LANCASTER ELEMENTARY SCHOOL WINS STATE HONOR : MARIPOSA EFFORTS PROCLAIMED DISTINGUISHED.Byline: Bhavna Mistry Daily News Staff Writer When Barbara Walkington became principal six years ago, she envisioned strengthening Mariposa Elementary School elementary school: see school. academically. Now the state Department of Education has named Mariposa a California Distinguished School. ``It's a great opportunity for all of our hard work to be recognized,'' Walkington said about the program in which 225 schools are being honored statewide this year. According to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. Walkington, Mariposa was recognized for many academic and social programs, including the Mariposa Assures Reading Success, or MARS, program in which tutors work with students individually. There also are tutoring programs in other subjects, and community members in a Special Friends organization spend one hour a week with selected students. ``We've seen many amazing a·maze v. a·mazed, a·maz·ing, a·maz·es v.tr. 1. To affect with great wonder; astonish. See Synonyms at surprise. 2. Obsolete To bewilder; perplex. v.intr. changes,'' said Walkington, who says big improvement is possible ``when you give students some special attention and show them that you care.'' The school staff completed a lengthy application for Mariposa to enter Distinguished School competition. ``It was a difficult application process,'' said Deborah Barner, a bilingual bi·lin·gual adj. 1. a. Using or able to use two languages, especially with equal or nearly equal fluency. b. teacher in first and second grades and one of many staff members who worked on the entry. The applicants described efforts to improve curriculum, family involvement, teacher professionalism professionalism the upholding by individuals of the principles, laws, ethics and conventions of their profession. and programs for children with special needs and challenges. ``I knew it was highly competitive,'' Walkington said. ``But we've done so much to improve the education process that we knew we'd met the state's standards.'' According to Walkington, Mariposa has the highest proportion of children from low-income households among the schools in the Lancaster School District Lancaster School District may refer to:
CAPTION(S): Photo Photo: (color) Barbara Walkington, principal at Mariposa Elementary School in Lancaster, watches and listens as some children join in a playground Playground - A visual language for children, developed for Apple's Vivarium Project. OOPSLA 89 or 90? sing-along. Bhavna Mistry/Daily News |
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