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I hope everyone had an enjoyable Thanksgiving Break. I know I enjoyed time with my family and friends over the long break from school. It may seem hard to believe, but we only have 15 school days before the start of the December Holiday Break. Our last day of school

before the break is Wednesday, December 21st (the break begins on Thursday, December 22nd). Staff and students will return on Wednesday, January 4th.

Parent-Teacher Conferences - It was wonderful to see many parents at Parent-Teacher conferences during the month of November. We are pleased with the fact that we always have close to 100% of our students represented at parent-teacher conferences. I would also like to thank our PTO for providing dinner for our staff during both evenings of Parent-Teacher Conferences. This is always a greatly appreciated gesture.

PE-Nut Lessons with our PE-Nut Instructor Ms. Voelker are ending –

I am sad to report that funding for the PE-Nut Program (Physical Education and Nutrition Working Together Program) that I sent home information about a couple of weeks ago is ending effectively immediately. I was notified on Tuesday that our school no longer meets the requirements for the program and can no longer have a PE-Nut instructor come to our school. Ms. Darnell and Ms. Voelker did a fabulous job educating our students about the im-portance of proper nutrition and exercise. We are going to miss this program and their en-thusiasm a lot!!!

TOMORROW NIGHT - Title I Family Math Night –

Our Title I Family Math Night is TOMORROW NIGHT - Thursday, December 1st, from

6:30 p.m.-8:00 p.m. Many thanks to our Title I Teacher, Mrs. Crane, for organizing this event for us, and to all of the staff who are assisting with the activities that are planned. Please plan to bring your family to this fun-filled evening - an evening in which you will go home with ideas for supporting your children at home in the area of Math. There will be raffle drawings and many take-home activities. For your calendar - our Title I Family

Literacy (Reading) Night will be on Tuesday, March 21st - our spring book fair will also be open that evening.

December 2016 Notes from the Principal:

THREE FIRES ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

Kari L. Naghtin, Principal

4125 CROOKED LAKE ROAD

HOWELL, MI 48843

PHONE: 517-548-6387

FAX: 517-548-7524

ATTENDANCE: 517-548-6388

HPS Mission Statement:

Howell Public Schools is an exemplary learning com-

munity committed to taking responsibility for stu-

dent achievement as we engage parents, partners,

and community to maximize every student's success.

THE TIMBERWOLF TIMES

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Notes from the Principal Continued:

The Three Fires LOC Student-run Credit Union has been open for a couple of

weeks – Our student-run branch of the LOC Credit Union is open every

Wednesday from 2:30 p.m.-3:15 p.m. Included in today’s packet is information about opening an account and an application. Please let us know if you have any questions.

Safety Concerns during the Morning Drop-off - It has been brought to my at-tention that there are numerous safety concerns in our parking lot during the morning drop-off. These concerns mainly revolve around individuals who are not safely and patiently waiting in line. As a result, we have individuals who choose to exit the line of cars (that has formed) too early which results in them driving “on the wrong side” of the driveway essentially putting them at risk of having a head-on collision with another vehicle. If you are planning to park in a parking spot rather than use the drop-off system, please stay in the line of cars until it is safe to make a left-hand turn down one of the parking lot lanes. No one needs to have a fender bender to start their day!!!

Facilities Utilization Committee Recommendation and Next Steps - Most

parents of Three Fires students received an email from Superintendent Erin McGregor regarding the District Facilities Utilization Committee Recommendation to move Southeast Elementary School to Three Fires Elementary School for the 2017-2018 school year. The Board of Education heard a report at their board meeting this past Monday. The Board will vote on the recommendation at their meeting on Monday, December 12th. That meeting is scheduled to begin at 7:00 p.m. in the boardroom at 411 N. Highlander Way, Howell, MI. There is information and numerous documents located on the district website at the following link: http://www.howellschools.com/board_of_education.cfm?subpage=2101250 Please feel free to email questions that you may have to hpsfacilities@howellschools.com, or feel free to contact me here at Three Fires.

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Notes from the Principal Continued:

General Reminders –

• The Salvation Army Food Drive continues through Friday, December 2ne. Please remem-ber to send donations to school with your child TOMORROW or FRIDAY.

