Sandhills Archived Events
The Bucks Archived Gallery keeps the people in touch with what fun things have happened at Sandhills. Make sure to check the gallery to see all the exciting suprises that are still to come!
Career Day 2010
Happy Holidays
Friday, December 18th, the students and faculty had a holiday celebration before break! There was a tacky sweater contest, cookies, carols and a story. Happy Holidays from Sandhills School!
High Ropes Course 09
The M2s and M3s went to Heathwood Hall, to the high ropes course, before Thanksgiving break. The whole group participated in team building activities including the "spider web" and we learned the importance of working together! All the students did a great job supporting each other during this challenge. We all had a wonderful time climbing high above the earth and riding the zip line down at the end.
Harvest Festival 09
Spirit Week 09
This week was Sandhills Spirit Week! The High School students did a wonderful job planning and helping the younger students with ideas for their outfits! We had Tacky Day, Team Day, Twin Day, Formal Day and Camo Day. Here are just a few photos from the many that were taken this week. Parents check out the teacher pages for more!
Fall Picnic
Friday, October 30th, Sandhills held our annual Big Buddy / Little Buddy Fall Picnic. The elementary students can't wait to hangout with their high school and middle shool buddies! We all had delicious food and fun. A special thank you to the PTO for your dedication and hard work to put on this event for the children.
Fall Ball 09
On Thursday, October 21st Sandhills had the school's first Fall Ball! It was an exciting night for our Middle School.The food was delicious and the decorations were wonderful. Everyone had a great time and danced the night away.
A special thank you to the Shaws and Reeleys for all their hard work and dedication to Sandhills!
Soccer Pictures 09
Thank you to Ms. Smith for a wonderful Soccer Season!
Wilson Hall Pen-Pal Trip
The elementary and middle school went to see their pen-pals at Wilson Hall in October. The students had a great time bowling and having lunch with the seniors. Thank you to the moms at Wison Hall for all the wonderful food at Swan Lake!
Hardees Day at Sandhills
On Tuesday, September 22nd, the Hardee’s Mobile Kitchen made a stop at Sandhills School. This was the first trip not only to Sandhills, but also to South Carolina, for the Hardee’s Mobile Kitchen. Sandhills students and faculty enjoyed lunch on the lawn, provided by Hardee’s.
A huge thank you goes to Donna and Steve Hallman for providing this unique opportunity to Sandhills students!
Big Buddy Little Buddy Ice Cream Party
The Parent Council sponsored the annual Big Buddy/Little Buddy Ice Cream Party on Friday, September 18th. Middle and high school students are paired with elementary students as mentors, and get together throughout the school year for planned activities.
A Kick-Off to a New School Year
On Thursday, August 20th, Sandhills kicked off its 34th school year! Elementary and middle school students had a magical morning, with entertainment by magician John Tudor. High school students enjoyed a breakfast together and then met to sign the Honor Code and give input into curriculum and what they would like to see and experience during their year at Sandhills.
Celebrate Reading!
Sandhills students recently celebrated their summer reading with a party to share their summer reading projects. Elementary students presented their projects on September 4th and middle school students presented their projects on September 11th. Students enjoyed snacks while asking questions about classmates books and projects.
The State Museum’s Starlab Planetarium Visits Sandhills
On September 17th, Sandhills students had the opportunity to experience our solar system in the cafeteria. The State Museum’s Starlab Planetarium is a portable, inflatable planetarium dome that allows students to learn about constellations, seasons, phases of the moon and much more.
Henry Winkler Inspires Sandhills Students
PRESS RELEASE: Columbia, SC, September 26, 2008
“You are special, and you can achieve anything,” Henry Winkler tells a Sandhills student.
Henry Winkler, the renowned actor and role model for kids with dyslexia, spoke to students from Sandhills School Monday regarding his personal struggle with dyslexia and how he turned his “learning difference” into an advantage for life. Sandhills School specializes in teaching children with dyslexia and ADHD and is located in Columbia, SC.
Mr. Winkler was asked by a student, "Did you go to a special school like Sandhills when you were in school?" His response was, "No, we did not have schools like Sandhills at the time. You need to thank God, thank your parents and your teachers for a school like Sandhills and for people that understand you."
Unfortunately, for most children with dyslexia, their learning difference goes undiagnosed and they often become embarrassed in traditional schools and ultimately lose self-esteem. Mr. Winkler told the children not to “give in to negative thoughts, just change them to something positive. Never put a period at the end of a negative thought. If you do, it becomes a sentence. Then you form a paragraph, then the paragraph becomes an essay, and the essay becomes part of your life." Winkler, whose dyslexia was not diagnosed until he was 31, said his difficult childhood was probably part of the reason for his success, as he had been determined to get over it.
October is Dyslexia Awareness Month. The US Department of Health and Human Services estimates that dyslexia affects 15% of the US population.
Winkler told the students that although he is best known as an actor, director and producer, he felt that his greatest accomplishment was co-authoring the Hank Zipzer series of books about the “World’s Greatest Underachiever.” After a lifetime of struggling with dyslexia, Winkler put pen to paper in 2003 with co–author Lin Oliver and recreated himself as Hank Zipzer, a smart fourth grader with learning difficulties but a great sense of humor and adventure. The books are loved by the Sandhills students because they can identify with Hank’s challenges.
Winkler encouraged the students to be proud of themselves and their hard work, and shared with them that his struggles with dyslexia ultimately made him strong and determined. As a result of learning to compensate for his learning differences, he developed the attitude that he could face any adversity with a positive attitude. His message was strong and clear: “If you believe it, you will be it, and you can achieve anything.”
Sandhills School is a non-profit, independent school for first through ninth grade students with average to above-average intelligence who have been diagnosed with a learning difference. Sandhills is one of ten schools in the nation accredited by the Academy of Orton-Gillingham Practitioners and Educators. Orton-Gillingham is a well documented, proven approach to teaching reading, writing and spelling to children with learning differences. Upcoming educational events at Sandhills include: A Walk in Your Child's Shoes – What it’s Like to be Dyslexic, Neurological Underpinnings of Dyslexia, Helping Children with Executive Functioning Skills, Diagnosing Learning Differences, and Technology that Helps students with Learning Differences. For more information, please visit www.sandhillsschool.org or contact Sandhills School at (803) 695-1400.
