FEBRUARY 2015 The Reeds Ferry Tigger Times - Merrimack · THE REEDS FERRY TIGGER TIMES FEBRUARY,...

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The Reeds Ferry Tigger Times FEBRUARY 2015 Kimberly Yarlott Nick Coler It is hard to believe that we are approaching the 100th day of school! The days have been flying by. February is a busy month. Report cards will be going home and parent teacher conferences are scheduled for the evenings of March 26 th and March 31 st . We look forward to conference time when SDUHQWV FDQ YLHZ WKHLU FKLOG¶V ZRUN GLVFXVV SURJUHVs and needs, and confer with teachers about optimizing learning and successes. This summer, teachers participated in professional development focused on math instruction and assessment. The keynote speaker, Greg Tang, relayed that developing strong math ability requires a solid foundation of math fact automaticity, a thorough understanding of math concepts, and practice applying problem-solving skills. As we meet with parents, it not uncommon to have them recount their own experiences, memories and posVLEOH DQ[LHWLHV DERXW OHDUQLQJ PDWK 3DUHQWV VRPHWLPHV UHOD\ WKDW WKH\ ³ZHUH QRW JRRG DW PDWK´ VR how can they help and support their own children in this endeavor. Here are a few ideas that might help. x Encourage and challenge your child to become fluent with basic math facts (addition and subtraction in first and second grade and multiplication and division in the third and fourth grade). This can be accomplished using flash cards, but there are also many websites and apps such as Xtramath.org and gregtangmath.com/games. x Work with your child to solve the many math problems that present themselves each day. In the early grades have your child count silverware as they are setting the table, tell time using an analog and digital clock when they are waiting for a TV show to come on, and count money from a change jar or when they receive allowance. Also, encourage your child to be a problem solver. Have them think about what problem they are trying to solve, what information they have and what steps they are going to take to arrive at the answer. Foster creative thinking and help them to accept that it may take several tries before they come to the correct answer. Many other math resource websites can be found on the Reeds Ferry website in Merrimack links for math at http://www.symbaloo.com/mix/math469. Math is all around us. We can help our children to embrace, enjoy and engage in math. Note: Please see the Tigger Times article in this issue about our visiting artist Jeff Warner, who will be highlighted in an upcoming New Hampshire Chronicle segment.

Transcript of FEBRUARY 2015 The Reeds Ferry Tigger Times - Merrimack · THE REEDS FERRY TIGGER TIMES FEBRUARY,...

The Reeds Ferry

Tigger Times

F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 5

Kimberly Yarlott Nick Coler

It is hard to believe that we are approaching the 100th day of school! The days have been flying by. February is a busy month. Report cards will be going home and parent teacher conferences are scheduled for the evenings of March 26th and March 31st. We look forward to conference time when

s and needs, and confer with teachers about optimizing learning and successes. This summer, teachers participated in professional development focused on math instruction and assessment. The keynote speaker, Greg Tang, relayed that developing strong math ability requires a solid foundation of math fact automaticity, a thorough understanding of math concepts, and practice applying problem-solving skills. As we meet with parents, it not uncommon to have them recount their own experiences, memories and poshow can they help and support their own children in this endeavor. Here are a few ideas that might help.

Encourage and challenge your child to become fluent with basic math facts (addition and subtraction in first and second grade and multiplication and division in the third and fourth grade). This can be accomplished using flash cards, but there are also many websites and apps such as Xtramath.org and gregtangmath.com/games.

Work with your child to solve the many math problems that present themselves each day. In

the early grades have your child count silverware as they are setting the table, tell time using an analog and digital clock when they are waiting for a TV show to come on, and count money from a change jar or when they receive allowance. Also, encourage your child to be a problem solver. Have them think about what problem they are trying to solve, what information they have and what steps they are going to take to arrive at the answer. Foster creative thinking and help them to accept that it may take several tries before they come to the correct answer.

Many other math resource websites can be found on the Reeds Ferry website in Merrimack links for math at http://www.symbaloo.com/mix/math469. Math is all around us. We can help our children to embrace, enjoy and engage in math. Note: Please see the Tigger Times article in this issue about our visiting artist Jeff Warner, who will be highlighted in an upcoming New Hampshire Chronicle segment.

