CES Weekly Communicator

Happy Friday, Chapelfield Families!

Today, we had our second learning community, also called PACKS! It has been fun seeing students wave to their pack members in the hall the past few weeks in anticipation and hearing them ask for more time together. Our focus this time was on learning how mindful coloring is one way we can cope when we have different emotions. We are going to put all of our mindful coloring together to form a piece of a larger artwork. Thank you Mrs. Karr for the inspiration! You can hear her message here to see what students practiced together. Maybe you can enjoy sometime to mindful color as a family this rainy weekend.

We also want to say thank you to PTO for having a staff WOOT WOOT wagon this week as a thank you for working hard during the power outage. Teachers were amazing that day and they continued teaching about our PBIS-PAWS program! We have such a great relationship with our families at Chapelfield.

Enjoy your weekend.

Sincerely,

Nikki Miller

Kindergarten and first grade music class involves a lot of movement oriented activities, learning to work with partners, and growing in listening and communication skills. Students are learning to use their singing voices, move to music and keep a steady beat in large group, small group and individual experiences. We read lots of stories and enjoy playing many singing games. First grade recently began reading and performing combinations of quarter note and eighth note rhythmic patterns and are making connections between words and rhythm. Favorite songs include "Apple Tree" and "Hello, How are You?" Favorite activities seem to involve anything we do that uses the parachute, especially when we play the game that goes along with the song "Grizzly Bear!"

Second graders are continuing in their music notation reading and singing lots of songs. Ask your second grader about the song "Gilly, Gilly." Students are using this song to demonstrate their ability to bounce and catch a tennis ball to the steady beat of the song and also to toss and catch it with a partner while singing. Students enjoy singing songs in various languages including "Bate Bate Chocolate" and "Howdy, Hi, How Are You?" They are doing a great job learning to echo patterns on our new, large tubano drums and are exploring ways to create their own rhythmic phrases using these drums.

Third grade students recently added sixteenth notes to their rhythmic reading and are learning to perform songs that have more than one part. They have been really excited to learn a piece called "Locomotor Engine" and have been working to perform it on the tubano drums. In the coming lessons, we will be working to perform this piece in three parts and the students are excited for the challenge. Favorite activities have included a rhythm stick dance from Mexico called "Los Machetes," a partner game called "Adze Ee! from Ghana, "Bate, Bate Chocolate'' and a newer song called "Tick Tock" which to their surprise is actually about a clock and not the social media videos. Ha! Ha! Ask your third grader to play a few rounds of "Welcome to McDonalds'' - rock, paper, scissors, shoot!

Fourth grade is exploring improvisation through movement and speech pieces such as "Jump In, Jump Out" where students introduce themselves and share something they like to do. This group is doing lots of singing and doing a great job of learning to sing one part while hearing another with songs such as the French folk song, "J'entends Le Moulin'' and "Jimba." Using the tubanos, students are continuing to work on improvisation by playing four beat rhythmic patterns on the drums. Ask them to tell you about “The Playa Bowls” song which they are learning to perform as a class, divided into four parts.

Fifth grade continues to grow in their music reading and performance skills. They are learning pieces from all over the world including songs such as “Dja, Dja, Dja” from Ghana. Most lessons include time drumming where students are learning to switch between playing high and low tones using proper drumming technique. Students are learning to play a “response” to the teacher's musical “call” and to find ways to create patterns that fit into a given musical context. We are working on playing an ensemble piece from Ghana that is comprised of three different drumming parts and added to the song “Funga Alafia” which is a welcome song from Africa. They are working hard to listen to each other and perform their own part within the ensemble framework.

I am proud of the hard work that Chapelfiled students show in the music room and the ways that they encourage each other to try new things, finding joy and confidence through music.

The book fair provides a great opportunity for students to purchase books they would like to read. It is also a great fundraiser for the library, with at least 20% of the sales coming back to the school to purchase books or other library programs. Students will visit the book fair during their scheduled Library class time, as listed below. Purchases can be made with cash, check, credit card, or Literati gift card. Literati gift cards can be purchased at efairs.literati.com. Please make sure that you select Chapelfield as the school so that these gift cards can be used at the book fair. Students will need to pay tax on all purchases, so please make sure that your student has enough to pay for the tax.

Volunteers are Needed! If you are able to join us during the book fair to help students select books and manage their budget, please use the Sign-Up Genius. You are welcome to sign up for ANY class because volunteers are very helpful during the book fair!

Family Night! The book fair will be open for all families to shop on Thursday, February 8 from 2:30 - 7:00.

View the letter that went home with all students last week for more information. You can also email Mrs. Long at longj@gjps.org with any questions, or if you have any requests about what your student can purchase (for example, no journals).

Monday, February 5, 2024

Steber

Troutman

Sinkey

Hammond

Pijor

Overmyer

Tuesday, February 6, 2024

Scheiner

Powell

Pardi

Oberlin

Waddle

Wednesday, February 7, 2024

Weimer

Ginn

Shearer

Dimmerling

Thursday, February 8, 2024

Buzinski

Williams

McCulley

Bhatt

Stummer

FAMILY NIGHT 2/8/24 2:30 - 7:00

All K-3 students will take the Acadience Reading assessment beginning this coming week. The assessment window is from January 29 - February 16. Acadience Reading is a universal screening assessment that measures the acquisition of early literacy skills. This assessment provides reliable and valid data to find students who may be at risk for reading difficulties, and helps identify skills to target for instructional support. Classroom teachers will share assessment results with families once the testing window closes.

