Points of Pride: Sioux City's Irving School

Cree,                             Believe,

Logra,                            Achieve,

Se Excitoso!                   Succeed!

❝One language sets you in a corridor for life. Two languages open every door along the way.❞
‒Frank Smith

Welcome to Irving School in Sioux City, a dual language school led by Principal Maria Ruelas with the belief that: "Every child is a story yet to be told.."  At Irving learning takes place in both English and Spanish as it carves the way for students to be bilingual.  Many students have reading two times a day - once in English and once in Spanish with assessments taking place in both languages.  Every Monday there is an early out and every Friday Professional Learning Communities meet for 45 minutes.  These collaborative meetings help with instructional consistency and build a sense of teamwork throughout the school.

Irving School Demographics
Enrollment:  743
Free and Reduced Lunch:  100%
Staff:  90+
Grades K-5

Irving Initiatives:

• Imagine Learning - used as an intervention in Kindergarten.  Fifth graders are trained to mentor the younger students.  It is a web-based computer program that targets English Language Learners (ELL) with vocabulary-rich instruction.  This program identifies students who are struggling and provides resources to teachers for remediation.

• Family Engagement - strong efforts are made in this area including an opportunity for parents to volunteer at the school and fondly referred to as Hawks Heroes. Volunteers copy, staple, sort as well as read to students

Orchestra begins in grade 4 with band in Grade 5.  In a commitment to healthy children, students are encouraged to walk around the school before the doors are open, and recess takes place before lunch which has reduced the noise in the cafeteria.

 ❝To have another language is to possess a second soul.❞

‒Charlemagne

Other things happening in Sioux City School District:  A new direction awaits on the horizon for the Sioux City Community School District as it moves towards specialty schools which have a focused theme and aligned curricula. These types of schools are considered “hands on – minds on” with a performance/project based focus. The curriculum is taught within the overall theme of the school while using Iowa Core standards to drive learning. According to research, "specialty schools increase academic achievement and graduation rates, improve student attendance, lower disciplinary problems, enhance parent and teacher satisfaction, and promote higher racial and cultural understanding among students."  The specialty schools in consideration are:

• A+ School which means Arts Plus Academics and integrates arts into the curriculum
• STEM School integrates Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math into the curriculum
• Computer Programming integrates specific technology functions into the curriculum
• Dual Language School has all subjects taught in English and a second language

Exciting things on the horizon for Sioux City Schools with the mission of best meeting the needs and interests of all students!