Black Cat Bulletin
Keeping it R.E.A.L! Respect + Effort + Attitude= Leadership
October 2016
From Our Principal...
Dear families,
Isn't this time of year magnificent? I had the pleasure of sitting in Kite and Key eating breakfast last Saturday, watching the incredible teamwork of the West Side Nut Clubbers as they put together the stages and put up tents, and transformed Franklin Street into the wonderland of the Fall Festival! What a joy to see the collaboration, cooperation, and humor as they solved problems, overcame obstacles, and lifted one another up to accomplish the magic of community. This wonderful philanthropic group define the word community. We are so very thankful for all they do to support education, create a wonderland for the community, and set a great example of collaboration for us all.
In the spirit of collaboration, I am also awed by the work of our PTA under our new president and her board. They have so many WONDERFUL opportunities for families and for children that I hope you'll consider joining in on. First is our Breakfast with Mummies, quickly followed by the Trunk or Treat. We'd love to have you come to the Trunk or Treat even if you don't sponsor a "trunk."
In order to support our teachers and families who ARE sponsoring a "trunk" (or tent) would you consider sending in a donation of "treats"? Candy or other treats that can be given to the sponsors would be VERY appreciated. Send the items to the office and we will share them equally among the sponsors of the treat stations!
If you could either volunteer to help set up or take down the Breakfast with Mummies, or send in a breakfast item, that too would be appreciated. We look forward to this awesome event, and hope it becomes as big a tradition as our dads' breakfast.
Finally, we appreciate ALL you do to support us! Paragon Fundraiser has ended and monies have been collected. If all monies are returned as planned, our profit will be $10,800 from Paragon, and $300 cash donations from families. (Paragon efforts raised just over $28,000 and our profit will be near $10,800 once all monies are in.) We will be using this money to pay for Curriculum Days for our teachers, classroom materials, and Professional Development for the staff.
We could not be the school we are without YOU and our community of support. Thank you for all you do! It TRULY makes a difference.
Happy Fall Break!
Katie White
Principal
From Our Principal Intern
Happy Fall!
As the weather cools down, the school year is in full swing. Throughout the school, students are working hard and participating in exciting new learning each day. Practicing this learning with your student(s) at home can help your child experience greater success in school. Some of the ways you can help your child with reading are listed below.
Reading Stamina
Students are working to increase their stamina in reading. This means they will be reading more complex books for longer periods of time. Begin working with your child to build up to 30 minutes of uninterrupted reading every day. If your child is struggling to read alone for the entire 30 minutes, try reading one page for them and then have your child read the next page. This is a great way for your child to increase reading fluency and hear a fantastic model of what their reading should sound like. Encourage your child to use expression while reading the parts of different characters. This will help your child comprehend more of the reading and make the reading time more enjoyable.
Try reading different types of texts. Articles, poems, stories, non-fiction books, and plays are all wonderful forms of print your child can interact with. Use this time to introduce your child to some of your childhood favorites. Reading together will help your student improve stamina and is a special time you can look forward to each day. You will be amazed at the progress your child makes when you read together each day!
Reading Comprehension
As your children read for longer periods of time, ask questions about the book to see if they understand what they are reading. If the child is reading a fiction book, consider asking these questions:
- Who are the main characters in the book? Where and when did the story happen?
- How does the main character change from the beginning of the story to the end?
- What happened in the story? Retell the beginning, middle, and end.
- Did the characters learn a lesson in the story? What did they learn? What did you read that helps you know this?
If students are reading non-fiction books, make sure they are looking at captions and other text features to help understand the content of the book. Ask questions such as those below:
- What is this text mostly about?
- What details help you understand the main idea of the text?
- Did you notice any text features in the book? How do they help you understand what you are reading?
I hope you and your child enjoy the time you spend reading together. I look forward to the progress which will be made through our partnership this year!
Bethany Lynch
Principal Intern
From Our Counselor...
