My name is Wes Knaack and I am entering my 13th year of teaching. I graduated from UNI with a degree in Elementary Education with a Social Studies minor. In 2010 I also received my Middle School Endorsement. I have my coaching certificate as well and have coached wrestling, baseball, and track. I am also the Head Chaperone for our 8th Grade trip to Washington D.C. where the students get to experience first hand the history we have learned in class. This will be my 7th year teaching at Decorah and I absolutely love it so far!
My wife, Andrea, is also a teacher for the Decorah CSD. She is teaching Title 1 Reading this year at John Cline and Carrie Lee Elementary. We have two children, Isaac who is 10, and Anna who turned 7 this summer. Both of my kids are fantastic swimmers! We spend a lot of time outside and have enjoyed all of the opportunities Decorah has to offer, especially the trails! In my free time I enjoy sports, fishing, hunting, mountain biking, and running. We are looking forward to spending many years in such a great community! |
Fly-Fishing Mini Course
Every spring students have the opportunity to experience what living in Northeast Iowa has to offer-some really great fishing! First, the students learn how to tie their own fly After lunch the kids take their newly learned skills and flies to the hatchery to catch some Iowa trout. Here are the results....
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Gettysburg
Every summer the 8th grade students have the opportunity to see first hand some of our American History we have studied in class. The trip begins with a stop in Chicago where the kids get to test their fear of heights in the Willis Tower. From Chicago we stop at Notre Dame University and tour the school’s Hall of Fame. Our next stop, and my favorite, is the historic Gettysburg. Here the students get to experience the battlefields and monuments where one of the most influential battles took place during the Civil War. Following Gettysburg the students spend several days in D.C. visiting the monuments and enjoying a dinner cruise and also a night at the Kennedy Center. Our trip is filled with learning, a lot of exercise, and a lifetime of memories!
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