• Condit Student Enrichment Programs
     
     
    Condit UIL Information 

    The University Interscholastic League (UIL) exists to provide educational extracurricular academic, athletic, and music contests. The UIL was created by The University of Texas at Austin in 1910 and has grown into the largest inter-school organization of its kind in the world. Condit Elementary is participating for the second year in this exciting and fun series of competitions. We are looking to build a strong team of students with involved parents to make this an enjoyable time for all. The commitment level is up to you and your child – you can participate in one event or as many as your grade level allows.

    Parents are responsible for preparing their child for the competition. The UIL Coordinator can help to find useful materials, previous test and/or previous judges sheets for reference.

    Depending on interest level and number of parent volunteers there may be small groups formed to study the specific materials of the events such as Number Sense, Ready Writing, and Art.

    Feel free to contact us with any questions!

    Committee Chairs:
    Amy Hassan

    Event Grade Level Event Grade Level
    Art 4th – 5th Number Sense 4th – 5th
    Chess Puzzle 2nd-5th Oral Reading 4th -5th
    Creative Writing 2nd Public Speaking K- 2nd/3rd- 5th
    Dictionary Skills 5th Ready Writing 3rd -5th
    Listening 5th Social Studies 5th
    Maps, Graphs & Charts 5th Spelling 3rd – 5th
    Mathematics 5th Storytelling 2nd – 3rd
    Music Memory 3rd – 5th    

    HISD website for Elementary UIL: http://www.houstonisd.org/Page/59378 (supplementary info here for events)

    List of events: http://www.uiltexas.org/aplus/events

    Additional information about each event is listed below:

    Art — 4th and 5th Grade

    The art contest involves the study of 40 paintings from the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. and from Texas art galleries and museums. Students learn to recognize and identify various works of art and the artists who created them. As part of their study, they will demonstrate a basic understanding of art history and interpret ideas and moods in original artworks.

    Chess Puzzle 2nd – 5th Grade

    The benefits of chess are well documented for players of all ages, and especially for young people. Chess teaches problem-solving, hones concentration and encourages analytical and strategic thinking. Chess can be a lifelong pursuit. Chess puzzle-solving introduces students to the study of chess in a format that can be easily implemented in A+ school programs and district meets.

    Creative Writing 2nd Grade

    Creative writing is designed to promote creativity in an academic format and to encourage writing skills at an early grade level. Through preparation for the contest, students will be able to evaluate their own writing and the writing of others.

    Dictionary Skills — 5th Grade

    Thorough knowledge of the dictionary is a way to increase a student’s ability to find the information that is needed for classwork as well as everyday living. The subject matter of all tests is taken from Merriam-Webster’s Intermediate Dictionary. Contestants may use other dictionaries in the contest, but the correct test answers will be found in the official dictionary

    Impromptu Speaking* (English & Spanish) K – 5th Grade

    Impromptu speaking provides opportunities for students to explore the use of the voice and body in speaking situations, to examine the different purposes for speaking, to organize ideas, to prepare and deliver various speeches and to develop self-confidence.

    Listening — 5th Grade

    The listening contest is designed to help students recognize the importance of effective listening skills and to identify problems they may have in listening effectively. The contest provided a challenging format to test the improvement of their listening abilities and encourages students to develop the foundation skills they will use throughout their lives both in and out of the classroom.

    Maps, Graphs, and Charts — 5th Grade

    The maps, graphs & charts contest is designed to help students learn to get information from a variety of maps, graphs, and charts including world maps, pie charts, bar charts, and local area maps. The objective test will measure skills such as using a reference book to locate information, making comparisons, estimating and approximating, using scale and interpreting grid systems, legends, and keys.

    Mathematics — 6th Grade

    Learning to complete math problems quickly is a valuable skill in all facets of life including engineering, accounting, completing a tax return and even grocery shopping. This contest provides opportunities for students to further develop and then apply their math knowledge and skills.

    Music Memory — 2nd – 5th Grade

    The focus of the Music Memory contest is an in-depth study of fine pieces of music literature taken from a wide spectrum of music genres to expose students to great composers, their lives and their music.

    Number Sense — 3rd – 5th Grade

    Every day, individuals are called upon to use their ability to make quick mental calculations to make decisions. The development of such abilities should be an integral part of the math curriculum.

    Oral Reading (English & Spanish*) — 4th and 5th Grade

    Reading literature out loud provides opportunities for students to analyze the text, to grow and to develop as a performer, to communicate a message to an audience and to perform an artistic creation. The oral reading competition should be an extension of the classroom literary and language arts activities in poetry, short stories, and children’s fiction.

    Public Speaking* — K – 5th Grade

    Students will present a memorized speech no longer than five minutes in length. The speech may either be an original one written by the student or a speech presented by a public figure.