• Three Fires “Giving Tree” - With the arrival of the holiday season, I would like to remind our Three Fires families of the Giving Tree that is placed in the front foyer each December. Three Fires students and their families donate winter clothing such as hats, mit-tens, scarves, earmuffs, etc., to be placed on the tree. Once the holiday season is over these items are donated to LACASA. Through the wonderful generosity of our students, families,

and staff, we are able to send a “warm” selection of winter accessories to individuals in need. Please consider donating an item so that by the time we leave on Winter Break on the 21st of December, our “Giving Tree” is full!!! The tree will be in the lobby beginning on Monday, November 28th! • Each year I share a suggestion that a parent shared with me several years ago. This par-ent mentioned that it was a family tradition to provide a small gift to a teacher or staff mem-ber. This parent wondered if teachers would appreciate a small gift for the classroom instead

of a more “personal” gift, and wondered if other families might appreciate this idea. The teachers and staff at Three Fires do not expect or encourage the receiving of gifts during the holidays, however, if it is a tradition in your family to provide a gift to a teacher or staff member you might consider purchasing a gift for the classroom. I have known families to go together and purchase a gift for the classroom. In years past, teachers have suggested gifts for the classroom such as books, puzzles, Legos, card games, or board games. Adopting a book for our media center in the teacher or staff member’s name is also a great idea for the holi-days. Stacy Klein, our Media Secretary, would be able to answer any questions that you might

have about the “Adopt a Book” program.

As always, please pay close attention to classroom newsletters and the Wednesday Packets as the weeks between the Thanksgiving break and the December Holiday break are always full of special activities. The break begins at the end of the day on Tuesday, December 21st. Staff and

students will return to school on Wednesday, January 4th. The January Timberwolf Times will go home on Wednesday, January 4th, 2017.

In closing, I would like to thank each of you for all you do to make Three Fires a great place for students to go to school and for staff to work. Our families support us in so many ways!!! My hope is that you find time during the upcoming holiday season to enjoy family, friends, and memo-ries, and that you find time to reflect on what you are thankful for this year.

I wish each of our families a very enjoyable holiday season!!!

Sincerely,

Kari L. Naghtin

Principal

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KID’S KARE

A fee of $20 per child/per session will be charged each time a (non-registered) child: - is dropped off before 8:40 am - in grades K-3 is taken home on the bus, and there is no parent/guardian or older

sibling to greet the child; - is not picked up after school and is brought to Kids’ Kare when the office personnel

leave for the day. Parents wanting to use Kids’ Kare must register at the Freshman Campus room 139. Please allow 24 hours from the time paperwork is turned in and when your child needs to attend child care for processing.

District Child Find Information

Each school building in the Howell School District has a process in place, which is a vehicle for staff members to review student performance, concerns and collaboratively develop interventions. If you have concerns about your child’s development and are interested in more information on special services, contact his/her building Principal. If you have concerns about the development of your infant toddler, or preschooler, contact the local district’s Special Education Director at (517) 548-6358 or log into our Website at www.howellschools.com and click on Special Education for more informa-tion.

Howell Early Childhood Programs Offered at Three Fires Elementary

KID’S KARE

Kid’s Kare is a safe and fun-loving Before and After School

Program offered to Grades K-5th

AM Session 6:30-8:45 AM $8.50 per session PM Session 3:39-6:00 PM $8.50 per session

PRESCHOOL

4 Year-Old Preschool

Tuition Based Program M-W-F Class

9:00 AM—!2:00 PM

Please contact: Jennifer Lapa Phone: (517)548-6310 Email: lapaj@howellschools.com

Lisa Zehnder Phone: (517)540-8276 Email: zehnderl@howellschools.com

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The cost for the 2016-2017 school year for breakfast is $1.90 and $2.55 for lunch (this includes milk). Milk, if purchased separately, will cost $.50. Parents may deposit money in their meal accounts in ad-vance, rather than sending money in on a daily basis. You can pay by day, week, or month. There are ba-sically two advanced payment options. One option is to send the money to school with your child. The best way to do this is by check. Make all checks for lunches payable to Howell Food Service. If stu-dents need to pay with cash, they should bring it in a sealed envelope or Ziploc bag with their name,

grade, and teacher’s name on it. The cash or check should be turned in to the child’s teacher in the morning when they get to school. The other option is to create an account and make a credit card de-posit on line at SendMoneyToSchool.com. There is a $1.75 service charge for making a credit card de-posit on SendMoneyToSchool.com. There is no charge to view your child’s account history. In addition to checking balance on SendMoneyToSchool.com, lunch balances are imported into PowerSchool daily at 5:00 p.m. You can view the balance from the PowerSchool parent portal.

