2020-2021 District Blog

Providing a stellar education is at the core of the mission of Mansfield ISD, and establishing positive relationships is one of the ways that mission is being accomplished.

School started on Wednesday, Aug. 12. Although all instruction will be conducted online until Tuesday, Sept. 8, MISD educators are not letting the distance keep them from making closer connections to students.

“Our department tries to impress on our teachers that before they can correct, they need to connect,” said Karrye Aquino, the district’s social-emotional learning facilitator. “It’s the most important, number-one factor in education.”

Now more than ever, MISD teachers are finding unique ways to keep students engaged and connect with them on a personal level.

Some of the ways those connections are being made are through classroom compacts, which gives students ownership of how they will treat their teachers and fellow classmates. Other times, a positive relationship is made by simply taking a dance break.

Joshua Holder, seventh-grader at James Coble Middle School, said those types of fun interactions keep him motivated to log into class every day.

“My English teacher—sometimes when she notices us getting tired or something, she’ll give us an activity to do, like a brain break. Yesterday, we did jumping jacks,” said Holder. “I feel like if teachers can connect with students, they’ll know what will help the students the best.”

Aquino said the results of making real-life connections with students lasts beyond their years at school; it helps shape them to have a more productive future.

“We want to teach our students to be able to take those positive relationships and to go into the community and be high-functioning community members that give back, just as we’re having our teachers give back to the students,” she said.

Holder noted that although his classes are all online for now, he’s already having a great school year.

“I just wanted to thank [my teachers] because they have done so much, and they’re still trying to make this the best school year possible.”

The MISD Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) Department equips teachers and students with the tools needed to improving school climate and student engagement. For more information, visit the SEL web page.

When deciding how to make learning fun, educators at some Mansfield ISD schools turned to a source that has already captured the attention of 126 million users every month—Minecraft.

The game allows players to explore a 3D world made of blocks in which they can discover and build.

Victoria Wood, who teaches sixth grade science at the Jerry Knight STEM Academy, said she implements the educational version of the game into her lessons, and it immediately captured the attention of her students.

“Having fun and learning can go hand in hand,” said Wood. “There’s actually a world in Minecraft where they spawn and craft compounds, and they learn what elements are and how many atoms are in a compound.”

Wood said one of her favorite parts about using the game as a lesson is that her students are able to teach her how to create subject-related items as well.

“It’s like virtual project-based learning,” she added. “They learn a concept and can immediately implement it into their virtual world. They have taught me a lot.”

Gaming education is a tool of which many Mansfield ISD educators have taken advantage. Resources like Kahoot!, Quizizz and Gimkit are other popular choices.

“You can capture their attention; and then pairing it with science as a subject or English or history, it’s a lot more engaging and a lot more fun,” said Wood. “Those types of games spur and spark conversation that sometimes learners are missing out on, especially in virtual learning.”

MISD has a department dedicated to the integration of education and technology. The MISD Educational Technology, or EdTech, team provides teachers with professional development, digital resources and support to teach with current and emerging technologies.

More information about EdTech is available here.

Resiliency is the capacity to recover quickly from difficulties.

It’s one of the core values of Mansfield ISD—and one that sets us apart from the rest.

Our mission is to inspire and education students to become productive citizens. And whether that student is learning in-person or virtually, we’ll remain dedicated to providing them the best education possible.

Mansfield ISD’s success has never been about buildings. Our success is built on the talent, dedication, and compassion of our staff, the unwavering support of our parents and community, and most of all, our students.

Students who never give up. Who break down barriers and forge new paths. Who rise to every challenge and exceed expectations.

2020 will look different. But those differences will not change our success.

We’ve been on this journey together. You know us, and you can trust us to take care of your child.

Together, we can do this. Together, we will defy the odds.

We are MISD STRONG.

Even though most Mansfield ISD students were not even alive during the attacks on Sept. 11, staff members are making sure it is a day that will not be forgotten.

Sept. 11, 2001 marked the deadliest terrorist attacks on American soil in U.S. history after a series of airline hijackings killed nearly 3,000 people.

The day has since been memorialized as Patriot Day.

At Anna May Daulton Elementary School, the day was remembered by wearing symbols of unity—red, white and blue. Principal Alycen Phan said she wanted to remind her students that there is strength in coming together, especially during hard times.

“The children at the elementary level are very young," said Phan. "If they can take anything from just wearing the three colors together, I hope that they know that it signifies unity for all of us in one country and one nation.”

Phan said the students also had a moment of silence and learned more about 9/11 through age-appropriate lessons.

Caylee McCarty, a fourth-grader at the school, said the lessons are an added bonus because she visited Ground Zero earlier in the year.

“I actually got to go to New York City and see the 9/11 memorial. I saw where the Twin Towers stood,” she said. “I saw all the names of the victims they had listed. There were so many, and the memorial was nice.”

Along with a day of remembrance, 9/11 also serves as a day of service, inspired by the goodwill and compassion shown by first responders and other citizens in the moments that followed the attacks.

More information about the Sept. 11 National Day of Service and Remembrance is available here.

In October, Mansfield ISD joins forces with other organizations across the country to celebrate National Principals Month.

National Principals Month honors school principals for their significant impact on the success and well-being of students. They are school leaders who fight every day to give their students the best education, and MISD appreciates them for their tireless dedication.

This school year has presented some unique challenges for principals, and MISD's campus leaders continue to juggle the duties of prioritizing students while support teachers.

Although principals are appreciated year-round, National Principals Month is the public’s opportunity to thank principals and to share with the community all the wonderful things that principals do.

Mansfield ISD is grateful for its highly qualified school leaders who guide students and teachers to greater levels of success. View each MISD principal on the district website here.

Jordan Duran may not be able drive yet, but he can already fly.

The Timberview High School junior recently took off and landed by himself at the Grand Prairie Municipal Airport as a 16-year-old, the minimum age to obtain a student pilot license and fly solo.

“I just have a big, deep passion for it,” said Duran. “I feel free, and it’s really fun.”

The aspiring airline pilot first realized he loved flying as a young boy when he flew with his uncle for the first time. Since then, he has put in countless hours to study, start flight training and earn his flight hours.

“This is just huge. He did this all on his own,” said Danielle Flores, family consumer science teacher and aviation club sponsor. “He’s 100% self-initiative. This is what you want from a student. He’s funding it himself; he has a part-time job. Jordan is an exceptional student.”

Flores added that the cost to obtain a private pilot’s license is anywhere from $10,000 to $20,000. She said she started the aviation club at Timberview High to allow students to see the opportunities available to them in that field.

“You can do this as a hobby, but you can also have a great career as a pilot,” explained Flores. “If you realize that you love aviation early, there are scholarships available to offset the costs, and there are so many different jobs you can pick as a pilot.”

Duran, who is a member of the aviation club, said he will continue studying and receiving his pilot ratings and licenses. He said he won’t let anything get in the way of reaching his goals.

“Just but in the work, study—just pursue your dream.”