ALTOONA ELEMENTARY FEBRUARY NEWSLETTER

Transcription

1 ALTOONA ELEMENTARY FEBRUARY NEWSLETTER Greetings Altoona Elementary Families, Earliest drop off time 7:20am February was an action-packed month with the 100th Day of School Celebration, Parent/ Teacher Conferences, and the Scholastic Book Fair. The book fair s theme this year was PAWS FOR READING. School begins at 7:45am End of school day 2:55pm Office closes at 3:45pm There were several activities that went along with the theme of the book fair that promoted reading. One of the activities was a supply drive for the Eau Claire County Humane Association. Students and families did an outstanding job filling a huge bin with supplies to be donated to this organization. The next activity to promote reading gave students a chance to read and visit with therapy dogs. Trained therapy dogs, have a quiet presence to help children develop a love for reading. The last activity was sponsored by the Altoona Elementary PTO. They brought in a motivational speaker to share the message Kids Who Read R Cool! I would like to thank everyone who donated supplies and/or their time to make the promotion of reading a success! Sincerely, Tara Betlach Elementary Principal Reach your teachers before 7:45am & after 2:55pm What happens in the first 15 minutes of your child s school day? Don t miss out. -Folders Organized -Attendance taken -Lunch count taken -Morning Meeting & Greeting -Calendar -Daily Schedule Discussed In accordance with Eau Claire County ordinances and state law, all children between 6 and 18 years of age must attend school on a full -time basis. As a parent or guardian you may excuse your child 10 days or 70 class periods per school year before it becomes a truancy situation. Court appearances, funerals, and medically excused absences do not count as part of the 10 days. If your child is absent due to an appointment, please provide the office with a note from the provider. The note can be a reminder slip, an , a written provider s note etc With such a note, the absence will NOT be included in your child s absence totals.

2 PBIS RAIL BUCK WINNERS

3 February was a busy month in kindergarten! Throughout the month the students enjoyed learning all about polar bears and penguins. While learning about these Arctic animals, the students were also practicing how to ask and answer questions about key details in the books we were reading. The students learned how to use webs in order to organize the new information they learned. February also marked the 100 th Day of School! The kindergarten classes had a blast learning, counting, and creating with numbers and/or objects up to 100. February has been a busy month full of celebrations! First Graders participated in a variety of 100 day and Valentine s Day activities. When not celebrating, students have been working hard on opinion activities. First Graders have been reading and listening to many stories that prompt them to give their opinions. Students have also completed their very own OREO opinion book! In math First Graders have been working on addition and subtraction equations. Students are comparing strategies for adding and subtracting story problems and equations. Students have focused on a strategy using combinations of 10 as they solve problems. It s interesting to see the different ways students can solve a problem!

4 Second graders have been learning all about graphing during math class this month. They have been given a variety of data and then created various types of representations for that data. Some student favorites included: making bar graphs, line plots, and Venn diagrams. After making a graph, they wrote down observations and looked for things like the range-- the smallest to largest numbers on a graph, and the mode--the number/answer that occurs the most frequently. Occasionally there would be a number that was an outlier which is one that is situated away from the rest and on its own. Dinner at Burrachos on Prill Road!!! Mention Altoona Elementary and our PTO receives 25%!

5 Third Grade enjoyed an awesome trip to the Eau Claire Children s Theater on Friday, February 2nd to enjoy the production of My Son Pinocchio. What a performance! Students and teachers enjoyed watching friends and former students perform! Third Grade spread the love on Thursday, February 15th. We enjoyed our half day of school playing board games, card games and putting puzzles together. We had some really awesome looking Valentine s Day mailboxes. We are teaching some creative students in Third Grade! Mother nature has been very unpredictable but we sure are working on using our imaginations to help us learn and have fun in whatever way it comes!

6 Third Graders are learning the strategies of the filter and the shield. Students learned that depending upon the social situation students may need to envision themselves using the filter or shield. The filter is used with people who are often nice so they would breathe in those kind words and actions like fresh air to believe what they have said. However those same people can sometimes be unkind which is when the hurtful words and actions are trapped in the webbing of the filter to protect themselves. With the shield, students learn this is also used for protection, often times with those people who have been typically unkind. The shield is used to shield people from the unkind words and actions to help deflect and not believe what has been said or done. It is a way for them to believe in themselves and all of the positive things they have going for them. Each student s shield includes positive things about themselves. Kindergarten is gearing up for Kindergarten Specials Night on March 22nd. We look forward to sharing some songs with you and then giving you a glimpse into what your child does during specials every day! Look for an RSVP in the first few weeks of March. First Grade is exploring how many syllables are in different words and how we perform those words on instruments. This will let us into learning how to read and write basic quarter note and eighth note rhythms. Second Grade is learning how to write Do, Re, and Mi on the 5-line staff. Look for more written work coming home this month. Third Graders are continuing to read and write Do, Re, Mi, and So on the 5-line staff! We are getting ready to have our culminating project where the kids will compose their own melodies to create their own short song. I can't wait to see what they come up with this year! March 22 6:00-7:00 Kindergarten Specials Night April 26 12:30 1st grade Program & 2:00 3rd grade program