Students in our English Learner (EL) program will take the Ohio English Language Proficiency Assessment (OELPA) in February. The OELPA is a required test for English Learners in the state of Ohio. There are four parts to the test: Listening, Speaking, Reading and Writing. This will help us know how your child is growing with their English language skills.

Your student does not need to do anything to get ready for the OELPA. What we are doing in school will help them prepare for this test.

We will receive the test results in May. A family report will be emailed to you by the end of June. Translated reports can be mailed home to families who ask for them.

The test scores are used to help us plan your student's English Learner services for the 2024-25 school year. Students who score “Proficient” on this text will exit the EL Program.

If you have questions about this test, please contact Mrs. Melville at melvillm@gjps.org.

The Ohio State Testing schedule is outlined below for students in grades 3, 4, and 5. We kindly ask that you avoid scheduling planned dental and/or doctor appointments on these dates. We really appreciate your support and understanding!

As you all know, the weather in Ohio is constantly changing. Some days are warmer than others while other days are just plain cold! Please make sure to check the forecast so that your child is prepared as we will be going outside for recess as long as the temperatures are above 20 degrees.

As the weather turns colder, it is important for families to know the procedures for closing or delaying school. Closing and delay information will be communicated in the following ways:

Local news stations: WTVN, WCOL (FM & AM/WJFX), WCLT, WKRZ, WMNI-AM, WUFM, WCMH NBC4, WBNS 10TV, WSYX ABC6, WTTE FOX 28, and the Columbus Dispatch. *Look for Gahanna-Jefferson Schools.

Website: www.gahannaschools.org (All delay/closing information is posted on the district homepage).

Facebook: Search @GahannaJeffersonSchools on Facebook to find this page easily

Email/Phone Call: The Infinite Campus system will send an email and make a phone call informing parents/guardians of the closing and/or delay as soon as the decision is made in the early morning.

If you believe your family may qualify for free/reduced-price meals, please apply online for free or reduced-price meal benefits with these easy steps:

1. Sign in to your Infinite Campus Parent Portal.
2. Choose "MORE" in the left-hand column.
3. Choose "MEAL BENEFITS".

RELATED LINKS

GJPS Food Service Webpage

Free/Reduced-Price Meal Benefits Online Application Tutorial (PDF)

Free/Reduced-Price Meal Benefits Paper Application (PDF)

Events:

*Wednesday, January 31: Restaurant Night at City BBQ located at 108 S Stygler Rd, Gahanna, Ohio from 11:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Use promo code FundA when ordering online.

*Friday, February 16: PTO Snow Tubing Day at Mad River from 2-4 p.m.

GJEA Gala-Ways we can support

The PTO is selling raffle tickets! The tickets are $10 per raffle ticket or 3 for $25. The raffle is for $1000 CASH! If you'd like to purchase raffle tickets, email Andreaagan1@aol.com. Good luck! By the way, Chapelfield gets back 50% of all raffle ticket sales, so you're directly supporting Chapelfield with your raffle ticket purchase. The winning ticket will be announced on 2/24/24. The winner does not have to be present at the night of the gala to win! Cash is accepted or a check written out to GJEF!

Other ways to help with the gala are listed below:

• If you'd like to be a donor for the gala or donate an item for the auction, please contact Dianna Bessignano at BessignoanoD@gjps.org or Tricia Mueller at twiggt@gjps.org.
• If you'd like to donate an item to the gala from their Amazon Wish List, here's the link https://tinyurl.com/2024GalaWishlist.

In 2022-2023 this is what the GJEF brought to our school district:

$65,475 awarded to 39 Grants of Excellence

$22,765 awarded in Mini Grants

$14,000 Fund A Need donations for Elementary Sensory Hallways

$33,320 for donor designated programs

$98,400 in Scholarships to 34 students

Thank you for supporting GJEF so that they can continue to support Chapelfield and all the schools in our district.

Volunteers Needed:

*Teacher Apprecition: We also still need people to help with teacher appreciation, May 6-10. Please contact PTO by email if you are interested helping.

*In order for us to give back to our school community and provide fun events, we need volunteers. Please sign up here to join our team.

Gahanna-Jefferson Public Schools has multiple ways to engage with the District during the month of January. We have a Coffee and Conversation on Jan. 17 at Dunkin' at 1-2:30 p.m. There will also be the State of the Schools and District Information Expo on Jan. 31 at Middle School West at 7 p.m. Check out the flyers for more information on how to join us!

The Heart and Pride Award recognizes two outstanding staff members each month who make a profound impact on our students and Gahanna-Jefferson Public Schools.

The Heart & Pride Nomination Form will remain available year-round and is open to any member of our staff, regardless of position.

Monday, January 29-Friday, February 15: Acadience Testing for K-3 students

Monday, January 29-Friday, March 22: OELPA testing for EL students

Tuesday, January 30: Yearbook candid pictures

Wednesday, January 31: PTO Restaurant Night @ City BBQ from 11 a.m.-8 p.m.

Monday, February 5-9: Literati Book Fair

Tuesday, February 6: PTO meeting 7-8 p.m.; Learn about our new math curriculum-Bridges

Thursday, February 8: Parent Teacher Conferences and Family Night @ the Literati Book Fair

Tuesday, February 13: Parent Teacher Conferences

Thursday, February 15: Valentine's Day Service Project and Parties

Friday, February 16: PTO Snow Tubing Day at Mad River 2-4 p.m.

2023-24 GJPS District Calendar (PDF)

2023-2024 School Menus

BUS SCHEDULE AND ROUTES FOR 2023-24

24-25 School Calendar

25-26 School Calendar