ANDERSON ANGLE
Volume IV Issue 7
A Message From Mr. Hewitt
Hello Anderson Families,
Last December, the Iowa Department of Education released its annual Iowa School Report Card. A description located on the Department of Education websites describes the report as follows; The Iowa School Report Card is a web-based rating system to show how each public school is performing on certain educational measures. Schools receive a score for eight individual indicators, and those scores are combined into an overall score. Based on the overall score, one of the following ratings is assigned to each school: Exceptional, High-Performing, Commendable, Acceptable, Needs Improvement, and Priority. The Iowa School Report Card is designed to inform Iowans and to enhance local conversations about school strengths and challenges. The Iowa Department of Education developed the system in response to a 2013 legislative requirement (House File 215).
During the 2017 reporting period, Anderson Elementary received a rating of Commendable. This was up from the 2016 rating of Acceptable. As a staff, we are proud of this positive growth. Below is a link to visit, if you choose to learn more about the report.
http://reports.educateiowa.gov/schoolreportcard
Additionally, I would like to remind all visitors to Anderson Elementary to use the East entrance of the building and check in with our secretary (Julie Hall). At that time, you will be asked for a current driver's license to be scanned in our system. We appreciate your cooperation in the check-in/visitor process.
As always, the staff and I are available to discuss questions or concerns you have about your child’s education. Thank you for being a partner in education!
Sincerely,
Mel Hewitt, Principal
Please Follow Anderson Elementary on Twitter: @MelHewitt1, #AndersonJays
March Calendar
2 - No School - Professional Development Day
12-16 - SPRING BREAK
Be sure to visit the Community Link (below) for more activities and events
2:00 Dismissal Every Monday
The Anderson Elementary office will be closed during Spring Break.
Preschool News
Preschoolers have been busy in February! We finished our exercise study by talking about the Olympics. We also had a nutritional health coach from Natural Grocers participate in food experiments with us.
Preschoolers did several fun STEM experiments this month! One experiment focused on how candy hearts reacted when put in different liquids. We also made “love potion.” Students were given different liquids and had to decide which one would have a chemical reaction when baking soda was added to it. We ended the month by making muffins!
February 8th was our Preschool Family Fun Night. Students and their families participated in various STEM activities including Kool-Aid playdoh, sensory bottles, and slime. They also had the opportunity to play games and make crafts. The night was a lot of fun, and we had a great turn out!
Bondurant's BEST Students of the Week
Bondurant's BEST Students of the Week
Bondurant's BEST Students of the Week
Third Grade News
Anderson’s third-graders are learning about the struggles of moving west during the mid-1800’s through our weekly text Sarah Plain and Tall and the classic game, Oregon Trail. While the students enjoy reading the story about Sarah and her move west, they get a little bit more of a realistic outlook by playing the game and trying to move their families across the United States.
Sarah Plain and Tall is about a young woman, Sarah, who moves across the country to be with her new family, Anna, Caleb, and Papa Witting. While reading this story, we are working on understanding story structure, gaining a better understanding of characters, setting, and plot.
Oregon Trail is a classic game that was created to represent hardships the pioneers had moving west. Our third graders get to experience that a little bit in our reading block and they are loving it!
Bondurant's BEST Students of the Week
Bondurant's BEST Students of the Week
Bondurant's BEST Students of the Week
4th Grade - February Fun!
February has been a busy month for the fourth-graders here at Anderson. They’ve enjoyed their spring party, they rocked their Iowa Assessments, and we have conferences fast approaching! But the most exciting thing for the fourth-graders was their field trip!
Fourth-grade teachers took the students to an Iowa Wolves game on February 6th, made possible by the generosity of the PTO. We spent the majority of our day at Wells Fargo Arena taking in all that a Wolves game has to offer. There was music, dancing, appearances on the jumbo screen, interactive audience games, and of course, basketball!
Anderson students enjoyed close seats just behind the bench of the Wolves as they took on the Memphis Hustle. There was shouting and cheering as the Wolves put on a show and beat the Hustle. This victory was not only thrilling to watch for students, but it also earned them a free small fry from Wendy’s!
During timeouts, between quarters, and halftime, the audience was engaged in various activities. Some of these activities involved students learning about healthy food choices and exercises. There were also several interactions with the team mascot. A few students even had their picture taken with him!
The students had a great time and made teachers proud by demonstrating Bondurant’s BEST behavior. It was an exciting day for all students and staff involved!
Bondurant's BEST Students of the Week
Bondurant's BEST Students of the Week
Bondurant's BEST Students of the Week
5th Grade Fragments
Iowa Assessments
Iowa Assessments are complete! All of our students worked hard to improve scores from last year and show what they know. Our team is very proud of them. At the conclusion of Iowa Assessments, fifth graders earned a game day. As a reward, we set aside thirty minutes for students to participate in a variety of games. Fun was had by all!
Human Growth and Development
The fifth-grade class will have a lesson on the early stages of puberty, which many fifth graders are beginning to experience. We will begin the program on Friday, March 9 at 2:30 pm. The boys and girls will view a video in separate classrooms. Following the video, a classroom discussion will take place to understand the physical and emotional changes they will experience. They will also discuss the importance of personal hygiene. If parents would like to preview the video before the students; please contact Nurse Porter at (515) 967-7494.
