January Parent Newsletter
January Parent Newsletter Save the Date: January 15th
Martin Luther King Junior Day
January 15th
School Board Meeting
January 16th
WYTOPP Winter Testing Begins
7 PM
District Office
Principal’s Corner Happy New Year! We are excited to be back in school. There are some great things happening at West. The 2nd quarter awards assembly was held on January 3. I was delighted with the number of students that received certificates for attendance, math fact growth, math fact mastery, and typing. Our students are showing some amazing growth. They will have the opportunity to demonstrate that growth again during the next month. Winter WY-TOPP interim assessments will be available for students to take January 16 - February 9. Please watch for notices regarding testing times. Classroom teachers will send these notices home. The Wyoming Test of Proficiency and Progress (WY-TOPP) is a computer-based adaptive assessment. The winter interim test is intended to measure students’ progress towards mastery of grade-level content standards in English Language Arts and Math. The spring summative WY-TOPP assessment replaces the yearly state PAWs tests. Being that the tests are delivered online and will include a writing test in the spring, it is important that students can effectively use the computer keyboard. The typing awards were a reliable indicator that we have students that are becoming comfortable with typing. In the age of technology, this is an important life skill. If your child has access to a computer at home and would like to practice, they can log in to their account at www.typingclub.com. Students may also work on their typing before school during PAW Patrol (7:40-8:00) in the computer lab. Thanks for the encouragement that you give your children every day and the support that you provide to our teachers and school. 2018 is going to be a great year! Mrs. Begin Principal
Health Care from Nurse Crowley
Dressing for Wyoming Winter Weather The outdoors in winter is enjoyed most by students when they are dressed properly. It is also safer when they are dressed appropriately. Here are some steps for dressing for winter weather. *Use a Good Quality Winter Coat…It’s important to stay warm and protected from the winter elements during school recesses. *Wear a Hat…Covering any exposed body part helps retain body heat. *Wear Gloves…Fingers and hands are the most vulnerable to the cold, so it’s important to keep them covered during cold weather. *Wear Winter Socks…Warm winter socks will help keep your students feet warm and dry. *Dress in Layers…Use many thin, warm layers. This will help insulate and allow students to get rid of layers as the temperature climbs during the day. *Know the Daily Forecast…always be aware of the weather forecast as its always changing this time of year. Even if it looks like it might get nicer through the day, the mornings are still cold.
IDIOM OF THE MONTH CONTEST Don’t Take It Literally!!
Congratulations to Mrs. Bjelkevig’s 5th grade class, the December Christmas Poem Idiom challenge contest winner with 73 correct responses. They all received tokens for an ice cream cone at Conoco. Thank you Mr. And Mrs. Richmond for sponsoring the Idiom of the Month Contest. January “Brain Freeze” idioms are up on the board. Mrs. Anderson and Mrs. Hanks will announce the winning class on January 31st. Break a leg!
Off the Shelf: The library is off to a great start in 2018 and I have many new books available for the students to check out. One thing I notice is some of the students will walk around and struggle with what book to check out. Choosing the best book can be easy when kids have a little bit of support and Scholastic Inc. has developed some guidelines which can be helpful in the library. If students just remember the word P.I.C.K., this should help guide them to pick the right book. P = Purpose. Students need to consider their purpose for reading: Are they reading for pleasure? Are they trying to learn something? Is the book going to be read silently or out loud? Who is their audience? I = Interest. When choosing a book, it should be something of interest. Even if children have a short amount of time to choose books, they can determine interest by: -Looking at the front cover -Flipping through the pages to glance at photos or illustrations -Reading the back cover -Reading the chapter titles C = Comprehend. Can he or she understand what’s read? Do I remember what I read? Was I able to read most of the words? K = Know the Words. Readers should be able to decode, or read, and understand the majority of the words on the page. The key is to remembering the “Five Finger Rule”. The “Five Finger Rule” outlines a general idea of how many words a reader should be able to read on each page. - 0-1 unknown words = book is too easy - 2-3 unknown words = book is just right - 4-5 unknown words = book is too difficult Knowing P.I.C.K. is empowering for students and it’s all about giving our kids the tools they need to be strong, confident readers. Please mark your calendar for the Spring Scholastic Book Fair which is scheduled for April 9th – 13th, 2018. Happy reading! Mrs. Sluss Media Specialist
In the Classroom
3rd Grade: Greetings from the third grade!!! Students have been working very hard on their multiplication and division facts. Please continue to work on these facts at home. It was great to see so many students earn awards for their addition, subtraction, and multiplication facts. In science we have been working with magnets and magnetism. Students have been reading different myths, folktales, and fairy tales. We have also been working on persuasive writing. Students are enjoying their guided reading groups. Remember the reading goal for third grade is to read 80 minutes per week. Keep up the great work third grade!!!
