Alto All Star Gazette
March 25, 2022
Notes from the desk of Principal Papes
Dear Alto Families,
Your children continue to come to school eager to learn, and they have a lot of fun with their teachers and classmates. Thank you for all that you do to prepare them for school success each and every day!
As a reminder, school will not be in session next Friday, April 1st, and Spring Break will run through April 10th with a return to school on Monday, April 11th.
2nd Trimester Report Cards
Report cards went home at the end of last week. Report cards are a critical communication tool to update you on your child’s progress and achievement in school. This includes academic and behavioral progress, as well as attendance updates and general comments. If you have clarifying questions/concerns regarding your child’s report card, please contact his/her teacher. If you still have concerns following a discussion with the teacher, please do not hesitate to contact me.
March is Reading Month
We observed great success with the reading challenge slips that were due last week, with a large percentage of students participating. Students received a Tootsie Pop for turning in their completed slips, and their names were entered into a drawing. One student from each class won an additional prize. If your child is not regularly reading at home, we hope this helped to encourage this habit. It is so important for their reading success and overall success in school!
The Bingo Reading Challenge slips are now due Wednesday, March 30th. To complete this challenge, students need to mark BINGO with 4-5 boxes completed.
This week, we launched our 2nd Annual Book Madness: Tournament of Books. This is a bracket-style competition to determine Alto Elementary’s favorite book for 2022. Classes selected books to enter into the competition. The books will go head-to-head until we have voted on a winner. Students have been listening to the books that they are voting on. We have held the first two rounds this week. The Final Four and Championship matchups will be held on March 30th and March 31st. The winning class will receive a pizza party!
School Fundraiser
The school fundraiser was very successful. We appreciate your support! We are pleased to share that we made a profit of $18,570. These funds are critical in continuing to offer supplemental resources and activities that benefit each and every student and classroom in our school. Additionally, all students will participate in the Day of Awesomeness on May 13th! This event includes many inflatables and obstacle courses that students will be able to enjoy with their classmates. The student experience was a key element of this fundraiser. Students are scheduled to receive the prizes they earned on Friday, April 15th.
Kindergarten Enrollment
Attention families with incoming 2022-2023 kindergarten students! Kindergarten enrollment for next fall is open. If you have a student who will turn five years old by September 1st, 2022, they can start their school journey! You may also sign a waiver for your child to start school if they turn five by December 1st, 2022. Paperwork required includes proof of residency, original birth certificate, up to date immunizations and a health appraisal. Information can be found on our Lowell Area Schools website: https://www.lowellschools.com/our-district/enrollment/
Please contact our office at 987.2600 with any questions you may have. The Kindergarten Round Up at Alto will be held on May 11th, 2022. It is important that new kindergarten students and parents attend this event. Please stay tuned for sign up opportunities.
Schools of Choice Parents
Internal and external schools of choice applications for the 2022-23 school year will be available from April 11-May 13. You must submit your internal choice application to the elementary building of residence. The district will not accept internal choice applications prior to or after these dates. If you have previously applied and were approved, it is not necessary to re-apply.
Please visit the following website for more information on schools of choice in Lowell.
https://www.lowellschools.com/our-district/enrollment/schools-of-choice/
M-Step, NWEA MAP, and Acadience (Formerly DIBELS) Testing
M-Step testing will begin when we return to school the week of April 11th.
5th grade students will start with the ELA M-Step the week of April 11th. They will be taking the ELA, Math, Social Studies, and Science M-Step.
3rd grade students will start with the ELA M-Step the week of April 25th. They will be taking the ELA and Math M-Step.
4th grade students will start with the ELA M-Step the week of May 2nd. They will be taking the ELA and Math M-Step.
Spring NWEA MAP Tests - All K-5 students will be taking the Spring MAP tests. The testing window is 4/13-5/20.
Acadience Reading Test (Formerly DIBELS) - All K-5 students will complete the acadience reading assessment. This is a 1:1 reading test administered by our reading intervention staff. The screening window for Acadience testing is 4/25-5/20.
We look forward to receiving meaningful data to reflect the outstanding learning that has occurred this school year!
COVID-19 Mitigating Measures
Kent County Health Department School Toolkit:
https://www.accesskent.com/Health/pdf/COVID-19/K12-Higher-Education-School-Toolkit.pdf
K-12 & Higher Education Symptom and Testing Protocols:
https://www.accesskent.com/Health/pdf/COVID-19/K12-Higher-Education-Symptom-Testing-Protocol.pdf
As always, please contact me with any questions you may have. Enjoy the weekend!
Sincerely,
Paul Papes
Principal
Alto Elementary
Lowell Area Schools
Art Room
“Art is the queen of all sciences.”
(Albert Einstein)
Alto Artists are so creative and expressive! We are all enjoying our various processes, while learning many new concepts and skills.
Through Art Education, our children are learning such things as: Math, Science, Language, History, Culture, and Physical mechanics.
So, you see, Einstein was right!
Kindergarten: Through their painting of frogs- science of frogs and the human eye. Through ceramics and paper sculpture- motor /manipulative skill and spatial awareness, science of glass blowing and natural properties of the earth (clay), and history and appreciation of Art. All lessons provide opportunity to build skill and knowledge of Art concepts as well as the ability to listen to and follow step by step directions.
First Grade: Through the work of painting landscapes like Vincent Van Gogh-spatial awareness (depth), Art concepts and use of materials (oil pastel), history and appreciation of Art.
Second Grade: In the unit on China- math with Tangrams, spatial concepts (depth) through drawing of Still-Life, Culture, language, and use of art concepts and media.
Third Grade: Through Contour Line Drawing of a bicycle- spatial awareness, mental strengthening/concentration, eye/hand co-ordination, science of light and color, use of art concepts and media, and pop-culture.
Fourth Grade: Through weaving- math through repetition/ pattern, science of color, culture, language, art concepts and use of material.
Fifth Grade: Through Perspective drawing and painting of houses- math through language and perspective techniques, spatial concepts (depth), science of light and color, science through the awareness of nature, art concepts and use of media.
Not only are your children gaining knowledge, they are also practicing creativity and expressing their ideas through the making of meaningful Art!
Artfully Yours,
Anna Marie Carabellese (Art Educator)
5th grade instrument fitting!
Breakfast and Lunch menus
Nutritional Readiness Among Lowell Community Residents
Your participation is completely voluntary and anonymous, therefore you will not be asked to provide your name, address, phone number, or email. You may skip any questions you do not feel comfortable answering and may exit the survey at any time.
This research has been reviewed and approved by the Grand Valley State University Institutional Review Board and results will be used by the LoWellness Health Initiative to help benefit the health and wellness of the community. We are grateful for your cooperation and willingness to provide information that will help us better understand the community’s nutritional readiness.
Mark Your Calendar!
4/01: No School
4/1-4/10: Spring Break
Lost and Found
Student Activities Link
Alto Elementary
Website: lowellschools.com
Location: 6150 Bancroft Avenue Southeast, Alto, MI, USA
Phone: 616-987-2600
Facebook: facebook.com/altoelementary