HILLTOP HAPPENINGS!
JANUARY 2018
PRINCIPAL MESSAGE
What to look forward to in January: On January 4th we have several events planned. First, Mary Tons from Martial Arts America will kick off the winter after-school karate classes, targeted for students in grades three to five. The fee is $20 for four classes. Students get an introductory exposure to karate while Hilltop’s fine arts fund gets a boost from the revenue for the classes. We will also have a Jump Rope for Heart assembly on January 4th where students may participate in obtaining pledges for the Heart Association. If January 4th is not already packed with many activities, Hilltop will host its annual spelling bee. Eight finalists from third, fourth, and fifth grades will compete in a spelling bee to determine which student moves forward in the Scripps Howard Spelling Bee. Other events in January include Hilltop’s COSI event on January 9th. This year’s COSI theme is The Amazing Human Machine. If you would like to volunteer at our COSI event, please contact our office at 733-4322. Last, but not least,
Is our 1st semester Awards Assembly, where students are recognized for their efforts in responsibility, academics, attitude, attendance, and specials (art, music, physical education, and technology). The Awards Assembly will be held January 18th. Feel free to call our office if you have any questions about January’s events.
JANUARY EVENTS
2 School Resumes
4 Grades 3, 4, 5 Spelling Bee
9 COSI visit
12 End of Quarter/Early Release
15 No School
18 Awards- Grades 1 & 2, 8:30 a.m., Grades 3,4, 5, 9:30
Preschool Open House, 5- 6:30 p.m.
19 Report Cards Home
PTO Dance, Hilltop Gym
22-26 Hilltop Preschool Lottery Registration Open
COUNSELOR NEWS
I am amazed at the generosity that the little community of Reading Hilltop is able to produce. Within the last three months, we have raised over $600 to support our families in need. Each year, I look forward to the smiling faces of the students who help raise the money. They learn so much about compassion and empathy, which will continue throughout their lives. I also would like to thank Valley Central Bank for adopting a family this holiday season! My favorite quote from the Chinese Philosopher, Lao Tzu, sums the reason why we continue to give to those in need, “Kindness in words creates confidence. Kindness in thinking creates profoundness. Kindness in giving creates love.”
EDUCATOR OF THE MONTH
Mrs. Taryn Williams is the Educator of the Month for the month of January. Mrs. Williams has taught elementary school for the past sixteen years, and all sixteen of those years have been spent at Hilltop Elementary. During that time she has taught kindergarten, second grade, and third grade. Mrs. Williams prides herself in providing her students the best possible classroom environment in which to learn. As a child herself, she was eager to tell her mom and dad after first day of kindergarten that she wanted to be a teacher when she grew up. The desire to be a teacher grew stronger as she became older, believing that she could have a positive impact on children and make a difference in their lives. Truly, she has lived up to that belief.
Mrs. Williams earned her bachelor in early childhood education at Wright State University. She also holds a masters degree in education. For the past several years, Mrs. Williams has been teaching third grade math. She enjoys teaching third grade because she feels that third grade students are independent and thoughtful and they still think that their teacher is the best. She also finds delight in seeing the boys and girls come to school each day with a smile on their faces.
When she is not at school, Mrs. Williams enjoys spending time with her husband and her twin daughters and son. In addition to hanging out with friends, Mrs. Williams and her family are avid UC football fans, and as season ticket holders, they can be seen at the home games, cheering and supporting the players.
We are very fortunate to have Mrs. Williams as a staff member at Hilltop Elementary. Not only is she an awesome teacher, but she is always willing to step up and help out others in need. Thank you, Mrs. Williams, for being a part of our Hilltop family.
Preschool News
Happy New Year! The new year brings more learning and fun for our preschoolers! In January we will be learning about letters K, L, M, N, and O. We’ll practice identifying these letters, the sounds they make, and writing them too! We will also work on rhyming and blending/segmenting syllables. In math we will practice counting to 30, counting using one-to-one correspondence, and identifying numbers 1-9. We’ll also continue making patterns and practicing positional words such as above, under, and beside. In Science we will explore the properties of solids and liquids. Your child’s first report card will come home on January 19th. If your little one will be in preschool with us again next year look for information coming home about registration! 2018 is going to be a great year!
KIndergarten News
Happy New Year! We have many fun and exciting activities planned to start the New Year! We will be studying penguins and doing various snowman activities. In math, we will be studying shapes as well as recognizing their similarities and differences. We are excited to start the New Year and look forward to watching your children continue to grow.
First Grade News
Happy New Year! First grade will kick off January learning about the three states of matter! We will learn all about snowflakes and hopefully be able to observe snowflakes up close! We will continue to practice sequencing stories, identifying the main idea using key details in a story, and character traits! Martin Luther King, Jr. is an important part of our history so we will spend a week learning about Martin Luther King and why we celebrate him. It will be a fun month!
Second Grade News
Happy New Year! We are excited to get back to work in second grade! In math we will finish chapter 4 and being chapter 5 in Go Math, which is all about subtraction! We will introduce breaking apart numbers to subtract 2-digits, and will also solve multi-step subtraction problems. Reading will be filled with biographies on famous people in history. We will take some time to learn and celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., as well as many important others that have shaped our world into what it is today. In Science, we will begin our force and motion unit. We will also begin an ongoing geography unit on Maps. We will study various types of maps and work on understanding exactly where we are on a map.
Third Grade News
January in language arts and social studies brings us around the world to read fables and folktales from many different cultures. We read many different tales and learn to write a strong fable and folktale too! We hope to also continue Hilltop’s focus on helping others in need in our community. Giving back and helping others is so important to being a socially responsible citizen. In math, the students will review area and perimeter and will start a new unit involving fractions. Students will be responsible for naming, identifying, ordering and comparing fractions. This is our most challenging unit for the students but it’s also a lot of fun.
Fourth Grade News
In social studies, students will be moving into a short economics unit. Students will complete lessons studying cost inflation, budgeting and making choices when trying to stick to a budget. In language arts, students will be working in informational units for both reading and writing. Ask your child which topics they are learning about and which topics they are teaching others about. In math, we are beginning our work with fractions. This is a large unit for us in fourth grade and will take us through February! In science we will begin our second topic of study-Life Science. We will be exploring how ecosystems can change gradually or dramatically and the effects these changes have on organisms.
Fifth Grade News
As we begin the new year in Language Arts we will continue our study of historical fiction texts. The students will be in small book groups after choosing a book that interests them. We will begin writing narrative stories and continue our work on spelling & vocabulary (we spend 2 weeks on each list). Our social studies will be closely related to Lang. Arts as we continue our study of history and the indigenous tribes of North & South America. In math, the students will be finishing multiplying and dividing decimals and moving into fractions. Fractions are a large part of 5th grade math so be ready! In science, 5th grade will be blasting off into the concept of SPACE! We will be looking at the individual characteristics of planets, including distances from the sun and spatial comparisons of the planets. It will be out of this world!
Reading Hilltop Elementary
Cincinnati, Ohio 45215
513-733-4322 Office
513-483-6771 Attendance Line