MEADOWLARK NEWSLETTER
JUNE 2017
PRINCIPAL'S MESSAGE
The month of May has been filled with many celebrations of learning and experiences that the students will carry with them for a lifetime! It has been fun and exhausting!!!!
This month has also been full of hiring new staff members! Our projected enrollment is increasing so our grade level sections looks as follows:
1 Half Day Kindergarten - morning session
1 All Day Kindergarten
3 First Grade
3 Second Grade
2 Third Grade
3 Fourth Grade
3 Fifth Grade
We are excited to welcome Ashley Wiltse and Sarah Boline! They both come to Andover with a wealth of experience and will be teaching second grade and fourth grade. Also, another bit of exciting news is that Mrs. Russo, our art teacher, will not be moving out of state so she will be with us next school year! YEAH!
I hope that you and your family have a wonderful summer! The entire Meadowlark Staff looks forward to seeing you in August!
Dana Matheny
Lost & Found Clothing
CALENDAR
JUNE
June 12-16 - Parents and students will not be able to access PowerSchool
June 18 - Father's Day
JULY
4 - Independence Day
17 - Powerschool Open (Online Enrollment Begins)
AUGUST
3 - Returning Students Enroll in person (if not completed online)
4 - New Students Enroll in Person (if not completed online)
4 - Deadline for Transportation Enrollment (for first 2 weeks of school)
11 - Deadline to Enroll through eRegistration
11 - Transportation Routes Available in PowerSchool
14 - Deadline for Parents to Enroll their Child in Transportation
15 - Meet Your Teacher Night
16, 17,18 - Kindergarten Screening
16 - First Day for 1st - 5th Grades
2017-2018 District Calendar
We wish our staff a very Happy Birthday!
1 - Leah Lukovic (Art Teacher)
26 - Bev Finney (Kindergarten Teacher)
- 4 - Kamy Gorges (Reading Aide)
- 13 - Melanie Hutchinson (ELL Teacher)
- 15 - Maureen Lovell (Instructional Aide)
- 16 - Erin Middleton (Music Teacher)
- 20 - Tracy Flake (Speech)
- 21 - Stella Canfield (Library Clerk)
- 21 - Michaila Pfaff (1st Grade Teacher)
- 24 - Amy Buchanan (Reading Aide)
Please join us in expressing appreciation and fond farewell to..
Mrs. Taylor
Mrs. Lovell
Mrs. McGill
Mrs. Kamman
Mrs. Dorf
Mrs. Breed
Mrs. Winn
Mrs. Salazar
Mrs. Forred
Mrs. Canfield
Mrs. Wadsworth
Mrs. Elsbernd
They will be truly missed!
THANK YOU for making Fitness 4 Funds 2017 a HUGE success!
Meadowlark students earned the following prizes and awards:
203 students earned a Free Hour for submitting 5 address labels
(126 students received popcorn at the Free Hour for submitting 10 or more labels)
839 total keychains & beach balls were distributed (for raising $10, $25, $40, $50 or online)
137 students earned a Meadowlark Water Bottle
323 entries were placed into a Grand Prize drawing for a Chromebook
Congratulations to Braxton D. for winning the Chromebook at our assembly!
The top 3 classes with the highest % of students returning their completed label sheets earned a PE day of their choice: Moss (91%), Segraves (78%) and Smith (77%).
The 3 classes with the highest average amount of donations per student each earned $100 in educational materials: Hoopes ($159), Pfaff ($146) and Loy ($121).
The top fundraisers went bowling for an in-school field trip! Because of the huge success of this fundraiser, 41 students attended this field trip.
Meadowlark exceeded our goal of $20,000 so every grade received $300 to be used in the classrooms (5th grade went on a field trip). In addition, the school had a DJ Dance Party in May!
This event raised more than $30,000 for the Meadowlark Elementary PTO. Thank you for your support and making 2017 a record setting year!!
We would also like to thank our sponsors for their donations.
Thank you to The Popcorner for popcorn party donations and to Wayne & Kay Woolsey for the donation of the Chromebook!
