LV Intermediate Parent Newsletter
Volume 22 February 17, 2017
Upcoming Events...
February 20 Student Holiday- NO CLASSES
February 24 Troy Kimmel visits 5th Grade- Discussing Weather and Climate
February 24 PTO Luncheon for Staff
February 28 Grade 4 Math Benchmark
February 28 Intermediate Choir performing at the Elementary School 7:00PM
March 1 Grade 4 Reading Benchmark
March 13-17 Spring Break
March 28 Grade 4 STAAR Writing and Grade 5 STAAR Math
March 29 Grade 5 STAAR Reading
When you compliment your children, praise them for inner qualities such as kindness, honesty, and perseverance so they will strive to contribute to the world in meaningful ways. ----------- Toni Schutta
Attendance and how parents help student achievement...
As a parent or guardian, it is possible to plan ahead in order to limit you child's absences, make school attendance a priority, and help your child from falling behind if it is necessary to miss a day of school. You can do this by:
- Help your child get to school on time every day.
- Follow the school's guidelines and attendance policy, and report excused absences immediately.
- Check homework.
- Try to limit the amount of time that your child misses school due to medical appointments or illness.
- Schedule family events with your child's school schedule in mind.
- Promote good health by making sure your child eats a balanced diet and has opportunities to exercise daily.
Attendance Percentages this WEEK:
4th Grade 97.25%
5th Grade 93.71
Total 95.63%
Talking about Honesty
Having a couple of older children at home, I can tell you that elementary school is an important time to discuss honesty with your child. You want them to be in a pattern to be truthful with you about their feelings, relationships with peers, and where they are going and what they are doing before they enter middle and high school. When they get their driver's license is NOT when you should start talking about honesty and trust.
1. Telling the truth lets everyone know what really happened. There’s less chance of misunderstanding, confusion, or conflict.
2. Telling the truth protects innocent people from being blamed or punished.
3. Telling the truth allows everyone to learn from what happened.
4. You usually get into less trouble for telling the truth than for lying (and getting caught).
5. Other people trust you more when you tell the truth.
6. You don’t have to tell (and remember) more lies to keep your story straight.
7. You gain a reputation for being truthful—a trait most people value.
8. Telling the truth helps you to feel secure and peaceful inside.
Troy Kimmel coming to LV Intermediate!
For more information about Troy Kimmel, check out http://troykimmelweather.com/.
Counselor’s Corner
We all feel stressed at times! As adults, we know there are healthy ways to deal with stress. We learn what works for us and, hopefully, model positive strategies for our children. I found this great article to share with you:
What Parents Can Do to Help Kids Deal with Stress
You may not be able to prevent your kids from feeling frustrated, sad, or angry, but you can provide the tools they need to cope with these emotions.
Notice out loud. Tell kids when you notice something they might be feeling ("It seems like you might still feel mad about what happened at the playground"). This shouldn't sound like an accusation (as in: "OK, what happened now? Are you still mad about that?") or make a child feel put on the spot. It's just a casual observation that you're interested in hearing more about your child's concern.
Listen to your kids. Ask them to tell you what's wrong. Listen attentively and calmly — with interest, patience, openness, and caring. Avoid any urge to judge, blame, lecture, or tell your kids what they should have done instead. The idea is to let a child's concerns (and feelings) be heard. Encourage your child to tell the whole story by asking questions. Take your time, and let a child take his or her time, too.
Comment briefly on the feelings you think your child was experiencing as you listen. For example, you might say something like: "That must have been upsetting" or "No wonder you felt mad when they wouldn't let you in the game." Doing so shows that you understand what your child felt, why he or she felt that way, and that you care. Feeling understood and listened to helps kids feel connected to you, and that is especially important in times of stress.
Put a label on it. Many kids do not yet have words for their feelings. If your child seems angry or frustrated, use those feeling words to help your child learn to identify the emotions by name. That will help put feelings into words so they can be expressed and communicated more easily, which helps kids develop emotional awareness — the ability to recognize their own emotional states. Kids who can recognize and identify emotions are less likely to reach the behavioral boiling point where strong emotions get demonstrated through behaviors rather than communicated with words.
Help kids think of things to do. Suggest activities kids can do to feel better now and to solve the problem at hand. Encourage them to think of a couple of ideas. You can get the brainstorm started if necessary, but don't do all the work. A child's active participation will build confidence. Support good ideas and add to them as needed. Ask, "How do you think this will work?" Sometimes talking and listening and feeling understood is all that's needed to help kids' frustrations melt away. Other times change the subject and move on to something more positive and relaxing. Don't give the problem more attention than it deserves.
Just be there. Sometimes kids don't feel like talking about what's bothering them. Try to respect that, give them space, and still make it clear that you'll be there when they do feel like talking. Even when kids don't feel like talking, they usually don't want parents to leave them alone. You can help them feel better just by being there — to keep your child company and spend time together. So, if you notice your child seems to be down in the dumps, stressed, or having a bad day — but doesn't feel like talking — initiate something you can do together. Take a walk, watch a movie, shoot some hoops, or bake some cookies. Isn't it nice to know that your presence really counts?
Be patient. It hurts to see your kids unhappy or worried. But try to resist the urge to fix every problem. Instead, focus on helping them grow into good problem-solvers — kids who know how to roll with life's ups and downs, put feelings into words, calm down when needed, and bounce back to try again. Remember that you can't fix everything, and that you won't be there to solve each problem as your child goes through life. But by learning healthy coping strategies, kids can manage stresses in the future.
Source: KidsHealth.org
I will soon be visiting classes to talk about “terrific test taking strategies”. Assessments are just one way we measure academic success. We want our students to handle assessments with confidence and focus, giving us an accurate measure of what they know!
Viking Character Trait of the Month is
Fairness
“Teaching kids to count is fine, teaching kids what counts is best!” Bob Talbert