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PARENT/TEACHER CONFERENCES The second (2nd) set of parent/teacher conferences for the 2014-2015 school year is scheduled for Thursday, March 26th and Tuesday, March 31, 2015. In the past, we have always asked parents to call the school to schedule appointments, and while we enjoy being able to touch base with everyone, we

at is being sent home. We are asking that you complete the appointment sheet by choosing three (3) top choices for your conference(s). Upon returning your conference choice sheet, we will schedule and either email you the scheduled appointment(s) or send home an appointment card. If you have any questions at all, please just call the office at 424-6215.

New PFA Monthly Contest The PFA will be holding an online drawing for our students each month! Prizes include lunch with Mr. Coler, free popcorn, Reeds Ferry Spirit Wear, and much more! We will pick one winner at the end of each month.

Only one entry, per family, each month. To Enter , click here

THE WELLNESS COMMITTEE The Wellness Committee, with the help of Mr. Gidari, looks forward to hosting its first Winter W ellness W eek on Feb. 16th, Feb. 18th, and Feb. 19th. The event will be held after school in the gym and will feature winter sports. We look forward to seeing you there. Notices went out a little while ago, but if you have any questions, please contact Mrs. Cibotti or Ms. Donegan. Happy Winter!

LOST AND FOUND Missing a boot, mitten, hat, sweatshirt or anything else that children bring to school? Make sure you stop

when you come to school to either pick up your child or when you come in for

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Kindergarten News First Grade News

Kindergarten! We have enjoyed a month full of studying winter, winter animals and snowmen!

using the Snowmen at Night series. We learned about main ideas, details and what the purpose of an illustrator and author is. The Snowmen at Night series gave us so many opportunities to look at ways authors and illustrators work together to tell a story. We began to focus on word work this month, as we learned about word families, onset and rimes. Our learning centers focused on breaking down words, changing the endings, and concentrating on sounds. The students enjoyed activities such as sorting, writing and looking for word family clues! We continue to work with our high frequency words and the students are taking off with their emergent reading skills. We are amazed at all the little readers we have. It is very exciting to note that we are all done our Letter of the Week instruction and will be celebrating with the Q and U wedding this month. We have focused in math on adding, subtracting and building our number sense. It has been very exciting to see the enthusiasm of the students as they expand their knowledge of numbers. Our focus in writing is small moments and using drawings to help us with our writing. With all the snow we have had, we hope to get some great moments from the students on paper. We enjoyed reading what snowmen do at night with the students. You can check them out in the kindergarten hallway. Zero the Hero continues to come in every 10 days and is such a highlight for the students. We look forward to our 100th day coming soon, along with great themed activities for February.

Reeds Ferry School have been thinking about sweet treats! Read on to find out what they said when asked, Room 13

a gummy bear because it tastes yummy. Dylan a lollipop because I am sweet. -Lillian a cookie because my mom makes good ones.

Gabe Room 15

a big huge cotton candy because I could eat my beard and mustache. Juliet

a lollipop so I could suck on my hand. Matthew a giant gumball so I could blow a bubble and fly

away. Jack Room 17 ...a mint chocolate chip ice cream. -Katie

a rocket popsicle. Collin a pink, swirly lollipop. Laura

Room 18

Twizzlers because they are so yummy and taste like cherry. Ellie

M&Ms because there are so many kinds. -Avery bubble gum on the ground so nobody eats me! -

Connor Room 19

a sour gummy because they have a lot of flavor. -Manny

a cookie because they sometimes have chocolate chips. I like chocolate...but not on waffles! - Aidan ...a cupcake because they are really sweet! - Sienna Room 20 ...frosting so I can lick and eat all of me and my tummy would smile. -Jacoby ..a cool off. -Sean ...a chocolate heart because I like chocolate and I like hearts. -Kaylee

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Second Grade News Students with Artwork in SAU

Congratulations to the students listed below, as their artwork has been selected for a display at the SAU building (green building near the high school). G rade 4:

