ISVI Happenings
February, 2008
Homemade Toys for Tots
Mrs. Barb Strang and Mrs. Julie Valentine’s 10th hour activity period
consists of making homemade toys for the children that are in ISVI’s birth to
three program. Several students have enjoyed making things such as edible jell-o
play-doh and rattles. They are currently working on making bells for the
children to enjoy by batting or looking at them. These are made out of laundry
detergent lids, shower curtain rods, elastic, straws, and bells. They are hung
from a pipe to work on the children’s gross motor skills. These students have
been working on these Homemade Toys for Tots all of 3rd quarter. Mrs. Strang and
Mrs. Valentine hope to carry it on to 4th quarter because it benefits the
students making the toys and ISVI’s birth to three program. One student looks
forward to this activity period by stating, "I have my two favorite teachers and
I love to help little kids".
(Picture of ISVI student and Mrs. Strang making toys)
Valentine Dinner Dance
The ISVI Valentine Dinner Dance was held on February 10th in the dining
hall. Students were given a menu to order their favorite meals. They had a
choice of two appetizers to order. The main entree choices were ribeye steak,
breaded shrimp or a surf and turf plate. Other choices included cheesy rice,
steak fries, soup or salad. The dessert was red velvet cake or lemon mouse. The
students enjoyed sparkling grape juice in fluted glasses. A Royal Valentine
Court was chosen with students being chosen to reign over the evening as king,
queen, prince and princess. Mr. Dan Thompson was the disc jockey for the event.
The students had a truly wonderful time dancing the evening away.
The ISVI Sunshine Club Does Good Deed for Local Soldier
This school year, ISVI has provided students the opportunity to join activity
groups during 10th period. One of these groups is the Sunshine Club. The members
have participated in multiple projects focusing on doing "good deeds" for
others. One of the Club’s more recent projects included sending a holiday box to
a soldier stationed in Iraq. The students made personalized picture ornaments
and decorated a small Christmas tree along with candy and food to help the
soldier celebrate the holidays while being stationed away from his family.
During a recent Sunshine Club meeting, the Club was visited by Private Michael
Griffin. He is from Decatur, Illinois. Michael is the soldier who received the
holiday box from the Club. Michael recently returned home from Iraq after 455
days of deployment. During his visit to ISVI, Michael answered questions about
his stay in Iraq and thanked the group for the box. Michael told the students
that he shared the tree and goodies with other soldiers in his unit. After a
short stay in Decatur with his family, he will be returning to his base in
Texas. Michael is the nephew of Mrs. Diane Wayne, one of the sponsors of the
club. Additional sponsors are Mrs. Pat Langdon and Ms. Rowela Quiaoit.
(Picture of ISVI students with Private Michael Griffin)
Japanese Students Visit ISVI
On February 11th, 25 Japanese students from Ritsumeikan University visited ISVI.
The guests observed several ISVI classrooms all over campus. Then, the Japanese
students and ISVI students gathered in the library to chat and discover cultural
similarities and differences about each other. ISVI students learned information
about Japan through tactile maps, informational pages and just by talking with
the Japanese students. The library was buzzing with discussions that included:
sports, art, driving, visual impairments, Braille, hobbies, clothing styles, and
shopping (just to name a few)! This was a great opportunity for all involved to
experience views from a culture that was not their own. The event was organized
by Mr. Jim Strader.
(Picture of a Japanese student with an ISVI student)
ISVI Cheerleaders and Wrestlers Compete in Championships
Team Illinois wrestlers and cheerleaders recently came back from a successful
weekend at the NCASB Championships.
One ISVI wrestler was named 2008 NCASB Champion and had an undefeated. His results were as follows – Tournament: won 2 matches by pins, Season: won 9 matches, all by pins.
The Wrestling team ended up placing 5th out of 11 teams. Team Illinois Cheer placed 6th place out of 11 teams. Congratulations to all Team Illinois Wrestler and Cheerleaders for a very successful season!
(Picture of a wrestling match from this year's wrestling season)
Reminder - Goodsearch.com
The ISVI parent organization would like to remind everybody to use . The parent
organization earns a penny for every time someone does a search on