EYE ON EDUCATION A Publication of the Paramount Unified School District
AUGUST 2008
15110 CALIFORNIA AVE., PARAMOUNT, CA 90723 • TEL: 562-602-6000 • FAX: 562-634-6029
Wax Museum Returns to Alondra School Ms. Nelson’s Wax Museum returned to Alondra School for a singular performance on Open House night. As performed last year, the historical characters portrayed by the 8th grade students came to life when activated by a tap on the shoulder. While activated, each student recited information about the character being portrayed. The entire aspect of the 6-8 history curriculum was represented with students taking on characters from early Egyptian nobles through the American Civil War and beyond. Assisting Ms. Nelson with this year’s production was Language Arts teacher, Mr. Joe Lopez who oversaw the scriptwriting and presentation. The Wax Museum presentation took place in Alondra’s historic Greek styled amphitheater, where appro-
Chakr ya Cheng as Mulan, Chinese General
From left to right: Georgette Gonzalez as Penelope Barker, Colonial hero; Irma Arechiga as Lady in Waiting; Lizbeth Rodriguez as Queen Elizabeth; and, Daisy Gonzelez, Colonial Hero. Story by Margaret Nelson - Photography by David Nelson
priately enough, Isaac Ponce portrayed the Roman general, Marc Anthony, and Sandro Enriquez portrayed the great
Greek conqueror, Alexander the Great. As a connection to local history, student Richard Barron portrayed Garrett Kep-
pel, American Pioneer, whose son Mark had a school named for him –Mark Keppel School here in Paramount. Budding
thespians, proud parents and awed spectators thoroughly enjoyed the performance. If you missed this year’s performance, another reprisal of Wax Museum is planned for the next school year. So be prepared to, again, be dazzled by this yearly spectacle.
A Triumph of a House-Fixing
On May 17th, 40 members of the Paramount High Macaws met at the home of 97 year-old Sarah at 7:30 AM on what would turn out to be
the hottest day of 2008. When they left eleven hours later, after consuming 12 gallons of Sunny Delight and almost seven cases of water, Sarah’s
home looked bright and new. The Macaws had scraped, sanded, primed and painted the entire two-story home and its front fences. Never again, several Macaws said, will we ever do a two story home. With the help of handyman, Ric Chavarrie, the house also boasted two new outside walls, one complete with a brand new door. The house-fixing would not have been possible without the financial help of Home Depot and Paramount Petroleum and the loan of a “big-basket boom” from Bear Equipment Rental. Several Macaws spent time painting the second story which would have been unreachable were it
not for the boom. The Macaws received its first $1000 grant from Home Depot Corporate, and Bill Winters of Paramount Petroleum paid for the rest. Cal Met dropped off a couple of dumpsters and saw that they were each emptied a couple of times. The Paramount Public Works Department dropped off a few dozen ladders and a power sprayer. Macaws spent
lots of time on the roof painting the tops of walls and the second story shingles. Each house the Macaws “house-fix” usually runs about $3000, and the Macaws would be able to fix very few houses without the generosity of the Paramount community. At the end of the day, Macaws were covered in paint, and Sarah was all smiles. Even more than her house looking new, she had enjoyed the company of all the young people. She kept offering them food and drink, and they kept telling her the Macaws had brought lots of their own. Sarah said she felt like she’d won the lottery and that her house looked like a million dollars. Nancy Himel Macaws Advisor
SCHOOL BOARD MEETING DATES August 19, 2008 – September 9, 2008 Board of Education meetings are held at 6:00 p.m. in the Boardroom at the District Office, 15110 California Avenue, Paramount, and are open to the public