4th Grade: Welcome 2018! In math, we have been working on division. We will be moving on to fractions after division. Our mystery unit in reading just finished up and we will be focusing on historical fiction. Our writing focus is on persuasive writing. We are looking forward to Wyoming History this quarter and our Waxless Wax Museum. (More details on the Waxless Wax Museum later!)
5th Grade: Happy 2018! 5th Grade is welcoming in the New Year with new reading rotations. We are focusing on Realistic Fiction this round. In math, we are starting off with order of operations and then will begin working with fractions. Social Studies is continuing to explore the Revolutionary War and in science we are continuing to discover more about mixtures and solutions. We were so proud of all the students recognized for multiplication facts and will continue to improve and challenge ourselves!
‘EVERY DAY IS A GREAT DAY TO LEARN’
WEST ELEMENTARY PTO
~HIGHLY MOTIVATED?? ~ORGANIZED?? ~CREATIVE?? ~PUBLIC RELATION SKILLS?? ~LOVE HELPING STUDENTS?? West Elementary PTO is looking for a new PTO President and we want you on our team!
Please call the office (307)322-4180 if you are interested.
Martin Luther King Junior Day
January 15th
School Board Meeting
January 16th
WYTOPP Winter Testing Begins
7 PM
District Office
Principal’s Corner Happy New Year! We are excited to be back in school. There are some great things happening at West. The 2nd quarter awards assembly was held on January 3. I was delighted with the number of students that received certificates for attendance, math fact growth, math fact mastery, and typing. Our students are showing some amazing growth. They will have the opportunity to demonstrate that growth again during the next month. Winter WY-TOPP interim assessments will be available for students to take January 16 - February 9. Please watch for notices regarding testing times. Classroom teachers will send these notices home. The Wyoming Test of Proficiency and Progress (WY-TOPP) is a computer-based adaptive assessment. The winter interim test is intended to measure students’ progress towards mastery of grade-level content standards in English Language Arts and Math. The spring summative WY-TOPP assessment replaces the yearly state PAWs tests. Being that the tests are delivered online and will include a writing test in the spring, it is important that students can effectively use the computer keyboard. The typing awards were a reliable indicator that we have students that are becoming comfortable with typing. In the age of technology, this is an important life skill. If your child has access to a computer at home and would like to practice, they can log in to their account at www.typingclub.com. Students may also work on their typing before school during PAW Patrol (7:40-8:00) in the computer lab. Thanks for the encouragement that you give your children every day and the support that you provide to our teachers and school. 2018 is going to be a great year! Mrs. Begin Principal
Health Care from Nurse Crowley
Dressing for Wyoming Winter Weather The outdoors in winter is enjoyed most by students when they are dressed properly. It is also safer when they are dressed appropriately. Here are some steps for dressing for winter weather. *Use a Good Quality Winter Coat…It’s important to stay warm and protected from the winter elements during school recesses. *Wear a Hat…Covering any exposed body part helps retain body heat. *Wear Gloves…Fingers and hands are the most vulnerable to the cold, so it’s important to keep them covered during cold weather. *Wear Winter Socks…Warm winter socks will help keep your students feet warm and dry. *Dress in Layers…Use many thin, warm layers. This will help insulate and allow students to get rid of layers as the temperature climbs during the day. *Know the Daily Forecast…always be aware of the weather forecast as its always changing this time of year. Even if it looks like it might get nicer through the day, the mornings are still cold.
