The 2021-22 school year was truly magical at Harold C. Johnson Elementary School! We embraced the challenges of the continuing COVID pandemic and focused on our theme: Magic Happens Here. The year centered on academic gains and exciting opportunities for our students as we embraced personalized learning through technology integration. Our daily goal was to prepare our students for college and career readiness by providing rigorous, meaningful academic experiences. Our staff worked to prepare each child for a successful future by providing opportunities for creative and critical thinking. The staff grew professionally through professional development training on social/emotional learning, self-care, and the use of digital learning tools to create individual learning pathways. Teachers conducted learning walks to fine-tune their implementation of the workshop model and continued to utilize effective research-based instructional strategies such as: Leveled Literacy Instruction, Lucy Calkins Units of Study in Reading, Writing, and Phonics, Math in Practice, the RISE Intervention Framework, and Reading Recovery. Our school-wide academic intervention and enrichment programs produced strong academic gains. We are proud of our students' growth, both academically and as individuals. Outside the traditional academic focus, Harold C. Johnson continued to offer various opportunities for the development of the whole child, such as: Boys & Girls Club, Girls on the Run, Art Club, Fashion Club, News Crew, and our Character Word of the Month Recognition/Awards. Our Student of the Month recognition program celebrated the accomplishments of over 185 students. Our students discovered the joy of reading through our Fall for Reading Celebration and the York School District One "Connected as Readers" Reading Challenge. Each homeroom developed a portion of our Black History Month Student Inquiry Celebration, and the final product was shared virtually for the whole school. We began a school-wide house system this year to create strong relationships throughout our school community. Each grade level had one homeroom class in each of the school's four houses. During quarterly house meetings, students learned to identify their emotions and stressors using the Zones of Regulation. Our testing pep rally encouraged students to try their best on state testing. In March, we kicked off a "Reconnected As One" initiative to welcome parents and families back into our school as soon as COVID restrictions were lifted. Through a strong partnership with our School Improvement Council, PTO, and community, our teachers were able to provide these opportunities, as well as countless others, with the intentional goal of helping students discover the joy of learning while promoting creativity, critical thinking, collaboration, teamwork, and problem solving skills. We are very thankful for our school and community partners, as well as the support of our students’ families. Our mission in York School District One is "To Learn, Serve, and Give... as ONE." The development of each child requires a collaborative effort among and between school, family, and community. Thank you for all of your support as we encourage each of our students to continue on their magical quest toward college and career readiness!
Crystal Sandifer, Principal
Julie Shillinglaw, Chairperson, School Improvement Council