Communicating with your Children
Talking with your children regularly about everyday topics will increase the chances of them talking to you about more difficult issues. Consider using the following questions to get up to date with your children, and encourage them to ask you questions too.
What is your favorite game?
Who are your friends, and why do you like them?
What makes you laugh?
Who is your favorite band?
What do you like doing most at school?
What are you most afraid of?
What is your favorite website?
What is your favorite television show?
What are the best things we do together as a family?
What would you like us to do more of as a family?
Ask your children their opinion on events, issues and general daily proceedings so they feel their opinion is valued. Let your children know you are always interested in what is going on in their lives, not only when they are in trouble or having problems.
excerpt from Friendly Schools Plus
NOTES FROM THE NURSE
SCREENINGS: As per State Law the following screenings will be done at West Terrace Elementary During the school year.
VISION SCREENING: will be conducted by USI Nursing Class on November 9th for grades 1,3 and 5 at the school.
If your child wears glasses please remind him/her to wear them every day. You will be notified only if your child does not pass the screening.
HEARING SCREENING: Done by the USI Nursing Class. The date of the hearing screening for this year will be Wednesday November 9th.
DENTAL SCREENING: No date at this time. The dental bus will screening children on the St. Mary's dental bus if you wish for your child to be seen forms are available in the nurse’s office. When we get the date the bus will be at our school we will let you know.
HEALTHY SNACKS AND LUNCHES: The Evansville School coprartion has implemented a Wellness Policy. The purpose of this policy is to develop healthy lifestyles for students, and establish policies that improve school nutrition and physical activity. The School Improvement Team at has developed a target for children to increase their consumption of healthy food and increase their physical activity at school. It is therefore, our goal that children will develop healthy eating habits during lunch and snack. Just a reminder that snacks eaten in the classroom must be peanut free. We are encouraging you to help us meet this goal by packing healthy lunches and snacks for your children.
Flu season will be upon us very soon so we think it is a good time to provide you with some suggestions and helpful information about the flu.
FLU FACTS/INFORMATION: The flu is a highly contagious viral infection of the respiratory tract. Although the flu affects everyone, children tend to get it more often than adults. The season for the flu is usually from November to April with most cases occurring between late December and early March.
The flu is often confused with the common cold, but flu symptoms tend to develop quickly (usually 1 to 4 days after a person is exposed to the flu virus) and are usually more severe than the typical sneezing and stuffiness of a cold.
Symptoms of the Flu may include:
Fever Chills Headache
Muscle aches Dizziness Loss of appetite
Tiredness Cough Sore throat
Runny nose Nausea or vomiting Weakness
Ear infection Diarrhea
Symptoms can last for a week or two. The flu is very contagious. It is spread by coughing or sneezing into the air. People who are infected with the flu are contagious as long as they show symptoms (most of the time that means about a week for adults, but for children it can mean up to two weeks).
Ways To Prevent The Flu:
To have the flu shot if your pediatrician feels you should have it.
Wash your Hands thorough and frequently
Never pick up used tissues.
Never share cups and eating utensils.
Stay home from work or school when you’re sick with the flu.
Cover your mouth and nose with your elbow or a tissue when you cough or sneeze.
How Do You Treat The Flu?
Stay home from school
Drink lots of fluids.
Get plenty of sleep and take it easy.
Call your doctor for a fever or achiness so that he/she can let you know what to take to make your child feel better.
Return to school when your child is better.
ATTENDANCE MATTERS!
Attend today; achieve tomorrow. #Schooleveryday
Remember:
- As a general rule, if a child is fever free and not vomiting
- Early bedtimes and a healthy diet will help your child's overall well-being. If a child feels better, he will get up easier and be happier to go to school.
- 24-Hour rule: If a child has been fever-free or has not vomited for 24 hours, he may return to school.
- Out of town trips are coded solely as an unexcused absence and an automated call will be made even if the office has been notified.
