will begin to erase itself if over passed a couple of times.
Whiteboards far outnumber chalkboards in classrooms today, but for many there is nothing better than dusting out those old erasers.
Worthington Direct offers Best-Rite products such as:
Deluxe Porcelain Steel Marker Boards:
http://worthingtondirect.com/school_furniture/dry_erase_boards/half_inch_deluxe_porcelain_steel_marker_board_by_best_rite.htm
Porcelain Steel Magnetic Chalkboards:
http://worthingtondirect.com/school_furniture/dry_erase_boards/porcelain_steel_chalkboard_by_bestrite.htm Vinyl Tack Boards:
http://worthingtondirect.com/school_furniture/dry_erase_boards/vinyl_tackboard_by_bestrite.htm
Reversible Freestanding Boards:
http://worthingtondirect.com/school_furniture/dry_erase_boards/deluxe_reversible_board_by_bestrite.htm Easel on Wheels:
http://worthingtondirect.com/school_furniture/av_equipment/easel_on_wheels_by_bestrite.htm About Worthington Direct: After spending over 10 years in the school supply, church and equipment industry, Worthington Direct (http://www.worthingtondirect.com) knows what is important – selection, service, price and timing.
Our goal is to make your purchasing job easier. With competitive pricing, knowledgeable sales associates, and "In Stock" products for quick, efficient shipping, Worthington Direct is committed to be your furniture resource. Schools and churches look to Worthington Direct for competitive pricing for school furniture, church furniture, preschool furniture, early childhood furniture, library furniture, desks, wholesale furniture, computer furniture, classroom furniture, chalkboards, office furniture, room dividers, storage cabinets, easels, display cases, cafeteria tables, activity tables, classroom desks, computer tables, desk chairs, lecterns, literature racks, office desks and risers among its large stock.
For more information contact Wren Ovard at 800-599-6636.
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A new charter school that will teach children in three languages — Mandarin Chinese, Spanish and English — is scheduled to open in September in the North Sacramento School District with about 120 children in kindergarten through third grade.
Teaching new languages and multicutural awareness can be as easy as uno, dos, tres when you shop with Worthington Direct, www.WorthingtonDirect.com. We carry multi-language classroom carpets such as LengualLink by Joy Carpets or Amigos by Flagship Carpets. Sudents can listen to language CD’s or tapes using Califone‘s audio learning centers at the Blanca Table by Jonti-Craft.
Students at the Lindsay Global Language Academy, as the charter school is called, will learn all their subjects in the three languages from teachers who are native speakers. And they’ll practice conversation skills by participating in video conferences with students in Beijing, Shanghai and Mexico City, said Linda Ventriglia, a former Sacramento City Unified educator who created the school. "Kids that don’t get out of Sacramento now are going to see people around the world," Ventriglia said. "We’re trying to create a 21st century school."
It’s an unusual program in a school district that predominantly serves children from poor families, many of whom speak little English. About 83 percent of students in North Sacramento qualify for subsidized lunches, and 39 percent are not fluent in English. About 50 percent of the district’s students are Latino and 12 percent are Asian. The Lindsay charter school is designed to teach the three languages to students who speak any one of them at home. Students will spend half the day working in English and the other half in Spanish and Mandarin.
"I think that is the best thing since the ice cream cone," said Maxine Sullivan-Pepper, school board president. "It is such a wonderful opportunity for children in the north area." But the Lindsay Academy has generated a deep rift in the school district. It has divided the school board, pitted the district administration against the charter backers and — some people believe — even contributed to the recent firing of Superintendent Dennis Tillett. "I support the concept and I support the school," said board member Linda Fowler. "I just don’t support the volatility they have created."
The disagreement concerns where the Lindsay charter school will be located. Both parties agree that it should be on the campus of Dos Rios Elementary School, just south of the American River near Richards Boulevard. But they disagree about exactly where on the campus Lindsay will be sited, because it must share the grounds with another charter school — the Smythe Academy of Arts and Sciences.
Ventriglia and her supporters want Lindsay housed in the campus’ permanent building, while district officials say it should operate out of several portable classrooms. Sullivan-Pepper said the school board will try to resolve the conflict at its July 30 meeting. Ventriglia — who has support from three of North Sacramento’s five school board members — said she is optimistic the issue can be resolved before school opens Sept. 4. But Patty Smart, who has been serving as superintendent since the board fired Tillett last month, said the district and the charter have been unable to agree on a memorandum of understanding – or MOU — that would spell out the details of their relationship. "It would be legally OK to open it without the MOU," she said. "Although highly unadvisable."
Ventriglia said she has hired six teachers for the Lindsay school, but has not yet selected a principal. She developed the charter with grant money from the federal government intended to boost the number of schools teaching languages — such as Mandarin — considered crucial to national security and commerce. The grant is part of President Bush’s National Security Language Initiative. continue reading