Mexican Folk A rt: Madylin Mailloux Eleanor Kriebel Paige McCaffery Arianna Lewis Victoria Koudriashova Brielle Anderson T essellation: Hailey Ansley Tristan Vitone G rade 3 Pumpkin Drawing: Fareeha Mohammed Abigail Stover Avery Hui G rade 2 Plaid Cat: Oliva Springer Gavin Cote Angelina Koudriashova G rade 1 Color/Shape/T exture Patterns: Gavin Hickey Kaylee Piccolo Braelyn Andris

Our classrooms have been busy conducting Force and Motion science experiments. While learning about science we are also learning how to write lab reports as part of our information-writing unit. Students are engaged in sending cars down ramps, measuring distances, creating catapults, and launching cotton balls and Ping-Pong balls. In their science notebooks, they are writing a hypothesis, procedures, observations, results, and conclusions. It is very impressive work for second grade students!

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Fourth Grade News

Fourth Grade! In Reading, we are citing evidence from the text to support our opinions, as well as using context clues to help us discern new vocabulary as we read. In Math, we have just completed Unit 6,

We have been, and will continue to use the

In Writing, we are now tackling opinion writing. Fortunately for us, we have plenty of opinions about anything and everything! In Social Studies, we are now covering the great state of New Hampshire. We will be discussing both its history and geography. Our week with Artist-in-Residence Jeff Warner was a great success! He incorporated history into his folk music and we learned a great deal. We learned about the history of loggers and millers. We learned about the banjo and mouth harp. We even now know a song about our state. Be sure to ask us about our state flower! At the end of the week we shared what we had learned with the entire school via a concert.

Artist in Residence Program, which is generously sponsored by our PF A . This year we hosted Jeff Warner, a folk musician who has been singing in schools in the U.S. and abroad

Jeff worked with our fourth grade students twice a day for four days, sharing his knowledge of traditional American music. Jeff taught our students aspects of American history and culture through traditional songs, stories

stories passed on through generations, demonstrated the use of traditional folk instruments and gave insights into how music has been used by ordinary working Americans throughout history.

The week concluded with Jeff Warner leading the fourth grade students as they enthusiastically performed some of their favorite songs at a school assembly. It was a great finale to a week filled with fun learning.

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A Note from the Nurse Winter Health Reminders

A healthy school environment requires the cooperation and effort of everyone working together to stay well. Young children are notoriously good at spreading germs. During this time of year, we tend to see a higher incidence of respiratory illness, including common colds, influenza and strep throat, as well as gastrointestinal illnesses. The Merrimack Elementary School Nurses would like to remind everyone that they can help to protect themselves and their families from many of these illnesses by following the Good Health Habits recommended by the Centers for Disease Control. 1. Avoid close contact. Avoid close contact with people who are sick. When you are sick, keep your distance from others to protect them from getting sick, too. 2. Stay home when you are sick . If possible, stay home from work, school and errands when you are sick. You will help prevent others from catching your illness. 3. Cover your mouth and nose. Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when coughing or sneezing. It may prevent those around you from getting sick. 4. C lean your hands. Washing your hands often will help protect you from germs. If soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand rub. 5. Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth. Germs are often spread when a person touches something that is contaminated with germs and then touches his or her eyes, nose or mouth. 6. Practice other good health habits. Clean and disinfect frequently touched surfaces at home, work or school, especially when someone is ill. Get plenty of sleep, be physically active, manage your stress, drink plenty of fluids and eat nutritious food. We realize there are times when it is in the best interest of your child to keep him/her home from school due to illness. Parents know their children best and can help to determine if the student is well enough to remain in school for a complete school day. Please see the following guidelines to assist you with the decision to keep your child home due to illness or infection.

Students should not attend school if: The student has a temperature over 100

degrees. The student may return to school after having a normal temperature for 24 hours while not taking any fever reducing medications (ex. Tylenol or Motrin).

The student has severe cold symptoms, a persistent cough, a runny nose that they cannot manage by themselves and/or contain with tissues, or other symptoms that would interfere with effective school participation.

Antibiotics have been prescribed and have not been taken for a minimum of 24 hours and the student is without a temperature of over 100 degrees.