- Be sure to turn in all doctor excuses. We can not accept doctor's excuses that state "parent called in. Child not seen."
- Please note vacation days count as unexcused absences and can quickly get your child to the 10 day limit.
INFORMATION
BOX TOP COLLECTIONS
Thank you all for turning in box tops this first period for the special yogurt parfait breakfast prize for your class! Please read below to see all of the winners…
First and foremost, we collected $277.70 worth of box tops for this special promotion, thank you!
Here are the counts…
Roberts – 17
Scheu - 31
Emmons – 34
Schefer – 68
Corressell – 373
Brunson – 407
And, the class winner of the yogurt parfait party is…. DEWEESE! She turned in 1,185 box tops for her classroom! Ms. DeWeese – I’ll be in contact with you to set up the party!
Also, we are giving away booth passes for each collection.
Booth Pass Winners:
Grade 1 – Brody in Ms. Corressell’s class
Grade 2 – Eva Neidlinger in Ms. Emmons class
Grade 4 – Ella Ellerbrook in Ms. DeWeese’s class
Grade 5 – Eli Glines in Ms. Schefer’s class ---Of course, Eli is my son; however, he turned in 68 and was the only one in 5th grade to turn in box tops! He was the only one in the drawing.
Just a few notes:
Can you please encourage your students to put their name on their box top bag when they turn them in so they can get qualified to win a booth pass. We had lots of bags turned in this time but only a small percentage of them had the student’s name on them so we have no way of knowing who should get the credit.
We had 662 anonymous box tops in the box top collection box. The box tops were not in an official large teacher box top collection bag so we have no way of knowing who they belong to.
Thank you all again for helping us collect these box tops which add up to funding for our school! The next collection date for Grade Period 1 is FRIDAY, OCTOBER 14th.
Community Opportunity for Concussion Clinic
Menus available at the link below
Emergency Information (Forms)
If you move, change cell phone numbers, change employers, emergency contact/pick-up information during the school year, PLEASE share this information with your child's teacher and/or the office. You can also update your personal information through the RDS Parent Access.
The office staff is working diligently to make the changes/corrections from the forms. If you had an emergent change, please contact the office directly to be sure the updates are made.
Volunteering in our Schools
- Go to evscschools.com
- Hover over the Parent tab and click on Volunteer in our Schools
- Click on Volunteer Application Form Link
- Fill out the form and hit submit at the bottom of the page
Peachjar LIVE!
Peachjar is free to the EVSC and our schools, including PTA groups, school feeder athletic programs, non-profits, etc. Please contact the office if you represent one of these organizations and want to utilize Peachjar.
VOLLEYBALL TEAM
West Terrace Fans - Come out and support the girls this fall!
October 11 HOME -v- Tekoppel 4:00 p.m.
October 13 HOME -v- Stringtown 4:00 p.m.
October 18 HOME -v- Cynthia Heights 4:00 p.m.
October 20 AWAY @Daniel Wertz 4:00 p.m.
October 29 Tournament @ Reitz
PTA Membership Drive
Here are just some of the wonderful PTA projects: 4K4Kids Color Run, Helping Hands (food/clothing bank), Box Tops, Santa Shop and Breakfast, Dads and Donuts, Field Day, Grandparents' Day, Popcorn Fridays, Spirit Wear, Staff Appreciation, Yearbook, Fundraising, School Supplies Orders, App Notifications, and Scripts
JOIN THE WEST TERRACE PTA!
President: Jenny Fuquay
Vice-President: Sandi Davis
Secretary: Tera Babb
Treasurer: April Coughlin
2016-17 Meetings
August 29 5:30 p.m. (All meetings in the Media Center)
September 20 4:30 p.m.
October 18 4:30 p.m.
November 7 5:30 p.m. (Area Council PTA)
February 13 5:30 p.m.
April 10 5:30 p.m.