7 The Paws for Books Scholastic Book Fair was a huge success! Thank you to all of the parents and students who stopped in and visited during conferences. Students had a blast partaking in many fun events including a Kids Who Read R Cool assembly, Guessing how Many Animal Treats, Classroom Bingo to win books for their classroom libraries and guessing whose pet belongs to which Altoona elementary staff member Students also had the chance to spend time reading and interacting with several therapy dogs from the community. Local therapy dogs Willow, Chip, Peak and Maggie were able to visit students the first week of February. The library also hosted a Fill the Doghouse Supply Drive for the Eau Claire Humane Society. We filled the dog house and then some. Here are some of the highlights of what our students donated. 116 cans & 7 bags of cat food 106 cat toys & 12 bags of cat treats 25 cans & 7 bags of dog food 22 bags of dog treats and 21 bags of dog bones 26 dog toys, 24 tennis balls, 6 kongs 11 jars of peanut butter, 2 packs of hotdogs, 1 can cheese whiz 29 total collars, leashes and harnesses 15 grooming items such as brushes & nail clippers 5 water/food bowls 3 litter boxes 2 bags of hay 1 bag of medical supplies Thank you to all of you who donated!

8 Growth Mindset Family Night You are invited to discover the power of having a growth mindset. Mindset is understanding how our brain works when we learn and how we can talk to ourselves in order to be learners of ANYTHING. Join the learning and discover ways to develop the growth mindset of both you AND your children! March 8, :15-6:00 Free dinner in the commons 6:00-7:00 Grow your mind activities Monetary donations will be accepted. Please RSVP to Terri Thill, tthill@altoona.k12.wi.us or complete and return the form below to your child s teacher by Monday, March 5, Student s Name: Teacher: GR: # of Adults: # of Children:

9 ONLINE ENROLLMENT AVAILABLE NOW!!! Dear Parents: You are invited to participate in Altoona 4K All Aboard, our collaborative, community-based four year old kindergarten program, for the school year. Altoona 4K All Aboard is an enriched, play-based preschool program designed for all children who live in the Altoona School District and who will be four years old by September 1, Four year old children who have been accepted for open enrollment will also be eligible to participate. The Altoona 4K All Aboard program will be offered at four community sites: *Little Star Daycare, 2245 Hayden Avenue (A.M. and P.M. classes) *Western Dairyland Head Start, Altoona Early Education Center (A.M. and P.M. classes) *St. Mary s Elementary School, 1828 Lynn Avenue (A.M. and P.M. classes) *The Little School House of Altoona, 2328 North Hillcrest Parkway (A.M. and P.M. classes) Enclosed is a sheet with brief descriptions of our 4K sites, a brochure with information about the 4K program, and a sheet with 4K site contact information. We are now enrolling all students online! Please visit our website at to complete the necessary paperwork. If you do not have access to a computer, we will have some available at the elementary school. In addition to enrolling online, we require the following forms: Original Birth Certificate (we verify the information and return it to you) Proof of Residency (mortgage documents or utility bill with your name and address on it) Immunization form (only required if your child received their vaccinations from a different state) Other important documents if applicable (IEP, court documentation, etc.) Please bring the above listed forms to the Altoona Elementary School Office, located at 157 Bartlett Avenue, between the hours of 7:30 A.M. and 4:00 P.M., before Friday, May 19th to complete the enrollment process. We encourage you to take advantage of Altoona 4K All Aboard. If you have questions, please contact Laura Trachsel, Altoona 4K Coordinator, at: ltrachsel@altoona.k12.wi.us. Please pass this information on to others who may not have received it. We want all Altoona families with four year olds to be aware of this exciting opportunity! Sincerely, Laura Trachsel Laura Trachsel, Altoona 4K Coordinator

