'A new adventure'

HURON — Administrators, parents and students are enjoying a new way of learning. Huron Sports Academy is a charter school housed at the former Shawnee Elementary building located at 712 Cleveland Road E. in Huron. The school calls itself a public charter school for competitive sports and academics. Aug. 28 marked the first day of school for the 30 or so students enrolled there. Students come from Huron and the surrounding area, including Milan, Margaretta Township and Castalia. "It's been exciting. This is a new adventure for all of us," principal Elaine Beeghly said. Classes are open to students in early kindergarten through fifth grade, but Beeghly said there is room to grow. As the academy earns a name for itself, she hopes to enroll more students and add grade levels. The kindergarten students start their day with gym class while the rest of the students begin with academics and have gym at other times of the day. The students spend about 20 minutes learning a new sport every day and then 40 minutes practicing a sport. Students are currently learning soccer. When the students are not in the gym, they are focused on "academics with movement," Beeghly said. Students take part in "academics with movement," also known as kinetic learning, which is a style that incorporates physical activity with lessons, Beeghly said. For example, while they learn letters they make shapes with their bodies or play hopscotch while they learn phonics. "We're building the whole child. We're looking at academics. We're looking at movement and team sports and that social-emotional piece of it so that's probably one of the biggest draws," said Beeghly, explaining why parents decide to enroll their child at the academy. Beeghly said parents and students alike are responding well to the unique education design. She said parents are involved and students love the small classroom sizes where they get a lot done every day. "They go home exhausted every day," Beeghly said. "We wear them out, but they're ready to come back the next day." In addition to the parents and students, the school also looks for ways to connect with the community. On Tuesday, the school hosted a pumpkin spice party for community members to tour with coffee and doughnuts. Beeghly said she tries to do something every week. Outside of bringing families to the school, Beeghly also spoke with the Salvation Army about how they could meet each other's needs and attended a city council meeting to stay informed. What students said Jayden Harrison, 6, shared what going to the sports academy was like for a first-grade student before running excitingly back to gym class. Harrison said he stays busy during the day, like when he goes to math class. Today, his lesson was on addition. He also likes to work on the computer in school because the mouse feels comfortable and soft. At the end of the day, he goes home to play video games. Trinity Ferguson, 10, also shared what she likes about being a fifth-grade student at the academy. "I like that it's not chaotic like other schools. Sometimes it's still chaotic but that's because of those two," Ferguson said while pointing at two of her classmates.