Atkins Elementary

A simple read-aloud sparked a movement for kindness and character-building in our first-grade classroom. After reading Henry & Ella’s Big Jar of Kindness by Audrey Lane to wrap u...

In our 2nd grade classroom, science has been extra exciting this month! We are using our FOSS Science Kit to study plants and animals, and students have been working...

On Friday, October 3, first grade students at Atkins Elementary celebrated Apple Discovery Day—a fun-filled event packed with hands-on learning, outdoor exploration, and, of course...

As part of the Farm Bureau’s “Ag in the Classroom” through the Iowa Agriculture Literacy Foundation, Taylor visited the kindergartners at Atkins to teach students how the ingredien...

The Atkins Elementary school doors opened again this past August to many returning children and many new faces. Thirty of those faces were students who are only three years old an...

Third grade students in Atkins Elementary are learning about germination, the process of a seed turning into a seedling or baby plant. We explored the parts of a seed and many of u...

The first day of school at Atkins Elementary started with a tradition that brings the whole community together. Just like at the other elementaries in the district, students and st...

Kindness is like sprinkles on ice cream—it makes life brighter and sweeter. Just like you don’t need a whole bucket of sprinkles to make ice cream special, small acts of kindness m...

As the school year comes to a close, I want to thank our students, families, and staff for making this year one to remember. From the first day to the last, our students have grown...

Breakfast plays a crucial role in setting students up for success throughout the school day. Eating a healthy breakfast provides the energy and nutrients the body and brain need to...

In the spring, we can cover many of our standards and benchmarks by incubating, hatching, and observing chickens. We began our unit on Thursday, April 10 th by putting 14 fertili...

One of the “visual cues” you may see on your child’s desk to remind them of the speech-to-print connection. Many parents know that letter learning is one of the first tasks a stu...

The Alternative Kindergarten class has enjoyed a busy spring learning through science. We completed a “Pond Life” theme, in which students had the opportunity to learn about pond h...

Benton Community is in its second year of implementing Junior Achievement in partnership with area volunteers who are active in the community. During our five sessions, kindergartn...

On Thursday, May 1, 2025 members of the Benton Community National Honor Society will be heading out into the communities to offer assistance in any ways we can as we organize and...

Building strong relationships with students is essential in any setting, as trust and connection create a supportive learning environment. When students feel safe and valued, they ...

In a fun and engaging opinion writing unit, second graders practiced an important standard for their grade—being able to clearly express and support their opinions. They explored t...

Over the past two years, we have been working with the character-strong curriculum to help students learn the value of empathy, service, and connection. This year, we wanted to foc...

Social stories are a helpful tool for teaching expected behaviors, especially for children or individuals with disabilities. These short, descriptive narratives explain a situation...

In Kindergarten students are learning all about letters. They start by learning their letter names and then the sounds each letter makes. At this point in the year students are usi...