Fitness 4 Funds Assembly
Braxton D.
Top Fundraisers
STAFF APPRECIATION WEEK, MAY 8 - 12
The staff would like to thank the PTO for the delicious lunch from Sweet B's on Tuesday, May 9th and providing the staff with special treats all week long.
A special THANK YOU to Gaylene Alderson for ordering the delicious food, Amber Kear, Mary Lyddane and Shelley Dunnegan for doing a great job of decorating the teacher workroom and doors with a movie theme.
We had an awesome week!
PE News.....
The month of May is National Physical Fitness and Sports Month. It's so important for kids to understand the importance of staying fit and being healthy. The best way to encourage and motivate students to exercise is by showing them that exercise can be fun and enjoyable!
On May 5th, our district hosted it's first Kansas Kids Fitness Day. The South side elementary schools, Meadowlark, Sunflower, and Prairie Creek held their event at the Andover Central High School Football Field. It was a beautiful day and our 3rd graders had a great time!
On May 19th, Meadowlark had it's annual "Fun In the Sun" field day. We ended up having the entire school participate in this event in the morning, and we barely finished with the event when it started to pour down rain! I want to thank all of the parents, staff, and even some students who helped with setting up equipment, running stations, and clean up. You are all awesome!!!
In June I will be putting on a summer camp. We still have a couple openings if your child would still like to sign up. Session 1 is June 12-15, and Session 2 is June 19-22 both are 9:30-11:30. If you have any questions you can contact me at crusinbt@usd385.org. Have a great summer!!!
Mrs. Crusinberry
PE Teacher
Kansas Kids Fitness Day - 3rd Grade
Fun in the Sun
The All-Star Reading program was another HUGE success!
We wrapped up our All-Star 25 program with a fun fourth quarter incentive. Students who met their reading goal got to enjoy the movie Moana, popcorn from The Popcorner, and a slushie from Kona Ice. Students did an excellent job meeting their goals this year, and we had a lot of fun at each and every incentive.
A special thank you to the PTO for all their help with making these fun events happen.
Top 12 Reading Students
Congratulations to these students.......
Hailey M., Claire G., Colton B., Ethan S., Noor T., Landon G., Noelle B., Gabby P., Madison S., Ava C., Emilie T. and Ethan F.
Don't forget to keep reading this summer!
Meadowlark Hero Award
First Grade News
First Grade wrapped up their Wizard of Oz Unit with a Skype call with the Wizard of Oz museum in Wamego, Kansas! We were able to see artifacts from the movie, and many of the different books written about the Wizard of Oz characters.
Another exciting part of the wrap up of our unit included visits from Meteorologist Jay Prater and Meteorologist Chance Hayes! We greatly enjoyed their presentations, and appreciated them taking time to come speak with us! Our first grade students have become weather experts with their help!
Skype
Meteorologist Chance Hayes
Meteorologist Jay Prater
Meadowlark College
Students got to experience a day in a college on Thursday, May 18th. Students had the difficult task of choosing six out of twenty five fun courses. Each class was 40 minutes long with a 5 minute transition period between each class. Students not only had a valuable experience but a lot of fun as well.
Courses Offered
- Color, Color, and More Color!
- Building Circuits in a Snap!
- Wacky Water Colors
- Go Noodle
- LEGO & Cardboard Construction
- 3D Art
- Meadowlark Family Feud
- Pente
- STEM Bins
- Meadowlark Construction Zone
- Games Galore!
- Act it Out
- Architectural Design & Engineering 101
- Come Back to Kindergarten (2 classes)
- Team Relays & Games
- Making Ice Cream
- Zumba
- Wacky Bird Mural
- Drumming & Humming
- Hats of the Hospital
- Silly Face Flowerpots
- The Lab of Slime
- Water Bottle Flip Challenge
- Getting Groovy with Lava Lamps
- Cubcake Decorating 101
5th Grade Wax Museum
Dates for 2017-2018 Music Programs
Kindergarten
No date set
1st & 2nd Grade
Tuesday, January 23
3rd & 4th Grade
Thursday, April 26th
5th Grade
Thursday, October 26th
2017 Summer Lunch Program
Tuesdays (11:30 am-12:00 noon) at St. Vincent de Paul Catholic Church
Wednesdays (6:00-6:30 pm) at Andover United Methodist Church
May 30th - August 9th
Dear Families,
Do you know a family that is feeling the impact of the challenging economic conditions? Perhaps you are struggling to make ends meet. The Andover Community Food Bank is striving to help alleviate the struggle families face to feed their children, which is felt more dramatically during the summer months.