A student may charge up to one meal if they forget their lunch or lunch money. Students may not

charge for ala carte items, except for milk. Students who have no meal credit left, may receive a meal replacement of a cheese sandwich for up to two days in a row. If the same student needs a meal re-placement on the third consecutive day, the kitchen manager will give a referral to the principal.

ParentLink, our automated message system, will call on Mondays and Thursdays at 5:00 p.m., if your child’s account has a negative balance.

Food service will notify families by phone when a bounced check is received. The bounced check money (in the student’s meal account) can be used for up to two more days after the notice. A cheese sand-

wich and milk can be offered for up to two days after the above, if the bounced check still isn’t re-solved. A bounced check fee of $20.00 will be applied to each bounced check and must be paid before the student can use the remaining money on the bounced check. Food service will allow only two bounced checks per school year.

If you have any Food Service questions, please call Sharon Lenard at 517-548-6265.

Cafeteria News

PAPER RETRIEVER RECYCLING Green and Yellow Bin in the Front Parking Lot

In the past, the green and yellow recycling bin out front provided approximately $50.00 in extra funds to the school each year. Due to the prolonged record-low commodity pricing for recycled pa-per, Paper Retriever no longer is paying rebates to places that have a bin on their property. They hope to reinstate their rebate program when commodity pricing increases. In order to support our efforts to continue “going green”, they have continued to col-lect/empty the bin on a regular basis. Please continue to bring your newspapers, magazines, office & school papers, shopping catalogs, and mail to the bin located in the front parking lot near the gate to the playground. To protect against possible identity theft, paper that contains personal infor-mation should be shredded prior to placing it in the bin. We will notify our families if and when the rebate program is reinstated…in the meantime use the bin to help save the environment!!!

We need All your: • Newspaper • Magazines • Office & School Papers • Shopping Catalogs • Mail Please DO NOT include: • Cardboard • Plastic • Metals • Trash • Glass • Phonebooks

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The definition for “medication” is as fol-

lows: “medication” shall be construed to

include prescription, non-prescription and

herbal medication. This policy shall apply

whether the medication is administered

orally, by inhaler, through injection (i.e.,

EPI pen, SC or IM), drops to the eye or

nose or applied to the skin.

The following are a few important points

of the medication policy:

• ALL prescription medication must

have written physician and parent

permission to be administered here at

school. Forms available in the office.

• Over-the-counter medications, such

as aspirin, ointments, cold tablets,

etc., must have written parent per-

mission to be administered here at

school. Forms available in the office.

• The student or parent must bring the

medication to school in a container

appropriately labeled by the phar-

macy or physician with the student’s

name, name of medication, dosage,

and frequency of administering.

Medications should be brought to

school by the parent or guardian. In

those rare instances where this ex-

pectation cannot be met and the stu-

dent is to transport the medication to

school, then the medication must be

given to the school bus driver for

safe transport and then given back to

the student upon arrival at school. In

such event, the student is to report

immediately to the school office to

deliver the medication.

• Medication wi l l be taken/

administered on field trips according

to the regular administration plan/

policy. Parents will be contacted if

the regular administration plan needs

to be adjusted due to the field trip

schedule.

• The administrator/supervisor shall

request that a pharmacy/parent sup-

ply the oral medication in the exact

dosage prescribed so that the individ-

ual administering medications is not

responsible for dividing/splitting pills.

• When received, prescription medica-

tion will be counted by a designated

staff member (any school personnel

who has been in-serviced). The count

will be recorded and the person

counting the medication will initial the

count. The amount of medication will

be reconciled with the prior count and

the medication administration record.

Any errors shall be reported to the

Building Principal and to the parent/

guardian. The Building Principal , in

consultation with the Associate Su-

perintendent shall review the medica-

tion administration record and the

monthly count sheet on a regular ba-

sis.