Band Field Trip
On Tuesday, February 13th fifth-grade band students had a chance to experience Creole music with a field trip to the Civic Center. They listened to Creole music sung and played by The Zydeco Experience, a zydeco band from Louisiana, lead by Terrance Simien. They have won a Grammy Award for their album. It was an excellent opportunity to listen to a unique genre of music.
Bondurant's BEST Students of the Week
Bondurant's BEST Students of the Week
Bondurant's BEST Students of the Week
Art News
January flew by, and there was SO much going on in the Anderson Elementary art room! After we returned to school from winter break, we welcomed Miss Hermon, a Simpson art student teacher, to our classroom! She had so much fun getting to know all of her students. Miss Hermon developed her own art lesson plans for her eight-week placement at Anderson, and the kids were so excited to start these AWESOME projects!
Third grade created Warhol Pop Art Emojis with the incorporation of the six watercolor techniques that they had previously practiced. Fourth graders finished up their Picasso Polaroids, a self-portrait collage using traits of each student’s personality. And fifth graders learned the design principles of a Comic Book Cover and created their own comic book character that represented their best traits. These projects are all currently on display at Anderson in the hallways so come on in and check them out!
On February 8th, the Ankeny Art Center hosted our Annual Bondurant-Farrar K-12 Art Show Open House. We had a great turnout with lots of B-F students, staff, and community members who attended the reception to show support! The show ran through February 21st, and artwork was then returned to all student participants.
Please follow the Anderson Elementary art classroom on Mrs. Reyerson’s twitter account @andartteach and please feel free to leave comments!
From the Desk of Mrs. Miltenberger
SIMON'S HOOK
Simon’s Hook is a school-wide elementary program that equips students with strategies to help them deal with teasing and put-downs. The book, Simon’s Hook by Karen Gedig Burnett, uses the premise that when a person reacts to teasing comments and put-downs by getting angry or upset, they “bite the hook.” The book teaches the children to respond by using the five Simon’s Hook strategies. They include; 1) Laugh or Make a Joke, 2) Distract or Change the Subject, 3) Do Little Or Nothing (Don’t React), 4) Agree and 5) Stay Away (Swim in Another Part of the Sea), the child stops the teasing by not allowing the “fisherman” to “catch” them. The book and the corresponding five strategies are introduced in Kindergarten and reviewed each year through games and activities. There is also a website; grandmarose.com that the students can access which contains games that allow students to practice the five strategies. Also, through the PTO we were able to purchase Simon’s Hook posters for all of the classrooms. The program is useful for reducing the incidences of bullying since it empowers the students to stop teasing before it turns into bullying. I encourage you to ask your children about the five strategies and how they can use them if they are in a situation where they are being teased or put down.
School Counselor (Mrs. Miltenberger)
The school counselors at BFCSD are here to serve all of our families. Please do not hesitate to contact me at miltenbergerl@bfschools.org for additional resources or referral information. You can also find a list of outside agencies that provide counseling on the School Counselor section of the Bondurant-Farrar website; https://www.bfschools.org/Page/729
A Note From the Anderson Elementary PBIS Committee...
As we enter into the winter months here in Iowa, please remember to dress your children appropriately and safely for school each day. As a rule of thumb at Anderson Elementary, we keep the students inside for recess if the temperature is 5 degrees or lower (actual temperature or wind chill). With that in mind, please remind your child to wear the appropriate winter clothing; hats, gloves or mittens, warm coat, and when there is snow on the ground, boots and snow pants.
It is a great idea to label all of your winter gear with your child’s name so that it is easily identifiable if it goes missing. And on those days when there is snow on the ground, and your child wears their boots to and from school, don’t forget to pack an extra pair of shoes that they may wear while they are at school.
Thank you in advance for helping our students stay warm and safe!
Congratulations, Staff!
B.E.S.T. Staff of the Week
B.E.S.T. Staff of the Week
B.E.S.T. Staff of the Week
BackPack Program
Once again, we are excited to partner with the Food Bank of Iowa to provide nutritious weekend snacks to low-income families with elementary aged students. If you are in need or know of a family who may benefit from this program, please call Mrs. Bonita Wiley at 515-967-7494 or email her at wileyb@bfschools.org. For more information regarding The BackPack Program, please click here.
WatchDOG Program
The Bondurant-Farrar WatchDOGs program is a parent involvement program that invites parent-figures into the school to help increase security and reduce bullying. Moms, dads, grandparents, aunts, and uncles are encouraged to spend a half- or full-day at their child’s school. During that day, you’ll have the opportunity to be in your child’s classroom, eat lunch with him or her, help in other classrooms, monitor hallways, and/or assist teachers and administrators with every-day projects – all of which enhance the overall education experience of our children. To find out more, or to sign-up to be a WatchDOG, email watchdogsbondurant@gmail.com.
Box Tops for Education App
There is now a Bonus Box Tops app to help us earn even more to buy new library books! When you download the app, it will show you products you can earn bonus points for. When you scan your receipt, you'll earn the bonuses! Our school's Box Tops account is listed under Anderson Elementary because the account existed before Morris did, but the money earned is split equally between Anderson and Morris Libraries.
Anderson Elementary
Email: hewittm@bfschools.org
Website: http://www.bfschools.org
Location: 400 Garfield Street Southwest, Bondurant, IA, United States
Phone: 515-967-7494
Twitter: @MelHewitt1