Walls's Monkey Memo
August 25, 2014
Greetings Students and Families,
Welcome to the 2014-2015 school year. I hope you are all as excited as I am! We have a wonderful class this year and we have already started off the year with enthusiasm. As with a new year there will be many new and exciting changes and adventures to come. Please stay tuned...
As you know, there are many big changes for third graders during this school transition. This being a new year and a higher grade level I will have higher expectations for students and families. Expectations and routines will be clearly explained and practiced throughout the next few weeks. Family support both in the classroom and at home is an extremely important piece to the education puzzle. Please be sure to let me know if you can spend time in the classroom.
This first week of school was thrilling as well as tiring. Get good rest and start every day off with a healthy breakfast. I will be sending newsletters home electronically every Monday. Please be sure to send in a good email contact to be well informed. If you have any questions please contact me, email will work best, rwalls@kpbsd.k12.ak.us or call the school at 235-5776.
Thank you for your support!
Ms. Walls's Supply List
$10.00 Magazine/Activity/Craft Fee
Backpack with child’s name
Gym shoes to keep indoors **
Headphones
Clorox Disinfectant Wipes (1 large container)
Kleenex (one large box)
Soft Plastic Pocket Folder (1 for homework all year)
4 Pocket Folders (for daily class work)
Spiral Notebook (1 Wide-rule 70+ sheets)
#2 Pencils (3 dozen)
Red Pen or Pencil (4 each)
Glue Sticks (6 large – Avery brand works best)
Erasers (2 handheld style – not pencil toppers)
Pencil Sharpener (1 sturdy handheld style)
Scissors (with a cutting surface of at least 3 inches)
Ruler (Metric and U.S. Measurements)
Highlighter (package of 4 markers)
Markers
Colored Pencils
Crayons
Pencil Box or Bag
* Items that are in bold are of high importance!!
**Underlined items were accidentally dropped of the school-wide supply list published on the WHE website. Sorry!
School Schedules
8:25 School Begins
8:35 Math
9:50 Snack and Brain Break
10:10 Literacy
11:35 Lunch & Recess
12:35 Read to Self/Intervention
1:05 Research Writing/Science/Social Studies/Art
2:10 Specials (Music & P.E.)
3:15 School Ends
Specials
Monday - Music 2:10 - 2:40
Tuesday - P.E. 2:10 - 2:40
Wednesday - Music 2:10 - 2:40
Thursday - P.E. 2:10 - 2:40
Friday - Library 1:35 - 2:20
Dates to Remember
Aug. 28 - Cross Country Running Starts
* Tuesdays & Thursdays
Aug. 26 – W.H.E. Open House 6:30 - 7:30 pm
Aug. 26 - WHE First Lego League informational
meeting 7:30 pm (after Open House)
Sept. 01 – NO SCHOOL Labor day
Sept. 03 - Discipline Program Presentation
for Parents 6:30 pm
Sept. 17 - Early Release Day 1:45 pm
Sept. 19 – Picture Day
Nurse's Notes
I hope you had a wonderful summer break and are ready for the new school year. In middle of that pile of paperwork your child brought home there is a Yearly Update for health/medical information. Please take a moment and complete that form for the nurse EVEN if there are no changes in your child’s health. The nurse uses that information to help provide care for your child. If your child needs an inhaler or epi-pen, please bring it to the nurse’s office to help me keep your child safe while at school.
Because healthy students learn better, every year KPBSD school nurses provide growth screening for students. This simple height, weight, body mass index screening provides information to parents which is meant to be shared with one’s own health care provider in order to help students achieve and maintain optimum levels of health and wellness. In addition, vision and hearing are screened in 3rd and 5th grade, and blood pressure screened in 5th grade. Parents/Guardians who do not wish to have their students screened are able to complete an opt out form. The forms are available from the school office.
With the return to school comes the increase in exposure to bugs-bacterial, viral and actual crawling ones. To decrease the exposure to bacterial and viral “bugs”, encourage your child to get lots of rest and wash their hands frequently. If your child has had a fever >100 degrees in the last 24 hours, vomited or had diarrhea during the day, or they have a persistent cough, they need to stay home from school. As for the actual crawling bugs, I have heard many families battled head lice this summer. It is a good idea to check your child’s head for lice on a weekly basis. Good lighting is the key to finding those pesky bugs. If you think your child may have lice, let the nurse know. I will follow up with your child and let you know what I do or do not see.
Welcome back!
Nurse Laura Peek
235-5788
West Homer Elementary
Fireweed Academy 3rd-6th
P.E. News
Happy New School Year West Homer Families!
I’m excited to begin! Here are just a few notes about PE.
There are many wonderful activities planned for our year. Every class period begins with some cardiovascular fitness; we then stretch our muscles and then a little muscle strengthening. This is a fun 3-4 minutes set to some groovy music. Next, we move into the lesson or play a game where we can practice our locomotor skills. My goal is to use games, movement and sports to teach foundational motor skills, to develop greater coordination and endurance, and to inspire a love of healthy, active living.
Please have kids prepared for learning and participating in PE. Athletic shoes are so important for the safety of your child because we run, gallop, leap, chase, spin, roll, and sometimes go up-side-down! Kids need athletic shoes that are snugly attached to their feet for these activities. Sorry, but Crocs, boots, flip flops, or dress-up shoes, are safety hazards and can’t be worn to PE. Also, tennis shoes tied very loosely that the kids can just slip their foot into have proven to be very unsafe! I have seen many injuries due to shoes sliding off while running or kicking a ball. Shoes can have laces, Velcro, elastic, buckles, or just slip on, as long as they are securely on their feet.
While the weather permits, we will have PE outdoors as much as possible. We love the sun, space to run, games outside, and the fresh air! Please have your kids in outdoor shoes (not boots) so that they can run and participate safely in our activities. Also, an extra sweatshirt is a great thing to leave at school for cool days.
If PE shoes are forgotten for a day, I have a small supply of “loaner” inside shoes, but please don’t rely upon those repeatedly. If the cost of shoes is a concern, I have a small supply of shoes that you could have for “keepsies;” please let me know if you need a pair. Also, the Salvation Army (open M-S 10:00-5:30) and Pick & Pay (open Sat 10:00 – 3:00) usually have athletic shoes for a minimal charge.
The best choice of clothing for PE would be sneakers, shorts/pants, and shirt/sweatshirt. For girls, dresses are fine, but it would be best to wear shorts underneath.
West Homer kids have 2 sessions of PE on Tuesday, Thursday, or Friday.
Let’s get all kids sneaker-ed up on those days!
Sincerely,
Mrs. Keri Syth
Physical Education Teacher
West Homer Elementary
226-1802 or ksyth@kpbsd.k12.ak.us