• No changes to medication dosage or

time of administration will be made

except by instruction from a physi-

cian or in an emergency.

• Medication left over at the end of

the year or after a pupil has left the

district shall be picked up by the

parent/guardian, or disposed of by

the district. If the medication is not

picked up the district will dispose of

the medication and the disposal will

be recorded on the medication log.

This procedure will be witnessed and

initialed by a second adult.

A copy of the complete medication policy

is available in the school office. Please

contact us at 517-548-6387 and we will

gladly send it home with your child.

Medications Taken at School

Bus Schedules for all schools are listed

on the Howell Public Schools website at:

www.howellschools.com.

You will click on the Transportation Link on the left hand side. Scroll down to

where the bus routes are listed and click the school name. Bus schedules are

also located in the Scanner Publication,

which is mailed to your home in August.

If a student needs to be picked up/delivered to a stop other than the one

to which he/she is assigned, a Request for Alternate Busing Address form

must be completed two weeks in ad-

vance. If you need transportation to before and/or after school care for

your child and we have a transfer bus to that school, alternate busing will be

available to you. If we do not have a

transfer bus to the school that your

child would need to transfer to for before and/or after-school care, alter-

nate busing will not be available to you. Please check with the office to deter-

mine if a particular transfer bus is

available.

Alternate busing forms are available at the Transportation Department, on-line,

or in the school office. Alternate busing forms can be turned in directly to the

Transportation Department or faxed to

Transportation at 517-548-6364.

Students may not use any other route/

stop without prior approval. The office will only approve bus passes for stu-

dents in the event of an emergency.

Please remember that a parent/

guardian or older sibling must meet all

K-3 students at their bus stop. If a

parent/guardian or older sibling is not at the stop to meet the student (K-3),

the student will be returned to Kids Kare at their school and there will be a

$20.00 fee charged to the parent.

If you have any Requests for Alternate

Busing or have any questions regarding your child’s transportation, please feel

free to stop by and visit the Transpor-

tation Department.

If you have any other questions, please contact transportation at 517-548-

6245 or the school office at 517-548-

6387.

Transportation News

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School Hours

School starts for all students at 8:50

a.m. and dismissal is at 3:39 p.m. Stu-

dents will not be allowed into the

building before 8:40 a.m.

Free and Reduced

Lunch

If your child currently

receives a free or reduced

lunch, it will stay in effect

for two weeks until you fill

out a new form. If you think

you qualify for a free or re-

duced lunch, please contact

the principal, and she will

send the form home with

your child. If you have any

questions, please contact

Sharon Lenard at 517-548-

6265.

Student Drop Off and Pick Up / Parking Procedures

Three Fires provides safe and convenient curbside drop-off and pick-up procedures when everyone follows the same rules. • Students should not be dropped off before 8:40 am. There is no supervision before that time. • Parents should indicate on their child’s emergency card the means by which he/she will go to and from school – bus, walk, or parent transport. If your child will be going home in a different manner than usual, PLEASE send a note or call the office. • Parent/visitor parking is available in the lot in front of the building. One drop-off/pick-up lane is also maintained along the front sidewalk of the school. Please pull all the way to the end, having your student(s) exit to the sidewalk through the passenger side of the vehicle. • If you are dropping your child off in the morning or picking your child up at the end of the day, either use the drop-off/pick-up lane OR park in the parking lot in the front of the school and come into the building. • When utilizing the drop-off/pick-up lane, the driver MUST remain in the car. DO NOT PARK IN THE DROP-OFF/PICK-UP LANE. THIS IS STRICTLY FOR DROP-O FF/PICK-UP ONLY. • Students will be remain inside the building until the car picking them up is at the front of the pick-up lane. Parents can park and walk up to the pick-up area to get their child(ren). • If the driver plans to enter the school, the car MUST be parked in a parking space. • Parents picking up a child inside the school should meet their children by the front office. A student should not be picked up at the classroom. • If you are picking up your child in the afternoon and your child does not know, please contact the office by 2:45 p.m. We make classroom calls at 3:00 p.m. This will be the only time we interrupt the classrooms unless it is an emergency. • If your child is aware that he/she is being picked up, there is no need to come into the office. You can pick up your child(ren) in the drop-off/pick-up lane. Of course, you are more than welcome to come in if you choose. • We are always looking for a parent or two to assist with drop off in the morning. Please contact the office if you are interested. BUS LOT – Due to safety issues, THERE ARE NO CARS ALLOWED IN THE BUS LOT, WHICH IS LOCATED BEHIND THE SCHOOL.

