B.B RICE ELEMENTARY
JANUARY 2018
904 Gladstell Street
Conroe, TX 77304
936-709-2700
Fax 936-709-2799
School Mission
More than competency in the basic skills of reading, writing, and math, it is this school’s mission to nurture in each child:
The habit of creative independent thinking, a positive self-image, an attitude of social cooperation and moral responsibility, pride in self, community, state, and country, and
the ability to be a producer, not just a consumer, of Knowledge.
“In this school, we reach for the stars.”
School Information
- The building opens at 7:30 for students to eat breakfast and go to class.
- Please do not drop off students before 7:30 as there is no adult
- supervision.
- Breakfast is served from 7:30-7:55. 1st through 4th grade eat inside their classrooms. PK and Kinder eat in the cafeteria.
- Morning PK students go directly to the cafeteria and meet their teachers.
- The lunch menu is located on the Rice website: Rice.conroeisd.net
- Afternoon PK begins at 12:10. If they are going to eat lunch, then they need to arrive at 11:45.
- Students may not be checked out or change transportation mode after 2:30. This is for the safety of the students.
- Dismissal begins at 3:10.
- Please make sure you have your car rider sign in your car for car rider. You will be asked to park and come inside if you do not have your tag.
- Thank you for all your help to make this the very best year!!!
From the Principal's Desk
Dear Parents:
Welcome back, I hope everyone’s Winter Break was enjoyable and filled with great memories to cherish forever.
Wow, I can’t believe it is already the second semester….times flies when you are learning. As we begin the new semester, I want to encourage you to make attendance one of your top priorities. Every day, students learn and practice new skills. Student attendance is critical to student success.
The topic of empathy is coming up more and more with new research all the time on how powerful it is for emotional stability in children.
I love the article in the link below because it refreshed my thoughts on empathy. It reminded me that the more we practice our responses the more they become part of who we are. Showing empathy isn't magic, but it can transform our children's lives.
http://www.ahaparenting.com/blog/When_Empathy_Doesnt_Work
Have a great day!
Mrs. Stewart
Message From Your Assistant Principal
Parents:
Happy New Year!
I am so excited about starting the New Year off at B.B. Rice. I am looking forward to another awesome semester! The Spring semester is filled with many opportunities for students to capitalize on their learning experiences.
This is also the time of year to prepare for upcoming State and district assessments.
Please make sure that your child(ren):
- attend school as much as possible
- arrive to school on time
- get plenty of rest and nutritional meals
- is on their best behavior and focused on learning
I am confident that this semester will prove to be very productive for the students at B.B. Rice!
Mr. Harness
Message From School Counselor...
Dear Parents,
Welcome back! I am looking forward to a great semester with all of our hard working students. With being on break for two and a half weeks, getting back into a routine might be a challenge. Here is some great pointers on how to start the day by the founder of Love and Logic, Dr. Charles Fay.
- Teach confidence by showing it. When parents spend too much time trying to calm their children's fears, their children begin to think, "Wow. If my parents are this concerned about me, and they have to talk this much about going to school, maybe there really is something to be worried about! More effective parents give lots of hugs, listen, and say, "I love you." Doing this, they send a very strong message of confidence. Simply put, confident parents tend to have confident kids… worried parents tend to have worried kids.
- If you drive your child to school, leave quickly. Smart parents give quick hugs, let their kids know they're in a hurry, and leave without looking back. Why? Because the underlying message they send to their children is, "You can handle this. You're strong!" It's amazing how children either live up to – or down to – our expectations.
- Avoid backing down from tantrums and tears. Don't teach your child to be fearful by backing down to crying and allowing him or her to stay home! Regardless of how heart wrenching their cries become, Love and Logic parents send their kids to school. Why? Because all experienced teachers say the same thing: "It's amazing how fast kids calm down after their parents are out–of–sight!"
Parents across the country are finding these Love and Logic techniques are easy–to–learn, teach kids to be responsible, and change lives! One parent commented, "My six–year–old son was so afraid of school he wouldn't even get out of the car when I tried to drop him off. We were desperate. The day we tried these tips, and had some help from the teacher getting him out of the car, was the last day we had these problems. We're a happy family again!"
Mrs. Orr
Pre-K
We hope that everyone had a wonderful holiday break! A big thank you to all the parents that helped with the holiday parties! The children were so excited! Please have your child write his/her first name, count 1-30 and read daily!
Just a reminder:
- Write your child’s name on their coats and backpacks.
- Keep a clean change of clothes in your child’s backpack.
- If you need to change transportation please do so in writing.
- Have your children read daily
Kinder
Welcome back! We hope you enjoyed the winter break and made wonderful memories with your family. We will be reviewing all Kindergarten sight words this month. We will continue to reinforce appropriate reading strategies and behaviors during Reading Workshop. In Writer’s Workshop we will be introducing procedural and informational writing. In math we will be joining and separating with objects and pictures and identifying and describing 2D shapes. In science we will discuss seasons, weather and objects in the sky. In social studies we will review good citizenship, create timelines and discuss the importance of Martin Luther King Jr. You can support your kindergartener by asking questions about their school day and what they learned in class.
Please make sure your child’s name is written inside their jacket.
Thank you for your continued support!
First Grade
Welcome back! We are eager to start off 2018 with your child. We have lots of exciting things to accomplish this semester. As a general reminder, please make sure your child has an extra set of clothes in their backpack at all times. They should also keep a jacket in their backpack, as the weather can change throughout the day.
