Knight Notes
Yarbrough Elementary - April Newsletter 2019
Quick Glance at Important Dates
April 1st - 5th - Afterschool Program Registration (current students)
April 4th - Fifth Grade Field Trip to McWane Center
April 5th - Dad's League; Club Day
April 8th - 12th - Afterschool Program Registration (new students)
April 15th - Registration Deadline for 2019-2020 School Year
April 16th - May 1st - State Assessment
April 19th - No School
April 30th - Family Book Club
May 3rd - Club Day
May 6th - Author Natalie Lloyd Visits
May 7th - Creekside Third Graders Tour Y.E.S.
May 8th - Fifth Grade Visits Drake Middle School
May 9th - Fourth Grade Montgomery Field Trip (Cowell, Sullivan, Williams, Sandersen)
May 10th - Fourth Grade Montgomery Field Trip (Ramey, Kerlin, Fugatt, Glagola)
May 14th - Spring Music Performances (see times below)
May 15th - AHS Graduation Walk at YES
May 15th - Battle of the Books District Competition
May 17th - Fifth Grade D.A.R.E. Graduation (see times below)
May 20th - End of the Nine Weeks Celebration
May 21st - Field Day and Last Day of School
Y.E.S. Parents,
The week before Spring Break was the YES Teacher Appreciation Week – and showing their appreciation is just what our PTO did! There was a special treat every day and a special night out on Thursday with a private dinner at the Sound Wall in Opelika. A huge Thank You to our PTO for the time and effort that went into putting on this special event. All of the donations from parents were appreciated as our teachers received daily treats, received a thoughtful gift and got to choose from the school store that was arranged in our professional development room.
Thanks again for making our staff feel special.
Pete Forster
Principal, YES
Leaders of the Month
Congratulations to these students who were voted Leaders of the Month for the month of March.
Fourth Grade Leaders
Fifth Grade Leaders
Parent Survey Open
Each year we use data from parent, student, and teacher surveys to help us improve. If you have not already completed this year's survey, it can be found at the link below. If you have questions on need a paper copy of the survey, please contact Heather Taylor at 334-887-1970 or hwtaylor@auburnschools.org. Thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts.
Afterschool Program Registration
Lunchroom News from Mrs. Vicki
I want to thank everyone that participated in National Breakfast Week. It was a huge success! We served an average of 127 breakfasts a day. The Fugatt/Zutter team won the race car contest with their car named "Cereal Cyclone." The coaches' race was won by Carpenter, Day, Lindsey & Martin. The winners will all receive an ice cream party.
Please remember to turn in lunch money.
State Testing - Performance Series
Our Alabama state assessment is the Performance Series. Students have taken the test in August and January, and will take it a final time in April. Homeroom teachers will communicate the dates, times, and subjects for their specific classes. The test is administered online and measures both student achievement and growth. We know all of our students are well prepared and will do their best!
Family Book Club
You're Invited to our Music Performances on May 14th!
All parents, family, and friends are invited to our school music performances on May 14th. Please be sure to note the time your child’s class is performing and join us as our students show off their musical talents! (Note: Ms. Glagola’s class is performing twice.)
8:00 a.m. – Carpenter, Day, Zutter, Cowell, Glagola & Sullivan
10:00 a.m. – Anderson, Lindsey, Martin, Fugatt, Kerlin & Ramey
12:00 p.m. – Freeman, Rubin, Tolliver, Glagola, Sandersen & Williams
Congratulations to our Battle of the Book Finalists!
5th Grade D.A.R.E. Graduation
We will honor our fifth grade students with a special D.A.R.E. Graduation and reception on Friday, May 17th. Students will wear their D.A.R.E. t-shirts. Each fifth grade team will have a separate ceremony. Please make note of your student's time.
Anderson, Lindsey, Martin - 8:00 am
Freeman, Rubin, Tolliver - 10:00 am
Carpenter, Day, Zutter - 12:00 pm
Box Top Winners Announced! Keep Collecting for Fall!
Nurse Notes with Nurse Julia
It’s time to register for Camp Wheeze Away!
What: A summer asthma camp for kids
Who: Students ages 8-12 who live with asthma
When: May 26th - 31st
Where: YMCA Camp Chandler
Why: To empower children with asthma to learn more about their condition,
and create a fun, encouraging community for the children and their families.