The Summer Lunch Program is open to any student in the Andover School District who needs a lunch provided during the summer months. The lunches will be distributed weekly at the two locations listed above.
The lunches begin on Tuesday, May 30th and end Wednesday, August 9th. When the children arrive, they will need to sign in before receiving their lunches. FYI - there will be no lunches distributed on July 4th, if other arrangements need to be made, please contact us.
For more information or questions, contact Mary at the Andover Community Food Bank at 316-733-7167.
Exercise Kids' Minds During the Summer
If students laze away the days of summer without using their minds, they can lose up to a month of learning - especially in reading and math. Stem the summer slide and keep your child engaged with these fun, brain-friendly activities.
Devise a plan. Tell your child that reading and learning activities will be an important part of their summer. Assure them that they’ll still have lots of time for play.
Teach mini-lessons. Transform everyday activities into learning opportunities. Children can count change, read directions for a trip, write a shopping list, or calculate a recipe’s measurements.
Gather activity books. Give children their own activity book with crossword puzzles or number games customized for their specific age group. Set a “due date” to keep them on track, but let them work at their own pace.
Initiate a writing project. Have your child keep a summer journal, write letters to family members or friends, or craft a play to perform with siblings or neighbors. Or, start a family cookbook with your favorite recipes, instructions, and shopping lists.
Strategize screen time. Educational computer games or apps can engage students’ minds, but make sure your child is spending enough time away from the screen. Assign a daily block of time for family members to turn off phones, computers, and the TV, and instead play a board game or read together.
Designate daily reading blocks. Set aside at least 15 minutes a day for your entire family to read. (That means parents, too!) Find reading recommendations by grade level on the American Library Association’s book lists (see Web Resources). Organize a summer read-a-thon with goals for each family member, or sign your child up for your library’s summer book club.
Go global. Set aside several nights during the summer to have an international evening. Together, cook a meal with recipes from a different nation. Learn basic words in that country’s language. Find the country on a map, and together examine a book or article with information on what life is like there.
Sneak learning into family trips. If your family is able to take a vacation during the summer, include stops at zoos, children’s museums, or historic sites. Have your child help you plot out the journey using maps and keep a journal along the way. Older children can tally up miles, keep track of expenses, or compute gas mileage.
Get moving. Build physical activity into your child’s summer days. Even if he or she can’t participate in a local sports league or community-based team, encourage activities such as jumping rope, playing catch, and taking family walks.
For more resources, look to your child’s school and your local library or community center for ideas to keep kids’ brains buzzing during the dog days of summer.
Report to Parents, written to serve elementary and middle-level principals, may be reproduced by National Association of Elementary School Principals members without permission. It can be posted to school websites, blogs, or sent via email. Back issues are available to members at naesp.org.
Don't forget to keep collecting those little Box Tops over the summer!
Did you know that each Box Top you clip and submit is worth 10 cents to your child's school?
Dillons Community Rewards Program
Fifty three participating households have signed up and tied their Dillons Plus card to our PTO. Dillons Community Rewards makes fund-raising easy. All you have to do is shop at Dillons and swipe your Shopper's Plus Card! ... Click here to sign up. It only takes a few seconds!!!!
From all the staff at Meadowlark Elementary, we wish you a fun and safe summer!
Staff waved to the students on the last day of school!
Meadowlark Elementary School
Email: harveyr@usd385.org
Website: http://meadowlark.usd385.org/
Location: 1411 N Main St, Andover, KS, United States
Phone: 316-218-4630
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/meadowlarkelementary