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Home : District Featured Slides

The Dangers of Distracted Parenting

May 11, 2022 By Hutch Tiger

By Jocelynn Buckentin, Technology Innovation Specialist

I had a hard truth delivered to me this week, and it came at the hands of a pint-sized human at the ripe age of 6 years old. This child, with her wide-eyed innocence, told me that her dad liked playing video games more than he liked playing with her, and that it made her sad. This statement, as jarring as it may seem, is not uncommon for me to hear when I talk with students about media balance. While her statement was not directed at me, it immediately drove my thoughts inward to self-reflection. What would my own daughter say to her teachers about my device use at home? I have certainly been guilty of scrolling mindlessly through my smartphone, but does it interfere with my ability to connect with my kid?

The answer to this question may alarm you. Many studies have been conducted around the concept of distracted parenting, and they all confirm that the “continuous partial attention” we give our children when we divide time between a device and their care is harmful. Child Psychologist Linda Stone explains, “It interferes with a child’s language development by interrupting emotional cues, which is the basis of most human learning.”

Similarly, Psychologist Kathy Hirsh-Pasek clarifies that “language is the single best predictor of school achievement, and the key to strong language skills are those back-and-forth fluent conversations between children and adults.” Think of it like the back and forth volley during a tennis match. Each side is actively engaged, attempting to anticipate the others’ next move, and ready to react accordingly. With each interruption, such as a quick check-in on social media or response to a text message, we interrupt that volley and miss cues that we wouldn’t have otherwise.

Part of my job as a technology integration specialist is to help students to navigate the digital world, and that includes a healthy discussion on the importance of media balance. The harsh reality is that time spent on devices is time NOT spent actively exploring the world and relating to other human beings. While occasional partial attention is not catastrophic, we would do well by our children to avoid chronic distractedness when it comes to our own device use. Trust me when I tell you that they are watching you, and modeling what they see. After conversations with colleagues in preparation for writing this article, they echo this sentiment wholeheartedly. Students can be brutally honest about what they see and hear at home, and are quick to share stories of distracted parents with their teachers and classmates.

Do we want our children to go through life dividing their attention between mindless scrolling and the real world, or do we want to teach them how to effectively strike a balance that will encourage mental, physical, and emotional well-being?

The best way to teach our students this important lesson is to model it ourselves. Be mindful of your phone and/or technology use by enabling trackers like “screen time” to show you just how much time you are spending on your device each day. Have a conversation with your child about staying “present” during family time, such as having a device-free dinner. Ask yourself, “Can this wait until later?” when pulling out your device in the presence of your child. And finally, recognize that this process is not easy, and give yourself credit for trying to make this important change.​

Filed Under: District Featured Slides

Congratulations Hannah Peterson & Shelby Lang

May 9, 2022 By Hutch Tiger

Filed Under: District Featured Slides, High School Featured

School Board Regular Meeting – 5/9/2022

May 6, 2022 By Hutch Tiger

The ISD 423 Board of Education will conduct a Regular meeting on Monday, May 9, 2022 beginning at 5:30 pm in the City Council Chambers (111 Hassan St SE).

Click Here for School Board Agendas, Minutes, and Videos​

 

 

 

 

Filed Under: District Featured Slides

FFA Plant Sale

May 2, 2022 By Hutch Tiger

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Filed Under: District Featured Slides, High School Featured

Wall of Fame Nominations Due 5/13/22

April 28, 2022 By Hutch Tiger

2022 Hutchinson High School Wall of Fame

Activities Director Bill Tschida is asking for nominations from the community for the 2022 HHS Wall of Fame.

The categories for nomination include Coach/Advisor, Athlete, Fan, Outstanding Graduate, and Fine Arts. The deadline for nominations is May 13, 2022.

Each inductee will have their picture and synopsis displayed at Hutchinson High School.

The induction ceremony will take place prior to the 2022 Homecoming football game.

Nomination forms can be downloaded, completed and mailed – click here to download.

If you have any questions about the Wall of Fame nomination process, please contact Bill Tschida at 320-234-2698.

HHS Wall of Fame Inductees​

Filed Under: District Featured Slides, High School Featured

Get Out, Get Active and Enjoy Hutchinson!

April 27, 2022 By Hutch Tiger

By Lynn Neumann, Director of Parks, Recreation and Community Education

Hutchinson Parks, Recreation, and Community Education (PRCE) offers an extensive network of community and neighborhood parks, natural areas and open spaces, pathways and trails, recreational and educational facilities, and year-round appeal. PRCE staff are truly dedicated to meeting the needs of all the Hutchinson city and district residents.