How: Application forms and more information are available online at
Campchandler.org/wheezeaway
334-229-0035
Art Action with Mr. Daniel
4th grade project: "Radial Design"
Our fourth grade artists are exploring the realm of radial balance. We will use our creative ability, line, space, shape, color, value, form, texture, proportion, rhythm and balance to produce our own radial designs. We will also explore circumference, diameter and radius during the development of these compositions. We plan to explore the creative process of famous architect/artist, Mimar Sinan.
5th grade project: "Be Balanced"
Our fifth grade artists will be exploring the three types of balance (symmetrical, asymmetrical, and radial) that are employed in art. We will use our vivid imagination, the elements of art and the principles of design to develop a logo that symbolizes our attributes. We will then utilize the type of balance that best suits our creative vision when developing the final version of our logo. M.C. Escher and Andy Warhol are a couple of famous artists that we will explore as well.
Computer Lab Latest with Miss Ball
The Counseling Connection with Mrs. Walsh
Our Guidance lessons during April will help prepare our students for our standardized testing. Out test dates will begin on April 16th and will run through May 1st. The 4th graders will take the Reading and Math tests. The 5th graders will take the Reading, Math, and Science tests. Classroom teachers will remind you of their class’s test dates.
Parents please make sure your children get adequate sleep before the test dates as well as eat a healthy breakfast; avoiding high sugary foods. Research shows students perform better if they eat before a test. Keep a positive atmosphere and help resolve any conflicts that may arise so your children are focused on the test. Encourage your children to do their best and let them know you are interested in the tests. Remind students they “get to” take the test, not “have to” take the test to show their teacher how much they know.
Students should BE ON TIME and wear comfortable clothing; this might mean getting up a little earlier to avoid rushing. Talk to your children about their feelings concerning the test and reassure them their performance on the test is not a condition for your love. Stress to your children that you love them for who they are and just want them to do their best!
Thanks for your support!
Quote of the month by Katie Rosenberg
“Believe that you can and you are already half way there.”
Fitness Fun with Coach Smith
The 2019 YES Jump Rope for Heart Campaign was a great success. This year the donations reached $4,590! Top supports were Connor D. with $750.00; Samuel T. with $365.00; and Justice E. with $200. Awesome job students! Final prizes should arrive sometime in April. Parents - thanks for supporting the American Heart Association.
April PE Unit: Students will take the Physical Fitness Test and will participate in the 2nd Annual YES Top Golf Challenge.
NEWS in PE:
-Homework Fitness Challenge is in full swing. Students will turn it in at the end of each month to win cool prizes.
-April 30th - Fit Knight Calendar Due
Media Center Memo from Mrs. McGilberry
The Music Message from Mrs. Oprandy
Fourth graders have been practicing switching back and forth from C and F chords on the ukulele. They are learning to sing songs while switching chords, to include “Cool Song," “Ram, Sam, Sam,” and “Ukulele." Students also learned how to perform their part of their feature song for our spring program. Fourth graders will be featured playing ukulele, playing rhythm instruments or performing rhythmic speech.
Fifth graders have learned how to perform their part of their feature song for our spring program as well. Fifth grade students will be playing recorder, playing barred and rhythm instruments, or performing body percussion. Students also added the note E to their recorder playing repertoire. Students need to know how to play B, A, G, and E to earn their green belt. Speaking of belts, many fifth graders made incredible progress in earning more Recorder Karate belts this month!
Venture Visit with Mrs. Roberts
Thank you to our PTO for the generous grants which funded robots and coding resources so that every student at Yarbrough can learn coding/programming during their Venture class!
The students have already improved their computational thinking, which is the ability to express their thoughts in a rational and sequenced way. I have seen students at every level engage with our robotic unit, using it as a foundation to develop systems thinking, to launch a range of interests, or simply to apply logic in a way that is creative and fun.
When students learn computational thinking, they learn how to ponder a problem and then reduce it to individual action steps. Computational thinking also teaches efficiency, as students have to break down problems in the most efficient way possible. And the best part is they are having so much fun, they don’t even realize how much they are learning!