Abajo se encuentra el boletin en Espanol

From the Principal’s Desk

Dear Parents,

You know how important it is to read to your children. Children whose families read with them do better in school. The bonds that you make with your children when you read with them help them feel loved, comforted, and secure. Like most families, you want to read with your children, but somehow days can go by without you sitting down with them and opening a book. The key is to make it a priority. Here are several suggestions to help your children improve their reading skills.

Fifteen minutes a day can change

their lives. You may be surprised to

know that educators recommend just

15 minutes a day of reading, as a

minimum.

Always have a book on hand, no matter where you are. Keep a small book in your purse or your car’s glove compartment. Or have a picture book or two in the baby’s stroller. Make sure that you and your children always have something to read when time is available.

Focus on their interests. Reading with you should be for pleasure, so get books from the school or public library that features characters or topics they’re really interested in.

Ask them questions while you’re reading. Everyone is a better “listener” when they know they’re going to be asked questions about what they’re listening to. Don’t make it a test, but do keep their interests going by asking them stories about what’s being read. Get their brains working.

Be a patient listener. It can be difficult listening to your children struggle while reading. But think how terribly important it is that they succeed. Don’t jump in and finish the sentence for them, no matter how slowly they’re reading.

Get everyone involved. Talk with the other adults and older children in your household and let them know that reading with each child is going to be a daily activity, and that you need them to participate.

But first…Kids make time for a lot of extras in their day. Read first–before the computer goes on or their favorite TV show comes on.

There’s something special about owning a book. Libraries and garage sales offer “well loved” books for sale, often for as little as 25 cents. Keep spare change on hand so you can pick up some great reads for your children when you see a sale.

Yes, you’re busy. Yes, your children are too. But reading with your children really needs to be part of your day, every day. Fifteen minutes a day is a small investment that will generate enormous rewards.

 

Debbie Bohn, Principal

 

Free or Reduced Price School Meals

If your family’s financial situation has taken a negative turn or if a new addition to the More ...

Keywords: SK Newsletter

Abajo se encuentra el boletin en Espanol

 

From the Principal’s Desk

Dear Parents,

Being “different” from other classmates is tough. Most children are taught not to pick on others because of physical
traits or characteristics, such as weight, scars, birthmarks, or glasses. But less obvious differences can make children feel equally apart from their classmates.

A growing number of children suffer from serious medical problems, particularly asthma and diabetes, but also seizure disorders, life threatening allergies, AIDS, and childhood cancers, as well as disorders from retardation to hyperactivity. It’s tragic when a child suffering with a disease or condition also is the victim of mocking and is excluded by classmates.

Parents can do a lot to help make sure that their children are sensitive toward others, particularly those who may be
targeted by classmates as “different.” It’s not catching. Children don’t like to appear afraid in front of their classmates. But a lot of them are. And being around someone with a serious disease can be scary unless a child understands that things like cancer or epilepsy are not contagious. Tell them that, not only won’t they be harmed by being around the ill child, they’ll actually be helping that child feel better by being kind and sensitive.

Give them the facts. AIDS is frightening, both to parents and to children. If your child is in a school with children suffering from AIDS, the school should have lots of information available for parents and children. Get it and share it with your child. The most important thing to remember is that people can’t catch AIDS from casual contact—either at home or at school.

Children with AIDS have enough of a burden without being shunned by their peers.

Teach them what’s cruel. It’s vital to understand that children with serious allergies really are at risk of dying. Classmates can be very insensitive, mocking those children, or complaining that the whole class can’t have peanut butter cookies because of one child. Help your children understand just how tough it would be to have one of those allergies and to literally be in fear for their life.

Concentrate on what’s inside. Help your children choose friends for their personality—what’s inside. Encourage them to get to know a whole variety of classmates, including those who might have a disease or disorder. Talk with your children about what’s important in a friend—kindness, a sense of fun, and shared interests. Be honest with them about how it makes you feel to see children being excluded, and talk to them about how important it is to treat everyone as they would like to be treated.

Pity is a burden. There’s a big difference between being sensitive to someone’s differences and feeling pity for them. When you pity someone, you’re singling them out and, in a way, excluding them. Instead, help your children simply accept that a child has a disease, a condition, a disability—and then treat them just like they would any other
child.

If it’s your child. Information is power and it is already available. There’s a national organization for almost every disease, condition, or disability. Contact these groups for child friendly handouts for the children in your child’s classroom and school, explaining the facts of your child’s difference. Perhaps the teacher would be willing to send parent-oriented fact sheets home with the students. Once your child’s classmates understand, a lot of the mystique about the differences will disappear.

 

Debbie Bohn, Principal

 

Kindergarten Round-UP

Kindergarten Round-Up is a time of pre-registration for the 2009-2010 school year.  Registration More ...

Keywords: SK Newsletter

Abajo se encuentra el boletin en Espanol

 

From the Principal’s Desk

Dear Parents,

There is no school subject quite as ripe for family fun as science.  And it’s an area where children need extra enrichment now, more than ever, because the national No Child Left Behind initiative is causing schools to focus more intently on math and reading and spend less classroom time on science. That’s where you can make

a big difference in your child’s learning, and have a great time doing it. Check out these terrific resources.

On the Internet

There’s no excuse ever again for a child to say he or she has nothing to do. These are just some of the excellent Internet sites available for you and your kids.  Puzzles, games, and science fair ideas are just a few of the resources in this science-dedicated site for children and their families. www.sciencenewsforkids.org

From developing “accidental scientists” in the kitchen to exploring human

perception, this site is chock-full of some of the most fun science activities ever assembled.

www.exploratorium.edu

Find interactive games galore on geography, astronomy, and zoology. http://

kids.nationalgeographic.com/Games

Remember that old game Operation?

Kids can play a virtual version online at this site, while learning how different

systems of the body work. www.centreofthecell.org/centre/?page_id=301

From egg-speriments to fun tricks like the giraffe spit experiment, this great site lets kids have fun learning through experimenting, discovering things like how polar bears stay warm and the

ecological consequences of oil spills.

www.sandiegozoo.org/education/science

_experiments.html

Games, puzzles, and activities about the Earth and the solar system can be found at this site.

www.windows.ucar.edu/tour/link=/games/games.html

Enlisting the help of Tinker Bell and the rat from the movie Ratatouille, the U.S. Department of Energy provides a great selection of games and activities on energy and conservation.

www.eere.energy.gov/kids/games.html

On Television

The Discovery Kids Channel is probably the best source of science-oriented

television shows for kids these days, offering both Bindi the Jungle Girl and

Grossology.

Books

The Magic School Bus series, a classic collection of books, lets kids follow Ms.

Frizzle into the bizarre and amazing world of science, from inside the body

to outer space. 

Magazines

Children love getting their very own magazines in the mail during the year. Depending on the age of your children, any of these will open their eyes to the science and the world around them:

Click Magazine, ASK, Odyssey Magazine, Ranger Rick, and

National Geographic Kids.

 

Build bonds with your children by exploring some of these sites online. Go to the library to pick up back issues of the magazines or copies of the books, and set some time aside to help your children discover the wonders of the scientific world.  Learning has never been so much fun.

 

Debbie Bohn, Principal

 

Progress Reports

When you receive your child’s progress report next week, you’ll notice a new format for the comments section.  Teachers worked collaboratively to develop quality comments that could be embedded in technology, simplify the comment section and ensure equity for all students.  Selected comments are specific to your child’s progress and reflect individual assessment by your child’s teacher.

As always, your child’s progress report is an opportunity for you and your More ...

Keywords: SK Newsletter