Hutchinson PRCE offers a little bit of something for everyone; we really are a “one stop shop” for all your recreational and educational opportunities. Take a bike ride along the Luce Line Trail, play pickleball inside or outside, join a softball team, take a class through ECFE, Community Education or Adult Basic Education, go camping along the river or host an event at the historic Hutchinson Depot. This summer we encourage everyone to get outside and check out all of Hutchinson’s 41 parks.

Summer is rapidly approaching, check out our PRCE summer brochure for all your summer information and activities. Summer activity registration is currently open. To register, visit us online at www.hutchinsonprce.com, call the PRCE office at 320-587-2975 or stop in at the Recreation Center office. Please note that PRCE did implement a new registration system, participants may need to create a new login to register for programs and facilities. Our goal is for everyone to have a summer filled with fun and safe programs and activities!

Hutchinson PRCE offers 15 park shelters throughout the city available for public rentals on a daily basis. Masonic West River Campground opens Friday, May 6th for the 2022 camping season. The Hutchinson Aquatic Center opens for the season on Wednesday, June 1st. Starting May 1st, Aquatic Center season passes will be available for purchase at the PRCE office. Keep an eye on our website and Facebook page for updates on summer programs and activities. Hutchinson PRCE is now on Instagram; please follow us to learn more about what Hutchinson Parks, Recreation and Community Education all has to offer!

Parks, Recreation, and Community Education are essential to the physical, economic, environmental, and social health of our city and residents. In today’s hectic world, it’s easy to forget that taking time to enjoy each day is so important to our health and well-being. Hutchinson PRCE is dedicated to ensuring that every resident has an opportunity to experience outstanding recreational activities and park facilities that enhance our quality of life by helping us stay healthy and fit, build relationships with family and friends, and develop a sense of community pride.

Hutchinson Parks, Recreation, and Community Education strives to be inclusive for the entire community. If you have an interest and do not see a program that fits your needs, let us know. If you have a special talent or skill, you would like to share with others, please give us a call and we will work together to offer something new and exciting for our users.

Get out, get active and enjoy Hutchinson this summer!​

Filed Under: District Featured Slides

Countdown to Kindergarten

April 18, 2022 By Hutch Tiger

Click Here for the Countdown to Kindergarten Information

Learn about:

  • Early Childhood Family Education (ECFE)
  • Play and Learn Preschool
  • Kindergarten
  • Staff
  • How to Prepare for Kindergarten
  • Health Services
  • Early Childhood Screening
  • Transportation
  • Child Nutrition Services
  • Summer Kindergarten Connection

Filed Under: District Featured Slides, West Elementary Featured

The Word Gap

April 13, 2022 By Hutch Tiger

By Michael Daugs, Principal, Tiger Elementary

With a combined 34 years of educational service, my wife and I regularly expose our four children to conversations about learning and how to help our students achieve at their highest potential.

Recently, while sitting in a restaurant with our family, we were able to watch a large variety of interactions happening between the families around us. Some families were deep in conversation, others were spending time on their phones, and one family played a game together as they waited for their food. Watching this led us to a conversation about something in the education field referred to as “the word gap”.

In short, the word gap refers to a 1995 study that found children in higher income families will hear about 30 million more words by the age of three than children in lower income households. Later studies have revealed that children who have regular back and forth conversations benefit by building language skills and vocabulary, learn empathy, have stronger relationships, and are more curious.

A recent MIT study was able to show major changes in the growth of the brains in children between the ages of 4-6 who have regular back and forth conversations. This study showed the brain changes did not depend on family wealth.

The beauty of this research is that there are steps we as parents can take to make a difference in the growth of our childrens’ brains and their ability to develop language skills. Neuroscientist Dr. Dana Suskind with the Thirty Million Words initiative recommends that parents use the “three T’s”.

Tune In: Listen to your child and what they are saying to you. This starts at the infant phase when they start making those coos we all love so much. As they grow older, it evolves into tuning into their interests and learning about what makes them excited.

Talk More: It may feel strange, but even when your children are at a young age, talk. Narrate your day, and describe the world around you. As your child gets older, use what you learn while tuning in to have discussions with your child about their interests. Use rich language and talk about the past, present, and future.

Take Turns: It is great for our children to hear what we have to say, but it is equally important for them to participate in back and forth conversations. Asking open ended questions can help spark these discussions and then pause to make space for them to share.