Lunch Times

Lunch times are as follows:

KG: 11:15 am-12:00 pm

1st Gr.: 11:30 am—12:15 pm

2nd Gr.:

11:45 am—12:30 pm

3rd Gr.:

12:00 pm—12:45 pm

4th Gr.:

12:15 pm—1:00 pm

5th Gr.:

12:30 pm—1:15 pm

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Three Fires PTO accepts checks for school events, fundraisers and donations as detailed be-low. You will be charged $35 for any returned checks. If you have any questions, please con-tact Jodie Austin at 517-545-7119 our Three Fires PTO Treasurer .

PARENT TEACHER ORGANIZATION

PTO News

The PTO Officers for the 2016-2017 school year are:

President: Allison Collins

Vice-President: Holly Caldwell

Treasurer: Jodie Austin

Secretary: Karrie Gusman

PTO E-mail: threefirespto@yahoo.com

All meetings are held in Library

Hope to see you there.

PTO MEETING DATES: Mondays 10/17/16—6:00 p.m. 11/21/16—4:00 p.m. 1/23/17—6:00 p.m. 2/27/17—4:00 p.m. 3/20/17—6:00 p.m. 4/17/17—4:00 p.m. 5/15/17—4:00 p.m. (voting)

Three Fires

Lunch

Schedule

2016-2017

Grade Lunch Time Recess Transition Eat 5 Minute

Warning

KDG. 11:15 – 12:00 11:15 - 11:35 11:35 - 11:40 11:40 - 12:00 11:55

1st 11:30 – 12:15 11:30 – 11:50 11:50 – 11:55 11:55 – 12:15 12:10

2nd 11:45 – 12:30 11:45 – 12:05 12:05 - 12:10 12:10 - 12:30 12:25

3rd 12:00 - 12:45 12:00-12:20 12:20 - 12:25 12:25 - 12:45 12:40

4th 12:15 - 1:00 12:15 – 12:35 12:35 - 12:40 12:40 – 1:00 12:55

5th 12:30 – 1:15 12:30 – 12:50 12:50 - 12:55 12:55 – 1:15 1:10

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PTO Meetings:

January 23 @ 3:45pm

February 27 @ 3:45pm

March 20 @ 3:45pm

April 17 @ 3:45pm

May 15 @ 3:45pm

(voting)

We are changing the

times of our meetings to

3:45pm due to low

turnout at our 6pm

meetings.

IMPORTANT DATES:

MOD PIZZA

NIGHT

Wed., Dec. 7

4-8pm

Three Fires Elementary PTO News December 2016

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President: Allison Collins

Vice President: Holly Caldwell

Treasurer: Jodie Austin

Secretary: Karrie Gusman

Email: threefirespto@yahoo.com

Happy Holidays!!!!

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Santa Shop is approaching this December. The students will be shopping the 13th-15th. All items are priced at $2. Flyers will be coming home in the next few Wednesday packets. Please take this opportunity to discuss this event with your child. It is an exciting time for them to shop for family members, friends and even themselves!

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We will be having a MOD Pizza fundraising night on Wednesday, December 7th from 4-8pm. Please come out to support the PTO and be served by some “SURPRISE” guests you may recognize!!! 20% of all sales during our time will come back to our school!!!

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We are looking for any new or used Christmas decorations that you would like to donate so that we may decorate the school, even old Christmas trees!!!! There will be a box located by our front bulletin board for you to place them. Any questions please email threefirespto@yahoo.com

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Our annual Cookies for Teachers will be December 20th. Every year we package up 45 cookie boxes for the entire Three Fires staff. This requires a lot of baking from our volunteers! (4-5 dozen per person to be exact) If you would like to contribute cookies, homemade or store bought, please email us at threefirespto@yahoo.com. We will contact you with the details.

We wish everyone a very safe and happy holiday!

ROLLERAMA

SKATE NIGHT

Thurs.,

Dec.15th

6-8pm

NO SCHOOL

December 22

to

January 3