By MOLLY DAVIDSON / Staff Writer

HELENA—Helena Intermediate School celebrated the Shelby County School System-wide Parenting Day with a unique twist this year.

On Oct. 14, more than 500 parents and grandparents visited HIS and attended informational workshops, joined their children for lunch and learned about the school community through Unique Me Day.

The school offered three workshops, Shelby County Board of Education Supervisor of Data Management, Accountability and Assessment Brent Tolbert led a session about the ACT Aspire standardized testing, Gateway Shelby school-based therapist Sherry S. Norwood shared tips for helping children deal with anxiety and HIS Gifted Resource Teacher Shelli Abernathy discussed strategies for understanding the emotional and social side of gifted children.

“It’s just one day to celebrate parents and give them what they need,” Paiml said, describing the relationship between parents and schools as a “partnership.”

In addition to celebrating parents, HIS took the opportunity to also celebrate diversity among the students, teachers, staff and administrators who make up the school community with the first edition of Unique Me Day.

Everyone in the HIS community had a chance to make a poster board sharing something that makes them unique. Students and faculty explained their hobbies, talents, heritage, interests and other things that make them special and celebrated everyone’s individuality, Paiml said.

“It’s an opportunity for us to learn something about each other,” Paiml said. “It’s something for the kids to share what makes them unique.”

Paiml said she has gotten positive feedback from HIS’s first-ever Unique Me Day and said she hopes to repeat the event every few years.

“I think (the students) had a sense of pride for themselves,” Paiml said. “It was a good family time… I can see (doing) it every couple of years.”