School briefs: Forest Lake board seeks ideas on calendars

The Forest Lake Area school board is seeking suggestions on what the next two school year calendars should look like. Drafts of the 2012-13 and 2013-14 calendars are available for review on the district's website at www.flaschools.org.

Anyone with suggestions is encouraged to contact Diane Borle at 651-982-8104 or dborle@flaschools.org. The board will vote on the calendars later this school year.

Forest Lake High to showcase talentForest Lake Area High School will host its annual "Rangers Have Talent" showcase at 7 p.m. Feb. 16. The show will feature student acts.

Tickets will be sold at the door for $6. They can be purchased in advance at the school starting Feb. 13 for $5. Concessions will be sold at the show.

Charter school to host open houseLakes International Language Academy will have a school tour for interested families from 8:30 to 10 a.m. on Feb. 8

The school also will hold an open house with free language lesson from 10 to 11:30 a.m. Feb. 11 and from 3 to 4:30 p.m. Feb. 25. Register for the event by calling 651-464-0771.

For more information, visit the school's website at www.lakesinternational.org. The school is at 246 11th Av. SE. in Forest Lake.

Students win local math competitionJohn Glenn Middle School eighth-graders Thaddeus Thao and Emily Olson won the recent Junior High Math League state competition. The students' wins helped their school to take the division title.

Other team members were Kyndra Perez, Rachel Sandquist, Jeremy Wales, Melanie Popelka, Evan Gill, Matt Rainer, Noah Collins, Nick Linell and Kevin Danko. The team is coached by math teacher Jessica Cabak.

Brain development will be topic of talkGary Johnson, a nationally recognized expert on brain development, will speak at Stillwater Area High School's auditorium from 7 to 8 p.m. Feb. 6

Tickets to the event are free and can be picked up at any Stillwater public school, at the district's Early Childhood Family Center or by calling 651-351-8355.

Johnson is the clinical director of the Clinic for Attention, Learning and Memory (CALM) in Minneapolis. He works with children and adults with attention and learning disorders. He often speaks on the effects of technology on attention.

His findings suggest that early and excessive electronic stimulation may not only affect brain functioning, but may actually change physiological development of the brain, according to a release by Stillwater school officials.

DAAREL BURNETTE II