IDIOM OF THE MONTH CONTEST Don’t Take It Literally!!
Congratulations to Mrs. Bjelkevig’s 5th grade class, the December Christmas Poem Idiom challenge contest winner with 73 correct responses. They all received tokens for an ice cream cone at Conoco. Thank you Mr. And Mrs. Richmond for sponsoring the Idiom of the Month Contest. January “Brain Freeze” idioms are up on the board. Mrs. Anderson and Mrs. Hanks will announce the winning class on January 31st. Break a leg!
Off the Shelf: The library is off to a great start in 2018 and I have many new books available for the students to check out. One thing I notice is some of the students will walk around and struggle with what book to check out. Choosing the best book can be easy when kids have a little bit of support and Scholastic Inc. has developed some guidelines which can be helpful in the library. If students just remember the word P.I.C.K., this should help guide them to pick the right book. P = Purpose. Students need to consider their purpose for reading: Are they reading for pleasure? Are they trying to learn something? Is the book going to be read silently or out loud? Who is their audience? I = Interest. When choosing a book, it should be something of interest. Even if children have a short amount of time to choose books, they can determine interest by: -Looking at the front cover -Flipping through the pages to glance at photos or illustrations -Reading the back cover -Reading the chapter titles C = Comprehend. Can he or she understand what’s read? Do I remember what I read? Was I able to read most of the words? K = Know the Words. Readers should be able to decode, or read, and understand the majority of the words on the page. The key is to remembering the “Five Finger Rule”. The “Five Finger Rule” outlines a general idea of how many words a reader should be able to read on each page. - 0-1 unknown words = book is too easy - 2-3 unknown words = book is just right - 4-5 unknown words = book is too difficult Knowing P.I.C.K. is empowering for students and it’s all about giving our kids the tools they need to be strong, confident readers. Please mark your calendar for the Spring Scholastic Book Fair which is scheduled for April 9th – 13th, 2018. Happy reading! Mrs. Sluss Media Specialist
In the Classroom
3rd Grade: Greetings from the third grade!!! Students have been working very hard on their multiplication and division facts. Please continue to work on these facts at home. It was great to see so many students earn awards for their addition, subtraction, and multiplication facts. In science we have been working with magnets and magnetism. Students have been reading different myths, folktales, and fairy tales. We have also been working on persuasive writing. Students are enjoying their guided reading groups. Remember the reading goal for third grade is to read 80 minutes per week. Keep up the great work third grade!!!
4th Grade: Welcome 2018! In math, we have been working on division. We will be moving on to fractions after division. Our mystery unit in reading just finished up and we will be focusing on historical fiction. Our writing focus is on persuasive writing. We are looking forward to Wyoming History this quarter and our Waxless Wax Museum. (More details on the Waxless Wax Museum later!)
5th Grade: Happy 2018! 5th Grade is welcoming in the New Year with new reading rotations. We are focusing on Realistic Fiction this round. In math, we are starting off with order of operations and then will begin working with fractions. Social Studies is continuing to explore the Revolutionary War and in science we are continuing to discover more about mixtures and solutions. We were so proud of all the students recognized for multiplication facts and will continue to improve and challenge ourselves!
‘EVERY DAY IS A GREAT DAY TO LEARN’
WEST ELEMENTARY PTO
~HIGHLY MOTIVATED?? ~ORGANIZED?? ~CREATIVE?? ~PUBLIC RELATION SKILLS?? ~LOVE HELPING STUDENTS?? West Elementary PTO is looking for a new PTO President and we want you on our team!
Please call the office (307)322-4180 if you are interested.
