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Welcome to my website!  As I enter my 14th year teaching at WHS, I have come

to realize that the three greatest jobs on earth are being a parent, veteran, and teacher.  I have done each one of these extremely important jobs and I am humbled.  These three single jobs have an immense impact on our future as a country and society.  With great pride and honor I stand ready to take on the enormous responsibility of teaching our children, for therein lies our real future.  At the core of this is my love of children.  I firmly believe in the equal opportunity to learn and the promotion of social justice and citizenship.  As a teacher, my goal is to educate the “whole” child, not just the parts, and to help them grow physically, cognitively, socially, emotionally, and morally.  I believe in a student-centered environment where critical thinking skills can be honed with limited direct instruction and maximum emphasis on collaborative learning.  It is my belief that the best way to learn is through discovery and from each other.  I recognize the need for individual instruction, acknowledging the multiple intelligences, the different learning styles, and the diversity (ethnicity, socioeconomic status, disability, or skill level) of our students.  More importantly, to my students, I promise to challenge them to have high expectations, excite them and make learning fun, help them develop critical thinking skills, make learning meaningful to them, while providing a safe learning environment.  Only by caring and providing for the needs of our students can I help them to become productive citizens in our ever-changing society, while becoming lifelong learners.  

Please see my website for background information on me, assignments, class notes, tests, projects and lots of helpful information (web sites, how to pass my class, and more).  Parents and Students: the best ingredient for success in any class is having high expectations.  Remember, student grades are available online, 24/7 on Infinite Campus Portal: 

https://campus.davenport.k12.ia.us/campus/portal/davenport.jsp

Students: High school sets you up for the rest of your life. I remember HS as one of the best times of my life! Why is HS so important, because it is “show time”, you can’t do it over. Life is about choices, choose wisely. I highly recommend three things to be successful in HS: 1) Believe in yourself (attitude), 2) Get involved (sports, clubs, activities, etc), and 3) Ask for help when you need it. The famous author H. Jackson Brown, Jr. once said: “Life doesn't require that we be the best, only that we try our best.” Welcome again, remember I care, and GO FALCONS!

Special Note:  What to do if the student needs help in my class: 1) See me for help (before/after school), 2) Ask Mr. Achs to assign a “Class Buddy” to help, 3) Request a guided study hall, 4) See your Academic Counselor (386-5500). I highly recommend you read “How To Get Good Grades” (see link to the left).

And lastly, my Bully Free Pledge: “I agree to be identified as a caring adult who pledges to help bullied students. I will listen carefully to all students who seek my help and act on their behalf to put an immediate stop to the bullying. I will work with other caring adults to create a safe learning environment for all students in my school.”

/s/ Jack Achs