With four children that are active and engaged in school and extracurricular activities, it seems that there is little to no room in our lives to add anything more. What I truly love about these three recommendations is that my wife and I can take action on them while driving kids around town, doing dishes, or sitting down for a family meal.​

Filed Under: District Featured Slides, Tiger Elementary Featured

PRCE Summer Opportunities

April 11, 2022 By Hutch Tiger

The Hutchinson PRCE summer brochure is online.

Check out the opportunities being offered from May – August 2022.

Click Here

Filed Under: District Featured Slides

Why Slowing Down and Mindfulness Are Needed in Life Today

April 8, 2022 By Hutch Tiger

By Anne Broderius, West Elementary Principal

Mindfulness is the mind’s ability to be fully aware in the moment, to what is happening, to what you are doing, and being aware of the space you are currently in. Everyone of us has the ability to be mindful, we just have to learn how to access and practice it. The first thing to become mindful requires us to minimize the amount of multitasking we do throughout the day. 

Our worlds are moving so fast and so full of noise. Pause for just a moment and listen to the environment you are in right now. How many different sounds do you hear? Do you have multiple technology devices nearby or actually accessing right now? How many tabs do you have up on your computer? Do you have a TV or music playing in the background? Many think being able to multitask seems like a great way to get a lot done at once, but new research is showing that our brains are not as good at handling several tasks at one time like we think it can. Several researchers suggest that multitasking can actually cause harm to productivity and reduce our ability to attend and comprehend. It also prevents us from being mindful and exhausts our brains. How many times have you started one project and then quickly become distracted by something you hear or see causing you to start doing something else and then feeling frustrated that you didn’t get anything accomplished? As we learn more about mindfulness we also need to realize that stress and multitasking can actually hinder a child’s ability to apply executive functions, the cognitive, emotional, and behavioral skills needed to navigate through life. Begin to be ok with single tasking some parts of your day. Our children, who are watching and learning from everything we do, may actually thank us for it someday. 

We can all begin by creating a bit more quietude in our lives. Silence for even as little as two minutes can be relaxing and good for our brains. Research has shown pausing for just a few minutes can help to regenerate cells within the hippocampus, which is the part of the brain that is responsible for memory and learning. Slowing down and enjoying a little silence each day is beneficial for children and adults. Give it a try. Just sit for a few minutes while looking around at things in your environment. Are there details you’ve never noticed before, what shadows are being created by the light in the room. What sounds do you hear that you’ve maybe never heard before? Next time you are waiting with your child for an appointment, challenge yourself to not use any devices to pass the time. Talk with your child about what they see and hear. What details do they notice, what sounds do they hear, what are they curious about?  When you are sitting down for a meal together ensure there are no devices being used. Talk about the day – the lessons learned, the highs and lows, favorite moments. When you are traveling in the car, talk about the day ahead, what you notice out the car window, or just enjoy the silence. Best of all, enjoy and savor your child’s company while in any daily routine and find pleasure in just slowing down and being together without distractions or trying to multitask for even just a few minutes. 

When we teach slowing down and mindfulness to our children we are giving them the tools to build confidence, reduce stress, and move through life’s challenges. We can begin this as early as the toddler years and practice even as adults, helping each of us to develop resilience, pay attention to detail, hold information in our brains, successfully play and interact with others, and regulate our emotions. These are all parts of executive functioning and are considered essential for more advanced life skills like planning and prioritizing, problem solving, emotional control, reasoning, and social relationships. 

Three major benefits of mindfulness have been shown in studies. The benefits noted are decreased levels of stress, including depression, anxiety, and disruptive behavior, improved academic performance, including conflict resolution and an overall feeling of well-being, and increased focus, including attention to detail, self-control, compassion, and participation. 

Our children are watching and learning from each of us right now. It’s time we model and practice slowing down and being mindful in daily life. A quote from a famous 1980s movie might say it best: “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.”​

Filed Under: District Featured Slides, West Elementary Featured

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Middle School

1365 South Grade Road SW
Hutchinson, MN 55350
320-587-2854
Fax: 320-587-2857
Staff Contact Information

Park Elementary

100 Glen Street SW
Hutchinson, MN 55350
320-587-2837
Fax: 320-587-4821
Staff Contact Information

District

30 Glen Street NW
Hutchinson, MN 55350
320-587-2860
Fax: 320-587-4590
Staff Contact Information

High School

1200 Roberts Road
Hutchinson, MN 55350
320-587-2151
Fax: 320-587-8217
Staff Contact Information

West Elementary

875 School Road SW
Hutchinson, MN 55350
320-587-4470
Fax: 320-587-0735
Staff Contact Information

Tiger Elementary

805 School Road SW
Hutchinson, MN 55350
Phone: 320-587-1122
Fax: 855-574-0782

Staff Contact Information

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