    Ready Writing — 3rd – 5th Grade

    Texas has put a great emphasis on writing skills at all levels of school and all levels of state-wide testing. Ready Writing builds those skills and helps students refine their writing abilities. In particular, this contest helps them to learn to write clearly and correctly a paper that is interesting and original.

    Social Studies — 5th Grade

    This contest is designed to encourage students to expand their knowledge of social studies, particularly in the areas of history, government systems, economics, citizenship, and culture.

    Spelling — 2nd – 5th Grade

    The spelling contest is designed to expose students to a wide variety of vocabulary words. It is not a contest of memorization. Emphasis is placed on the rules of the English language, meanings and definitions, and root words.

    Solo Acting* — K – 5th Grade

    Students will present a selection from a published play, novel, short story or a poem. Selections must be memorized and must include an introduction stating the title and author. Costumes and props are allowed, including one chair. The maximum time limit is 5 minutes.

    Storytelling (English & Spanish*) — 2nd and 3rd Grade

    To tell a story, the participant must develop skills in listening, thinking and speaking. This contest also allows for the development of creative expression, something being given more attention in the professional world. For practice, teachers can use stories from any good children’s books or magazines.

    *Extra events offered by HISD.

     
     Name That Book
    Name That Book 

    Name That Book is an HISD Department of Library Services team competition. During the competition, quotes or clues are read aloud and each team must “Name That Book” from the 30-35 books on the list. This year marks Condit’s 12th year to participate in the NTB competition! The goals of the team are to promote a lifelong love of reading and learning, a strong sense of teamwork, and a competitive drive to do one’s best! HISD allows one K-2 and one 3-5 team from each school, with up to 7 students on each team (one of whom serves as the alternate). Parents coach the teams, and team members are typically chosen based on AR test scores and weekly after-school meeting quizzes.

    For more information about the 3-5th grade Name That Book competition.

    https://www.houstonisd.org/Page/93279

    We are having our first meeting for NTB 3-5th grade Tuesday 9/19 after school from 3:30-4:30pm in Mrs. Tomlinson’s room, Rm 159.

    Christine Cao

    ckcaolacson@yahoo.com

     

    The 2015-2016 Condit Elementary K-2nd Grade Team earned a perfect score and 1st place in the HISD Name That Book competition!
    Spending months on preparations, the team read and studied 30 books from a variety of genres. The Condit community is very proud of their diligence and dedication!
     
     
    Odyssey of the Mind  
    Odyssey of the Mind
    Odyssey of the Mind is an international educational program that provides creative problem solving opportunities for students from kindergarten through college. The teams choose a problem and then create and perform a skit under eight minutes long that addresses the problem and shows a solution. Coaches are only allowed to give guidance and no directions or suggestions.

    Learn more at a special parent meeting, Thursday, September 21st, 2017from 12-1pm, in the Condit PTO room OR 5:15-6pm at Condit (exact room tbd).

    Student teams (of up to 7) work together to solve problems geared to stretch their creativity, teamwork skills, and knowledge. Teams compete against area schools, and if successful, advance to regional, state, and national competitions.  Parent coaches guide students. All activities are after school and/or weekends based on availability of parent coaches. Read more at: https://www.odysseyofthemind.com

    Can’t make the meetings on Thursday? Contact Katharine at katharine.maryam@gmail.com or text 713-820-0092 or Alicia Escamilla at Alicia.escamilla@houstonisd.org or text 832-270-3285.  If you already have a P-2 team or grade 3-5 team to register for 2017-2018 pl send an email ASAP as well as your top 2 preferences for what # long-term problem. 

     

    Science Box
    We have a new program that will take science and math education at Condit to the next level by creating great “Aha!” moments with hands-on learning.
    There’s a moment that teachers live for. It’s the moment when a student’s eyes light up as he or she finally solves a tough problem. It’s an “aha!” moment.  We know that hands-on learning is the key to creating a million moments like that every day, in every classroom.

    Condit Elementary has recently acquired Science Technical Engineering Math kits from ETA hand 2 mind, and we need parent volunteers to help us roll out this exciting new program.

    Students learn better when their hands and minds work together. Study after study has proven the power of hands-on learning. But more importantly, countless students have proven it, too. Thousands of high-achieving students in classrooms across the country have been taught using our hands-on resources. These students go on to become productive citizens…solving problems, thinking critically, and intelligently participating in society.

    Hands-on learning isn’t new—in fact, it’s the way we learn from the time we are born. By moving and manipulating the world around us, we make sense of our environment and how things work. When students engage in hands-on learning, they:

    • Achieve at higher levels than those who are not taught with manipulatives

    • Develop critical problem solving and strategic thinking skills to use for a lifetime

    • Learn the value of persistence as they work toward greater comprehension and conceptual understanding

     

    Join the Science Box team and you’ll have the opportunity to see firsthand your children in those “Aha” moments!