Donations Needed
Extended Day Center
Our ED Center Program is off to a soaring start with an average of 55 participants before school and 105 after school. The kids enjoy having extra play time with their friends and parents enjoy us scheduling in homework to help free up family time in the evenings. On one of the first days of school, as I announced we would now have a “half hour” of homework time . . .two different boys approached me and said “Mrs. Grant, last year we only had to do home-work for 30 minutes.” Haha Obviously, I explained it was the same amount of time.
As you’re doing your Fall Cleaning, please keep in mind what could possibly be donated to our program before throwing items away. Examples: Craft items – paper, ribbon, crayons, markers, paint, wrapping paper, beads, etc. Gym/Outdoor items – basketballs, footballs, jump ropes, soccer balls, etc. When sending these items in, please mark for Extended Care.
Thank You so much! Hope to see you in the ED Center soon.
Barbara Grant
ED Center Coordinator
Community Outreach
Recycling News
Welcome back!! I hope everyone had a great summer! As we begin the new school year, I would like to introduce our new students and remind our returning students about our recycle program here at West Terrace.
Plastic caps-Our school NO LONGER accepts plastic caps for recycling. Thank you for your support in acquiring benches and tables for our property!
Aluminum cans and tabs-We have a collection cage for aluminum cans on the east side parking area, sitting next to the blue dumpster. You can pull up in your car and deposit them in the cage at any time. Send aluminum tabs in with your child to drop in the blue tub located inside school.
Paper, plastic, cardboard, and glass-We collect these items inside the school and you can collect them at home! West Terrace is part of the city recycling program and we have a clearly marked recycle dumpster sitting in the east parking area. You are able to bring your recycle items to school and put them in the dumpster at your convenience!!
Thank you to everyone for teaching our students to be good stewards of Mother Earth,
Mrs. Risley
THIS YEAR'S STAFF
Please help us welcome the following staff members to our teams.
Here are the specific grade level assignments:
Kindergarten:
Tara Kolb, rm 32
Wendy Brunson, rm 30
Lisa Gooch, rm 33
Angela Hayes, rm 34
First Grade
Amanda Woods, rm 1
Brooke Corressell, rm 3
Mallorie Roberts, rm 6
Cindy Hamon, rm 5
Second Grade
Vera Emmons, rm 9
Carie Kingery, rm 10
Trisha Kavanaugh, rm 15
Amy Nau, rm 12
Third Grade
Janette Allen, rm 16/ Stephanie Scheu, rm 16
Robin Bass, rm 19/ Denise Strawn, rm 18
Amanda Southworth, rm 23
Fourth Grade
Shelly DeWeese, rm 22/ Lindsey Stine, rm 29
Audrey Gower, rm 24/Nikki Paul, rm 23
Fifth Grade
Trish Toelle, rm 26/Renee Schefer, rm 27
Cassie Curl, rm 28/Simone Nance, rm 25
Special Ed
LIfeskills:
Jennifer Bennett, rm 4
Sarah Walls, rm 2
Resource:
Renae Jackson, rm 14
Shelley Patton, rm 21
Amanda Ritzert, media center
Rotation
Susan Kemper, Art, rm 8
Anne Woodruff, Music, rm 7
Peggy Belanger, Gym
Nadine Risley, Technology
Office
Katie White, Principal
Bethany Lynch, Principal Intern
April Coughlin, Counselor
Sheri Moore, Principal's Secretary
Nicole Smith, Secretary/Receptionist
Christine Hamilton, Nurse
Peggy Jewell, Media Aide
West Terrace Elementary School
8000 West Terrace Drive
Evansville, IN 47712
FAX (812) 435-8869
Email: katie.white@evsc.k12.in.us
Website: evscschools.com/westterrace
Location: West Terrace Elementary School, West Terrace Drive, Evansville, IN, United States
Phone: (812) 435-8733
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/West-Terrace-Elementary-School/333852756647518