In Reading, your child will be learning all about the world around them! We have kicked off our non-fiction unit and will become experts on many topics from our books! We are going to use what we know from books to begin writing non-fiction books of our own during Writing time. Please practice sight words every day and continue reading!
During Math time, we have begun to learn how to use digital and analog clocks! Practice telling time with your child to the hour and half hour. We will also begin to measure the world around us. This includes using non standard objects to measure length. Your child will be using items such as cubes, straws, coins, not rulers just yet.
In Science, we will be investigating the world through seasons, soil, and rocks! We cannot wait to see what is in our soil!
In Social Studies, we will continue to learn about holidays and traditions, past and present inventions, inventors and influential people.
Please contact your child’s teacher if you have any questions or need any resources. Thank you for all your cooperation and help!
Second Grade
We are excited about entering the second half of our school year! We are always surprised at how much second graders mature after the winter break. This is the time when we like the students to become a little more responsible and make sure they return their homework each week on time. It is very important that they are studying their math facts, sight words, and vocabulary words. Please continue reading at home each night. The more they read the better they will become in fluency and comprehension. Our 2nd Grade Field Trip will be on Friday, April 6th to P-6 Farms in Montgomery. We thank you for all you do to help your children learn and grow academically. May the New Year bring you lots of joy and happiness!
Third Grade
Your readers will be wrapping up their study of Traditional Literature and theme in December. We will be exploring the elements of Drama before Winter Break. In January, your readers will dig deeper into Fiction! We will determine the theme of stories, make inferences about characters and create great summaries. We will begin our study of Literary Non-fiction (Biography and Autobiography) at the end of January.
Your writers will be creative thinkers as we will be composing Imaginative Stories before Winter Break! In January we will create personal narratives. We will add more detail and depth to our narrative writing skills!
In Social Studies during the month of December, your student will learn about culture, customs, celebrations, and traditions. They will understand that ethnic and cultural celebrations are special events that celebrate heritage. These celebrations focus on language, rituals, and art unique to a group of people. They will identify celebrations like Cinco de Mayo, Juneteenth, local kolache festivals, community fairs, harvest celebrations, Thanksgiving, Kwanzaa etc.
They will also the importance of writers and artists to the cultural heritage of communities like Tommie de Paola (Legend of the Poinsettia, The legend of Old Befana, Merry Christmas, Strega Nona, and the Night of Las Posadas)
In math during the month of December and January, the students will be continuing our multiplication and division unit. The students will be able to determine if a number is even or odd using divisibility rules. The students will also be able to determine a quotient using the relationship between multiplication and division. The students first math benchmark will be held on December 7th. We hope you have a wonderful and happy winter break! See you all in the new year!
Your 3rd grade scientists are finishing up learning about the solar system. We will be exploring Earth’s natural resources and how they are useful. We will also learn about how soil is formed through processes of weathering and decomposition.
Fourth Grade
Happy New Year from fourth grade teachers and students! What a busy time of year for our 4th grade Rice Raccoons! Fourth graders should be reading each night to build stamina and skills. We continue to work on grammar through studying mentor sentences, as well as writing literary essays. We will also begin literary nonfiction.
In math, the students are working on division and two-digit multiplication with standard algorithm. Your help at home with these skills is greatly appreciated!
In social studies, the fourth graders have learned about the different Indian tribes and the explorers along with their missions. They are excited to start learning about colonization, independence of Texas, and Texas Revolution.
In science, our students have enjoyed learning about electricity, and are looking forward to learning about the patterns of change including four seasons, phases of the moon, shadows, and the planets.
We appreciate your support! The students worked very hard on their Christmas program. We are glad so many of our parents, family, and friends were here to celebrate the season with us! In addition, a huge THANKS goes out to our wonderful parents for making our Winter Celebrations such a special occasion! We appreciate all you do to support your children and us.
From The Library ...Ms. Parks
Stop by the library the next time you visit our school. We have been adding new books to our collection and we would love to show them to you! Thank you for your continued support of our library program. Our parent volunteers have helped make our library more efficient, effective and fun. I look forward to seeing you and showing you our new books.
Remember to ring in the New Year with a good book!
Nurses Notes...Mrs. McLaren
A few reminders from the clinic:
When your child is ill, please contact the school to let them know he or she won’t be attending that day. It is important to remember that schools must exclude students with certain illnesses for periods of time as identified in state rules. For example, if your child has a fever over 100 degrees, he or she must stay out of school until they are fever free for 24 hours without fever-reducing medications.
In addition, students with diarrheal illnesses must stay home until he/she is diarrhea free without diarrhea-suppressing medications for at least 24 hours. Illness at school is evaluated by the health service staff in the clinic area. A child who demonstrates the following symptoms should be sent home from school.
Fever of 100 degrees or more.
Suspected contagious condition or disease.
Vomiting or diarrhea.
Severe stomachache, headache, or earache.
A child who is too ill to function in the classroom.
A full list of conditions for which the school must exclude children can be obtained from the school nurse. Thank you for your help to keep our Rice Raccoon’s healthy!
PTO
Mark your calendar!! On Friday, February 16 from 6:00 - 9:00 we will have a Parent's Night Out. You will be able to drop your students off for an evening of fun while you go to a movie, relax at home, go shopping or out to dinner. This will be for BB Rice students only and pre-registration is required. Watch the Tuesday Folder for more information about this event.
If you are interested in being a part of our PTO please contact Kristy Fancher at kristyfancher@hotmail.com for more information. Everyone is welcome to join us for one of our meetings. We meet the first Thursday of each month at 11:00. We love seeing new faces!!