10 Don't forget to eat your vegetables. MONDAY Altoona Elementary Lunch Menu WEDNESDAY T HURSDAY Beefy Nachos with Cheese Sauce, Lettuce and Tomato Cheeseburger Basket with Potato Wedges Made By Chef Abby Pasta with Meat Sauce and Garlic Bread Chicken Nugget Basket with Potato Wedges and Whole Grain Roll Steamed Vegetable Blend 12 HOM Pineapple 7 French Toast Sticks with Sausage Patty Whole Grain Corn Dog Munchable - Sliced Turkey, Cheese and Crackers Whole Grain Pretzel Bites with Cheese Meatball Sandwich on a Whole Grain Bun Garden Green Beans Fresh Pineapple Garlic and Herb Broccoli National Pasta Day 13 Popcorn Chicken with Buttered Noodles and a Whole Grain Roll Cheesy Italian Flatbread with Dipping Sauce 6 14 Hot Dog Basket on Whole Grain Bun Creamy Macaroni and Cheese Yogurt Pak - Yogurt, String Cheese, Whole Grain Bagel and Cream Cheese Baked Fries Caesar Salad Steamed Carrots 19 Whole Grain Pancakes with Fruit Topping and a Sausage Patty Hot Ham and Cheese Calzone Chicken Nugget with Whole Grain Roll Potato Triangle **Rice Krispie Treat** 26 Cheeseburger Basket with Baked Fries Sloppy Joe Basket with Baked Fries Creamy Coleslaw PRICES Regular Reduced Adult 20 Pizza Dippers with Marinara Sauce Whole Grain Pretzel Bites with Cheddar Cheese Glazed Carrots Steamed Vegetable Blend 27 Hot Dog Basket with Kettle Chips 1 Cheeseburger with Pickles on a Whole Grain Bun Vegetable Blend **Chocolate Chip Cookie** Walking Tacos with Lettuce, Cheese and Salsa Hot Dog on a Whole Grain Bun Steamed Carrots ***Dr. Seuss Cup Cake*** 9 Pizza Parlor Homemade Cheese Pizza Soft Shell Tacos with Lettuce, Cheese and Salsa Steamed Corn ***Sugar Cookie*** Made By Chef Abby 15 Oven Roasted Chicken Mashed Potatoes/Gravy with a Breadstick 22 Breaded Chicken Sandwich on a Whole Grain Bun Black Beans 28 8 Dr. Seuss's Birthday 2 Whole Grain Pancakes with Sausage Patty and Potato Triangle Pizza Parlor Homemade Pizza Green Peas 23 Chicken Strip Basket with Whole Grain Roll Homemade Italian Stromboli Steamed Corn 1 2 EXTRA INFO choice of 1% White or Chocolate Skim is included with lunch. Entree Salads are served with Dinner Roll For questions or comments, contact Bernie Allen at or ballen@altoona.k12.wi.us Menus are subject to change without notice. This institution is an equal opportunity provider. 16 Whole Grain Mini Corn Dogs with Roll Caesar Salad *** Birthday Cake *** HARVEST OF THE MONTH $2.50 $0.40 $3.40 $ Munchable - Sliced Turkey, Cheese and Crackers Creamy Macaroni and Cheese F RIDAY Yogurt Pak - Yogurt, String Cheese, Whole Grain Bagel and Cream Cheese Black Beans Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss! Chicken Tender Basket with Whole Grain Roll 2018 Fresh Vegetable Choices and Seasonal Fruit are Offered Daily on the Fruit & Vegetable Bar T UESDAY 5 March

11 Don't forget to eat your vegetables. MONDAY March Altoona Elementary Lunch Menu T UESDAY WEDNESDAY 2018 T HURSDAY 2 Whole Grain Donut Holes 1 with Cheese Peanut Butter and Jelly Uncrustable French Toast Sticks 2 Waffles with Sausage Eggo Mini Waffles Peanut Butter and Jelly Uncrustable Fruit Breakfast Bread with Cheese Stick 9 Mini Pancakes Fruit Muffin with Cheese Stick 16 Pancakes on a Stick Fruit Yogurt and Bagel with Cream Cheese Pancake on a Stick Mini Pancakes Breakfast Pizza Peanut Butter and Jelly Uncrustable Sausage with Potato Triangle 13 Yogurt Parfait 14 Cini-Minis Whole Grain Donut Holes 19 with Cheese Cinnamon Roll Peanut Butter and Jelly Uncrustable Frudel Yogurt Parfait Muffin with Cheese Stick Cereal Varitey Cereal Varitey French Toast Sticks Fruit 20 Pancake on a Stick HARVEST OF THE MONTH 22 Eggs and Sausage with Toast EXTRA INFO choice of 1% White or Chocolate Skim is included with lunch. Entree Salads are served with Dinner Roll For questions or comments, contact Bernie Allen at or ballen@altoona.k12.wi.us Menus are subject to change without notice. This institution is an equal opportunity provider Pancakes with Sausage 15 Muffin with String Cheese Frudel $2.50 $0.40 $3.40 $0.50 Cinnamon Roll Fresh Fruit Cinni-Minis Banana Chocolate Loaf 27 with Cheese Stick Regular Reduced Adult 6 1 Cinni-Minis Peanut Butter and Jelly Uncrustable Whole Grain Long John 26 PRICES Eggs and Sausage with Toast F RIDAY Pancakes with Sausage