The student has been vomiting or having diarrhea the night before or morning of school. Your child may return to school approximately 24 hours after symptoms resolve, and is able to tolerate normal diet.

The student has an undiagnosed rash.

your child is able to return to school, however it is important to try to make sure that they are truly feeling better and able to make it through the entire school day. If your child still seems pale, tired, with little appetite, not tolerating solid foods, and

them to school. With viral illnesses it may take longer before your child is well enough to return to school. Your child should come to school feeling well enough to participate fully in all school program activities including physical education and going outside for recess in the winter. Please contact your school nurse if you have any

Take care! Kim Morgan, BSN, RN, RNEMT [email protected]

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February Break Events and more At the Merrimack Public Library

Register for these activities at the library, over the phone at 603-424-5021, or online at www.merrimacklibrary.org. Registration requires an adult Merrimack Library card.

ROZEN FEBRUARY FUN: Thursday, 2/26 from 6-8 PM. Recommended ages 3+ Kids are invited to enjoy a sing-along celebration of the most popular animated film of the past year. Wear costumes and attire inspired by the movie, snap a photo with the famed sisters of the story, and enjoy crafts and activities inspired by the film. Preschool children are encouraged to have a caregiver attend with them. If this event fills up fast, we will consider adding a second session. LEGO LUNCH AND MOVIE: Tuesday, February 24th from 1:30-3:30 PM. Recommended ages 4+ Pack your Legos and a bagged lunch for a movie and Lego Club meet up in the Library's Klumpp room. We'll play the "awesome" Lego film from last year, with tables set up for Lego building and comfy seating to enjoy your lunch and the movie. Participants must bring their own Legos if they wish to build. We will provide a dessert treat. Registration is required with an adult library card, and preschool must have a parent in attendance with them in the room. BOOK VOYAGES 1st + 2nd Grades: Thurs. 2/12 at 4 PM

books. Participants get to select their favorites to borrow at the end of the session. PAWS TO READ Sat. 2/21 9:30 AM 12 PM Ages 4+ Read to Ruby, a certified therapy dog, for practice or for fun! Reserve a 15-minute slot to make sure you get a turn.

encourage the love of reading! Wrapping up in a blanket on the couch with a good book is relaxing and fun, as well as educational. At the library, we highlight books based on the time of year and monthly events. During February, we are highlighting books about

new arrivals next to the circulation desk. There are so many wonderful books to select. Encourage the love of reading with a good book from the library!

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We are happy to announce that, as part of our focus on literacy, Reeds Ferry School and the PFA will host a visit by Matt Tavares, award-with us on Friday, April 3rd. Matt Tavares began drawing at a very young age and wrote and illustrated his first picture book while in college. It became his first published book, . Matt lives in Maine with his wife and two daughters. During the weeks of February 9th and 16th ks.

Matt  Tavares  Author  and  Illustrator  

Matt Tavares invites you to visit his website www.matttavares.com

President: Lorna Gonzalez 424-7237 [email protected]

Vice-President: Rebecca Mimms 661-8599 [email protected] Secretary: Michelle Desmarais 244-9592 [email protected] T reasurer : Shannon Rand 429-2465

[email protected] Board Member at Large: Stacia K riebel 703-5150 [email protected] Volunteer Coordinators: Lhea McCaffery 429-3316

[email protected] L eah Pikora 429-0757

[email protected] T igger T imes Editor: K aren Bruce 440-8369 [email protected]

Ongoing Fundraisers All cartridges and labels can be deposited in the white bins by the entrance. Thank you! Ink Cartridge Recycling Box Tops http://www.boxtops4education.com Labels for Education http://www.labelsforeducation.com/ 1. Please cut the labels out.

It takes only a few moments but be careful not to cut the UPC code. 2. Separate by value.

There are different collection sheets that sometimes depend on the value of the points. To have all 1-point, all 5-point or all 10-point labels separately helps a lot.

