EAST ELEMENTARY
December Newsletter
Letter from Mrs. Hietala
Greetings East Orcas,
We are enjoying our Winter Wonderland. The snow has brought a new excitement to our hallways and classrooms. Please make sure to send your students to school with winter gear.
We are excited about our upcoming K-2 Winter Concert on Monday, December 5th at 6:30. PTA will be sponsoring Breakfast with Santa on Saturday, December 10th from 9-11 for East families. We also will be doing our traditional Top 10 Countdown Sing-a-Long on Friday, December 16th.
Attending school regularly helps children feel better about school—and themselves. Building the habit that going to school on time, every day is important. Eventually good attendance will be a skill that will help them succeed in high school and college.
At school, your student is engaging in phonological awareness activities. These activities take place orally and are about having fun with language play. This is no need for any writing or reading during this practice. Just have fun with the sounds in words!
Consider using the following activities at home with your child:
★ Punch it Up!
Give your child a word from the list below and have them punch their fist up in the air when they say the last sound.
floaT gloBe dreaM neCK hiVe froZe
★ Can you blend (put together) these syllables to make a word?”
in - sect → insect
stu - dent → student
gym - nas - tics → gymnastics
★ Be a Ninja!
Say a word and have your child act like a ninja by chopping words into their syllables. Say, “Can you segment (chop) this word into its individual syllables?”
afternoon → af - ter - noon
member → mem - ber
fantastic → fan - tas - tic
★ Switch-A-Roo!
Can you tell me the new word I can make if I substitute (change) one syllable in a word to a new one?
Say turkey→ change /tur/ to /mun/ and the word is? → monkey
Say longer → change /long/ to /quick/ and the word is? → quicker
Say monster→ change /mon/ to /ham/ and the word is? → hamster
★ Books to enjoy together:
Look for these books at the library that support syllable and sound awareness!
○ The Word Collector by Peter H. Reynolds
○ Tanka Tanka Skunk! by Steve Webb
○ Don’t Be Silly, Mrs. Millie by Judy Cox
Make it Multi-sensory!
Use legos, blocks, magnets or tiles to represent the syllables!
For example, use blocks to represent syllables. Push 2 blocks away from each other to segment syllables or push them together to blend syllables into a whole word.
View our lesson demonstrations to see how using our hand motions can support your child. Heggerty Phonemic Awareness - YouTube
I hope each and every one of you have a blessed winter holiday.
Mrs. Hietala
Counselor's Notes
Ever feel like you’re running out of time in the day to accomplish all the things you’ve added to your list? You’re not alone! It’s tempting for everyone to check off one last thing before we turn out the lights and go to bed, like watch one more episode or scroll a little further down your social media feed.
Here’s the secret your busy mind doesn’t want you to know—getting more sleep tonight means you’ll be able to do more with the hours you have tomorrow!
What happens when I don’t get enough sleep?
We’re unable to process what we’ve learned during the day and have trouble remembering it in the future.
We’re at increased risk for health problems and our immunity is compromised.
We risk worsening existing symptoms of depression, seizures, high blood pressure or migraines.
How much sleep should I (and my children) get?
Children 6-12 years of age should sleep 9-12 hours over a 24-hour period.
Teens 13-18 years of age should sleep 8-10 hours over a 24-hour period.
Adults should sleep 7 hours or more per night.
Learn more from the American Academy of Sleep Medicine.
How can my family get better sleep?
Consistency: Try going to bed at the same time each night and getting up at the same time each morning (including weekends).
Routine: Follow a nightly routine that allows 30 minutes to wind down (brush teeth, put on pjs, listen to calming music or read a book, dim the lights). Don’t forget to unplug from electronics 30-60 minutes before bed!
Atmosphere: Make sure your bedroom is as quiet, dark and relaxing as possible. Keep the temperature comfortable (~65 degrees Fahrenheit). Try calming scents like lavender or chamomile.
Daily Habits: Get outside daylight exposure, be physically active, cut down on caffeine in afternoon/evening, and eat dinner around 5-6 p.m.
Thank you!
Best,
Amanda & Jennifer
FOOD DRIVE
Thank you to all families who sent in food for the food drive! We collected over 800 items to feed families in our community. The class who brought in the most was Ms. Austin's second graders. We celebrated the end of the food drive and Thanksgiving with an assembly where we were able to share what we are all thankful for and Mr. Wolcott was chosen to wear a turkey costume!
Student's in Ms. Austin's 2nd grade class
Food collected
Mr. Wolcott
KNITTING CLUB
UPCOMING EVENTS
K-2 Music Concert 6:30PM at the Gerald C Wilson Auditorium
Tuesday, December 6
PTA Meeting 5:00pm
Saturday, December 10
Breakfast with Santa 9:00am - 11:00am for East Elementary students and families in the
East Elementary Commons
Friday, December 16
Top 10 Countdown
Monday, December 19 - Monday, January 2
Winter Break
Tuesday, January 3
Return to school
Monday, January 16
District Inservice - NO SCHOOl