3. No need to attach the labels to the collection sheets.

Tyson Frozen Chicken http://tyson.com/projectaplus/ Your Place of Employment Does your work give donations for volunteer time? We can find some fun things for you to do and you can earn money for Reeds Ferry! In the past few years we have been lucky to have some great volunteers earn the school $200-$300 per year. Check it out! Magazine Drive Please remember that RFS receives 40% from magazine subscriptions (new orders and renewals) all throughout the year. Just go to www.gaschoolstore.com and use our school ID number 2499747. Target card If you have a Target RED Card charge or debit, you can support Reeds Ferry School just by shopping! Whenever you use your RED Card, 1% of your entire total purchase price is donated to Reeds Ferry School. All you have to do is register RFS to your card by calling 1-800-316-6142 or register online by going to http://www-secure.target.com/redcard/tcoe/home Thank you for all of your support!

Frozen fruit bars will be sold on Feb. 6th, Feb. 20th, Mar. 6th, and Mar. 20th. For those who did not prepay, fruit bars are $0.75. Popcorn will be sold on Feb. 12th, Mar. 12th, and Mar. 26th. For those who did not prepay, popcorn is $0.25.

Mark your calendars for: The Reeds Ferry PFA is excited to be joining with the parent groups from Mastricola Elementary and

s Ferry to sponsor " Mer rimack E lementary Schools Night at the Manchester Monarchs " on F riday March 6th. We are selling discounted tickets for friends and families to purchase in advance of the game. Adult tickets cost $16.00 and Youth tickets (12 and under) cost $12.00. Order forms will be going home with the students and must be completed and returned with payment by February 20th. Additional order forms can be printed from the Reeds Ferry PFA website. Please contact Leah Pikora with any questions at [email protected] PFA General Meeting is Thursday, February 19th at 3:30pm in the Library. Babysitting will be provided for your convenience in room 7. Any questions, please contact Lorna Gonzalez at [email protected]. The PFA weekly emails will let you know about upcoming events and remind you of deadlines. You can always opt out at a later date if you change your mind. If interested, just enter your email address at https://www.groupvine.com/reeds-ferry-school/@@apply. Be sure to check out the PFA website for the calendar of all events and volunteer opportunities at http://www.merrimack.k12.nh.us/webpages/pfa/.

A special thank you to A imee Piccolo for volunteering her time and talent to create the many beautiful and imaginative designs on our PFA bulletin board that greets everyone in the main lobby of Reeds Ferry School!

Wipes of all k inds!! ALL our Reeds Ferry classrooms are in need of: Anti-Bacterial H A ND W IPES, Baby Wipes, and C lorox Disinfecting wipes (or any brand for wiping down surfaces).

These items are an ongoing need at our school, but are especially important during cold and flu season. If you would like to help out, please send your donation in your child's backpack or drop it off in the front office. ANY contribution will be greatly appreciated and will benefit the entire school!

Reeds Ferry School 15 Lyons Road

Merrimack, NH 03054

Phone: (603) 424-6215

Fax:

(603) 424-6238 On the Web: http://www.merrimack.k12.nh.us/Reedsferry.cfm

-home volunteer hours on the calendar and send it in with your child. Thank you for all your help. If you have forgotten to send in your previous volunteer work, you are welcome to jot down your hours by month and send those in, too.

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

8 9 10 11 12 13 14

15 16 17 18 19 20 21

22 23 24 25 26 27 28

Name: _________________________

Dates to Remember:

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

1 2 3 4 5 6 Fruit Bars for sale

7

8 9

10 11 12 Popcorn for sale

13

14

15 16 Wint. Wellness Exerc.

17 4th Grade Musical

18 WWE

19 PFA Meeting WWE 2nd Grade Math Night

20 Fruit Bars for sale

2

22 23 Winter Recess (WR)

24 (WR) 25 (WR) 26 (WR) 27 (WR) 28

February

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

1 2 3 4 4th Gr. Field Trip

5 4th Gr Field Trip

6 Fruit Bars Manchester Monarchs

7

8 9

10 11 12 Popcorn for sale

13 14

15 16

17 18

19 PFA Meeting

20 Fruit Bars 1st Gr. Field Tr. 2nd Gr. Field Tr.

21

22 23 24 25 1st Gr. Field Tr. 2nd Gr. Field Tr.

26 Popcorn for sale Parent/Teacher Conferences

27 1st Gr. Field Tr.

28

29 30

31 Parent/Teacher Conf.

March